Psalm 21:11, "For they intended evil against You; They devised a plot which they are not able to perform."
1 Samuel 2:9, "He will guard the feet of His saints, But the wicked shall be silent in darkness. "For by strength no man shall prevail.""
Jeremiah 1:19, "They will fight against you, But they shall not prevail against you. For I am with you,” says the Lord, "to deliver you.""
For those with a keen eye, the title of this post is a play on a famous fairy tale, The Beauty and the Beast. I'm not a fan of that fairy tale for many reasons but as a child, I was still blinded to meanings and symbolism of things hidden in plain sight. There's plenty of darkness and a push for an ungodly agenda. As I grew in my faith and as the Lord tore the veil off of my eyes, I began to see things more clearly, with more spiritual eyes than with my fleshly eyes. That fairy tale was one that I turned from very swiftly! In coming weeks, as I'm led, I will do a post or two possibly, on the symbolism and the "hidden in plain sight" agenda. Right now, this particular post is not going to address those things but I did feel prompted to explain I was against that particular fairy tale. I pray that you will pray for discernment in these darkened days to see the world that Satan is devouring so as not to get caught up in his deceptions and his wicked ways. That is his plan afterall, albeit a defeated one.
As all of us know, and have been experiencing in different varying degrees, the world has stopped. Shut down. A "pandemic" was introduced and it swept the world with a speed nobody quite understood. I've never feared the actual "pathogenic" threat, but I feared what would come FROM it as a result OF it. As soon as I knew it had swept the entire world, I knew it was a catalyst to something way more nefarious and way more "deadly" than the "pathogen" itself. A much darker, sinister underlying "crisis" was taking shape. This would prove to be correct. From my three very recent previous posts that I've written about pertaining to this "crisis," I'm sure you are clear where I stand on this whole issue and situation. The articles can be found in the below listed titles and links from the newest to the oldest for those who are new:
1) The Invisible Enemy and the Unseen Battle - here.
2) Be Vigilant and Watch - here.
3) Fear is Not of God - here.
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| Seek the Truth! |
So, during this time of lock downs and isolation, and mandatory "restrictions", something became even clearer to me than before when we weren't in lockdown or isolation. Evil and the wicked have resided on this earth since the beginning of time, this much we can all agree on. This much is true and evident. I've spoken on it quite a bit on this blog. One article called, Doctrines of Demons Are at the Door, can be found here. Another one that might be of interest called, When Satan Taps Your Shoulder, DON'T LOOK BACK! found here. I've also mentioned that I believe God, through this "crisis," has taken away alot of the distractions of this world, from the idol worship of sports figures and entertainers to the "busyness" of lives that had taken away the attention needed for families, marriages, children and each other. God is using this time to draw people closer to Him and to eachother. Sports, social events, excessive after school activities, entertainers/entertainment, concerts, workaholics who spent more time working than living, and everything else that caused a breakdown between people and families, was halted. Stopped dead. Suddenly those people, those activities, those "things" just didn't seem important any longer to those who's focus was upon them. Didn't seem to have any relevance like they did at one time and quickly lost their "power" to draw people in deeper into the grips of the enemy. As our country slowly begins to open up, still with ridiculous restrictions, some people will not return to the very sludge that they once were drawn to, but for others, it will become a large part of their lives once again. Some are desperate for it. But I assure you, none of these things will be the same again. It's here that I will interject and say that no matter how "creative" and "innovative" one becomes in doing things online, live streaming etc., it is NOT the same as being in person. The push to make everything online, through zoom and other forms of live chats, and the disconnect it brings to humanity is terribly flawed. Anyway, I talk about the entertainment industry and its harmful effects in an article called Enter-CHANGE Us? that can be found here.
Let me ask this question: How will you escape Hell? This very question is posed in Matthew 23:33 saying, "You snakes! You brood of vipers! How will you escape being condemned to hell?"
And the answer is one powerful word.....JESUS! You need FAITH in the blood of Jesus to get into heaven and that same FAITH is what saves you from entering the eternal fire of Hell! The Lord Jesus Christ, God manifested in the flesh, was crucified, nailed to the Cross through His hands and feet, for ALL of OUR sins as our substitute! In order to be saved and get into heaven, Paul the apostle wrote in Romans 10:9-10: "That if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you shall be saved; for with the heart man believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth confesses, resulting in salvation" We must be spiritually born-again: John 3:3-7 Jesus said, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Do not marvel that I said to you, 'You must be born-again." So, when we ask Jesus to forgive us of all of our sins and we truly repent, and believe on Him, we are then born-again and saved. Upon the free gift of salvation, the Holy Spirit comes to dwell within us, as promised by the Lord Jesus Christ, and it's by His power and strength that we are able to leave behind the ways of the world and live more godly lives. 2 Corinthians 5:17 says clearly, "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new." When you do this, the Bible tells us through the apostle Paul, in Romans 8:38- 39, "For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, 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." Look at one of the most famous recited Scriptures in the Bible relating to the most powerful words of salvation, John 3:16, "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life." This, my dear readers, is the ONLY WAY to escape from Hell! This is the good news!
I just wanted to start off with His promise of Salvation and Eternal Life through His Only Begotten Son, Jesus Christ because quite frankly, what we are seeing all over the country and in the world, is a lawlessness and a loosening of evil like we've never seen before! I know this must happen for the 2nd Coming of the Lord but it's a very difficult life to live for many who are, have been or will be effected by this sudden travesty! I know the more these things line up and happen all at once, the closer we are, the Believers in Christ Jesus, to being raptured before the 7 year Tribulation! That's the good news!!! But for the non-believers, who still reject Jesus and His free gift of salvation, I fear for their souls! If this is just a glimpse into the sudden coming destruction, then I can't see how anyone would want to choose to go through it for some temporary pleasures of this earth! Let's take a look at some of the signs of Our Lord and Savior's Return with Scriptural evidence and you be the judge:
1) False Bible teachers would be money hungry. They would be smooth talkers, have many followers, and slur the Christian faith by adding a mustard seed of lies which leavens the entire message (2 Peter 2:1-3)2) Earthquakes would be in diverse places (Matthew 24:7)
3) Many wars would erupt (Matthew 24:6)
4) Men would substitute fantasy in place of Christian truth (2 Timothy 4:4). This is so evident at Christmas when the birth of the Savior is lost behind the myth of Santa Claus or when the our Risen Christ is lost behind the Easter Bunny at Easter! It is also very evident in wanting the twist the scriptures to please man, to tickle their ears instead of hearing and abiding by truth!
5) The institution of marriage would be forsaken by many (1 Timothy 4:3)
6) The possession of Jerusalem would be at the center of international turmoil (Zechariah 12:3)
7) Jesus said Christians would be hated “for His name’s sake” (Matthew 24:9)
8) Youth would become rebellious. "For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy" (2 Timothy 3:2)
9) Men would mock the warning signs of the end of the age saying, “for since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation.” (2 Peter 3:4). The Bible even reveals their motivation, they love lust (verse 3). However, they fail to understand that a day to the Lord is as a thousand years to us. God isn't subject to the time that He created. He can flip through time the same way we flick through pages in a book. The only reason He seems to be silent, is because He is patiently waiting, not willing that any perish, but that all come to repentance.
10) The Christian Gospel would be preached as a warning to all nations (Matthew 24:14)
11) There would be an increase of religious cults/false teachers (Matthew 24:11 & 24)
12) The fact that God once flooded the earth (the Noahic flood) would be denied (2 Peter 3:5-6). There is a massive amount of fossil evidence to prove this fact, yet it's completely ignored by the scientific world because of its uncanny implication.The TRUTH!
13) Good will be called evil and evil will be called good. (Isaiah 5:20-21)
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| Perilous Times |
Satan means "adversary" derived from the Greek word, "Satanas.” Satan is the enemy of God, the mocker of God and he wants to destroy everything God has created. Literally. Remember, when he was in heaven before the fall, he was so jealous and envious of God that he wanted to BE him. He is also called "the devil" in James 4:7, "Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you." He is called "the evil one" in 1 John 5:18-19, "We know that whoever is born of God does not sin; but he who has been born of God keeps himself and the wicked one does not touch him. v19) We know that we are of God, and the whole world lies under the sway of the wicked one." In John 14:30, he is called "the prince of this world," saying, "I will no longer talk much with you, for the ruler of this world is coming, and he has nothing in Me." Then finally, he is called "the god of this age" in 2 Corinthians 4:4, "whose minds the god of this age has blinded, who do not believe, lest the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine on them." Satan brought evil into the world, NOT God. However, Satan has succeeded in deceiving many into believing, and blaming, God for all of the evil in this world! That's a skilled liar! Satan has made way too many people question how a loving God could bring such evil into the world and blame Him for what man CHOOSES to do out of his sinful nature! Please understand that man sins and chooses to do evil. For those who reject and continue to reject Jesus Christ, those sins will consume their souls and they will have made their own choice of where they will be spending eternity. I cannot stress enough at this point that God did not create mankind to do these things. We were created to be perfect and in His image. The serpent, the devil, tempted Eve in the garden of Eden by lying and so the fall of man began. God, however, in His infinite Love, Mercy and Grace, sent His only Son, Jesus Christ to die on the Cross, to shed His precious blood for all of us, to pay our sin debt in full, to rise from the grave 3 days later and is ALIVE! Death could not hold Jesus Christ! Why? Because He defeated death on the cross so we can have eternal life with Him and His Father! God can, and does, use the evil in this world perpetrated by the enemy and his minions/followers for His glory because He can, and will, turn it all into GOOD in the end! All evil needs the Light of Jesus to flee. The Light of Jesus is seen much brighter to those in the darkness. So even through the darkest of times, God is already working everything together for the good! But remember, Satan has been defeated and Truth prevails forever!
I'm going to discuss Satan and his lies for a moment before moving on because I feel it's important to show those of you who don't know our Lord and Savior how he works and operates in this world. And maybe for the believers who need to be reminded as well. These times we live in currently are very, very dark and wicked and the beast is on the prowl! Satan is the god of THIS world and will continue to seek anyone for whom he can devour. It's what he does, it's who he is. That's his job. Satan's character is the direct opposite of God's and blatantly so. Since Satan means adversary and is the enemy of God, his direct opponent, then this simple title already tells us much about the nature of Satan. As God's adversary, Satan must exist in opposition to the very nature of God. If he opposes God then he is God’s direct opposite. And we already know who and what God is!! God is TRUTH! God is LIGHT! God is the CREATOR! God is LOVE! And now you know who and what Satan is: LIES! DEATH! DESTRUCTION! EVIL! 1 John 1:5-7, "This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all. If we claim to have fellowship with him yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live by the truth. But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin." Ok, then if God is LIGHT and TRUTH, then Satan must simply be DARKNESS and DECEPTION. And guess what? The ‘other’ name given to Satan makes this very clear: “Devil” = “Diabolos” (Greek) = “Slanderer” or “False Accuser.” Look all around you.....he is wreaking havoc by slandering and being the false accuser. Everywhere you look, every corner you turn, every country you live in, he is accusing falsely! You see, friends and readers, Satan is crafty and cunning. So much so that oftentimes, people don't know they've been "visited" by him until the destruction comes. Others fall victim quickly by his temptations of the pleasures of this world, and with everything that goes against our Creator, because Satan makes every sin "appear" beautiful, lovely, good, fun and whatever positive adjective you can conjure up in this place. We are told in 2 Corinthians 11:14, "And no wonder! For Satan himself transforms himself into an angel of light." He will appear as something he's not, bearing promises of this world that will only be temporary but take his followers to Hell with him. He lies so well! He wanted to be God so bad that he did, and will do, what he can to achieve what he thinks is his own "greatness" on this earth. He knows his fete though, please don't be fooled. He knows the end of the story just like all of God's children do! He knows how it ends but to him, it just makes him push harder, deceive more, promise bigger....he wants to "gain" as many followers as he can. Again, it's in mockery of our Lord and Savior! Do not be fooled....he wants to destroy you. He is the author of all lies, confusion, and wickedness.
As we all look around us, we must admit, whether you are a believer or not, there is a great deal of wickedness all around us. Take for instance all of the rioting, looting, burning of businesses, violence against other rioters/protesters and policemen. If you knew you would not be in harm's way, and you stood back on the sidelines on one of the many street corners where this is all happening, you wouldn't find goodness, peace, compassion, respect or love amongst the crowds. As many know, but some don't, the protests began peacefully and without incident. That isn't what I'm referring to here. I'm referring to the rioters and agitators who came into towns and cities all across the USA for the sole purpose of inciting rage, causing damage, harm, violence, destruction and theft. As each night passed, it began to become clear there were some very nefarious things taking place, such as pallets of bricks showing up strategically placed in all of the cities, which ended up being the weapons used to demolish stores and in some cases, to harm people. As some of the rioters were arrested, it was discovered they were bused in from different states and not even from the respective cities. In any event, as we look at the rage and the faces of some of the people in the footage surfacing all over social media and YouTube, it becomes hauntingly clear, there's a spirit of lawlessness, of rebellion and of rage in those who came to do harm. The peaceful protesters in several cities tried to stop some of the criminal activities to no avail. The spirit of lawlessness is from the devil himself who will be revealed as the Antichrist. So these violent acts and rage-filled possessed people are just a preview of things to come in the Tribulation. Satan will give power to the "lawless one" during the time of tribulation. It will not be a party nor will it be a any good sight to behold! The lawless one is not loosed yet but the lawlessness is his precursor to pave the way. Rebelliousness and lawlessness will get worse as it is written in Scripture and what we are seeing unfolding right before our very eyes, is nothing short of that very thing! 2 Thessalonians 2:8-10, "And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord will consume with the breath of His mouth and destroy with the brightness of His coming. 9) The coming of the lawless one is according to the working of Satan, with all power, signs, and lying wonders, 10) and with all unrighteous deception among those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth, that they might be saved." You see how Satan works? He presents an evil "virus" all over the entire world to change the world's thinking and change the people in it by using fear and scare tactics. Then, in the middle of that, as though a lockdown, social distancing, masks which not only CAUSE difficulty breathing but helps to shame and silence, loss of millions of jobs, closures of thousands of businesses, the economic crash, the interruption in the supply chain, the trading, everything, Satan had to stir up yet another "crisis" which will give rise to much more change. It's only a matter of time before he brings us something else.
I heard some of the "terminology" some of these dark souls were spewing, those rioters who were instigating and agitating. They were filled with words only the demons could conjure up. They were filled with a hate I'd not heard in a long time. They were filled with a rage coming deep from within like never seen before. From ALL races! Divisive? Yes. The peaceful protesters had a cause for their protests. However, the demons used that cause for their own agenda and it has now overshadowed the original injustice of the cause of the peaceful protesters. The way the mainstream media has been portraying this tragedy to the world, it makes it look like all of our police departments and policemen and women are racist and corrupt. They aren't! Sure, there's racism in the country and in the world. As long as there are people, there will be unkindness and racism. It's not right nor just. However, it is not the norm. There are thousands of good, honest, men and women who risk their lives every single day for the to protect and serve, and to ensure safety and peace to every citizen in their communities. Don't believe everything you hear or see. I can only say, as I watch these horrific acts taking place, it's the Satanic realm. The wickedness of the evil that is permeating the world, rotting the souls and deadening their hearts. I would like to take just a moment to ask everyone who is reading this to say a prayer for my country, the USA! To pray for God's light to shine, for His voice to be heard and for His word to penetrate the hardest of hearts! Pray for the protection of all the innocent, for the healing of the broken, and for the ones who have done this to our nation. There are many who would like to see our country fall to its knees and crash. God knows the end and He has already went before us. I'd also like to give some scriptures that will accentuate this time so everyone can see for themselves just how terribly close we are to the Rapture of the Church (God's Bride) and for the 7 year Tribulation. It's found in 2 Timothy 3:1-5, "This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. 2) For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, 3) Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, 4) Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; 5) Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away." I can see every single one of these come to life in this world in a much more graphic, speedy way than ever before! Each can actually be applied to the rioters and the "global pathogenic crisis" if you dissect it properly! These riots and what is behind them will inevitably change America forever. Alot of people are hurting all over the world. All over the country. No pain should be minimalized, but neither should it be criminalized. As Christians, and as a people in general, we need to hear ALL voices because ALL voices matter. It's a sad time all over the world but to watch your own country burn, be looted by thieves, to watch the rage filling the hearts of those who know no peace, to watch people lose their business that they've worked their lives to build and support their families and communities, to watch how some of this had been orchestrated to fulfill a diabolical agenda and to watch people get needlessly hurt, terrorized and killed breaks my heart and is hard to watch! I don't have that kind of mindset or thoughts but what I do have is the Holy Spirit inside of me! I watched some of the reporting and I wept. I wept for it all!
We are warned in Mark 7:20-22, "And he said, “What comes out of a person is what defiles him. 21) For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, 22) coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, foolishness." Our thoughts become who we are and will fall approximately 18 inches down from our brains right into our hearts! It can definitely produce many harmful issues in our lives if we don't change those thoughts. So good thoughts, positive thoughts, godly thoughts, wholesome thoughts will produce the same that flow from our hearts. But as stated in Mark 7:20-22 above, evil thoughts produce evil and dark actions that flow from our hearts. So what does wickedness actually mean biblically. The Greek word for wickedness is "ponēria." This is used in Ephesians 6:12, "For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places." In this, it means "depravity, iniquity," or "malice" and malice means to do evil with purpose, desires, and doing so with intent. That's pretty powerful, wouldn't you agree? Well, by doing anything with malice literally means that it's an intentional commission of a wrongful act and is completely absent from any justification for the person committing it. This is evident in today's world. It's done with the intent to cause harm to others, physically, mentally and even spiritually, and in turn, it causes harm most of all to God's Goodness and Being. It's a conscious violation of the law that injures an individual or individuals with no afterthought or remorse. In this case, it never injures God but does injure all those with whom it's directed towards, and against, and it certainly injures the person committing such a horrendous, horrible act since the wages of all sin is death as said in Romans 6:23, "For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." Wickedness with malice indicates the depravity of the individual. Look around. Listen to the news. Read the headlines. Look past what we are currently talking about and you will see. There is a sense of deprivation not seen in generations past. Wickedness is all through the Old Testament and the New Testament as well. In the New Testament, Paul clearly knew all about wickedness because he was constantly fighting the battles with wicked spirits in high places and those wicked spirits often used men to attack him. Paul fought on. Paul battled on. In Ephesians 6:12 Paul wrote about this very thing saying, "For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places." as mentioned above. The word used for "evil" is better translated from the Greek word "ponēria" from which we get our word "pornography" and is also wickedness abounding in our society. However, in Ephesians 6:12 the word evil is "ponēria" and means "depravity, iniquity, malice" and with "evil purposes and desires" which also fits perfectly with our current situation!
Before we go further, let's take a quick look at some of the things God has to say about the wicked people in the following Scriptures below:
1) Psalm 11:5, "The Lord tests the righteous, But the wicked and the one who loves violence His soul hates."
2) Proverbs 15:9, "The way of the wicked is an abomination to the Lord, But He loves him who follows righteousness."
3) Proverbs 15:26, "The thoughts of the wicked are an abomination to the Lord, But the words of the pure are pleasant."
4) Proverbs 6:18, "A heart that devises wicked plans, Feet that are swift in running to evil,"
5) Psalm 5:5, "The boastful shall not stand in Your sight; You hate all workers of iniquity."
6) Revelation 21:8, "But the cowardly, unbelieving,[a] abominable, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death."
7) Deuteronomy 32:5, "They have acted corruptly toward Him, They are not His children, because of their defect; But are a perverse and crooked generation."
8) Isaiah 59:7, "Their feet run to evil, And they hasten to shed innocent blood; Their thoughts are thoughts of iniquity, Devastation and destruction are in their highways."
Clearly, God hates the thoughts, deeds, actions and desires of evil people. Wickedness is an earmark of the deepest rebellion against Him and against His rule. God created humanity to be perfect and sinless, to be full of love and Light, to live in joyful submission to Him, to offer Him pure worship. Sin came into the world and we have a world full of rebellion, wickedness, evil and vileness. Some have repented and turned from their sinful ways, regenerating of their thoughts and spirits, while others remain tightly grasping onto the all the worldly pitfalls and empty promises of Satan and his minions. They love the sin they're in and delight in the immediate satisfaction of the empty void it fills temporarily. They love the rebellious attitudes as they slither through this life. They love themselves and their free will of choosing the debauchery they perpetuate. To be clear, God is NOT behind the wickedness, Satan is the ringleader here. You see, God also hates the wicked because their wickedness is fully and truly expressed in ways that cause harm to the people He has created in His image. So, because sinful people can't storm the gates of heaven to dethrone and destroy God Himself, they turn on what is nearest and dearest to Him, those who are nearest to His image in which He created mankind. They act out their wickedness against other people, causing pain, suffering, playing "god," torturing, murdering, defiling and performing all kinds of evil deeds on humans. They hurt them, harm them, maim them, kill them. In their leaders name and for their leader, Satan. When everyone wasn't looking, being distracted by their phones, social media, the entertainment story of the hour, keeping their heads in the sand, keeping too busy to notice the world around them, just like a thief in the night, something wicked this way came.....and it took up residence! How? Well too many people were asleep and left the doors unlocked and wide open. Evil and wickedness is not new by any means and has been around since the fall of man. It's not an anomaly. However, Christ's Prediction in His Olivet Discourse, was that social wickedness would increase prior to His Return, Matthew 24:12, "Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold" In the same discourse Jesus exemplified the pre-Advent social wickedness by referring to two periods of Old Testament history, namely, the "days of Noah" and "the days of Lot." Luke 17:26-30 tells us, "And as it was in the days of Noah, so it will be also in the days of the Son of Man: 27) They ate, they drank, they married wives, they were given in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all. 28) Likewise as it was also in the days of Lot: They ate, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they built; 29) but on the day that Lot went out of Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven and destroyed them all. 30) Even so will it be in the day when the Son of Man is revealed." And likewise, we can see in Matt 24:37-39 we're told, "But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. 38) For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, 39) and did not know until the flood came and took them all away, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be." God means business, no doubt about it! The two examples of Noah's and Lot's times are used specifically by Jesus to stress two very meaningful points. First, the wicked will be overtaken by the sudden and yet, unexpected judgment of His Advent much in the very same way as the Flood and the destruction of Sodom overtook the people of Noah's and Lot's times. Secondly, people will act like "in the days" before His Second Coming very much the same way as they did "in the days" of Noah and of Lot. Nothing new under the sun! Or the SON....
Many times in the Bible, it warns that toward the end of history as you and I know it, there will be a return to the pre-flood conditions of gross sin and severe wickedness. Concerning the people of Noah's day, the Scripture says, in Genesis 6:5, "Then the Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually." All past ancient civilizations have been brought down through destruction through sin. Look at Rome. She went on a gigantic wickedness spree toward the end of her history, much the same way as the world has been doing now for the past several years. Nero committed suicide in 68 A.D. then Rome’s overthrow came more than 400 years later. You see, in one moment, almost omnipotent power was within Rome’s grasp; and the next, came her ultimate destruction. Immorality and uncleanness occupied the minds of Roman rulers and of antediluvians. So, too, in the world today, we see a world saturated with sexual sins, violent sins, murderous sins, perverted sin in places high and low. Why? Many people have deliberately chose the ways of sin and death. They do not know the Lord Jesus Christ as their Savior. They prefer to have temporary earthly satisfaction, earthly "rewards" and gratification than eternal life! I found the following excerpt that I'm copying in its entirety from 1994. Even though it's many years ago, it holds so much truth to NOW. As I read it, I couldn't help but reflect on just how much worse off we are in 2020 than 1994. How much more diabolical people have become, yet, these following words still ring true. This only confirms what I've been saying about Satan and his minion; he cannot, I repeat, CANNOT, create anything new and only uses the past.
"As a society, we have gotten used to illicit sexual relationships, adolescent promiscuity, abortion, cheating, lying, stealing, prostitution, rape, divorce, and even murder. We have gotten used to financial mismanagement on both civil and personal levels. We have accepted political corruption. We have rejected personal and social responsibility and learned to blame anyone or anything else for our problems and failures. We have traded in our infinitely valued divine image for a nickel-plated pagan shrine erected in honor of self-interest, immorality, and social apathy. The American ideal today is me first to do what I want, when I want, to whom I want, regardless of who or what it may hurt. These are the signs of a society gone wrong. [Keith A. Fournier, “Re-Civilizing America,” Law & Justice, February 1994.]"
Satan knows his war against moral values and morality in general that he can achieve a great victory in controlling and eventually destroying humankind. Remember that the Roman Empire wasn't defeated by military force but, rather, it had destroyed itself by means of internal moral decay. That decay was rampant and in many ways, it's closely in comparison to today's immorality. Sexual sins, drunkenness, fornication, homosexuality, materialism, corruption, theft, and bribery gave rise to one scandal after another in the Roman Empire and widespread immorality completely ruined and destroyed the integrity and effectiveness of the governments in Rome and Constantinople. Need we say anymore?
The apostle James also contrasts the morality of God with the moral depravity of a fallen world that lies in the sway of the Evil One: James 3:13-18, "Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show by good conduct that his works are done in the meekness of wisdom. v14) But if you have bitter envy and self-seeking in your hearts, do not boast and lie against the truth. v15) This wisdom does not descend from above, but is earthly, sensual, demonic. v16) For where envy and self-seeking exist, confusion and every evil thing are there. v17) But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy. v18) Now the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace." Under the cloak of humanistic reforms the world is being drawn into a demonic immorality. Something of the likes I've personally never seen in my time! There's an evil decaying of morality that can only be described as demonic. Strongholds. When this catastrophic process has advanced far enough, and it looks likes it's advancing in leaps and bounds as we speak, the Antichrist, as the man of sin, will be revealed. He will be the leading figure in the new world order’s culture of sin. It will lead to a "free for all" kind of living. He will act according to his own will as evidenced in Daniel 11:36, "Then the king shall do according to his own will: he shall exalt and magnify himself above every god, shall speak blasphemies against the God of gods, and shall prosper till the wrath has been accomplished; for what has been determined shall be done." He will rule by means of satanic powers, Revelation 13:2, "Now the beast which I saw was like a leopard, his feet were like the feet of a bear, and his mouth like the mouth of a lion. The dragon gave him his power, his throne, and great authority." He will blaspheme God in Revelation 13:5-6, "And he was given a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies, and he was given authority to continue for forty-two months. 6) Then he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme His name, His tabernacle, and those who dwell in heaven." He will, together with Satan, be worshiped by an utterly morally and religiously depraved human race Revelation 13:4, "So they worshiped the dragon who gave authority to the beast; and they worshiped the beast, saying, “Who is like the beast? Who is able to make war with him?" He will order the execution of all people who refuse to worship him as god Revelation 13:15, "He was granted power to give breath to the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak and cause as many as would not worship the image of the beast to be killed." It will be a time of utter abomination and depravity!
The weak and broken. The injured and wounded. The battered and bruised. The torn and confused. The hurt and deceived. The lost and abused. The tormented and darkened. These are all of the signs of someone in need of a Savior which is why Satan, in his misinformed and misguided, ways, seems to target those very people. When we are going through any of those above mentioned, that is a vulnerability that knows no bounds! Vulnerability is exactly what Satan and his little pathetic minions of demons prey upon. There's a particular "smell" that surrounds us when we're vulnerable because it seems to attract all kinds of evil in the world. Think about that for a moment......you will find it to be true. Satan is like any other predator. It seeks out the weak, whether they are spiritually weak, mentally weak, physically weak or emotionally weak. It doesn't matter to him but it DOES matter to Jesus! So that's why, in 1 Peter 5:8, it WARNS us to, "Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour." You see, he uses all kinds of "tried and true" tactics, oftentimes playing into emotions, to gain a foothold to an attack on us. He stirs contention like nothing you've ever seen. He is the ultimate predator and as we look around in today's world, a dying, lonely, hungry world, we can see how his tactics are gaining ground rather swiftly. It's so important to be vigilantly watching, knowing the season that we're in and turning from all of his temptations to draw you into his lies and wicked ways. Right now, my dear readers and brothers and sisters, we are in a spiritual battle! We need to stand the enemy down with the Words of our Lord, Jesus Christ! We really need to wear the full armor of God to do this battle and use the strength that is only found in Jesus! Let's take a minute to look at a few scriptures and what is said about strength through the hard times.
1) Joshua 1:9, "Have I not commanded you? Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go."
2) Romans 12:19, "Beloved, do not avenge yourselves, but rather give place to wrath; for it is written, "Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord."
3) Ephesians 6:10, "Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might."
4) 1 Corinthians 16:13, "Watch, stand fast in the faith, be brave, be strong."
5) Isaiah 40:31, "But those who wait on the Lord Shall renew their strength; They shall mount up with wings like eagles, They shall run and not be weary, They shall walk and not faint."
I'm going to discuss Satan and his lies for a moment before moving on because I feel it's important to show those of you who don't know our Lord and Savior how he works and operates in this world. And maybe for the believers who need to be reminded as well. These times we live in currently are very, very dark and wicked and the beast is on the prowl! Satan is the god of THIS world and will continue to seek anyone for whom he can devour. It's what he does, it's who he is. That's his job. Satan's character is the direct opposite of God's and blatantly so. Since Satan means adversary and is the enemy of God, his direct opponent, then this simple title already tells us much about the nature of Satan. As God's adversary, Satan must exist in opposition to the very nature of God. If he opposes God then he is God’s direct opposite. And we already know who and what God is!! God is TRUTH! God is LIGHT! God is the CREATOR! God is LOVE! And now you know who and what Satan is: LIES! DEATH! DESTRUCTION! EVIL! 1 John 1:5-7, "This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all. If we claim to have fellowship with him yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live by the truth. But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin." Ok, then if God is LIGHT and TRUTH, then Satan must simply be DARKNESS and DECEPTION. And guess what? The ‘other’ name given to Satan makes this very clear: “Devil” = “Diabolos” (Greek) = “Slanderer” or “False Accuser.” Look all around you.....he is wreaking havoc by slandering and being the false accuser. Everywhere you look, every corner you turn, every country you live in, he is accusing falsely! You see, friends and readers, Satan is crafty and cunning. So much so that oftentimes, people don't know they've been "visited" by him until the destruction comes. Others fall victim quickly by his temptations of the pleasures of this world, and with everything that goes against our Creator, because Satan makes every sin "appear" beautiful, lovely, good, fun and whatever positive adjective you can conjure up in this place. We are told in 2 Corinthians 11:14, "And no wonder! For Satan himself transforms himself into an angel of light." He will appear as something he's not, bearing promises of this world that will only be temporary but take his followers to Hell with him. He lies so well! He wanted to be God so bad that he did, and will do, what he can to achieve what he thinks is his own "greatness" on this earth. He knows his fete though, please don't be fooled. He knows the end of the story just like all of God's children do! He knows how it ends but to him, it just makes him push harder, deceive more, promise bigger....he wants to "gain" as many followers as he can. Again, it's in mockery of our Lord and Savior! Do not be fooled....he wants to destroy you. He is the author of all lies, confusion, and wickedness.
As we all look around us, we must admit, whether you are a believer or not, there is a great deal of wickedness all around us. Take for instance all of the rioting, looting, burning of businesses, violence against other rioters/protesters and policemen. If you knew you would not be in harm's way, and you stood back on the sidelines on one of the many street corners where this is all happening, you wouldn't find goodness, peace, compassion, respect or love amongst the crowds. As many know, but some don't, the protests began peacefully and without incident. That isn't what I'm referring to here. I'm referring to the rioters and agitators who came into towns and cities all across the USA for the sole purpose of inciting rage, causing damage, harm, violence, destruction and theft. As each night passed, it began to become clear there were some very nefarious things taking place, such as pallets of bricks showing up strategically placed in all of the cities, which ended up being the weapons used to demolish stores and in some cases, to harm people. As some of the rioters were arrested, it was discovered they were bused in from different states and not even from the respective cities. In any event, as we look at the rage and the faces of some of the people in the footage surfacing all over social media and YouTube, it becomes hauntingly clear, there's a spirit of lawlessness, of rebellion and of rage in those who came to do harm. The peaceful protesters in several cities tried to stop some of the criminal activities to no avail. The spirit of lawlessness is from the devil himself who will be revealed as the Antichrist. So these violent acts and rage-filled possessed people are just a preview of things to come in the Tribulation. Satan will give power to the "lawless one" during the time of tribulation. It will not be a party nor will it be a any good sight to behold! The lawless one is not loosed yet but the lawlessness is his precursor to pave the way. Rebelliousness and lawlessness will get worse as it is written in Scripture and what we are seeing unfolding right before our very eyes, is nothing short of that very thing! 2 Thessalonians 2:8-10, "And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord will consume with the breath of His mouth and destroy with the brightness of His coming. 9) The coming of the lawless one is according to the working of Satan, with all power, signs, and lying wonders, 10) and with all unrighteous deception among those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth, that they might be saved." You see how Satan works? He presents an evil "virus" all over the entire world to change the world's thinking and change the people in it by using fear and scare tactics. Then, in the middle of that, as though a lockdown, social distancing, masks which not only CAUSE difficulty breathing but helps to shame and silence, loss of millions of jobs, closures of thousands of businesses, the economic crash, the interruption in the supply chain, the trading, everything, Satan had to stir up yet another "crisis" which will give rise to much more change. It's only a matter of time before he brings us something else.
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| End Times Signs |
We are warned in Mark 7:20-22, "And he said, “What comes out of a person is what defiles him. 21) For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, 22) coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, foolishness." Our thoughts become who we are and will fall approximately 18 inches down from our brains right into our hearts! It can definitely produce many harmful issues in our lives if we don't change those thoughts. So good thoughts, positive thoughts, godly thoughts, wholesome thoughts will produce the same that flow from our hearts. But as stated in Mark 7:20-22 above, evil thoughts produce evil and dark actions that flow from our hearts. So what does wickedness actually mean biblically. The Greek word for wickedness is "ponēria." This is used in Ephesians 6:12, "For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places." In this, it means "depravity, iniquity," or "malice" and malice means to do evil with purpose, desires, and doing so with intent. That's pretty powerful, wouldn't you agree? Well, by doing anything with malice literally means that it's an intentional commission of a wrongful act and is completely absent from any justification for the person committing it. This is evident in today's world. It's done with the intent to cause harm to others, physically, mentally and even spiritually, and in turn, it causes harm most of all to God's Goodness and Being. It's a conscious violation of the law that injures an individual or individuals with no afterthought or remorse. In this case, it never injures God but does injure all those with whom it's directed towards, and against, and it certainly injures the person committing such a horrendous, horrible act since the wages of all sin is death as said in Romans 6:23, "For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." Wickedness with malice indicates the depravity of the individual. Look around. Listen to the news. Read the headlines. Look past what we are currently talking about and you will see. There is a sense of deprivation not seen in generations past. Wickedness is all through the Old Testament and the New Testament as well. In the New Testament, Paul clearly knew all about wickedness because he was constantly fighting the battles with wicked spirits in high places and those wicked spirits often used men to attack him. Paul fought on. Paul battled on. In Ephesians 6:12 Paul wrote about this very thing saying, "For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places." as mentioned above. The word used for "evil" is better translated from the Greek word "ponēria" from which we get our word "pornography" and is also wickedness abounding in our society. However, in Ephesians 6:12 the word evil is "ponēria" and means "depravity, iniquity, malice" and with "evil purposes and desires" which also fits perfectly with our current situation!
Before we go further, let's take a quick look at some of the things God has to say about the wicked people in the following Scriptures below:
1) Psalm 11:5, "The Lord tests the righteous, But the wicked and the one who loves violence His soul hates."
2) Proverbs 15:9, "The way of the wicked is an abomination to the Lord, But He loves him who follows righteousness."
3) Proverbs 15:26, "The thoughts of the wicked are an abomination to the Lord, But the words of the pure are pleasant."
4) Proverbs 6:18, "A heart that devises wicked plans, Feet that are swift in running to evil,"
5) Psalm 5:5, "The boastful shall not stand in Your sight; You hate all workers of iniquity."
6) Revelation 21:8, "But the cowardly, unbelieving,[a] abominable, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death."
7) Deuteronomy 32:5, "They have acted corruptly toward Him, They are not His children, because of their defect; But are a perverse and crooked generation."
8) Isaiah 59:7, "Their feet run to evil, And they hasten to shed innocent blood; Their thoughts are thoughts of iniquity, Devastation and destruction are in their highways."
Clearly, God hates the thoughts, deeds, actions and desires of evil people. Wickedness is an earmark of the deepest rebellion against Him and against His rule. God created humanity to be perfect and sinless, to be full of love and Light, to live in joyful submission to Him, to offer Him pure worship. Sin came into the world and we have a world full of rebellion, wickedness, evil and vileness. Some have repented and turned from their sinful ways, regenerating of their thoughts and spirits, while others remain tightly grasping onto the all the worldly pitfalls and empty promises of Satan and his minions. They love the sin they're in and delight in the immediate satisfaction of the empty void it fills temporarily. They love the rebellious attitudes as they slither through this life. They love themselves and their free will of choosing the debauchery they perpetuate. To be clear, God is NOT behind the wickedness, Satan is the ringleader here. You see, God also hates the wicked because their wickedness is fully and truly expressed in ways that cause harm to the people He has created in His image. So, because sinful people can't storm the gates of heaven to dethrone and destroy God Himself, they turn on what is nearest and dearest to Him, those who are nearest to His image in which He created mankind. They act out their wickedness against other people, causing pain, suffering, playing "god," torturing, murdering, defiling and performing all kinds of evil deeds on humans. They hurt them, harm them, maim them, kill them. In their leaders name and for their leader, Satan. When everyone wasn't looking, being distracted by their phones, social media, the entertainment story of the hour, keeping their heads in the sand, keeping too busy to notice the world around them, just like a thief in the night, something wicked this way came.....and it took up residence! How? Well too many people were asleep and left the doors unlocked and wide open. Evil and wickedness is not new by any means and has been around since the fall of man. It's not an anomaly. However, Christ's Prediction in His Olivet Discourse, was that social wickedness would increase prior to His Return, Matthew 24:12, "Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold" In the same discourse Jesus exemplified the pre-Advent social wickedness by referring to two periods of Old Testament history, namely, the "days of Noah" and "the days of Lot." Luke 17:26-30 tells us, "And as it was in the days of Noah, so it will be also in the days of the Son of Man: 27) They ate, they drank, they married wives, they were given in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all. 28) Likewise as it was also in the days of Lot: They ate, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they built; 29) but on the day that Lot went out of Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven and destroyed them all. 30) Even so will it be in the day when the Son of Man is revealed." And likewise, we can see in Matt 24:37-39 we're told, "But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. 38) For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, 39) and did not know until the flood came and took them all away, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be." God means business, no doubt about it! The two examples of Noah's and Lot's times are used specifically by Jesus to stress two very meaningful points. First, the wicked will be overtaken by the sudden and yet, unexpected judgment of His Advent much in the very same way as the Flood and the destruction of Sodom overtook the people of Noah's and Lot's times. Secondly, people will act like "in the days" before His Second Coming very much the same way as they did "in the days" of Noah and of Lot. Nothing new under the sun! Or the SON....
Many times in the Bible, it warns that toward the end of history as you and I know it, there will be a return to the pre-flood conditions of gross sin and severe wickedness. Concerning the people of Noah's day, the Scripture says, in Genesis 6:5, "Then the Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually." All past ancient civilizations have been brought down through destruction through sin. Look at Rome. She went on a gigantic wickedness spree toward the end of her history, much the same way as the world has been doing now for the past several years. Nero committed suicide in 68 A.D. then Rome’s overthrow came more than 400 years later. You see, in one moment, almost omnipotent power was within Rome’s grasp; and the next, came her ultimate destruction. Immorality and uncleanness occupied the minds of Roman rulers and of antediluvians. So, too, in the world today, we see a world saturated with sexual sins, violent sins, murderous sins, perverted sin in places high and low. Why? Many people have deliberately chose the ways of sin and death. They do not know the Lord Jesus Christ as their Savior. They prefer to have temporary earthly satisfaction, earthly "rewards" and gratification than eternal life! I found the following excerpt that I'm copying in its entirety from 1994. Even though it's many years ago, it holds so much truth to NOW. As I read it, I couldn't help but reflect on just how much worse off we are in 2020 than 1994. How much more diabolical people have become, yet, these following words still ring true. This only confirms what I've been saying about Satan and his minion; he cannot, I repeat, CANNOT, create anything new and only uses the past.
"As a society, we have gotten used to illicit sexual relationships, adolescent promiscuity, abortion, cheating, lying, stealing, prostitution, rape, divorce, and even murder. We have gotten used to financial mismanagement on both civil and personal levels. We have accepted political corruption. We have rejected personal and social responsibility and learned to blame anyone or anything else for our problems and failures. We have traded in our infinitely valued divine image for a nickel-plated pagan shrine erected in honor of self-interest, immorality, and social apathy. The American ideal today is me first to do what I want, when I want, to whom I want, regardless of who or what it may hurt. These are the signs of a society gone wrong. [Keith A. Fournier, “Re-Civilizing America,” Law & Justice, February 1994.]"
As Christians, the following verse should speak volumes to us!! Too many people want to be "politically correct" and just remain silent. Many are still on the fence on how they feel when sins and the wickedness are exposed. We are to have NO fellowship with the darkness or the unfruitful works and EXPOSE them. Those who can expose them have understanding of the command. They don't care if they are singled out and rejected. They don't care about being politically correct because they'd rather speak truth and be biblically correct than get the acceptance from man. Please read the verse below and pray upon it. We are living in some very dark times and many people are being fed a lot of fluff, lies, deceptions and diversions. They are being followers of iniquity and enabling those sins rather than exposing them for what they are....sin. Wickedness. Evil. If we remain silent and turn away, then in some ways we are saying it's all OK. It's not though. Christians are being pushed down and is more evident through the "pathogenic crisis" because churches and all houses of worship relating to Jesus Christ, were considered "non-essential" and locked down. Darkness doesn't like the Light. Evil hates the Truth and those who profess it! They are being silenced. For telling the truth and for worshiping the one True LIVING God! We are the only ones in the world that are having their rights and freedoms taken away because we DO have the TRUTH. As I have said many, many times....all the demons roaming around causing all kinds of havoc and trouble and discontentment are only reacting to the presence of God's children who have the Holy Spirit indwelling in them. All the other religious idols, imams, Buddha's and whatever other false deities are being worshiped have their rights to do so openly. Christians don't. Why? JESUS CHRIST IS THE WAY THE TRUTH AND THE LIFE!!! Every demon knows that and it's Satan's whole purpose to destroy, steal and devour! Satan wants to take us down! Silence us. Don't be a victim! Stand! Proclaim! Expose!
Ephesians 5:11, "And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather expose them."
Isaiah 5:20, "Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter."
The Apostle Paul said that in the last days man would be "brutal." The English definition of brutal is: "savagely violent, punishingly hard or uncomfortable, direct and lacking any attempt to disguise unpleasantness." Look around you. Does that sound like what you are seeing NOW? The Greek word, ‘anemeros’ literally means "untamed, savage, or brutal." He also said in the last days, man would not be lovers of the good, which could also possibly better be translated as "haters of the good." I just want to say that the evil and wickedness goes beyond anything I've ever seen in my lifetime! The rapid increase in the depravity makes my head spin but makes my heart grieve! I can only imagine how our Lord and Savior feels as He watches His creation destroy themselves and all that He has blessed us with! There are things going on in this world that are so dark, so evil, so vile that they are unspeakable! I've been shocked at the intensity and the shallow attempt at "justifying" the unjustifiable! This is the way the wicked came to our society and the wicked is eating up everyone that is allowing it to permeate their thoughts, souls and minds! It's a slippery slope people have been sliding down for some time now. The consciences of people have been so seared and branded with all the increasing of wickedness and darkness, that they no longer are offended by evil but, rather, have learned to tolerate it. They've been conditioned and desensitized and believing the lies. This is the fall and we are tumbling FAST down the hill and while doing so, we are gathering all the filthy, vile evil sins and nobody is none the wiser. Sad, very, very sad. So, since virtually all of the perverted behavior that people appear to engage in is now being categorized under "natural behavior," (and if it's not categorized yet, wait a few months or a few years, you will surely see it show up!) a door has now been opened for more wicked sins, vile perversions, and new "laws" to be enacted to protect those said sins and perversions. It's coming. And it's coming quickly! Just thirty years ago we would have been utterly appalled, even vehemently outraged, by all the decadence, darkness and debauchery that, on a daily, momentary basis, fills our streets, TV shows, movie screens, music and art, video games, businesses, Internet and political bodies. By remaining silent, by turning our heads, by not using our voices, we give it all our approval and those who are perpetrators of the dark.
The devil is currently extremely busy striving to deceive, confuse and destroy as many souls as he possibly can before time ends, and he has so many devices at his disposal in order to achieve his goals. He IS darkness. He IS sin. He IS hatred. He IS lies. He IS confusion. He IS evil. Please remember this one statement: EVIL NEEDS ATTENTION TO SURVIVE!!! Without attention, it can't continue. All kinds of evil in this world survives only because there is much attention given to it and, in turn, that same attention is unknowingly given to Satan himself. This attention feeds the fires of Satan's agenda. Again, as a reminder, Paul noted that we disciples should ultimately behave in a particular way so as to not give the devil an opportunity to succeed. It is sometimes through our weakened and sinful actions, and behaviors that the devil finds his success and the last thing we should ever desire is to be his vehicle!! 2 Corinthians 2:11, "lest Satan should take advantage of us; for we are not ignorant of his devices." The devil has many diabolical ways of which he will try to tempt us and lead us astray or simply delay our interest and/or obedience to God’s will. So the more we know about how he operates, the better prepared we will be to ensure we are able to recognize his works of iniquity and to be able to thwart his efforts. One of the devil's devices is doubt. Doubt is something that many don't think much about nor do they feel it's as destructive as it is, but it's becoming more prevalent in our society today. There are more efforts being made by unbelievers, and those who vehemently oppose God and His ways, to plant the seeds of doubt and to cause all men to doubt the existence of God, the authority of God, that character of God, and the word of God. While they are trying to accomplish this fete, some of the believers are being effected by these same efforts because they start falling prey to Satan's devices and begin to question God's word, His character and the authority. By that, I mean, the things God forbids, and calls us to turn from, the godless are calling "intolerant" which then makes some believers create their own "god" and begin to "accept" some things that God CLEARLY prohibits. Dangerous and a soul-killer. What exactly is the definition of "diabolical?" It is a word that is always associated with evil, darkness and with the devil himself. Let's take a look at the definition. "Extremely wicked or cruel, evil, fiendish, heinous, hellish, vile, vicious, satanic, infernal, demonic, despicable, deplorable." Well, do you see all of those words playing out fully in today's societal world?! I sure do! This is a way to divide and conquer, and it's another way for the agenda of Satan to penetrate. The more the world, and more importantly, Christian believers, allow the divide and conquer ploy to continue, the more the fires are being fed, fanning the flames and becoming larger than life. Look at the rioters. Look what is behind their lawlessness and rebellion. Division in order to conquer. Satan IS diabolical and he does have an agenda to divide. Once he divides, he will then be able to conquer. How, you ask? Think about what's REALLY holding evil at bay and back from fully engulfing the world. It's the Christians, the believers, the warriors and soldiers for Christ!!! Every single believer is indwelled with the Holy Spirit upon their free gift of Salvation and He is also known as the "restrainer" in biblical prophecy!
Satan wants nothing more than to divide the Church of Jesus Christ! He wants to weaken us and make us look "foolish" in the eyes of the unbelievers, the eyes of the evil ones and all those who are willfully turning from our Lord and Savior. He wants us quieted. Squashed. Silenced. He can fully "reign" once we are silenced because all of his followers will be able to "willfully" do his bidding here on earth, gathering souls, gathering and stealing lives and there won't be those of us opposing his evil ways. John 10:9-10, "I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture. 10) The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly." He will reign fully on this earth as soon as the Church of Believers have been Raptured because the Restrainer will have been removed by removing us! He will have full reign but only for a time because Jesus WILL return and Satan knows it! Remember that God's Agenda is UNSTOPPABLE! Satan's agenda is DIABOLICAL! Pick your side carefully! What I am about to say next is so important to grasp and understand! THE exact moment you made/make your decision for Christ and believe on Him, accepting His free gift of Salvation, Satan suffered an immediate and tremendous defeat!Why? He lost your soul forever! But in his lying eyes, that wasn't bad enough. What was worse than losing your soul forever, was that he lost it TO JESUS CHRIST!!! So, Satan is extremely angry now. He has been roaming the earth causing his destruction since the fall of man. He isn't going to stop because he's that prideful. Remember, he wants to BE God. He is ramping up his efforts and has been throughout time. And here we are. A world of chaos. This world is feeding the fires of Satan's agenda on a daily basis! I'm watching a falling away occur in the Church. I'm seeing many Christians becoming complacent about what the Bible actually says while supporting abominations deemed by the Lord Jesus Himself. I'm watching professing Christians partaking in the "ear tickling" of the Gospel that we are clearly to turn from. I'm witnessing many who are now saying the bible isn't "literal" but rather theoretical in nature and it can't be taken literally for THIS day and generation we live in! THE LIES OF THE ENEMY! 1 John 5:19, "We know that we are of God, and the whole world lies under the sway of the wicked one." God's word, His commandments, His instructions, His character is the same as it has always been! 2 Timothy 3:16, "All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:" He doesn't change and neither does His WORD. He can't change. He IS the Great I AM! People change the meanings to fit their own agenda and guess who's behind that? RIGHT! Satan and his little demons. There are many ways Satan is setting up the agenda and each one is being fed by a lost and lonely world. We talked about divide and conquer. We talked about doubt and fear and confusion. We talked about rage and violence. Agendas....
There is also an agenda against religion. A spiritual war if you will. I am seeing this more rampantly in the past few years as other "religions" rise up and gain strength. Other false religions, I might add. Even the Atheists and Satanists are gaining footing. It's a high priority of Satan to spiritually deceive people, thereby gaining access and control over their lives. Be careful which doors you open because he's always lurking around the corner hoping to find an access point! He's got various methods that he employs in order to achieve this objective, all of which are aimed at eroding the true faith in God and His Son Jesus Christ and replacing it with superstitions, occultic practices or at supporting and perpetuating the superstitions and false religions of the deceived people. There are many, many categories that I can think of that Satan will, and does, use and it's quire exhaustive. Mental, psychological, spiritual, emotional, political. The list is endless. Here's a graph I found regarding God's morality and Satan's immorality for another post of mine that I would like to share again here.
GOD'S MORALITY
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SATAN’S IMMORALITY
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Truth
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Lie
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Righteousness
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Unrighteousness
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Self-control
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Lawlessness
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Honesty
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Deceitfulness and theft
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Moral chastity
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Moral depravity and vileness
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Soberness
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Drunkenness
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Sincerity
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Slyness
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Reverence to God
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Blaspheming of God
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Orderliness
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Disorderliness
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Meekness
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Arrogance
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Peacefulness
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Violence
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Forgivingness
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Revengefulness
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Love
|
Hate
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Kindness
|
Cruelty
|
Conservation
|
Destruction
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Satan knows his war against moral values and morality in general that he can achieve a great victory in controlling and eventually destroying humankind. Remember that the Roman Empire wasn't defeated by military force but, rather, it had destroyed itself by means of internal moral decay. That decay was rampant and in many ways, it's closely in comparison to today's immorality. Sexual sins, drunkenness, fornication, homosexuality, materialism, corruption, theft, and bribery gave rise to one scandal after another in the Roman Empire and widespread immorality completely ruined and destroyed the integrity and effectiveness of the governments in Rome and Constantinople. Need we say anymore?
The apostle James also contrasts the morality of God with the moral depravity of a fallen world that lies in the sway of the Evil One: James 3:13-18, "Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show by good conduct that his works are done in the meekness of wisdom. v14) But if you have bitter envy and self-seeking in your hearts, do not boast and lie against the truth. v15) This wisdom does not descend from above, but is earthly, sensual, demonic. v16) For where envy and self-seeking exist, confusion and every evil thing are there. v17) But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy. v18) Now the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace." Under the cloak of humanistic reforms the world is being drawn into a demonic immorality. Something of the likes I've personally never seen in my time! There's an evil decaying of morality that can only be described as demonic. Strongholds. When this catastrophic process has advanced far enough, and it looks likes it's advancing in leaps and bounds as we speak, the Antichrist, as the man of sin, will be revealed. He will be the leading figure in the new world order’s culture of sin. It will lead to a "free for all" kind of living. He will act according to his own will as evidenced in Daniel 11:36, "Then the king shall do according to his own will: he shall exalt and magnify himself above every god, shall speak blasphemies against the God of gods, and shall prosper till the wrath has been accomplished; for what has been determined shall be done." He will rule by means of satanic powers, Revelation 13:2, "Now the beast which I saw was like a leopard, his feet were like the feet of a bear, and his mouth like the mouth of a lion. The dragon gave him his power, his throne, and great authority." He will blaspheme God in Revelation 13:5-6, "And he was given a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies, and he was given authority to continue for forty-two months. 6) Then he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme His name, His tabernacle, and those who dwell in heaven." He will, together with Satan, be worshiped by an utterly morally and religiously depraved human race Revelation 13:4, "So they worshiped the dragon who gave authority to the beast; and they worshiped the beast, saying, “Who is like the beast? Who is able to make war with him?" He will order the execution of all people who refuse to worship him as god Revelation 13:15, "He was granted power to give breath to the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak and cause as many as would not worship the image of the beast to be killed." It will be a time of utter abomination and depravity!
1) Joshua 1:9, "Have I not commanded you? Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go."
2) Romans 12:19, "Beloved, do not avenge yourselves, but rather give place to wrath; for it is written, "Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord."
3) Ephesians 6:10, "Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might."
4) 1 Corinthians 16:13, "Watch, stand fast in the faith, be brave, be strong."
5) Isaiah 40:31, "But those who wait on the Lord Shall renew their strength; They shall mount up with wings like eagles, They shall run and not be weary, They shall walk and not faint."
To fully appreciate what Jesus Christ went through when he was tempted by the devil in the wilderness, we need to understand that the devil is not allowed to do just "anything and everything" that he wants to do against God’s people. The operative word here, is God's PEOPLE. The Believers! God has placed certain limits on Satan in his dealings with God’s people. God still reigns over the universe and He is still TOTALLY in control of everything. There are also certain limits on Satan that have to do with who and what he is. So let's take a look at Ezekiel 28:14 and see what it says. "You were the anointed cherub who covers; I established you; You were on the holy mountain of God; You walked back and forth in the midst of fiery stones." Satan is an angel, or, more exactly, a cherub. This means that Satan isn't at all even in the same class as God. He is NOT God’s adversary; he is OUR adversary. He poses no threat at all to God; but even though he has already been defeated by Jesus Christ on our behalf, he poses a serious threat to us by attacking our confidence and trust in God, which in turn, our obedience to doing the will of God and our ability to hear His voice clearly! It's a battle in our minds. There is one major limit that Satan must work under that God has set forth and this is found in the first chapter of Job. In Job 1:6-7, "Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came among them. 7) And the Lord said to Satan, "From where do you come?" So Satan answered the Lord and said, "From going to and fro on the earth, and from walking back and forth on it."" In this record, Satan comes into the presence of God and, when asked where he has been, he responds that he has been "going to and fro in the earth, and from walking up and down in it." This statement calls to mind 1 Peter 5:8! Satan’s purpose in going to and fro in the earth is to seek whom he may devour. But, in this record in Job, something happened between Satan’s going about and his attempting to devour. He stopped what he was doing and went to God’s throne room to talk with God. Their conversation was about the man Satan wanted to attack: Job. In that conversation, God permitted Satan to attack Job, but set limits in advance on what Satan could do. Within those limits, Satan showed himself to be absolutely ruthless; but he never stepped so much as a toenail over the line drawn by God. Satan knew better because he has to obey God TOO! However, when it came to attacking Job’s servants or Job’s children, though, Satan didn't take time out to go talk with God. He pretty much did whatever he wanted, to whoever he wanted. From this viewpoint, it appears that he has much more freedom against those who do not belong to God.
This all to say that even though we are in some very dark, evil, diabolical times, God is STILL in control! He knows what is going on, who is doing what, and how long it will be allowed. He knows it ALL. The things we can't see, He's already seen and overcome! All things will be worked together for the good and for His purpose and perfect plan. Satan wants to be "adored, idolized and revered" and will stop at nothing to achieve his desires before his time is up. Jesus is our only hope in these times! He has given us strength to endure what is allowed to cross our paths. He has promised never to leave us or forsake us. Satan is defeated. It was done on the Cross! I wrote a post some time ago called, "The Promises of God" and it's an uplifting post of many of the promises that He has given to us! It can be found here. I want to reiterate something here before I wrap this up. If this is your first time to my blog, you may not know where I stand scripturally regarding the rapture of the Church. I'm a Pre-Tribulation Rapture believer. Many differing opinions surround the rapture but as I've mentioned and directed before through scripture, it is not the character of God, our Loving God, to put His own Bride, whom He cleansed and made pure with the Blood of His Only Begotten Son Jesus Christ! We, the believers in Christ, are not called to wrath, which is the Tribulation period. But as I was reading, something else became clear.....God created us individually, and perfectly made in His image with free will to CHOOSE to accept Jesus Christ as our Savior. Once we choose to accept His free gift of Salvation, why would He make us CHOOSE AGAIN during the Tribulation? Many may not know this, but the 7 year Tribulation period will be for God's judgment on the earth of those who have rejected Jesus. There will be a the witnesses spreading the Gospel to the 4 corners of the earth and many will be saved during that time. They are the Tribulation Saints. The rest who accept the mark of the beast and to worship the beast can never be saved at that point. So it's for the UNBELIEVERS. We aren't appointed to wrath but for everlasting life! We don't have to choose AGAIN. The Rapture is our blessed hope and those of us who are believers desire to be with our Lord and long for Him to call our names! This world is not for me. I may be in the world, but I am not of it!
We must have faith and put our trust in His promises! We must stay strong, spiritually and mentally strong and stand against the wiles and fiery darts of the enemy. Through the eyes of our Father in Heaven, we must be able to see Him in everything. This life isn't easy and as the days grow darker and the evil continues, it's going to get a lot more difficult. We all need to focus on the Light and spread that Light to the darkness. The darkness must flee when the Light is shined brightly! But in the midst of all the darkness, evil, and heaviness permeating society, one can always see a shining light somewhere in the chaos of it all! From a kind gesture, a hug, a touch, a prayer or support, His Light will shine through. People still FEEL. People still CARE. People still LOVE. People still UNDERSTAND. That, my dear readers, is NOT newsworthy. I find it appalling and sad because the only news being seared into our minds every chance they get are those that are driven by the devil. The good and the truth are not newsworthy because, well, the devil is in the details in every headline across the world. After all, he is the god of this world. While I see a lot of the darkness and evil, and more taking shape by the minute, I don't focus on it because I don't want to lose sight of the Light that could be shining in unsuspecting places. In every bad situation, in every dark corner, and in every unexplained situation, there is always His light to guide us, illuminate us for His glory and shine above all else. People need to see His LIGHT right now! I know the Light inside of me is the Light of our Lord Jesus Christ and I have been witness to it shining brightly in the darkest recesses of the minds and lives of others. It's when His light shines on the darkness that unbelievers see the clearest and take notice the calling of the Lord! His Light seems to shine the brightest and sparkle the most when it's shining in the dark. Matthew 5:14-16, "You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. 15) Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. 16) Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven."
God promises a time when there will be no more crying, no more tears, no more pain and suffering, when we will be reunited with God in perfect harmony, forever! Let the words of 1 Corinthians 2:9 soak into your soul: "No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him."
As Lee Strobel once said, "So when tragedy strikes, as it will; when suffering comes, as it will; when you’re wrestling with pain, as you will – and when you make the choice to run into His arms, here’s what you’re going to discover: you’ll find peace to deal with the present, you’ll find courage to deal with your future, and you’ll find the incredible promise of eternal life in heaven."
This all to say that even though we are in some very dark, evil, diabolical times, God is STILL in control! He knows what is going on, who is doing what, and how long it will be allowed. He knows it ALL. The things we can't see, He's already seen and overcome! All things will be worked together for the good and for His purpose and perfect plan. Satan wants to be "adored, idolized and revered" and will stop at nothing to achieve his desires before his time is up. Jesus is our only hope in these times! He has given us strength to endure what is allowed to cross our paths. He has promised never to leave us or forsake us. Satan is defeated. It was done on the Cross! I wrote a post some time ago called, "The Promises of God" and it's an uplifting post of many of the promises that He has given to us! It can be found here. I want to reiterate something here before I wrap this up. If this is your first time to my blog, you may not know where I stand scripturally regarding the rapture of the Church. I'm a Pre-Tribulation Rapture believer. Many differing opinions surround the rapture but as I've mentioned and directed before through scripture, it is not the character of God, our Loving God, to put His own Bride, whom He cleansed and made pure with the Blood of His Only Begotten Son Jesus Christ! We, the believers in Christ, are not called to wrath, which is the Tribulation period. But as I was reading, something else became clear.....God created us individually, and perfectly made in His image with free will to CHOOSE to accept Jesus Christ as our Savior. Once we choose to accept His free gift of Salvation, why would He make us CHOOSE AGAIN during the Tribulation? Many may not know this, but the 7 year Tribulation period will be for God's judgment on the earth of those who have rejected Jesus. There will be a the witnesses spreading the Gospel to the 4 corners of the earth and many will be saved during that time. They are the Tribulation Saints. The rest who accept the mark of the beast and to worship the beast can never be saved at that point. So it's for the UNBELIEVERS. We aren't appointed to wrath but for everlasting life! We don't have to choose AGAIN. The Rapture is our blessed hope and those of us who are believers desire to be with our Lord and long for Him to call our names! This world is not for me. I may be in the world, but I am not of it!
We must have faith and put our trust in His promises! We must stay strong, spiritually and mentally strong and stand against the wiles and fiery darts of the enemy. Through the eyes of our Father in Heaven, we must be able to see Him in everything. This life isn't easy and as the days grow darker and the evil continues, it's going to get a lot more difficult. We all need to focus on the Light and spread that Light to the darkness. The darkness must flee when the Light is shined brightly! But in the midst of all the darkness, evil, and heaviness permeating society, one can always see a shining light somewhere in the chaos of it all! From a kind gesture, a hug, a touch, a prayer or support, His Light will shine through. People still FEEL. People still CARE. People still LOVE. People still UNDERSTAND. That, my dear readers, is NOT newsworthy. I find it appalling and sad because the only news being seared into our minds every chance they get are those that are driven by the devil. The good and the truth are not newsworthy because, well, the devil is in the details in every headline across the world. After all, he is the god of this world. While I see a lot of the darkness and evil, and more taking shape by the minute, I don't focus on it because I don't want to lose sight of the Light that could be shining in unsuspecting places. In every bad situation, in every dark corner, and in every unexplained situation, there is always His light to guide us, illuminate us for His glory and shine above all else. People need to see His LIGHT right now! I know the Light inside of me is the Light of our Lord Jesus Christ and I have been witness to it shining brightly in the darkest recesses of the minds and lives of others. It's when His light shines on the darkness that unbelievers see the clearest and take notice the calling of the Lord! His Light seems to shine the brightest and sparkle the most when it's shining in the dark. Matthew 5:14-16, "You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. 15) Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. 16) Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven."
God promises a time when there will be no more crying, no more tears, no more pain and suffering, when we will be reunited with God in perfect harmony, forever! Let the words of 1 Corinthians 2:9 soak into your soul: "No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him."
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