“Jesus Is Coming Soon”...Oh Really? by Pastor Stephen Benton

The majority of Christianity believes Jesus is coming soon. Nearly every Christian radio broadcast and telecast end their program with that reminder. The expressions of imminence are many: any day, at the door, nigh, at hand, upon us, today or tomorrow. If the Church really believes that idea, it should also believe that the time of the coming of the Lord, or, the rapture, to use a common expression, (which word many are careful to point out is not in the bible,) it should also believe that Jesus’ arrival will not take place without the heralding of prophets. The words of Amos make that idea abundantly clear. Amos 3:3-7 “Can two walk together, except they be agreed? Will a lion roar in the forest, when he hath no prey? Will a young lion cry out of his den, if he have taken nothing? Can a bird fall in a snare upon the earth, where no gin is for him? Shall one take u a snare from the earth, and have taken nothing at all? Shall a trumpet be blown in the city, and the people not be afraid? Shall there be evil in a city, and the Lord hath not done it?” The answer to all of those questions is "no". The final line of logic presented by the prophet is “Surely the Lord God will do nothing, But he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets.” Here, one can apply ‘his secret’ in a generic sense or, more specifically, his secret about the time of his coming! The secret of the Lord has never been the fact of his coming but the day of his coming. Now, let us take that truth one-step further. In the Old Testament book of Deuteronomy Moses prophesied the following in Chapter 18 verse 15: “The Lord thy God will raise up unto thee a Prophet from the midst of thee, of thy brethren, like unto me; unto him ye shall hearken;" “That Prophet” will arise because of the desire of the congregation when they begged Moses not to allow God to speak to them directly lest they died (Deut 18:16.) God responded to Moses. He said the request of the people was “well spoken.” “And the Lord said unto me, They have well spoken that which they have spoken. I will raise them up a Prophet from among their brethren, like unto thee, and will put my words in his mouth; and he shall speak unto them all that I shall command him. And it shall come to pass, that whosoever will not hearken unto my words which he shall speak in my name, I will require it of him.” Deuteronomy 18: 19-19 Either the Church is unaware of the ramifications of that passage or it is unaware of its existence altogether. Perhaps because the passage is from the Old Testament, and because it is to Moses concerning Israel, they believe that it has no application to the Church whatsoever. Concerning the latter, nothing could be further from the truth! All one has to do is observe the ministry of Jesus during his time on earth and it should readily be seen that the passage concerning ‘that Prophet’ was not fulfilled. Jesus’ main purpose during his time on earth was to “save his people from their sins.” (Matt.1:21) During his 33 and one half years on the earth, the only time that he prophesied was shortly before his crucifixion when he answered the questions of the apostles in Matthew 24, Luke 21 and Mark 13. And those prophecies were to the Jews, not the Church. The Church had not yet been instituted. It was not begun until Pentecost when the Holy Spirit fell. The question is then, when was that prophecy fulfilled? For the answer, we should look at the grand purpose of the prophetic ministry of Jesus. The answer is obvious if we simply consider the time involved in Jesus’ earthly ministry in comparison to the time he has spent ministering from heaven. Jesus ministered on earth for 33 and one-half years. He has been ministering in heaven since 31 A.D. for a total of 1,983 years and counting. Before returning to heaven Jesus declared himself to Peter and the Apostles as The Rock upon which the foundation of the His Church would be built. Note, Jesus refers to the Church as His: “…..and upon this rock I will build my church.” Matthew 16:18 Please note that when Jesus made this statement he pointed to himself as the Rock upon which the Church would be built…not Peter. “Peter” means “stone,” not rock. Jesus was referred to in I Cor. 10:4 as that “spiritual Rock that followed them was Christ.” Why would he come to earth and die only to build his Church, his body, upon a sinful man? When Jesus rose from the dead and established his church forty days later, he also gave his Church gift ministries. “Wherefore he saith, When he ascended up on high, he led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men… And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets;” Ephesians 4:8 & 11 Whoa! Let’s stop right there. Seeing as how the prophets are listed after apostles and before evangelists, it is clear that these prophets are not the Old Testament prophets. The prophets in this list are Jesus’ gift to the church. So, from where and from whom do these prophets receive their message? The answer is in Hebrews. “See that ye refuse not him that speaketh: for if they escaped not who refused him that spake on earth, much more shall not we escape, if we turn away from him that speaketh from heaven.” Hebrews 12:25 Would you like to take a guess in what capacity the heavenly speaker is speaking? Jesus is speaking as “that Prophet.” The next question is: to whom is he speaking directly? He is speaking directly to those prophets whom He has placed in His church. Finally, what is the message of these last day prophets? Something the Church has never heard before even though the message comes directly from the word of God written by the Apostles and in many cases, the Old Testament prophets. The answer of todays’ prophets speaking the unknown and/or the unheard, is not a new exercise. All one has to do is read the messages of the Old Testament prophets and it becomes immediately apparent that their messages were not familiar ones. It is also clear that their message was not believed. Consequently, many of them were murdered. They were murdered not because of the message itself but because they claimed to be God’s spokesperson! In the passage referred to in Deuteronomy where “that Prophet” is first mentioned, the passage closes with information identifying a false prophet. The point is that there will never be only false prophets without the reality of a true prophet. The apostle Peter makes the same point in the same order in II Peter 1:21 and 2:3. The first reference is to the true prophets who speak under the influence of the Holy Ghost followed with: “But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction. And many shall follow their pernicious ways; by reason of whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of.” Notice the change in verse one. The focus goes from false prophets to false teachers. The damage being done to true prophets is the direct result of false teachers. The denial of the Lord that bought them is a direct reference to the message of the Lord Himself, as “That Prophet.” If the professing Church really believes Jesus is coming soon it should at least realize that not all of the “so-called” prophets are in the false category and if the Church really believes in the imminent coming of the Lord, by now they should have stumbled upon at least one true prophet….And then believe him.

To read more current revelations from Pastor Steve, check out his book published September of 2017 on Amazon.com

 https://smile.amazon.com/Gods-Final-Secret-Stephen-Benton/dp/1976338476/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1509271792&sr=1-1&keywords=god%27s+final+secret+by+stephen+benton

KEEPING THE SABBATH by Pastor Stephen Benton

Keeping The Sabbath This article addresses the issue of observing the Sabbath Day. There are many religions and denominations where the focal point is whether or now we are required to keep the Sabbath Day. The subject at hand is whether the Apostles kept the Sabbath. Before I go into detail and offer up a plethora of evidence such as that which was offered by the Sabbath keepers, let us cut to the chase and establish what we mean by keeping the Sabbath. The real point under consideration is whether or not the Apostles kept the Sabbath according to the Law of Moses as a requirement essential to New Testament salvation. In the fifteenth chapter of Acts, the Church faced a similar issue. The issue was circumcision. “And certain men which came down from Judea taught the brethren, and said. Except ye be circumcised after the manner of Moses, ye cannot be saved.” Acts 15:1 “When therefore Paul and Barnabas had no small dissention and disputation with them, they determined that Paul and Barnabas, and certain other of them , should go up to Jerusalem unto the apostles and elders about this question. Verse 2 “But there rose up certain of the sect of the Pharisees which believed, saying, That it was needful to circumcise them, and to keep the Law of Moses.” Verse 5 The issue is clear. There were those enforcing the Mosaic law of circumcision as mandatory for New Testament salvation. The apostles did not ratify their view as indicated by Peter’s remarks. “And God which knoweth the hearts, bare them witness, giving them the Holy Ghost, even as he did unto us; And put no difference between us and them, purifying their hearts by faith. Now therefore why tempt ye God, to put a yoke upon the neck of the disciples, which neither our fathers nor we were able to bear. But we believe that through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ we shall be saved, even as they.” Verses 8 - 11 Peter’s comments echo the summation given by God in Romans regarding the success rate of those who were under the Law of Moses, also called the dispensation of law: “Now we know that what things soever the law saith, it saith to them who are under the law: that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God.” Romans 3:19 Translated: Gentiles were not the recipients of the Law of Moses. Those who were the recipients, Israelites, failed to measure up to its demands. That included observing the Sabbath. The following verse tells us that even if God’s chosen people actually kept all 613 ordinances of the law, they still would not have been pronounced justified by God. “Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight; for by the law is the knowledge of sin.” Verse 20 The next verse delineates the difference between the Mosaic Law and the dispensation of grace. Jesus Christ brought salvation to Jew and Gentile alike not by obedience to written ordinances but through faith in the finished work of Christ. Jesus himself told his listeners not to think of him as one who came to destroy the Law of Moses but to view him as the only one whose life successfully fulfilled the Law of Moses. He did not achieve that feat through a checklist routine. Keeping all of the law all of the time was a natural act for Jesus because the Law of Moses itself was written based on the character and life of who Jesus was. It was obvious that those in Jesus’ time who thought they were keeping the Sabbath were not doing so due to their continuous conflict with Jesus regarding his Sabbath day actions. Those who accused Jesus of breaking the law of the Sabbath were guilty of having Sabbath actions but not possessing a Sabbath heart, much like those who enforce keeping the Sabbath today as a requirement for salvation. “But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets, Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference. For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.” Romans 3: 21-23 There are many scriptures such as those posted associating the Apostles with Sabbath meeting and sabbatical affairs but there is not one single passage indicating that they enforced keeping the Sabbath as a requirement for salvation. Why? “For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth.” Romans 10:4 For a deeper understanding on this subject, read Paul’s passage in Romans 14: 1 – 7 It should be noted that the Old Testament feast of Weeks was established by God as the birthday of the New Testament church, also known as Pentecost. The church was born on Sunday and the Apostles met in worship on Sunday. Yet even though that was the official day for the birth of the church, it too was never required as the day of worship by the Apostles. Going to church on Sunday is not a requirement of salvation.

Is Jesus the GOD of Israel, according to the Scriptures?

Jesus is the God of Israel, according to the scriptures. \ Matthew 1:17 gives the geneology of Jesus from David through his step-father Joseph (for want of a better term. He was actually conceived by the Holy Spirit of God) this was from the royal line of Solomon, David's oldest son. Luke 3:23-38 gives his geneology through his mother Mary as a descendant from the legal line of Nathan, David's other son. Had the throne still existed in Jerusalem when Jesus was born, he would have been king. He is proven to be a direct descendant of David in the scriptures. Now in Matthew 22:42 Jesus asked the Pharisees, what they thought of Christ, "Whose son is he? They answered him, "the son of David. He then asked them, "How then does David in spirit call him Lord, saying, The LORD said unto my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand, till I make thine enemies thy footstool? If David then call him Lord, how is he his son? And no man was able to answer him a word, neither durst any man from that day forth ask him any more questions."

 How would a modern Jewish unbeliever answer that question? The answer would take them to the same place the Pharisees found themselves...they would have no answer, because they would have to admit that he is the LORD, God in the flesh who came down to earth to offer salvation to any and all who would believe on him. Deut. 6:4 says, "Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD..." Isaiah 9:6 says "For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace." 

Who answers to those titles? God only! Those titles will be given to Jesus when He rules and reigns on the earth after the tribulation and all of his enemies have been put under his feet! God has fulfilled his promise that he gave to Abraham in Genesis 22:8 when he spoke through Abraham to Isaac, "My son, God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering..." He has, indeed, provided HIMSELF as the lamb slain before the foundation of the world to save his people from their sins. Just as the angel told Joseph when he confronted him about Mary's pregnancy in Matthew 1:20-21: "...saying, "Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost. And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins."

It goes on to say in verses 23 and 24 that all these things were done that the prophecy of Isaiah 7:14 might be fulfilled: "Therefore, the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel..." In Romans 11:25 Paul says "...Blindness, in part, has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles be come in. And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob: For this is my covenant unto them when I shall take away their sins." In Revelation 3:18 The LORD our God says, "I counsel you to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that you may be rich; and white raiment, that you may be clothed, and that the shame of your nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eye salve, that you may see!."

 For a fuller explanation of these truths, Check out "God's Final Secret" by Pastor Stephen Benton available on Amazon.com:

 https://smile.amazon.com/Gods-Final-Secret-Stephen-Benton/dp/1976338476/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1509436006&sr=8-1&keywords=God%27s+Final+Secret

WE KNOW WHAT DANIEL DID IN THE LIONS'S DEN.....but what will YOU do? "AND YOU?" by Pastor Stephen Benton

And You? I don't know about you but the message Wednesday night hit with the power of a runaway train. If anyone was under the impression that the study of the era of the Antichrist would be weeks of ho-hum sessions studying about someone who would not even be revealed until after the rapture, you've got another 'think' coming. To make matters worse, for the same misled crowd, hearing God say that He has said all he is going to say on the subject of the rapture gave additional cause for a laid-back, mark-time attitude. Well, for those for whom those shoes fit, wake up! Even though God may have already given us the bulk of the information necessary for the rapture, you can be sure that God has not risen up early in this latest installment of truth because He has nothing better to do. The information coming now is vital for just making the rapture even though the subject of the subject matter will not be revealed until after our main event.

My personal concern above and beyond being proven to be acceptable to the Lord that I might attain the resurrection and or the change is will I be able to endure that ten day stretch prior to the rapture. It reminds me of the paradox on aging: Nobody wants to get old but the only way to avoid getting old is to die young. In this context, I don't want to face the difficulties of the ten day stretch but the only way to avoid that road is to die prior to that time. That's not even an option though, for those of you like me who volunteered to be here for the duration. Those words, "alive and remain until the coming of the Lord" are beginning to loom large and the only way that truth will become a reality is by a thorough preparation of the current subject.

But back to the title question: And You? The class Wednesday jerked me out of the nice stories of Daniel, Shadrach, Meshack, and Abednego. These men made their decisions based on their faith in God and on their conviction in God's word. They were in situations where the very words, edicts, and commands of the King himself, in whose courts their daily activities were performed, put their lives at stake. The reality that hit me, again, was that God expects us to make the same decisions. God informed us about his attitude and ego and of the fact that He intends that His name be glorified on the face of the earth. And how can that be accomplished except by our actions, actions that will put the spotlight on God himself? If you haven't gathered anything else during the course of the messages for the past several years it should be understood by now that every situation of deliverance in the scriptures takes the delivered into a life and death scenario. I erased the message of the Peter Mentality to clear space for this message without going through a formatting exercise but at this point of this message, that message would fit right in. When one dies for a cause in this world, it is said that they have paid the ultimate price. The ultimate price to me is giving one's life for a cause and then ending up in hell. That's an unimaginable price. Death, to us, cannot really be looked upon as paying a price because after crossing over we come into an inheritance that never fades. But even with that truth in mind, it doesn't put death into a fairy tale setting. Should we be called upon to pay such a price, expect that payment to be on behalf of one another. Then and only then can the words of Jesus really be fulfilled when he said "by this shall all men know that ye are my disciples."

Come to think of it, I can't find a scriptural reference where that truth was fulfilled. And You, what story will be written about you? Knowing the ways of God, it most likely will not come down to a fiery furnace or a lion's den or anything nearly as spectacular, it will probably actually come down to one of us laying down our life for someone in our midst whom we know. Only the power of the Holy Ghost and the love of God that has been shed abroad in our hearts can make such an idea a reality. And you, are you ready?

To hear more truth from this prophet, check out his book, "God's Final Secret" available on Amazon.com: 

https://smile.amazon.com/Gods-Final-Secret-Stephen-Benton/dp/1976338476/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1509436006&sr=8-1&keywords=God%27s+Final+Secret

1997 "…at the last trump…" CHAPTER SEVEN: EVERYBODY TALKIN' 'BOUT HEAVEN AIN'T GOIN' THERE!

1997 "…at the last trump…" by G. Stephen Benton 

CHAPTER SEVEN: EVERYBODY TALKIN' 'BOUT HEAVEN AIN'T GOIN' THERE! 

WHAT DIFFERENCE DOES IT MAKE 

WHEN THE RAPTURE WILL TAKE PLACE? 

     That question has been asked of me several times by believers. the prevailing attitude within the Church is that if Jesus is coming, whenever he comes, we're going and that's that! The Church has adopted that attitude because for centuries it has la bored under the impression that initial salvation qualifies one for automatic entry into heaven. That is not the case. Israel was under the same impression after they were saved out of the land of Egypt. Because God promised Canaan to Abraham centuries before Israel became a nation, those who came out of Egypt accepted the land of Canaan as a given. Under Moses, the nation reached Canaan a little over a year after their departure from Egypt. But en route to Canaan, they continually tempted God by not believing his word. They had what God called "an evil heart of unbelief."

     The writer to the Hebrews admonished his readers not to emulate the actions of Israel with the following words: "Wherefore (as the Holy Ghost saith, To-day if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts, as in the provocation, in the day of temptation in the wilderness:

    "When your fathers tempted me, proved me, and saw my works forty years. Wherefore I was grieved with that generation, and said, they do always err in their heart; and they have not known my ways. So I sware in my wrath, they shall not enter into my rest.)" Heb. 3:7-11

     The word to-day appears five times in the third and fourth chapters of Hebrews. Whenever God repeats himself, he should be listened to with undivided attention. In the scripture, the "To-day" refers to a period of time when the grace of God is being extended. God expects his word to be believed when it is heard. In this case, he limits the time for his word to be believed. God is patient and gracious, full of mercy and slow to anger. But he can be provoked beyond measure. That's what Israel had done to God. Every time God attempted to prove them, they turned the tables on God and put him on trial. He indicted that congregation because they saw his works but never cam to know his ways. God accused the people of having an unbelieving heart. God has the power to save to the utmost. There is not one sin that you or I can commit that goes beyond God's saving ability except the sin of unbelief. God's hands of deliverance are tied when he is dealing with someone who does not believe his word.
     In the tenth chapter of Romans Paul showed that faith in God is accomplished in the life of an individual if that person hears the word of the Lord. Further, in the letter to the Hebrews we are told that "without faith it is impossible to please God." Throughout history, God has been searching for the rare individual who will believe his word without accompanying signs. Because today's Church does not have an ear to hear the voice of the Spirit, it has little or no faith! Because it has very little faith, it is constantly looking for God to prove his word with a display of signs. God initiated signs as an aid for unbelief. Once it has been established that God is faithful to his spoken and written word, signs should no longer be necessary for believers.

     The message announcing the day of the Rapture is essentially a sign-less message because God has provided an abundance of scripture announcing the day of his appearing. Those signs covered earlier are gracious confirmations but they are meaningless without the scriptural foundation that allows us to know the day. But because the message has been given to a Church Age who no longer has an ear to hear what the Spirit has to say to it, much of the so-called believing church will stumble at this message and lose the opportunity to be with the Lord forever! Mind you, the Church has no problem with the fact of his coming, the gagging part of the message is God's announcement of the day. Hearing God's word is the ultimate duty and responsibility of every saint but this present Church Age has turned a deaf ear to the word of God. By doing so, it has caused Christ to leave the sanctuary and take a position outside the door.:
     "Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me." Rev. 3:20

     That text has often been preached as an evangelistic text tailored to the saving of sinners. That passage is addressed to the last days' Church Age, the one we are living in right now! Jesus has moved out of today's Church. He is knocking at its door in search of those within who will come out and hear his voice. The reason Jesus left his Church was because his voice was being ignored by those who profess to be called by his name. For the same reason Jesus said he would "spue" this Church out of his mouth. Today's Church must come to the realization that it is in the same situation today that Israel was in when that nation approached Canaan.

     Israel believed that their entry into Canaan was automatic ad the Church today believes the same regarding its entry into heaven. Paul warned the Church against making the same error Israel made: "Moreover, brethren, I would not that ye should be ignorant, how that all our fathers were under the cloud, and all passed through the sea; And were all baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea; and did all eat the same spiritual meat; and did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they were overthrown in the wilderness. Now these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come." I Cor.10:1-6, 11

     Paul used the word all five times. His objective is to over-emphasize that Israel was saved with a common salvation. Just what does that mean? There are many religions in the world and each of their individual members believes that theirs is the right religion. But in truth, God ordained only one religion, the one given to Israel. God has recognized only one group of people as his people: the nation of Israel. God never made a covenant with any other nation except Israel. If anyone had a right to claim that their religion is acceptable to God, the Israelites could. Yet, in spite of the fact that the entire nation was saved by the blood of the lamb in Egypt, they did not make it into the promised land. The children of Israel were not kept out of Canaan because of sin, they were barred because of their unbelief.

     Israel's character ever since they were delivered had been one of murmuring and complaining. They had a history of not believing God. They provoked, tried, and proved God every time he opened his mouth. They were stiff-necked and rebellious. God endured their rebelliousness until they reached the border of the promised land. There, God did the unimaginable, he gave them a faith hurdle that he knew they would not jump and those who did not jump that hurdle did not enter Canaan. In this final Church Age, God has presented a faith hurdle for this Church to leap. The hurdle is the announcement of the Day of his coming. That announcement has come forth against the backdrop of "no man knoweth."

     Those in the visible Church who do not belong to Christ are going to reject the message. They will rely on their past salvation experience to take them to heaven. However, God is making it quite clear that yesterday's faith is insufficient in meeting the promises of God for today.  No believer will be kept out of heaven because of sin. Your sins and my sins were paid for in full at Calvary. Since dying on the cross almost 2,000 years ago, Christ has never offered himself again as a sin offering for this world. Those of you who placed your faith in the efficacy of the blood of Jesus received remission of all of your sins, past, present and future. While Jesus will not keep anyone out of heaven because of sin, he will keep this Church Age out because of unbelief!  We are told to labor to enter into the rest of God. The Church has been preaching a message of works for a long time. Works do not work where salvation is concerned. The only work we can do to be saved is to work to enter by resting in the faith of the completed work of the cross. Any works of righteousness that we do after we are saved are works performed because we are saved; works motivated by our love for God and prompted by the Holy Spirit within us. Those works will receive a reward in heaven but they are useless in gaining entry into heaven.

     Israel did not believe Daniel when he told them that they would be released from captivity in about two or three years. When the time came to leave Babylon, only 43,260 Jews left! Many remained behind because of unbelief. Others had become satisfied with life in Babylon in much the same way that many professing Christians today are satisfied with life down here on the earth. Over five hundred years after Israel came out of Babylon, John the Baptist came preaching about the kingdom of heaven as we referred to earlier saying, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." Jesus preached the same message. The Jews rejected the kingdom message because it did not mesh with their worldly plans. Their rejection of the message and the kingdom broke Jesus' heart. Before his death, he wept over Jerusalem because it did not know the time of its visitation. The offer of the kingdom to the Jews was postponed and God instituted the Church.

     Once God reveals the time of his appearing it is time then for the Church to make its calling and election sure. When Daniel discovered the time of their deliverance from Babylon, he began praying and taking care of spiritual business above everything else. Hebrews 9:28 tells us that Christ will appear a second time "to those who look for him." Understand that going to heaven in the Rapture is not an automatic departure, it will be accomplished by believing the message of when he will come and then adjusting your life in eager anticipation of his arrival. When you go on vacation you do not prepare to go on the day of the departure. You save money, buy clothes for the trip, make travel arrangements, arrange for a house sitter to tend to the animals, plants, mail, etc. Much planning is involved. You don't just buy an airline ticket and forget all about the day.

     So it is with the Rapture. When God swore in his wrath that Israel would not enter into his rest, he wasn't just talking about the promised land, he was talking about eternal life also. Joshua led their children into Canaan but the scriptures state plainly that Joshua did not give them rest: 

     "For if Jesus (Joshua) had given them rest, then would he not afterward have spoken of another day. There remaineth therefore, a rest to the people of God." Heb. 4:8&9

     We can learn much from the world itself in our effort to understand the importance of knowing the times of the end. In professional basketball and football games there is a "two minute" announcement near the end of the game. At that time both the losing and winning teams make major adjustments in the game. In essence, the strategy of the game becomes paramount in the last two minutes. So should it be with the Church. Some things should automatically cease to be important as we head into the final stretch. This is the time when the Church should "lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us." (Heb. 12:10)
   
     The balance of that message admonishes us to take on the mind of Christ and lay hold to salvation. In Israel, as the Jubile year grew closer the value of the property decreased. If an individual were to sell his property, he was restricted from charging as much for the land as he could if the Jubile year was many years away. Conversely, the further away the Jubile year was, the higher the price of the property. Because the Church is so close to its "jubilee" all earthly possessions should now be at their lowest value and continue to be so until we are taken out of here. (Lev. 25:51) One can immediately see the vast difference in the attitude of the members of the Church today by comparing it with the initial members of the Church in 31 AD. They, not knowing the date of his appearing, sold their houses, land and possessions. This Church age is so attached to this world that it cannot let its earthly treasures go, not even for a few months. Its heart is earth-bound because its treasures are here. Why would a Church who is rich and in need of nothing even want to go to be with the Lord?

     Actually, there have always been two churches: the visible Church (the one recognized by the world,) and the invisible Church (the one recognized by God as his own true Church.) The invisible Church is actually much smaller than the visible Church. many will be surprised to find that they are not going to be taken in the Rapture because they do not belong to Christ and are not members of the invisible Church.

ADMONITION FROM THE PROPHET

ADMONITION FROM THE PROPHET

I pour living water on you
Yet you refuse to grow
Are you really that confident with what you think you know?

I shine a light of prophecy on a dark unchallenged place
And you remain in darkness while content to hide your face

You say you serve a Living God?
And yet you seal his tomb

Unless you hear His words to day
it will bring about your doom

You hide behind your sayings and your silly cutesy stuff
You plus it, you amen it; you high five it, that’s enough!

But when the Words of Truth reveal secrets you should embrace,
You turn….................You hide;
Your brain goes dead
That unbelieving face!

That comfort zone is where you stay;
"No man knoweth" is what you say;
Won’t believe what the Lord has to say.

God’s Word when he speaks is very clear,
But your ears you've closed so they won’t hear.

I've been given a job not easy for most;
But it's a message straight from the Holy Ghost.

"Despise not prophesying;" don't refuse His speech
Heaven is within your grasp and is so easy to reach.

Jesus said "my yoke is easy" and His burden is so light;
Why make it heavy with your stiff necks

 and miss what is in your sight?

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PRAISE THE LORD!

PRAISE THE LORD!

The Prophet

The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear?  The Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?" (Psalm 27)

The answer to both questions is, no one.  In fact, we have not been given the spirit of fear, period!  We are not beholden to anyone because no one here on earth can claim to be the strength of our life.

We are new creatures in Christ.  In Christ, we actually have a new source of strength.  the strength we have in Christ is a measured strength according to the scriptures:

"and as thy days, so shall thy strength be." (Deut. 33:25)

That is reassuring; to know that God is personally aware of the needs of each and every one of us.  To know that God has already inventoried our day before it starts and has measured out sufficient strength for that day.  The second verse in that Psalm talks about our enemies.  God knows all of them and He knows exactly when they will exert their will against us and that too, is covered.

For these great wonders let the Church say Hallelujah!  Let the Church say, "Praise the Lord!"

painting by Stephen Benton