This Scripture should be read with Daniel 12, in which reference is also made to the archangel, Michael, who will wage war in heaven on behalf of Israel. As a result of this war, Satan and his fallen angels will be cast down from heavenly places and barred from any further access to the throne of God where he accused the believers. After this further humiliation, the powers of darkness will confine all their attention to events on earth. Satan will be utterly vengeful and from that moment do everything within his power to destroy God’s people and His creation by attempting to make the world uninhabitable, committing genocide against the Jews, and instigating the summary execution of all who confess allegiance to the Lord. That will also be the time when the Antichrist will declare himself as God in the rebuilt temple in Jerusalem, demand the forced worship of his image, rule by way of military decrees, and will not hesitate to use maximum power to subdue and eliminate his adversaries.
These ominous events will occur during the last 3½ years of the tribulation period, described as the great tribulation. This second part of the tribulation will last for 1260 days, constituting 42 prophetic months of 30 days each. It is also described as time, times and a half time, alluding to seasonal years, hence referring to a year, two years and half a year. That is exactly the same as 42 months or 1260 days. At the start of this period, Israel will withdraw from the Antichrist’s new world order because they will refuse to worship him as God.
In consequence, the Antichrist will try to annihilate all Jews, thereby necessitating their sudden flight from Jerusalem and surrounding Jewish territories. By divine intervention Israel will be protected from being overtaken and annihilated by the Antichrist and his satanic forces. An earthquake may occur in which a large crevasse is formed which will swallow or stop the pursuing ground forces of the Antichrist, which could be a parallel with the destruction of Pharaoh’s forces during Israel’s exodus from Egypt.
Zechariah refers to this time of great tribulation among the Jews, in which two-thirds of them will die and only a third will manage to escape to a safe refuge in the mountains – most likely Petra: “And it shall come to pass that in all the land, says the Lord, that two-thirds in it shall be cut off and die, but one-third shall be left in it: I will bring the one-third through the fire, will refine them as silver is refined… They will call on my Name and I will answer them. I will say, This is My people” (Zech. 13:8-9). During World War II, 60% of the Jews in Europe died, but in the coming great tribulation the death toll will even be higher. The coming tribulation will, therefore be the worst in all history – not only for Israel, but also for the unbelieving nations.
This is very clearly a prophecy that applies to Israel as it is aimed at protecting a remnant of this nation from annihilation by Satan and the Antichrist during the dark days of the great tribulation – that is the last 3½ years of the tribulation period. The Sabbath laws are anyway only enforced in Israel, when only a short journey of about one kilometre may be undertaken – according to Acts 1:12, that is the distance between Jerusalem and the Mount of Olives – in which case the forces of the Antichrist will catch up with them and kill them. The Jews should pray that their journey will not be retarded by winter cold, expectant mothers or those with small babies since they would also not get away quickly enough.
This flight is also described in Revelation 12, where Israel is likened to a married woman with child. This metaphor is different to that used for the church, which is portrayed as a betrothed virgin in 2 Corinthians 11:2, who will be the bride of Christ. Israel is described as a woman who was chosen by God and through whom His Son, Jesus Christ, was born in the flesh. In Isaiah 54:5, God says about her: “For your Maker is your Husband, the Lord of hosts is His name; and your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel.” Within this perspective, the following Scripture from Revelation 12 should be quite clear:
“Now a great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a garland of twelve stars… And another sign appeared in heaven: behold, a great, fiery red dragon having seven heads and ten horns… And the dragon stood before the woman who was ready to give birth, to devour her Child as soon as it was born [Herod was used by Satan for this purpose when he ordered the killing of Jewish boys under the age of two – Mt. 2:16]. She bore a male Child who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron. And her Child was caught up to God and to His throne [The Ascension]. Then the woman fled into the wilderness, where she has a place prepared by God, that they should feed her there 1260 days [the future flight to Petra]” (Rev. 12:1-6).
“And war broke out in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon and his angels fought, but they did not prevail, nor was a place found for them in heaven any longer. So the great dragon was cast out, that serpent of old, called the Devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was cast to the earth, and his angels were cast out with him. Then I heard a loud voice saying in heaven: Now salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of His Christ have come, for the accuser of our brethren, who accused them before our God day and night, has been cast down… Therefore rejoice, O heavens, and you who dwell in them! Woe to the inhabitants of the earth and the sea! For the devil has come down to you, having great wrath, because he knows that he has a short time” (Rev. 12:7-12).
“Now when the dragon saw that he had been cast to the earth, he persecuted the woman who gave birth to the male Child. But the woman was given two wings of a great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness to her place, where she is nourished for a time and times and half a time [3½ years], from the presence of the serpent. So the serpent spewed water out of his mouth like a flood after the woman, that he might cause her to be carried away by the flood. But the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed up the flood which the dragon had spewed out of his mouth” (Rev. 12:13-16).
The Living Bible renders Daniel 12:1 as follows: “At that time Michael, the mighty angelic prince who stands guard over your nation, will stand up and fight for you in heaven against satanic forces, and there will be a time of anguish for the Jews greater than any previous suffering in Jewish history. And yet every one of your people whose names are written in the Book will endure it.” From this Scripture it is evident that the attacks against Israel, throughout the centuries, were satanically inspired. Now, in the end-time, the situation is no different – it is Satan himself who instigates the enemies of Israel to drive this nation form their land and even to completely destroy them. However, in doing so they actually challenge God, because He gave the following promise to Abraham: “I will bless those who bless you, and will curse him who curses you; and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed” (Gen. 12:3; Gal. 3:8-14).
The prophet Daniel describes the last 70 year-weeks (490 prophetic years of 360 days each) that will pass in the history of Israel before they enter the time of everlasting righteousness (Dan. 9:24-27). Of this period, 69 year-weeks (483 years) have passed between the decree by Artaxerxes in the year 445 BC that Jerusalem was to be rebuilt (Neh. 2:1-8), and the death of Jesus on the cross in AD 32. Then the clock stopped ticking for Israel as a nation in the divine plan of God, and the time for the evangelisation of the non-Jewish world began. That meant that Israel would temporarily lose its position as a unique people and representative of God, and that all people on earth, including the dispersed Israelites, would be given the chance to accept the Lord Jesus as Messiah and enter the church and kingdom of God.
At the start of the 70th year-week of seven years, Israel will enter into a covenant with the false messiah (Antichrist). Daniel 9:27 reads: “Then he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week.” The false messiah will be endowed with all of Satan’s powers of deception (Rev. 12:9; 13:2), and will use these powers to perform astounding “signs and lying wonders” (2 Thess. 2:9) to deceive Israel and the nations into concluding a covenant with him.
Halfway through the seven year period, Israel and the whole world will be shocked out of the false sense of peace that they have enjoyed for three and a half years: ...and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and offering to cease [for the remaining three and one-half years]; and upon the wing of abominations shall come one who makes desolate; until the full determined end is poured out on the desolator (Dan. 9:27; Amplified Bible). “And forces shall be mustered by him, and they shall defile the sanctuary fortress; then they shall take away the daily sacrifices, and place there the abomination of desolation” (Dan. 11:31). The true Messiah described this time of terror in His prophetic discourse:
“When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoever readeth, let him understand): then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains: let him who is on the housetop not come down to take anything out of his house: neither let him who is in the field return back to take his clothes. And woe to those who are with child, and to them that give suck in those days! But pray ye that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the Sabbath day: for then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be. And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved” (Mt. 24:15-22; KJV).
Choosing and rejection; God’s choosing of Jacob and His rejection of Esau had nothing to do with predestination, but was based on His foreknowledge of what their descendants would do. “Was not Esau Jacob’s brother? says the Lord. Yet Jacob I have loved; but Esau I have hated, and laid waste his mountains and his heritage for the jackals of the wilderness.” Esau and his people have decided for themselves not to serve the Lord.
In spite of the destiny of Edom and Israel as distinct peoples, individual members of these two nations still had the choice whether they would serve God or the devil. As for the chosen people, Israel, the Bible says: “But with most of them God was not well pleased, for their bodies were scattered in the wilderness” (1 Cor. 10:5). During the time of the Messiah, most of the Jews betrayed and rejected Him to their own spiritual downfall and eternal ruin. In contrast with their reaction, there were quite a number of Edomites among the followers of Jesus as God shows no partiality: “But Jesus withdrew with His disciples to the sea. And a great multitude from Galilee followed Him, and from Judea and Jerusalem and Idumea and beyond the Jordan” (Mk. 3:7-8). Individuals are not accepted or rejected because of the decisions and deeds of their forefathers, but on the basis of their own faith in or rejection of the Lord Jesus. But the destiny of nations is to a great extent determined by the religious convictions, policies and actions of their leaders and governments. In cases of national apostasy, the faithful minority often suffers at the hands of the unfaithful majority and may even be persecuted by them.
Jacob, the lineage from which Jesus was born, obtained Esau’s birthright when he despised it. Among Esau’s descendants there were many vindictive enemies of Israel, and specifically also of Jesus Himself. Because of this, the Edomites brought the anger of God upon themselves. Many of them intermarried with the descendants of Ishmael, Abraham’s son with an Egyptian maid, and thus became assimilated among the other enemies of Israel. Today they are, as members of various Arab nations who descended from Esau and Ishmael, still engaged in wars and a relentless campaign of hatred against Israel.
God acted in righteousness when He gave the birthright of the unfaithful Esau to Jacob. Righteousness will also be done by using Edom’s deserted mountain fortress as a safe refuge for the fugitive Jews during the great tribulation. God destroyed Edom as an independent nation because of their idolatry and rebellion against Him. That is the reason why their safe fortress in the mountains became a ghost town. It is quite probable that here, in the deserted Negev desert close to modern Israel’s border, God will protect a remnant of Israel against the attacks of the Antichrist and his anti-Israeli forces.
End-time trouble for Israel Israel’s expected flight to Petra during the second half of the tribulation period should be understood in the light of the fact that, in the end-time, great distress because of worldwide persecution will befall Israel and enfold them like a dark cloud. Daniel says: “At that time Michael shall stand up, the great prince who stands watch over the sons of your people; and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation, even to that time. And at that time your people shall be delivered… It shall be for a time, times, and half a time; and when the power of the holy people has been completely shattered, all these things shall be finished… And from the time that the daily sacrifice is taken away, and the abomination of desolation is set up, there shall be 1290 days. Blessed is he who waits and comes to the 1335 days” (Dan. 12:1,7,11,12).
The name “Jehoshaphat” in Hebrew means “God judged.” A Levite by the name of Jehaziel informed Jehoshaphat that because he had turned to God for help, the armies of Edom, Ammon and Moab would be destroyed in the Kidron Valley without the loss of a single man to Israel (2 Chron. 20:15-17). The enemy forces were seized with terror, panic-stricken from the Lord, and killed one another: “The people of Ammon and Moab stood up against the inhabitants of Mount Seir to utterly kill and destroy them. And when they had made an end of the inhabitants of Seir, they helped to destroy one another” (2 Chron. 20:23).
“When Jehoshaphat and his people came to take away their spoil, they found among them an abundance of valuables on the dead bodies, and precious jewellery, which they stripped off for themselves, more than they could carry away; and they were three days gathering the spoil because there was so much” (2 Chron. 20:25).
The prophet Joel referred to the destruction of the enemies of Israel under the leadership of the Edomites from Petra during the reign of Jehoshaphat as a type, or example, of what will happen at the battle of Armageddon: “Let the nations be wakened, and come up to the Valley of Jehoshaphat; for there I will sit to judge all the surrounding nations… Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision! For the day of the Lord is near in the valley of decision” (Joel 3:12,14).
Again, the enemy forces will kill one another: “And this shall be the plague with which the Lord will strike all the people who fought against Jerusalem: Their flesh shall dissolve while they stand on their feet… It shall come to pass in that day that a great panic from the Lord will be among them. Everyone will seize the hand of his neighbour, and raise his hand against his neighbour’s hand; Judah also will fight at Jerusalem. And the wealth of all the surrounding nations shall be gathered together: gold, silver, and apparel in great abundance” (Zech. 14:12-14).
After their defeat in the time of Jehoshaphat, the Edomites recovered again and continued with their hostilities against Israel. According to Psalm 137, the inhabitants of Petra and Edom aided Babylon in the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple, and even begged the Babylonians to level Jerusalem to its foundations so that it would never rise again. The psalmist says: “Remember, O Lord, against the sons of Edom the day of Jerusalem, who said, Raze it, raze it, to its very foundation!” (Ps. 137:7). During the Babylonian captivity, the Edomites continued to attack and rob the Jews who remained in Jerusalem and Judea.
The Edomites were later driven from Seir. The Nabateans then occupied Seir and called it Petra. During the time of the Greek Empire they survived two attacks against them, but during the Roman Empire they were conquered and became dispersed in the surrounding Arab world. Petra then became a deserted place that was, from generation to generation, not inhabited by people, but only by owls, crows and wild animals (Is. 34:5,10-15). This situation prevailed for many centuries, and the Edomites themselves never occupied Petra again.
The wicked and aggressive nature of Esau became the most prominent characteristics of the Edomites, who are described as follows in the Bible:
The Edomites were warlike, preferring to fight their neighbours rather than living in peace (Gen. 27:40; Deut. 2:12).
The Edomites were idolatrous (2 Chron. 25:14). Esau had a shallow faith and neither by precept or example did he lead his people to believe in God and seek His will. As a consequence, the Edomites forsook the God of Esau’s father, Isaac, and worshipped other gods. On the high places in Petra, the sacrificial altars are still preserved. The Edomite priests would take young virgins, burn them on the altars, and then scatter their ashes from the cliffs over the city.
The Edomites were proud and arrogant. Because of this, God would cast them down from their mountain fortress and make it as desolate place: “Your fierceness has deceived you, the pride of your heart, o you who dwell in the clefts of the rock, who hold the height of the hill! Though you make your nest as high as the eagle, I will bring you down from there, says the Lord. Edom also shall be an astonishment; everyone who goes by it will be astonished and will hiss at all its plagues. As in the overthrow of Sodom and Gomorrah and their neighbouring cities, says the Lord, no one shall abide there, nor shall a son of man dwell in it” (Jer. 49:16-18).
The Edomites were vindictive and never missed an opportunity to torment Israel when they were unable to defend themselves. “Thus says the Lord God: Because of what Edom did against the house of Judah by taking vengeance, and has greatly offended by avenging itself on them… I will lay my vengeance on Edom by the hand of My people Israel, that they may do in Edom according to My anger and according to My fury” (Ezek. 25:12,14).
There is a long history of severe hostility between Esau’s descendants and Israel. During Israel’s journey through the wilderness they wished to pass through Edom’s territory: “Moses sent messengers from Kadesh to the king of Edom. Thus says your brother Israel… now here we are in Kadesh, a city on the edge of your border. Please let us pass through your country. We will not pass through fields or vineyards… we will go along the King’s Highway; we will not turn aside to the right hand or to the left until we have passed through your territory. Then Edom said to him, You shall not pass through my land, lest I came out against you with the sword… Thus Edom refused to give Israel passage through his territory” (Num. 20:14-21).
The Edomites continued to plague Israel. Four hundred years later, the Edomites were still fighting Israel. According to 1 Samuel 14, Saul led Israel against Moab, Ammon and Edom, and overcame them. After another two hundred years, during the reign of Jehoshaphat of Judah, the Moabites, Ammonites and the Edomites again joined forces in an effort to utterly destroy every Jew in the land. The combined armies, led by a force from Petra, camped on Mount Olivet with the intention of crossing over the Kidron Valley the next day and attacking Jerusalem.
The name “Jehoshaphat” in Hebrew means “God judged.” A Levite by the name of Jehaziel informed Jehoshaphat that because he had turned to God for help, the armies of Edom, Ammon and Moab would be destroyed in the Kidron Valley without the loss of a single man to Israel (2 Chron. 20:15-17). The enemy forces were seized with terror, panic-stricken from the Lord, and killed one another: “The people of Ammon and Moab stood up against the inhabitants of Mount Seir to utterly kill and destroy them. And when they had made an end of the inhabitants of Seir, they helped to destroy one another” (2 Chron. 20:23).
Esau had a reddish appearance and he also sold his birthright for a stew of red lentils; consequently, they called him Edom, which means Red. With the help of his mother Jacob obtained the blessing of the firstborn from Isaac, which Esau already sold to him. Esau was nevertheless furious about the situation and asked his father to bless him also. Isaac said to him: “By your sword you shall live, and you shall serve your brother; and it shall come to pass, when you become restless, that you shall break his yoke from your neck” (Gen. 27:40). In the next verse we read: “So Esau hated Jacob because of the blessing with which his father blessed him, and Esau said in his heart, The days of mourning for my father are at hand; then I will kill my brother Jacob.”
“So Esau dwelt in Mount Seir. Esau is Edom. And this is the genealogy of Esau the father of the Edomites in Mount Seir” (Gen. 36:8-9). Esau indeed lived by his sword as Isaac had told him. He moved from Hebron to Seir, which was later called Petra, and also took possession of the whole region that was to become known as Edom. He first had to conquer the giants who lived there: “The Emim had dwelt there in times past, people as great and numerous and tall as the Anakim. They were also regarded as giants, like the Anakim, but the Moabites call them Emim. The Horites formerly dwelt in Seir, but the descendants of Esau dispossessed them and destroyed them from before them, and dwelt in their place” (Deut. 2:10-12).
The only thing that we read to Esau’s credit in Genesis 32 and 33 is that he received Jacob and his followers friendly and allowed them safe passage to Canaan. But Esau is not mentioned among the Old Testament’s heroes of faith. Instead, we are warned against his profane conduct: “…looking diligently lest anyone should fall short of the grace of God… lest there be any fornicator or profane person like Esau, who for one morsel of food sold his birthright. For you know that afterwards, when he wanted to inherit the blessing, he was rejected, for he found no place for repentance, though he sought it diligently with tears” (Heb. 12:15-17). Esau had exchanged his eternal inheritance for temporal gain and his life ended in wickedness. Esau was called “Edom” and Jacob “Israel.” They both became founders of great nations.
Israel’s Escape to Petra, the Mountain Stronghold Prof. Johan Malan, University of the North, South Africa Petra, meaning “Rock” in Greek, is a deserted city south of the Dead Sea in Jordan. In antiquity it was known as Seir, metropolis of the Edomites. In later times, the Nabateans settled in the mountain stronghold of the dislodged Edomites and called their capital Petra. The city is situated in a rift valley which extends from the Kidron Valley in Jerusalem through the Dead Sea and further south. Indications are that an earthquake and volcanic activity occurred here, forming a big canyon with rocky ravines and steep cliffs. The remains of the spectacular city consist of temples, tombs and dwellings carved out of the sandstone cliffs. The only entrance to the city is through a narrow gorge almost two kilometres in length, which can easily be guarded and even blocked if necessary, thus rendering Petra a very safe refuge.
An impressive scene greets the traveller when the multi-coloured sandstone formations of the most famous ghost town in the world looms up before him. Added to this is the mystery of the city’s history as well as the expectation that, according to Revelation 12:6, it might serve as a refuge to a remnant in Israel when the Antichrist will order the worldwide genocide of Jews, lasting for the last 3½ years of the tribulation period. Despite the absolute desolation of Petra its role in history is not yet past.
South of the narrow gorge that offers access to Petra is a valley of between 1½ and 5 kilometres wide. About 3 kilometres south of the entrance to Petra is the Fountain of Moses (Ain Musa). During their journey through the wilderness Moses led the Israelites along this valley to the gates of Petra. From that point, they intended passing through Edom’s territory on their way to the Promised Land, but the hostile Edomites twice refused their request.
Jacob and Esau The intense hostility between Israel and Edom originated in the history of Jacob and Esau, as Esau was the founding father of the Edomites. In Genesis 25, we read about the twins to whom Rebecca gave birth: “And the first came out red. He was like a hairy garment all over; so they called his name Esau. Afterwards his brother came out, and his hand took hold of Esau’s heel; so his name was called Jacob… So the boys grew. And Esau was a skilful hunter, a man of the field; but Jacob was a mild man, dwelling in tents… Now Jacob cooked a stew; and Esau came in from the field, and he was weary. And Esau said to Jacob, Please feed me with that same red stew, for I am weary. Therefore his name was called Edom. But Jacob said, Sell me your birthright as of this day. And Esau said, Look, I am about to die; so what profit shall this birthright be to me… So he swore to him, and sold his birthright to Jacob. And Jacob gave Esau bread and stew of lentils; then he ate and drank, arose and went his way. Thus Esau despised his birthright” (Gen. 25:25-34).
Mary was highly favored, not sinless. There is not one scripture to support that Mary was without sin. JESUS is the only one who never sinned (2 Corinthians 5:21, Hebrews 4:15, 1 Peter 2:22) which explains why Mary had to be impregnated by the Holy Spirit.
The Bible is about JESUS, after all Jesus is the Living Word (John 1:14). The Old Testament points to JESUS. The New Testament is about Jesus. The authors of the four Gospels saw JESUS as the central figure and only mention Mary in reference to JESUS. The word “Jesus” is mentioned 1,478 times in the New Testament. The word “Mary” is only mentioned 55 times and some of those are in reference to Mary Magdalene. Also, Jesus is referenced in 26 of 27 New Testament books. I was discussing this with my friend Mike last night and he simply added, “She can’t hear you.” Good answer. Only God can hear all of our prayers as He is the only one omniscient, omnipotent, and omnipresent. Mary was not even recognized in Scripture as a leader in the early Church. Peter is the one who stood up, addressed the crowd, and preached in Acts 1, not Mary. JESUS is the only Way, Truth, and Life. No one can come to the Father, except through JESUS. Let me end by saying this blog post is not to attack one’s belief system or even ridicule it for that matter. My purpose is to educate and communicate what Scripture teaches. After all, we have a responsibility as believers to weigh everything we believe and teach against the inerrant Word of God.
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Luke 1:26-38 26 In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a village in Galilee, 27 to a virgin named Mary. She was engaged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of King David. 28 Gabriel appeared to her and said, “Greetings, favored woman! The Lord is with you!” 29 Confused and disturbed, Mary tried to think what the angel could mean. 30 “Don’t be afraid, Mary,” the angel told her, “for you have found favor with God! 31 You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you will name him Jesus. 32 He will be very great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his ancestor David. 33 And he will reign over Israel forever; his Kingdom will never end!” 34 Mary asked the angel, “But how can this happen? I am a virgin.” 35 The angel replied, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the baby to be born will be holy, and he will be called the Son of God. 36 What’s more, your relative Elizabeth has become pregnant in her old age! People used to say she was barren, but she has conceived a son and is now in her sixth month. 37 For the word of God will never fail.” 38 Mary responded, “I am the Lord’s servant. May everything you have said about me come true.” And then the angel left her.
Virgin Mary Chosen by God? Yes. Favored by God? Yes. Honorable? Yes. Virtuous woman of character and integrity? Yes. The only woman in the history of the world to give birth as a virgin? Yes. Deserving to be celebrated during the Christmas season? Yes. Worthy to be held in high esteem? Yes. Worthy to be worshipped or prayed to? Nope. Mary was highly favored by God but was never intended to be a mediator between us and God. 4 REASONS YOU SHOULD NOT PRAY TO MARY 1. THERE IS ONLY ONE MEDIATOR 1 Timothy 2:5 says, There is one God and one Mediator who can reconcile God and humanity—the man Christ Jesus.
This confirms we don’t need a “go-between.” We don’t need a middle-man (or woman) beyond Christ.
When Jesus died, shed His blood, and was raised from the dead the need to have someone (e.g. high priest) represent us was ripped away just like the curtain that tore from top to bottom.
2. GOD ALONE SHOULD BE WORSHIPPED Luke 4:8 says, Jesus replied, “The Scriptures say, ‘You must worship the Lord your God and serve only him.’”
Praying to Mary and/or any living or deceased saints is an act of worship…which is reserved for God alone.
When Jesus prayed(Matthew 6:7-13) He began with, “Our Father in Heaven.” No where in Scripture is it suggested that we pray to Mary or any other deceased saints.
3. MARY WORSHIPPED JESUS AS GOD In Acts 1 the disciples and about 120 believers were in an upper room waiting for the promise of the Holy Spirit. Guess who was present with them? Mary. What was she doing? Praying.
Acts 1:14 says, They all met together and were constantly united in prayer, along with Mary the mother of Jesus, several other women, and the brothers of Jesus.
It’s important to note that the apostles weren’t praying to Mary as a go between. She was joined with them in prayer…to GOD.
4. MARY WAS A SINNER IN NEED OF A SAVIOR According to Psalm 51:5 we are all born as sinners in need of a Savior, Mary included.
Do you pray but they are not answered? Are you perhaps sending your prayers to the "wrong address?" The apostels asked Jesus how they should pray as they had never prayed before. Jesus answered them saying' Pray to the Father in My name. Jesus is our only mediator. When you pray expect an answer it may not come in the time you would like it to be but be assured it will come. The important part is that you are in the expecting mode as often someone prays and then forgets about it and so may miss the answer.
Hudson Talor a famous preacher said; Lord that you will answer my prayer I know. What fascinates me always is how you will answer.
One night a sleepy little boy knelt beside my bed He smiled and looked into my eyes and this is what he said Daddy my daddy you've taught me lots today So daddy my daddy teach me how to pray
You brought me home a brand new kite showed me how to fly And there ain't no wonder kid who's dad can knock a ball so high I'd like to thank God for you but I don't know what to say So daddy my daddy teach me how to pray
I'd had to turn and leave his room he began to cry I didn't want my boy to know but so did I His best pal forsaken him but what was there to say For daddy yes daddy had forgotten how to pray
(Daddy my daddy teach me how to pray) Source: LyricFind
We Thank Thee. We thank Thee each morning for a new born day Where we may work the fields of new mown hay We thank Thee for the sunshine and the air that we breathe Oh Lord, we thank Thee
Thank Thee for the rivers that run all day Thank Thee for the little birds that sing along the way Thank Thee for the trees and the deep blue sea Oh Lord, we thank Thee
Oh yes, we thank Thee, Lord, for every flower that blooms Birds that sing, fish that swim and the light of the moon We thank Thee every day as we kneel and pray That we were born with eyes to see these things
Thank Thee for the fields where the clover is grown Thank Thee for the pastures where cattle may roam Thank Thee for Thy love so pure and free Oh Lord, we thank Thee
Oh yes, we thank Thee, Lord, for every flower that blooms Birds that sing, fish that swim and the light of the moon We thank Thee every day as we kneel and pray That we were born with eyes to see these things[
When your Church is led by Godly pastor or elders, and you bring yourself under their leadership, you should find yourself being pointed to Jesus over and over and over and over again.
You should find yourself growing in spiritual maturity. You should find yourself being sanctified, becoming more like Jesus. Nowhere in the Bible's description of a pastor does it say he needs to be funny. He needs to be entertaining. He needs to be able to spin a good yarn, needs to be able to make you feel good about yourself, tell you what you want to hear.
He needs to fit the physical appearance of what you think a pastor should look like. It's not in there. I'll wrap up with this BJ and I try to be very open about who we really are, and we both understand that some people will meet us, some people will see us and think they don't look very pastoral. They don't dress very pastor. They sort of joke around like normal people.
I don't see it in a Godly and honest way. We hope to lower your expectations for us. And if you know us, we hope it comes across that we consider ourselves members of gospel city first and elders second. This Church is our family, and our role in this family just happens to be as elders. That's how we get to serve our family for this season of our lives, and it's a joy to do so.
But we both hope that as you grow in your knowledge of the Word and your relationship with Jesus, that you reach the place where all of your hope is in Jesus and all of your faith is built upon Jesus. Because if any of your hope is in BJ or me, if any of your faith is based upon BJ or me, I promise you will be disappointed. I promise. Because no matter what, we will let you down at some point, probably more than once, we will not reach out at a time when you thought we should have. We will ask a question or say something that's offensive.
We'll make a decision you don't agree with. That will happen. That absolutely will happen. And if your faith is devastated, I don't know if I can believe in God. If your faith is devastated due to us, then it means your faith wasn't placed where it should be in Jesus.
Now listen, when a pastor or leader falls, it's okay to be disappointed in them. It's okay to be hurt. It's okay to grieve. But it's not okay to be disappointed in God because he has nothing to do with their failure. He has never failed you.
He never will. That's why he's God, and that's why we call Him Good, because he's the only one who's truly good. Put your faith in God if you've been hurt or disappointed by Church leadership that's but if there's bitterness or unforgiveness forgive. Let it go. Let it go.
It's in First Timothy and Titus, chapter one. Now why are those in the Bible? So that Church members and leaders can Select Godly qualified men for the role of elder or pastor, and so that if any issue arises in the life of an elder, there is an objective defined list to serve as the standard of what an Elder's life should look like. It's not true in every case, but in many cases where a pastor falls into moral failure, the Church is not being taught. The Word does not have a biblically literate culture and has had a pastor for years who was not meeting the biblical criteria for eldership.
The people generally don't know how to go to the Word. They don't know how to compare it to their pastor's behavior and identify glaring issues. There are so many things I've heard and read about pastors doing and getting away with that have made me think I could never get away with that a Gospel city because too many of our people know the Word. They would see something as off, they would raise the issue, and they would be looking at the Bible in black and white, and if we didn't repent, they'd leave. It is a layer of protection to have a biblically literate congregation and Church culture.
Growing in spiritual maturity means your worldview the way you see the world becomes increasingly aligned with scripture. So when it comes to pastor and elders in the Church, the question is the same for me as it is for every other area of life. When it comes to pastors and elders, the question is, what does the Bible say? What does the Bible say? There's a lot I could say, but very quickly I'll highlight a few things you need to know.
Pastors do not have greater access to God than any other genuine Christian. When I pray, God doesn't go everybody else shut up. I got a pastor praying over here. Everything else is going to have to wait. I know your kid has cancer.
I don't care. I got a pastor on the line right now. God responds to my prayers for the same reason he responds to yours because I'm one of his kids. That's it. Paul says in Ephesians Four, there's one body and one spirit, just as you were called to one hope at your calling.
There's one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is above all and through all and in all. You need to know that pastors do not serve as a bridge between you and God. You can go straight to God through Jesus. One Timothy says, there's one God and mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus. Pastors and elders are meant to be a gift to the Church body.
Paul explains this as well. In Ephesians Four, he says, and he himself that's Jesus gave as gifts to the Church, some to be Apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and some teachers. Why did God give these people to the Church? Paul says, to equip the Saints for the work of Ministry, to build up the body of Christ until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of God's Son. Growing into maturity with a stature measured by Christ's Fullness the goal of the pastor is not to be the visionary who's the visionary of the Church that's Jesus and the vision is called the Great Commission, St.
Matthew 2000 and 819 and 20. End of discussion. The purpose of all these gifts to the Church is to teach and disciple and encourage the Church body to grow into maturity with the goal of becoming more like the pastor. Oh, wait, no. The goal is to become more like Jesus.
He is the goal for the pastor and the parishioner alike. Paul goes on and says, Then we will no longer be little children tossed by the waves and blown around by every wind of teaching, by human cunning and cleverness and the techniques of deceit. But speaking the truth in love, let us grow in every way into him who is the head Christ. From him the whole body fitted and knit together by every supporting ligament, promotes the growth of the body for building itself up in love by the proper working of each individual part.
Again, I got nothing against you if you're egalitarian, but I'm saying you better function your Church and structure it in a way that protects everybody from the realities of biology. Now, each issue that I'm discussing can serve, as I said, as a layer of protection. Biblical eldership is a layer of protection. Practical boundaries with the opposite sex are a layer of protection. But wherever people are involved, there's the potential for failure.
And as I said earlier, if someone's absolutely determined to sin, they'll find a way. And so what we hope for in that situation is a structure that will see the sin lovingly expediently biblically and transparently confronted and the Church body protected. So write this down. The final layer of protection I want to talk about is a biblically literate congregation and Church culture. A biblically literate congregation and Church culture.
And I know we got a lot today, but hang with me. This is important. You know, it is amazing. This is my observation of Church, not this Church, but the Church in general. It is amazing what you can get away with as a pastor when your people don't know the scriptures.
It is astonishing what you can get away with. If you want the most glaring example, just go look at what the Catholic Church did for 1000 years when they kept the Bible out of the hands of the common man by translating it into Latin, chaining it to the pulpit, and burning anyone who dared to try to read it on their own. Look at what they did simply because people didn't know the Bible. Firstly, a biblically literate congregation means the Church recognizes scripture as the authority over all of its members, including the pastor, including the elders. It's important because it means when we approach each other about an issue or a sin, we do so based on the scriptures.
It doesn't matter if you're a new believer or a seasoned Satan. It doesn't matter if you're 20 years older than me or 20 years younger than me. If you come to me and say, Jeff, I'm concerned about you because it is written and you share the word with me, I am required to listen humbly and openly because you're not approaching me on the basis of your authority. You're approaching me on the basis of the Word's authority, and I am as under the authority of the Word as you are. Bj is as well.
If you're ever in a Church where the pastor is dismissive when approached on the basis of the Word, be careful, be careful. I'm not saying they have to agree with you. Leave room for the fact you could be wrong, but they must take your concern seriously. And if scripture is black and white on an issue, they are not to ignore it. Now, that standard alone doesn't mean much, though.
If your Church is not teaching the Word of God, it's not really a layer of protection. If you say we're all under the authority of the Word of God, but also we're not really going to teach you the Word of God, people won't even know what's in the Word. It's a meaningless thing. Scripture is a layer of protection for a Church when it teaches its people expositionally. So that means verse by verse from the Word, even the difficult and awkward parts of Scripture with no personal agenda.
And when Scripture is taught well, people don't only learn the Word, they learn how to learn the Word, and people learn how to study it for themselves. And most importantly, they also learn that they can go to the Scriptures for answers and for clarity when they have a concern. There are so many issues with Church leaders that could be avoided if believers just knew that the Bible actually lists qualifications for an elder. Qualifications for a pastor. We don't have time to dig into it in this message, but if you want to read those qualifications for yourselves later, the reference is on your outline.
We're not out here playing make believe, pretending this isn't how human beings are. Almost every time a pastor falls into moral failure, there were major warning signs. There were behavioral safeguards that should have been in place but weren't or were just disregarded. The people who could see something was wrong could simply be ignored. Why?
Because there's no plurality of elders, and most people didn't even notice anything was wrong because they believed the pastor when he said, oh, temptation is not an issue for me. I've been walking with the Lord so long. And one quick note on this issue. And Egalitarianism, if you were here when BJ talked about this a few weeks ago, you will recall that in the context of Church leadership, egalitarianism is the view that both men and women are called to be pastors in the Church. And you'll also recall here that at Gospel City, we are complementarian.
We believe that when you look at the Scriptures, God's design assigns men and women equal value, but different roles. And one of the roles that we believe is unique to men is eldership pastoring in the Church. Now, more churches than ever are egalitarian today. And for us, this is not essential doctrine. Like if we meet someone and they're a pastor of a Church and they're like, we're in egalitarian Church, we're not like, you are dead to me.
It's not that. Okay. This for us is not an essential piece of doctrine. We can have fellowship with our egalitarian brothers and sisters. But there's one practical aspect of this that can be dangerous.
It doesn't happen in every Church, but it happens in some egalitarian churches when it comes to safeguarding against moral failure. Because there can be this slightly feminist angle where female pastor will say, there's nothing a male pastor can do that a female pastor can't do. So if a male pastor can counsel a man alone, then a female pastor should be able to counsel a man alone. And if a man can meet with a man behind closed doors, then a female pastor should be able to meet with a man behind closed doors. And if that becomes Church policy, then it just becomes rational.
Well, you have to do it the other way, too. Then a male pastor should be able to meet with a woman behind closed doors. And this ignores the reality of how men and women are wired. You see, whatever your theology is, it has to work with observable reality. Right.
It's like when people say, you know, I just believe if you think positively, everything works out. What's the evidence against that observable reality. Right. And so you can't just create a piece of theology and say, this theology means that if I ever meet someone that I have chemistry with and I spend lots of time with them alone, and attraction will not develop because this is our doctrine doesn't work that way. Observable reality disproves that.
And so if that person is of the opposite sex and there's any physical attraction and play, repeated conversations and interactions can lead to something dangerous. And the danger can be even greater between male and female pastors who are working together in the same Church dealing with intimate issues on a near daily basis. And so whatever your belief is on this issue, if you're an egalitarian, your view and the way your Church operates better incorporate the reality of how men and women are wired. You can't just pretend that because this is our doctrine, men and women function differently in our Church on a biological level. No, they don't.
No, they don't. That would never happen to me. Not a strategy. By the way, we're all Christians here doesn't protect anyone from temptation, sin, and biological attraction. But too often in instances of moral failure, there are few or no safeguards to address these potential issues in egalitarian churches.
And I want it that way. I want it that way. I've never had the desire to get a hotel room with a prostitute or go to a strip club, buy drugs, or secretly become an alcoholic or a gambler. But I don't even want that to be an option. And if something as simple as how I Bank can help protect me from all that stuff, you better believe I want to do it.
You better believe it. It's not about legalism or rules. It's about honoring God and protecting the relationships I care about most as much as I can from the destructive power of sin. This is why BJ and I won't ever meet with or counsel a woman alone in their home or in our home or in any closed office. If we meet one on one, it's going to be somewhere public, like a coffee shop.
And even doing that, we won't meet with or counsel the same woman on an ongoing basis. We'll bring in another woman to help or another pastor as well. Now, why is that? Let's talk about how affairs happen 99. 9% of the time.
Here's another shocking statement for those of you who are married. And this one really might take some of you by surprise. Your spouse is not the only person on Earth that you will have chemistry with. This is real. This is real.
A lot of people don't realize this, and that's what makes it so dangerous. But there are other people out there that your personality will just click with. And here's what can happen. People think nobody would ever be interested in me. People know I'm married.
People know I have kids. People know I'm a Christian. And so they don't build any protections into their life to guard against that scenario. And then one day they get into a conversation with someone, usually at work or somewhere they go regularly the gym and the personalities click. And the conversation is just just easy.
And that conversation leads to another conversation and another conversation. Somewhere in there, the conversation becomes increasingly vulnerable and intimate. And then the subject of marriages and relationships come up, and they both share their struggles and frustrations with their current partners. And here's what most people forget about men and women. Most people forget that if there's any type of physical attraction, an emotional connection will naturally progress toward a physical connection over repeated interactions if left unchecked.
I'll say that again. If there's any type of physical attraction and emotional connection will naturally progress toward a physical connection over repeated interactions if left unchecked. If there's no boundaries, no plan BJ. And I don't have safeguards because we're incapable of having a private conversation with any woman without losing control. That's not why it's there.
It's not like we close the door and just turn into raging hormonal animals. That's not the reality at all. Our safeguards are built for the possibility that one day we counsel someone whose personality we have chemistry with because this is real life, okay? This is reality. And if that happens, we want to be doing things in such a way that there's no chance of things going sideways and everybody is protected.
US, them, the Church, the reputation of Jesus. These protections are for that event. We pray it never happens. But it could. We're not delusional again.
We're not out here playing make believe, pretending this isn't how human beings are. Almost every time a pastor falls into moral failure, there were major warning signs. There were behavioral safeguards that should have been in place but weren't or were just disregarded. The people who could see something was wrong could simply be ignored. Why?
If you're not willing to take radical practical steps, you're still playing games. Playing games with God. You're playing games with yourself. But when I've shared some of this stuff with people over the years, when I pointed out, tried to lovingly point out some situations that are not healthy, I'm like, there's provision being made for the flesh there. You can see it a mile away.
I've had more than one time when people say, Jeff, you're being legalistic, or other times where I can tell they're thinking it and they just haven't said it. And I work all the time on being a more gracious person, whether you believe that or not. And the Holy Spirit is working even harder on me. But here's the truth. I'm not legalistic.
I am just not into playing games. I'm just not into playing. Amen I'm not okay with believers playing make believe and ending that we can pick up fire, put it on our lap, and somehow not be burned. To paraphrase Parv 6/27, I care too much about people, too much about the Church, too much about the reputation of Jesus to turn a blind eye. And I know BJ feels the same way.
And if you're a member of Gospel City, we will not turn a blind eye. If you pick up fire and put it in your lap, we're going to say, what the flip are you doing? With fire in your lap? You're going to get burned. And here's the key.
We hope that you would do the same for us because you love us. Now, one more piece of advice in this area. Write this down. The time to build up your defenses is when there's a lull in the fighting. The time to build up your defenses is when there's a lull in the fighting.
Listen, when the enemy is charging at you, that's not the time to say, we better build a wall. It's too late. Take action. Build up some protections. Clean out the trash when there's a lull in the fighting.
In other words, act when you feel motivated. Don't come to Church. Get convicted by the Holy Spirit during the worship time. Cry and say, I'm done with that, Lord, and then go home and say, I will make those changes tomorrow. Don't do it.
Do it ASAP. Be ruthless in your battle against the flesh. Identify things in your life that are making provision for the flesh and deal with them as quickly as possible. Almost every pastor who falls into moral failure will have a track record of making provision for the flesh, making provision for the flesh, and it gets identified after the matter far too late. I think of David watching Bathsheba bathe herself from his patio the first time he saw her.
David who's the King should have grabbed somebody and said, Listen, build that woman a roof on her backyard. Heck, build her a whole another house. I don't care what you have to do. You just make sure when I come out on my patio, there's not a naked hot lady over there. Okay, done.
That's what he would he done. But David doesn't do that. He makes provision for the flesh by doing nothing. I am astounded how often pastor who fall into moral failure are surrounded by Christians who seem to have no discernment. I'm being very real here.
No discernment Christians who seem to genuinely believe the pastor when he says, I'm above temptation. I have ascended to a higher level of Holiness. Bless you, my child. Get out of my face.
No one is above temptation, and Jesus is the only one who has successfully resisted all temptation. Let me say that one more time. Jesus is the only one who has successfully resisted all temptation. Again, the ultimate issue is humility brought about by seeing our own sinfulness. Clearly, I'm not legalistic.
I'm just not in denial that I live in flesh that wants to sin. I'm not deluding myself. This is why BJ and I, we don't have our own personal bank accounts or credit cards. We have joint everything with our wives. It would be very, very difficult for me to get my hands on just $300 without Charlene finding out about it.
That's so cute. It's just not an issue for me. Red flag. Because here's why. As you grow into maturity in Christ again, listen to me.
As you grow into maturity, not just age, not as you get older. As you grow into maturity in Christ, you become increasingly astounded by the goodness of God, but also by your own propensity towards sin. You see, growing in Christ likeness means seeing your own sinfulness with increasing clarity, resulting in increasing humility. And some of the evidence of that humility shows up in how you deal with your flesh. At this point in my walk with Jesus, I have a pretty good idea what my main issues are.
I have a pretty good idea of how I'm most likely to sin. And so hopefully over time, I become less defensive when a brother or sister confronts me about those issues. I often feel like I'm growing at a rate of about 1 mm per year. But I'm growing and I can see what the Lord is doing. It's clear what he's trying to do in my life.
Another way that humility shows up is in the practical steps we take the protections that we build into our life to make it harder for our flesh to win. In Romans 1313 through 14, look at your outlines. This is huge. Paul writes, Let us walk with decency, as in the daytime, not in carousing and drunkenness, not in s*xual purity and promiscuity, not in quarreling and jealousy, but put on the Lord Jesus Christ. Here's the key.
And make no provision for the flesh to gratify its desires. Here's what that last phrase means. Don't prepare. Don't set aside supplies to help your flesh sin in the future. If you're on a diet because you want to lose weight, but every week you still go to Walmart and stock up on candy and cake, it's not going to work.
Why? Because you're making provision for the flesh. You're actually planning on failing to such a degree that you're setting aside supplies for that future failure that you're planning on having. I know this might be shocking for some to hear, but when you get married, attractive people don't magically stop being attractive. And I really, really hope that I haven't created tension for some people.
I hope there's no wives in the room that are squeezing their husband's arm right now saying, Is this true? Is this true? Isn't this crazy? So in my life, I have accountability software on every Internet device. I have access to every computer, every phone, every tablet.
And Charlene gets weekly reports of anything that might be concerning. Now, why do I do that? And again, I do that. Charlene doesn't do that. I do that because I don't want to fall into sin.
I don't want to. We all know what it's like to be in bondage to sin. And you know what? I hate it. I hate it because it makes me hate myself.
And it pulls me away from Jesus. And if there's anything I can do to lower the chances of that happening, I want to do it. I know that temptation is going to come and listen when it does. When it does. And even in some of these moments where it's like, oh, I'm going to do that, man, it is such a relief when I remember it's actually not even an option right now.
It's not even an option right now. Listen to me on this. I don't care if it's drugs, alcohol, porn, food, gambling, sex, whatever. If you're not willing to take radical, practical steps to change, you're still playing games. You're playing games.
I don't care how much you talk about wanting to change. I don't care how many life and positive affirming memes you post on social media. I don't even care how many times you break down crying and say, Pray for me. I'm so sorry. I'm repenting.
Are you actively pursuing it if you're not a member of Gospel City, pray about becoming one because we don't hold everyone who comes to our services or home groups accountable. We don't do that. We only do that with members because part of being a member is saying, I want to be lovingly, biblically held accountable. I want to please Jesus, and I want help doing that. Membership is one of the ways that people in our Church put up their hands and say, I want that.
So, BJ and I don't have to look at and be like, who actually wants loving accountability and who says, no, what in the world made you think I wanted that? So membership? Think about it if you haven't done it. Secondly, join a home group. There'll be starting up again in April.
Of course, BJ and I will be involved in them. It's the best way to form relationships in the Church. Sign the box on your connection card right now. Sign me up for home groups. But thirdly, and most importantly, here's the key.
You can be a member and join a home group doesn't do anything magical on its own. The third one is the key. You have to choose to be transparent. You have to choose. You might be a member.
You might attend a home group. But if you choose to never share, never open up to any other believers, ever. There's nothing anybody else can do. We're just not going to be in a home group and be like, I think you're lying. I'm calling your Bluff now.
You got something going on. Everybody stop. We're not doing anything else. We can wait all night, 45 minutes in silence. You're going to share.
You're going to share. If I ever do that, you can also be like, Jeff. You couldn't last 45 seconds waiting. Bj, you need to be more worried. He could wait it out as long as he can outweigh you, I guarantee it.
But you have to actually choose to say, I'm struggling in my marriage right now. I'm just not the husband I want to be. I'm not the wife I want to be. I don't know. I'm so angry.
Can you pray for me? You have to seek out a brother in a Church if you want to do that one on one. Instead, you have to actually choose to say, I'm battling temptation in this area, and I feel like I'm losing. Can you pray for me? I need help.
So ask again, are you pursuing loving biblical accountability in your life? Because how in the world you're going to say pastor should be doing this? You're not even interested in it either. But it's a dangerous sign, in my opinion, when a pastor doesn't want loving biblical accountability and builds a Church structure to support that desire. When you dig into the life of a pastor who's fallen into moral failure, you'll almost always find they didn't want this type of accountability in their life, and so they didn't let things get developed around them that would risk that actually happening.
They keep a distance from their congregation in practicality so write this down. Participation in a home group and biblical eldership provide additional layers of accountability for pastors participation in a home group. And biblical eldership provide additional layers of accountability for pastors because they at least create opportunities to be known by brothers and sisters in the congregation. And all these things that I'm sharing, none of this is foolproof. Just so you know, someone is determined to sin, they are going to find a way to do it.
There's no foolproof system, but each of these things can provide a layer of practical protection that can help any pastor or any Christian who says the war with the flesh is not an issue for them. We call that a red flag. That's a red flag. Hey, Pastor, I noticed you're doing this thing, and that seems like it could make it really easy to sin.
When you're in the trenches together solving problems, dealing with conflict, talking through issues, forming plans, dealing with pressures, dealing with stress who you are comes out. But here's another practical issue. The people you work with can't hold you accountable if you're the one signing their paychecks. Tell me what you think. Employees now, be honest.
On an unrelated matter. Bonuses are due in a month. Share freely. It doesn't work well for the obvious reason that at least partially, their livelihood depends on them liking you. That's not a good recipe for genuine accountability.
So how can a pastor be accountable to Godly men that he works with but whose paychecks he doesn't sign? The answer is, as some of you will recall, biblical eldership, the only model of Church leadership we find in the New Testament. The model has a group of elders who oversee the Church together in unity, and they share equal authority. They will have different roles, but equal authority. They are vetted, biblically qualified Godly men who oversee the Church together and hold each other accountable because they know each other and they share vulnerably with each other.
And because they're working together, who each person is leaks out, the issues rise to the surface. If an elder is engaged in sin and won't repent when confronted by other elders, they can actually discipline him. They can suspend him. They can remove him from Ministry. They can fire him if they have to.
Whatever is needed. There's no unchecked authority in the Church that way. And as we talked about earlier, here's the catch. Godly men want it that way. They actually want it that way because Godly elders care more about pleasing Jesus than anything else, than holding on to authority, than getting to be the sole visionary of the Church.
And this is the model we're pursuing at Gospel City. Right now, we have two elders, BJ and me, but we're actively training and raising up people that we believe will be future elders. We're working on that right now. And BJ and I have invited each other to hold each other accountable. And we do we do share vulnerably.
We do have difficult conversations with each other in Grace and truth. And we both love it. Not because it's easy, but because it makes us more like Jesus and it makes our Church more like the Church Jesus wants it to be. And even though there's only two of us, Gospel City is already better protected than New Hope or God Rock ever was. That's the truth.
Because let me give you an example. If you realize I'm in unrepentant sin, you say, Jeff, I want to talk to you about it. I want to practice Matthew 18. And I'm like, take off. Eh?
So solid reference already. There's someone else you can go to. You can go to BJ and be like BJ. What the flip is going on with Jeff? He just told me to take off and I've got an issue here.
I tried to practice Matthew 18. If I won't listen to BJ, even right now, BJ has equal authority with me. He can go to our denomination and get them involved. Now, a lot of pastors, I need to say this in the defense of some pastors, they have no idea how biblical eldership functions. I didn't as little as five years ago.
But some pastors would never be open to it because the truth is they don't want that kind of loving biblical accountability in their lives. They don't want it. And I do want to turn that question back on each of us one more time. Do you want loving biblical accountability in your life? Are you inviting it?
Here is how many pastors don't want that kind of loving accountability in their lives. They don't. And I'll share some of the ways BJ and I try to do this. Many pastors in many churches are not involved in a home group, even when their Church does home groups. There's this disconnect between the pastor and the congregation.
They're on different levels. They don't mingle. They're on different tiers here, maybe not even on a hierarchical chart, but in functional reality, they don't ever get down and be part of the Church body. They're always separated because they don't want to share in the home group. They don't want to be vulnerable.
They don't want to risk somebody in the Church asking them a question that they can't actually answer on the fly, or someone in the Church pointing out an issue with something they said or taught.
I had a guy in our home group I love to death. He's awesome. We're having a discussion. He made this great point, totally undid, a point I had just made. And he was like, sorry.
I was like, don't be sorry. Like, this is awesome. But that's the norm in Church. I think I'm right here. But can I say it to the pastor?
Because heaven forbid the congregation figure out a pastor doesn't know everything about everything. Heaven forbid the whole illusion will crumble if the congregation figures out the pastor is a human who struggles with human things like discouragement and temptation and fear and sin. Couldn't let that happen. And again, you take a step back and you think this is madness because nobody is actually buying this. When we think about it, like, really, what's the goal?
To sell the illusion that I have achieved a final victory over the flesh. It's not an issue for me anymore. That's why I'm a pastor and you're not like, this is the most absurd delusion. But in most churches, in most churches, this is the way it is. There's this separation because the pastor doesn't want to be known to that level as a human being.
Here's what I can tell you about Gospel City. When I use the word elders, it's a synonym for pastor. By the way, the elders at Gospel City will always be part of a home group. Always. Bj and I would both love to be a part of a home group one day where we're not even facilitating.
We just go as members of Gospel City Church, and that's the way it'll always be. Secondly, BJ taught on eldership extensively last year, so I'm not going to cover all that again. You can listen online if you'd like to do that. But I will point out the model of Church leadership in most churches has one pastor at the top as the top dog, the senior pastor. And usually they're accountable to some type of board because they'll go to a home group.
I'm not accountable to the people. I'm accountable to a special board because there's a registered charity in Canada, you have to have a legally constituted board. And in most churches, that board will meet several times a year for a few hours each time. And with unfortunate regularity, the people on those boards are often simply the biggest financial givers in the Church or the most influential business people. In some churches, the people on the board don't even attend that Church.
None of them, the pastor they know is ever. Let me put it this way. The pastor that the board knows is whoever the pastor presents themselves to be during those few hours in a few meetings a year. You can hide a lot of your issues when you only make guest appearances in front of a group of people. It's a very different story when you work with people, because the more you see people, the more you interact, the harder it is to hide who you truly are.
This is why marriage is hard, right? People actually figure out who you are. That's the problem with marriage, right? It's a very different story. When you work with people, you get to know them.
I believe the Lord has gifted me as a teacher, but here's the truth. I would still be gifted as a teacher if I were living in sin. That's the reality. In the same way, having a charismatic or magnetic personality does not mean you're highly sanctified has nothing to do with it. So how do you know?
Some of you guys are getting nervous. Well, how the flip do we know, Jeff, if our pastor is walking with Jesus, we'll talk about it in a minute. But one more here. Being a nice person doesn't mean you're walking with Jesus. Being a nice person doesn't mean you're sanctified, doesn't mean you're yielding to the spirit.
I don't know if you've noticed this, but there are some nonchristians who are nice people. That's crazy, right? And I could go on and on and on, but here's what I want you to understand. Here's how I want to educate you as believers. Just because the pastor is old, just because he's been in Ministry for decades, just because he started a Church, just because he has some spiritual gifts, just because he comes across as a nice person, does not mean he is spiritually mature.
Walking with Jesus and consistently choosing the Spirit over the flesh. All those things I listed have nothing to do with sanctification, nothing to do with walking with Jesus. Write this down. The evidence of a person's walk with the Lord is who they are in their daily lives. It's who they are in their daily lives.
It is impossible to hide who you really are forever. It leaks out. And that reality confronts every believer with a dilemma. This is the dilemma. If I'm ever consistently walking in the flesh in any area of my life, do I want someone to notice?
Do I want them to confront me in Grace and truth? That's a heavy question, isn't it? That's a heavy question. And for far too many people, far too many Christians, the answer is no. No, I don't want people to know my issues.
I don't want to be called out, especially if it's by someone who's younger than me or a newer believer than me, or from a different socioeconomic background than me. Not as educated as me. I'd be embarrassed. I feel ashamed. I'll feel judged just by bringing up the subject.
But here's what I can tell you. I can tell you this with certainty. The Holy Spirit wants to grow every single one of us to the place where we care more about pleasing Jesus than we do about our reputation or our embarrassment or our ego or our pride. I can tell you with certainty the Holy Spirit is working right now to get all of us to the place where we love Jesus so much. We actually invite that kind of loving accountability into our lives because we care more about pleasing Jesus than anything else.
That is what the Holy Spirit is trying to do in my life and your life right now, because we all need it. Did you hear me on that? We all need it. If you think I don't, I've got it all together. Not only do you need it, you're also delusional.
So you're double whammy. Okay? None of us is going to achieve a final, decisive victory over the flesh until we receive our new bodies in the presence of Jesus. That's just the reality. We're going to battle the flesh for our whole lives.
We know this. We know this. We know this in the Word. So why do most of us try to pretend that we're not at war with the flesh every day? Ego, pride, insecurity, fear.
And the Lord wants to set us free from those things. Would you write this down? Every believer needs loving, Biblical accountability in their lives. Every believer needs loving, Biblical accountability in their lives. Here's the mind blowing thing, including pastors.
Including pastors. Why? Because they're human beings. Now, what is a tragedy in much of the global Church? I'm going to be absolutely real.
When it talks about living and walking in victory, it's talking about the Spirit winning out over the flesh. That's what the Bible is talking about. Can I tell you, victorious living does not mean you're going to get a raise in the next three months. Victorious living is not about a bigger house, a better car, more money in the bank, more followers on Instagram. There are so many churches that will tell you that that is not what the Bible is talking about when it speaks about victory in Jesus.
Victory in Jesus is the ability to actually be able to choose the Spirit over the flesh, which we cannot do until we're born again. That's the victory the Bible is talking about had to preach a little bit. Now, this whole process of growing over time in consistently living and experiencing greater victory over the flesh is part of what the Bible calls sanctification. Sanctification is the term for the lifelong work of the Holy Spirit in the life of the believer to make them more like Jesus. And so as sanctification unfolds over time.
Even though our chart might look like this, the overall trend as we let the Holy Spirit do his work in us should be that we experience more victory in our lives over the flesh. That's what should happen over time. Now, again, I understand that sometimes that growth you're like, well, I got to get like a magnifying glass out and see. But it's there, it's there. I guarantee it.
If you belong to Jesus, he's doing his thing in you. And I also need to bust some myths about sanctification and about living in victory over the flesh. Do you know what doesn't advance your sanctification? You know what doesn't give you victory over the flesh? You know what is meaningless and doesn't help at all.
Let me share some things.
Age has nothing to do with your Sanctification age does not make it any easier to be righteous. Time passing on its own means one thing. You're getting older. That's it years spent abiding in Jesus, living in agreement with him, choosing the spirit over the flesh, that will sanctify you, that will grow you in Grace and wisdom. But it is a myth that age alone sanctifies you.
That it makes you more righteous or that it makes you wiser, just makes you older.
Second myth: 'You know what doesn't help with this? A degree from a Bible College or a seminary does not help. It's not like, "Here's your degree from seminary, Dr. Jeff Thompson. You also now get a ten-point bonus on your sanctification. 'Comes with the certificate." It doesn't work that way. You don't go, "Wow, that guy must be sanctified."
Look at that certificate on his wall. You know what else doesn't help? The title of pastor meaningless when it comes to your sanctification has nothing to do with it. What else doesn't help? Starting a Church doesn't make any difference.
What else doesn't help? Having a spiritual gift has nothing to do with your sanctification. We make this mistake in Church all the time. As Christians, we think that if someone ministers with a powerful gift, they must be righteous. They must be walking with Jesus.
It's not true. Romans 1129 tells us that gods gracious gifts and calling are irrevocable.
Part of that equation is that when God gifts a person, he doesn't withdraw that gift if they don't walk away with him. Do you understand that? Every single artist on the charts on Spotify right now was gifted by God and God wasn't like, well, if you're not going to write songs about me, boom, now you suck at music. He didn't do that. Some of you might be like, I think he might have.
I mean, have you listened to what's on there?
But it doesn't work that way. All the gifts that God gives spiritual natural. He doesn't just take them away. If you decide to not use them for righteousness, he doesn't withdraw them. If the person isn't walking faithfully with him, he doesn't do that.
So Jesus himself says, if you love me, you want to please me. If you love me and you're like, Lord, what can I do for you? He's like, you can start by doing the things that I've asked you to do. That's what you can do. We cannot separate love for Jesus from obedience to Jesus.
And so if you love Jesus, you want to please him, you want to bless him, you want to show your love toward him. And so if you love God, that's your first motivation is, I just love him, I want to bless him. The second motivator, write this down is faith in God's goodness. Faith in God's goodness. The more you get to know God, the more you abide in Jesus, the more wonderful you find him to be.
He is more kind, he's more gracious, he's more caring, he's more loving than you could possibly imagine. And so if he says, I should do something or shouldn't do something, my faith in his goodness tells me this is what's best for you. Even if you don't understand it. This is what's best for you because I have faith in the goodness of God and in his character. The third motivator, closely connected is experience.
If you're paying any type of attention to your own life, after a while, you should begin to notice the pattern that the flesh leads to destruction and the spirit leads to life. You should begin to notice that when I do things God's way, my marriage does better. When I do things God's way, I can interact with my kids more graciously. When I do things God's way, my needs are met and taken care of. When I do things God's way, I don't end up in catastrophic relationships all the time.
I don't find myself waking up with regrets in the morning. I don't find myself rooted in deep, stubborn anger where I know what I should do, but I can't do it because I'm just so bitter. If you're paying attention, you should begin to notice the pattern, and that becomes a motivator. I'm just really tired of making decisions that lead to destruction in my life. The fourth motivator, write this down is a fear of the Lord.
A fear of the Lord. God is our heavenly Father, and you need to know this. He is an active parent. He's not an absentee father. When you've walked with the Lord for a while, you will learn that a loving heavenly Father does not allow his children to get away with things that lead to destruction and death.
You learn that our heavenly Father will step in and discipline us if he needs to, because he loves us. And he says, I don't want you going down that path. I know where it leads, and I love you too much to let you just walk there without doing something about it. It's a sign of Christian maturity. When you realize and recognize that God's kids never really get away with sin.
We either experience the natural consequences of our sins so we reap what we sow or our heavenly Father steps in because he loves us. Now, why does he step in? He says, I can't let you get away with that. Because if you think that you can get away with sin, you're going to keep doing it and it's going to bring destruction and pain in your life. And I can't let you do that because I care too much about you.
Those are four motivators. And I had to lay all that groundwork before we talk about how this connects to pastors who have moral failures. But that's what I'm going to do. Now, I just shared that abiding in Jesus is the key to victorious living. And by the way, in Christianity, in the Bible, when it talks about us having victory in Christ, what it's referring to is that we have victory over death, physical death, and spiritual death.
God's spirit gets to be in charge. Now, unfortunately, it's not a one time decision. It's a daily decision. It could actually be easy if it was only a daily decision. It's a moment by moment decision.
That's why Paul says, Let us also keep in step with the spirit. The flesh is like the monster in those old horror movies. You can picture the scene. The protagonist finally killed a monster and then they turn their backs on the monster and they say, I'm so glad that's over. Thank goodness.
And then what do we see out of focus over their shoulder? All right, the monster comes back. Oh, my gosh. That is exactly what the flesh is like every day, every moment, we are either being led by our flesh or our spirit. Right now, your spirit is saying, this is the word of God.
Tune in. You need this. This is good. Your flesh is saying, his seats could be a little more comfortable. Why don't they serve snacks here?
How long is it to lunch? Right now, the war is going on in every single one of us and we are called to crucify our flesh over and over and over again. Can I tell you, this is possibly the reason I am most excited about getting a new body one day because that moment when we arrive in the presence of Jesus, that war is over. It's done. Amen.
Hallelujah. And let me just tell you the state of peace that we will experience when we're in a body with a spirit that are totally in harmony and both want the things of God, man, it's a state of rest we can't even fathom because we've never tasted anything like it. It's going to be amazing. So how do we win this battle day by day, moment to moment? First of all, we won't win every battle with our flesh.
We won't. That's just real life. We're going to lose a lot. And every time we sin, that's what's happened. We've lost a battle with the flesh.
But the best way to fight the most successful strategy is not striving. It's not working really, really hard at battling the flesh. The best, most effective strategy is, is by walking with Jesus day by day, moment to moment. It's staying in conversation with Jesus throughout the day. It's sharing our burdens and struggles with them even as they come at us.
It's sticking close to Jesus. It's holding onto him. It's asking him for help when we're tempted. The word for that is abiding. And we talk about it a lot here at Gospel City.
It's John 15, where Jesus explains, Remain in me and I in you. Just as a branch is unable to produce fruit by itself unless it remains on the vine, neither can you unless you remain in me. I am the vine. You are the branches, the one who remains in me. And I and him produce as much fruit because you can do nothing without me.
You can do nothing without me. That's one of the mega themes of the Old Testament is the Israelites people who are supposed to belong to God, failing over and over and over to choose the right path because they didn't have the power that we have. They didn't have the new Spirit that we have. They didn't have the Holy Spirit. The way that we do.
Our focus is not on our flesh. It's not battling the flesh all the time. The idea is to turn your back on the flesh by setting your face toward Jesus. That's the way we fight. We hold on to Jesus.
We abide in him. Would you write that down? Abiding in Jesus is the key to victorious living. Abiding in Jesus is the key to victorious living. But there's some other factors that help motivate us to choose the Spirit over the flesh.
They provide reasons for us, moment to moment, to choose the Spirit over the flesh. There may be more, but these are the four that stuck out to me as I thought about it. And I thought about the question, what motivates me to choose the Spirit over the flesh? Firstly, is love for God, love for God. Jesus once said, Why do you call me Lord, Lord, and don't do the things that I say.
He brings our spirits to life by giving us his Spirit, and he'll give us a new body when we arrive in his presence one day. But here's the rub. Here and now we have God's Spirit living in us alive, spiritual life, Jesus said, like a fountain, like a spring, like a well of life within us, but we're still stuck in our flesh, our fallen human bodies that bear the consequences of Adam's sin and are still driven by the pursuit of selfish pleasure. If you're not tracking with me, go look in the mirror. You do not have a resurrected divine body yet.
If you think that I love the confidence, but you're not tracking with reality right here. Do you see the problem? We are beings in conflict even after our Salvation, because our Spirit wants one thing, but our flesh wants the opposite. Our Spirit craves the life that is found in God, but our flesh still craves carnal, earthly, instantaneous, temporary pleasures. Let me share some more of Paul's writings on the subject, because Paul really is the authority in the word of this conflict between the Spirit and the flesh.
In Romans Eight, Paul writes, Those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on the things of the flesh. But those who live according to the Spirit have their mindset on the things of the Spirit. Now the mindset of the flesh is death. It leads to death, but the mindset of the Spirit is life and peace. So the flesh pursues ultimately active death in every area of our life, while the Spirit pursues active life and peace in every area of our lives.
Paul goes on and says, the mindset of the flesh is hostile to God because it does not submit to God's law. Indeed, it is unable to do so. Those who are in the flesh cannot please God. You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit. If indeed the Spirit of God lives in you, if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to him.
Now, if Christ is in you, the body is dead. You should view it as dead because of sin, but the Spirit gives life because of righteousness. I'm going to sum up what we've talked about so far. This is your first fill in. This is the summary so far.
We are born with dead flesh and a dead Spirit dead flesh and a dead spirit. Remember, actively dead. Jesus brings our spirit to life by giving us his spirit. Christians live in a state of conflict between the flesh and the spirit. The flesh desires selfish earthly pleasures, while the spirit desires the abundant life found only in God state of war.
Let's look at some more from our brother Paul in Galatians Five. He writes, I say, then walk by the spirit and you will certainly not carry out the desire of the flesh. For the flesh desires what is against the spirit? And the spirit desires what is against the flesh. These are opposed to each other so that you don't do what you want.
Now, the works of the flesh are obvious. So here's what the cravings of the flesh lead to. s*xual immorality, moral impurity, promiscuity, idolatry, sorcery, hatred, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish, ambitions, dissensions, factions, envy, drunkenness, carousing, and anything similar but the fruit of the spirit. Now, here's what the desires of the spirit lead to is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self control. If you haven't figured it out yet, you want the good stuff the spirit produces in your life.
That's what you want. Then Paul goes on and says, now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the spirit. Paul says that if we belong to Jesus, we have to view ourselves as having crucified put to death our flesh with its passions and desires. We are to look at our flesh and say, you don't run my life.
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What Makes Jesus Unique? No one else made the claims that He did, He is alive...............
This Scripture should be read with Daniel 12, in which reference is also made to the archangel, Michael, who will wage war in heaven on behalf of Israel. As a result of this war, Satan and his fallen angels will be cast down from heavenly places and barred from any further access to the throne of God where he accused the believers. After this further humiliation, the powers of darkness will confine all their attention to events on earth. Satan will be utterly vengeful and from that moment do everything within his power to destroy God’s people and His creation by attempting to make the world uninhabitable, committing genocide against the Jews, and instigating the summary execution of all who confess allegiance to the Lord. That will also be the time when the Antichrist will declare himself as God in the rebuilt temple in Jerusalem, demand the forced worship of his image, rule by way of military decrees, and will not hesitate to use maximum power to subdue and eliminate his adversaries.These ominous events will occur during the last 3½ years of the tribulation period, described as the great tribulation. This second part of the tribulation will last for 1260 days, constituting 42 prophetic months of 30 days each. It is also described as time, times and a half time, alluding to seasonal years, hence referring to a year, two years and half a year. That is exactly the same as 42 months or 1260 days. At the start of this period, Israel will withdraw from the Antichrist’s new world order because they will refuse to worship him as God.
In consequence, the Antichrist will try to annihilate all Jews, thereby necessitating their sudden flight from Jerusalem and surrounding Jewish territories. By divine intervention Israel will be protected from being overtaken and annihilated by the Antichrist and his satanic forces. An earthquake may occur in which a large crevasse is formed which will swallow or stop the pursuing ground forces of the Antichrist, which could be a parallel with the destruction of Pharaoh’s forces during Israel’s exodus from Egypt.
Zechariah refers to this time of great tribulation among the Jews, in which two-thirds of them will die and only a third will manage to escape to a safe refuge in the mountains – most likely Petra: “And it shall come to pass that in all the land, says the Lord, that two-thirds in it shall be cut off and die, but one-third shall be left in it: I will bring the one-third through the fire, will refine them as silver is refined… They will call on my Name and I will answer them. I will say, This is My people” (Zech. 13:8-9). During World War II, 60% of the Jews in Europe died, but in the coming great tribulation the death toll will even be higher. The coming tribulation will, therefore be the worst in all history – not only for Israel, but also for the unbelieving nations.
Why to Petra?