Turn Away from Lies :: By Nathele Graham

Published on: May 20, 2023 by RR10

“O Timothy, keep that which is committed to thy trust, avoiding profane and vain babblings and oppositions of science falsely so called: which some professing have erred concerning the faith. Grace be with thee. Amen” (1 Timothy 6:20-21).

The Apostle Paul was concerned that the Gospel would be corrupted, and therefore he wrote to the pastors of various congregations, urging them to stand firm on God’s truth. It would be wonderful if pastors today would stop preaching a different Gospel than found in Scripture. I hear it quite often. “I can’t find a church that teaches from the Bible.” What a sad comment on the state of Christianity.

How has this happened? Scripture is God’s truth and is the standard of how we should live. Satan has successfully corrupted God’s truth by twisting it just like he did in the Garden of Eden. Evolution is a lie that has no place within the Christian community.

Sometimes I try to rationalize this nonsense, and it becomes so absurd that I have to laugh. Sadly, much of the Christian community has come to believe this lie rather than the truth of God’s word. With the discovery of DNA, evolution should have been put to rest, but so-called scientists and public schools just can’t get beyond the lie.

Romans chapter 1 tells us what happens when the creation is worshipped rather than the Creator. I urge every person reading this commentary to study Romans chapter 1 and then look around and see how society has degenerated since the theory of evolution has been accepted as fact.

“In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth” (Genesis 1:1). God’s truth is being rejected, and Satan’s evil agenda is being embraced. When God is rejected, sin reigns. “Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools, and changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things” (Romans 1:21-23).

There are consequences for rejecting God’s truth. “Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves: who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator who is blessed for ever. Amen” (Romans 1:24-25).

It’s important to understand what God sees as sin, and then Christians need to oppose it and not allow sin to creep into the congregation. Don’t forget to love the sinner and lead them out of darkness and into the Light of God. You can’t do that if you agree with the sin and call evil good. God says that even if we don’t participate in the sin but approve of it, then we are also guilty. “Who knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them” (Romans 1:32). God’s word never changes, so this is still true today.

That’s not the only lie that the world accepts that Christians need to reject. As disclosed in Romans chapter 1, believing the lie of evolution leads to homosexuality. If there’s no God to set the standard of morality, then anything goes. In our “woke” society today, there is no truth, and as in the days of the Judges, people did what they wanted. “In those days there was no king in Israel, but every man did that which was right in his own eyes” (Judges 17:6). We see that attitude today. God should have been embraced as King over Israel, but He was rejected, and people lived by their own rules.

Today, truth is rejected, and sin is accepted. You may have been born male, but because you reject reality and truth, you decide you’re a female. Then you go through the process of mutilating your body and take hormone-altering drugs in order to live out the lie you think is true. Some people even believe they are a cat or a dog. “Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!” (Isaiah 5:20).

The world may accept this craziness, but it has no place within Christian congregations. As we draw nearer to the Rapture, we know that deception will be a stumbling block for those who don’t hold fast to God’s truth.

The Apostle Paul totally changed his outlook on life after he met Jesus. The things he thought were important before Christ changed him were no longer important to him. He was a very intelligent man, and while walking in darkness, he used that intelligence for all the wrong purposes. After he met Jesus, he used his intelligence to serve God. He conformed his life to honor Jesus rather than trying to conform Jesus to himself. Because Paul submitted to God, he preached the Gospel boldly with no gimmicks. Because Paul preached truth instead of lies, we can read his letters and see how we are supposed to live.

“Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain. For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures:” (1 Corinthians 15:1-4).

That’s the Gospel in simple, straightforward terms.

Today, we seem to rely on gimmicks to spread the Gospel. Too many pastors are afraid to preach God’s truth, and Scripture is compromised. They see it as being more important to protect the tax-exempt status than it is to preach the truth. Above all, don’t make anyone uncomfortable about their sin, because if you preach against sin, they may not donate to the collection plate. The Apostle Paul was more interested in preaching God’s truth than amassing a fortune.

The people of Thessalonica readily received God’s truth, even without gimmicks. “For this cause also thank we God without ceasing, because, when ye received the word of God which ye heard of us, ye received it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which effectually worketh also in you that believe” (1 Thessalonians 2:13).

Why is it that today, the pure word of God is deemed insufficient?

God’s truth hasn’t changed. People need to hear it in order to find salvation. Why do we think we need to compromise God’s truth today? Are we sharing the Gospel or something that Satan has twisted?

“We are not makers and inventors; we are repeaters, we tell the message we have received” – Charles Spurgeon.

What message are we promoting? Is it the same message which Paul promoted on his many missionary journeys? Is it the same Gospel that Peter embraced when feeding the flock just as Jesus called him to do? What are people led to believe when they sit and listen to their pastor on Sunday mornings not mention Christ and why He died for us? Or when the pastor preaches about prosperity or New Age teachings? The prosperity Gospel is false doctrines. What about the purpose-driven gimmick or some other nonsense instead of preaching the truth of the Gospel? Unless the pure Gospel is taught, you aren’t being given God’s truth. We aren’t to create new truths, but we are to preach the old truth found in Scripture. The Gospel is never to be considered old fashion, obsolete, or obscure.

“New Age,” seeker-friendly teachings are really just the same old lies Satan has always used to draw people away from God’s truth. Meditation and yoga are both wrong for Christians and shouldn’t be found within our congregations. We don’t see Jesus practicing these things, and neither should we. Scripture does tell us to meditate upon the things of God, and that is very different than Eastern meditation, which promotes emptying your mind. If you make your mind empty, demons can easily enter. Scripture encourages us to meditate upon God and His truth.

In his first letter to the young pastor Timothy, Paul gave quite a teaching that every seminary seems to have forgotten to teach. “Meditate upon these things; give thyself wholly to them: that thy profiting may appear to all” (1 Timothy 4:15). Meletao is the Greek word translated “meditate upon.” According to Vine’s Expository Dictionary, it means “to care for, attend carefully.” Paul encouraged Timothy to be confident in his ministry. In verse 15, Paul tells Timothy to “Meditate on these things.” To find out what things to meditate upon, read the previous chapters.

Remember, we may not all stand before a congregation and preach, but all Christians need to represent our Lord. It’s easy to sit in a pew on Sunday, or put a bumper sticker on your vehicle that says, “Honk if you love Jesus,” or wear a t-shirt with a catchy saying, but it’s a lot harder to show God’s grace in our daily walk. Are you able to defend your faith? Peter says you need to and tells us how to do that. “But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear:” (1 Peter 3:15).

You cannot have an answer for your hope if you twist your body into ridiculous positions while emptying your mind in hopes of opening chakras in order to release the kundalini spirit in you. That’s all very satanic. Sadly, this practice is permeating our Christian congregations and is practiced by many Christians. Don’t be deceived by lies.

Jesus didn’t promote a “seeker-friendly” doctrine. He forgave sinners, but He urged them to leave their sin behind. He knows your sins and mine and loves us in spite of our shortcomings. Don’t be deceived, but study Scripture and be sure your pastor preaches God’s truth from Genesis through Revelation. It’s important to encourage unsaved people to come to church, but it’s important that they find truth being preached there. Lies might fill the pews but won’t save souls; only the truth of God can do that. That truth isn’t found in the latest trend or a book written by someone who has written it in order to make themselves rich. God’s truth is found in Scripture. Study it.

“Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth” (2 Timothy 2:15).

If lies are sneaking into your congregation, then take a stand against the lies. If your plea for truth is rejected, find another congregation to join. Maybe God is calling you to start a fellowship in your home.

The Apostle Paul had a clear conscience. Although he had been, by his own description, the greatest of sinners, after he met Jesus, he only served Him and spread the Gospel without gimmicks. In his final meeting with the elders of Ephesus, he encouraged them to not stray from preaching truth. He was an example of how these elders, and those that have come after them, should teach.

“Wherefore I take you to record this day, that I am pure from the blood of all men. For I have not shunned to declare unto you all the counsel of God. Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood” (Acts 20:26-28).

Paul had been guilty of great sin prior to meeting Christ, but after he met Jesus on the road to Damascus, he shared the Gospel without compromise and lived to honor Christ. Because he wasn’t seeker-friendly, many people came to a saving faith in Christ’s finished work on the cross. If someone heard Paul’s words and then decided to reject Jesus, Paul wasn’t guilty of that person’s eternal death. Today, there are many congregations that only hear lies and a watered-down Gospel. How many souls are being lost for lack of hearing truth?

In his second letter to Timothy, Paul encouraged the young pastor to preach truth. “I charge thee therefore before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom; preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine” (2 Timothy 4:1-2).

Maybe instead of pastors being indoctrinated in seminaries, they should study Scripture. Only God’s word is inspired by the Holy Spirit, and any teaching or practice other than that which is found in God’s word is questionable and should be rejected.

“For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; and they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables” (2 Timothy 4:3-4).

We are living in that time. Sound doctrine isn’t compatible with the “woke” generation. Lies and fables are acceptable by pastors and congregations, but only God’s truth will lead a person to salvation. Turn away from lies and turn to God’s truth.

God bless you all,

Nathele Graham

twotug@embarqmail.com
ron@straitandnarrowministry.com

Recommended prophecy sites:

www.rapture ready.com
www.prophecyupdate.com
www.raptureforums.com

All original scripture is “theopneustos,” God-breathed.

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How One Can Become Truly Happy :: By Gene Lawley

Published on: May 20, 2023 by RR10

The late Bob Proctor was an avid promoter of positive thinking and the philosophy of “I can if I think I can.” He began his search for that happiness when he admitted he was not happy with his life that was so empty and shiftless. That was a good starting place, and whether he arrived at that true happiness when his life ended, I do not know. However, the first of his four basic principles of life was, “God is always a good God,” obviously a great starting place.

But the Apostle Paul summed up his search for that when he wrote, “I can do all things through Christ, who strengthens me” (Philippians 4:13).

Many of us are like Bob Proctor, or have been, wanting that “true happiness” state of mind. But we are not prepared to pay the price for it. Do I mean there is a price to pay for it? Yes, but not in legal tender (cash).

Those attitudes Jesus proposed in Matthew 5:3 to 5:10, called the “Be” attitudes, lay out a pattern of life that He says is one of true happiness. Let’s just see if that really is the result, and why.

The Be-Attitudes are in three clusters of three verses, with the second and third verses supportive of the first one.

The first one is foundational to all the others, so I will give attention to it in detail. As written, it says, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” To open that up a bit further, read it this way: “The truly happy man is one who realizes his own spiritual poverty.” Now, how could that be so?

If a person is filled with himself, and that filling is of the old Adam nature, his life will be filled with all that his Adam nature can produce—envy, hate, selfishness, pride, and sinfulness of all sorts. What room is there left for Christ? One must be empty of self that he may be filled with the likeness of Christ.

The Apostle Paul learned this as he struggled with his “thorn in the flesh” that God did not remove from him. “And He said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me” (2 Corinthians 12:9).

He described himself and his associates in this way: “As sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; as poor yet making many rich; as having nothing, yet possessing all things” (2 Corinthians 6:10).

In a passage dealing with a believer’s moral character, Paul writes, “Those who belong to the Lord have become one spirit with Him” (1 Corinthians 6:17), followed by verses 19-20, “Do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, and you are not your own, for you are bought with a price.” It speaks of total surrender.

With that kind of heart, such promises of God as these following can be a person’s own experience: “Delight yourself in the Lord, and He will give you the desires of your heart” (Psalm 37:4), and “He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?” (Romans 8:32).

The second Be-Attitude in this first cluster says, “Blessed are those who mourn for they shall be comforted” (Matthew 5:4). The old Adam nature does not want to be ignored or rejected, and the new nature weeps as it realizes how close it was to missing the truth about eternal life and death. God reassures His comfort for the one mourning.

Now the new nature begins taking control with the one who has been spiritually empty, having begun to obey the directive of Romans 12:2, “And be not conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind….” That strange quality of meekness as “controlled strength” becomes a feature of his character, that person is blessed, as Matthew 5:5 says, and he “will inherit the earth.”

That second cluster of a changing character begins with knowledge of a hungry heart, saying, “Blessed are they who hunger and thirst for righteousness for they shall be filled.” Peter wrote to new believers, “As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the Word that you may grow thereby” (1 Peter 2:2-3). It is the source for renewing the mind.

“Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy,” is what Matthew 5:7 declares, and what a reward that is! James writes that “mercy triumphs over judgment” (James 2:13b) because when exacted by a judge, it replaces judgment.

It is said that no one can look on God and live, for His presence is a consuming fire in its blazing purity, no doubt. But Matthew 5:8 says, “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.” John relates this to when Jesus is revealed and we see Him face to face, that “Everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself, just as He is pure” (1 John 3:3).

So how can that be? It speaks of having a heart that is clean of sin and not given to the Adam nature, just as the first Be-Attitude proclaims. No hidden loyalties or reservations being held back to discolor the commitment to Him.

But Jesus has made a way around that warning of facing God and dying. He told Phillip, “He who has seen Me has seen the Father” (John 14:9). “For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to face” (1 Corinthians 13:12).

That closeness to God readies a person to be a peacemaker, for they are blessed to be called the sons of God (Matthew 5:9). Who is a peacemaker but one who brings the Prince of Peace to those who are without peace. It is the Great Commission.

With that blessing are two attendant Be-Attitudes that test of discipleship and willingness to obey, for one must have gone past any self-centered purpose of his own and have reached a depth of commitment that, no matter what, he will endure.

Paul was cut from that kind of fabric, having claimed this purpose: “And be found in Him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith; that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death” (Philippians 3:9-10).

Those final two Be-Attitudes are, “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” Then, “Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake” (Matthew 5:10-11).

There is within us a strong resistance to such attacks, but when those first seven Be-Attitudes are firmly in place in us, we are ready to respond with true joy—in Christ! After all, believers know the end of the story. Like Paul says in 1 Corinthians 16:9, “For a great and effective door has opened to me, and there are many adversaries,” just as those last two Be-Attitudes indicate.

Now, how are these attitudes fixed in place?

Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him for righteousness, as you recall. Habakkuk 2:4b says, “The just shall live by his faith.” The New Testament repeats that three times, as “The just shall live by faith” in Romans 1:17 and Galatians 3:11. But in Hebrews 10:38, there is an added warning: “Now the just shall live by faith, but if anyone draws back, My soul has no pleasure in him.”

It seems to say, “onward, forward march,” for faith is the basic requirement for living a godly life and serving the Lord. Hebrews 11:6 brings that out more clearly: “But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.”

After Paul finishes writing of Abraham’s faith and its meaning for mankind at the end of Romans 4, he establishes where faith has brought the believer, in Romans 5:1: “Therefore, being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.”

The awesome meaning of Romans 8:32 then comes into view as faith captures our heart and soul: “He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?” (Not for a select few, but for all, and not without Christ, you should note.)

Finally, Habakkuk, again, lays out the effect that living by faith will bring us to as we empty ourselves of self (that first Be-attitude): “Though the fig tree may not blossom, nor fruit be on the vines; though the labor of the olive may fail, and the fields yield no food though the flock may be cut off from the fold, and there be no herd in the stalls—yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will joy in the God of my salvation. The Lord God is my strength; He will make my feet like deer’s feet, and He will make me walk on my high hills” (Habakkuk 3:17-19).

However, as Paul wrote, “Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me” (Philippians 3:12). (No doubt but that is the truth for every believer.)

Contact email: andwegetmercy@gmail.com