Antichrist

The “Man of Sin”…The “Son of Perdition”

Posted by Brother John Jones on December 4, 2020
Posted in: Antichrist, apostasy, Religion. Tagged: , , , , . Leave a comment
Christ Second Coming-The Apostate Lie That He Returned Invisibly in 70 C.E. and 1914 C.E.
Although the content of this post is generally applicable, only one modern-day religious group has preached worldwide that the Lord’s second coming has already occurred. That is the group known as “Jehovah’s Witnesses”.
“Jehovah’s Witnesses” believe despite Jesus statement to the contrary that Christ’ second coming occurred in 1914 C.E. based on an obvious math error on calculating time.
Since Christ was to come to sovereignty at the end of the 2,520 year period of gentile rulership, they reckoned that to end in 1914 C.E. since only 1914 years of it remained when the common era dating system started.
They failed to account for the fact that those were lunar year of 360 days and not 365 day-long years as common era years are.
This threw their calculations off by 26.21 common era years.
The gentile times would have ended in 1940 C.E. But still, it was not yet time for Christ to return.
The Bible does not teach that Christ’ second coming would occur immediately at the end of the gentile time period. Although Christ received the sovereignty and rulership, it was not yet time for him to come a seize it.
The end of the gentile times marked the beginning of the period Jesus called “the last days”. Jesus said it toward the very end of the last days he would come (Luke  chapter 21).
The Watchtower Organization’s assertion that Christ second coming occurred invisibly in 1914 C.E. is an apostate teaching based upon obvious miscalculation and misinterpretation of Bible prophesy.
Such apostate teachings among professed Christian groups as well as the others traits discussed elow are key to identifying the antichrist man of sin.
Who Is Paul’s “Man of Sin”?
By Wayne Jackson
In his first letter to the Christians in Thessalonica, Paul spoke of the return of Christ and the glories associated therewith.
Because some of these saints apparently misunderstood the instruction of that initial epistle, or had been influenced by false teaching, the apostle was constrained to write a second letter, attempting to correct the erroneous ideas entertained by the Thessalonians.
Apparently, there were certain heretics in the vicinity of Thessalonica who were advocating the bizarre notion that the Lord had already returned. Here is how Paul describes that situation.
“Now we request you, brethren, with regard to the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and our gathering together to Him, that you may not be quickly shaken from your composure or be disturbed either by a spirit or a message or a letter as if from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord has come” (2 Thes. 2:1, 2 NASB).
Notice that final clause, “the day of the Lord has come.” It reflects a perfect tense form in the original language, and so likely suggests that certain errorists of that day were alleging that the Second Coming had occurred already — somewhat as the advocates of “Realized Eschatology” do today.
[Note: The proponents of the so-called A.D. 70 doctrine, popularly known among churches of Christ as the Max King movement, allege that this passage implies that the Second Coming was to be an invisible, judgmental coming (i.e., in the destruction of Jerusalem). Otherwise, they say, these false teachers never could have gotten away with their assertion that the Second Coming had occurred already. Does that conclusion follow? It does not. It merely demonstrates that just as men then could be misled into believing that the Lord’s Coming was spiritual (rather than visible, literal), so folks can be equally deceived today — and are, as evidenced by the King sect. For further study on this theme, see Jackson, 1990a.]
Paul argued that the Lord could not yet have come, because “the falling away” must develop before the Second Coming transpires. Incidentally, no great apostate movement evolved between the time this letter was written (c. A.D. 51), and A.D. 70, thus demonstrating, with a force equal to the apostle’s original argument, that the Second Coming of Christ did not occur with the destruction of Jerusalem.
After laying this foundation, Paul continued his letter by describing the traits that would characterize the movement he subsequently calls “the man of sin.” It is the purpose of this discussion to attempt an identification of this “man of sin.”
What are the identifying characteristics of the Man of Sin? We would suggest at this point that the student carefully read 2 Thessalonians 2:1-12. Read it several times, perhaps in different translations, to thoroughly familiarize yourself with the material.
Traits of the Man of Sin
Once a student has thoroughly read 2 Thessalonians 2:1-12, we believe that it is possible to isolate certain tell-tale qualities of this diabolical force, and work toward a solution as to the identity of the “man of sin.”
Consider the following factors.
The Man of Sin and The Apostasy
The Man of Sin is the ultimate result of the falling away from the faith (v. 3).
The expression “falling away” translates the Greek term apostasia. Our English word “apostasy” is an anglicized form of this original term.
In the Bible, the word is used of a defection from the religion ordained by God. As a noun, it is employed of departure from the Mosaic system (Acts 21:21), and, in this present passage, of defection from Christianity. The verbal form of the term is similarly used in 1 Timothy 4:1 (cf. Heb. 3:12).
Note also that the noun is qualified by a definite article (the apostasia). A definite movement is in the apostle’s prophetic vision — not merely a principle of defection.
The Man of Sin Was Yet to Be Revealed
This sinister force, from a first-century vantage point, was yet to be revealed (v. 3).
This appears to suggest that the movement had not evolved to the point where it could be identified definitely by the primitive saints. It awaited future development.
The Man of Sin and Son of Perdition
This persecuting power was designated as the man of sin (v. 3), because sin was its “predominating quality” (Ellicott, p. 118). This character, referred to in both neuter and masculine genders (vv. 6-7), is the son of perdition (v. 3), because its end is to be perdition, i.e., destruction, by the Lord himself (v. 8).
The Lawless One
This opponent of God is called the lawless one (v. 8). This power has no regard for the law of God. One cannot but be reminded of that infamous “little horn” in Daniel’s vision:
“[H]e shall think to change the times and the law” (7:25).
Man of Sin: Opposes God, Exalts Himself, and Sits in the Temple of God
The Man of Sin opposes God and exalts himself against all that is genuinely sacred (v. 4). He feigns religiosity, but his true character reveals that he is diabolic. His activity actually is according to the working of Satan (v. 9).
In some sense, the Man of Sin will sit in the temple of God (v. 4). The “temple” is not a reference to the Jewish house of worship. The Greek word is naos, used by Paul eight times. Never does he employ this term of the Jewish temple.
In fact, after the death of Christ, the Jewish temple is never again called the temple of God (Newton, p. 441). Rather it is used of the Christian’s body (1 Cor. 6:19) or of the church as God’s spiritual house (1 Cor. 3:16, 17; Eph. 2:21).
The implication of Paul’s warning is this. This unholy being is viewed as being a “church” character.
The expression “sitteth” may hint of unparalleled arrogance (Ellicott, pp. 119-120). Mason notes that the language describes the Man of Sin as attempting to exact “divine homage” from people (p. 169).
Moreover, this Son of Perdition sets himself forth as God. The present participle (“sets forth continually”) reveals that this presumptive posture is characteristic of the Man of Sin.
This person represents himself as God, either:
by making claims that belong only to deity;
by receiving adoration reserved exclusively for God; or,
by usurping prerogatives which only God can accomplish.
Clearly, the Man of Sin is an ecclesiastical character. Recall the description of John’s lamb-like beast in Revelation 13:11ff.
The Man of Sin Deceives with Lying Miracles
He deceives those who love not the truth, by virtue of the lying wonders he effects (vv. 9-10).
Bloomfield calls these “pretended miracles” (p. 345). These “wonders” are not in the category of Christ’s miracles. Lenski has well commented:
“So many are ready to attribute real miracles to Satan and to his agents; the Scriptures never do” (p. 426).
In identifying the Man of Sin, one must thus look for a post-apostolic movement that claims to prove its authenticity by miracles.
Man of Sin Already at Work in Paul’s Day
The early stages of this ecclesiastical apostasy were already at work in the early church (v. 7). The Greek term (energeitai, a present tense, middle voice form) suggests that this movement currently was working itself towards a greater goal.
The child, later to become a Man, was growing in Paul’s day. The error was “already operative” (Lenski, p. 417), but not yet “revealed” (v. 6). This is a crucial point.
Restrained During Paul’s Day
In Paul’s day there was some influence that restrained the budding Man of Sin. This was some sort of abstract force, as evidenced by the neuter form of katechon, “the restraining thing” (v. 6).
And yet, this force was strongly associated with a person/persons as suggested by the masculine, “he who restrains” (v. 7). Likely the significance is that of a broad power, operating under individual rulers.
Unlike the Man of Sin, whose identity was later to be revealed, the early saints knew personally of this restraining force. “You know (oidate — “to know from observation” — Vine, p. 444).
This indicates that the restraining power was an entity contemporary with Paul, not a modern one.
Restraining Force To Be Removed
The restraining force eventually would *be taken out of the way”, or, more correctly, “be gone.” And so, the Man of Sin, in “his own season,” would be revealed openly (vv. 6, 7).
Ellicott says that it is a season “appointed and ordained by God” (p. 121). One recalls that the “little horn” of Daniel’s fourth beast only rose to prominence after three horns were plucked up to make room for it.
Too, the earth-beast of John’s vision came into full power after the sea-beast had received a death-stroke, but was healed. And so here, the restraining power will give way to the horrible revelation of the Man of Sin.
Man of Sin Continues Until Second Coming
The Man of Sin, though having roots in the world of ancient Christianity (v. 6), would nevertheless endure, in some form or another, until the end of time, i.e., until the Second Coming of Christ.
At that time, he will be destroyed by the Lord’s word of Judgment (v. 8; cf. Rev. 19:15). In view of this, the Man of Sin cannot be some persecuting enemy that faded into oblivion centuries ago.
Theories Regarding the Man of Sin
Having surveyed the major elements set forth in the text that were to characterize the Man of Sin, we are now prepared to look at some of the current theories advanced in an effort to identify this sinister being.
Pagan Mythology
Liberal theologians contend that Paul’s concept of the Man of Sin reflects a belief in ancient, pagan mythology — an idea that had been absorbed by the early Christians.
This view rejects the proposition that the Scriptures are inspired of God. The text of 2 Thessalonians, therefore, allegedly only reflects early “Christian” ideas, not actual reality.
This concept is totally inconsistent with biblical claims, and proofs, regarding the inspiration of the apostolic documents.
Satan Himself
Some have argued that the Man of Sin is Satan himself. This view cannot be correct. Satan was not a part of “the falling away” (v. 3), and this “lawless one” is said to come “according to the working of Satan” (v. 9), which obviously distinguishes him from Satan personally.
Principle of Evil
Some allege that no specific power or person(s) are in view. Rather, the apostle merely has personified a principle or idea of evil, which may appear in various forms in different historical periods as an opponent of truth. It may be manifest as Islam, Fascism, Communism, etc.
But this concept does not fit the specific descriptions in this chapter. The text tells of a particular movement, “the falling away” (v. 3). How does that refer to Communism, etc.?
Moreover, there are too many personal references within the narrative to dismiss it as mere personification.
Finally, it is the man of sin with the article pointing to a definite, specific influence, rather than a generic one.
Judaism
Radical Preterists (those who contend that all Bible prophecy, including the Second Coming of Christ, was fulfilled in the destruction of Jerusalem) argue that the Man of Sin was the “hardened, militant Jews (Zealots in particular)” (King, p 318).
This theory would thus see the Man of Sin (Judaism) destroyed by the Coming of the Lord in the destruction of Jerusalem via the Romans in A.D. 70.
The concept is totally false. Judaism was not a part of “the falling away” (v. 3).
Moreover, Paul’s prophecy of the Second Coming (the parousia — v. 8) was not fulfilled in A.D. 70, as evidenced by the fact that Christians were not “gathered together” unto the Lord in connection with Jerusalem’s fall (cf. 1 Thes. 4:14ff).
A Roman Ruler
A popular idea contends that the Man of Sin is a Roman ruler — perhaps Nero Caesar. Again, though, this concept does not fit the facts. No Caesar “fell away” from the faith (v. 3).
Additionally, the Roman rulers have long lain in the dust of antiquity. As Raymond Kelcy observed:
“Paul contemplates the man of lawlessness being in existence and waging opposition at the time the Lord returns; the Roman empire has long ago ceased to be” (p. 161).
The Future Anti-Christ
Millennialists (and some others) contend that the Man of Sin “is an individual embodying anti-God power who is still to arise before the future day of the Lord” (Mare, p. 1073).
Hal Lindsey calls this hostile person “the Future Fuehrer,” and he spends an entire section (Chapter 9) attempting to prove that “dramatic elements which are occurring in the world today are setting the stage for this magnetic, diabolical Future Fuehrer to make his entrance” (p. 102).
But Paul stated that the “mystery of iniquity,” characteristic of the Man of Sin, was “already at work” (7) in the first century.
This clearly eliminates any person who arises during the modern era. Newton’s comment is appropriate:
“As this evil began in the apostles’ days, and was to continue in the world till the second coming of Christ in power and great glory: it necessarily follows, that it was to be carried on not by one man, but by a succession of men in several ages” (p. 453).
Identifying the Man of Sin
We believe that the best evidence indicates that the Man of Sin represents the papal dynasty of the apostate church of Rome. Barnes says: “Most Protestant commentators have referred it to the great apostasy under the Papacy …” (p. 80).
Let us revisit the ten points of identification discussed earlier.
The Apostasy
The Roman Catholic system, with its autocratic papal dynasty, did not suddenly appear in a given year of history. Rather, it was a result of a gradual apostasy from the primitive faith.
Paul declared: “The Spirit speaks expressly, that in later times some shall fall away from the faith …” (1 Tim. 4:1). He details some of the traits of this movement, e.g., forbidding to marry, commanding to abstain from meats, etc. (1-4).
The many corruptions of the divine economy, changes in the plan of redemption (e.g., sprinkling, infant baptism, etc.), alteration of worship (e.g., the mass, the veneration of Mary, etc.) were progressively implemented.
Catholicism evolved as a defection from the original faith. This history has been graphically detailed in John F. Rowe’s, The History of Apostasies (1958, Rosemead, CA: Old Paths Publishing Co.).
Not Revealed in the First Century
The apostasy was just a budding phenomenon in the apostolic age. Consequently it was not fully “revealed” until centuries later.
Lawless
The Romish movement has exhibited a disposition of lawlessness throughout its history. Could any citation more clearly illustrate the spirit of lawlessness than this declaration regarding the papacy?
“The pope doeth whatsoever he listeth [wills], even things unlawful, and is more than God” (quoted by Newton, p. 456).
Attwater, a Catholic writer, has shown that, according to Roman Catholicism, “Tradition,” i.e., the voice of the church, is superior to the Scriptures (pp. 41-42).
That is the very essence of lawlessness.
God-Opposing
The papacy opposes God. Surely anyone who claims to be “more than God” cannot be described otherwise than as an enemy of the Almighty.
Ecclesiastical Usurper of Divine Status
The papal rulers, as it were, “sit in the temple of God,” i.e., the church. It is an ecclesiastical force.
The pope claims that whereas Christ is the head of the church in heaven, the papacy is the head of the church on earth.
Yet Jesus affirmed that he possessed “all authority … in heaven and on earth” (Mt. 28:18). Paul stated that Christ is “the head [singular] of the body, the church” (Col. 1:18).
Jesus does not share “headship” with the pope.
Usurps the Throne of God
The papacy usurps the place of God by:
Making claims that belong only to deity — “Our Lord God the pope; another God upon the earth, king of kings, and lord of lords” (Newton, p. 456).
Accepting adoration not proper for a man. Men bow before the papal dignitary, kiss his feet, ring, etc. Contrast the disposition of Peter when Cornelius bowed before him (Acts 10:25, 26).
Presuming to act for God in matters pertaining exclusively to deity, e.g., offering forgiveness of sins. For example, in Catholic doctrine, Absolution is a “judicial act whereby a priest remits the sins of a penitent who has contrition, has made confession and promises satisfaction” (Attwater, p. 3).
The papal system arrogantly attempts to lawlessly act for God.
Claims of Miracles
The whole history of Catholicism is checkered with the claims of “miracles.” Conway, a Catholic apologist, states that God
“has allowed His saints to work miracles to prove their divine commission to speak in His name, and to give the world a clear proof of their eminent sanctity. The Church always requires four, or in some instances six, miracles before she proceeds to beatify or canonize a saint” (p. 44).
Early Stages at Work in Paul’s Day
Newton says: “The seeds of popery were sown in the apostle’s time” (p. 457). Idolatry had invaded the church (1 Cor. 10:14), even in the worship of angels (Col. 2:18).
Handling the word of God deceitfully (2 Cor. 4:2) had begun; strife and division were affecting the church (1 Cor. 3:3).
Gospel truth was sacrificed for the sake of money (cf. 1 Tim. 6:5; Tit. 1:11) — compare the practice of “simony” in Catholicism, i.e., the purchase of church offices. Distinctions were made regarding meats (1 Cor. 8:8), and human traditions were creeping into the church (Col. 2:23).
Certain men were beginning to exert preeminence and to flex their ecclesiastical muscles (3 Jn. 9, 10).
Out of these attitudes and actions, the papacy finally was born.
Initially Restrained by Pagan Rome
If the Man of Sin is the papal dynasty, what was the force or person that “restrained” the initial revelation of this corrupt, ecclesiastical system?
McClintock and Strong, citing numerous sources from the early “church fathers” (e.g., Tertullian, Chrysostom, Hippolytus, Jerome, etc.), said that the patristic writers “generally consider” the restraining force to be “the Roman empire” (p. 255).
It is a matter of history that when imperial Rome fell in A.D. 476, great power was shifted into the hands of church clerics.
If the restraining force was the Roman empire, and that force was removed in the fifth century A.D., does it not seem strange that the Man of Sin [Lindsey’s “Fuehrer”] has not yet been made manifest — if the dispensational scheme of things were true?
Flourished After Fall of Rome
After imperial Rome fell, the apostate church of that day accelerated in its power.
As mentioned earlier, great political authority was gained. Crowns were removed and bestowed at the behest of papal rulers.
For example, in the eleventh century of the Christian era, Emperor Henry IV sought to depose Pope Gregory VII (known as Hildebrand). In retaliation, Gregory excommunicated the emperor, and absolved all subjects from allegiance to him. Henry was powerless under the papal ban.
In January, 1077, the emperor went to Canossa in northern Italy to beg the pope’s forgiveness. He was forced to stand barefoot in the snow for three days, awaiting an audience with the pontiff (Hurlbut, p. 111).
Other examples of the growing power of papal authority are numerous.
“In Germany Emperor Frederick lay down on the floor and allowed Pope Alexander to stand on his neck. On another occasion, Pope Celestine III crowned Henry VI of England with the usual colorful ceremonies. As the English king knelt in front of him, after having had the crown of the British Empire placed upon his head, the pope reached forward with his foot and kicked the crown from the monarch’s brow. At another time, Pope Alexander rode horse back down the streets of Rome. Walking along on either side of his horse, and leading the animal by the bridle, went Louis, King of France, and Henry, King of England” (Wilder, p. 103).
To Continue Till Return of Christ
The apostate church, an evolution from truth to error, clearly had its genesis in the first century; and yet, this movement continues to this day, and, according to Paul’s prophecy, will abide, in one form or another, until the Coming of Christ.
“The apostasy” is the only system which fits the demands of this passage. It is both ancient and modern, something that cannot be said of a Caesar, the Jewish Zealots, a modern Anti-Christ, etc.
It is, of course, in vogue these days to ridicule this view of “the man of sin” as viewed in 2 Thessalonians, chapter 2.
In response, one could hardly do better than to quote Coffman:
“[T]he identification of the papacy and its religious apparatus with Paul’s words in 2 Thessalonians 2:3-10 was the prevailing view for more than a thousand years, a view supported by the writings and interpretations of many of the most brilliant men who ever lived on earth; and, on that account, there is no way for this writer to accept the sneers and snickers with which this interpretation is greeted by many modern commentators, as being an effective refutation of the arguments upholding it” (p. 104).
In conclusion, we emphasize again, the “little horn” of Daniel 7, Paul’s “man of sin,” and “the beast” of the book of Revelation have much in common, and seem to testify in concert regarding one of the most vicious persecutors the church of God has ever known.

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What Did Jesus Say About Hell

Posted by Brother John Jones on November 26, 2020
Posted in: Antichrist, apostasy, Bible Standards, ex-jehovah's witnesses, faith, Jesus, Religion. Tagged: , , , . Leave a comment

What Did Jesus Say About ‘Hell’?
“Jehovah’s Witnesses” and other professed Christian groups teach that ‘Hell’ and ‘the grave’ are synonymous terms, that they mean the same thing, and are therefore interchangeable terms.
I know this to be true because I was taught this, believed it, and preach it to the public as one of “Jehovah’s Witness” the majority of my life.
I began preaching this from door to door at age eight in 1959. I taught this, parroting in ignorance of the real truth and because I was at that time putting trust in “earthling man” and another human being’s reasoning ability. Christ had to cleanse my mind.
Here are the standard remarks of a “Jehovah’s Witness” about ‘hell’:
Quote: ”Hell is the Grave ( the condition in which life ceases Eccl. 9:10 until such Time as The Resurrection of The Just and Unjust begins Acts 24:15. In KJV Old Testament the Hebrew word “ Sheol “ translated 31 Times Hell, 31 Times Grave, 3 Times Pit.”
“Jehovah’s Witnesses” have a habit of mix things that shouldn’t be because they are things that have nothing in common with one another. That is a key trait of false religion.
When Scripture speaks of “Gehenna”, “Lake of fire”, “Hell”, it is not referring to the common grave or state of the dead who have died the death due to original sin. ‘Hell’ is not the wages of sin as it is in the Adamic death we as humans suffer. ‘Hell’ is the wages for being wicked.
When most people use the term ‘hell’ they are not talking about the condition in common grave.
And the word ‘Hell’ as most people use it, is not referring to common grave nor the state of the human dead from inherited sin. It is not and we can know this for a certainty.
It is IMPOSSIBLE for that to be the case because Jesus himself stated ‘who’ hell was created for and it wasn’t for humans. He refers to this state of existence as “the eternal fire”:
Matthew 25:41
“Then He will also say to those on the left, ‘Depart from Me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the Devil and his angels!” HCSB
Jesus said that this state of existence was created for “the devil and his angels” and not a human being. So it is clear that ‘hell’ is not mankind’s resting place after death. The Bible states that the wicked will inherit the devil’s inheritance. Revelation 21:8:
But cowards, traitors, perverts, murderers, the immoral, those who practice magic, those who worship idols, and all liars—the place for them is the lake burning with fire and sulfur, which is the second death.” GNT
Examine the Lord’s words recorded at Matthew 25:41 in context:
31 “When the Son of Man comes as King and all the angels with him, he will sit on his royal throne, 32 and the people of all the nations will be gathered before him. Then he will divide them into two groups, just as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.
33 He will put the righteous people at his right and the others at his left. 34 Then the King will say to the people on his right, ‘Come, you that are blessed by my Father! Come and possess the kingdom which has been prepared for you ever since the creation of the world. 35 I was hungry and you fed me, thirsty and you gave me a drink; I was a stranger and you received me in your homes, 36 naked and you clothed me; I was sick and you took care of me, in prison and you visited me.’ 37 The righteous will then answer him, ‘When, Lord, did we ever see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you a drink? 38 When did we ever see you a stranger and welcome you in our homes, or naked and clothe you? 39 When did we ever see you sick or in prison, and visit you?’ 40 The King will reply, ‘I tell you, whenever you did this for one of the least important of these followers of mine, you did it for me!’
41 “Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Away from me, you that are under God’s curse! Away to the eternal fire which has been prepared for the Devil and his angels!
Why do I know and have confidence that Hell actually exist? Because Jesus said it does and I have complete belief in him.
Do you believe what Jesus says or do you find it necessary to modify his words to fit what you prefer to believe?
A true disciple of Jesus believes Hell exist because Christ our Lord said it exist.
One problem is that “Jehovah’s Witnesses” do not believe that we are ‘spirit creatures’ poured into fleshly bodies.
They believe and teach that God’s “spirit” that is in us is basically some ‘atmosphere of energy’ or ‘air’ breathed into us by God at the time of birth and at that then we become a “living soul”.
They believe and teach that God’s spirit in us is like start up power and not something living …’alive’.
They refer to it as “God’s active force”.
Their other teachings certainly infer that ‘something’ survives death that can be asleep and awaken. But they still deny man is a ‘spirit’ in a body of flesh. If we are nothing but flesh with an ‘air’ of energy blown into us, then what is it that is sleeping then in death?
How do they make sense then of these words also uttered by Jesus?
“Don’t fear those who kill the body but are not able to kill the soul; rather, fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.” Matthew 10:28
If nothing of us survives death of the body, how could his words above have any real meaning?
What could possibly be a fate worse than death to an already unconscious spirit?
Is the resurrection’s purpose to wake the dead simple to inform them they won’t be being resurrected to life and to say to them “Now go back to sleep”? What purpose would that serve?
The Second Death is not Adamic death repeated.
That Adamic death all the human dead have experienced is not the ceasing of our existence entirely is clear in Jesus’ words that state that upon his arrival he summon all the dead from the tomb.
John 5:28-29:
“Do not marvel at this; for the hour is coming in which all who are in the graves will hear His voice and come forth—those who have done good, to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil, to the resurrection of condemnation.” New King James Version
Ask yourself: What “hears” his voice if nothing exist after we die?
What “Jehovah’s Witness” believe and teach about the ‘spirit’ in a human, cuts off any further consideration that eternal torment in Hell is even possible.
“Jehovah’s Witnesses’ and others who claim to be Christians, have no rational explanation of Jesus’ parable of Lazarus and the wicked rich man. What Jesus said is impossible within their belief. They either claim he didn’t mean what he said or they avoid discussion of this passage of Scripture all together. It just doesn’t fit in to what they want to believe.
They prove themselves disciples of other human beings and not disciples of Christ. “You cannot serve two masters”.
Matthew 6:24
“No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other;” King James Version
Remember the situation between the devil and the woman Eve in the Garden of Eden and the scene of original sin?
There the devil posed a question to Eve that opened the door to Eve’s thinking independent from the express words of God.
After God had unambiguously stated the penalty for disobedience to His command, the devil questioned whether it was so. It was a question that should have never been asked or considered. The devil was successfully in making her doubt the word of God given to her by her husband.
Why, Eve was even able to recite the commandment back to Satan.
But still, he was able to sow doubt in her mind as to whether God would really carry out what He said He would or, that God even meant what He said. He asked Eve, ”Is it really so…?”
Even though Christ said Hell is real and exist, even though he states that it was created for Satan and his demons, even though he said those there will be tormented forever (Revelation 14:11), even though he offers a parable of a man in Heaven and a man in Hell having a meeting after they both have died, those that deny the existence of Hell (the second death) do so just as satan did to Eve by casting doubt and confusion on something clearly stated by Christ Jesus.
Many rationalize that God would not condemn to such a harsh judgment. They say, ” A loving God wouldn’t do such a thing.”
The same should then have the same mind concerning Adam and Eve and the death sentence they occurred as the result of eating fruit.
They forget that our loving God caused a flood that destroyed and killed an entire world because of disobedience.
They do not harken to the apostle Peter’s warning found in 2 Peter chapter 3:
5 For this they willingly are ignorant of, that by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of the water and in the water:
6 Whereby the world that then was, being overflowed with water, perished:
7 But the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men.
The Book of Revelation tells us that the wicked are to receive the fullness of God’s wrath:
Revelation chapter 14
9 And the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand,
10 The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb:
11 And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name.
We as humans have no knowledge of the rules and penalties that govern those who exist in Heaven. This is the sentence of an angelic creature, but which his earthly seed will also share in. We cannot extrapolate our idea of things from the human perspective. We can only believe or disbelieve.
If one can believe that after a human dies that they can be raised to Heaven and partake in life there, they should also be able to believe that a wicked person after death can raise out of this creation and transported to Satan’s final destiny. Hell is not part of this creation. It is somewhere else God carved out in His firmament.
Two of Satan’s most successful lies are that he and hell don’t exist

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Watchtower Organization Was Founded On Racist Beliefs

Posted by Brother John Jones on August 31, 2020
Posted in: Antichrist, Bible Standards, ex-jehovah's witnesses, faith, false prophet, God and Christ, governing body, Jehovah, Jehovah's Witnesses, Jesus, logic, mark of the beast, operation of error, pure religion, Religion, religion. Tagged: , , , , . Leave a comment

Charles Taze Russell’s Racist Views Printed in Watchtower Publications

“It is generally believed that the curse which Noah pronounced upon Canaan was the origin of the black race. Certain it is that when Noah said, “Cursed be Canaan, a servant of servants shall he be unto his brethren,” he pictured the future of the Colored race. They have been and are a race of servants, but now in the dawn of the twentieth century, we are all coming to see this matter of service in its true light and to find that the only real joy in life is in serving others; not bossing them. There is no servant in the world as good as a good Colored servant, and the joy that he gets from rendering faithful service is one of the purest joys there is in the world”.
(The Golden Age, July 24, 1929, p. 702)

The quote above is but one of many comments that can be found on the pages of Watchtower publications that reveal the racist beliefs of its founder and subsequent leaders.

 

Multi-cultural at its ase and middle, but exclusively anglo at the top.

While today boasting to have millions of adherents world-wide, the make up of its leadership at the top has alway been caucasian.

Its hard to believe that out of all these millions that either holy spirit or the Lord would not grace men of other races to serve in the capacity of leadership as the so-called governing body of ‘Jehovah’s Witnesses nor that of ‘President’

The information in this article can e easily verify by anyone who would care to investigate its factuality and validity.

Reprint of July\Aug 1988 Bethel Min. Newsletter

Blacks and the Watchtower

Randall Watters

By Randall Watters (exerpt)

(Randall Watters left the Jehovah’s Witnesses during the 1980 shake-up of the New York Watchtower Headquarters)

Few religious organizations have escaped being tainted by racial prejudice at one time or another. While the Watchtower has not been alone in its preferential treatment of the Caucasian, its history is perhaps a little more interesting and at times amusing in regards to the black man. It is all the more fascinating when you discover how few people really know what the Watchtower has taught regarding racial inferiority.

Taking a glimpse back in time to the beginnings of the Watchtower organization, we find more than just silent prejudice at work. Several statements were put in print regarding the alleged inferiority of the black man! Let’s examine a few of these statements from the past, and then we’ll examine their present view of blacks and even Hispanics in the Governing Body.

From the beginning, President C. T. Russell believed that the millennial kingdom was about to break upon mankind, accompanied by life in paradise and a restoration of the earth to the condition as found in the garden of Eden. Though in this present life the black man was found to be inferior, Russell argues, this will work to his advantage during the millennium. Humility, promoted by a position of inferiority, would breed strength of character to the “colored” if they are so rightly exercised by it (in other words, if they remain humble and not challenge the status quo). Note the following from the April 1, 1914 Watchtower:

“If nature favors the colored brethren and sisters in the exercise of humility it is that much to their advantage, if they are rightly exercised by it. A little while, and our humility will work out for our good. A little while, and those who have been faithful to their Covenant of Sacrifice will be granted new bodies, spiritual, beyond the veil, where color and sex distinctions will be no more. A little while, and the Millennial kingdom will be inaugurated, which will bring restitution to all mankind, restitution to the perfection of mind and body, feature and color, to the grand original standard, which God declared “very good,” and which was lost for a time through sin, but which is soon to be restored by the powerful kingdom of Messiah”.
(p. 105106)

All men privileged to live in that “new world” would return to man’s original state, including man’s original color and language. And what was that color and language? White and Hebrew, according to the Watchtower. Under the subheading, “CAN THE ETHIOPIAN CHANGE HIS SKIN?”, the Feb. 15, 1904 Watch Tower responds,

“We answer, No. But all will admit that what the Ethiopian cannot do for himself God could readily do for him. The difference between the races of men and the differences between their languages have long been arguments against the solidarity of the human family. The doctrine of restitution has also raised the question. How could all men be brought to perfection and which color of skin was the original? The answer is now provided. God can change the Ethiopian’s skin in his own due time”.

Prof. H. A. Edwards, Supt. of Schools in Slater, Mo., has written for the public press an elaborate description of how Julius Jackson, of New Frankfurt, Mo., a negro boy of nine years, began to grow white in September, 1901, and is now fully ninetenths white. He assures us that this is no whitish skin disease; but that the new white skin is as healthy as that of any white boy, and that the changed boy has never been sick and never has taken medicines”.
(p.5253)

The reason for printing such a story, of course, is to demonstrate that God can and will change the “Ethiopian” (black man) into a white man in the New World.

The obvious question to ask at this point is, Why does the black man need to change? The reason they gave revealed their true feelings, as we see from the following excerpts:

“…The negro race is supposed to be descended from Ham, whose special degradation is mentioned in Gen. 9:22, 25”.
(Zion’s Watch Tower, August 1, 1898, p. 230)

“Noah declared, prophetically, that Ham’s characteristics which had led him to unseemly conduct disrespectful to his father, would be found cropping out later, inherited by his son,and prophetically he foretold that this degeneracy would mark the posterity of Canaan, degrading him, making him servile. We are not able to determine to a certainty that the sons of Ham and Canaan are the negroes; but we consider that general view as probable as any other”.
(Zion’s Watch Tower, July 15, 1902, p. 216)

The change was needed as a sign of removal of the curse; black skin was a blemish, so to speak. Yet the skin color of the black man was not the only thing about him that was apparently cursed. In an article attempting to prove the bigots of the day to be in error, an article was written entitled, “The Negro Not A Beast.” The Negro was declared to be indeed human, yet with the following qualification:

“While it is true that the white race exhibits some qualities of superiority over any other, we are to remember that there are wide differences in the same Caucasian (Semitic and Aryan) family; and also we should remember that some of the qualities which have given this branch of the human family its preeminence in the world are not such as can be pointed to as in all respects admirable….The secret of the greater intelligence and aptitude of the Caucasian undoubtedly in great measure is to be attributed to the commingling of blood amongst its various branches; and this was evidently forced in large measure by circumstances under divine control”.
(Zion’s Watch Tower, July 15, 1902, p.215216)

In an effort to provide hope for the Negro, the following story was related in the Zion’s Watch Tower of October 1, 1900, p. 296297:

CAN RESTITUTION CHANGE?

THE ETHIOPIAN’S SKIN?

The following, from the New York World, is the third we have seen reported. These suggest and illustrate the process of restitution soon due. The item reads:

From Black to White He Slowly Turned

“Parkersburg, W. Va., Sept. 8.It has fallen to the lot of the Rev. William H. Draper, pastor of the Logan Memorial church, of Washington Conference, A.M.E. church, of this town, to give a living affirmative answer to the famous Biblical question, “Can the Ethiopian change his skin or the leopard his spots?”

Though once as black as charcoal, the Rev. Mr. Draper is now white. His people say that his color was changed in answer to prayer. Many years ago Draper was employed by a fairskinned man, and he was often heard to remark that if he could only be white like his employer, he would be happy. While in the white man’s service Draper `experienced’ religion.

From that day forward he prayed constantly and fervently that he might become white. Thirty years ago his prayer began to be answered. He first experienced a prickling sensation on his face, and upon close investigation found a number of small white spots scarcely larger than the point of a pin. He became alarmed, thinking he had some peculiar disease but he did not suffer and aside from the prickling sensation felt nothing unusual. Gradually the white spots became larger and extended themselves, until now, after the change has been in progress for over thirty years, Draper has not a single dark spot on his body”.

(Did this kind of thinking lead Michael Jackson, the famous deceased entertainer who was a member of ‘Jehovah’s Witnesses to ‘whitenize’ his skin? Did he feel inferior by having dark skin?)

The advantage of being viewed as inferior supposedly made one a good servant, and The Golden Age magazine (now Awake!), comments:

“It is generally believed that the curse which Noah pronounced upon Canaan was the origin of the black race. Certain it is that when Noah said, “Cursed be Canaan, a servant of servants shall he be unto his brethren,” he pictured the future of the Colored race. They have been and are a race of servants, but now in the dawn of the twentieth century, we are all coming to see this matter of service in its true light and to find that the only real joy in life is in serving others; not bossing them. There is no servant in the world as good as a good Colored servant, and the joy that he gets from rendering faithful service is one of the purest joys there is in the world”.
(The Golden Age, July 24, 1929, p. 702)

Even as recent as 1952, the Watchtower extols the “teachableness” of the Negro:

“Really, our colored brothers have a great cause for rejoicing. Their race is meek and teachable, and from it comes a high percentage of the theocratic increase“.
(The Watchtower, Feb. 1, 1952, p. 95)

Segregation was practiced during the days of C. T. Russell and even into Rutherford’s term as president of the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society. This excerpt is taken from The Watch Tower of April 1, 1914, p. 105:

“Recognizing that it meant either the success or the failure of the enterprise of the [Photo] Drama as respects the whites, we have been compelled to assign the colored friends to the gallery, which, however, is just as good for seeing and hearing as any other part of The Temple. Some were offended at this arrangement.

We have received numerous letters from the colored friends, some claiming that it is not right to make a difference, others indignantly and bitterly denouncing us as enemies of the colored people. Some, confident that Brother Russell had never sanctioned such a discrimination, told that they believe it would be duty to stand up for equal rights and always to help the oppressed, etc. We were obliged to explain the facts, assuring all of our loving interest in the colored people, and of our desire to do them good, and not injury. We again suggested that if a suitable place could be found in which the Drama could be presented for the benefit of the colored people alone, we would be glad to make such arrangements, or to cooperate with any others in doing so”.

Intellectual Ability

Even more fascinating is the Watchtower’s early view of the lesser interest and intelligence of the Black and Hispanic races concerning the deeper things of the Bible. The Watchtower of April 15, 1900 said the following regarding blacks not participating in the “pioneer” work:

“There are probably as many as a hundred colored brethren on the Watch Tower lists, some of them very clear in the truth, and very earnest in its service, financially and otherwise. We have received letters from several of these, who had intended engaging in the volunteer work, expressing surprise that in the call for volunteers in the March 1st issue we restricted the inquiry to white Protestant churches. They rightly realized that we have not the slightest of race prejudice, and that we love the colored brethren with just the same warmth of heart that we love the white, and they queried therefore why such a distinction should be made in the call. The reason is that so far as we are able to judge, colored people have less education than whites, many of them quite insufficient to permit them to profit by such reading as we have to give forth. Our conclusion therefore is based upon the supposition that reading matter distributed to a colored congregation would more than half of it be utterly wasted, and a very small percentage indeed likely to yield good results”. (p. 122)

The average Jehovah’s Witness today that is confronted with this information would probably excuse the organization of being in error because “the light was dim” back then but that now the “light has gotten brighter and brighter,” and those days are long gone. It is true that times and attitudes have changed. Yet we should not be too hasty in concluding that the Watchtower has fully abandoned their old mentality. It was made known to me in 1977 while I was in charge of the printing of the Watchtower’s large Bible encyclopedia, the Aid to Bible Understanding, that it was not translated and printed in Spanish partly due to the lack of interest of the Spanish brothers in the deeper things of the Word! The feeling was that all that work would only go to waste among Hispanics.

Typical of the “Watchtower amnesia” regarding their own past history, they act today as if they never taught any prejudicial views, and that only the churches of Christendom are guilty of such things. Yet even the Catholic Church surpasses them in this regard! The Watchtower of Oct. 8, 1977 states:

“Even up to a hundred years ago the Catholic Church held the view that blacks were cursed by God”.

Maxwell explains that this view “apparently survived until 1873 when Pope Pius IX attached an indulgence to a prayer for the `wretched Ethiopians in Central Africa that almighty God may at length remove the curse of Cham [Ham] from their hearts.”
(p. 29. See also the 2/8/82 WT, p.1415.)

According to what the Watchtower is saying, the Catholic Church dropped their official prejudice against the black man at least 40 years before they did! Of course, they are banking on the fact that few Witnesses really know the history of the Watchtower organization. As has been demonstrated earlier, they viewed the curse of Ham as applying to the Negro as late as 1929!

Have Old Things Really Passed Away?

The Watchtower of modern times prides itself on its supposed freedom from racial prejudice as an organization (it does acknowledge individuals who have problems from time to time). It takes great delight in quoting the news media as they observe and comment on the massive assemblies across the world each year, with peoples from all races attending in harmony.

One observer they repeatedly quoted was G. Norman Eddy, who comments on Jehovah’s Witnesses:

“I am struck with their genuine high regard for the people of all races. Unlike some who pay lip service to the doctrine of racial brotherhood, the Witnesses welcome all to their society, even to places of outstanding leadership without reference to color or feature”.
(Journal of Bible and Religion, as quoted in the Jan. 15, 1973 WT, p. 37)

It is true that the assemblies of Jehovah’s Witnesses are remarkable in this regard, but so are many modern church groups across the country, especially among the charismatic persuasions. Yet unlike the churches, the Governing Body of Jehovah’s Witnesses has never had a non Caucasian in its membership, Negro, Hispanic or otherwise. (Samuel F. Herd was appointed to the governing body October 2, 1999 USA)

One non caucasian member in its entire history

Further, there are likely more subtle reasons behind the reluctance of the Governing Body to take in minorities. The unspoken requirements of serving as a member of the Governing Body apparently include having the same eccentricities and Victorian attitudes as the men already serving in such capacities, which are somewhat peculiar to certain older Caucasians of English-American descent. Any aspiring soul brother must put on the same attitudes in order to be trusted. While the Watchtower does have a few blacks in high position, including Circuit Overseers and members of the Service Department at Bethel, such ones have been promoted no higher, in spite of their adopting “white” attitudes. Perhaps with increased public pressure and the passing away of the older diehards, a black may be appointed to the Governing Body; time will tell. One thing for sure, they will have to lose their “soul” in order to do so!

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Why Was Jerusalem Likened To Sodom?

Posted by Brother John Jones on August 26, 2020
Posted in: Antichrist, apostasy, faith, God and Christ, Heaven, Jehovah, Jesus, operation of error, Religion, terrorism. Tagged: , , , . Leave a comment

“And their dead bodies shall lie in the street of the great city, which spiritually is called Sodom and Egypt, where also our Lord was crucified. Revelation 11:8

 

Sodom was a city full of injustices written in their laws.

Sodomite laws were completely backward and rewarded wrongdoing.

Details can be found in the Book of Jasher, Hebrew: סֵפֶר הַיׇּשׇׁר‎.

The Book of Jasher is referenced In Joshua 10:13; 2 Samuel 1:18; And 2 Timothy 3:8.

The following are some examples of the perverted sense of justice of the inhabitants of Sodom.

When Abraham sent his servant Eliezer to Sodom, this is what occurred:

Jasher 19:12-22

12. And Eliezer went to Sodom, and he met a man of Sodom fighting with a stranger, and the man of Sodom stripped the poor man of all his clothes and went away.

13. And this poor man cried to Eliezer and supplicated his favor on account of what the man of Sodom had done to him.

14. And he said to him, Why dost thou act thus to the poor man who came to thy land?

15. And the man of Sodom answered Eliezer, saying, Is this man thy brother, or have the people of Sodom made thee a judge this day, that thou speakest about this man?

16. And Eliezer strove with the man of Sodom on account of the poor man, and when Eliezer approached to recover the poor man’s clothes from the man of Sodom, he hastened and with a stone smote Eliezer in the forehead.

17. And the blood flowed copiously from Eliezer’s forehead, and when the man saw the blood he caught hold of Eliezer, saying, Give me my hire for having rid thee of this bad blood that was in thy forehead, for such is the custom and the law in our land.

18. And Eliezer said to him, Thou hast wounded me and requirest me to pay thee thy hire; and Eliezer would not hearken to the words of the man of Sodom.

19. And the man laid hold of Eliezer and brought him to Shakra the judge of Sodom for judgment.

20. And the man spoke to the judge, saying, I beseech thee my lord, thus has this man done, for I smote him with a stone that the blood flowed from his forehead, and he is unwilling to give me my hire.

21. And the judge said to Eliezer, This man speaketh truth to thee, give him his hire, for this is the custom in our land; and Eliezer heard the words of the judge, and he lifted up a stone and smote the judge, and the stone struck on his forehead, and the blood flowed copiously from the forehead of the judge, and Eliezer said, If this then is the custom in your land give thou unto this man what I should have given him, for this has been thy decision, thou didst decree it.

22. And Eliezer left the man of Sodom with the judge, and he went away.

Imagine being legally forced to pay someone for assaulting you as if they had done you a favor!

One of their laws for instance, forbade its residents to offer assistance to travelers who passed through the city. If one was caught even giving a traveler a drink of water or a morsel of bread, the punishment was death. This is what happened to a daughter of Lot:

Consider Jasher 19:12-24-35

24 At that time the wife of Lot bare him a daughter, and he called her name Paltith, saying, Because God had delivered him and his whole household from the kings of Elam; and Paltith daughter of Lot grew up, and one of the men of Sodom took her for a wife.

25 And a poor man came into the city to seek a maintenance, and he remained in the city some days, and all the people of Sodom caused a proclamation of their custom not to give this man a morsel of bread to eat, until he dropped dead upon the earth, and they did so.

26 And Paltith the daughter of Lot saw this man lying in the streets starved with hunger, and no one would give him any thing to keep him alive, and he was just upon the point of death.

27 And her soul was filled with pity on account of the man, and she fed him secretly with bread for many days, and the soul of this man was revived.

28 For when she went forth to fetch water she would put the bread in the water pitcher, and when she came to the place where the poor man was, she took the bread from the pitcher and gave it him to eat; so she did many days.

29 And all the people of Sodom and Gomorrah wondered how this man could bear starvation for so many days.

30 And they said to each other, This can only be that he eats and drinks, for no man can bear starvation for so many days or live as this man has, without even his countenance changing; and three men concealed themselves in a place where the poor man was stationed, to know who it was that brought him bread to eat.

31 And Paltith daughter of Lot went forth that day to fetch water, and she put bread into her pitcher of water, and she went to draw water by the poor man’s place, and she took out the bread from the pitcher and gave it to the poor man and he ate it.

32 And the three men saw what Paltith did to the poor man, and they said to her, It is thou then who hast supported him, and therefore has he not starved, nor changed in appearance nor died like the rest.

33 And the three men went out of the place in which they were concealed, and they seized Paltith and the bread which was in the poor man’s hand.

34 And they took Paltith and brought her before their judges, and they said to them, Thus did she do, and it is she who supplied the poor man with bread, therefore did he not die all this time; now therefore declare to us the punishment due to this woman for having transgressed our law.

35 And the people of Sodom and Gomorrah assembled and kindled a fire in the street of the city, and they took the woman and cast her into the fire and she was burned to ashes.

Sodomites were completely and demonically backward in their reasoning or more accurately, their lack of reasoning.

Most people think of Sodom in terms of gross sexual immorality; and it was. But their sins were even more extensive.

Remember that God had condemned the City to destruction prior to the two angels arrival after which the men of the city demanded they be brought out to them.

Sodom, according to the Book of Jasher, was a city where adultery (wife swapping) was also a custom. Orgies seemed to big a favorite pastime.

They also tortured strangers when they would happen through:

Jasher 19:3-10

And by desire of their four judges the people of Sodom and Gomorrah had beds erected in the streets of the cities, and if a man came to these places they laid hold of him and brought him to one of their beds, and by force made him to lie in them.

4 And as he lay down, three men would stand at his head and three at his feet, and measure him by the length of the bed, and if the man was less than the bed these six men would stretch him at each end, and when he cried out to them they would not answer him.

5 And if he was longer than the bed they would draw together the two sides of the bed at each end, until the man had reached the gates of death.

6 And if he continued to cry out to them, they would answer him, saying, Thus shall it be done to a man that cometh into our land.

7 And when men heard all these things that the people of the cities of Sodom did, they refrained from coming there.

God and Christ compared Jerusalem to Sodom.

Jerusalem was never known as a city of gross sexual immorality. So on what basis was the comparison made?

God stated the sin of Sodom and it can be read at Ezekiel 16:49:

49 Behold, this was the iniquity of thy sister Sodom, pride, fulness of bread, and abundance of idleness was in her and in her daughters, neither did she strengthen the hand of the poor and needy.
Now we have a basis for comparison.

God declared that the sins of Judah, whose capital was Jerusalem were worse than those of the break away ten tribe kingdom to its north whose capital was Samaria. And that they were even worse than those of Sodom.

And Jesus made a similar comment regarding Jerusalem two times. Once when alive on Earth and a second time after his resurrection to Heaven.


When sending out the 70 disciples to minister ahead of his coming to the towns and villages, this is what he said:

Luke 10:1-14

1 After these things the Lord appointed other seventy also, and sent them two and two before his face into every city and place, whither he himself would come.

2 Therefore said he unto them, The harvest truly is great, but the labourers are few: pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he would send forth labourers into his harvest.

3 Go your ways: behold, I send you forth as lambs among wolves.

4 Carry neither purse, nor scrip, nor shoes: and salute no man by the way.

5 And into whatsoever house ye enter, first say, Peace be to this house.

6 And if the son of peace be there, your peace shall rest upon it: if not, it shall turn to you again.

7 And in the same house remain, eating and drinking such things as they give: for the labourer is worthy of his hire. Go not from house to house.

8 And into whatsoever city ye enter, and they receive you, eat such things as are set before you:

9 And heal the sick that are therein, and say unto them, The kingdom of God is come nigh unto you.

10 But into whatsoever city ye enter, and they receive you not, go your ways out into the streets of the same, and say,

11 Even the very dust of your city, which cleaveth on us, we do wipe off against you: notwithstanding be ye sure of this, that the kingdom of God is come nigh unto you.

12 But I say unto you, that it shall be more tolerable in that day for Sodom, than for that city.

13 Woe unto thee, Chorazin! woe unto thee, Bethsaida! for if the mighty works had been done in Tyre and Sidon, which have been done in you, they had a great while ago repented, sitting in sackcloth and ashes.

14 But it shall be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon at the judgment, than for you.

And Christ did so again at the time he gave his prophetic vision to John. He then likens Jerusalem to Sodom:

Revelation 11:8

8 And their dead bodies shall lie in the street of the great city, which spiritually is called Sodom and Egypt, where also our Lord was crucified.

Many believe that the “great city” that is mentioned here is the same great city mentioned in Revelation 16:19, “Babylon the Great”. But it could not be. Why not?

He gives a clue that he is speaking of Jerusalem as he refers to it as the place “where our Lord was crucified”.

The crowd of Israelites who demanded the death of an innocent man in exchange for the release of a guilty murder is very reminiscent of the mindset and behavior of the Sodomites.

Matthew 27:15–18 records the events:

Now at the feast the governor was accustomed to release for the crowd any one prisoner whom they wanted. And they had then a notorious prisoner called Barabbas. So when they had gathered, Pilate said to them, “Whom do you want me to release for you: Barabbas, or Jesus who is called Christ?”

“‘Which of the two do you want me to release for you?’ And they said, ‘Barabbas’”

Jesus had been accused of crimes that could not be proven and were in fact based on a false allegation.

Then there was Barabbas who was basically a terrorist.

The crowd chose a murderer over the one who brings the dead back to life.

They chose evil over the one who loves perfectly.

Pilate knew Jesus was innocent, but the crowds roared to free Barabbas and to crucify Jesus.

It is true that God used this travesty of justice to fulfill his will in that it provided an innocent, pure sacrificial offering to redeem mankind.

This did not relieve his murderers from guilt.

Consider for yourself in what ways the people of Israel (Jerusalem ) manifested a spirit and behaviors like those Sodom was condemned for and how its modern day counterpart is just as reprehensible.

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FINDING YOUR WAY THROUGH SATAN’S LABYRINTH

Posted by Brother John Jones on April 19, 2019
Posted in: Antichrist, Babylon, Babylonian confusion, Bible Standards, false prophet, God and Christ, governing body, Heaven, Jehovah, Jehovah's Witnesses, Jesus, logic, pure religion, Religion, the great harlot, tower of babel. Tagged: , , , , , . Leave a comment

 

“But solid food is for the mature—for those whose senses have been trained to distinguish between good and evil”

Why sharpen your reasoning abilities now?

When you hear the words ‘Reason’ and ‘Logic’, what do you think?

Some people immediately are put off by the suggestion that we need to logically reason on matters. They somehow view logic as something foreign to “spirituality’.

The Bible teaches that God Almighty is a ‘God of Reason’. He is the One that designed us to have the capability to reason. Why would He create us with this ability if we were not to be expected to use it?

“But sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts, always being ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you, yet with gentleness and reverence;”

1 Peter 3:15

How can a person make a defense of their Christian faith unless they have based their faith on clear evidence and have reasoned on that evidence?

“Come now, and let us reason together,” Says the LORD, “Though your sins are as scarlet, They will be as white as snow; Though they are red like crimson, They will be like wool.”

Isaiah 1:18

Almighty God himself encourages reasoning; even reasoning with Him. God certainly does not discourage a person from using the power of reason.

“Put Me in remembrance, let us argue our case together; State your cause, that you may be proved right.”

Isaiah 43:26

Our beliefs should be tested. God challenges to us to “state our cause” and defend it.

“Now when they had traveled through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica, where there was a synagogue of the Jews. And according to Paul’s custom, he went to them, and for three Sabbaths reasoned with them from the Scriptures, explaining and giving evidence that the Christ had to suffer and rise again from the dead, and saying, “This Jesus whom I am proclaiming to you is the Christ.”

Acts 17:1-3

The earliest disciples of Jesus Christ reasoned with those they preached to, “giving evidence that the Christ had to suffer and rise again from the dead”. Evidence is found by ‘reasoning’ on facts.

“When I was a child, I used to speak like a child, think like a child, reason like a child; when I became a man, I did away with childish things.”

1 Corinthians 13:11

Paul was not satisfied with his current state of personal and spiritual growth and continued to advance through life in personal and spiritual growth. He no longer continued, to speak like a child, think like a child, reason like a child.

“For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways,” declares the LORD. “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, So are My ways higher than your ways And My thoughts than your thoughts.”

Isaiah 55:8-9

Since God’s thoughts are “higher” than our thoughts, it should be obvious that we need to sharpen what reasoning ability we do have, in order to appreciate the higher and more lofty thoughts of God.

“For when Gentiles who do not have the Law do instinctively the things of the Law, these, not having the Law, are a law to themselves, in that they show the work of the Law written in their hearts, their conscience bearing witness and their thoughts alternately accusing or else defending them,”

Romans 2:14-15

Using the Holy Bible as a ‘test rod’ to determine whether our thoughts and behaviors are consistent with the will of God or they are not, will either defend our spiritual stance or condemn it. The above Scripture also points out that reason affects everyone’s life; including the unbeliever.

“Come now, and let us reason together,” Says the LORD, “Though your sins are as scarlet, They will be as white as snow; Though they are red like crimson, They will be like wool. “If you consent and obey, You will eat the best of the land;” Isaiah 1:18-19

Here is a clear invitation by God to reason. Not just to ‘reason’; but to reason with Him.

‘mixing’ and ‘confusion’ are hallmark characteristics associated with Babylon

 

Babylonian Traits of Behavior

When examining the pattern of ancient Babylon and then comparing the traits found in modern “Babylon the Great”, the subject of ‘reason’ plays a significant role.

God put the workers of the Tower of Babel into a ‘confused’ state to break up their works and scatter them. Since they were no longer able to converse because their languages had been confused, they could not continue their plan. They were unable to ‘reason’ with one another.

God caused Nebuchaneezzar to think like an unreasoning beast

Later in Daniel’s time, God caused King Nebuchadnezzar to go and live as the ‘unreasoning’ beast of the fields for 7 years.

He exhibited the behaviors of like a ‘wild beast’ and he thought unreasonably.

Today, we see humankind on a grand scale behaving in a confused, unreasoning manner. They think and act as the unreasoning wild beast do. What occurred at the Tower of Babel and what occurred to Nebuchadnezzar is now happening to all who remain under a demonic spell that the devil has cast.

Many will claim that they have ‘escaped’ “Babylon the Great”. But reason says that that cannot be true. While many have escaped the clutches of false worship, they have not escaped the global-reach of Satan’s influence. His influence effects more than organized religion. Babylon the Great is a ‘world empire’ just a the nation of Babylon was.

It was not until King Cyrus came and overthrew the Babylonians that the captives were freed.

There is a big distinction between being ‘free’ from the corruption of the devil’s empire by “not touching the unclean thing”, and being out from under its global influence and its ability to affect you.

So, we remain physical captives of Satan’s global empire until the time the “Greater Cyrus” who is the resurrected, glorified Jesus Christ comes and breaks forever the Babylonian yoke of slavery.

A person cannot simply ‘walk’ out of “Babylon the Great” any more than one could simply walk out of Babylon. One cannot just simply, “get away”. Was that to be expected then? Think of Jesus words in the Revelation He gave to John.

In the vision Christ Jesus gave to John that is recorded as the Book of Revelation, it opens by stating that John was by Spirit, “put into seeing symbolic events that referred to the Day of the Lord, the Day of his Second Coming, the Last Days.

Revelation chapter 2

9 “I, John, your brother and partner in the tribulation, kingdom, and endurance that are in Jesus, was on the island called Patmos because of God’s word and the testimony about Jesus. 10 I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s day, and I heard a loud voice behind me like a trumpet 11 saying, “Write on a scroll what you see and send it to the seven churches: Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodicea.”

So those involved in this messages Christ is giving are souls alive at this time. And also given that these are messages to the “angels” of the churches, then the condition apply to these body members of the church.

In His words to the church in Pergamum, Jesus describes their environment and their current living circumstances clearly.

Revelation chapter 2:

12 “Write to the angel of the church in Pergamum:

“The One who has the sharp, double-edged sword says: 13 I know where you live—where Satan’s throne is! And you are holding on to My name and did not deny your faith in Me, even in the days of Antipas, My faithful witness who was killed among you, where Satan lives.”

The Lord indicates an ongoing struggle against ungodly thinking and behavior in an extremely vulnerable proximity to the center of the devil’s operation. He did not instruct them to move somewhere else. Being under the dominance and control of the city-state world empire Babylon did not require one to be within the city’s ‘official’ walls where the throne of the king was. Being near the devil’s center of activity is no different from being on the far-flung edges of his empire Babylon the Great.

‘Babylon the Great’, the Demon-Controlled World Empire

Satan is the ruler of the present global system

3 But if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. 4 In their case, the god of this age has blinded the minds of the unbelievers so they cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.

2 Corinthians 4:3-4

Babylon the Great is a pervasive demon-inspired Global Culture. This demon-controlled World Empire controls governmental authority, exchange of goods, and set the ethical/moral/social norms.

That power continues to exist and exert itself on ALL of humankind. A key to it’s powerful hold is the element of ‘Blackmail’.

This scenario is well depicted in the Book of Revelation and it is quite recognizable. It is significant as its pattern is followed through, being acted out in the social behavior of human beings.

This form of ‘enslavement’ (the wild beast is enslaved to the harlot against its own will) exist throughout the world from top highest governmental relationships all the way through society to relationships among individual family members in the confined quarters of a single home. The whole world lies in the power of the “wicked one”.

The snare of entrapment centers on personal desire for immoral things and then the desire to hide one’s complicity (sin) so as not to suffer loss.

A person then falls into a baited trap: seduction, compromised interest, secrets that must remain secrets, and blackmailed into submission.

Ask: How does a prostitute gain control over a powerful man? Answer: blackmailed by all the “disgusting things” in her cup.

She holds these secret liaisons over the heads of the kings of the earth and then blackmail them into obedience.

As you look at the illustration, try to appreciate how pervasive and manipulative this wicked spirit has been and how widely blackmail is practiced today over millions, controlling great masses of people.

Surely, the wild beast has great cause to hate the mysterious Great Harlot that sits astride it’s back.

 

 

The “Wormwood” Effect

Wormwood is a result of mixing pure water (truth) with poison (lie). That is a process of adding something to something else.

The pure water is the knowledge from God received from accepting the Holy Scriptures as written. Drinking this knowledge itself requires no special powers of discernment. It only requires acceptance of what is written.

Wormwood is the adding of spurious teachings that distort the pattern of teachings one learns from reading God’s word the Bible. It results in a mixed ‘cup’ of knowledge.

Wormwood applies much more broadly than religious/specific teachings. Wormwood poisoning can be seen in all social settings humans engage in. The lacing of truth with lie is found everywhere.

The best admonition is that each person individually, pay attention to the ‘water source’ they are drinking from.

The pure knowledge of God will not make you doubt or be confused.

This poison water flows from out of the demonic kingdom of confusion, Babylon. Its purpose is to make a person question their own perception of reality and the foundation of their faith. Its purpose is to cause doubt, unsurety, and indecisiveness.

Two books offer the Watchtower’s most in-depth considerations of its interpretation of the Book of Revelation. These are “Babylon the Great has Fallen, God’s Kingdom Rules” and “Revelation-The Grand Climax is at Hand!”.

Watchtower study publications

The Identity of “Babylon the Great”

The identity and scope of “Babylon the Great” is being revealed as the unfolding of events and circumstance reveal it. The word ‘revelation’ literally infers an unfolding exposé.

What was once considered to be correct conclusions of Babylon the Greats’ identity and nature must now be reconsidered.

As a child studying the “Babylon the Great has Fallen” book (mid 1960’s), I wondered how man could get rid of all religious worship in opposition to the true God. It was taught for decades that the United Nations was the “wild beast” in the Revelation to John and it would destroy all false worship.

I could not imagine how a group of humans could possibly accomplish this feat and how long it would take them to do it.

How do you destroy false religion without destroying the people who practice it? False worship isn’t buildings like cathedrals. It’s people and their practices.

It would require a house by house search of the entire world!

Much religious is secretive and not practiced in open sight. As the Bible testifies, people have gone to great lengths to practice pagan rituals. They did so from roof tops to remote sites in the woods according to Scripture.

Recall that in early human history it was customary for individuals to keep personal idols to false gods upon their person and in their homes.

Think of what that would take to stop false worship globally. False worship is practiced in every inhabited place on earth!

The belief Jehovah’s Witnesses have that all false worship will be destroyed before the end comes, is based on the phrase they have heard repeated over and over again in their publications and talks: “Babylon the Great, the world empire of false religion”.

This statement cannot be found in Scripture and makes Babylon the Great synonymous to and limited to organized false religious worship.

Given that mankind is on the brink of self-destruction, the vastness of the task of stopping false worship, and the time it would take to accomplish this feat if even possible…it seems quite implausible.

After the “beast” has turned upon it’s rider the Great Harlot, those remaining will still be worshiping the chief demon and his demon angels. This attack results only in a change in the hierarchy of demon authority and it’s control structure. Satan’s system is based on competition and a pyramidal scramble to it’s top.

In the Revelation, the dragon (Satan) gives his power to the beast and it this beast that is the object of worship.

4 They worshiped the dragon because he gave authority to the beast. And they worshiped the beast, saying, “Who is like the beast? Who is able to wage war against him?” Revelation 13:4

It is not the rider, the Great Whore, who is the object of worship.

Since the beast has the power, the question arises: How does the harlot who sits astride the beast maintain control over it; the beast being more powerful?

It is by seduction, secrets, and blackmail.

So long as the demons are in power there will continue to be ‘false worship’.

That will not end until our Messiah, Jesus Christ, returns and cast the demons out of this realm of existence.

It would be good to re-examine your thoughts on this matter.

Failure to Grasp the Understanding of End Time Prophecy

You may be familiar with the Watchtower publication, “Revelation, Its Grand Climax At Hand!”. It was first published in 1984 and was offered to the public, as well as used as an internal study tool for over 20 years.

This book was being studied by Jehovah’s Witnesses in their weekly book study (book study is their choice of words) up until as recently as the year 2007.

So, attempting to prognosticate Biblical prophecy by the Watchtower is not something in the distant past as they are now claiming. They are simply attempting to cover over their past.

If you can obtain a copy of this book, you will probably be amazed at some of Watchtower’s interpretation of the Book of Revelation and its fulfillment.

Who are the “locust” mentioned in Revelation 9?

An example would be the interpretation of Revelation chapter 9 concerning the “locust” released from the abyss by a “falling star” or fallen angel (see Revelation 9:1).

“And there came out of the smoke locusts upon the earth: and unto them was given power, as the scorpions of the earth have power.”
Revelation 9:3

The Watchtower Society teaches that the locust described in Revelation chapter 9, were their spiritual leaders in 1919 A.D.

(See “Revelation Its Grand Climax At Hand!” pages 143-154)

Revelation 9:1 tells us that the locust were released by a “falling star” or a fallen angel. So, they are attributing their rescue from an “abyss of spiritual inactivity” in 1919 to a demon.

The locust were permitted to torment only those that did not have the “seal of the living God.”

If these locusts really pictured the anointed brothers of Christ, they would not have had to be instructed not to “harm” one another?

Fooled by as John puts it, “what ‘seemed’ to be gold crowns on their heads, the Watchtower leaders have assumed that the locust must be righteous. They saw these as the kingly crowns to be yet granted to the elect. (page 146)

They have based interpretations of Revelation chapter 9 on what is written later in Revelation chapter 20. That is a huge mistake. In Revelation 20, the circumstances have changed.

Revelation 20:1 refers to a later time when another angel is seen “coming down (not falling down) holding in his hand the key to the abyss”. At this time, that authority will have been returned to the One that has been given authority over all things at the End.

They teach that this latter angel is the same angel who has authority over the abyss in Chapter 9 (Abaddon, “The Destroyer”). That is an assumption.

Revelation chapter 9 is about fallen angels, jurisdictions under their control, and demonic activities. It has nothing at all to do with righteous activities direct by Christ.

Who are the Locust? What do They Do?

As noted in reading, Revelation chapter 9 foretells of the unleashing on humankind of ‘locust’ by a fallen angel called “the Destroyer”.

These demon spirits have been unleashed and they orchestrate anarchy by permitting people and groups of people to act out in anti-social, disruptive behaviors.

This is occurring on a global scale.

Today the grossly mentally ill wander the streets of community behaving in both bizarre and socially disruptive manners. Yet it is tolerated. Why? It is to plague and torment human society.

Criminals dangerous to society at large are released from prison unreformed back into communities. Yet it is tolerated. Plagued severely as the Revelation to John foretold, yet they refuse to repent and turn away from worshipping demons. Yet it is tolerated. Why? Again, it is to plague and torment human society.

It is obvious to most reasoning people that to allow these things is causing social disruption and dysfunction…the goal of anarchist. Their intent is to destroy the social fabric of humanity as Satan’s goal is to disrupt and destroy the fabric of creation.

Have they (the Watchtower Organization) been guided by ‘true’ spiritual light shed by Christ? Evidently not. He would not have led them to confusion and unholy acts.

Progressive understanding is much like a vision-scene that is crystallizing.

Increasing light as the day advances clarifies a dull image. What is in darkness appearing unclear, becomes solidly distinguishable in brighter light.

Example: If someone appears to be Abraham Lincoln in low light, bright light should not reveal that it was Donald Duck all along that they were looking at!

Increased understanding is not a totally new understanding.

When your views/beliefs morph into something different, that isn’t the light getting brighter at all; that is a change to something else unlike what you saw at first.

However this is the reasoning the Watchtower’s defenders use; which is the so-called reasoning used by all false prophets when their predictions fail to materialize.

Is the Bible all symbolism?

The Literal vs the Symbolic:

Is Armageddon a Real War?

Armageddon is God’s Holy war of Divine intervention into this realm. It is a supernatural event. Holy Scripture calls it, “the Great Day of God the Almighty”. Note Psalm 2:2

“The kings of the earth take their stand, and the rulers take counsel together
against the LORD and against his Messiah.”
(Psalm 2:2)

This war is wage by spirit creatures against real creatures (angels) cast from that supernatural dimension of creation, Heaven and these fallen angel’s human subjects.

Armageddon is a war to rid creation of these creatures and their seed in fleshly, human form.

Falsely defining the nature of the “Great war of God the Almighty” as an internal struggle among elements currently present in this realm, denies the necessity of Divine intervention to overthrow the devil. It also denies the need for Jesus, who is also real and not symbolic, to come and set creation free.

Ask yourself: At the end of what you see and have defined Armageddon to be, where will Satan and his demons be standing?

How and at what point are these wicked angels fought against and conquered literally?

Symbolic speech is used to describe ‘real’ things. Symbolic speech is not for the purpose of creating more symbolism. At what point does one understand and accept what the Bible says literally?

The ongoing spiritual struggle is preliminary to battle of Armageddon and cannot bring what only Christ can bring by fighting and winning.

The demons desire that those seeking to follow the will of God to be unsure, doubtful and confused. The Bible warns to not be turned aside by some ‘new’ teaching or interpretation. But we are to keep with the true gospel that we received by Spirit at the first.

How many of us were taught or have believed that Armageddon is anything other than described in the Bible and here?

The devil and his fellow fallen angels were ousted from Heaven as a result of war. They had to be thrown out.

They are not liking to surrender or go quietly from this realm either; especially knowing what their final destiny to be.

Armageddon is a war involving real spirit creatures, angels, in real combat. It is not symbolic of something occurring internally amongst the affairs of man and it is not a war of words among human beings as some are teaching. It is not telling of truth to conquer lies.

Wormwood affects ALL available knowledge and it is not limited to religious matters alone.

Struggling Against Demonic Attacks and Demonic Influences

 

At this time just before the conclusion of the system of things, the chosen children of God are under extreme harassment by the chief demon, Satan the devil (Daniel 7:25). As the prophet Daniel saw, he would orchestrate events in such a way as to confuse and disorient the chosen ones so that they would not be perceptive as to where they stand in the stream of events and times according to God. That prophecy assures that he would have certain success in doing so for a period. But not for the complete period as it would be cut short and interrupted.

These things are concerning the last days or the conclusion of the system of things. That is borne out by the words of the following verses that could only pertain to the end times:

“He will speak words against the Most High and oppress the holy ones of the Most High. He will intend to change religious festivals and laws, and the holy ones will be handed over to him for a time, times, and half a time.

But the court will convene, and his dominion will be taken away, to be completely destroyed forever.

The kingdom, dominion, and greatness of the kingdoms under all of heaven will be given to the people, the holy ones of the Most High. His kingdom will be an everlasting kingdom, and all rulers will serve and obey Him.’

“This is the end of the interpretation. As for me, Daniel, my thoughts terrified me greatly, and my face turned pale, but I kept the matter to myself.” Daniel 7:25-28 HCSB

Satan’s deception is fully at work now and explains the many competing opinions of where we stand in conjunction with the End. Most people have either been waiting so long that they are unsure why things are “delaying”. While others have convinced themselves by their own observations that this or that needs to occur, so it couldn’t be now.

The Lord will catch them because it was that they relied on their own perceptive powers. They are inattentive and will be caught asleep. But God’s children are not like these.

Added to this are the torments that this wicked world inflicts on all who will not conform and submit to it and the devil.

The artifacts of the occult and demonology are embedded or emblazoned everywhere one can see. They are on all the high places as much today as they were in ancient times. Many items people innocently purchase or possess are branded with symbols related to the worship of false gods. There is a current U.S. television series that portrays the Nephilim as “victims”… as fallen angels who want to be “righteous” but the holy angels are hunting them down. So that the bad becomes good and what is Holy and righteous is cast as bad. This is purely debased and demonic reasoning.

There is a significant trend of mother’s instilling thoughts and teachings of witchcraft and homosexuality in the minds of children at a very early age. It is a type of programming or conditioning to ensure they develop these traits. It is a sort of ‘social engineering’.

Witchcraft has become socially acceptable entertainment under sleek packaging like “Harry Potter” which is ladened down with demon iconography. This book is a witchcraft ‘How To’ guide.

We do indeed have a wrestling not against blood and flesh but we are at war with wicked spirit creatures in heavenly place; there they remain unseen harassing God’s true servants. Nimrod was a hunter of men. They hunt like Nimrod all the loyal ones. They possess Nimrod’s spirit; which is the spirit of the Devil.

The fallen angels, have existed from before the beginning of human history. They just find and use different bodies to inhabit along the course of time.

 

“When an unclean spirit comes out of a man, it roams through waterless places looking for rest but doesn’t find any. 44 Then it says, ‘I’ll go back to my house that I came from.’ And returning, it finds the house vacant, swept, and put in order. 45 Then off it goes and brings with it seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they enter and settle down there. As a result, that man’s last condition is worse than the first. That’s how it will also be with this evil generation.”

Matthew 12:43-45

You have brothers and sisters who are currently engaged in this struggle as the Devil more than anything else wants to corrupt the elect ones who have been chosen.

I ask that you include in your prayers your brothers and sisters who are involved in an intense struggle with wicked people and wicked angels in unseen places. Pray that they keep faithful and mindful that they fully discharge their obligation unto the Master, Lord Jesus Christ. And pray for yourself as well that you may not be seduced as Paul said.

“But I fear that, as the serpent deceived Eve by his cunning, your minds may be seduced from a complete and pure devotion to Christ”.

2 Corinthians 11:3

The combination of events that are now occurring should be enough let you to know what time it is and that NOW is the time.

May our Father’s grace and blessings flow to both of you and may Lord Jesus be your constant guide.

In Romans chapter 1, Paul explains why people act in ungodly ways. It is because they desire ungodliness. Paul states that God yielded them over to the spirit they were following. Paul details how both their thoughts and their behaviors would stink deeper and deeper into mental and spiritual darkness and unreasonabilty.

Jude 10 puts it this way,

“But these men revile (scoff and sneer at) anything they do not happen to be acquainted with and do not understand; and whatever they do understand physically [that which they know by mere instinct], like irrational beasts—by these they corrupt themselves and are destroyed (perish).” AMP

‘Unreasoning’ and ‘Confusion’ are traits associated with Babylon from the time of the tower build to the time of Nebuchadnezzer to this very day.

Hebrews 5:14:

“But solid food is for the mature—for those whose senses have been trained to distinguish between good and evil”. (HCSB)

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