This week's ongoing Bible study will be part 3 of Acts chapter 19

The Lucrative Business of Fake gods

Acts chapter 19, verses 23-31

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Last week when we finished part 2 of Acts chapter 19, the apostle Paul was performing many miraculous healings after his arrival in Ephesus, which we also discussed the previous week in part 1. After traveling all through the province of Asia, which took may months of arduous walking since Paul had no transportation, he arrived at Ephesus and made it his home for the next 2 years. This week as we begin part 3 of this 4-part series on Acts chapter 19, the effects of Paul's long stay in Ephesus are beginning to be felt far beyond their base at the lecture hall of Tyrannus (see verse 9). As a result, the leaders of other pagan religions there in Ephesus began to feel that Paul is encroaching on their 'territory'.

As time goes on, the growth of Christianity (called “The Way” back then, see verse 9) is spiking to the point that the other religious leaders feel threatened by the activities of Paul, and indirectly the other Twelve as well. But for now we will continue to focus on Paul's missionary journeys, with this being his second of three, not counting his journey to Rome, which was his last and which cost him his life. Concern is running so deep among those whose businesses were associated with all these various pagan religions that an emergency meeting has been called by a man who we would call the foreman, or maybe “lead craftsman”, for those who were associated with this pagan industry. So let's take up where we left off last week, beginning at verse 23.

“23) About that time there arose a great disturbance about the Way. 24) A silversmith named Demetrius, who made silver shrines of Artemis, brought in a lot of business for the craftsmen there. 25) He called them together, along with the workers in related trades, and said: 'You know, my friends, that we receive a good income from this business. 26) And you see and hear how this fellow Paul has convinced and led astray large numbers of people here in Ephesus and in practically the whole province of Asia. He says that gods made by human hands are no gods at all. 27) There is danger not only that our trade will lose its good name, but also that the temple of the great goddess Artemis will be discredited; and the goddess herself, who is worshiped throughout the province of Asia and the world, will be robbed of her divine majesty.'”

Here again in verse 23, we have an example of the early Church being called “The Way”. I wish that it were still so, since the name makes a lot more sense than all the various denominational names, which are like grains of sand on a beach. But Jesus Christ is The Way, the Truth and The Life, as John's gospel relates it to us, and that's where that name came from. So we have this individual Demetrius who makes silver shrines for their pagan god Artemis, and you can be sure he was charging a premium price for each and every one of those idols. He says in verse 25 and 26, “You know, my friends, that we receive a good income from this business. 26) And you see and hear how this fellow Paul has convinced and led astray large numbers of people here in Ephesus and in practically the whole province of Asia. He says that gods made by human hands are no gods at all.” To these people, Paul's activities had become intolerable in much the same way as the activities of Christ Jesus had infuriated the Jews in Jerusalem more than a decade earlier.

The apostle Paul, it seems, had “led astray large numbers of people” (according to Demetrius) by convincing them that “gods made by human hands are no gods at all”. How dare he do such a thing! After all, if their pagan gods were as fake as Paul said, then why were their businesses so successful? After all, they reasoned, we can judge things by the fruit that they bear. Since their idol-making enterprises were doing so well, that counts as 'bearing good fruit'. This, of course, was what I would now call defective reasoning, but never mind all that for the moment. Those who had been worshiping false gods, or none at all, found themselves being introduced to the real God, whose only Son died for us all. Some believed Paul and some did not, and those who didn't opposed Paul vigorously.

“27) There is danger not only that our trade will lose its good name, but also that the temple of the great goddess Artemis will be discredited; and the goddess herself, who is worshiped throughout the province of Asia and the world, will be robbed of her divine majesty.” Today we have a goddess that is worshiped throughout the Western world, in all the capitalist countries, and that goddess is material prosperity and the things it can buy, including the world's largest military to protect it all. The driver of all this prosperity is the stock market, which is funded by banks. The banks, in turn, run on credit, which runs on confidence which keeps the whole thing going. But if everyone loses confidence (in their ability to repay each other), then the whole thing comes unraveled and falls apart. That's what happened during the 2008 crash on Wall Street that started the Great Recession.

So Demetrius and his cronies were afraid that Paul and The Way were going to destroy 'confidence' (the misplaced faith of their customers) in their businesses and cause them all to crash, sort of like what happened in 2008, except with religious overtones. And they were all livid with Paul and his helpers to such an extent that a mob scene and a riot unfolded, as we will see in part 2 of today's lesson. “28) When they heard this, they were furious and began shouting: 'Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!' 29) Soon the whole city was in an uproar. The people seized Gaius and Aristarchus, Paul’s traveling companions from Macedonia, and all of them rushed into the theater together. 30) Paul wanted to appear before the crowd, but the disciples would not let him. 31) Even some of the officials of the province, friends of Paul, sent him a message begging him not to venture into the theater.” (Acts 19, verses 28-31)

Understand that when the text says, “The whole city was in an uproar”, Ephesus at that time had a population of about 225,000 men, women and children. So it's easy to see that this crown easily numbered into the tens of thousands, possibly in excess of 100,000 people! Paul didn't stand a chance of being heard over all the noise and confusion, and yet evidently he wanted to try anyway. But as you can see, any attempt to do so would have cost him his life, and it wasn't Paul's time to depart this earth just yet. God had lots more work for Paul to do. That's why he was stopped by his associates and helpers from doing so. They were simply doing God's will. So how does the riot finally end? What will become of Paul and his helpers? To find out, you'll all have to come back next week for the conclusion of Acts chapter 19.

The False "Church System" Deception

Another False Prediction Disproved, More Phony Prophets Humiliated

Israel's 70^th Anniversary Passes Without the

Predicted Happenings of Biblical Proportions

By Pastor Paul J. Bern

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Here we go, people, another predicted date of great import and spiritual significance, not to mention a big event for Judaism as well as Christianity, has come and gone, almost without incident. I write 'almost' out of a sense of shame and regret towards my Jewish brothers and sisters, whose country Israel sent armed forces to shoot dozens of Palestinian protesters just for protesting. Israel seems to have forgotten that theirs is the only democracy in the Middle Eastern region, and that one of the basic tenets of democracy is the right to freedom of expression. The Israeli Defense Force is actively preventing the Palestinian people from exercising this fundamental human right while forcefully exercising it themselves. The whole world sees this glaring double standard, and it is no coincidence that the American people are experiencing this same set of circumstances here at home. I have predicted in the past that this entire situation is unsustainable, and I continue to predict this will result in civil unrest globally (not just here in the US). But I digress....

This 70^th anniversary of the founding of Israel as a nation was alleged to be accompanied by the arrival of Christ for the “rapture” of the Church, and this is based on Scripture, which I will get to in just a minute. But for right now, the most harmful consequences of such false predictions is that it discourages people from making the necessary preparations for the real event when it actually occurs. At least some will join the chorus of cynics whom the Bible predicts will mockingly say, “Where is the promise of Christ’s coming?” (2 Peter 3: 3-4). Let's not forget that it was Jesus himself who said to his apostles that no one knows when he is coming back to the earth, not even himself, but only his heavenly Father.

Let's pause and look up what He said about that. “As Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately. 'Tell us', they said, 'when will this happen, and what will be the sign of your coming, and of the end of the age?' Jesus answered, 'Watch out that no one deceives you. For many will come, claiming, 'I am the Christ', and will deceive many. You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. All these are the beginning of birth pains.” [Matthew chapter 24, verses 3-8]

I'm sure you noticed the very first sentence of Christ's response, “Watch out that no one deceives you”. At this point it is easy to see that Jesus was talking about the times in which we are currently living. There are and will be a lot of “false Christs” who will deceive an awful lot of people. Jesus wasn't only talking about people claiming to be Jesus Christ in the flesh, he was talking about entire churches or even denominations. 'Ours is the true way', one church might say, and yet another different from the first may say the same thing. Jesus was talking about divisions within the body of believers, as well as phony con artists operating from without. Or on television. The increased number of earthquakes that have been recorded over the last decade or more are also in the news almost on a daily basis. When it comes to famines, humankind has them in spades, starting with a 2014 United Nations report saying that 50,000 children per day, ages 5 and under, die from starvation globally. Pause and reflect on that for a minute. Moreover, 1 in every 5 American school children will experience homelessness at least once before they turn eighteen. But these things, our Lord said, are “the beginning of birth pains”.

At this point, I really should add some additional background to add more clarity to this week's message. I'm going to mention 2 things here – the Great Tribulation and the coming of the Antichrist. Whatever anyone has read or heard elsewhere, get ready to be warned about the truth about the world's future as the Bible tells it. Most everybody knows about the 7-year Great Tribulation that is prophesied elsewhere in the Bible, mainly in the books of Daniel and Revelation, but which were written many hundreds of years apart. This 7-year period will be the final time period leading up to the return of Jesus Christ, who will proceed to rule the world from its new capital in Jerusalem for 1,000 years.

The main argument revolves around the timing of this 7-year period. Some say it hasn't started yet, others insist we 're already in it. There are many details I could delve into regarding this matter, but it all boils down to what Jesus told his apostles: “Now learn this lesson from the fig tree: As soon as its twigs get tender and its leaves come out, you know that summer is near. Even so, when you see all these things, you know that it is near, right at the door. I tell you the truth, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened. Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away. No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven nor the Son, but only the Father”. [Matthew 24: 32-36]

Many Biblical scholars and pastors, unfortunately, take the phrase, “this generation will not pass away until all these things have happened”, and try to add something that isn't there. You probably know that the nation of Israel was founded on May 14, 1948. You likely also know that a 'generation' in the Bible was considered to be 40 years when those words were originally written. For all you long-time Christians like myself, it was widely prophesied on the then-relatively-new Christian TV stations that Jesus would return one generation after Israel's founding, or May 14, 1988. Much to the discredit of certain elements within main stream Christianity, we all know what happened back then, and one of the purposes of this week's posting is to try and prevent this from happening a second time during these last days. I am sick and tired of bogus ministers who give a bad reputation to the name of Christ! But if 40 years isn't what Jesus meant, many Christians were saying, and the average life expectancy here in the 'end times' is a little over 70 for men, then 1948 plus 70 years equals 2018. Aha!! So that's when our Lord will return! Got it, now let's get ready!

Nope, hold on a minute. Wait, wait – stop. Just like May of 1988, May 14, 2018 just came and went unceremoniously (excluding all the Palestinian unrest I mentioned at the top of this posting). Let's all think back to what the Bible says: “No one knows the day or the hour”. Isn't that what the Lord said? Not even himself, He stated. OK, now let's look at this from another angle. If May 14^th, 2018 was the day of Christ's return, and since the Great Tribulation is of 7 years duration, then the 'tribulation' should have started back in the Spring of 2011, and the Antichrist should have come to power about the same time. Clearly, since none of these has occurred, all those other “predictions” won't come true either.

So, now let me move on to the second topic, and that is the coming of the Antichrist, who will come upon the world scene according to the prophet Daniel (see Daniel chapter 12 in the Old Testament), as well as the book of Revelation chapter 13. As before, without having you all plunge headfirst into the murky pool of end times prophecy, let me make a generalization or two. In the first place, World War Three and the Gog-Magog war of Ezekiel chapters 38 and 39 in the Old Testament are one and the same. Moreover, the Antichrist will not come to power until just after this war's conclusion. While I would be quick to agree that the stage for WW3 is currently being set, we aren't there just yet – but, continue to watch events unfold in the Middle East very closely, because that's where it's going to start. 

 

t will not be until the conclusion of that war that the Antichrist will come to power to enforce his own brand of peace. Three and a half years later he will break his own peace treaty, and that is when the countdown to the final 3.5 years will commence before Christ's return. The final event before our Savior's return in this context is the Battle of Armageddon, which is not the same as the God-Magog war of Ezekiel chapters 38 and 39. So, to dispel another myth or false teaching (take your pick), World War Three and Armageddon are two different battles set approximately seven years apart.

So you can pretty much disregard all the predictions on “Christian TV”, as well as all the cult churches, some of which are operating right here in the US, regarding the return of our Lord and Savior. Once again, Jesus has proven them all wrong while proving himself absolutely right. “No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven nor the Son, but only the Father.” Jesus told his apostles he had no idea when his return would occur. That return and its timing are on a need-to-know basis, and frankly we don't need to know. Still, the stage is being set and the players are taking their places for the Ezekiel 38-39 war as I write this. Therefore we must all remain vigilant. Remember what else Jesus mentioned about this in another part of the gospels: “The Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.” That statement still holds true because it comes from the Son of God.

Bible study this week is the first half of Galatians chapter one

Paul Speaks Out Against False Teachers

[Galatians 1, verses 1-12]

Let's now continue on to the book of Galatians in our studies of the apostle Paul. Not many letters have had such a great impact on the western world as the letter of Paul to the church at Galatia. Indeed, this letter became the cornerstone of the Protestant Reformation. It has also been called the “Magna Carta of Christianity,” and this is truly an accurate description. On the other hand, Romans is generally regarded as the greatest of Paul’s letters, and the Roman church became one of the major centers of Christendom. It is therefore not surprising to find that both these great letters are quite similar to each other in regard to their content. However, their occasion and purpose are quite different. The purpose of this paper is to discuss the audiences to which these letters were written, their purpose, and the historical circumstances which prompted them to be written. As we begin, we find the apostle Paul giving one of the many churches he founded a warm greeting, but then his tone abruptly changes as he begins his message.

“Paul, an apostle – sent not from men nor by man, but by Jesus Christ and God the Father, who raised him from the dead – and all the brothers with me, to the churches in Galatia: Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, who gave himself for our sins to rescue us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father, to whom be glory for ever and ever, amen. I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting the one who called you by the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel – which is really no gospel at all. Evidently some people are throwing you into confusion and are trying to pervert the Gospel of Christ. But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach a gospel other than what was preached to you, let him be eternally condemned! As we have already said, so I now say again: If anybody is preaching to you a gospel other than what you accepted, let him be eternally condemned!” (Galatians 1, verses 1-9, NIV)

As was the case in my previously studied letters from Paul to the Roman and Corinthian churches, so it is here. The apostle Paul's famously flowing and lavish greetings to each of the churches he founded is how he consistently starts his letters to all these churches. Notice that he uses the opportunity to remind the churches at Galatia of the faith which unites them all, that of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ and of His conquest of death itself. I find his reference to “the present evil age” rather interesting, in light of the fact that we live in a far more dangerous world now than the one Paul lived in when he wrote those words. He lived in and during the height of the Roman Empire, and Rome ruled over its subjects with an iron fist. Step out of line and they squash you like a bug. Now, where have we heard that before? Oh yeah, it's what happens in modern times to Occupy Wall St. demonstrators and protesters when they encounter law enforcement in the streets. It's also what happens when corporate, governmental or military whistle-blowers expose criminal activity within their organizations, and oftentimes when they expose stupidity, incompetence, abuse of power and conflicts of interest. True Christians should aspire to be like like any of the above individuals, because true Christians are unafraid to stand up to evil and corruption regardless of cost!

Paul then immediately changes gears, so to speak, in verse six when he insists on knowing how and why they decided to change their interpretation of the Gospel from its original meaning. “Evidently some people are throwing you into confusion and are trying to pervert the Gospel of Christ”, he wrote. He does not go into details about what he meant by that, so whatever it was it surely wasn't good. Paul holds back nothing in his judgment of those who were apparently changing certain things within the message of Christ that changed the contest or meaning of the Scripture being read. Anybody who knowingly changes the meaning or interpretation of God's word is calling God a liar, and we all know what happens to people who do that. Unfortunately, there are still people today who make a very comfortable living doing exactly that. They simply do not understand the gravity of what they are doing, nor the level of sin in their lives resulting from their actions. Their condemnation will take them completely by surprise.

It's critical to understand here that the Bible is the written word of God. It was not written by any one author, nor by several authors, particularly in light of the fact that the Bible from a historical vantage point covers about 4,000 years of human history. The Bible is so much more than merely a perennial best-seller, and there is a very good reason for that. The Bible tells the story of the salvation of Christ, which is a gift from God that is beyond compare. We do not receive this salvation because we earned it by being good persons, we receive it by God's grace, which is defined as unmerited favor, like a gift. The best example of this would be the crucifixion, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, who loved us so much that He offered himself up as a living sacrifice for all our sins. So it should be with us, giving ourselves up as living sacrifices for our Savior. Let's read how Paul ties this into his message to the Galatian church:

“Am I now trying to win the approval of men, or of God? Or am I trying to please men? If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a servant of Christ. I want you to know, brothers, that the Gospel I preached is not something man made up. I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it; rather, I received it by revelation from Jesus Christ.” (Galatians 1, verses 10-12, NIV)

In these three verses the apostle Paul sums up his comparison of the message of Christ to all the other impure versions of the gospel that were being disseminated in the Galatian churches. All the variations of the gospel being “preached” and “taught” were completely bogus. The one true Gospel is the one imparted to the 12 apostles first, then to Paul, and then outwardly to all who sincerely believe. From that time up until now, by “revelation from Jesus Christ”, it is these very words that we are reading. As the apostle John wrote in his gospel, the reason those who believe in God love Him as much as they do is because “God loved us first”. God loved us from long before we were born. Let's all make sure we reciprocate that love by emulating Christ, but also by adhering to the Word just as it is written. If we fail to do this, our faith and beliefs become compromised at best and polluted at worst, which will bring our very salvation into question in God's sight. Let's not make that mistake, but let us 'stay the course' towards our eternity with Jesus. And next week, God willing, I'll be back to go over the rest of Galatians chapter one.

Watch out that no one deceives you

Bogus Doomsday's, False Prophecies,

and the Real Returning of Christ

by Rev. Paul J. Bern

Over the last several years I have seen a lot of blog postings and also viewed a number of video's regarding Biblical end times prophecies, doomsday reports such as the impending start of World War Three, as well as predictions about catastrophes such as monstrous killer earthquakes and the planet Nibiru and so on. For example, just this past week I saw a video on You-tube titled, “Nibiru enters earth's orbit”. Undoubtedly the majority of you have already heard of this wayward planet, also called “Planet X”, or more recently “Planet 9”. Although it is factual that the presence of a large planet has been detected on the outer rim of the known solar system, NASA estimates this planet to be somewhere between Neptune and Pluto, or well over two and a quarter billion miles away. Moreover, this hypothetical new planet is estimated to be roughly two thirds the size of Jupiter, or approximately 60,000 miles in diameter. If this 9^th planet were to enter the earth's orbit, or be as close to earth as the earth is from the sun, it would be clearly visible in the sky, even during daytime. Enough said about Nibiru.

A California pastor and radio host named Harold Camping made what turned out to be a series of false prophecies dating back to the 1980's, the most recent (before his “retirement”) being that the “rapture of the church” would occur on Saturday May 21, 2011 at exactly 6PM. “Rev.” Camping and others like him have brought judgment down on themselves and their congregations (except for those individuals who left) by uttering prophecies that have turned out to be without substance. Such predictions give non-Christians one more reason to discount the Bible. In another example, many secularists dismiss the Bible because they assume that it teaches the world is only 6,000 years old. In reality, the Bible never makes such a claim about the Earth’s age. Instead, some well meaning Christians have misused the genealogies in the Bible to attempt to ascertain the date of creation. Second, predictions about the end of the world always lead some people to make foolish decisions. Just as every teacher knows how unproductive and unfocused students are the week before school lets out, God knows how tempted we would be to neglect the responsibilities he has entrusted to us if we knew the date we would be “raptured” into heaven. That is why God refuses to show us his calendar and instead instructs us to focus on our assignments. But the most harmful consequence of false predictions is that it discourages people from making the necessary preparation for the real event when it actually occurs. But some will be tempted to join the chorus of cynics whom the Bible predicts will mockingly say, “Where is the promise of Christ’s coming?” (2 Peter 3:3-4). Let's not forget that it was Jesus himself who said to his apostles that no one knows when he is coming back to the earth, not even himself, but only his heavenly Father. Let's pause and look up what He said about that. “As Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately. 'Tell us', they said, 'when will this happen, and what will be the sign of your coming, and of the end of the age?' Jesus answered, 'Watch out that no one deceives you. For many will come, claiming, 'I am the Christ', and will deceive many. You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. All these are the beginning of birth pains.” [Matthew chapter 24, verses 3-8, NIV]

I'm sure you noticed the very first sentence of Christ's response, “Watch out that no one deceives you”. At this point it is easy to see that Jesus was talking about the times in which we are currently living. The increased number of earthquakes that have been recorded over the last decade or more are in the news almost on a daily basis. When it comes to famines, humankind has them in spades, starting with a 2014 United Nations report saying that 50,000 children per day, ages 5 and under, die from starvation globally. But these things, our Lord said, are just the beginning. There will be a lot of “false Christs” who will deceive an awful lot of people. Jesus wasn't only talking about people claiming to be Jesus Christ in the flesh, he was talking about entire churches or even denominations. 'Ours is the true way', one church might say, and yet another different from the first may say the same thing. Jesus was talking about divisions within the body of believers, as well as phony con artists operating without.

At this point, I really should add some additional background to add more clarity to this week's message. I'm going to mention three things here – the Great Tribulation, the coming of the Antichrist, and the “rapture” of the church. Whatever anyone has read or heard elsewhere, get ready to enjoy hearing and be warned about the truth about the world's future as the Bible tells it. Most everybody knows about the 7-year Great Tribulation that is prophesied elsewhere in the Bible, mainly in the books of Daniel and Revelation, and which were written many hundreds of years apart. This 7-year period will be the final seven years leading up to the return of Jesus Christ, who will proceed to rule the world from its new capital in Jerusalem for 1,000 years. The main argument revolves around the timing of this 7-year period. Some say it hasn't started yet, others insist we 're already in it. There are many details I could delve into regarding this matter, but it all boils down to what Jesus told his apostles: “Now learn this lesson from the fig tree: As soon as its twigs get tender and its leaves come out, you know that summer is near. Even so, when you see all these things, you know that it is near, right at the door. I tell you the truth, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened. Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away. No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven nor the Son, but only the Father”. [Matthew 24: 32-36, NIV] Based on that last sentence, if anyone tells you orally, in writing, or on a You Tube video the exact date of Christ's return, you can be certain they are lying, and that's the nicest way I can put it. Many Biblical scholars and pastors, unfortunately, take the phrase, “this generation will not pass away until all these things have happened” and try to add something that isn't there. You probably know that the nation of Israel as founded on May 14, 1948. You likely also know that a 'generation' in the Bible was considered to be 40 years when it was originally written. For all you long-time Christians like myself, it was widely prophesied on the then-relatively-new Christian TV stations that Jesus would return one generation later on May 14, 1988. Much to the discredit of main stream Christianity, we all know what happened back then, and one of the purposes of this week's posting is to try and prevent this from happening a second time during these last days.

What am I talking about here? If 40 years isn't what Jesus meant, many Christians are saying, and the average life expectancy here in the 'end times' is a little over 70 for men, then 1948 plus 70 years equals 2018. Aha!! So that's when our Lord will return! Got it, now let's get ready! Wait, wait – stop. With slightly less than two years to go until this date, I can tell you without reservation that, like 1988, May 14, 2018 will most likely come and go without any major incidents. “No one knows the day or the hour”. Isn't that what the Lord said? Not even himself, He stated. Now let's look at this from another angle. If May 14^th, 2018 is the day of Christ's return, and since the Great Tribulation is of 7 years duration, then the 'tribulation' should have started back in the Spring of 2011, and the Antichrist should have come to power sometime last summer or so. Clearly, since none of these has occurred, those other “predictions” won't come true either. So, now let me move on to the second topic, and that is the coming of the Antichrist, who will come upon the world scene according to the prophet Daniel (see Daniel chapter 12 in the Old Testament), as well as the book of Revelation chapter 13. As before, without having you all plunge headfirst into the murky pool of end times prophecy, let me make a generalization or two. In the first place, World War Three and the Gog-Magog war of Ezekiel chapter 38 and 39 in the Old Testament are one and the same. Moreover, the Antichrist will not come to power until just after this war's conclusion. While I would be quick to agree that the stage for WW3 is currently being set, we aren't there just yet – but, continue to watch events unfold in the Middle East very closely, because that's where it's going to start. It will not be until the conclusion of that war that the Antichrist will come to power to enforce his own brand of peace, and that is when the countdown to the final 3.5 years will commence before Christ's return. The final event before our Savior's return in this context is the Battle of Armageddon, which is not the same as the God-Magog war of Ezekiel chapters 38 and 39. So, to dispel another myth or false teaching (take your pick), World War Three and Armageddon are two different battles set approximately seven years apart.

The final end-times issue I want to discuss is the so-called “rapture” of the church (I'm using quotes because the word 'rapture' isn't in the Bible). The “rapture” of the church is the abrupt taking away of Christ's Church, allegedly at the beginning of the 7-year tribulation prophesied in the Bible. Many modern pastors and nearly all TV evangelists are teaching this as being factual. Only our heavenly Father knows for sure, just as Jesus said above. A generation or two ago, few mainline Protestant churches discussed the second coming of Jesus Christ. Fifty years later, however, televangelists, network television programs, movies and books like the "Left Behind" series — which has sold more than 60 million copies — have succeeded in placing the return of Jesus Christ in the public consciousness. A 2004 Newsweek poll revealed that 55 percent of Americans believe in the “rapture”, the snatching away of all Christians prior to the end of the world and the return of Jesus Christ. Speaking as a Web pastor who preaches often about Bible prophecy, I am grateful for the general awareness people have of the promised return of Jesus Christ. My hunch is that the date God ultimately has chosen is one that will not be plastered on billboards around the country. Make no mistake about it, Jesus is coming back some day. Over 1,800 verses in the Old Testament and 300 verses in the New Testament prophesy of the Lord’s return. But I sometimes find some modern interpretations of Scripture leaving something to be desired, and the teaching about the “rapture” is one of them. To find out the truth, all we have to do is read a little farther in Matthew's gospel beyond where we were when we started. “Then you will be handed over to be persecuted and be put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of me. At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other, and many false prophets will appear and will deceive many people. Because of the increase in wickedness, the love of many will grow cold, but he who stands firm to the end shall be saved. And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come” [Matthew 24: 9-14, NIV] 

 

Now let's go back to the Book of Revelation for some similar scripture: “The beast was given a mouth to utter proud words and blasphemies and to exercise his authority forty-two months. He opened his mouth to blaspheme God, and to slander his name and his dwelling place and those who live in heaven. He was given the power to make war against the saints and to conquer them. And he was given authority over every tribe, people, language and nation. All inhabitants of the earth will worship the beast – all whose names have not been written in the book of life belonging to the Lamb that was slain from the creation of the world. He who has an ear, let him hear. If anyone is to go into captivity, into captivity they will go. If anyone is to be killed with the sword, with the sword he will be killed. This calls for patience and endurance on the part of the saints.” [Revelation chapter 13, verses 5-10, NIV]

After reading through these two carefully chosen passages of Scripture, there should be no remaining doubt in the mind of every reader that there will be no 'get out of jail free' card for any of us. If you're watching a preacher on TV, or at the church you attend, and you find yourself hearing about a “pre-tribulation rapture”, stop watching that preacher or find a better church in your area, because I just proved with the two passages above that there is no “rapture”. I let the Bible do the talking for me, this isn't just my opinion. The rapture is a false teaching!! Of course, there will be many people who will cite 1^st Thessalonians chapter 4 (“behold, in the twinkling of an eye, we shall all be changed”). Problem is, that chapter isn't talking about the second coming of Christ, the apostle Paul was writing about what happens when we die. Go back and read First Thessalonians chapter four, verses 13-18, and chapter five, verses 1-6 in any Bible version you want, and you'll see what I mean. Those verses are about what happens when we die! The church will not escape the brutal rule of the Antichrist or the horrors of World War Three. We're going to be right in the middle of it, and many of us could even get killed. Moreover, this will be happening on a global scale, meaning the United States will not escape what's coming upon the whole world – the real Tribulation yet to come. I don't think we'll have much longer to wait. Prepare yourselves accordingly.

Jesus, the Nitty-gritty God

Observations From Reading the Bible:

Jesus Was a Down-to-Earth, Nitty-gritty God

by Rev. Paul J. Bern

Before I begin this week's message, let me point out that no one can arrive at the conclusions I have arrived at here unless they read the Bible extensively. The Bible is, among many other things, humankind's owner's manual. I make it my business to read my owner's manual as often as I can. Even on the days when it seems too busy to take time to read the Word of God, the words in the Bible and the substance of their meaning are always on my mind to the greatest extent I know how. And, so it should be with anyone claiming to be a Christian and a follower of Jesus Christ. How can anyone identify as being Christian without ever reading about all the things Christ had to say, and all about what he did? Having said all that, the next thing I would like to point out is that Jesus was a lot more like us than we think, and a lot less clean cut than the iconic image of him that floats around Western culture. You know the image. It’s the one where Jesus is walking like he’s floating in robes of pristine white followed by a bunch of birds singing while women and children bring him flowers, or something like that. He’s the polished, manicured, and clearly squeaky clean Son of God.

But despite the Christian belief that Jesus was both fully God and fully man, Jesus was a rather dirty kind of God. He was the son of a Jewish carpenter, and life in the first-century when Jesus lived was far more lurid and unfinished than our collective religious memories seem to recall. To that end, I suggested recently to a couple of astounded colleagues of mine that Jesus actually had to go to relieve himself from time to time, perhaps even on the side of the road between Capernaum and Jerusalem. What blew them away the most was when I insinuated that Jesus, like almost every other human being living in the rural world in that time, might have even had severe flu-like symptoms on an occasion or two from sleeping outdoors, as it is written, “Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head” (Matt. 8:20). It seems like an obvious statement that Jesus was both God and man if you're a believer, but to others it seems at best inappropriate, and at the worst sacrilege, to imagine Jesus in this way. Instead, Western culture depicts Jesus with an ever-present halo around his head.

Actually, the Jesus of the Bible was more human than most people are conditioned to think. I call this the gritty side of Jesus. He was grittier, and a lot more like us than many believe, and that’s one of the primary reasons why Jesus appealed so many thousands of people back then, and why they followed him so readily. They could relate to him. He was authentic! He was the ultimate teacher from a small town who knew and understood the economic insecurity that was common in the first century (and which seems to be making a comeback today). Times must have been rather tough for Jesus at points in his life, for he even spoke of being homeless, having to sleep on the ground with no roof over his head. He also knew what it was like to have his message rejected and how it felt to be misunderstood. Jesus was regarded with such little significance in his hometown that one of his critics once remarked sardonically, “Isn’t this the carpenter’s son?” Jesus eventually had to move to different city (Capernaum) because his teachings so infuriated the people living in his hometown that they drove him out of Nazareth and even tried to throw him off a cliff.

The real Jesus had dirt underneath his fingernails and calluses on his hands and feet. He probably smelled badly from sweating profusely in the Middle Eastern sun on his long hikes to Jerusalem, and Jesus was, without a doubt, rumored to be a hypocrite or absolutely mad for all the time he spent with prostitutes, wino's, and those afflicted with leprosy. That's not exactly a clean-cut image for the Son of God. Moreover, He had a rather shady reputation. Some people thought he was a revolutionary. The religious leaders called him a heretic, and others even accused him of being a drunkard and a glutton – in no small part because of the vagabond group of disciples he had with him. No serious “religious” leader of His day would have ever recruited such a group of people. For his core 12 disciples, Jesus included a tough-as-nails, bombastic fisherman (Peter), a chief tax collector named Matthew (the most hated and despised occupation of the time, like politicians are today), an eventual traitor who was stealing money out of the offering bucket (Judas), a prolific skeptic (Thomas), two jocks nicknamed the “Sons of Thunder” (James and John) and Simon the Zealot, a member of a radical political party which believed in using violence to kick out the Romans from Jerusalem.

Jesus could be sarcastic at times, too. He often snapped back at the Pharisees with a tone fit for late-night television, and in a terribly embarrassing moment for all those around him, Jesus even called these respected religious teachers “a brood of vipers” that were the sons of Satan. That’s not exactly the behavior of a sweet, religious self-help teacher with a halo over his head. It’s the behavior of a frustrated man who, although he was divine, knew how it felt when annoying and offensive people claimed to know more than Jesus did. Lots of theologians and other self-appointed 'ministers' have laid out opinions over the centuries as to the true nature of Christ, and in the process they have attempted to hijack Jesus’ humanity by defining it in philosophical rather than in Spiritual terms.

The true image of Christianity is that of a God named Jesus who arrived with dirty hands and the occasional but nasty head and chest cold. Jesus came in a time period when the Roman Empire's gods were housed in gigantic temples and portrayed with superhuman powers and with superhuman physiques. Their gods were believed to be far away from people on their mountains or hemmed up in their sanctuaries. Jesus arrived in defiance of this prevailing imagery. Jesus didn’t come flinging lightning bolts from a mountaintop, or playing politics in Rome. He came to live in a typical Middle Eastern village called Nazareth that was home to a couple hundred typical people. He didn’t decide to brandish his power, but to spend most of his time with the powerless and disenfranchised. And when he started a religious movement that reshaped history, he did it in the most profound and anticlimactic way – He let himself be killed, and then he busted open a tomb and rose from the dead on the morning of the third day after the celebration of Passover. The real Jesus, the genuine Jesus, conquered death and the grave so that any and all persons who call upon his name can be saved from death and the grave as well! In Jesus we meet a Savior who understands the desire to sleep just a few more hours, and who had to control his temper sometimes. In Jesus we find a God we can relate to because he chose to relate to us, and he did so in a magnificent way! He was the God who became dirty so that the world’s souls might be made clean. Jesus is the ultimate superhero! Even Superman, Wonder Woman and Spider-man bow down on their knees and confess that Jesus Christ is Lord of all, and that he is all in all. Nobody else even comes close.

Clearing up the mystery surrounding the real resurrection of Christ

Misunderstanding Jesus’ Crucifixion: a Kernel of Truth

by Rev. Paul J. Bern

Over the centuries as Christianity has gradually been bent towards the interests of organized religion (or Religion Inc. as I call it), the story of Jesus’ final fateful week in Jerusalem was reshaped to minimize his overturning of the money tables at the Temple at Jerusalem, which was actually a challenge to the merging of religious and political power. It was this very event that took place the day after He arrived that set the stage for his arrest and crucifixion. Palm Sunday, which 'Religion Incorporated' celebrates as the entry of Jesus into the city of Jerusalem, is described in slightly different ways in various Biblical translations. In the King James as well as the Catholic versions of the Bible, it states in the Gospel of Luke chapter 19 (verses 28-40) that people broke branches off the palm trees that lined the road, laying them across the road as Jesus passed by on a donkey. But in the New International and New Living translations, the Bible says people removed their coats and laid them across the road before the Lord. (If the Catholic or KJV Bibles are to be taken literally, they sure must have killed a lot of palm trees that day!) Moreover, our modern calendar gets the date for Jesus' resurrection all wrong. Remember that Jesus walked the earth as a Jewish man, and since the Jewish Sabbath extends from sundown Friday to sundown Saturday, by the western calendar he would have had to enter Jerusalem on a Friday. The real Good Friday, which in historical context actually took place on a Wednesday by our modern calendar, takes us through His mock trial and his death of horror on a Roman Cross. “Easter” is the Christians’ triumphant celebration of Jesus’ resurrection from the dead. Except, of course, that Jesus didn't rise from the dead on Easter Sunday. The only translations of the Bible that use the word 'Easter' are the King James and Catholic Bibles. Jesus rose on the morning of the traditional Jewish Sabbath, which would be a Saturday morning by today's Western calendar. Since he was in the grave for three days and nights, and he rose on a Saturday, that's how we know that Jesus was actually crucified on a Wednesday. So-called “Good Friday” is merely a man-made institution, nothing more!

That incident which is the missing piece to the week’s climactic events is Jesus’ overturning of the money tables at the temple in Jerusalem. Tradition says that the incident was a ceremonial cleansing of the Temple of its commercial enterprises because those in charge of it had turned a house of worship into a commercial enterprise, just like the modern-day “prosperity gospel” and those “ministers” who demand 10% of everyone's income because the Old Testament says so. Jesus disrupted the commercial operation by upsetting the tables where the temple lackeys sold the required animals for sacrifice. Actually it was far more intense than that. The tables and chairs that he overturned weren't from Wal Mart. These were hand made objects of solid wood and so they weighed a good bit. Those solid wooden tables likely weighed in excess of a hundred pounds, maybe even more. Even the chairs would have weighed as much as 40-50 pounds, so Jesus was nowhere near being some wimpy little guy who talked a lot and said nice things like 'Religion Inc.' portrays him. He was picking up those tables and chairs and throwing them around like match sticks, and I have no doubt whatsoever that he personally removed the money changers as well, not just the furniture. However, let's put an emphasis on understanding this historical incident in context. First, let's examine the Temple itself.

For nearly half a century, including the time of Jesus’ birth, Herod the Great had ruled Palestine as an ambitious king appointed by Rome’s Caesar. Herod was of mixed racial background and claimed some Jewish blood. He wanted to be known as King of the Jews, but acceptance by the Jews was difficult to attain. Herod the Great also was a builder. Under his reign, he built civic buildings and ports, but his greatest building project was the rebuilding, expansion and refurbishing of the Jewish temple in Jerusalem. It was known as Herod’s temple, or is sometimes referenced as the Third Temple. Because of that history, the reign of Herod and the operation of the temple were linked and locked. It was the near inseparable joining of government and religion. To offend one was to offend both. Herod the Great died in 4 CE, when Jesus was still a child. During the years of Jesus’ teaching ministry, Herod’s son, Herod Antipas, was the ruler. The joining of kingdom and temple continued.

Jesus grew up and taught in a rural area 70 miles north of Jerusalem. His faith was shaped, not by Jerusalem and the temple, but by weekly gatherings of the community elders as they read the Torah (Jewish law of Moses) and discussed its meaning and interpretation. Jesus and his followers had limited contact with Jerusalem’s social, political and religious leaders, mostly through the enforcers of Herod’s Roman rule who also represented the Jerusalem Temple. These enforcers made regular trips into the rural north to collect tithes and taxes. To understand Jesus, one must realize the depth of his contempt for both the rule of Herod and the Sanhedrin, the religious rulers of the Temple. To further understand Jesus and the last week of his life, the student needs to realize that the Old Testament contains not one religious tradition, but two. One is called the “great tradition”, the other is called the “small (or lesser) tradition”. The “great tradition” is the definition of society laid down by those who rule, and enforced by their collaborators. The “great tradition” is centered in cities in which the controlling institutions are located. For Jesus, that place was Jerusalem. On the other hand, the “small tradition” is a critiquing and competing interpretation of Christianity. It almost always arises with devout believers who have escaped the burden of the “great tradition” and its demands for conformity.

Northern Palestine, 70 miles removed from Jerusalem, was a hotbed for the “small tradition”. The leaders of the “small tradition” found heroes in Isaiah, Jeremiah, Amos, Micah, Daniel, Joel and other Old Testament prophets. Almost every one of the Old Testament prophets was a critic of those who controlled the Temple in Jerusalem. John the Baptist was the first and only “small tradition” prophet in the New Testament. His harsh criticism of his rulers led to his death. Jesus took up the mantle. As modern New Testament scholars have reconstructed the context in which Jesus lived and taught, they have realized that Jesus was far, far more than simply a religious figure. He was a severe critic of those who controlled the Temple, those who controlled the Roman Empire, and those who controlled the economic systems that starved and robbed the poor and that left orphans and widows to fend for themselves. To Jesus, these issues were all tied together. Jesus was a largely unknown and harmless critic as long as he remained in his northern rural setting. He was clearly an apocalyptic preacher. He advocated the overthrow and replacement of a corrupt system. He bluntly told the people's oppressors their days were numbered. But He achieved the overthrow by sacrificing himself on the cross, hung between two thieves. One solitary life changed the history and direction of humankind forever.

Jesus took his apocalyptic message throughout what is modern Israel today, and ultimately to its capital, Jerusalem. However, to call His arrival a “triumphal entry” (as the Bible is translated) is, I think, a rather superficial explanation. Jesus chose to enter Jerusalem riding on a donkey as mockery of the ruler’s horse. It was an ancient form of street theater that Jesus and his followers used to make their point, and with great effect. The “great tradition” that was accepted by Jerusalem’s ruling elite was being publicly debunked by the main Figure of the “small tradition”. But the real starting point of Jesus’ visit to Jerusalem came when he visited the Temple, not so much his triumphal entry into the city. In no sense had he come to worship and make sacrifice. On the contrary, He came to disrupt and to make pronouncements about the judgment of God on all the religious leaders of that day. Jesus did not go to the Temple to bless it. He came to the Temple to announce the destruction of an entire paradigm. Those who operated the Temple had no power to silence Jesus and put him to death. Those powers were held by the Roman rulers. The charges that were leveled against him can be summed up as insurrection or even outright sedition. There were three specific charges: encouraging non-payment of taxes, threatening to destroy property (the Temple), and claiming to be a king. It was the Temple incident in Luke chapter 19 that took Jesus from being an irritating but harmless country rebel from the rural north to a nuisance in the very city that controlled the “great tradition”. Rome’s rulers killed Him on a cross, only to see him risen from the grave on the morning of the third day after his crucifixion, conquering death itself.

The theological meaning of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ remains forever indisputable. God came to earth in the form of a man because it was the only way our status as God's creations could continue. Jesus Christ was none other than the Son of God. This is the very starting point for all Christian beliefs and values. As the Bible tells us in the Old Testament (mainly in Exodus, plus other places too numerous to mention), the only way that sin against God can be forgiven is by the shedding of blood. From the time of Abraham up until the time of Christ, this was the “great tradition”. But, Jesus changed all that when he sacrificed himself, which only had to be done once for everyone. Moreover, after resting in his grave for three days and nights, Jesus rose again and was seen by hundreds, maybe even thousands of people in the forty days after his resurrection that the Bible documents in all four gospels. In so doing, he gained everlasting life without end, as do all who place their unrestrained, unconditional faith in Him. Thanks to the supreme sacrifice of Christ, we all possess immortality!But there is still more. Jesus was, at the end of the day, not just a Savior, as if that weren't enough (don't worry, it is!). Jesus was also a revolutionary, a nonconformist who thought well outside the box nearly 2,000 years before the term was ever coined, as well as being a social and political critic who stood against oppression and inequality in all its forms. So, if anyone finds themselves going through the same old, tired ritual of Sunday morning church – regardless of faith or denomination – just because it's the “right” thing to do, Jesus has the remedy for that – complete faith and trust in himself as the Son of God, both trumping and transcending traditional religious teaching.

How do we correctly apply this today in the 21^st century? Jesus most definitely does stand up for the poor, the homeless, the mentally ill, the prisoner, the sick and infirm, the widow and the orphan. He stands for the most vulnerable and defenseless people at the bottom of the pecking order of so-called 'society'. He stands against those who wage war and who casually murder millions for profit in the process, he stands against those who incarcerate people for profit, and he stands especially against those in the top 1% who hoard the retirement savings of the masses while out-sourcing the jobs and careers of their children. Jesus opposes those who labor to chip away at people's retirement pensions and liquidate our savings, and against the legalized looters who have established fortresses for themselves on Wall Street and in the halls of power in Washington, DC. He stands with “the 99%”, and his Spirit is with those who dare to “occupy” as I do. But most of all, Jesus stands with those who endure persecution for the sake of their faith. Sure, he's the Son of God who is seated at his Father's right hand, never forget that and never stop believing no matter what. But he was and is the advocate of the working class, the poor, the hungry, the homeless and the lost. Like an attorney who shows up in court on our behalf at the last minute, winning what would have been a losing legal fight, Jesus is our advocate, and the world can't touch him or any of his followers (like ourselves). Jesus 'occupies' the hearts and minds of everyone, so let's all take this to heart and endeavor to follow His example. Have compassion and empathy. Practice being a good listener, being gentle and Christlike. Don't judge people who you may view as too different, or as being unwanted, untrustworthy or undesirable. Embrace other people, cultures, races and nations, knowing that the same God who made you in His image and likeness made them too. Practice tolerance, kindness, and being merciful even if you don't think the other person deserves it. That's how I endeavor to celebrate Resurrection Day and the other 364 days of the year. Because, when we embrace God we embrace all that he has made.

Jesus vs Modern Churches: Not Even Close!

Contrasting the Ministry of Christ With Modern Religion

by Rev. Paul J. Bern

Part of the meaning of Progressive Christianity is the examination of the Bible in its original context without all the trappings and fallacies of organized religion. For this week's message, I want to talk and write about when Jesus fed the crowd of 5,000, but I'm going to be expounding on this in a way you may have not seen or heard before. How come, you ask? It's because most churches are teaching this incorrectly! Why is that? Because that's what our seminaries are teaching their graduates. Your pastor, minister, bishop or priest is teaching it wrong because they were taught this way. And yet if the majority of Christians, and especially the church leaders, would take the time to read this using at least two different translations, they would see the true meaning for themselves. And now, so help me God, I will explain this miracle of Christ's to the very best of my ability.

First, we need to understand the context of this story, so after careful consideration I will be using the gospel of the apostle Luke as a backdrop for this explanation. So let's go to Luke chapter nine for our story. King Herod of Jerusalem had just had John the Baptist beheaded. Since John the Baptist was Jesus' cousin (see Luke chapter 1, verses 57-66), Jesus found out about John's execution very soon afterwards, and Jesus and the apostles with him had withdrawn from that area to avoid contact with any of King Herod's many henchmen. So allow me to take up the narrative at this point in Luke chapter nine, beginning with the latter part of verse 10. “Then he (Jesus) took them (the apostles) with him (parentheses mine – PB) and they withdrew by themselves to a town called Bethsaida, but the crowds heard about it and followed him. He welcomed them and spoke to them about the kingdom of God, and healed those who needed healing.” Nasty old King Herod had the equivalent of modern-day SWAT teams out searching for Jesus and the apostles because King Herod considered them to be threats to his power, political influence, and his relationship with his paymasters, the Roman Empire. So, Jesus and the apostles were fugitives so far as King Herod was concerned. They were banned, outlawed and sought after, earmarked for execution. Christians from the world over are still being hunted down and executed for their faith, except in far greater numbers than ever before. Moreover, all you Americans who think Christian persecution can't happen in the US could find themselves incarcerated, or worse, for their faith – in the near future!

Continuing onward from verse twelve the narrative reads as follows: “Late in the afternoon the Twelve came to Him and said, 'send the crowd away so they can go to the surrounding villages and countryside and find food and lodging, because we are in a remote place here.' Jesus replied, 'You give them something to eat'. They answered, 'we only have 5 loaves of bread and two fish – unless we go out and buy food for this crowd'. (About 5,000 men were there). But he said to his disciples, 'have them sit down in groups of about fifty each'. The disciples did so, and everybody sat down. Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke them. Then he gave them to the disciples to set before the people. They all ate and were satisfied, and the disciples picked up twelve baskets full of broken pieces that were left over”. (Luke chapter 9, verses 12-17 NIV) Send the crowd to where they can find food and lodging. That was the apostles' initial response to a situation that they felt overwhelmed about. After all, we're talking about 5,000 men, not counting women and children, so this was a crowd of somewhere between 15,000-20,000 people. Jesus and the apostles were in mega-church territory so far as attendance was concerned 2,000 years before the term was coined! Today most of these same mega-churches, particularly those of the American variety, have these conventions and week-long meetings with attendees from every part of the US and the rest of the world. When this happens, the mega-church hosting the event doesn't accommodate them or feed them. Their attendees provide their own food and lodging. Then they are expected to donate to these mega-churches after the attendees have already spent their money on everything else. It really is a very one sided affair, financially speaking.

What was Jesus' response? “You give them something to eat”. Don't you dare send my people away! That's what Jesus was saying, he was just being subtle about it, which is something Jesus had a propensity for. Jesus and his apostles weren't there to tell those in the crowd how to look after themselves, they were there to look after those in the crowd. People, this is the very essence of ministry. Every human being on the face of the earth goes through a time in their life when they need help in some form or fashion. Nobody is immune from this, it's just a fact of life. It is our duty as human beings and followers of Jesus Christ to be there for each other. No man or woman is an island, it goes without saying that we are all interdependent upon each other. And so Jesus was telling his apostles in a Godly way, “So you see these people are in need of food? Then feed them yourself!” Just as it was for the apostles back then, so it is for us today. If you see a problem where people are in need, go do something about it yourself. Let's not forget what Jesus had to say about that: “Whatsoever you do for the least of these little children of mine, that you do for me.” What was the apostles response to this? “But Lord, we don't have the means! After all”, they told our Savior, “we only have five loaves and two fish”. What was the real problem here? The apostles thinking was limited to their own capabilities. That's because that's all they knew, that's all they had ever been taught, just like all the wrong teaching being done in modern seminaries that I mentioned at the start of this message. They had not yet learned to depend on Christ, which is a problem that still exists in churches today. It all boils down to wrong teaching, pure and simple.

“Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke them. Then he gave them to the disciples to set before the people. They all ate and were satisfied, and the disciples picked up twelve baskets full of broken pieces that were left over”. What was the first thing Jesus did? He gave thanks! He expressed great gratitude to his Father! Thankfulness is the basis for Godly living. Let's be thankful when we get up in the morning, before each meal, during each day for another chance at life, when we are successful, when we fail (yeah, that's right), and before we go to bed at night. Being thankful is a never ending process because the various things we can be thankful for also never ends if we are living right. And living right means living for Jesus each and every day! OK, so what's the next thing Jesus did? He broke the loves of bread and fish in halves. The conclusion to his prayer must have been that each piece doubled every times any of the Twelve touched any of it. And so during the course of distribution, every time the apostles served fish and bread, an additional piece would take its place. That's why they never ran out of food. But is this the end of the story?

Well actually, no it's not. We need to go back to the beginning to get the full meaning I wish to convey to you all. When the crowd followed Jesus to Bethsaida, they did so because they saw that Jesus evidently wasn't afraid of the authorities, so neither were they. Considering that there was a bounty on Jesus' head, and likely the apostles as well, I find it remarkable there was no fear among those in the large crowd that had followed Jesus there. The Spirit of Christ was all around that place, which kept the menacing bounty hunters and other assassins away from there. But the most striking thing to me about this narrative is that Jesus did exactly the opposite of what modern churches are doing. First, that crowd of 15,000+ people got fed on the Word of the Lord. Next, Jesus saw to the needs of those he was ministering to by feeding them with generous portions of food. In today's churches, the opposite occurs. The people get a Word from the Lord through their pastor, priest, or bishop just like above. But then an offering is taken, as opposed to Jesus, who freely gave to the people as they had need. So when Jesus preached and taught, at the end of the service he and his apostles saw to the needs of the people. But in modern churches, the people give money to the church at the end of the service. So, pastor or priest, once we get a good word it's time to pay up then, right? Wrong!! That is nothing more than the Old Testament law known as “tithing”, which basically said we must give a tenth of our crops and livestock to the Temple at Jerusalem. The problem with that is twofold. First, the temple no longer exists. Second and most important, when Jesus died on the cross for all our sins the Old Law (or Law of Moses as it was called in Jesus' day) died with him, because Jesus was the fulfillment of that very same Law (see Matt. Chapter 5 verse 17). The reason tithing is still taught today is because it compels people to give money to enrich the churches. It has nothing to do with Scripture, it's all about the money. The TV evangelists are the worst of the lot. Some of these people have their own private jets. I personally know of a pastor of a mega-church right here in Atlanta who drives a Bentley convertible, which is a quarter-million-dollar automobile. He's a prosperity preacher and it shows. One day when this particular “bishop”, as he loves to call himself, stands before God to give an account of his life, he will have to explain why he apparently misappropriated church funds. By then it will be too late, and an entire warehouse full of Bentley convertibles still won't save him. 

 

Let's not be like that, everyone. If materialistic stuff is what you mean when you say,”I'm blessed”, you have no idea what a real blessing looks like. It's time to get up to speed in the way we live our lives. We are to serve others without necessarily expecting anything in return – no strings attached. According to the teachings of Christ, the starting point for this is supposed to be from within the churches. So long as churches continue to buy jet airplanes and Bentley's for their pastors, priests or “bishops”, the needs of the people cannot possibly be met. Let us never forget that it's not about me, it's not about us, but it's all about Him. The church members are not there to serve the church unless it is in service to the greater community through that church. As for serving the members, those mega-churches should be reallocating the funds spent on ostentatious planes and automobiles towards a nice Sunday brunch after church, and let the homeless single mothers with children be the first in line. Now that is what it means to be Christian!

This week's Bible study will be 1st Thessalonians chapter two

Better to Please God Than Other People

[1^st Thessalonians chapter 2]

Last week when we concluded chapter one of 1^st Thessalonians, the apostle Paul was telling the church that “your faith in God has become known everywhere”. You will also recall that I urged all of you to live the same way. Today as we move on to chapter two, Paul continues his commentary regarding the evidently unshakable faith of the Thessalonian church. There are, however, a couple of differences between the apostle Paul's description of his ministry at that time and that of many modern churches. With that in mind, let's plunge into 1^st Thessalonians chapter two in search of Spiritual treasure.

“You know, brothers, that our visit to you was not a failure. We had previously suffered and been insulted in Philippi, as you know, but with the help of our God we dared to tell you his Gospel in spite of strong opposition. For the appeal we make does not spring from error or impure motives, nor are we trying to trick you. On the contrary, we speak as men approved by God to be entrusted with the Gospel. We are not trying to please men but to please God, who tests our hearts. You know we never used flattery, nor did we put on a mask to cover up greed – God is our witness. We were not looking for praise from men, not from you or anyone else. As apostles of Christ we could have been a burden to you, but we were gentle among you, like a mother caring for her little children. We loved you so much that we were delighted to share with you not only the Gospel of God but our lives as well, because you had become so dear to us. Surely you remember, brothers, our toil and hardship; we worked night and day in order not to be a burden to anyone while we preached the Gospel of God to you.” (1st Thessalonians chapter two, verses 1-9, NIV)

“... with the help of our God we dared to tell you his Gospel in spite of strong opposition.” How many of us are doing this today? I run into this sort of thing all the time when I try and share my Christian faith. Sometimes I get grief from the atheists, other times from the Muslims or those who fancy themselves as mystics and “healers”. I do not let this bother me, in fact I have gotten used to it. When it comes to ministry, I have learned to accept this fact of life as going with the territory. But I dare not back down because of the teachings of Christ when He said, “If anyone is ashamed of me and neglects to make mention of me, I will not mention their name to my Father who is in heaven”. If there is anyone who professes belief in Jesus and yet is reticent to talk about their faith, then the faith of that individual immediately becomes superficial at best, and counterfeit at its worst. Nobody wants to be like that.

“We are not trying to please men but to please God, who tests our hearts.” The apostles didn't care about rejection or being ostracized for their beliefs. On the contrary, it made them more bold and determined than ever to get the Gospel to the masses for whom it was intended. Again, we as faithful Christians must busy ourselves with telling as many people as we can about Christ and how He transforms people's entire lives. This doesn't mean you must transform yourself into a Billy Graham, T. D. Jakes or anyone else. However, the apostle Paul does tell them one thing they shouldn't do. “You know we never used flattery, nor did we put on a mask to cover up greed – God is our witness. We were not looking for praise from men...”. How many others besides myself does this look familiar to? Plenty, I would think. Putting on a mask to cover up greed was evidently already occurring in Paul's day, and today it is more prevalent than ever. I see this stuff on Christian TV all the time, which is why I only watch maybe 10 percent of what's available. The rest of it is a bunch of junk as far as I'm concerned, not counting what's on cable or satellite TV. For example, there is mention in the four gospels of forgiveness when Peter asked Jesus, “If my brother sins against me how many times should I forgive them? Up to seven times?” Jesus replied, “Up to seventy times seven”. In this case the topic is forgiveness, but that's not how they teach it in these “money churches”, as my own pastor calls them. “Sow a generous seed of seventy dollars and God will reimburse you for up to seventy times that amount. So, if there is anyone here this morning in need of a financial miracle, donate 70 dollars and God will return back to you up to $4,900.00, donate $1,000.00 and God will give you $70,000.00”, and so on. These “ministers” are taking the Word of God completely out of context and they are twisting and warping it to satisfy their intense desire for donations, the majority of which they view as profits as if their churches were businesses instead of houses of worship! In my opinion, the hottest places in hell are going to reserved for these practitioners of spiritual sophistry, who think they can manipulate God's Word for their own aggrandizement. So if you find yourself in a church that is teaching this kind of junk, get out of there immediately or you will find yourself condemned with the rest of those folks.

“As apostles of Christ we could have been a burden to you, but we were gentle among you, like a mother caring for her little children... Surely you remember, brothers, our toil and hardship; we worked night and day in order not to be a burden to anyone while we preached the Gospel of God to you.” So here we see that, unlike modern churches, Paul and his co-workers worked full-time day jobs and then held their services at night, probably just after dinner. The pastor at the church I attend works as a professor at a local college here in Atlanta where I live, in addition to his duties as pastor. But unfortunately this seems to be the exception rather than the rule in much of modern Christianity. “What, me work (they would say)? I don't have to work, I already serve the Lord!” These kinds of people, and I do encounter one once in a while, are in the ministry for all the wrong reasons. All they want is a nice, easy paycheck with minimal effort on their part. Speaking as a minister and as an ambassador for Christ, these folks will get their devil's due when their shallow and pathetic lives are over. It is these kinds of individuals that are already prophesied against by Christ in the book of Revelation, as it is written, “I wish that you were either hot or cold. But because you are neither, you are only lukewarm instead, and therefore I will spit you out of my mouth.” Need I say more? And now let's conclude today's study starting at verse 10.

“You are witnesses, and so is God, of how holy, righteous and blameless we were among you who believed. For you know that we dealt with each of you as a father deals with his own children, encouraging, comforting and urging you to live lives worthy of God, who calls you into his kingdom and glory. And we also thank God continually because, when you received the Word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men, but as it actually is, the Word of God, which is at work in you who believe. For you, brothers, became imitators of God's churches in Judea, which are in Christ Jesus: You suffered from your own countrymen the same things those churches suffered from the Jews, who killed the Lord Jesus and the prophets and also drove us out. They displease God and are hostile to all men in their effort to keep us from speaking to the Gentiles so that they may be saved. In this way they always heap up their sins to the limit. The wrath of God has come upon them at last. But brothers, when we were torn away from you for a short time (in person but not in thought), out of our intense longing we made every effort to see you. For we wanted to come to you – certainly I, Paul, did, again and again – but Satan stopped us. For what is our hope, our joy, or the crown in which they will glory in the presence of our Lord Jesus when he comes? Is it not you? Indeed, you are our glory and joy.” (1 Thessalonians 2, verses 10-20, NIV)

“For you know that we dealt with each of you as a father deals with his own children, encouraging, comforting and urging you to live lives worthy of God...”. There is an incorrect teaching circulating among quite a few modern churches of all denominations: “God is good all the time – all the time, God is good”. Oftentimes this can be and most certainly is true. But what about the times in life when things turn out badly? The loss of a job, the breakup of a marriage, the loss of one's home due to foreclosure, business failures or the onset of disability, disease or even early death – all these things are hard but necessary facts of life that we must all deal with at one time or another during our daily living. Does God want these things to happen to us, then? Absolutely not! But there are many times when God uses personal tragedy or devastating loss to make us stronger and to help build our character. I would equate this with raising children, for example. Do we allow our children to do whatever they please and to run wild? Of course not, on the contrary, we teach our kids that life has limits and boundaries that they should not cross because it's in their own best interest. So it is with God's children, which is why this portion of Scripture is such an excellent example of how God wants us to live our lives.

“... when you received the Word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men, but as it actually is, the Word of God, which is at work in you who believe.” Beware of false “prophets”, “apostles”, “bishops”, etc. They “preach” the gospel as if they have this direct channel to God exclusively to themselves. Nothing could be further from the truth because there is no such thing! They also teach the wrong things as I have already described. No one has exclusive rights to God's Word, but instead we all share equal access. Christ died on the cross and rose again on the morning of the third day for all of us, and His salvation is spread equally among us. “You suffered from your own countrymen the same things those churches suffered from the Jews... in their effort to keep us from speaking to the Gentiles so that they may be saved. In this way they always heap up their sins to the limit.” This is what it meant back then – and still means today – to be a Christian in many parts of the world. It is a documented fact that more Christians were put to death for their faith in the 20^th century than in all the previous 19 centuries combined. Moreover, what will 21^st century Christians do when the antichrist comes to power sometime in the next year or two – certainly well before the end of this decade? The Bible is absolutely clear about this. Anyone who refuses to accept the “mark of the beast” from the antichrist, or who refuses to worship his image, will be put to death, and that will include the entire world. Meaning – religious persecution of Christians here in the US will become a fact of life soon after the antichrist steps suddenly onto the world stage. In Christian terms, this will be the “acid test” of our faith. People will be put to death for professing unwavering faith in Jesus Christ, they will not be able to work or to buy anything, and many will face starvation as a result. I wonder how many of the religious establishment and their dependable church goers will be able to hold up under the strain of the antichrist's rule? There will be quite a shakeout over this, you can be sure about that. So in closing for today, and to come full circle, will we get along just to get along, or will we stand firm? Remember what Paul wrote, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me”. Only by focusing on Jesus can we be made strong enough to stand up under the coming religious persecution. Set your sights on Him and he will lead you in the way in which we should all go.