Highway to Tribulation - Endtime Prophecy
Part 5
BEWARE OF COUNTERFEITS - ACCEPT NO SUBSTITUTES
Though satan is not a creator he is a master counterfeiter. Because
he is the father of lies, he is incapable of telling the truth.
Partial truths, half truths and lies with just enough truth in them to
make them palatable are his specialty. When he tempted Eve in the
Garden he spoke partial truths, when he tempted Jesus in the
wilderness he spoke partial truths and when he presents his
counterfeit kingdom and its masters, the Anti-christ and the False
Prophet, the world will choose to believe his lies.
The Bible plainly warns against falling prey to satan because he has
the ability to appear as "an angel of light". "...for Satan himself
is transformed into an angel of light. Therefore it is no great thing
if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of
righteousness." II Corinthians 11:14&15 Many cults alive and
thriving in our day were started as a result of an "angel of light"
appearing and giving extra-biblical revelations to the cult's leaders.
Angel worship is strictly forbidden by scripture, yet is gaining in
popularity even in Church circles. Demons are of course angels who
sided with satan in his rebellion against God. We are not to pray to
Angels. We should not and we need not. The Bible plainly states that
"The angel of the Lord encampeth around those who fear Him" Psalm
34:7. That is such a tremendous and beautiful promise to know that if
we simply fear the Lord or hold him in reverence and awe we can be
sure that His angel is there with us.
In the New Age religion, "Transformation" is their term for the
counterfeit to being "Born Again". Of course this has no dealing
whatsoever with the subject of Sin, but the transformational jump from
mere humanity to Godhood as was promised by the serpent to Eve. Many
"New Agers" claim to have a "Jesus" as a spirit guide. In her
compelling autobiographical account of her search for God in the New
Age Movement, Johanna Michelson regularly met in a meditative trance
with a spirit guide who called himself Jesus. Her eye-opening book,
"The Beautiful Side of Evil" recounts her experience with this
impostor Jesus and details psychic "Healings" during which she
assisted various "Healers" and saw with her own eyes, "Miraculous
Healings", psychic "Surgeries" wherein the shaman or healer would
plunge a hand into the body of the afflicted and remove tumors and
other foriegn objects that were the supposed cause of the illnesses.
Fortunately Ms. Michaelson eventually saw the true light and abandoned
the New Age Movement and became a Born Again Believer in the Jesus
Christ of the Bible.
I had the privilege of working for a time with Nicky Cruz, the subject
of the book and film, "The Cross and the Switchblade". Nicky grew up
in a rural poverty stricken part of Puerto Rico. His father was a
shaman. Nicky witnessed "Miracle" healings performed by his father on
numerous occasions. Their tiny house was filled with pictures of
"Saints" and "Jesus". However, his father was using occult and magic
to perform these "Miracles" and for example would cause frogs to leap
out of peoples' mouths and other strange and unusual phenomena to
effect "Healings". A true miracle finally did occur in Nicky's
father's and mother's lives as they eventually accepted Jesus Christ
as saviour and turned their backs on their past in true repentance.
Nicky told me that when his father was dying years later, he asked him
how satan had done the "Miracles", because it was obvious to his
family then, since the scales had fallen from their eyes, that these
events were not of our God. Nicky's father told him that it was all
done in the mind; the minds of the sick and the minds of those
watching. This is "...the working of Satan with all power and signs
and lying wonders".. II Thessalonians 2:9
LYING SIGNS AND WONDERS
As we travel further down the "Road to Tribulation", we can expect to
see more and more of these lying signs and wonders and we must be on
guard against those promoting them. "For false Christs and false
prophets shall rise, and shall shew signs and wonders, to seduce, if
it were possible , even the elect." Mark 13:22 Anyone who doesn't
receive Christ or His love or love Him cannot receive truth. He
plainly stated He is the Truth. "And for this cause God shall send
them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: that they might
all be damned who believed not the truth..." II Thessalonians 2:11&12
Just a few weeks ago, the Lakeland, Florida "Healing" ministry was
rocked when the Canadian skinhead, tatooed Minister conducting
services there was dismissed for seriously injuring a person who was
there to be "healed". It is further alleged that this "Minister" was
involved in a sexual dalliance with a female co-worker. According to
one account it is alleged that he claimed God told him to kick a woman
in the mouth or the healings wouldn't happen and he complied with this
"Command from God". In a published account I read, he also allegedly
tackled a man so aggressively as to inflict bodily harm. This man
claimed to talk with God and Angels. We are commanded to be on guard
against these "wolves in sheeps clothing". This is another area where
the true Church is under attack by the powers of darkness.
Time and again these mass healing and "revival" meetings are exposed
as shams, preying on the weak and desperate, always asking for money,
promising healing and prosperity but in the end, the tents are folded,
the leaders sneak away and the bitter ashes of disappointment are left
in the mouths of those seeking health and wealth or an easing of their
misery and poverty. These are clever counterfeiters of the ministry
of Jesus at the first advent and the miracles that abounded during the
Apostolic Age. I'm sorry to step on toes, but the Church seems to be
placing an unhealthy emphasis on self. Self is the enemy of God.
Self is the old nature. Jesus said we were to deny ourselves, to
esteem ourselves as nothing. Why does the Church now seem obsessed
with improving everyone's self-esteem, health and wealth. "Seek ye
first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things
shall be added unto you." Matthew 6:33 We are putting the cart before
the horse. This humanist obsession with self is a sad symptom of the
world today. We are not of the world! We cannot serve two masters;
Self and God. They are incompatible.
In fact Jesus commanded us, "take no thought for your life," Matthew
6:25 "for your heavenly Father knoweth ye have need..." Matthew 6:32
"(For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:)" As the body of
Christ we have to get our eyes off of ourselves. I am surrounded by
wonderful Christians who practice the "name it and claim it" theology
that I believe is an endtime seduction. The Sovereignty of God is
called into question by this system. ( Like the trinity or the
rapture, the words Sovereignty of God do not necessarily appear in all
translations of the Bible.) If God is really in control of the world
why do such terrible things happen? The Bible plainly states that
satan is the "god of this world". He holds the title deed to planet
earth and will continue to do so until Christ comes to earth to set up
His Kingdom. According to the "name it and claim it" doctrine, we
have to co-opt this power by using scripture and faith. This sounds
good and most Christians including this one apply scripture and prayer
and faith to every situation. The divigation comes when one doesn't
get what one prays for in faith. Then we are required to trust in God
to make "all things work together for good". I submit to the reader
that belief in the sovereignty of God in the face of disastrous
circumstances gives Him great glory. This involves a gigantic leap of
faith or as the Bible says essentially from one level of faith to "a
whole other level" of faith. This does not mean we will automatically
get what we want, it just means we are remaining faithful to God in
spite of our circumstances. Read Hebrews chapter 11; many, many of
the people listed received the hoped for miracle they needed, yet the
last few verses list those with equal faith who did not. The bottom
line as they say, is that Yahweh God is the ultimate arbiter of life
here on earth and in the heavens. Just as He allowed satan to test
Job, He may allow us to be tested. Healthy, wealthy or not, God is
mainly interested in the condition of our heart towards Him.
The sovereignty of God is plainly revealed even to the extent of
controlling peoples' hearts. He hardened Pharaoh's heart and he gave
King Saul a new heart. Proverbs 21:1 boldly states, "The king's heart
is in the hand of the Lord, as the rivers of water; he turneth it
whithersoever he will." "I form the light, and create darkness: I
make peace and create evil, I the Lord do all these things." Isaiah
45:7 "shall there be evil in a city, and the Lord hath not done it?"
Amos 3:6 The final proof of God's sovereignty is repeated in Isaiah
45:23, Phill. 3:10 & Romans 14:11, "For it is written, As I live,
saith the Lord, every knee shall bow to me, and every tongue confess
to God." This is the King of Kings and Lord of Lords speaking. Not
Sovereign? Rubbish. Do you think Hitler or Marx or Lennon or Satan
himself will willingly bow before Jesus? God says, "My counsel shall
stand, and I will do all my pleasure:" Isaiah 46:10 The ultimate
guarantee of His words being fulfilled is when God swears by His own
name. "I have sworn by myself, the word is gone out of my mouth in
righteousness, and shall not return, That unto me every knee shall
bow.." Isaiah 45:23
In fact I personally would have no joy or peace here on earth if I did
not believe that God is truly in control. Satan is allowed only as
much power as Yahweh God sees fit. As one Bible scholar put it,
"Satan is an unwitting servant on a long leash". Yahweh God's ways
are higher than our ways; as the heaven is above the earth. His
thoughts are not our thoughts, they are much higher. He is beyond our
comprehension. That is where faith begins.
Some Christians find it too painful to contemplate a loving Father God
who would allow his children to suffer any hardship. I've had
well-grounded Christians exclaim, "A parent would never allow a child
to suffer". That may well be true of earthly parents. But we are
talking about the God of the Universe whose ways are "not our ways".
These same Christians maintain that with enough faith, we never have
to suffer sickness or deprivation. They claim we possess the same
powers that the Apostles were given during what is known as the
Apostolic Age, the brief period after Pentecost. The power to do
signs and wonders confirmed that the Apostles were Jesus chosen
representatives, just as His miracles confirmed that He was God's Son.
Adherents to "name it and claim it" or the "prosperity gospel"
eagerly grasp after these sign wonders but curiously avoid and ignore
another major aspect of the Apostles' lives; their suffering and
hideous deaths. Perhaps the Apostles missed something. Maybe they
didn't have enough faith to avoid their harrowing demise. Here's a
brief synopsis of the final moments of the 12 Apostles' lives.
1.) James: the brother of John, beheaded for the faith
2.) Phillip: scourged, thrown into prison and then crucified
3.) Matthew: killed with a halberd, a combination spear/battle axe
4.) James: brother of Jesus, at the age of 94, was beaten and
stoned and had his brains bashed out with a fuller's club
5.) Paul: beheaded (this was after a life wherein he was stoned to
the point of death, scourged numerous times, shipwrecked multiple
times having to survive drowning on several occasions, suffered hunger
often, suffered cold often, nakedness and imprisonment)
6.) Andrew: crucified on an X-shaped cross
7.) Mark: was literally dragged until his body fell to pieces
8.) Peter: crucified in an upside down position
9.) Jude: crucified
10.)Thomas: thrust through with a spear resulting in death
11.)Luke: hanged on an olive tree until dead
12.)John: in theory, the only Apostle to escape a violent death.
Nevertheless, John was boiled in oil, miraculously survived and was
exiled to the convict island of Patmos, a barren rock with caves for
shelter, survival rations for food and inhumane working conditions,
where the convicts were forced to quarry stone. As a very old man,
his life must have been excruciatingly hard. Yet it was here that he
received and recorded the book of "Revelation"
ARE WE ALMOST THERE YET?
The New Age version of the Millenial Messianic Kingdom will of course
be counterfeit. The 666 or Beast System will hold out the promise of
earthly paradise, peace and prosperity. The Mark of the Beast which
will be placed in the hand or forehead of those who receive it, is a
counterfeit of the seal of the Holy Spirit by which God recognizes his
children. Therefore I feel it's entirely possible that the Mark of
the Beast will be invisible to the "naked eye" but readable by some
type of machine or electronic sensor. A chip implant would for all
intents and purposes be invisible except to a machine programmed to
read it. This would mimic the "invisible" seal with which all
saved/redeemed children of God are sealed. "...in whom also after ye
believed, ye were sealed with that Holy Spirit of promise, Which is
the earnest of our inheritance..." Ephesians 1:13 Again in Ephesians
we are reminded of this. "...the Holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are
sealed unto the day of redemption." Ephesians 4:30 In the book of
Revelation, the 144,000 are sealed "...of our God in their foreheads."
Revelation 7:3
The demonic counterfeit seal is near, even at the door. Within the
last year Shenzhen, China a city of 12.4 million people, issued
residency cards with powerful computer chips embedded in them to the
vast majority of the citizens. These chips contain not only their
basic I.D. info such as name and address but list the carriers' work
history, education, religious affiliation, ethnic background, police
record, medical insurance information and their landlords' telephone
number. It was recently announced that starting in 2009 National
Identity Cards will be issued to all British citizens linking all of
their personal information with a fingerprint, facial recognition or
iris (eye) pattern.
Of course the Anti-christ will be a counterfeit of Jesus and many
scholars believe the False Prophet will be a counterfeit of John the
Baptist or a type or shadow of him.
There will of course be a false "Church". The word "Church" is one of
the most abused and misused words in the world's lexicon. To true
Believers in Jesus Christ, the Church is His Body, comprised of all
the various members of this living organism. The false "Church" will
of course be all those who choose to worship the Anti-christ.
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