HE SAID "THE CHURCH IS LYING TO YOU"

 He's popular on YouTube, a Pastor, Author, and University Dean. He has an unusual name: Voddie Baucham. He has a sermon on YouTube with a title meant to attract: "Christians, You've Been Lied to about the Rapture." 

A summary of his sermon is that heclaims in no uncertain \ terms that the rapture is a false doctrine invented by a man named John N. Darby in the first half of the 1830s and no one ever heard of such a thing until then. He speaks with a dogatic dogmatic and forked tongue. What he says is nothing new; the rapture has been under attack for a long, long time and Darby is usually mentioned in every attack. 

But I wonder if such authors and speakers on the attck have consided these facts:

1. In the last decade, classics scholar Francis X. Gumerlock has researched the approximately 500 volumes of the writings of the church fathers, (those who lived after the apostles) that have never been translated into English. He once told Mark Hitchcock in an e-mail over a decade ago that he had three file drawers full of rapture statements from throughout Early and Medieval Period of church history. 

2. Gumerlock found a significant number of pre-tribulational rapture statements throughout the history of the church well before the time of Darby. The earliest he has cited thus far is from The Apocalypse of Elijah. Scholars date the sermon around 285 AD. coming from somewhere in Egypt. The rapture passage is as follows:

At that time the Christ will have compassion on those who are his. He will send his angels from heaven, sixty-four thousand in number, each having six wings. Their voices will move heaven and earth, when they praise and give glory. Those upon whose forehead is written the name of the Christ, upon whose right hand is the seal, both small and great, they will be taken on their wings and removed from the wrath.

2. Here is another one, a sermon consisting of 1,500 Latin words preached on the end times as early as the 300s AD:

"Why therefore do we not reject every care of earthly actions and prepare ourselves for the meeting of the Lord Jesus Christ, so that he may draw us from the confusion, which overwhelms all the world? . . . For all the saints and elect of God are gathered together before the tribulation, which is to come, and are taken to the Lord, in order that they may not see at any time the confusion which overwhelms the world because of our sins."

This should suffice to prove that John Darby didn't invent the rapture of the church. Paul revealed it in I Thessalonians 4:13-18 (q. v.) and I Corinthians 15:51ff. What I have brought to your attention is only two examples from three file draws full of the pre-tribulational rapture infomation way, way, way before Darby in the 1830s.

Dr. Tommy Ice summarizes: "Recent research has unearthed plenty of pre-trib rapture advocates before Darby, which are now available when someone brings up that tired, old argument that “No one held to pretribulationism before 1830.” That tired, old argument is now on YouTube.

RAGING FINGERNAILS

 We are witnessing an excercize of unbelievable pain. Let's look at the backstory which normal people would say, "That's insanity."

We're all familiar with the dispicable event but here's a summary: "On October 7th, 2023, the Palestinian Islamist militant group Hamas launched an unprecedented terrorist attack on Israel, killing some 1,200 people (mainly civilians). 240 Israeli citizens and foreigners were taken as hostages and taken into Gaza." The reason: they were Jews. It's on the hostages that we'll focus.

In America and, I suppose, elsewhere, the friends and relatives of the hostages began to post pictures of them in public places and on the grounds of university campuses; photos of men, women, children, and babies, now in the hands of savages who beheaded and burned alive their innocent victims. Again, why? Because they were Jews.

The posted pictures were a lest-we-forget gesture. These 240 hostages are not to be forgotten; they are trying to hang on in a hell on earth. They are somebodys' sons and daughters; comeone's wife;someone's father; someones' mother.

It's inconceivable but it's true; the posting of their pictures ingnited a rage among antisemites. It was a rage from head to toe, infecting even their fingernails. The Jew-haters began to tear down and destroy the posters, tearing them from where they had been afixed.

And this is where their fingernails come into play. Melonie Phillips, a Jew and a British author witnessed people tearing taking down the posters from wooden poles, say like telephone poles by digging their fingernails into the wood in order to tear the the pictures and their messages down. Finger nails embedded into the posts! It's difficul to imagine the pain that would cause, but fueled by the octane of rage, they did it. She and others remarked on the eyes of those with fingernails afixed in the tearing: there was something off and odd about them. They said their looked demonic.

Such hatred against a people who comprise a global population of only15.7 million. Thats 0.2% of the world's population. Their land is the size of New Jersey. Yet, the  fallen world is obsessed with the Jews and with Israel. the UN codemns them with every vote; students in the universitys hound, harass, and assault them rioting along the way.  

This is a supernatual rage from the evil side of the universe; a fury so deep it's in their fingernails.

THE PASTOR AND JOHN 3:16

 I ran across the website of a conservative, Bible-believing church in our area. I came across it because I was searching for something else. The church had a page which instructed the reader on "How to Accept Christ Into Your Life", so I thought I'd ck it out. I did and found "Four Steps" to accept Christ into your life. You and I know that when we read something like that, the article is off in the wrong direction. Here are the 4 steps:

1. Admit your need. (I am a sinner)

2. Be willing to turn from your sins. 

3. Believe that Jesus Christ dies for you on the cross and rose from the grave.

4. Through prayer, invite Jesus Christ to control your life through the Holy Spirit. (Receive him as Lord)

 

We suggest praying the following prayer to accept Christ as your Savior and Lord.

 

"Dear God,

I know I'm an [sic]sinner, and I ask for your forgiveness.

I believe Jesus Christ is Your Son. I believe that He died for my sin and that you raised Him to life again.

I want to trust Him as my Savior and follow Him as Lord, from this day forward. Guide my life and help me to do your will.

I pray this in the name of Jesus. Amen"

If I were to go to the pastor and say, "I'm considering joining your church but before I do, I need to know, do you know and believe Jn. 3:16?" No doubt about it, he would answer with a resounding,"YES!" as he pounded the Bible on his desk. Then I would ask him, "Please tell me, where do you see that I must "be willing to turn from my sins" in Jn. 3:16?

I would continue, "Pray and invite Jesus into my heart?"  Then, politely, I would ask, "Where do you find that I must "pray, and invite Jesus Christ to control my life through the Holy Spirit?" Another question, "Where in any gospel invitation in the book of Acts (or anywhere else) do we find the Apostles telling anyone "to ask God to forgive them to be saved?" Where do we find that the person to be saved has to pray a prayer, even something called "The Sinner's Prayer?"

If he were honest, he would have to say, "I don't see any of them in the verse. I see only one requirement which is, "whosoever believes."

I could reply,  "Then you don't believe John 3:16, do you?"

 

 

HE ACTUALLY SAID THIS?

The philosophical system that is Calvinism can, at times, force the Calviist to say some ludicrous things. 

A case in point is an answer one of the leading Calvinists, R. Sproul, gave to this question: "How can I be be happy in heaven if my mother isn't there but is in Hell?" That's a good question and one we'll answer in our coming study on "Heaven." Sproul's answer floored me.

He said, "When you look down from heaven and see your mother in Hell, you will rejoice!" 

We need to stop here and remind ourselves that oneof the peals of TULIP is "Unconditional Election" which means  "God chose certain individuals for salvation based entirely on His grace, irrespective of their actions or choices. This decision reflects God’s sovereign will, established before the creation of the world."

There it is: God did not chose that person's mother to be one of he elect to be saved and go to heaven. He,  by not choosing her to go to heaven, authomatically chose her to go to hell. 

Why did He chooe her for hell? The Calvinist would have to say, going by their system, that she is in hell to show the glory of God. Keep in mind, that by their system, some babies will wind up in Hell. All this somehow to show the glory of God.

Therefore, Sproul said that when some son ,in heaven, sees his mother or his child in everlasting torment, he will be overjoyed becausse by his mother's being in Hell,she is glorifyig God, He will prasie God thety are there.. 

We say to this, "Really? Is that your answer? Jesus, seeing the rejection of Israel, "burst into tears." (Literal translation.) He did not rejoice. 

THE SEASHELL SERMON

 One of the leading voices among Calvinists is John Piper who gave a sermon on May 20, 2000, at the Passion Conference in Memphis. An article described it as "a powerful message that emphasized the importance of living for Jesus rather than wasting one's life on material pursuits." 

Piper used the story of Bob and Penny who collected seashells to illustrate the hobby as a waste of their years, saying that serving others is a meaningful way to live. Piper talked about Bob's and Penny's retirement consisting of hours and hours of piling up an impressive array of seashells. His point was one of disdain for the couple and mockery.

The article went on to say, "The sermon has had a lasting impact, inspiring many to prioritize their spiritual lives and mission over materialism, and has become a significant part of Christian culture and education." 

But wait a minute before we mark the couple as losers because of their hobby. According to the philosohy that is Calvinism, in eternity past, God sovereinly decreed that Bob and Penny spend their last years wasting their lives on this material pursuit. Accoding to Piper's belief system, they had no choice in the matter, God decreed that they end their lives as failures; they could spend their time in no other way. 

This brings us to the Bema Seat of Christ, the review of each beliver's life for rewards or loss of rewards. At the Bema, some believers will have their works revealed as rewardable---gold, silver and precious stones, while other believers will be shown to have their works as wood, hay, and stubble for collecting seashells. Bob and Penny will be in this group.

But according to Calvinism, each one at the judgment will have been preprogramed to produce the results they did. No one had any choice in the matter as to how he would spend the years of this life. God preprogramed Bob and Penny to collect the shells and wind up as producing stubble. 

Therefore, the Bema Seat judgment, according to Calvism, is pre-rigged. God predetermined that some would fail while others would hear a "Well done thou good and faithful servant." But as Calvin said, neither group could have done otherwise than they did.

So, why did Piper chastize Bob and Penny? This makes no sense. And neither does Calvinism.

NIGHMARE ON CALVIN STREET

 I have a recurring nightmare from which I wake up in a cold sweat, screaming. In my dream, I'm in my senior year, spring semester, ready to graduate from Tx Tech University. But unknown to me, the always igilent administration has discovered that I lack one course in algebra and I will not be graduating. Not only that but they are now on the way from across campus to come and get me. At this point, I wake up. 

If the Calvinist has read Colossians 1: 13-20, it will be hard for him to sleep at night:  Notice the words in boldface type as you read:  "For He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, 14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. 16 For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things have been created through Him and for Him. 17 He is before all things, and in Him all things [z]hold together. 18 He is also head of the body, the church; and He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that He Himself will come to have first place in everything. 19 For it was the Father’s good pleasure for all the fullness to dwell in Him, 20 and through Him to reconcile all things to Himself, having made peace through the blood of His cross; through Him, I say, whether things on earth or things in heaven."

OK, Did you catch it? The fodder for the Calvinist's nightmare is crystal clear. 

Do you agree that Jesus, the Second Person of the Trinity, created all things? Do you agree that all things include both in the heavens and on earth? Do you agree that all things include all human beings? Of course, we agree, that's as clear as crystal. 

Then, you must agree that Jesus  reconciled all things to Himself through His death on the Cross --a way of reconciliation was made available for any soul who would place their trust in Jesus' substitutionary, fully atoning death in their place. Jesus became the Reconciler flinging wide open the gates so that sinful men could be brought back into communion with their Creator, God the Father.

By this text, the philosopical system that is Calvinism has fallen. All things have been reeconciled to God. 

"All things "would include  all things on the earth.  The "L" (Limited Atonement) in Calvinism's "TULIP" has been plucked from the flower. If one letter gets plucked, all the other letters suffer the same fate. Christ died for all.

HARVARD'S FINAL EXAM

 October 7 was the catalyist for an outpouring of Jew hatred at Harvard University et al. By some strange twist of demonic logic, faculty, students, and outsiders protested, camped out on the campus grounds and harrassed with chants, some vulgar, and general intimidatio. 

The twist of logic was that they they blamed Jews for their own savage massacre. The world has never seen such rage against the Jews in 90 years. The attackers on Oct 7th being the savages they were, killed men, women, children, and babies with methods that can only be described as barbaric--beheading and burning babies to death.

The conflict began after hundreds of Harvard students flooded the campus calling for genocide against the Jews. How in the world did this Jew hatred infect the campus? Revelation 12 says that its orign is satanic. This demonic rage was added by something else, something you would swear could never happen in America. 

Further investigation suggested the students may have picked up their antisemitic ideas from what they learned in such Harvard classes as "Studies in Antisemitism" in which the final exam required students to flood the campus and call for genocide against the Jews!