Articles

Matthew 7:21-23, Mark 7:6, Mark 8:34-38, Titus 1:6, James 3:14,1 John 2:9,1 John 3:18

Summary: Following Jesus is an all-or-nothing proposal, and far too many so-called “believers” are riding the fence, playing a game, or trying to look devout when their character shows otherwise. Either follow and obey Him or be honest in your unbelief and leave.

In today’s social setup, especially here in America, the prevailing philosophy seems to be, “I want it, and I want it NOW!” Young people are crying out for this at a pace that is bordering on the ridiculous, petty, and unrealistic. I do not see even the slightest awareness in most of them of a desire to work hard, establish sound and rational goals, and persevere through the rough waters of life to make something of themselves rather than letting some grunion in the political or media spectrum tell them what they have to do or pound into their heads the idea that they are somehow “oppressed,” “violated,” underprivileged” or that they have to take things by force and usher in some kind of national chaos to get their way, casualties notwithstanding.

Commitment and responsibility are becoming, like religious belief in this nation, less admirable and desirable as the days progress. People do not want to take the time and effort to think through and establish an independent frame of mind that just might be more worthwhile than being content with mediocrity and indifference towards life and purpose. People want “stuff,” not substance. To even consider someone else’s needs or feelings seems to be a lost cause. When someone, regardless of age, income, nationality, or other factor, starts to declare that “it’s all about them,” it is really about the sin nature that we all possess and love to coddle. And God hates it, regardless of what you think, feel, or say.

If you are offended by this bluntness on my part, I say with all kindness, “I don’t care.” The truth of human nature has to be presented in one way or another, and I will not sugarcoat or try to explain away the blatant evil nature we have that loves wickedness, deceit, cheating, selfishness, vanity, and self-love at the expense of your soul.

Self-centeredness and egotism have crept into the modern church like a cancer, where the desire to “plant a seed of blessing and prosperity” on one’s part takes precedence over a hunger for holiness and a desire to imitate and follow Jesus no matter the cost or hardship. The late Keith Green produced a song entitled “Asleep in the Light,” where he admonished his fellow Christians for crying out for constant blessings on their behalf while the world is spiraling down into eternal darkness. We play a game of “Sanctification” on Sundays, but we act like the world the rest of the week.

A.W. Tozer called out for Christians to be holy in conduct and be examples of what Jesus wants from those who claim to follow Him. Playing a part where one looks “blessed and highly favored” but is just as spiritually poor as the garden variety pagan neighbor is doing nothing but driving people away from the open arms of a loving Savior who offers comfort and rest for their weary souls (Matthew 11:28-30). If we are honest in our relationship with Jesus, we are all guilty of two-faced behavior and speech one or more times in our lives, and it must be dealt with in prayer, repentance, and renewal of our hearts towards Him. Our fallow ground needs to be broken up every so often for the seeds of God’s Word and direction to take root and grow in us (Jeremiah 4:3).

We cannot allow ourselves to be led by the world or our flesh as the days draw nearer for the LORD’S return. We who are spiritual (Galatians 6:1-5) need to take our eyes off of ourselves, our desires, our wants, and to instead re-engage in intercessory prayer, self-denial, godly behavior, and renew our reverence and worship of the Sovereign LORD God Almighty.

Look at Mark 8:34-38, the main verses of this message, and see that the Lord Jesus makes demands of everyone who is sick and tired of their sins, who no longer want to bear wounded hearts that have endured varied levels of emotional, physical, and mental hell, who now want to be free, forgiven, and made new. He demands that we die to self-centeredness, to get our minds and eyes off of our own little world and our “I” disease. We are to focus on Him and take up the instrument of death to the flesh, namely the cross (Romans 6:6).

We are not our own when we give our lives to the Lordship of Jesus Christ (1 Corinthians 6:20). He owns us from that moment on and can do with us as He wishes for His glory. If we are serious about being a real Christian, then get this point into your system – He is on the throne of your life from now on. You need to abdicate and hand over the crown to Him. He made you (Genesis 1:26; John 1:1-4; Colossians 1:16-18). Don’t you think He knows what is best for you?

Discipleship, the real and authentic act of following Jesus wholeheartedly, also means that you will have rough days ahead because of your faith in Him (2 Timothy 3:12). You will be hassled, harassed, treated unfairly, and fired from your job for being a Christian. Millions of your brethren over the centuries have gone to their deaths for following Jesus. Even today, Christians are being isolated, forced out of their churches, imprisoned, fined by the local authorities, slandered, and that is here in America. It is far worse in other nations, and it will not get better as the time for Jesus’ return approaches. Jesus promised that to the apostles (Matthew 24:9; Mark 13:9; Luke 21:12), and if the Rapture is later than we expect, you, my friend, will not be exempt. You had better be ready. If the Lord Jesus had to endure hardship, then we will have it as well.

In this late hour, you dare not keep playing some pious game or pretending to be a Christian when you know otherwise. If you feel that following Jesus is not worth the trouble and you are ready to walk away and deny Him, you never knew Him in the first place and are subject to eternal doom (2 Timothy 4:10; Hebrews 6:4-6; 1 John 2:19). Just like Judas, you are a devil (John 6:70-71). If this makes you angry, then I strongly suggest you evaluate where you really stand with the Lord Jesus right here and now. Examine yourself to see whether you are really in the faith (Philippians 2:12) before the Spirit gives you over to your sins (Romans 1:28-32) and you will not care about it.

As the days pass, it will be more dangerous to admit that you are a follower of Jesus Christ, and we might have to pay a severe price. However, it is persecution that grows the church (just read the book of Acts) and separates the wheat from the weeds (Matthew 3:12, 13:26). Even now, we are seeing people whom we once thought were solid in their faith embrace causes and ideologies that clearly go against Scripture and the person and work of the Lord Jesus Christ. We read of more and more pastors and Christian “celebrities” openly denying their faith and declaring themselves atheists, agnostics, or leaving the ministry altogether and becoming bitter critics of Christianity.

The LORD is beginning to separate the sheep from the goats (Matthew 25:31-46), and there will be, unfortunately, many so-called “believers” who will be cast aside by the Lord Jesus at the Final Judgment (Matthew 7:21-23) and condemned for being frauds and pretenders.

I urge you today that if you have not truly placed your faith in the Lord Jesus Christ alone for salvation (Acts 4:12, 16:31), do so TODAY. Confess your sins, repent, and turn to Him. He awaits you with open arms and a love that no one in this world can ever imitate or surpass. Let your faith in Jesus be real and authentic, and be that disciple who walks the walk and talks the talk. Bow before Him and let Him make you a new creation.

“When Jesus calls a man, He bids him to come and die.” – Dietrich Bonhoeffer (1906-1945) from his book The Cost of Discipleship. He was a German pastor who stood against Hitler, and for it, ended his life as a prisoner in a concentration camp. He walked the walk.

donaldwhitchard@gmail.com

www.realitycityreverend.com

Join me for “The Reality City Daily Review” weekday mornings at 10:00 CST on YouTube (USA). It will then be posted on Facebook and on my website. My main area of discussion will be on the basics of the Christian faith but will also deal with prophetic issues and other topics as the Lord impresses upon me to handle.

Throwing Caution to the Wind

I’ve been pro-vaccination for the past year because I fear other consequences more than the virus itself. We should have collectively decided to vaccinate enough people to reach herd immunity and stop the pandemic.

This virus has devastated our ICU workers. It gave the government an excuse to take away more of our freedoms. Millions of businesses have been destroyed, and we have spent trillions on the virus. We should send China a $5 trillion dollar bill.

It seems that about 40% of the population lacked trust in the government, which allowed the Delta variant to thrive. In black populations, mistrust is even higher. In many southern states, 70% of blacks have resisted getting any of the vaccines.

It did pay to wait as long as possible to get vaccinated. People who got jabbed in January now only have 45% protection, which is down from the initial 95% protection rate.

In an article I wrote a couple of months ago, I expressed my concerns over booster shots, mixing vaccines, and giving the vaccine to small children. The government plowed ahead in all these areas in what appears to be a lack of research.

The government is currently recommending that people over age 65 with health issues get the Pfizer booster shot. If it is true that the booster shot is simply half a dose of the previous two doses, then it would seem fine. I worry about the health consequences of getting endless booster shots. I’m most worried about booster shots that get modified to make them more effective, and the public is not told of the change.

I was very troubled by the C.D.C. Director, Rochelle Walensky, overruling the vote by an agency panel that did not recommend Pfizer boosters for health care workers, teachers, and other workers at risk. The press didn’t even ask for a reason for why the panel voted no.

My concern about mixing vaccines has come true. A small group of people who had the Moderna and Johnson & Johnson vaccines have been given the Pfizer booster. This move is being seen as safe because it boosted antibody levels.

They’re now giving the vaccines to children down to the age of five years old. They think all is well because they figured out that you give children 1/3 the dose. In the past, it took us 10 years to develop vaccines, and we’re making moves in just a few months. Since children are in a state of development, there are a million things that can go wrong.

I now have a new concern with the introduction of the drug molnupiravir, which comes in pill form. As it turns out, all the scientists and doctors who insisted that Merck’s “revolutionary” COVID drug molnupiravir is extremely safe weren’t faithfully adhering to “the science” after all. Because according to a report published by Barron’s, some scientists are worried that the drug – which purportedly cut hospitalizations in half during a study that was cut short – could cause cancer or birth defects.

So much for having a “strong safety profile,” as Dr. Scott Gottlieb claimed in an interview on the day Merck first publicized the research.

It’s perfectly understandable why Merck might choose to play down this safety risk: assuming it’s approved, the drug is widely expected to be one of “the most lucrative drugs ever” – which is one reason why Merck’s shares soared into the double-digit territory after the announcement. The market for this type of drug is estimated to be over $20 billion.

Molnupiravir works by incorporating itself into the genetic material of the virus and then causing a huge number of mutations as the virus replicates, effectively killing it. In some lab tests, the drug has also shown the ability to integrate into the genetic material of human cells, causing mutations as those cells replicate.

I’m troubled just by the dosage of Molnupiravir. The treatment requires people to take five pills four times a day for up to two weeks. I’ve been prescribed all types of drugs over the years, and I’ve never taken more than two of one kind. To be downing 20 pills in a single day strikes me as very dangerous.

I don’t expect something to go horribly wrong with the COVID-19 vaccine. I’ve shown that the dangers are there, but I doubt calamity will occur. If we had a disaster with one of the vaccines, it would make it very hard to get people to receive the mark of the beast. Our ability to throw caution to the wind without consequences tells me that time will likely run out before our luck does.

“And the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand, The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb” (Revelation 14:9-10).

–Todd

CRT from God’s Viewpoint

A growing threat in America at this critical moment of US history involves a term we’ve become familiar with; it’s one we hear on an almost daily basis. It involves the most basic element of the nation’s family unit.

The term is CRT—for Critical Race Theory. The threat the term and ideology most represents is aimed at America’s children.

Here is one definition as presented in today’s leftist vernacular.

critical race theory (CRT), intellectual movement and loosely organized framework of legal analysis based on the premise that race is not a natural, biologically grounded feature of physically distinct subgroups of human beings but a socially constructed (culturally invented) category that is used to oppress and exploit people of colour. (https://www.britannica.com/topic/critical-race-theory)

CRT is a direct and destructive assault on the foundation of morality and liberty endowed by God and constitutionally assured by the founding fathers. This is because at its black heart is the insidious brainwashing of children in the public classrooms, from kindergarten through graduate levels of higher education.

CRT pits human being against human being. It divides in a most hateful and dangerous way at the God-ordained level of individual personhood, using skin color to do its destructive work.

Luciferian minions among us are rewriting history to paint true champions of God-given human rights as evil tyrants, even though it is those heroes who ultimately did away with slavery and legislated rights that were totally inclusive for all men and women, no matter their gender or the hue of their skin.

These minions are inculcating white children with the lies that they are evil perpetrators of hatred against people of color. They are guilty of being white, guilty of association to the founding fathers and all their whiteness. These minions are teaching children of darker-hued skin that they are victims and must do what is necessary to come against all whose skin is determined to be white. It is taught that violence against such whiteness is justified. Black lives matter and white lives don’t is at the center of the CRT curriculum.

The minions have so infiltrated the US government that institutions under the Justice Department, such as the FBI, now insanely threaten to incarcerate and punish in many personal and family ways moms and dads who legally protest school boards that continue to fill the children with such hellish, hateful propaganda.

It looks for the moment that the minions are having their way. The satanic blueprint to bring down the United States of America so that the Antichrist system of global control can be constructed, unhampered, seems to be coming to fruition.

But, as we’ve observed time and time again, God’s restrainer, the Holy Spirit, indwelling all believers who constitute the Church of Jesus Christ, continues to hold back the evil that threatens.

We see this again in the mothers and fathers standing against CRT being taught in the schools of America. A great many of these parents are Christians, and, I believe, are Holy Spirit-inspired to make this stand in these closing days of the Church Age (Age of Grace). God is using these to restrain Satan and his minions’ assault on the children of the nation.

The God of Heaven is not idle. He is at work in many ways we aren’t aware of. He sees the end-times battle against the powers and principalities of Ephesians 6:12 in terms of His Son’s perfect righteousness.

God’s own CRT program is in direct opposition to the wicked CRT campaign on earth we’re witnessing in its attempts to destroy the nation through stealing the minds of our children and youth. I term God’s CRT program “Christ’s Righteousness Theology.” This CRT contains all that is necessary to combat all the wickedness the powers and principalities in high places can throw at our nation—at us.

We as Christians must let the world around us see our Lord’s righteousness—yes, even His righteous anger—against evil that is exploding across culture and society at this closing time for human history.

Christians are a last line of defense at this crucial time just before the Rapture takes us to the dwelling places Jesus has prepared for those who belong to Him (John 14:1–3).

We must stand against the atrocity of abortion, against the madness of anti-God sexual deviancy, against the humanity-destructive things wrapped up in racism, no matter the perpetrators.

All people are equal in our God’s holy eyes, as He offers mankind the righteousness that makes men, women, and children eligible for redemption. The words of His own son, Jesus, says it all about Heaven’s CRT program.

For god so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life. (John 3:16)

—Terry

Bid Him Come and Die :: By Dr. Donald Whitchard

Oct 18, 2021