Too Many Warnings. Uh, oh...

And the people have not heard the warnings.

Interestingly, it was told by Jesus via St. Paul, that in the end times only what pleasures their minds and bodies is what the people will give attention. (2 Timothy 4:3)


Today I was visiting in Beaverton Oregon. My friend and I were relaxing at about 1PM after our lunch. Boom! A bomb? The house, and old me, both startled and shuddered to what turned out to be a sound wave concussion, not an explosion in the classic sense.

Immediate thoughts were of "Rapture", for I am mindful of doing as Jesus said. I "look up" in these end times. I look up to see "the Son of Man" coming. (1Thessalonians 4:16-17)


All this connected in me with what I had been reading in 2 Kings chapter 17 about Israel being thoroughly corrupt and being exhaustively warned about their lives of sin. For many, many years God told them through His prophets: "Turn and repent from your wicked ways", and etc., or I will.... (fill in the blank with nastiness).

Also resonating in me was the clear and easily verifiable fact that most of Christianity and most all the world are sinning just as badly and worse as Israel did. True, Israel did it much longer (~1700 years) but we have had a much better opportunity in being obedient to God than did they: Jesus & God's very Holy Spirit aiding us, education, printed matter, powerful nations, high living standard, time on our hands, and etc.

We are in big trouble. This age of grace is about to end, and billions have not availed themselves of the grace which saves from eternal Hell. What a shame! One brash young prophet and evangelist was heard to say it plainly: Turn or Burn!


Though many will argue with you these many years later, America was saved by God from British oppression. But, our many sins have brought us to a sorry state. The sins are idolatry of many types (even millions of abortions, which is exactly like the Israelites burning their children to death in sacrificial fires to the god Molech).

It is foolish to think that what God has done to (and continues to do to) Israel will not happen to Christianity and to Western civilization. Here are a few quotations from 2 Kings 17:

:9 The Israelites secretly did things against the LORD their God that were not right. From watchtower to fortified city they built themselves high places in all their towns (worship was to be in the Temple). :10 They set up sacred stones and Asherahworshiped idols (phallic) poles on every high hill and under every shady tree. :11 At every high place they burned incense, as the nations whom the LORD had driven out before them had done. They did wicked things that provoked the LORD to anger. :12 They , though the LORD had said, "You shall not do this." :13 The LORD warned Israel and Judah through all his prophets and seers: "Turn from your evil ways. Observe my commands and decrees, in accordance with the entire Law that I commanded your fathers to obey and that I delivered to you through my servants the prophets." :14 But they would not listen and were as stiff-necked as their fathers, who did not trust in the LORD their God. :15 They rejected his decrees and the covenant he had made with their fathers and the warnings he had given them. They followed worthless idols and themselves became worthless. They imitated the nations around them although the LORD had ordered them, "Do not do as they do," and they did the things the LORD had forbidden them to do. :17 They sacrificed their sons and daughters in the fire. They practiced divination and sorcery and sold themselves to do evil in the eyes of the LORD, provoking him to anger. :18 So the LORD was very angry with Israel and removed them from his presence. :20 Therefore the LORD rejected all the people of Israel; he afflicted them and gave them into the hands of plunderers, until he thrust them from his presence. :22 The Israelites persisted in all the sins of Jeroboam and did not turn away from them :23 until the LORD removed them from his presence, as he had warned through all his servants the prophets. So the people of Israel were taken from their homeland into exile in Assyria, and they are still there. :28 So one of the priests who had been exiled from Samaria came to live in Bethel and taught them how to worship the LORD. :29 Nevertheless, each national group made its own gods in the several towns where they settled, and set them up in the shrines the people of Samaria had made at the high places. :34 To this day they persist in their former practices. They neither worship the LORD nor adhere to the decrees and ordinances, the laws and commands that the LORD gave the descendants of Jacob, whom he named Israel. :35 When the LORD made a covenant with the Israelites, he commanded them: "Do not worship any other gods or bow down to them, serve them or sacrifice to them. :36 But the LORD, who brought you up out of Egypt with mighty power and outstretched arm, is the one you must worship. To him you shall bow down and to him offer sacrifices. :37 You must always be careful to keep the decrees and ordinances, the laws and commands he wrote for you. Do not worship other gods. :38 Do not forget the covenant I have made with you, and do not worship other gods. :39 Rather, worship the LORD your God; it is he who will deliver you from the hand of all your enemies." :40 They would not listen, however, but persisted in their former practices. :41 Even while these people were worshiping the LORD, they were serving their idols. To this day their children and grandchildren continue to do as their fathers did.

A WAKE-UP
The "Boom!" was not a bomb, it was jet fighters doing startling things as part of an Air Show (which is a part of Portland's annual Rose Festival activities).

Still, it could have been The Rapture", and, it also could have been enemies of America. If it is rapture, I'll be gone before the enemies destroy us.
-- Indeed, we may never be destroyed by physical force, but there is an impressively strong case that we will be destroyed by financial ruin... which we have allowed to become a very real and a very frightening troll under our bridge.

I suggest for all to at least read, understand, and act appropriately to Pascal's Wager which I wrote about a few days ago.


You know I love ya!
Modern Luther
-------------------------------------------



Live YOUR life: live it earnestly, humbly, and obediently before God, and do not aspire to, or covet, any other life, "for your enemy the Devil prowls about looking for whom he may devour."
-------------------------------------------


"He has showed you, O man, what is good.
And what does The Master require of you?
To do justly,
To love Mercy,
And to walk humbly with your God."
— Prophet Micah, 6:8

"Seek hard only after all of the desires of God's heart,
and watch everything worthwhile fall in to place."
— Jesus speaking in Matthew 6:32,33,34
-------------------------------------------


REMINDER NOTES -- NOTES -- NOTES
-- ABOUT GOD ...& CHRISTIANS ...& CHURCH ...& Y.O.U.
1. All of the perfect desires of God's heart (those which we need to know about at this time), can be known and listed.
2. God is always constrained by His justice, so our sinful hearts and actions very often prevent His desired blessings upon us.
3. Practically speaking, The Bride of Jesus (The Church) is actually worse off than most organizations, because The Bride of Jesus organization is out of control. That is, the "organization" does not actually exist. It is as if it is actually a formal DIS-organization, because it has so many branches (Denominations/Churches) and apparently no Home Office (Single Authority, CEO) to coordinate the organization-wide efforts. The needed single authority, CEO, ought be Jesus, but so far it is not.
-- The Bride of Jesus has not yet cooperated with the grace sought by Jesus in prayer (in John) for all to be "one" as He "and the Father are one"; the grace Jesus sought has been given and is Is IS available, but The Bride of Jesus, to her shame, is not yet cooperating with it, even after almost 2000 years!
4. You properly cooperate with God's desires first and only by taking your humble heart to His Words To Us until He HAS you,... and the World, the Flesh, and the Devil, does no longer have you....
5. So very many fail and fail and fail when every way and means for their successes are blatantly available. Jesus weeps.
-------------------------------------------


"REAL Christian":
Intends every day, all the time, to live as a REAL Christian:
-- A REAL Christian:
(1) Has a clear sense of the meaning and purpose of their life;
(2) Convincingly describes their relationship with, their faith in God, and their obedience to ALL of the desires of God's heart, as the top priority of their life;
(3) Consider themselves to be fully "Christian";
(4) Reads the Bible entirely through, regularly; Cannot "Go With God" without it!
(5) Prays regularly;
(6) Deems & lives as if their faith is very important in their life;
(7) Contends and lives as if the main objective in their life is to love God with all their heart, mind, strength and soul;
(8) Describes God as the "all-knowing, all-powerful being who created the universe and still rules it today;
(9) Have made a personal commitment to Jesus (The Savior) that is vibrantly important in their life today;
(10) Believe that when they die they will go to heaven only because they have confessed their sins and accepted Jesus as their Savior; and
(11) Say convincingly that their faith in (Jesus) has "greatly transformed" their life.
-------------------------------------------


The Spirit Says...
Make no mistake, Christian leaders, you are not righteous and favored leaders. For you do not teach and preach ALL of the desires of God's heart, but only what you want to teach and preach, and only what the majority of lukewarm Christians want to hear. You do not exercise your God-given authorities; you do not hold anyone accountable to My commands or desires.
There is a heresy: God loves the Church. Truth? God loves the righteous Church (it is minuscule); God loves what the mainstream Churches ought to be, but God does not love what the Church presently is.
-- Christians leaders are white-washed tombs, and the flocks follow them: looking good on the outside but filled with a stench.
-- Be not proud, for God has blessed mankind much more out of pity than He has out of blessings for its or the Church's obedience.
Leaders have not taught all of what God demands that they teach.
-------------------------------------------


-- Remember: God's suggestions and desires are as much "commands" as are His direct commands.
-------------------------------------------


This electronic mail message and any attached files contain information intended for the exclusive view of the individual or entity to whom it is addressed and may contain information that is proprietary, privileged, confidential and/or otherwise unlawful for a receiver unintended by me to use in any way whatsoever without my express permission.
© LutherBlogs, Modern Luther, 08/2008
-------------------------------------------

FAIR USE NOTICE: This article may contain copyrighted (©) material, the use of which has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. Such material is made available for educational purposes, to advance understanding of human rights, democracy, scientific, moral, ethical, and social justice issues, etc. It is believed that this constitutes a 'fair use' of any such copyrighted material as provided for in Title 17 U.S.C. section 107 of the U.S. Copyright Law. This material is distributed with no profit to blogger Modern Luther.