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KNOW THE PLANS OF THE ENEMY: THE PROCESS OF REDEFINING
One of the plans of the enemy is to redefine or rename sin. There are new culturally accepted names for sexual perversion. New accepted names for addictive behaviors. New accepted names for acts of violence or murder. By doing this anyone who speaks against the sin is classified as having intolerance and a part of the problem progress. The enemy has done this redefining through people driven by the spirit of lawlessness who will do anything that is right in their own eyes while fulfilling the lust of the flesh. They call good evil and call evil good. The next plan of the enemy was to redefine the institutions of God, which he has done with marriage and the church. Now anyone who speaks against these new definitions of marriage and the church are guilty of hate crimes and have phobias. This next plan of the enemy to redefine what is and who is a Christian. Now the true Christian can be attacked because he does not fit the norm of what society defines that a Christian can be. The attack on a true Christian walking with God is just around the corner, because of this redefining process. Isaiah 5:20 ESV 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!
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POST #12 THE SPIRIT OF LAWLESSNESS
LAWLESSNESS CAUSES ONE TO “GIVE AN EAR TO” AND THE “FOLLOWING OF” SEDUCING SPIRITS: In these days which we live there seems to be a renewed “spirit of lawlessness” released upon the earth. The topic of sin and lawlessness is not a popular one. 1 Timothy 4:1-3 ESV Now the Spirit expressly says that in later times some will depart from the faith by devoting themselves to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons, (2) through the insincerity of liars whose consciences are seared, (3) who forbid marriage and require abstinence from foods that God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and know the truth. 2 Timothy 4:3-4 ESV For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, (4) and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths. Rather than men listening to and following the Spirit of God and the Word of God, they would yield to those spirits that led astray. The spirits referred here are any that cause someone to err. The most obvious and natural reference is fallen spirits or demons. The seducing spirits may also apply to false teachers who are under the influence of evil spirits. This may be applied to any false teaching, but it is evident that the Apostle Paul had a specific apostasy in view. It is a false teaching that would greatly corrupt the Christian faith. 2 John 1:7-8 ESV For many deceivers have gone out into the world, those who do not confess the coming of Jesus Christ in the flesh. Such a one is the deceiver and the antichrist. (8) Watch yourselves, so that you may not lose what we have worked for, but may win a full reward. Mark 13:21-23 ESV And then if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Christ!’ or ‘Look, there he is!’ do not believe it. (22) For false christs and false prophets will arise and perform signs and wonders, to lead astray, if possible, the elect. (23) But be on guard; I have told you all things beforehand. 2 Timothy 3:12-14 ESV Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted, (13) while evil people and impostors will go on from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived. (14) But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have firmly believed, knowing from whom you learned it 1 John 2:26 ESV I write these things to you about those who are trying to deceive you. Face it, lawlessness is upon us and all around us. We choose each day what we will do. It is easy to compromise and do just enough that people will not question our Christian faith. Or we can burn with the fire of God and be a stumbling block to those who wish to compromise and a fiery coal to those who deny our Lord Jesus Christ. Woe unto us when the world speaks well of us. If we are hated, let it be for righteousness sake. Luke 6:26 KJV Woe unto you, when all men shall speak well of you! for so did their fathers to the false prophets. Luke 6:22-23 KJV Blessed are ye, when men shall hate you, and when they shall separate you from their company, and shall reproach you, and cast out your name as evil, for the Son of man's sake. (23) Rejoice ye in that day, and leap for joy: for, behold, your reward is great in heaven: for in the like manner did their fathers unto the prophets. POST #11 THE SPIRIT OF LAWLESSNESS
LAWLESSNESS CAUSES A DEPARTING FROM THE FAITH: This is a continuation of POST #7-10 of how a lawless heart causes believers to depart from the faith. It is sad but there are those who teach doctrines of men and doctrines of demons within the body of Christ. Sadder still are those within the body of Christ who will listen and follow those doctrines as though they are Biblical. They carry a small element of truth, but something can be true without being truth. I know that the previous statement sounds crazy, but see if remember this Old Testament story. Abraham went down to Gerar with his wife Sarah. Abraham told her to follow along with the story that she was his sister. King Abimelech was interested in Abraham's wife Sarah and inquired who she was. Abraham quickly replied that she was his sister. Abraham and Sarah had the same father and were half brother and sister, so that was true, but it was not the truth. Abraham feared for his life more than he cared for his wife and failed to mention to King Abimelech that Sarah was his wife. Genesis 20:2-5 ESV And Abraham said of Sarah his wife, “She is my sister.” And Abimelech king of Gerar sent and took Sarah. (3) But God came to Abimelech in a dream by night and said to him, “Behold, you are a dead man because of the woman whom you have taken, for she is a man's wife.” (4) Now Abimelech had not approached her. So he said, “Lord, will you kill an innocent people? (5) Did he not himself say to me, ‘She is my sister’? And she herself said, ‘He is my brother.’ In the integrity of my heart and the innocence of my hands I have done this.” Genesis 20:10-13 ESV And Abimelech said to Abraham, “What did you see, that you did this thing?” (11) Abraham said, “I did it because I thought, ‘There is no fear of God at all in this place, and they will kill me because of my wife.’ (12) Besides, she is indeed my sister, the daughter of my father though not the daughter of my mother, and she became my wife. (13) And when God caused me to wander from my father's house, I said to her, ‘This is the kindness you must do me: at every place to which we come, say of me, “He is my brother.”’” Right away within the New Testament church there were those who corrupted the doctrines of God with their own teachings. This has been going on for over 2,000 years now. The doctrines have just enough truth in them to call them true, but enough half-truths to make them false. Some false teachings are blatant enough that it can be clearly seen as a doctrine from demons. Acts 13:8-10 ESV But Elymas the magician (for that is the meaning of his name) opposed them, seeking to turn the proconsul away from the faith. (9) But Saul, who was also called Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked intently at him (10) and said, “You son of the devil, you enemy of all righteousness, full of all deceit and villainy, will you not stop making crooked the straight paths of the Lord? But some teachings have been done for so long they are assumed to be truth. The way to judge them is to look both at the Word of God and evaluate the fruit and power it produces. If the Word of God is powerless in your life to work then it could be that the doctrines of God you embrace have been mixed with the traditions and doctrines of man, making the outcome no longer the Word of Truth. Mark 7:13 ESV thus making void the word of God by your tradition that you have handed down. And many such things you do.” 2 Timothy 2:16-18 ESV But avoid irreverent babble, for it will lead people into more and more ungodliness, (17) and their talk will spread like gangrene. Among them are Hymenaeus and Philetus, (18) who have swerved from the truth, saying that the resurrection has already happened. They are upsetting the faith of some. POST #10 THE SPIRIT OF LAWLESSNESS
LAWLESSNESS not only causes a DEPARTING FROM THE FAITH, but it also causes people to “GIVE AN EAR TO and FOLLOWING” SEDUCING SPIRITS: In these days which we live there seems to be a renewed “spirit of lawlessness” released upon the earth. I realize that the topic of sin and lawlessness is not a popular one, because we typically want to hear or read "feel good" stuff. 1 Timothy 4:1-3 ESV Now the Spirit expressly says that in later times some will depart from the faith by devoting themselves to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons, (2) through the insincerity of liars whose consciences are seared, (3) who forbid marriage and require abstinence from foods that God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and know the truth. The Greek word for “giving heed” in KJV or "devoting" in the ESV is “prosecho” and means to pay attention to, to apply oneself to, or to hear with the intent to obey. The Greek word for “seducing” in KJV or "deceitful" in the ESV is “planos” and means roving, impostor, deceiver or misleader. Rather than men listening to and following the Spirit of God, they find it easier and more expedient to yield to spirits that led astray. The spirits referred here are any that cause someone to err. The most obvious and natural reference is fallen spirits or demons. The seducing spirits may also apply to false teachers who are under the influence of evil spirits. This may be applied to any false teaching, but it is evident that the Apostle Paul had a specific apostasy in view. It is a false teaching that would greatly corrupt the Christian faith. It has been true that people in all ages have been prone to giving heed to seducing spirits, but the reference here in 1 Tim.4:1 is a lawlessness that causes a great apostasy or falling away of Christians from the faith. As a Pastor, I have been told by “professing Christians”, “I don’t care what you say the Bible teaches, I know what I believe.” We must see just how dangerous it is for us to establish doctrine out of things we were taught in the past or out of emotional ties to family, friends, or a certain Church that do not align to the character or Word of God. I have been told by certain believers that they know their church and pastor teaches wrong doctrine but that is where their family and friends are. One guy told me that his Pastor led him to the Lord and no matter what happens he was not parting from that fellowship. This kind of thinking is nothing more than following seducing spirits and opening oneself up to being deceived. POST #9 THE SPIRIT OF LAWLESSNESS AND APOSTASY
LAWLESSNESS CAUSES A DEPARTING FROM THE FAITH: This is a continuation of POST #8 of how a lawless heart causes believers to depart from the faith. It is sad but there are those who teach doctrines of man and doctrines of demons within the body of Christ. Sadder still are those within the body of Christ who will listen to, follow, and fight for the doctrines of man and doctrines of demons over standing with the Word of God. The earthly and eternal promises of God are only for those who remain IN THE FAITH! We are commanded to remain "in the faith." There are 1,050 commands in the New Testament. Why are we commanded to love one another? Because we are more prone not to love one another. We are prone to love only those who love us. So the Father gives in His Word the command that we are to love. Why are we commanded to stay in the faith? Because we can through lack of experience, negligence, sin, or many other reasons drift away from a heart of faith, until we are filled with a heart of doubt. It does not mean that we necessarily drift away from religious activity. If fact, what I have seen is that those who drift away from a heart of faith, fill that void with religious activity. They do the things of God while having departed from God. Let's look at the warnings and commands about falling away from the faith. Luke 22:31-32 ESV “Simon, Simon, behold, Satan demanded to have you, that he might sift you like wheat, (32) but I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned again, strengthen your brothers.” Acts 14:22 ESV strengthening the souls of the disciples, encouraging them to continue in the faith, and saying that through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God. Colossians 1:23 ESV if indeed you continue in the faith, stable and steadfast, not shifting from the hope of the gospel that you heard, which has been proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and of which I, Paul, became a minister. Hebrews 10:38-39 ESV but my righteous one shall live by faith, and if he shrinks back, my soul has no pleasure in him.” (39) But we are not of those who shrink back and are destroyed, but of those who have faith and preserve their souls. 2 Thessalonians 2:3 ESV Let no one deceive you in any way. For that day will not come, unless the rebellion comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, In 2 Thess.2:3 the word "rebellion" is the word apostasy (Greek ap-os-tas-ee'-ah) and means "a defection from truth, a falling away, to forsake." POST #8 THE SPIRIT OF LAWLESSNESS
LAWLESSNESS CAUSES A DEPARTING FROM THE FAITH: This is a continuation of POST #6 of how a lawless heart causes believers to depart from the faith. This will be a lot of Scriptures but we need to ground or anchor our hearts in what the Father says instead of some emotional doctrine not based fully on the Word of God. It only takes a little leaven to leaven the whole bunch. Remember, I said that we cannot "sin away" our salvation. There is no sin that is big enough for God to say say "That is it, I am done with you". But through a continual heart of sin we can become hard-hearted and faithless. That is why our Lord did not address all the "sins" of the disciples in His 3 1/2 years with them. But He addressed faith issues continually. It is ONLY by faith that we can please God and ONLY by faith can we be saved. This means that no prayer we repeat from someone can save us. Hebrews 11:6 ESV And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him. Ephesians 2:8-9 ESV For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, (9) not a result of works, so that no one may boast. Why is this teaching so important? The spirit of Lawlessness within the church is fed through the large number of lost people within the church. The teaching in Matthew 13 of the Wheat and Tares reveals that the wheat and tares (weeds, false wheat) are sown together and grown together. This reveals the close contact we have in our daily lives with lost people who claim to be saved. There are Pastors who have been really guilty of producing Tares. We become so quick to get people to pray prayers, get them baptized, and to join our churches that we try to do the work of the Holy Spirit for Him. Yes we get a statistic to report, but we also get more lawlessness within our church body. 2 Thessalonians 3:1-2 ESV Finally, brothers, pray for us, that the word of the Lord may speed ahead and be honored, as happened among you, (2) and that we may be delivered from wicked and evil men. For not all have faith. However, there are those who have embraced truth and were genuinely born again whose heart has hardened and they departed from faith. Remember, apostasy means to "fall away, depart from." You cannot fall away from something you never had. I cannot fall off of a ladder I never climbed on. Let's look at some of the Scriptures that warns of falling away and gives examples of falling away. Matthew 24:12-13 ESV And because lawlessness will be increased, the love of many will grow cold. (13) But the one who endures to the end will be saved. Hebrews 3:12 ESV Take care, brothers, lest there be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart, leading you to fall away from the living God. Luke 8:13-14 ESV And the ones on the rock are those who, when they hear the word, receive it with joy. But these have no root; they believe for a while, and in time of testing fall away. (14) And as for what fell among the thorns, they are those who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked by the cares and riches and pleasures of life, and their fruit does not mature. 1 Timothy 1:19-20 ESV holding faith and a good conscience. By rejecting this, some have made shipwreck of their faith, (20) among whom are Hymenaeus and Alexander, whom I have handed over to Satan that they may learn not to blaspheme. POST #7 THE SPIRIT OF LAWLESSNESS
The Amoral Generation: One generation away from God changes a nation. If just one generation totally set aside God’s law, which is what defines sin, then within that single generation people would become incapable of even recognizing error. They would become an amoral people, which would be a people without any morals or standards of right and wrong. This one single generation of amoral people would descend into a deep pit of vice, violence and vandalism beyond our ability to imagine, let alone control. This is what is happening across the world now in our lifetime. The standard of God’s law has been dropped and man is doing what seems to be right in his own eyes. Just this week I saw a man with a tee-shirt with a picture of a cross being thrown in a trash can. He carried a sign that read, If Jesus returns, we should kill Him again." In the USA we have been graced with men and women for generations that held the government to recognize the Bible as the standard of morality and righteousness and that God is the only truth. But we have been a little over one generation removed from that now. A Bible generation is somewhere between 40 to 80 years. We are over 40 years removed from the lawlessness of the 1960’s in which our government redefined its standard for morality and righteousness. God and the Bible are no longer looked upon as the standard of morality but seen as a crutch upon the progression of our society. God has given His commandments and laws to man to govern the way man lives. These laws are for the good of all and are meant to preserve the gift of life which God has given. When man obeys God's law there is liberty and freedom which allows us to enjoy the gift of life with others without fear. When we use freedom in order to disobey God’s laws then that freedom becomes our slavery and bondage and man has a right to fear his neighbor because human life is no longer valued. Psalms 19:7 ESV The law of the LORD is perfect, reviving the soul; the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple; James 1:25 ESV But the one who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and perseveres, being no hearer who forgets but a doer who acts, he will be blessed in his doing. So we see that the laws of God are perfect and are given to bless man. When we break God's law we have committed sin and are acting in a way that will be detrimental to our own good and that of our neighbor and that of our nation. POST #6 THE SPIRIT OF LAWLESSNESS: DON'T BLAME YOUR CHURCH
LAWLESSNESS CAUSES A DEPARTING FROM THE FAITH: In this post we are talking about how a lawless heart causes believers to depart from the faith. Good God-fearing believers living a life of praise, worship, Word, and prayer allowing sin and lust for the pleasures of the world to capture the heart. Then comes the blame game and the excuses. Have you noticed that when a believer turns back into the world of sin they can always find a Pastor, a Church, or a group of Christians to blame. No one can make me happy, sad, fearful, or mad. I am 100% responsible for my feelings, my actions and my choices. Self will is the cult of humanism. It is saying that I am god and lord of my life and I can do as I please. Humanism seeks to “dethrone” God and elevate man. Making God into the images of man means that we can make Him any way we desire, with any faults or weaknesses that would suit us. However, God cannot be dethroned. God will turn them over to a reprobate mind who exchange the Creator for the created and turn the natural order of man into an unnatural lust. Humanism and a Christian that is captured by the lust of the world is a life that has NO FEAR OF GOD! Romans 1:22-28 ESV Claiming to be wise, they became fools, (23) and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things. (24) Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, (25) because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen. (26) For this reason God gave them up to dishonorable passions. For their women exchanged natural relations for those that are contrary to nature; (27) and the men likewise gave up natural relations with women and were consumed with passion for one another, men committing shameless acts with men and receiving in themselves the due penalty for their error. (28) And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up to a debased mind to do what ought not to be done. POST #5 THE SPIRIT OF LAWLESSNESS
LAWLESSNESS CAUSES A DEPARTING FROM THE FAITH: I know that this is a hard truth for those who embrace the doctrine of “Eternal Security” or “Once Saved Always Saved”, which is a doctrine established in the fourth century by the Catholic Bishop known as Saint Augustine. These Scriptures should reveal to us the fact that believers, not just “professors of the faith” but “possessors of the faith” will fall away. So what are some of the effects of the spirit of lawlessness? Know this! You cannot sin away your salvation, but you can live a life of sin that will cause you to depart from the faith and in departing from the faith then one can walk away from his/her salvation. This is why we all should be overwhelmed with a sense of sober-mindedness when we read Matt.24:12-13. Matthew 24:12-13 ESV And because lawlessness will be increased, the love of many will grow cold. (13) But the one who endures to the end will be saved. Enduring to the end! Have we not all seen someone whose heart was “on fire” for God and over time the things of God grew cold in their heart as sin entered their lives? With the increase of the mystery of lawlessness believers will be bombarded on every side with iniquity. The pressure to compromise will be great. If there is any lust in the heart for the pleasure and riches of life or for popularity and power then it will be tested. Many will fail and fall away in these days. It will not happen with a “bang” overnight change but over time like the story of Abraham and Lot. Lot kept pitching his tent towards Sodom until one day he found himself living there. READ Rom.1:21-32 Romans 1:21 ESV For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. I find this passage of Scripture in Rom.1:21-32 sad. Here are people who knew God yet were unthankful and failed to give God glory. Their hearts became darkened from sin. In this we see the classic characteristic of the doctrine of HUMANISM. Humanism seeks to “dethrone” God and elevate man. Making God into the images of man means that we can make Him any way we desire with any faults or weaknesses that would suit us. Because of this attempt to dethrone God, He turns them over to a reprobate mind. POST #4 THE SPIRIT OF LAWLESSNESS
In these days which we live there seems to be a renewed “spirit of lawlessness” released upon the earth. The topic of sin and lawlessness is not a popular one. Many view the concept of sin and lawlessness as archaic and demeaning. They would say that it is an ideology that needs to be cast aside in light of current "modern thought". True Christians however know that God's Word will never become outdated. Sin and lawlessness is one such topic in the Bible that is as relevant today as it was in the beginning of mankind. What are the results of a person, a church, or a nation walking in the ways of lawlessness? Over the next chapters we will discuss the cause and effect of the spirit of lawlessness upon a people, a church or a nation. In this “Mystery of Lawlessness” study we will look at some of the effects that are released upon the individual which will also have an impact on the body of Christ. For the majority of this study I will be using 1 Tim.4:1-3 as our main Scriptural text. LAWLESSNESS CAUSES A DEPARTING FROM THE FAITH: 1 Timothy 4:1-3 ESV Now the Spirit expressly says that in later times some will depart from the faith by devoting themselves to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons, (2) through the insincerity of liars whose consciences are seared, (3) who forbid marriage and require abstinence from foods that God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and know the truth. “Departing from the faith”: The word “departing” is “aphistemi” and means “to remove”, “to revolt”, “to desist” to desert”, or “to draw or fall away”. We know that sin will abound in great measure in these last days. The world is more and more immoral moving to an amoral behavior. There seems to be no moral standard left except that every man does what is right in his own eyes. This is the mystery of lawlessness and is causing the hearts of believers to grow cold and fall away from the faith. Their faith will be shipwrecked, they will abandon their faith, they will depart from the faith, their faith will be made void, they will err from the faith, their faith will fail, they will not be true to their faith, they will draw back from the faith, and they will cease to continue in the faith. Remedy: Don't flirt with the world and fall in the spirit of lawlessness. POST #3 THE SPIRIT OF LAWLESSNESS
In the last study I posed two questions. Why did God give us moral laws to follow? Why was the law given if we are to be people of faith and grace? 1. The law placed all mankind in a condition of being without an excuse: We are a people who like to live in the shadow of being a victim. It is always easier to blame someone else for our condition mentality, emotionally, and spiritually then to take personal responsibility for our own actions. The giving of the law set it straight that we are all guilty before God in the inability to obey the commands of God. Therefore in obeying “some laws” we are not justified, because we cannot obey all of them. Our Lord said that if we failed in one, we have failed in all. Romans 3:19-20 ESV Now we know that whatever the law says it speaks to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be stopped, and the whole world may be held accountable to God. (20) For by works of the law no human being will be justified in his sight, since through the law comes knowledge of sin. 2. The law put a name to our sins: Romans 7:4-8 ESV Likewise, my brothers, you also have died to the law through the body of Christ, so that you may belong to another, to him who has been raised from the dead, in order that we may bear fruit for God. (5) For while we were living in the flesh, our sinful passions, aroused by the law, were at work in our members to bear fruit for death. (6) But now we are released from the law, having died to that which held us captive, so that we serve in the new way of the Spirit and not in the old way of the written code. (7) What then shall we say? That the law is sin? By no means! Yet if it had not been for the law, I would not have known sin. For I would not have known what it is to covet if the law had not said, “You shall not covet.” (8) But sin, seizing an opportunity through the commandment, produced in me all kinds of covetousness. For apart from the law, sin lies dead. You can see from these texts in Rom.3:19-20 and 7:4-8 that God the Father defines sin through the law. The law brings sin to one's notice. It details the behavior of man in word, thought, and deed what the Most High God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob considers right and wrong. Humanity is incapable of defining sin because we do what is right in our own eyes. Only the Creator of all things can define sin. POST #2 THE SPIRIT OF LAWLESSNESS
We can talk about the love, grace and mercy of God and feel good about our position as His forgiven children, and that would be okay. However, sometimes we need to be reminded about what is going on in the world around us. Why? Because if we don't consider our times, we may tend to blame the problems of our world on our government, the economy, or just a few bad people. Or we may compromise and be a part of the problem instead of being the solution. With any spiritual discernment at all we can see that there is a renewed “spirit of lawlessness” released upon the earth. Lawlessness is not only an act from the political government whereby laws are passed that are in direction opposition to the laws and character of God, but lawlessness is also a problem within the body of Christ. It is shocking the state of lawlessness within the body of Christ. Ungodly traditions and feasts of man are spiritualized and elevated over the Word of God or even replacing the Word of God. God’s order of marriage and the family are replaced with the doctrines of demons perverting the Biblical role of sex and marriage resulting in all forms of sexual sins. We have Protestant churches voting to accept homosexual leadership in the pulpit. The national average divorce rate is 65% both outside the Church and within the Church among the Christian faith. This is not meant to convey a sense of hopelessness, but to make us aware of what is in operation in our world today. Although lawlessness is manifested today in mystery form, one day in the soon prophetic future it will take embodiment in the MAN OF LAWLESSNESS. We can discern this day if we don't stick our heads in the sand and ignore what's going on outside of our four walls, and pray that the eyes of our understanding are opened by the light of the Scriptures. By way of definition we may say that SIN is the godless attitude of thought, deed, and conversation which manifests itself in disobedience of the commandments of Yahweh the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel. In other words when a person violates one or more of the God’s commandments, then that person is sinning, whether he/she knows it or not. That sin, if left alone, grows like a cancer until it takes over and destroys. 1 John 3:4 ESV Everyone who makes a practice of sinning also practices lawlessness; sin is lawlessness. Why did God give us moral laws to follow? Why was the law given if we are to be people of faith and grace? More to come later that will answer these questions. THE SPIRIT OF LAWLESSNESS
In these days which we live there seems to be a renewed “spirit of lawlessness” released upon the earth. The Church, speaking about the body of Christ, is not exempt from the influences of this spirit. Lawlessness has entered the body of Christ in an unparalleled manner. Of course the first thing that we need to do is give a definition for lawlessness and see the effects of it upon the body of Christ. The mystery of “lawlessness” has been at work since the time of the rebellion of Adam and Eve in the garden. Lawlessness is sin but not merely committing sin. The mystery of lawlessness is the promotion of sin by lawful authorities, This would include State and National Governmants and Church or Denominational Governments. I have always said “you can legislate immorality, but you cannot legislate morality”. For instance, when men and women decide that the man is NOT going to be the head of his household, but that they will adopt other arrangements, this is an act in the mystery of lawlessness. When children are promoted as equal or ruling partners in the family, rather than under the authority of their fathers and mothers, this is an act of the mystery of lawlessness. When the discipline of those children including corporal punishment, which is taught in the Scriptures, becomes outlawed and otherwise discouraged by government, this is an act of the mystery of lawlessness. In the church, when believers think they can live any way they want and purpose to walk in sin this is an act of the mystery of lawlessness. 2 Peter 2:19 ESV They promise them freedom, but they themselves are slaves of corruption. For whatever overcomes a person, to that he is enslaved. The fruit or end results of lawlessness are great and costly. Individual lawlessness produces guilt, pain, mental disorders, family break upheavals, disease and finally death. On the national and international scale, lawlessness repels the Spirit of God and results in all kinds of social, political and natural calamity, poverty, vandalism, revolution, war, freak weather conditions, famine, disease epidemics, earthquakes and disasters of all kinds. These disasters are believed by most people to happen purely by chance. Everything has a cause, and that cause is often linked to moral degeneracy. Read Deuteronomy chapter 28 where the amazing link between a nation's moral behavior is explained in detail both from the view of blessings and curses. |
AuthorCharles Morris. Founder and Senior Pastor of RSI Ministry, RSI School of Ministry, and RSI Publishing L.L.C.. Archives
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