Supremacy of Christ :: By Dennis Huebshman

Published on: April 4, 2020 by RR7

Philippians 2:9-11, “Therefore, God has highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name that is above every name, (10) so that at the name of Jesus, every knee should bow in Heaven and on earth, and under the earth; (11) and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the Glory of God the Father.” (emphasis mine)

Before going further with this message, I am fully aware that there will be many who see this as a 1 Corinthians 1:18 issue; that anything that pertains to Jesus, Calvary, Salvation and Eternity is “folly”. However, to the minority that already are, or those who are about to become believers, this is about the “power” of God. It’s the difference between those that are on the broad pathway leading to destruction; and those on the straight and narrow leading to Eternal Life. (Matthew 7:13-14) Also, it’s a free will choice that each of us must make for ourselves, one way or the other.

God gave us a most precious gift that He knew would not be accepted by the majority. Looking at statistics for this earth, approximately 10% of the total population is “Rapture Prepared”. This is no surprise to the Father, and this percentage holds true here in America as well. There are a bunch of “church-goers”, but that doesn’t make them true Christians.

On another note, the statistics for God’s chosen people, the Jews, is even lower. Only about 1%-2% worldwide are Messianic – followers of Yeshua (Jesus). We’re told that as we near the end of this age, there will be even more turning away from Jesus to accept the “pleasures” and “rewards” this earth supposedly offers. It’s happening today.

In his day, Paul did his very best to get the gospel to as many people as possible; the Jews first, and also the Gentiles (everyone else). The religious Jews persecuted him at every turn, but most gentiles were very interested in the word he was presenting. They were grateful they were being offered a chance to be included in God’s plan.

In Colossians 1:9-14, he gave the following encouragement; “And so, from the day we heard (about their love in the Spirit), we have not ceased to pray for you; asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all Spiritual wisdom and understanding; (10) so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to Him; bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God. (11) Being strengthened with all power, according to His glorious might for all endurance and patience with joy; (12) giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the Saints of Light (Believers). (13) He has delivered us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son; (14) in whom we have redemption; the forgiveness of sin.”

Paul is not advocating doing “works” to obtain Salvation; but that once a person has received and accepted the “gift”, we want to glorify Jesus in our actions because we love Him. We have not “earned” anything as He paid for our sins in full; and to suggest otherwise is an insult to the sacrifice He made.

Going to Colossians 1:21-23, Paul says “and you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, (22) He has now reconciled in His body of flesh (human) by His death; in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before Him (God); (23) if indeed you continue in the faith, stable and steadfast, not shifting from hope of the Gospel that you heard, which has been proclaimed in all creation under heaven; and of which I, Paul, became a minister.”

There are those who believe Jesus was just a man, an ordinary but good prophet, through which a bunch of people were influenced by the message He presented. There are also those who do not believe He rose from the dead, as given in the Bible, but that He is still in a grave somewhere near Jerusalem.

There were an abundance of witnesses to His being alive after having been killed on the cross. For those who believe He did not actually die on the cross, but only “fainted”, they do not understand the process of crucifixion. If anyone were to be taken off a cross while still alive; the soldier that removed them prematurely would take that person’s place on a cross.

One other false theory is that Jesus will rise with the appearing of Mohammad, and will be a servant for the Islamic god. This is dispelled in Exodus 20:3 and Deuteronomy 5:7, “You shall have no other gods before Me.” (Note the small “g”) Our Heavenly Father is the only true God that has ever existed. He is a triune God – three entities in one. There are numerous verses in the Old and New Testaments that tell us that God has always existed, which is hard for the human mind to comprehend. Time was created by God for man, and He is not bound by it as we are.

A couple of examples are; Psalm 90:2, “Before the mountains were brought forth (created), or ever You had formed the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting; you are God.”

1 Timothy 1:17, “To the King of the ages; immortal; invisible; the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen.”

One more from Revelation 10:6-7. This was stated by a Mighty Angel that came to earth during the tribulation, “and swore by Him (God) who lives forever and ever; who created heaven and what is in it; the earth and what is in it; and the sea and what is in it; that there would be no more delay; (7) but that in the days of the trumpet call to be sounded by the Seventh Angel (Trumpet Judgments), the mystery of God would be fulfilled just as He announced to His servants, the prophets.”

Hebrews 13:8, “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever.” Genesis 1:1, “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.” John 1:1-3, “In the beginning was the Word; and the Word was with God; and the Word was God. (2) He was in the beginning with God. (3) All things were made through Him, and without Him was not anything made that was made.” John 1:9-12, “The True Light, which gives light to everyone, was coming into the world. (10) He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, yet the world did not know Him. (11) He came to His own (Jews), and His own people did not receive Him. (12) But to all (Jew and Gentile) who did receive Him, who believed in His name, He gave the right to become children of God.” (John 10:16)

There are actually those who say Jesus never claimed to actually be God. First, John 10:30, “The Father and I are One.” John 14:6-9, Jesus said to him (Thomas), “I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life; no one comes to the Father except by Me. (7) If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also. From now on, you do know Him, and have seen Him. (8) Philip said to Him, Lord, show us the Father, and it is enough for us. (9) Jesus said to him, Have I been with you so long and you still do not know Me, Philip? Whoever has seen Me has seen the Father. How can you say show us the Father?”

What was sad at the time was that even His chosen apostles did not yet realize the reason for Jesus’ first visit. The Pharisees rejected Jesus because He didn’t come in as a full-fledged conqueror, and give them high positions of authority in the world. The apostles thought He would set up His kingdom right then, and when He was crucified, they all fled. It’s recorded that John was at Calvary, and Jesus assigned the care of Mary, His earthly mother, to him. (John 19: 26-29)

Jesus was on a very specific mission His first time around. He came as a humble and lowly “sacrificial lamb) to provide the only pathway that would available for all humans to have the opportunity to be forgiven of all sins, and to have an eternal home with Him. He made it plain that He was here to follow the will of the Father, and willingly laid down His sinless human life for us. (John 10:18) He became lower than the Angels for a little while. (Hebrews 2:9)

To receive the gift that He gave for us, our action is to realize we all are sinners (Romans 3:23), and cannot save ourselves. We must believe that the shedding of His pure blood for us is the only way to Salvation; accept through faith that the crucifixion, burial and resurrection are real; and believe that all who truly call on Him to be their Savior will be forgiven and have an eternal home with Him. (Acts 2:21; Romans 10:9-13)

Considering all He did for all mankind, is it any wonder that all those who refuse to accept Him will spend eternity separated from Him – in the Lake of Fire (Revelation 20:11-15)? His next appearance on this earth will be to be the conqueror that was expected His first time around. He will put an end to the wrath/tribulation with just a word.

After a personal reign on this earth for 1000 years, He will allow satan to be released from his holding area for a while. We do not know how long that will be, but it will be the final episode in any rebellion against our Heavenly Father, His Son Jesus, and the Holy Spirit. After the Great White Throne Judgment of Revelation 20, we will see a new heaven and earth created that will be perfect in every way. (Revelation 21) Our Jesus will rule and reign forever, and we will be with Him.

The hardest part for anyone is to believe this is all true, and the Bible is the inerrant word of the Most Holy God. All who will call on Him, He will gladly receive as He wants to send no one to eternal punishment. (2 Peter 3:9) He gave us the authority to make our own decision, and will in no way force anyone to accept Jesus. This is the pure love our Father has for us. Consider your eternity with care. There are only two options, Jesus or satan; Heaven or Hell. Jesus will be returning soon as evidenced by all the world’s actions of today. To hesitate could place you in the worst position you have ever been in. All believers will not go through the wrath as promised. Be ready for the call – it could come as early as today.

Maranatha (Come Lord Jesus)

huebshman46@gmail.com

“If my people…” :: By Terry James

Published on: April 2, 2020 by RR7

This week I received a thought-provoking email and sense I should explore its contents with you.

We continue, of course, in the midst of this Covid-19 or coronavirus, or whatever you want to call it. That is literally all we can find in terms of news. If news providers or pundits move away from the topic at all, it is only for a brief moment. They are then right back to giving all the statistics and feared statistics. The pandemic’s effect on both the health of the populations of the world and the economies of the world are news-fodder 24/7.

For the prophecy student of the pre-Trib sort, many questions arise. Why was the economy moving upward as if it had JATO (forgive my old US Air Force term, for “Jet Assist Take Off”)?Then, why did that booming economy descend so dramatically as to make many believe a catastrophic crash is surely coming?

The depictions by even many of the prophecy prognosticators are so dire as to put forward that we are now into the Tribulation—the time of Daniel’s seventieth week.

And why should this not be the fear? The abject fear-mongering by mainstream news is at a near bloodcurdling level in some instances.

Here is a brief excerpt from a writer who analyzes and points to things posited by two major newspapers that can be designed to do nothing less than engender trepidation.

The New York Times claims that “the specter of death speeds across the globe, ‘Appointment in Samara’-style, ever faster, culling the most vulnerable.” Others are claiming Trump will cancel the election to rule as a Jim Jones. “Every viewer who trusts the words of Earhardt or Hannity or Regan could well become a walking, breathing, droplet-spewing threat to the public,” opined the Washington Post. (“Wake Up! Your fears are being manipulated,” by Peter Van Buren, AmericanConservative.com, Rapture Ready News, March 27, 2020)

This writer has received a number of emails expressing fear that all of this means the Rapture of the Church has somehow now been pushed back. Since I have written on numerous occasions that Jesus said that it will be like the days of Noah and days of Lot when He next catastrophically Intervenes in the affairs of mankind, the plunging economy and pandemic conditions around the world must mean the Rapture cannot be imminent.

Jesus prophesied that people will be buying, selling, building, planting, marrying, etc., when He next breaks in on this rebellious world. Just like in the days of Lot in Sodom, God’s judgment will begin falling the very day the people of the Age of Grace are called by Christ into His Presence (Revelation 4: 1).

Well, folks, guess what? People are still buying, selling, building, and marrying. The farmers will be planting this spring. While it is true that all of these things are on a frightening, downward trajectory, they are still taking place. This is not the time of Armageddon when none of these things will come close to being done as they are currently. The great Rapture event can literally happen at any moment. And it is my opinion that, despite the pandemic and the subsequent plunge of economy, the Rapture is more likely than ever to be at any moment.

The Rapture is still imminent!

My own view is that this economy will move back into the upward trajectory. But whether it does or not, we will still be buying, selling, and all of the other things mentioned by the Lord Jesus. His Words, like God, Himself, do not change. He is the same today, yesterday, and forever.

So we get back to the purpose of the thinking we are doing based upon the email I received. It was a missive that was meant to salve some of the hurting from the abrasiveness of the fear-mongering we’ve all been subjected to.

Like the Matthew 24:36–42 and Luke 17:26–30 passages about the days of Noah and days of Lot, the 2 Chronicles 7: 14 passage is declared by seminaries and their graduates’ scholarly commentaries to be for the Jews only, and for the time of Tribulation only. These, the “experts”—many of which are my good friends—say we must accept that these portions of God’s prophetic Word don’t apply to the Church. Nor are they for the Church Age, the Age of Grace.

I do not accept these interpretations. I believe these words of Christ in the Olivet Discourse are for the whole world, in every age, but particularly for the end of this present dispensation, in regard to the days of Noah and of Lot prophecy. The 2 Chronicles 7:14 directive from Heaven was indeed for the Jews, the emailer was pointing out. However, it is not exclusively to the Jews.

The Heavenly Father gives the prescription for how to deal with problems of a sin-nature that bring God’s correction and judgment on His people.

If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land. (2 Chronicles 7:14)

Murray Lorance, the emailer, wrote in part:

While some still argue this is a message directed at only the wayward Jewish people of the Old Testament times, that same theme is introduced from the start of the Christian era in Acts 2.

Verse 38 says, “Repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. ³ For the promise is for you and your children and for all who are afar off, as many as the Lord our God will call to Himself.”

I interject here: The words of this Scripture about being baptized for your sins, remember, is preached to the new believers in Christ before Paul’s teachings of belief only in the death, burial, and resurrection for salvation (Romans 10:9–10).

Murray continues:

This heart of this initial message is carried consistently through the gospels and the epistles, as well as the final Revelation Word from Christ Himself.

But, to completely appreciate the application of the Second Chronicles passage we have become familiar with, let’s reconnect the prior verse to suddenly see its application to today’s pandemic crisis.

II Chronicles 7:13–14 “If I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, of if I send the locust to devour the land, or if I send pestilence among My people, and My people who are called by My name humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, will forgive their sin and will heal their land.

Now, just to understand how earnest God is, back up to Chapter 6:28–31 for Solomon’s prayer of request to God.

“If there is famine in the land, if there is pestilence, if there is blight or mildew, if there is locust or grasshopper, if their enemies besiege them in the land of their cities, whatever plague or whatever sickness there is, whatever prayer or supplication is made by any man or all of Your people Israel, each knowing his own affliction and his own pain, and spreading his hands toward this house, then hear from heaven Your dwelling place, and forgive, and render to each according to all his ways, whose heart You know for You alone know the hearts of the son of man that they may fear You, to walk in your ways as long as they live in the land which You have given to our fathers.”

This prayer brought the response of Chapter 7:12 “Then the Lord appeared to Solomon at night and said to him, I have heard your prayer…”

So, will we repent to seek God’s relief, or will just a remnant plead for mercy? Could it be He is stirring hearts everywhere to seek Him? Will you be the watchman on the wall to guide that one back to truth, repentance and His righteousness? [I was delighted when I saw Franklin Graham on an advert on Fox Channel—a one-minute plea, and leading the audience in the sinner’s prayer! How bold! How badly needed in this secular culture.] “Pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest….! Be that faithful laborer!

If you know the Lord Jesus, you are His person. We are His People.

Let us pray the prayer of 2 Chronicles 7:14 as we look for the any-moment intervention of the Lord Jesus Christ (Titus 2:13).