Friday, October 23, 2015
REV 1:3 Blessed or Happinesses belong to the one who reads and those who hear the words of the prophecy in found in this book, and heed the things which are written in it; for the time is near.
REV 22:18 I testify to everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: if anyone adds to them, God shall add to him the plagues which are written in this book;
REV 22:19 and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part from the tree of life and from the holy city, which are written in this book.
Point 5. America and Biblical Prophecy and the Role of the Pivot in the Last Days.
The Harlot or the Whore of Babylon.
IDENTITY 1 – is found in REV 17:1 “Come here, I shall show you the judgment of the great harlot who sits on many waters,
IDENTITY 2 – REV 17:2 “The kings of the earth committed acts of immorality, and those who dwell on the earth were made drunk with the wine of her immorality.”
The Jews were evil people and they had their part in the holocaust as well as the kings and rulers in the Middle Ages or Medieval period which lasted from the 5th to the 15th century who were influenced by the great harlot of Rome.
IDENTITY 3 – REV 17:3 “I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast, full of blasphemous names, having seven heads and ten horns.”
REV 12:9 And the great dragon was thrown down, the serpent of old who is called the devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him.
REV 17:3 why does the dragon have seven heads and ten horns?
If we were studying the book of revelation, I believe that we would probably conclude that the horns represent kings and kingdoms and the seven heads refer to seven different empires .
Which civil or political power does Revelation 17 tell us the woman gets her ‘seat’ and ‘authority’ from? = It is Rome!
Who is the whore of Babylon? It is the Roman Catholic Church.
There is a great ecumenical movement happening today that is trying to unite all churches and faiths together who are called by many “Babylon’s daughters.”
Cold or psuchros is used for the unbelievers in the Laodicean church.
Hot or zestos refers to believers who have lived in the PPOG and who have utilized grace and advanced to maturity.
The solution for the cold unbeliever is to believe in Christ. The solution for the hot believer is the problem solving devices made available through his relationship with God. and miserable…no happiness from prosperity, and poor, or impotent…no power or strength in prosperity. and blind…no perception of truth, and naked…no uniform of honor in time and therefore no uniform of glory in eternity.
“Grace precedes judgment” and therefore the Lord offers them some advice on how to recover.
Many scholars today have now begun to teach why they believe America is revealing itself to be somewhat of a daughter of Babylon, and for some good reasons.
America’s historical religious aspirations are now reflecting Babylonian religion.
Even America’s national symbols reflect Egyptian Paganism.
Our Capitol Building mirrors Rome, the Washington Monument reflects Egypt, our paper money has pagan symbols on it, the statue of liberty is drenched with paganism, Christmas, Christmas tree, Easter holidays are drenched with paganism.
Sexual symbolism found in much of our popular architecture which reflects ancient religions which believe that our connection to the divine was best achieved through sexual rituals.
All mythology has Babylon as it singular parent.
America’s Inclusion of Nazi Socialism Corrupted Our Government.
Many of our leaders on America knowingly and intentionally have invited the spirit of Antichrist into our land.
The common definition of a mega-church is a church that has at least 2,000 or more in attendance each week.
The majority of church-going Americans attend a church with 200 or fewer members.
The mega-church mentality involves a certain leadership, a kind of personality, a plan for growth and expansion, and a set of goals and priorities, dreams and aspirations.
Mega-church pastors hold the most TV airtime, write the most popular Christian books, and affect more church leaders than any other single group of people.
The mega-church promotes counterfeits, like all suffering is from the devil, all sickness is from the devil, all poverty is from the devil and even all death is from the devil.
Anything that is not positive, they teach is satanic which type of thinking is really a form of witchcraft.
PHI 1:29 For to you it has been granted for Christ’s sake, not only to believe in Him, but also to suffer for His sake,
EXO 4:11 “Who has made man’s mouth? Or who makes him dumb or deaf, or seeing or blind? Is it not I, the Lord? The mega-church SAYS all poverty is from the devil.
REV 2:9 ‘I know your tribulation and your poverty (but you are rich),
3JO 1:2 is Beloved, I pray that in all respects you may prosper and be in good health, just as your soul prospers.
It is about soul and spiritual prosperity not an increase of materialistic prosperity.
MAT 6:19-20, “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. “But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal; for where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.
These Mega-churches also teach that all death is from the devil which is totally ridiculous because that would mean that Satan defeats every member of the human race because everyone dies physically.
HAG 2:8 ‘The silver is Mine, and the gold is Mine,’ declares the Lord of hosts.
PSA 24:1 The earth is the Lord’s, and all it contains, The world, and those who dwell in it.
PSA 50:10 “For every beast of the forest is Mine, The cattle on a thousand hills.”
PHI 1:29 For to you it has been granted for Christ’s sake, not only to believe in Him, but also to suffer for His sake,
ACT 5:41 So they went on their way from the presence of the Council, rejoicing that they had been considered worthy to suffer shame for His name.
ROM 5:3 And not only this, but we also exult in our tribulations, knowing that tribulation brings about perseverance;
JAM 1:2-3, Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance.
Mega-churches also often place an improper emphasis on size and numbers to the neglect of spiritual development.
“The building up of the body of Christ” is true church ‘growth,’ which results in attaining…to mature manhood,” (EPH 4:11-16).
The growth of the church should first of all be personal and spiritual, not numerical.
In an effort to avoid this numbers-game pitfall, true spiritual leaders must prioritize spiritual growth above numbers growth.
They should be hesitant to expand the church’s numerical size without accompanying growth on the spiritual level.
Mega-churches also allow individual members to get lost or become anonymous in the crowd, thus neglecting the specific needs of specific people.
According to the biblical model of church interaction, members should be active serving one another, loving each other, and ministering to one another’s spiritual needs; GAL 6:1-10.
In a mega-church, it is possible for someone to slip in for the service and leave, without forming relationships, exercising his or her gifts, or experiencing the ministry of other members.
The larger the church, the easier it is to forsake one of the most important aspects of church life which is fellowship with members of the body of Christ and submission to the legitimate spiritual authorities which exist.
Mega-churches tend to foster an entertainment model for church, rather than properly emphasizing involvement and interaction.
They’ve got top-notch musicians, expensive Audio Visual equipment, plush seating, amazing architecture, talented speakers, engaging drama, advanced technological accoutrements, and even good coffee served fresh in the lobby.
Some would say, “yes.” Others would question that claim, since it is easy for a member to be drawn into the entertainment of the experience rather than the spiritual impact of the service.
Mega-churches are often built and organized based on the interests and desires of the congregation, rather than growing up into Him in all aspects.
Though there doesn’t seem to be anything inherently sinful or wrong about mega-churches, we should occasionally stop to think about whether the mega-church mentality is really the way of doing church.
We know that the early church grew by thousands, and those thousands were added to the church (Acts 2:41– Acts 4:4).
There is more evidence to suggest that the “church” was a loosely organized collection of smaller house churches, not a massive single mega-church.
Whatever our stance on the mega-church model, let us be sure that we make the teaching of the word of God our touchstone for church growth.
“Beware of the dog and pony show!”