Hey Mike,

I was wondering if you could give me some scripture and explanation for a few questions I have that have been on my mind a lot lately:
How do we know we are elect?
Can you explain the mean of “the brothers who give their father an evil report”?
How do we interact with those in Babylon?
How about those who accuse us of twisting God’s word? How do we respond to them?
Many thanks!
God bless,
C_____

Hi C____,
Thank you for your questions. You ask:

How do we know we are elect?

I think it is safe to say that those who are God’s elect “have passed from death unto life”. Now here is how “we know we have passed from death unto life”:

Joh 5:24 Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.

The same apostle adds these words in his epistle:

1Jn 3:14 We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren. He that loveth not his brother abideth in death.

But there is one more verse of scripture to help us to know we truly are God’s elect and can help us to see that we have indeed “passed from death unto life”. Here is the the way to know you love your brothers, and at the same time to know you have “passed from death unto life”:

1Jn 5:2 By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God, and keep his commandments.
1Jn 5:3 For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous.

Anyone can say they love God and that they are God’s elect. Many churches claim they are the only true church and that their followers are God’s elect, but when you ask them if they “keep His commandments”, it generally becomes very clear very quickly that few indeed even know what the love of God is.
Here is one of Christ’s commandments which very few men who claim they have come in Christ’s name will even claim to teach or to keep:

Mat 5:43 Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy.
Mat 5:44 But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;

There is not one orthodox Christian minister who ‘loves Christ and keeps his commandments’. If they did they would not be orthodox Christians. Every orthodox Christian minister urges those in his charge to fight for God and country, and if need be, kill those who are invading their homeland or their homes.
I am not a fool. I am well aware of how difficult it is to stay aloof of the events of this life while living in this world. But God is no fool either, so we need not think we are His children just because we call him “Lord, Lord”.

Luk 6:46 And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?

It is quite impossible for the natural man to “do the things [ Christ] says”.
Here is one more example of those who say they are God’s elect, who claim to love God and keep His commandments, but who will not keep this commandment.

Mat 5:38 Ye have heard that it hath been said, An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth:
Mat 5:39 But I say unto you, That ye resist not evil: but whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also.

Christ is speaking of those things which contrast with “an eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth.” He is not speaking of resisting the devil and the pulls of our flesh, in which case we are told:

Jas 4:7 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
Jas 4:8 Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded.

I hope this helps you to see that being one of God’s elect is not an easy thing to achieve, and really is only accomplished by Jesus Christ Himself living His life of resisting the devil within each of His elect.
The only way we can know for certain whether Jesus Christ is living His life within either ourselves or our brothers is when we love our brothers in accord with the scriptural definition of love:

1Jn 5:2 By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God, and keep his commandments.
1Jn 5:3 For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous.

Christ also gives us these very comforting words:

Joh 10:14 I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of mine.

Your second question is:

Can you explain the meaning of “the brothers who give their father an evil report”?

I am assuming you are referring to this verse of scripture:

Gen 37:2 These are the generations of Jacob. Joseph, being seventeen years old, was feeding the flock with his brethren; and the lad was with the sons of Bilhah, and with the sons of Zilpah, his father’s wives: and Joseph brought unto his father their evil report.

It was just recently brought to my attention the fact that the word translated ‘report’ is the Hebrew word ‘dibbah’, which is better translated as ‘slander’.
Here is Strong’s definition for this Hebrew word:
H1681
dibba h
dib- baw’
From H1680 (in the sense of furtive motion); slander: – defaming, evil report, infamy, slander..
Here are the Old Testament entries for this word:
H1681
dibba h
Total KJV Occurrences: 10
report, 3
Gen_37:2, Num_13:32, Num_14:37
slander, 3
Num_14:36, Psa_31:13, Pro_10:18
infamy, 2
Pro_25:10, Eze_36:3
defaming, 1
Jer_20:10
evil, 1
Num_13:32.
So Joseph was telling his father of the evil slandering of his brothers. In spiritual application for us today, this simply means that we are made aware of all the false doctrines of our own “seed of Abraham” brothers and sisters, who continuously slander the good name of our loving, gentle, patient, and kind, heavenly Father.
All the doctrines of Babylon slander the good name of our heavenly Father. It has never entered His mind to burn anyone alive in literal fire. That doctrine slanders His good name. On the other hand He will judge His people, and the false doctrine of a substitutionary death, which denies that Christ in us dies daily and is crucified with Christ, is also a blasphemous doctrine. We do indeed “reap what we sow”, and it is also true that “whom the Lord loves He chastens and scourges every son He receives”.
Whoever says otherwise is slandering the good name of our heavenly Father who “chastens and scourges every son He receives”.
I hope that helps you to better understand what Joseph reporting to his Father of the evil slandering of his brothers signifies.
Your last question is:

How do we interact with those in Babylon? How about those who accuse us of twisting God’s word? How do we respond to them?

The answer to this question is really contained in the answer to your last question. Joseph refused to slander the good name of his Father even as all ten of his brothers did so routinely. His rejected brothers are the Old Testament symbol of all the churches of Babylon. Joseph stood with his Father and for his Father in the face of all the slandering of his brothers. We too, must stand firm on God’s Word even as we are being accused of twisting it. Our Father knows who it is who is really twisting the word ‘aion’ which means ‘a period of time with a definite beginning and a definite end’ into eternity. Our heavenly Father knows who it is who is twisting “Love your enemies” into ‘Unless he is really your enemy and means you bodily harm’. Our heavenly Father knows who it is who is twisting “I fill up in my body that which is behind of the afflictions of the Christ for His body’s sake which is the church” and “I die daily” and “I am crucified with Christ”, into ‘Christ died for me so I don’t have to die’.
All such twisting of God’s Word is slanderous blasphemy of His loving, kind, gentle, but firm and disciplined good name.
So the answers to your questions here is to be careful not to cast your pearls before swine or give that [ Truth] which is holy to the dogs [ in Babylon]. But when confronted with their lies, you stand pat on the Rock that is Christ and His Word, and let the chips fall where the holy spirit is having them to fall.
In closing I would encourage you to join our nightly Bible studies and fellowship calls and “speak often” to the other parts of the body of Christ. It is impossible to stay spiritually healthy while ignoring the other parts of your own body. Fellowship with others in the Christ is never meant to be a litmus test, but it is scripturally clear that all who partake thereof are spiritually benefited by doing so.

Mal 3:16 Then they that feared the LORD spake often one to another: and the LORD hearkened, and heard it, and a book of remembrance was written before him for them that feared the LORD, and that thought upon his name.
Mal 3:17 And they shall be mine, saith the LORD of hosts, in that day when I make up my jewels; and I will spare them, as a man spareth his own son that serveth him.
Mal 3:18 Then shall ye return, and discern between the righteous and the wicked, between him that serveth God and him that serveth him not.
(YLT) For, even as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of the one body, being many, are one body, so also is the Christ,
Eph 4:16 From whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love.
Heb 10:24 And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works:
Heb 10:25 Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.

I hope all of this serves to draw you closer to our Lord and His Christ,
Mike

I happened upon your page as I was searching for some insight on a particular topic.
Then I found myself browsing through your list of articles, many of which sound extremely interesting and I’d be excited to read.
But then, I came to your “About Us” page. What do you mean when you say:

“We owe allegiance to no man or church group”

On one hand, I’m thinking thats just a low- tolerance for schismatics and a disregard for denominationalism or your comfort with necessarily difficult things the word has to say in relationship to others. That’s Cool.
On the other hand, it just struck me “some- kind- of- way”…
I’m assuming you all are connected to a pastor and fellowship regularly with a body of believers and that’s not just some carte blanche statement.
Forgive me if this question comes off condescendingly, it certainly isn’t meant to be. And pardon me if I just didn’t look closely enough at the site to find the info related to the question. I’ve just had to learn the hard way, in the past, to concern myself with authors, as much as what they write.
God Bless,
C____

Hi C____,

Thank you for taking the time to write.
You said you were reading the ‘About Us’ page, and you ask this question:

What do you mean when you say: “We owe allegiance to no man or church group”?

Like you, I am just where the Lord, “who is working all things after the counsel of His own will”, has me (Eph 1:11). Where He has brought me is to become aware of the fact that not one single denomination has remained faithful to His word. If they were faithful then their ‘statement of beliefs’ would be the entire Bible, and no one would dare attach themselves to any denomination of men.

Mat 4:4 But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.
1Co 1:12 Now this I say, that every one of you saith, I am of Paul; and I of Apollos; and I of Cephas; and I of Christ.
1Co 1:13 Is Christ divided? was Paul crucified for you? or were ye baptized in the name of Paul?

Paul asks the rhetorical question “Is Christ divided?”, to which the answer is an obvious and absolute, no! Christ is not divided, but Christian denominations are. So while I am not quite sure what you mean by “some carte blanche statement” I can assure you it is a statement of fact. We put the Word of God ahead of all man- made creeds which leave off the “every word” part of Christ’s “statement of beliefs” to the adversary in Mat 4:4.

You say:

I’m assuming you all are connected to a pastor and fellowship regularly with a body of believers and that’s not just some carte blanche statement.

Yes, we do have regular weekly Bible studies via ustream, and we have fellowship almost every night of the week by phone conference calls. But we are a very widely scattered flock as the Lord said that any who followed Him would be:

Mat 26:31 Then saith Jesus unto them, All ye shall be offended because of me this night: for it is written, I will smite the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock shall be scattered abroad.

There are local studies which are listed on the right side of the home page, but they are very few, and they are “scattered”. Christ’s words “Where two or three are gathered together in My name I will be in the midst” is just as true today as it was the day He first uttered those words.

Mat 18:20 For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.

The words of Stephen are just as true today as they were the day he was stoned by the church of his day.

Act 7:48 Howbeit the most High dwelleth not in temples made with hands; as saith the prophet,

Both of those are true statements we will do well to believe. But when you do, then rest assured that these words will also be true:

Mat 10:22 And ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake: but he that endureth to the end shall be saved.

“For My name’s sake” means ‘Because you obey me’, and you simply cannot obey Christ while proclaiming that Christ is divided into 30,000 plus denominations of men with conflicting ‘statements of beliefs’.
The argument ‘So you think you are right and everyone else is wrong” simply is not constructive. If you see where anything is wrong on this website, please point that out and we will go from there. The very fact that Christianity is the largest religion on planet earth, is simply a witness to the fact that “many are called but few are chosen”.

Mat 22:14 For many are called, but few are chosen.

I hope that helps to clear up what I meant by “We owe allegiance to no man or church group”. You will find that every paragraph of every letter or article on the iswasandwillbe. com website is followed by the scriptures to bolster the statements of the preceding paragraph, just as in this exchange. Your question did not “come off as condescending” and I too, like to know who is the author of anything I am reading.
I also hope you will be granted to continue reading our site and asking questions as needed.
Your brother in the rejected Christ,
Mike

Hi Mike,

What does it mean, “For our citizenship is in heaven.” What do you mean when you say that we are not to concern ourselves as citizens of a heavenly kingdom, with the affairs of how to run this present evil world?
Yours sincerely,
W____

Hi W____,
Thank you for your question concerning my comments on Php 3:20.

Php 3:20 For our citizenship is in heaven; whence also we wait for a Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ:
Php 3:21 who shall fashion anew the body of our humiliation, that it may be conformed to the body of his glory, according to the working whereby he is able even to subject all things unto himself. (ASV)

I have written many e- mails on this subject which are all posted on iswasandwillbe. com, but I will refer you to just this one which will direct you to the verses of scripture which show us what is the mind of God and His Son on the subject of nationalism and patriotism:
http:// www. iswasandwillbe. com/ To_ What_ Kingdom_ Should_ We_ Pledge_ Our_ Allegiance. php
Read that e- mail and get back to me if you still have questions. As I mentioned to you before, we are not attempting to offend anyone, yet we know that if we stand where Christ stands, we are given this absolute guarantee:

Mat 10:22 And ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake: but he that endureth to the end, the same shall be saved.

I have pointed out nothing but the obvious when stating that if Christ were to return today teaching the same message He came with 2000 years ago, He would again be crucified by the very same religious establishment. The only difference would be that the religious establishment that would be having Him crucified today would be bearing His own name. It was the ministers of Christianity who took great pride in pushing the colonists into rebellion against the English crown, the resistance against slavery in the civil war, the intervention of our nation in two world wars, resistance against communism in Korea and Vietnam, and now today in the prevention of our destruction at the hands of Islamic militants.
I am the last person in the world who would advocate high taxes, yet it seems that the very thing we supposedly fought against the crown to prevent is what we are now living under. I am the last person to defend slavery, communism or Islam. Nevertheless it is nothing short of complete hypocrisy to claim to believe in the Bible and in the same breath advocate that Christians should be in the business of resisting all the evils which are in this world, except as they attempt to come into their own heart and mind.

Mat 5:39 But I say unto you, That ye resist not evil: but whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also.
Jas 4:7 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

I have been granted the faith to believe that Christ will return to this earth and rule it with a rod of iron for about a thousand years. At that time my faith will be rewarded, and my willingness to obey His commandments will prove to have been a very wise decision indeed.

Mat 7:21 Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.
Mat 7:22 Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?
Mat 7:23 And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.
Luk 6:46 And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?
Heb 11:6 But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.

I hope this is all of some edification to you.
Your brother who is filling up what is behind of the afflictions of the rejected Christ, as I am called to do as a citizen and an ambassador of the kingdom of heaven:

Col 1:24 Who now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up that which is behind of the afflictions of Christ in my flesh for his body’s sake, which is the church:

Mike

Hello Mike!

Hope you are well and your family and friends. About 6 years ago, I read comments by someone concerning Isa 30:25 that the “Towers fall” were the World Trade Center, but I disagree with that. It has nothing to do with 9/11 World Trade Center. Am I correct? I admit, I don’t understand what Isa 30:25 means, but I don’t think it’s connected to WTC. If you understand what it means, maybe you can help me understand if God so wills?

Thank you for your web site of Is, Was, and Will Be.
Your brother in Christ,
B____

Hi B____,
It is always good to hear from you!

You are exactly right. Isa 30:25 has not more to do with the WTC than it has to do with the fall of the tower of Siloam.

Luk 13:4 Or those eighteen, upon whom the tower in Siloam fell, and slew them, think ye that they were sinners above all men that dwelt in Jerusalem?
Luk 13:5 I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish.

What Christ says here is just as applicable to anyone who thinks that Isa 30:25 refers to the WTC, as it was to anyone who thought that Isa 30:25 referred to the Tower of Siloam.
You ask what it really refers to. What that prophecy, and all such dire predictions, always refer to is the high and exalted thoughts in the heavens of our minds and hearts, which exalt themselves against the knowledge of God. That is the spiritual meaning of ‘towers falling’.

2Co 10:5 Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;

Whether it is towers, kingdoms, principalities or the beast, if and when we think of any of these things outwardly, we are losing any personal benefit to be gained from these fiery words, and we are placing their purifying effects upon someone else, somewhere in the future or the past, or upon some up there in New York City, or over there in Jerusalem. All the while, there is a beast, a man of sin, sitting in the temple of God, declaring himself to be God, and when you place any word of God off on others like that, then those words do you no good. They will become personally applicable to all in the lake of fire, where their fiery character will finally do the work it is sent to do.

Isa 55:11 So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.

Our innate desire to place all the prophecies concerning the fall of our old “man of sin” upon someone else and not upon ourselves, is just an “idol of our heart” (Eze 14:1-9), and it is but one of the “towers” spoken of in Isa 30:25, which must be brought down and destroyed.

Isa 30:25 And there shall be upon every high mountain, and upon every high hill, rivers and streams of waters in the day of the great slaughter, when the towers fall.

Here again is some of those “rivers and streams of water” which will accomplish this prophecy and bring down those “towers”.

2Co 10:5 Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;

I hope this helps you to see more clearly that the “towers”, are the “high things that exalt themselves against the knowledge of God”.
Your brother in Christ,
Mike

Dear Bro Mike,

How are you today? I have a question: why do I have such a hard time with my relationship with the Lord? I feel like I have to really work at staying close to him even though the desire in my heart is to serve Him and have my life be pleasing to Him. I spend most days alone as my husband works eight hours a day then comes home grabs a cup of coffee and is out the door. he does extra work on the side to earn extra money. That leaves me alone with no one to talk to, especially about God. I desperately need fellowship.

I spent a few days with my sister recently, and she is a believer in Babylon. She works hard and is a very giving person; she cares for our uncle and her sister- in- law, does catering, helps out her neighbor who is preparing to give her husband a kidney. My point is she stays so busy she doesn’t have time to spend in the word, yet she goes about her life and is always blessed financially. I look at my life always having to struggle to get by.
I looked at her life and how blessed she is and realized in spite of her blessing, she doesn’t have what I have. It really tore my heart to see how caught up in the world we can get that we don’t have time for God. Having to struggle on a daily basis keeps me humble. My heart breaks for her because she really is a giving person. The fact that it even moved me was kind of strange as normally I wouldn’t even give it a second thought. Help me to see what God is doing in my life. Sometimes I feel like I walk around with blinders on concerning God. Maybe its just needing fellowship. Anyway I so appreciate you and the work God has given you. Thank you so much.
Your sister who appreciates you,

A____

Hi A____,

Your story here is my story. When Sandi and I were in the World Wide Church of God, paying 1st, 2nd and every third year a third tithe, everything seemed to go along fairly well. Later after we came out of that church, we did even better.
But when God finally began to crush my pride, He stripped me of my house, my work and along the way any desire to become what this world considers to be materially successful, and instead He began to make me spiritually wealthy. I simply could not deny what I was seeing in His Word. So I have been where you are, and I struggled through those times, and I have learned the true meaning of “seeking first the kingdom of God”.
After explaining how your sister seems to be physically blessed while you physically struggle, you ask me:

Help me to see what God is doing in my life. Sometimes I feel like I walk around with blinders on concerning God.

I want you to read Jer 43 and 44, and pay very close attention to these verses in chapter 44:

Jer 44:16  As for the word that thou hast spoken unto us in the name of the LORD, we will not hearken unto thee.
Jer 44:17  But we will certainly do whatsoever thing goeth forth out of our own mouth, to burn incense unto the queen of heaven, and to pour out drink offerings unto her, as we have done, we, and our fathers, our kings, and our princes, in the cities of Judah, and in the streets of Jerusalem: for [ then] had we plenty of victuals, and were well, and saw no evil.
Jer 44:18  But since we left off to burn incense to the queen of heaven, and to pour out drink offerings unto her, we have wanted all things, and have been consumed by the sword and by the famine.
Jer 44:19  And when we burned incense to the queen of heaven, and poured out drink offerings unto her, did we make her cakes to worship her, and pour out drink offerings unto her, without our men?

When you see the phrases “the works of your hands”, and “burn incense unto other gods”, just realize that these phrases are speaking of “idols of our hearts”, which do not come out of us except with great struggles in our heavens.

Rev 12:7 And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels,

These people in Jeremiah and this war in heaven in Rev 12 are within you and me. We are mystified by God’s ways. We had our spouses (“our men”) when we were in Babylon, and observing her traditions, but since we have forsaken this world, it seems we don’t even have our spouse. Everything is so very hard to bear.
But whom the Lord loves He chastens and scourges every son [ or daughter] He receives. If you were not struggling, I would be worried. As long as you are struggling, God is working His will in your life, and as you grow in Him, you will become like Paul and Silas who when beaten, rejoiced that they were counted worthy to suffer for Christ’s sake. That is what is happening in your spiritual life, and it is a “wonderful work to the children of men” (Psa 107).
Read those chapters in Jeremiah, and if you are still wondering what is going on, then get back to me.

Your brother in Christ.
Mike

Mike,

In my “daily bread”, usually provided by iswasandwillbe. com, a question concerning my salvation has popped up again. I have a difficult time figuring out whether this wretched sinner will be on this earth long enough to become an “overcomer” and thus be in the “First Resurrection.”
I know it’s all up to God and not me. My question is: doesn’t Christ tells us that none of the “Old Testament” prophets will be in the “First Resurrection”, and if that’s true and I don’t subscribe to any of man’s doctrines (as stubble) which need to be burned up, are they and I the “sheep” at God’s right hand, thus in the “Book of Life”? I understand the rewards of the “First Resurrection” but conclude what’s so terrible about being next to King David or John the Baptist awaiting God’s judgment upon me? I’m not trying to discount my responsibilities, just interested in God’s answer!

Your brother in Christ,
B____

Hi B____,
Thank you for your question.

It is apparent that you have been reading iswasandwillbe. com long enough to know that the fire of the lake of fire is not literal, but is God’s Word in those few who know that word.

Jer 5:14  Wherefore thus saith the LORD God of hosts, Because ye speak this word, behold, I will make my words in thy mouth fire, and this people wood, and it shall devour them.

So we are told that “our God is a consuming fire”.

Heb 12:29  For our God is a consuming fire.

We are also told that when we see Him, we will be like Him:

1Jn 3:2  Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.

What does that make us?

Rev 11:3  And I will give [ power] unto my two witnesses, and they shall prophesy a thousand two hundred [ and] threescore days, clothed in sackcloth.
Rev 11:4  These are the two olive trees, and the two candlesticks standing before the God of the earth.
Rev 11:5  And if any man will hurt them, fire proceedeth out of their mouth, and devoureth their enemies: and if any man will hurt them, he must in this manner be killed.

Anyone who is not in that “blessed and holy first resurrection”, will be in the lake of fire, being purged of anything in them which will furnish fuel for the fire of God’s Words in our mouths. Those who come up in that blessed first resurrection are the ‘fire’ of the lake of fire and it will be through them that all men will come to God and come to know Christ.

Rev 20:6  Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.

Christ was not known by anyone who was before John the baptist, and that includes John.

Mat 11:11  Verily I say unto you, Among them that are born of women there hath not risen a greater than John the Baptist: notwithstanding he that is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.

Abraham and King David will no doubt need less purifying than most, but they will both have to learn the doctrine of Christ before they will be purified of their Old Testament understanding and come to know God and Jesus whom God has sent.

Joh 17:3  And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.

As you say here, God already knows which resurrection you will be in. You are not “responsible” for anything, even though you will “give an accounting… of the deeds done in the body”.

Rom 7:17  Now then it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me.
Rom 7:18  For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but [ how] to perform that which is good I find not.
Rom 7:19  For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do.
Rom 7:20  Now if I do that I would not, it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me.
Rom 7:21  I find then a law, that, when I would do good, evil is present with me.

We all sin because of the working of “the law of sin and death” which is working in our members to bring us into bondage to sin and death.

Rom 8:1  [ There is] therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.
Rom 8:2  For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death.

This does not mean that our physical bodies will not pass. Christ’s flesh and blood could not inherit the kingdom of God, and ours certainly will not either. But physical death is nothing more than sleep.

Mat 9:24  He said unto them, Give place: for the maid is not dead, but sleepeth. And they laughed him to scorn.
Joh 11:11  These things said he: and after that he saith unto them, Our friend Lazarus sleepeth; but I go, that I may awake him out of sleep.

‘Death’ is missing out on that blessed and holy first resurrection. ‘Death’ is what God’s elect are doing daily in this body of flesh. As this flesh is subdued, it is said to die. As we die to our flesh, we live to Christ, and we “are made free from the law of sin and death”. None of this was ever known or even made available to the men of the Old Testament. They even knew that they were not ministering to themselves but to us.

1Pe 1:9  Receiving the end of your faith, even the salvation of [ your] souls.
1Pe 1:10  Of which salvation the prophets have enquired and searched diligently, who prophesied of the grace that should come unto you:
1Pe 1:11  Searching what, or what manner of time the Spirit of Christ which was in them did signify, when it testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ, and the glory that should follow.
1Pe 1:12  Unto whom it was revealed, that not unto themselves, but unto us they did minister the things, which are now reported unto you by them that have preached the gospel unto you with the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven; which things the angels desire to look into.

If it is written in God’s book for me to be in the second resurrection, then that is the way it will be, but that is not what I aspire to. Like the apostle, I want the fellowship of Christ’s suffering, and to be found worthy to rule and reign with Him, over both this world and over angels in the lake of fire.
You ask if we will be here long enough to overcome our flesh? “He that endures to the end shall be saved”.

Mat 10:22  And ye shall be hated of all [ men] for my name’s sake: but he that endureth to the end shall be saved.
Luk 13:32  And he said unto them, Go ye, and tell that fox, Behold, I cast out devils, and I do cures to day and to morrow, and the third day I shall be perfected.

“The end” is “the third day”, and if Christ had to wait till the third day to be perfected, then we will too. Will you and I endure? God only really knows, but this should be our goal:

Php 3:7  But what things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ.
Php 3:8  Yea doubtless, and I count all things [ but] loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them [ but] dung, that I may win Christ,
Php 3:9  And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith:
Php 3:10  That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death;
Php 3:11  If by any means I might attain unto the resurrection of the dead.
Php 3:12  Not as though I had already attained, either were already perfect: but I follow after, if that I may apprehend that for which also I am apprehended of Christ Jesus.
Php 3:13  Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but [ this] one thing [ I do], forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before,
Php 3:14  I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.
Php 3:15  Let us therefore, as many as be perfect, be thus minded: and if in any thing ye be otherwise minded, God shall reveal even this unto you.
Php 3:16  Nevertheless, whereto we have already attained, let us walk by the same rule, let us mind the same thing.

“Let us… be thus minded”.
Here is what I truly believe:

Rom 8:33  Who shall lay any thing to the charge of God’s elect? It is God that justifieth.
Rom 8:34  Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us.
Rom 8:35  Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? [ shall] tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?
Rom 8:36  As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.
Rom 8:37  Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.
Rom 8:38  For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come,
Rom 8:39  Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

I believe that these words apply to you, if God grants you the faith to receive them.
God bless you. You remain in my prayers.

Your brother in Christ,
Mike

Hi Mike,

I have read your article on What is Love over and over. Wonderful article! God is so wonderful to give you this great gift of understanding his word. I am planning, God willing, to go over this article Sunday with those at our bible study. I have one question in this part.

“Which brings us to the third ignored and despised section of God’s Words.

3) 1Co 5:1  It is reported commonly [ that there is] fornication among you, and such fornication as is not so much as named among the Gentiles, hat one should have his father’s wife.
1Co 5:2  And ye are puffed up, and have not rather mourned, that he that hath done this deed might be taken away from among you.
1Co 5:3  For I verily, as absent in body, but present in spirit, have judged already, as though I were present, concerning him that hath so done this deed,
1Co 5:4  In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, when ye are gathered together, and my spirit, with the power of our Lord Jesus Christ,
1Co 5:5  To deliver such an one unto Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that the spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus.
1Co 5:6  Your glorying is not good. Know ye not that a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump?
1Co 5:7  Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us:
1Co 5:9  I wrote unto you in an epistle not to company with fornicators:
1Co 5:10  Yet not altogether with the fornicators of this world, or with the covetous, or extortioners, or with idolaters; for then must ye needs go out of the world.
1Co 5:11  But now I have written unto you not to keep company, if any man that is called a brother be a fornicator, or covetous, or an idolater, or a railer, or a drunkard, or an extortioner; with such an one no not to eat.“

In the physical sense, what is Paul saying in 1Co 5:5 should happen to this guy who has done this deed? Your insight here would be appreciated. Thank you for putting God first in your life and sharing what God reveals to you.

YBIC,

G____

Hi G____,

I am so pleased that you are getting so much out of that e- mail. There are so very few who realize that love has more to do with obeying God than doing good to your neighbor. If one is obeying God, they will automatically be doing good to their neighbor!

The answer to your question will demonstrate that point. Paul is not saying that if that brother who had taken his father’s wife were to come into an inn where Paul was sitting and eating a meal, that he, Paul, would get up and leave the table. The phrase “eat with” does indeed include physically eating, but at the same time it included having fellowship with that person. That is why the disciples were confused when Christ said “Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees”. They thought Christ was speaking of physical leaven only. So what Paul physically wanted that group of believers in Corinth to do was to ask that brother not to come to their fellowship until he repented of what he was doing. His presence in their midst gave the appearance of the church placing its stamp of approval upon his living arrangements with “his father’s wife”.

So the Corinthians did that very thing that Paul requested of them. They “put him out of their midst… and delivered that brother to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, and the spirit was saved in the day of the Lord Jesus”. The verses that commanded them to put the fornicator out of their fellowship, and the verses which show the affect of doing so are in your quote above.

The Corinthians “took this man away from among them.” In so doing, they “delivered him to Satan for the destruction of the flesh”, and “the spirit was saved in the day of the Lord Jesus.”

Here is how that happened.

2Co 2:1  But I determined this with myself, that I would not come again to you in heaviness.
2Co 2:2  For if I make you sorry, who is he then that maketh me glad, but the same which is made sorry by me? [The fornicator of 1Co 5]
2Co 2:3  And I wrote this same unto you, lest, when I came, I should have sorrow from them of whom I ought to rejoice; having confidence in you all, that my joy is the joy of you all.
2Co 2:4  For out of much affliction and anguish of heart I wrote unto you with many tears; not that ye should be grieved, but that ye might know the love which I have more abundantly unto you.
2Co 2:5  But if any have caused grief, he hath not grieved me, but in part: that I may not overcharge you all.
2Co 2:6  Sufficient to such a man is this punishment, which was inflicted of many.
2Co 2:7  So that contrariwise ye ought rather to forgive him, and comfort him, lest perhaps such a one should be swallowed up with overmuch sorrow.
2Co 2:8  Wherefore I beseech you that ye would confirm your love toward him.
2Co 2:9  For to this end also did I write, that I might know the proof of you, whether ye be obedient in all things.

“To this end did I write. that I might know… whether you are obedient in all things… written therein.” Paul is not speaking of obey him. He is speaking of being obedient to the commandments of God, which prohibit either physical or spiritual fornication within the body of Christ. It was their obedience to the commandments of God which let the Corinthians know “the love which Paul had more abundantly unto them.” It is painful to our natural man to be obedient to God.

2Co 2:4  For out of much affliction and anguish of heart I wrote unto you with many tears; not that ye should be grieved, but that ye might know the love which I have more abundantly unto you.

I hope this answers your question. We do not tolerate open and blatant sin in the midst of our fellowship. “A little leaven leavens the whole lump.” The same is true for heresies, which are spiritual idolatry and spiritual fornication and spiritual adultery.

2Jn 1:9  Whosoever transgresseth, and abideth not in the doctrine of Christ, hath not God. He that abideth in the doctrine of Christ, he hath both the Father and the Son.
2Jn 1:10  If there come any unto you, and bring not this doctrine, receive him not into your house, neither bid him God speed:
2Jn 1:11  For he that biddeth him God speed is partaker of his evil deeds.

Which words accord with Paul’s words in 1Co.

1Co 5:11  But now I have written unto you not to keep company, if any man that is called a brother be a fornicator, or covetous, or an idolater, or a railer, or a drunkard, or an extortioner; with such an one no not to eat.

Those who cannot receive God’s commandments are many, and those who are drawn from the breasts are very few. But those few tremble at God’s commandments like this one.

1Ti 5:20  Them that sin rebuke before all, that others also may fear.

Paul did that with Peter, and if he had not, it would have been disastrous for both.

Gal 2:11  But when Peter was come to Antioch, I withstood him to the face, because he was to be blamed.
Gal 2:12  For before that certain came from James, he did eat with the Gentiles: but when they were come, he withdrew and separated himself, fearing them which were of the circumcision.
Gal 2:13  And the other Jews dissembled likewise with him; insomuch that Barnabas also was carried away with their dissimulation [
Greek – hypocrisy].
Gal 2:14  But when I saw that they walked not uprightly according to the truth of the gospel, I said unto Peter before them all, If thou, being a Jew, livest after the manner of Gentiles, and not as do the Jews, why compellest thou the Gentiles to live as do the Jews?

There is but one Truth, and if we fail to confront heresy, it will “leaven the whole lump.” So we alway go to a multitude of counselors, and we always go to our brother himself.

Mat 18:15  Moreover if thy brother shall trespass against thee, go and tell him his fault between thee and him alone: if he shall hear thee, thou hast gained thy brother.
Mat 18:16  But if he will not hear [thee, then] take with thee one or two more, that in the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established.
Mat 18:17  And if he shall neglect to hear them, tell it unto the church: but if he neglect to hear the church, let him be unto thee as an heathen man and a publican.

Christians do not allow Hindus or Muslims to come and speak from their pulpit, and if these words were strictly followed, we would all be of the same mind and of the same spirit, as we are commanded to be.

2Co 13:11  Finally, brethren, farewell. Be perfect, be of good comfort, be of one mind, live in peace; and the God of love and peace shall be with you.
Php 2:2  Fulfil ye my joy, that ye be likeminded, having the same love, [being] of one accord, of one mind.

1Pe 3:8  Finally, be ye all of one mind, having compassion one of another, love as brethren, be pitiful, be courteous:

This is truly a piece of spiritual t-bone steak. All who obey these commandments are labeled as hard, cold- hearted tyrants. Even though the scriptures emphasize that “we have no dominion over your faith, those who adhere to the word of God and are faithful to and obey these commandments, are still called elitist, cold-hearted tyrants because they put obedience to God above what the natural man considers to be a loving action of tolerance. Those who place obedience over “tolerance and acceptance” are labeled “intolerant and exclusionists” simply because they refuse to compromise the commandments of of God’s words. I have heard both Benny Hinn and Paul Crouch blatantly say they wish they had a ‘holy ghost machine gun, with which to wipe out all the heresy hunters’.

I hope that makes clear what the Corinthians were expected to do physically with the fornicator that was among them, and I hope it helps you to see what we are commanded to do to remain of the same mind with Christ and not become just one more of the more than 30,000 differing and conflicting orthodox Christian denominations.

1Co 1:10  Now I beseech you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye all speak the same thing, and [that] there be no divisions among you; but that ye be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment.
Php 4:2  I beseech Euodias [we could say Catholics], and beseech Syntyche [or Protestants], that they be of the same mind in the Lord.

It is hard to stand with the Words of Christ in the face of opposition from the whole orthodox Christian world, but that is what is expected of those who will be the rulers of “the kingdoms of this world when they are made the kingdoms of our Lord and His Christ”.

Rev 11:15  And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever.

Your brother in Christ,

Mike

Hi Mike,

Again it happens to me that you answered someone else’s question, and I also get answer to a question I have.
A couple I know lost their baby in the womb about nine weeks ago. I do not know them well, but I felt very sorry for their loss. This week they talked about the loss of their son, and I listened. There also was another person standing there, and he said…”and then there are some people who say “That was the will of God”” in a very negative kind of way. The guy who lost his son said that he did believe there was a God, but now he did not believe anything anymore.
I had so much to say to these two guys, but I didn’t even know where to start at that point. I said nothing, and somehow it bothered me inside; kept me thinking “did I deny my Lord”?
I was reading the letter and the answer in let him remain ignorant.

1Co 14:37  If any man think himself to be a prophet, or spiritual, let him acknowledge that the things that I write unto you are the commandments of the Lord.
1Co 14:38  But if any man be ignorant, let him be ignorant.

They did not ask me anything, they already had their mind made up. Mike, Isa 1Co 14:38 a principle which can be used always? When people have their minds made up, is it better to say nothing even if it is insulting to our Lord? I know, and you undoubtetly know, what comes of discussions with our brothers and sisters who are not likeminded – if in the earth or in the sea – strife. If they don’t ask, they are not interested, and that tells us God is not dragging them at this point. People who are dragged are feeling lost and are having many questions and are looking for answers and have been given a love for the Truth. That’s what comes first in that dragging process, right?
These little things also teach me patience; that now is not the time to speak in many cases; that Mat 27:14 And he answered him to never a word…. even if they don’t marvel about it, but are just plain ignorant. They will not understand a word you say, because they are not asking. And because they are not asking, you know they are not looking.
I had a phone call yesterday from that friend with whom I had had a long conversation. We talked some, and he told me he has been reading the website, and that he hardly could stop reading. I recognize myself in that I also could not stop reading. He would like me to go on a fishing trip with him and talk with me. I’m going, and I hope he will be in an asking mood, not in a telling one.
Do you also remember I told you about one of my former best friends who is elder in the church I used to go to. They went to a sermon not so long ago, and the minister said in that sermon that Judas was predestinated to betray our Lord. They realized that that is also what I have been telling them, and they have been searching and want to talk with me.
I don’t know what will happen; if the Lord will give me words to speak, or maybe answer them never a word. That is all depending on the dragging of the Father.

Your brother in Christ
R____

Hi R____,
This is very instructive because it demonstrates when we should not speak.
But you ask me:

Mike, Isa 1Co 14:38 a principle which can be used always? When people have their minds made up, is it better to say nothing even if it is insulting to our Lord?

The answer to that question is that it is a principle which can always be applied when you are speaking in a group such as you describe, where the people do not know you, who may never see you again, and are not particularly interested in getting to know you. But where it does not apply is when you are in a group of friends with whom you plan to spend time, and who think they know you and who have known you for an extended period of time, and yet they are not even aware that you believe in God or Christ. In that case you have denied Christ, because you have a person thinking he knows you, and you are “Jesus Christ whom he is persecuting” and he isn’t even aware of it because you haven’t even bothered to say “yes, I am a king”, while you were being beaten and scourged by either that person or that group of people.
We are specifically told that we are not to cast our pearls before swine, ‘lest they turn and rend you’.

Mat 7:6 Give not that which is holy unto the dogs, neither cast ye your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn again and rend you.

You say:

A couple I know lost their baby in the womb about nine weeks ago. I do not know them well, but I felt very sorry for their loss.

That certainly does not sound like you have a close personal relationship with this couple, and I too, would commiserate with even a total stranger if they were to share such an experience with me. But I would not attempt to share my pearls with that person, especially if they told me that they did not even believe in God. If, in the course of time I came to know that man and woman better, if Christ is in me, that is who they are going to get to know. I am sure you feel the same way.
What this all demonstrates is that Christ was telling us the truth when He said that the holy spirit would do our premeditating for us, and would give us the words to speak in that hour. In other words, if Christ is in us, He will be thinking of His Father’s words long before He is delivered up to be persecuted.

Mat 10:19  But when they deliver you up, take no thought how or what ye shall speak: for it shall be given you in that same hour what ye shall speak.
Mat 10:20  For it is not ye that speak, but the Spirit of your Father which speaketh in you.

Christ also said “let the [ spiritually] dead bury their dead.” Now if we also are told “the dead know not anything”, why would we even attempt to deny their total ignorance. “He that is ignorant let him remain ignorant.”
I hope that answers your question asking if this is a principle that can always be applied. The holy spirit, which really is God’s Word (Joh 6:63), Christ within us, will give us the words to speak “in that same hour.”
But that is “when they deliver you up” and they are pounding on you for answers which they have no interest in hearing. Christ never once in His recorded career went by night to seek out a Pharisee or Sadducee to try to convert that man. Nicodemus came to Christ by night to inquire of the Truth, and other Pharisees came to tempt Him, but He never once tried to deal with them unless they came tempting him. In every case, Christ never denied His Father, and He shut their mouths with the wisdom of His Words. He is still doing the same thing in us. He will give us the words and the wisdom we need at the hour we need it.

Your brother in Christ,
Mike

Hi Mike,

I have been wondering lately: if we are to not act above the faith that’s been given to us (which we will, it seems), then is resisting temptation doing this if we have not yet been given the power to rule our evil?
I’ve gotten into much complacency in regard to this.

Your brother in Christ,
N____

Hi N____,
Abiding in the faith we have been given is as much a work of the Lord as anything.

Rom 12:3  For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith.

If our faith is weak our walk will surely reflect that fact, and it will all be a matter of God proving us and demonstrating our position with Him in our walk. Like Joseph told his brothers, we need not beat ourselves up for what God has done in our lives.

Gen 45:5  Now therefore be not grieved, nor angry with yourselves, that ye sold me hither: for God did send me before you to preserve life.
Gen 45:6  For these two years [ hath] the famine [ been] in the land: and yet [ there are] five years, in the which [ there shall] neither [ be] earing nor harvest.
Gen 45:7  And God sent me before you to preserve you a posterity in the earth, and to save your lives by a great deliverance.
Gen 45:8  So now it was not you that sent me hither, but God: and he hath made me a father to Pharaoh, and lord of all his house, and a ruler throughout all the land of Egypt.

The same can be said of what Judas, the Jews and the Romans did to our Lord.

Act 4:27  For of a truth against thy holy child Jesus, whom thou hast anointed, both Herod, and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles, and the people of Israel, were gathered together,
Act 4:28  For to do whatsoever thy hand and thy counsel determined before to be done.

Our sins all, as depraved as they are, are nevertheless, “what thy hand and thy counsel determined before to be done.” God really is working all things after the counsel of His own will.

Eph 1:11  In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will:

That being said, we will still be brought to bitter weeping over our sins, and we will be brought to repentance because we will some day see that every sin we commit is committed against our Lord.

Mat 26:75  And Peter remembered the word of Jesus, which said unto him, Before the cock crow, thou shalt deny me thrice. And he went out, and wept bitterly.
Psa 51:4  Against thee, thee only, have I sinned, and done this evil in thy sight: that thou mightest be justified when thou speakest, [ and] be clear when thou judgest.

The knowledge of God’s sovereignty does nothing to change the fact that we will be brought to that repentance and to an acknowledgment and a “giving of an account” of the sins committed in the flesh.

2Co 5:10  For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad.
Ecc 11:9  Rejoice, O young man, in thy youth; and let thy heart cheer thee in the days of thy youth, and walk in the ways of thine heart, and in the sight of thine eyes: but know thou, that for all these things God will bring thee into judgment.

Peter makes it clear that this “judgment” is a fiery experience that begins at the house of God, here and now in this life.

1Pe 4:12  Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened unto you:
1Pe 4:13  But rejoice, inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ’s sufferings; that, when his glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy.
1Pe 4:17  For the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God: and if it first begin at us, what shall the end be of them that obey not the gospel of God?

If we cannot understand how God works evil in Joseph’s brothers, Judas, the Jews, the Romans, and in you and I, and then judges us for the evil He worked, then we simply do not believe that He is working all things after the counsel of His own will. If that is the case then that is the measure of faith we have at this time.
Should we resist temptation? Yes, we certainly should resist temptation, and we should exhort one another to resist temptation, as though we ourselves are doing the work. When Christ said “Resist not evil,” He said that in the context of turning the other cheek to those who were doing evil to us, not us committing evil.

Mat 5:38  Ye have heard that it hath been said, An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth:
Mat 5:39  But I say unto you, That ye resist not evil: but whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also.
Mat 5:40  And if any man will sue thee at the law, and take away thy coat, let him have [ thy] cloke also.
Mat 5:41  And whosoever shall compel thee to go a mile, go with him twain.
Mat 5:42  Give to him that asketh thee, and from him that would borrow of thee turn not thou away.

That is what Christ meant by “resist not evil.” When it comes to resisting, you and me committing evil, we are told the exact opposite. We are told to “Resist the Devil…”
But after doing so, regardless as to the outcome, we must also acknowledge that our will to resist or our lack of will to resist was all God working His own will in our lives.

Rom 12:21  Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good.
Jas 4:7  Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
Php 2:12  Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.
Php 2:13  For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.

It is just like Joseph told his brothers: First he twice affirms that they did indeed sell him into Egypt, but then he tells them that it was not them, but God that sent him there.
Those with no faith will call that a contradiction, while those who are granted faith will see it as a complement to all the rest of scripture, which shows that God is indeed working all things, good and evil, to His own good purpose.
 
I hope this gives you a better perspective of where the Lord has you at this time, and I hope the Lord will use these words to provoke you to love and good works.

Tit 3:8  [ This is] a faithful saying, and these things I will that thou affirm constantly, that they which have believed in God might be careful to maintain good works. These things are good and profitable unto men.
Heb 10:24  And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works:

Your brother in Christ,
Mike

Dear Mike:

I was driving on a different road to work this morning, and I saw a billboard message from a Babylonian church from last October. They were running their own version of a haunted house, with a caption that said “Let it scare the hell out of you”. Should I consider sharing the gospel truth with this group, or would that be considered “casting pearls before swine”?

Your brother in the Christ,
D____

Hi D____,

Thank you for your question. If you are presented with an opportunity to share “the testimony of Jesus Christ” with others, and Christ is in you at all, then you have been told that you have been given “the spirit of prophecy.”

Rev 19:10  And I fell at his feet to worship him. And he said unto me, See [ thou do it] not: I am thy fellowservant, and of thy brethren that have the testimony of Jesus: worship God: for the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.

To fail to do so would be nothing less than denying your Lord.

Mat 10:16  Behold, I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves: be ye therefore wise as serpents, and harmless as doves.
Mat 10:17  But beware of men: for they will deliver you up to the councils, and they will scourge you in their synagogues;
Mat 10:18  And ye shall be brought before governors and kings for my sake, for a testimony against them and the Gentiles.
Mat 10:19  But when they deliver you up, take no thought how or what ye shall speak: for it shall be given you in that same hour what ye shall speak.
Mat 10:20  For it is not ye that speak, but the Spirit of your Father which speaketh in you.
Mat 10:21  And the brother shall deliver up the brother to death, and the father the child: and the children shall rise up against [ their] parents, and cause them to be put to death.
Mat 10:22  And ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake: but he that endureth to the end shall be saved.
Mat 10:23  But when they persecute you in this city, flee ye into another: for verily I say unto you, Ye shall not have gone over the cities of Israel, till the Son of man be come.
Mat 10:24  The disciple is not above [ his] master, nor the servant above his lord.
Mat 10:25  It is enough for the disciple that he be as his master, and the servant as his lord. If they have called the master of the house Beelzebub, how much more [ shall they call] them of his household?

We are sent to do what Christ did.

Joh 20:21  Then said Jesus to them again, Peace be unto you: as my Father hath sent me, even so send I you.

So by all means take advantage of any opportunity which the Lord provides you to share freely what you have received for free.

Mat 10:8  Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils: freely ye have received, freely give.

Believe me,  you will know right away if you are casting your pearls before swine, and when that becomes obvious then, never attempt to force feed a carnal baby in Christ. We are all exactly where God wants us, and that includes the swine.

Rom 14:22  Hast thou faith? have it to thyself before God. Happy is he that condemneth not himself in that thing which he alloweth.
Rom 14:23  And he that doubteth is damned if he eat, because he eateth not of faith: for whatsoever [ is] not of faith is sin.

So ask for God’s direction, but do not be timid. The timid will be in the lake of fire.

Rev 21:8  But the fearful [ Greek, timid], and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.

God bless you for your faithfulness to Him and to His Truth.
You remain in my and Sandi’s prayers.
Your brother in Christ,
Mike