Transcript: Spiritual Tools for Overcoming Life's Battles with God's Help

Music Music This urgent message brought to you today is probably one of the most important and vital questions of all times that we should ask ourselves in this day and year of 2022. The question is, am I truly saved? If I died tonight, will I inherit eternal life and spend eternity with my Savior Jesus Christ? Jesus tells us in John's Gospel, chapter 14, verse 6, I am the way and the truth and the life no one comes to the Father except through me is it possible to know if a person is truly saved or has eternal life in Christ well there are many who don't think you can know for sure and yet there are others who teach that once a person pronounces a scripture and invites Jesus into their hearts they are assured of eternal salvation A scripture that is overused in this way is found in Romans 10.9 That if you confess with your mouth Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead you will be saved for it is with your heart that you believe and are justified and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved For instance, by using the expression to say ask Jesus into your life or heart or by using a scripture, believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved. Acts chapter 16 verses 31 through 32. But this is not enough. Jesus Christ is not cheap. He paid a high price to have those whom he calls his child or the redeemed of the Lord. It must be noted first of all that God Almighty is not the author of confusion, but he is a loving God of peace and cares very much for all of his creation. John chapter 3 verse 16 tells us For God so loved the world and dearly prized the world he even gave up his only begotten son so that whomever believes in, trusts in, clings to and relies on him shall not perish, shall not come to destruction or be lost but have eternal everlasting life. Nowhere in God's word does it say just invite the Lord Jesus into your heart or life and you will be saved. There is more to true salvation than this doctrine of error. We never want to rest on that belief or on a scripture that we fit into our head and call it good for our cushion of safety as an avenue for entering into the gates of heaven when we never go beyond one scripture. When the scripture declares, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved. It is a simple, plain, and fruitful direction in what any individual who is seeking forgiveness of their sins through Jesus Christ must do. The command was to believe. It did not tell them to rely on the means of grace or to pray or continue to look for salvation or any other way. The command was to believe at once. To believe means to have faith in Jesus Christ as your Savior. It means to trust in, to rely on him in what his word says. 1 John 5, verse 13. The beloved apostle John declares, I write this to you who believe, who adhere to, trust in, rely on, the name of the Son of God in peculiar services and blessings conferred by him on man. So, that you may know with settled and absolute knowledge that you already have life, yes, eternal life. So, yes, dear listener, it is possible to know that you have eternal life because God's word tells us so. It is true that many professing Christians doubt that they have been saved because they don't see signs of genuine faith in their lives. For some, the truth of the living God is not alive and vibrant in their hearts and lives. Let's look at the Bible dictionary of the word believe or have faith. Believe, according to the Bible dictionary, is to place one's trust in God's truth. one who takes God as his word and trusts in him for salvation. You see, even mere agreement to God's truth is not saving faith according to the Bible. And this is saying that just because someone utters these words, it is not enough. Jesus said in John chapter 8 verse 31, Jesus said to the Jews who believed him, If you abide in my word, you are my disciples indeed, and you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free. So Jesus tells us that we must continue in his word, which are his commandments and his doctrines. And he says, if you love me, you will obey me. And Romans chapter 8 verse 1 says, There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit. Those who are growing and living in Christ are those who love him with all of their hearts, their souls, their minds, and everything within them. They hate it if they should sin because they know first of all that they have offended the one whom their heart loves. And this is where the true test of genuine Christian character and fruit of one's life shows who is real in their genuine faith and love for Jesus Christ and who is playing the hypocrite or just deceiving themselves right into perdition. The Jews who believed were admonished by Jesus to prove their faith by their faithfulness. Faith, belief, and trust in Jesus makes one a true child of God. This child of God will be abiding or living in the word and growing in understanding, which is really knowing the truth, and will make one a true bona fide disciple of Jesus Christ. Jesus is speaking about spiritual matters when he was speaking to the believing Jews at that time. He was not speaking about the physical realm. A lost sinner is in bondage to the things of the world. And he tells us that knowing the truth and living it makes us free because the truth is found in Jesus Christ. Even in the account of Simon the sorcerer, the word tells us that Simon believed. Let's look at that account in Acts chapter 8 beginning in verse 9 And see a zoom in so to speak into Simon's heart But there was a man named Simon Who had formerly practiced magic arts in the city To the utter amazement of the Samarian nation Claiming that he himself was an extraordinary and distinguished person And they all paid earnest attention to him From the least to the greatest saying This man has that exhibition of the power of God, which is called great intent. Verse 11. And they were attentive and made much of him because for a long time he had amazed and bewildered and dazzled them with his skill in magic arts. But when they believed the good news, the gospel about the kingdom of God in the name of Jesus Christ, the Messiah, as Philip preached it, they were baptized, both men and women. Even Simon himself believed and adhered to, trusted and relied on the teachings of Philip. And after being baptized, he devoted himself constantly to him. And seeing signs and miracles of great power which were being performed, he was utterly amazed. And when the apostles, the special messengers at Jerusalem heard that the country of Samaria had accepted and welcomed the word of God, they sent Peter and John to them. They came down, prayed for them that the Samaritans might receive the Holy Spirit, for he had not yet fallen upon any of them, but they had only been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. Verse 17 Then the apostles laid their hands on them one by one, and they received the Spirit. However, when Simon saw the Holy Spirit was imparted through the laying on of the apostles' hands, he brought money and offered it to them, saying, Grant me also this power and authority in order that anyone whom I lay my hands on may receive the Holy Spirit. But Peter said to him, Destruction overtake your money and you, because you imagined you could obtain the free gift of God with money. You have neither part nor lot in this matter, for your heart is all wrong in God's sight. It is not straightforward or right or true before God. Wow. This record is an excellent example for those who have a profession of faith, but they have no true root of believing and trust in Jesus Christ their Savior. Simon the sorcerer was absolutely exposed and put to shame by the apostles once he was found out. Once Simon saw Peter and John begin to bestow the gifts of the Holy Spirit's power by the laying on of hands he lusted after it and offered money in order to have that power, he thought money could buy anything. He was guilty of utter insincerity. He proved his heart was totally unchanged while he worshipped and mingled with other believers. He was a hypocrite. He was a blasphemer. He never gave it a thought that he was tampering with the divine influence of the Holy Spirit. God in reality was nothing to him, and the sacred things of God were of value to use at his will and for his own shameful glory. He had faith in himself and in his power. Simon never made a total commitment to Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior. And we see we're placing emphasis on the act of belief as opposed to the centerpiece or object of belief, and that focus most certainly belongs to be placed on Jesus Christ. A belief or faith that saves is one that rests and remains on the finished work of Jesus Christ. This faith or trust is in God alone for salvation. This faith longs and yearns for a deeper relationship that moves into what is called fellowship with your Lord and Savior. This becomes your new way of life apart from the old way you used to live. It is not an offer for you to try out now. This is truly the greatest decision you will ever make in your life. This decision carries eternal value and eternal rewards promised by God himself. True genuine believers who have a genuine faith in Christ Jesus have entrusted him with their wills as well as their minds. Have you? They act in accordance with one of the commands which encourages us to periodically examine ourselves to see if we are truly walking in the faith. In 2 Corinthians 13, verse 5, the word tells us, examine and test and evaluate your own selves to see whether you are holding to your faith and showing the proper fruits of it test and prove yourselves not Christ do you not yourselves realize and know thoroughly by ever increasing experience that Jesus Christ is in you unless you are a counterfeit disapproved on trial and rejected well fortunately God has given enough instruction in his commands to know for sure that we have eternal life and this is true and valid because in 1st John 5 13 the beloved apostle John declares I write this to you who believe in adhere to trust in and rely on the name of the son of God so that you may know with settled absolute knowledge that you already have life. Yes, eternal life. You see, there is a development and progression in the test of 1 John 1 that gives us example guidelines to the development and plumb line, so to speak, regarding our faith or belief. The best study of sin in our lives and the remedy are found in God's Word. So with that, we will look specifically, and mainly in 1 John 1 for our pathway and answers to knowing if we are really truly saved or not. Remembering that no one will perfectly fulfill all of these all of the time because of their growing maturity in Christ, but your answers to these questions will give you insight and reveal a consistent trend that characterizes your life as you grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. Number one, do you have an active love for Jesus Christ? Jesus tells us in John 14, 15, If you really love me, you will keep, you will obey my commands. Number two, are you developing a relationship and fellowship with Jesus and his redeemed people? First John 1, 3, That which we have seen and heard and we declare to you, that you may also have fellowship with us and truly our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ. Number three. Do you walk in the light or do you walk in the darkness? 1 John chapter 1 verses 6 and 7. If we say that we have fellowship with him and walk in the darkness, we lie. We do not practice the truth. But if we walk in the light as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanses us from all sin. 4. Do you admit and confess your sins? 1 John 1, verses 8-10 If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. This next question is the big test or indicator of one's walk with the Lord. This is the test of whether or not you are actually growing in knowing your Savior. This is number five. Are you obedient to God's word? 1 John 2, verses 3-6 Now by this we know that we know him, if we keep his commandments. He who says I know him and does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him, but whoever keeps his word. Truly the love of God is perfected in him, and by this we know that we are in him. Verse 6 He who says he abides in him ought himself also to walk just as he walked. Number 6 Does your life indicate your love for God rather than the things of the world? 1 John 2, verses 15-17 Do not love the world or the things of the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, lust of the flesh, lust of the eye, pride of life, is not of the Father, but it is of the world. And the world is passing away, and the lust of it, but he who does the will of God, abides forever. Number 7. 1 John 2, verse 29 declares, If you know and you perceive and are sure that he, Jesus Christ, is absolute righteousness conforming to the Father's will in purpose, thought, and action, you may know also and be sure that everyone who does righteously and is therefore in like manner conformed to the divine will is born and begotten of him, God. This question asks Is your life marked with doing what is right and doing what is good according to God's way? Do you seek to uphold and defend a pure life in Christ? The scripture I give next indicates that every true follower of Christ will put his or her shoulder to the wheel and press in on this one and take action and make it a priority in their life. 1 John 3 declares, And everyone who has this hope resting on him, that is Christ, cleanses and purifies himself just as he is pure and chaste and undefiled and guiltless. 8. Do you see a decreasing pattern of sin in your life? 1 John 3 verses 4-6 Whoever commits sin also commits lawlessness. And sin is lawlessness. And you know that he was manifest to take away our sins. In him there is no sin. Whoever abides in him does not sin. Whoever sins has neither seen him nor knows him. Knowingly sinning and sinning when you know that you are breaking the commands of God is a very grave and dangerous place to be dear listener the scripture that we just read says a believer who is not continuing in sin as a way of life abides or lives in Christ Jesus. Number nine, do you have and demonstrate love for other believers? 1 John 3, verse 14 and 15 tells us, We know that we have passed from life to death because we love the brethren. He who does not love his brother abides in death. Whoever hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has entered into eternal life abiding in Christ. Verse 10. Do you walk the walk or do you talk the talk? 1 John 3, verses 18 and 19. Little children, let us not love merely in theory or in speech, but in deed and truth and practice and sincerity. By this we shall know that we have come to perceive and recognize and understand that we are of the truth and can reassure our hearts in his presence. Number 11 Do you maintain a clear conscience or a good conscience? 1 John 3, verse 21 And beloved, if our consciences, our hearts, do not accuse us, if they do not make us feel guilty and condemn us, we have confidence, complete assurance, and boldness before God. Well, I share a personal testimony of my own path in recognizing what a guilty conscience felt like and looks like. As a child and a young adult who grew up in the Catholic Church I used to go to confession and confess my sins before the priest routinely After leaving the confessional, I felt clean and righteous and thought If a truck suddenly ran over me, I would go directly to heaven But the rest of the story is In my ignorant deceit before God and the priest and myself I knew that I was going to go to a party that weekend and at the party I would probably drink a beer I would smoke a cigarette with the rest of the crowd and this of course was illegal for the underaged and also was disobedience against my parents' instruction for my siblings and me this same scenario went on until I truly realized that one day I was a deceitful sinner who was sinning against my precious Savior, Jesus Christ. The light of eternity spoken of in Ecclesiastes 3.11 that was placed within my soul was slowly being awakened by the precious Holy Spirit. And the Holy Spirit convicted me of my sins, and he pricked and convicted my conscience, and I saw myself as a liar, and I hated what I saw. And this is when my real journey with my precious Savior began. You see, God's word admonishes us also in 2 Corinthians 13, verse 5, to examine and test and evaluate your own selves to see whether you are holding to your faith and showing the proper fruits of it. Test and approve yourselves, not Christ. Do you not know and recognize and thoroughly by ever-increasing experience that Jesus Christ is in you? Unless you are a counterfeit, a reprobate, disapproved, on trial and rejected? Dear listener, we have a message called Examining Your Heart Takes a Good Conscience and this message can be found on Shining Light 7 Ministries website. Go to shininglight7ministries.com you will find the storehouse of Christian teachings. Just search for examining your heart takes a good conscience and you will find it among many other foundational teachings. You see, our consciences can deceive us to think that we are just okay and the plan that we have for our lives is good and basically overall we are a good person and that we are on our way to heaven. We have our own measuring chart or check-off lifts that tells us God loves us because we're really not bad people. And we do nice things for people and even give a beggar on the street some money to help him out. Oh, how good we feel about ourselves. So God must be really pleased with us too, right? The problem with our own consciences is that if they're not renewed by the power of the Holy Spirit and the word of God, we will be deceived to think that everyone is okay, including self. I'm okay and you're okay too. Number 12 is do you hate reproof or you hate to be corrected? With this one, many people will make excuses to justify their faults once something is pointed out. Some people act like a wounded animal and bare their teeth and claws at the inference that something needed correction in their lives, which would have brought healing to the open wounds that they occurred at some point in their lives. Many pastors and teachers today do not sufficiently lay on the souls and consciences of their hearers, their moral obligations they have to the truth. they do not probe their hearts and bring up those parts of their lives and wrong actions to the bar of conscience. As we have waded through some of these questions through which give a true believer insight to the workings of the Holy Spirit in their life, I ask you, how did you do? Is your life at this present moment bearing the fruit of salvation? Jesus said that it is by our fruit that we will be known as his disciples genuine faith is active love for the Lord Jesus Christ who died for you dear listener he died and paid the price and the cost for you and I to enter eternal life genuine faith in Christ makes one a new creature in him all things are passed away behold your old life is dead Jesus said my sheep hear my voice in John chapter 10 verse 27 are you one of his sheep who sincerely obeys his commands you see fruitless branches are professing believers who do not display fruit of the spirit found in Galatians 5 22 and John 15 chapter 6 says they're cut off and thrown into the fire does sin in your life grieve you We are in a war with Satan the devil, who is just as real as Jesus Christ. Jesus is greater, and we know who wins the battle at the end of the book. People who are undecided straddle the fence in where they stand in their faith and their obedience and love for Jesus Christ, and are condemned at this point in their lives. They only thought they were saved. They neither are hot nor cold, which represents a state of divine rejection. These are the ones who will be spewed out of the Lord's mouth according to Revelation 3.16, which declares, So because you are lukewarm and neither cold nor hot, I will spew you out of my mouth. May God forbid that anyone not be found in the book of life and be banished to hell forever and eternity. Listen now to a sobering prophetic dream given to me a few years ago which is just as sobering today as it was then This dream shows that it is truly a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God Dear listener You may be a professing believer in Jesus Christ or you may be one who has never accepted Christ's precious offer of eternal life through his death, burial, and resurrection. But it is my hope and prayer that you will listen attentively to what you have been given in terms of this life-saving warning called an alarming prophetic dream. This dream was given to me after months of consistent prayer and intercession in seeking the Lord and asking for revelation in what he wants us to teach and proclaim in these last days before he returns to this earth. I plead with you to listen carefully and remember Jesus Christ is coming soon, very soon. Please take your salvation serious and do not neglect it because of worldly concerns and the business of life. This is the alarming prophetic dream the Lord gave in answer to my prayers. May his spirit greatly impact your life as he did mine with this revelation. Not too long ago, the Lord gave me a profound, frightening, and very real dream. In the dream, I saw a woman with her children. The children were young people in their teens. They were not little children. They reported to the mother about something that was happening down the street, and evidently it was pretty serious because she immediately set out with something in her arms like a bag filled with something pertinent to address the critical situation at hand. She was a proper and matronly looking woman, and I saw her walking briskly along a sidewalk next to a wall, a well-built wall, a brick wall that you might see around a huge estate or mansion. And as she was walking, I was like a seer in the dream. As she was approaching the area of her destination, she began to walk up an incline. And it seemed as she came to the top of the hill, I suddenly saw a sight that was truly a sight to behold. I saw a huge, gigantic ship that you might see in the early years. It might have been a Spanish ship. It had large mass. There were so many masks, so many masks that it would blow your mind, especially if you were a sailor. As I was following this woman, I suddenly began to rise above her, and I felt like I was being taken up in the spirit. I slowly went higher in the air, and I rose higher and higher and could clearly see the full view of the ship now. And I can tell you that the ship was so large and so big and so massive that it took my breath away even in the dream. And I'm thinking, what is this all about? Only in a dream could something possibly be as large as this ship, except possibly the ark that Noah had built. I don't know. And as I was taken up in the spirit above the ship, I could hear the sound of little children playing on the ship and somehow in the dream I knew that this was a children's plaything it belonged to the little children and in the next scene I was taken up above the ship and rose higher and higher into the atmosphere above what seemed like the earth's orbit and I saw a massive cloud that was almost indescribable in its vastness and size and this cloud was almost like something that you would see in a graphic of one of the layers of the earth. This cloud was like that. It was like a cutout of seeing something specific and suddenly I was taken alongside this layer of angry, massive formation. It was unbelievable. It was very frightening to see. and the cloud was living and vibrant and was ever changing in its formation and the power that was contained within it was unbelievable. I saw things coming out of this angry formation like being spewed out and I saw so many things being spewed out like you might see in the eruption of a volcano only the things coming out of this mass was not lava but the power it contained was as powerful as a volcano or it could even be likened to the powerful energy of the sun that we might see in videos that show up close action of the mighty indescribable power contained within the sun and the videos show the sun spewing out energy and masses of what look like molten lava but we know that it is the intense heat that bursts beyond the circumference of the body of the sun And this intense, indescribable heat and power comes from the core of the sun's interior. Dear believer, what I saw being spewed out of this angry, massive cloud formation were bodies. Yes, I said I saw bodies being spewed out. And as these bodies were spewed out of this cloud formation, I saw that the force of their being spewed out was in such an explosive manner that it caused their limbs to go flying off into all directions opposite of their bodies. And these belongings of the people were being spit out as well with just as much intense force as their bodies were being spewed out. I gasped in agony and horror after being taken parallel along this cloud for a long distance to see and be shown a sight that I'm sure might have dwarfed what Daniel saw as he grew faint and weak at the horror of what he was shown in the last day of what was to come. Well, if this was not enough, then I found myself as though I were below the surface of the earth. and I was looking up at what appeared to be an opening of a large and vast chasm and the sight was equally as terrifying. I saw bodies falling into the chasm and the noise and the sound of this horrible sight was blood chilling. I felt like I might have been seeing how it could have possibly looked when the ground was opened up and Korah and his family fell into the grave of hell that they had won for themselves by lying and rebelling against God and his authoritative standards. In the dream, I shook myself to wake up because of what I was seeing was so horrible and terrifying and awful. And as I shook myself to wake up, I did wake up in the natural. and I said oh God forgive me if this dream is from you and you had more to show me but if this dream was not from you then oh Lord I have just had a horrible nightmare and as I was sharing the dream with my husband Lee and telling him what I shared with you just now I said Lee it is like the scripture says in Revelation 3.15 I know the record of your works and what you are doing and you are neither hot nor cold would that you were cold or hot so because you are lukewarm and neither cold nor hot I will spew you out of my mouth for you say I am rich I have prospered and grown wealthy and I am in need of nothing and you do not realize and understand that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked and as I spoke to Lee the Spirit of the Lord spoke so clearly to me and witnessed his presence to both of us. The Holy Spirit said, even if you were to tell them the truth of what I have shown you, the majority will still not believe you. And what the Lord had shown in his righteous judgment and justice and being spewed out of his presence were multiple and millions of Christians who did not take him nor his way serious while they had the opportunity on this earth. The large ship represents the church in her generations of time and even today. The leaders and captains who are called apostles and prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers represent church leaders but are acting like little children and making up their own rules based on their natural instinct than not upon God-given discernment that comes and arises out of growing into the fullness of maturity in the place of union and fellowship with God in his word. We talk about life in the spirit or walking in the spirit, but for the most part, this is all talk and the fruit does not back up the conversation. But the mature ones know clearly what God says in his words and they hold it in high esteem and will not compromise or water it down to make people feel good or to give them warm fuzzies about themselves. And this is why they are called the faithful ones and will receive an overcomer's crown and a robe of righteousness. They are considered and represent the hundredfold in the casting of the good seed that took root in Jesus' parable of the sower. Or they are called the fathers in John chapter 2 where he speaks to the three distinct groups of people, that is to the fathers, the boys or the lads, and finally to the little children. The upright matronly woman in this dream represents the segment of righteous leadership in the church today. She, the woman, does not represent female gender only, but represents both male and female leadership who will step out to address and correct the error in the church even when it's not a popular thing to do. Her teenage children represent those members of the church who are the 60-fold in spiritual understanding and growth in their maturity. They are the young adults, as John called them, boys and lads. They comprehend the difference between right and wrong and the natural, but also have been given discernment to know spiritual warfare that the enemy so cleverly schemes and devises. You see, this dream is a serious warning to the church. Please take it as that. God is getting ready to spew many out of his mouth because they have been living like Korah and his family His judgment is on the way Make no mistake about it It is our prayer that this word from the heart of God will have touched your life in some way that will have inspired you to desire a deeper and more intimate relationship with your Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Jesus is calling the church to arise and come forth in this day and hour to know him for who he is, what he has done, and what he has provided by his death, burial, and resurrection. Visit us today at www.shininglight7ministries.com Thank you. I have titled this word today, Why Hostile, Ungodly People Hate and Oppose God. My title really comes from Psalms 2, verse 1, which declares, why do the heathens rage and plot in vain against the Lord? I have pondered many times upon this question. Why do ungodly people fight against the Almighty Creator and His wonderful ways? How can they not believe that He exists or that He has their best interest at heart, especially seeing all of this by virtue of His creation? And scripture tells us also that God has put this understanding within the hearts of all men to know that he exists. Romans 1, 17. Please, Romans 1, 17. These verses declare this very truth. For in the gospel a righteousness which God ascribes is revealed, both springing from faith and leading to faith, disclosed through the way of faith that arouses to more faith. As it is written, The man who through faith is just and upright shall live and shall live by faith. For God's holy wrath and indignation are revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who in their wickedness repress and hinder the truth and make it inopportun. Verse 19. For that which is known about God is evident to them and made plain in their innermost conscience, because God himself is shown it to them. For ever since the creation of the world, his invisible nature and attributes, that is, his eternal power and divinity, have been made intelligible and clearly discernible in and through the things that have been made his handiworks. So men are without excuse altogether, without any defense or justification. Verse 21. Because when they knew and recognized him as God, they did not honor and glorify him as God or give him thanks. But instead they became futile and godless in their thinking with vain imaginations, foolish reasonings and stupid speculations. And their senseless minds were darkened. claiming to be wise, they became fools, professing to be smart, they made simpletons of themselves. So these verses then tell us that God-haters have hardened and set their hearts against God and have joined in league with Satan the devil in claiming to be wiser than the one who created them, the very one who created all things seen and unseen. Psalms chapter 2 verse 1 in another translation says it this way. of his slavery to god but god in heaven merely laughs he is amused by all their puny plans verse five and then in fierce fury he rebukes them and fills them with fear when we dissect this word and peer into the depths of it we can see and understand what we are hearing through this statement repeated by Apostle Paul from the words spoken long ago by King David in reference to the heathen raging. This bespeaks of absolute and undeniable opposition to the gospel of Jesus Christ. These rise up in fury and rage and renounce the one true God and his good news, which has all the power and authority to save them from the bondage of slavery in which they deceptively live, and also to rescue them from the mouth of hell and the eternal gloom and torment that it brings forever and eternity. To rage is a word that signifies the neighing or the snorting of highly excited or agitated horses, as described in the book of Job, where it talks about prancing warhorses. This word rage is symbolically used to represent the noise, fury, and violence of insolent and overbearing men, and all too well represent the attitude of Jesus Christ's enemies. The ungodly who rage and find fault with God and his ways are full of pride and vanity. Those who endeavor to outsmart and thwart the plans of Christ in the attempt to crush Christianity live in a world below and are mad, foolish dreamers who will fall victim to their own delusions and clever deceptions. To rage implies the gnashing of teeth and also to foolishly and recklessly run ahead, to rush ahead, to accomplish devious and vain plans to prevent the spread of the gospel in the world. This word implies also that they somehow think that they will prevent Jesus Christ, who is the King of kings and Lord of lords from having the empire of his own on the earth one day soon. These God-haters are so vain in their endeavors and are so ignorant of the fact that every evil effort and accomplishment of theirs will be used for God's good to open up and expand and make way for the prophesied return of our Bridegroom Jesus Christ. Hallelujah! Hallelujah. Praise the Lord. You see, leaders in every nation band or joined together in agreement and are as one in their antagonism and hatred against God and his son, Jesus Christ. Just like the scripture showed in the example with Herod and Pontius Pilate when they joined and conspired together to kill the perfect one called the Messiah, whom God Almighty had sent to the earth to redeem fallen man back to himself. These and those in every generation since have only been doing as much as God the Father would allow them to do in order to cause his enemies to do his work and bring his plans into fruition and final completion. Now, let's look. Isaiah chapter 40, verse 22. It is God who sits above the circle, the horizon of the earth, and its inhabitants are like grasshoppers. It is he who stretches out the heavens like gauze, like curtains, and spreads them out like a tent to dwell in, who brings dignitaries to nothing, who makes the judges and rulers of the earth as chaos, emptiness, falsity, and futility. Verse 24. Yes, these men are scarcely planted. Scarcely are they sown. Scarcely does their stock take root in the earth when the Lord blows upon them and they wither and the whirlwind or tempest takes them away like stubble. Now, we should understand in this word today The first prophecy spoken about our Savior's effect upon mankind was given by a devout Israelite named Simeon. Simeon was endowed with the gift of prophecy and had received divine revelation that his death would not take place until he had seen the Messiah. Mary and Joseph entered the temple with baby Jesus in arm and Simeon, recognizing the holy babe, took him in his arms and gave thanks to God for the privilege of seeing Jesus. And from the account Luke 2, verse 34, the word declares what Simeon prophesied to Mary, Jesus' mother. He said in verse 34, This is again the first prophetic utterance related to the cross and the effect that the Holy Child must be to those in the way of sorrows. The angels first had spoken of the throne of David, the shepherds had brought the message of peace, and yet Simeon foretells both the effect and the way of the cross. And yes, this prophecy is called a blessing, and it is so because obedience to the will of the Father brings untold and countless blessings to those who obey and conform to the commands of the Eternal One. And at the same time, we see in this prophetic word given to Mary that she too must learn to suffer with her child. Simeon said that a sword shall pierce through her own soul. And this was to be a blessing for Mary. Strange as it may sound to us being creatures of clay, but is it not true that the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ, who is the eternal word in human flesh, has brought a blessing upon human suffering for those who are associated with this suffering? Well, let's look at that. In 1 Peter 1.5, you who are being guarded, garrisoned by God's power through your faith, till you fully inherit that final salvation that is ready to be revealed for you in the last time, you should be exceedingly glad on this account, though now for a little while you may be distressed by trials and suffer temptations. Verse 7, so that the genuineness of your faith may be tested. your faith which is infinitely more precious than perishable gold which is tested and purified by fire. This proving of your faith is intended to redound to your praise and glory and honor when Jesus Christ the Messiah, the Anointed One, is revealed. What you and I contend to believe in, that we will be tried and tested in. Our faith is the object of our trial, and it is much more precious than gold. And gold is put into the fire, and eventually when it is there long enough, the dross surfaces up to the top and is skimmed off, and it's discarded. And we all must be tried and tested to see if our faith in Jesus Christ is genuine and real to meet the approval of the final judge one day. Simeon foresees that Christ, the Messiah, must suffer because his life and physical presence would be violently opposed to the principles by which men were guiding their own lives when Jesus came to the earth. Remember, Jesus stepped into the world as the incarnate word and have the total and full capacity and capability to read the innermost thoughts of people and reveal to them in the moment the true nature of themselves, good or bad. For that very reason, he would be salvation for some, and on the other hand, he would be condemnation and judgment for others, and therefore he would be a sign that is spoken against even in our day to day. We hear it all the time. It is increasing more and more in the news and all around us, and especially in this nation today, the uprising hatred for God and his people. Human suffering arises out of the transgression and the fall of our first parents, Adam and Eve in the garden when they disobeyed the divine command of God given to them, which was to not eat from just one tree in the garden. They chose their own will rather than God's will in conforming to his divine order, which he had set in motion on that day when he laid down his righteous command or laws. And this divinely ordered and arranged human life was exampled and lived by the very one who is called the Word made flesh in human form. Jesus Christ's divinely ordered life is in direct opposition and is hostile to the self-righteous and self-centered lives of those who have fallen natures and therefore Christ's way of life collides and vehemently opposes these people who then must suffer as a result of their willful and sinful way of life and preferences. It is part of God's law set into motion on the day he created man and woman and said, This is good. Those who choose to conform to their pattern, Jesus Christ, learn that when they choose to live godly lives in Christ, they will and must suffer persecution for his name's sake. 2 Timothy 3, verse 12. The word declares, Indeed, all who delight in piety and are determined to live a devoted and godly life in Christ, Jesus will meet with persecution, will be made to suffer because of their religious stand. But wicked men and imposters will go from bad to worse, deceiving and leading astray others, and being deceived and being led astray themselves. Verse 14. But as for you, continue to hold to the things that you have learned and of which you are convinced, knowing from whom you learned them. Simeon said that Jesus would be the rise and the fall of many, and the testimony of Christ's gospel will prove the means for your rise and or your fall. It is a matter of an absolute untold moment involving all that is important in your eternal character and your destiny, or in other words, where you will end up for eternity. Simeon said that Jesus was appointed and destined for the fall and the rise of many, and the fact that he lays bare the secret thoughts and purposes of every heart will be brought out and exposed on their day of judgment. It comes to where true believers and lovers of Jesus Christ speak for him, not against him. They come to understand as well that they must not speak lightly of him or his ordinances or doctrines or his people, but they must be advocates for his cause and embrace every opportunity to share and witness him to others. True followers of Jesus Christ understand that all of the sufferings and the injustices, the insults and persecutions may be matters of grief to them in the moment. But dear ones, it is our sins that have made all of these things necessary and are reminders of why and what our precious Redeemer went through on our behalf. undergoing the pain of living this way of life for the gospel's sake must be in order to have its appropriate and fitting heart-searching effect on our hearts and souls. The secret thoughts and purposes of every heart will be brought out and exposed as a result not to be mocked or belittled or played down, but it is rather to be desired and sought after in order to embrace whatever is cherished and pleasant according to Philippians chapter 4 verse 8 which instructs us brethren whatever is true whatever is worthy of reverence and is honorable and seemly whatever is just whatever is pure whatever is lovely and lovable whatever is kind and winsome and gracious if there is any virtue and excellence if there is anything worthy of praise think on and weigh and take account of these things fix them in your minds these things ought to be fixed in our hearts so that the day of our judgment Christ may reveal all that is in our hearts and that we may be found free of defilement and impurity. To risk being found short of the lovely and the beautiful having been conformed and harmonized in your hearts then it will be too late for any correction or change. One will only hear the dreadful words of the Savior saying, Too late, too late, the judgment has been set. Especially today, and today alone, in this present day, is the time for any beneficial and profitable discovery of needed change, and also repentance and turnaround, and the implementation of steadfastness to Christ's precious way of life, as demonstrated in his word, should be the first and foremost greatest priority and preference in your life. Simeon said that our Savior would be set as the ruin of many. Understand, please, God's Son came not to destroy souls, but to save them. In his boundless and inexhaustible love for mankind, he has literally sacrificed himself for the world and unlocked the entrance into heaven by his brutal and heartless death, but nevertheless and unfortunately he is set to be the ruin of many. How very true Simeon's prophecy is. Many millions and millions of people, even multitudes of churches today, are destitute of faith, which is the doorway into eternal life. and the very ground of this precious salvation found only in Jesus Christ. Many are destitute of Christ's divine love. We must possess and embrace in addition to faith if we are to be saved. How terrible and how dreadfully alarming it is for those who will face the consequences of the ruin of whom Christ is set against. they will have forfeited and renounced the price of their salvation, just like Esau, who sold his birthright to his brother Jacob, did, and he whined afterwards and begged to have it back, but was told it was too late, it was just too late. He sold out for a bowl of soup. It was too late, just too late. all of these people will lose out on eternal happiness and joy, which awaited and was destined for them only if they would have conformed to the eternal Creator's plans and ways. In Simeon's prophetic word, he was describing what Jesus Christ would be to different people. Jesus would be an object of opposition and the occasion of ruin to his enemies. He was going to be an acute cause of suffering by sympathy and tenderness to his mother. And he would be the author of salvation and restoration to his people. And lastly, he would be a test or measure, a barometer, if you will, and the standard of the moral and spiritual state and requirement needed for all of mankind. And this last one says to us that man is either saved or destroyed by the truth of the living God. Everyone has choice either to accept or reject the wonderful offer which comes by way of salvation found only in Jesus Christ. Every man and woman who has heard of the message of salvation has had some kind of connection with Christ. Jesus is offered to each one of us by faith, by God the Father, and as a means of salvation and a foundation on which we may build. Once the message of salvation comes into anyone's hearing, they have the free will choice to accept or reject that offer. If rejected, the individual is visited time and time again by God's ministering spirits and agents in the continual attempt of witnessing the goodness of the Savior and his love for them personally. And if these people continually and habitually reject the offer of salvation, then at some point or another in their lives, God closes the door of opportunity and no longer knocks upon the door of their hearts, inviting them to come and partake in their share of eternal life. But instead, only the dreadful gloom and doom of hell's fire awaits them. Once the precious gospel of salvation is heard and accepted, it begins to bring or should bring a perpetual and continuous change to the individual's character and spiritual growth. Jesus does something to each and everyone who has accepted him. Acceptance of Christ begins to tell on us. If you disbelieve it and have rejected him and you are not conforming to his standards, it tells on you by the way of your attitude, your words, your deeds, your body language. And you see, you cannot open up God's word and have the savor of his anointed word pour forth on those pages you are reading without it affecting you in one way or another. It is just like the anointing oil when Mary opened up the alabaster box and the aroma of the spice permeated the room and affected those who were in the room with her and her Savior. And Scripture tells us that those around her complained of her extravagant waste as she poured it over the one whom she loved. Jesus is either a sweet savor to us or he is considered awful and offensive and one to be avoided, which is really, in the long run, death unto eternal death for anyone on this path. Simeon had proved himself a faithful witness of Christ. The Almighty had brought Simeon's greatest desire in prayer to fullness the day he held baby Jesus in his arms and gave the prophetic word to his mother Mary. we personally should have found in our experience somewhere in our walk where it has been exposed that Christ has been a stumbling stone and an offense and that he has been a signal or a standard which has called out the imperfections and oppositions in our carnal nature and our character. We should have found him in our experience to be a sword which has pierced our own souls and divides the evil in us from the good laying bare our ugly and corrupt intentions and ways and discloses the secret thoughts and purposes and tendencies of our evil hearts. Jesus was to bring strife on the earth, and it is framed so clearly when we see and understand the inward war and struggles that lurk within our own human heart and nature. Jesus also has been our consolation, our light, and our glory if we have been found steadfast in our conformity to him and his ways. The hostile, ungodly ones who rage and oppose God and his Son will never know this side of the strife that Jesus was meant to bring in dividing the holy from the profane in the human heart in order to bring salvation to their souls. they will never know this positive side of change that comes with salvation because of the rejection of the good news once it came within their hearing. And when our thought life is exposed, we have to endure the inward conflict between good and evil. when the words of the Savior pierces and breaks and tears at our hearts, it is all according to the divine order of God with the loving intention to prepare and transition us to the eventual divine end of God, which is the salvation of our souls. This is all part of God's divine order and scheme of things, which is intended to prepare us for a time in which our souls and hearts will be so flooded and bathed and charged and permeated with the divine light and goodness of God that there shall be no more darkness in us and that we will be so penetrated with this divine glory that sin, sorrow, and shame shall flee away forever and ever. What a wonderful Savior and Father. And this is God's intention for all of mankind. Who will not endure the pain, the strife and persecution that comes in this present life and bear up under it with patience and courage and hope as we endure all for his name's sake and wait patiently for him to take us to our eternal home above. Whomever the good news comes in contact with, Christ Jesus is never without influence, never inoperative in that hearing ear, but in every case, a very weighty result is produced. It must be so, because Simeon prophesied in saying, Jesus would be the rise and fall of many. A man or woman hearing the good news of the gospel will either rise or fall upon hearing that truth. And this is saying then that there are two sides of the truth once it comes into the hearing of any individual. Jesus is always working upon men and women with considerable and distinct and noticeable effect. And on the other hand, the way a person treats our Lord is either with warmth and affection and love for it is with opposition and hatred to his ways by refusing the conformity and obedience that he demands in order to receive the wonderful gift of salvation. Why is this? Why is it? Why do the ungodly rage and oppose and hate God and his son and show it by mocking and denying him and rejecting him by not living in true allegiance to his word and his ways according to Holy Scripture? Well, one of the reasons is that the light and the power and authority which is inherent in Jesus Christ and his gospel represents Christ among men and women in the world. It brings with it a conviction to their hearts and souls, laying bare the revelation that the evil nature within condemns them, and consequently they hate him and his word and all those who are associated with him. Their conviction brings hatred. Listen again, please. Their conviction brings hatred and opposition rather than shame for their sinful ways, which typically drives one to their knees in repentance. If you stand before a fire, it will warm and comfort you, but you thrust your hand into it, it will burn you. So it is with the sun. The clouds at times may hide it from our view, and yet it is forever pouring forth its rays of heat and light. As long as it is the sun, it must cast forth its influence and permeate its surroundings with its impact, its force, and splendor. And this analogy is the same for our precious Savior, who is called the Son of Righteousness. As long as the world exists, Christ our Savior's influence will be felt and experienced amongst men. And it will either be the rise or the fall of all men and women. And if we receive him and truly live in him, we shall be saved and will live. But if we reject him, we must die. You cannot receive Christ as your Savior and yet keep one foot in the world and not be damaged a little bit by it. There is no alternative, but you undoubtedly will perish because of double-mindedness. Each and every individual must decide about Jesus one way or another. Jesus was appointed for this very thing as told by Simeon's prophetic utterance. Everyone takes a position in Christ one way or another. He will either be your rise or he will be your fall. And those who fall by their position in Jesus Christ is not a difficult question to answer. Those who fell in Scripture were those who held to the traditions of men, who gave credence to men's doctrines and give these sayings higher authority than God's word and commands. Others who fell according to scripture were those who were considered externalists. These are those who give excessive attention to the external things of life and religion. They hold an exaggerated emphasis on the outward form of religion or have a form of religion but deny its power working in them. Going to church once or twice a week and doing one's duty would define one who is an externalist or one who presents a form of godliness but denies the power therein. Others who fall by Christ instead of rising would be the self-righteous folks who endeavor to earn their way into the kingdom by their own good works and merit, rather than by faith in Christ Jesus and the journey of true repentance of sinful ways and growing in spiritual maturity. Others who fall by Christ are those who have continual unbelief and are skeptical of him and his ways. They are the doubters and the ones who are fear-laden. They were not anchored in Christ by faith and reliance upon his word. and it's no different today than it was in the biblical days. People that fell by Christ then fall by him today too. Those who will be raised in Christ will be those who have admitted they have fallen. These will admit that they have or had fallen nature due to sin and are those who lament and hate it with a passion. These are those who produce habitual fruit with their initial repentance. You see, dear ones, Jesus Christ cannot raise up those who are not brought down low. John the Baptist said in John 3, verse 30, He, Jesus, must increase, but I must decrease. He must grow more prominent. I must grow less so. So, salvation is not earned by works or out of duty or appeasing God and doing something nice or good for someone, but rather salvation comes by and through God's grace and cannot be mixed with performance and will not be accepted, nor anything else. When one tries to attempt to do anything in their own power to earn salvation, Only true repentance and belief or faith and habitual production of fruit in yours and my life will cause us to be raised up to the point where we live in Christ. Jesus says, without me you can do nothing. And this is Christ's method to save souls. He first lets us experience a great fall, and afterwards he causes us to rise up and meet him in the ethereal realm where he will feed us true manna from above. Understand, please, you cannot fill a vessel until it has been emptied of its former contents. Jesus cannot make room for his mercy if the former stuff and contents has not been emptied out. He cannot clothe an individual if he is content with the former or old clothing and refuses to part with it. And the same analogy in that Jesus cannot feed someone who has no real hunger or passion for him. The fall that we take in Jesus Christ is a blessed and consecrated fall, dear one. Jesus has never let anyone fall whom he did not lift up afterwards. The word declares in Deuteronomy 32, 29, See now that I myself am he. There is no God besides me. I put to death and I bring to life. I have wounded and I will heal and no one can deliver out of my hand. This word says to us that God will bring us low to bring us upward. His desire and aim through the hardships and the trials in our lives to bring greater faith and conformity and obedience in our spiritual growth. God did not spare his own son, Jesus, when he sent him to the earth on our behalf. Isaiah 53 verse 10 tells us, it pleased the Lord to bruise him. He has put him to grief, and thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin. He his seed and shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hands. Verse 11, he shall see the travail of his soul and shall be satisfied. By his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many, for he will bear their iniquities. By Christ being brought low for each one of us individually, he then lifts us up in himself to live and have our being in him, enjoying all the promises and the blessings which are designed to bring us safely through as we journey on this path of life. Christ is the sign that shall be spoken against. And this is why the heathens rage. Jesus was a sign of the divine love of God. In Christ, God reaches the climax of generosity and compassion, and man exhibits the highest apex of his deadly state and demonstrates the greatest hostility and sign of hatred to God and his people showing the most destructive and deadly opposition to him and to his church, which is to be the habitation of his grace. It is to be the chamber of his conception, dedicated to the birthing forth of his love. God used the principle of grace and love to bring his church forth into the world through Christ's death, burial, and resurrection. Jesus was a sign of man's communion with God and of God's fellowship with man. And he is a sign of a connecting bridge between the creature and his creator. But unfortunately, man does not want to be near his maker. And so consequently, he rages against the means provided for his communion and way to reach and touch his maker. And some of the ways we see the ungodly becoming more aggressive in America today and demonstrating their hatred for God is by, one, billboards promoting atheism and attacking Christianity, which has popped up all across the nation. The second one is the American Humanist Association has launched a website for children to indoctrinate them in atheism. Three, an atheist rally in Washington, D.C. last year had a special promotion to encourage children to attend their atheist camps. Four, atheists have been increasingly using terms like child abuse to describe the efforts of Christians who seek to teach their children about creation, heaven, and hell. Five, many atheists claim that children belong to the community, not to their parents. And this belief comes from the Communist Manifesto. And the sixth one is that atheists have actively opposed any effort in public schools to even question a belief of evolution or suggest that there are any problems with it. Now understand, please, today, there has been an increasingly growing anti-Christian attack in America, and this should be understood from the point of view in which it is instigated. We have an all-out war in America as citizens to maintain the freedom stipulated in our Constitution. The present administration in Washington, D.C. is endeavoring to move into what is known as the New World Order or One World Government, which will eventually abolish the guidelines we use in America to govern our nations, and these guidelines are the Constitution of the United States of America. Dear listener, this is what Adolf Hitler tried to do in his tyrannical reign and mass murder of millions of innocent people. This sinister plot highly affects us as Christians, and this should stand as a warning for the Church in that a great chasm is widening between what is truly Christian and what is not. All of these attacks on our Christian freedoms stem from this evil plot and plan spearheaded by the world's rich and godless elite. And the plan is to decrease the world's population to around 500 million people to one billion, with only a handful of the rich elite ruling these numbers of what they call the privileged-to-be-alive people. Jesus foretold of Satan's plan in the book of Daniel, in Matthew's Gospel, chapter 24, and Paul in his epistles spoke much about the Antichrist plan to rule the world with this one-world Antichrist government. What we are seeing happening in the whole world is foretold and prophesied in both the Old and the New Testaments. The escalation of hatred against Christians is increasing, and Christians can no longer straddle the fence, but ultimately must decide which side they will stand on. The world is in a critical state at this day and hour in which we live. The hostile, ungodly rage and hate and oppose God and speak violently against him because of their ignorance in knowing their need for him all because they willfully lack the knowledge and wisdom in knowing his ways. The carnal mind is enmity against God, and people will naturally speak against that which they have distaste and animosity for. In answer to this question, why do the hostile, ungodly hate and oppose God? The bottom line is and has only one final answer, and it is found in our opening scripture in Psalms chapter 2 verse 1 through 6. We're going to read it again. Why do the nations conspire and the peoples plot in vain? The kings of the earth take their stand and rulers gather together against the Lord and his anointed one. Let us break their chains, they say, and throw off their fetters. The one enthroned in heaven laughs and the Lord scoffs at them. And then he rebukes them in his anger and terrifies them in his wrath, saying, I have installed my king on Zion, my holy hill. What we are talking about is man's hatred and rebellion against God here. This is the total reason that the heathens and rulers rage against God and set themselves against him and take counsel together in plotting against him in vain. This rebellion stems from the very one who rebelled against God in heaven and was cast out. Satan has influenced his willing agents to believe that God is like a tyrant sitting in the heavens, keeping Christians in bondage with his Ten Commandments and his Sermon on the Mount, that he dictates the way that Christians must live and act. They don't want to live within the guidelines that God lays out in order for them to experience the true joy and freedoms that come by living in Christ. They don't want to have anything to do with God because they have no freedoms to live life as they wish, and that is making choices for themselves, regardless of the sinful and idolatrous practices that come with their choices. What folly! What deception! When talking to people who profess to be Christians, our conversation eventually leads to the message which the Lord has put heavily upon our hearts. And that is to alert and warn God's people that we are living in the last days. and to apprise God's people about what is happening in our government today, which corresponds with biblical prophecy and scripture and sheds light on how close we are to the return of Jesus Christ in our day. It is amazing to us that few churches are teaching and preparing their congregation as to what is happening on the world scene. And the signs of the times which Jesus spoke of in Matthew 24, which are leading up to the great apostasy as it is unfolding rapidly in our day. 2 Thessalonians 2, verse 3 declares, Let no one deceive or beguile you in any way, for that day will not come, except the apostasy comes first, unless the predicted great falling away of those who have professed to be Christians have come, and the man of lawlessness, sin, is revealed, who is the son of doom, of perdition. Unless the predicted, great falling away or better called the apostasy happens first, the man of lawlessness will not enter upon the scene thus ushering in the last three and a half years of the great tribulation. 1 Timothy 4.1 backs up what our previous scripture has declared. But the Holy Spirit distinctly and expressly declares that in the latter times, Some will turn away from the faith, giving attention to deluding and deceiving, seducing spirits and doctrines that demons teach through the hypocrisy and pretensions of liars whose consciences are seared and cauterized. Not only must God's people learn and understand where the leadership in our government is steering this nation, but also they must know of the blatant disarming of their constitutional rights and freedoms. And more than ever today, the Church needs to be warned against the great apostasy that is happening at breaknec