My son Christian had opportunity to interact with a teacher and elder in a Christian church recently. Christian invited me into the conversation, and this is what I wrote…
Good Christian!
Here are a some things you might like to reply with if you feel there is opportunity and need to continue to dialog. Send him the Education of Christian Children document which you can find at www.ChurchCouncil.org, and my education tract, Government Schools, Parents & Kids: How Will We Answer the Lord, and What Will He Say?, which you can find at www.4HisName.com.
Another thought…he points out that Deut. 6 and the Jewish culture taught/teach the child could/should be raised by the “Jewish” community. The government school is obviously neither the Jewish nor the Christian community. Government schools are a pagan culture, operated to a significant degree top down from the Federal government and the NEA which continues to push not only the homosexual agenda further and deeper across the entire country, but which also at foundation is completely secular humanist; the entire government school (GS) culture teaches that either God does not exist, or that if He does, He certainly has nothing to do with education and the world beyond education (GS are supposed to be preparing people for the world beyond the school doors, adulthood). The GS, as a system, teaches God’s non-existence outright at times and His irrelevance the remainder of the time. There is no way Deut. 6 can be construed to teach that it is permissible to send our Christian children into such a training system; and to say that our Christian children should be sent there for the sake of evangelism is an absurdity; Jesus did not send children when He spoke the Great Commission (Matthew 28:18-22), He spoke to mature, full grown men, who had three and one half years of personal training with Jesus, the Incarnate God. On the other hand, Jesus taught regarding “these little ones” that it is better for a millstone to be hanged around the neck and be tossed into the sea that to cause “these little ones” to stumble; statistics even show this is absurd as I mention below, and as we consider that Christian children are not evangelizing, but being evangelized. The churches are not filling up with children saved out of the GS, but rather are emptying as young adults leave the church after being trained six hours a day, five days a week by the GS.
I believe the Word of God to those who delegate the pagan GS to train their children is such as this:
6 For You have forsaken Your people, the house of Jacob, Because they are filled with eastern ways; They are soothsayers like the Philistines, And they are pleased with the children of foreigners. Isaiah 2:6 (NKJV)
The church is filled with “eastern ways” because it is filled with parents and children who have absorbed and continue to absorb the spirit and assumptions of the pagan school system.
6 My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. Because you have rejected knowledge, I also will reject you from being priest for Me; Because you have forgotten the law of your God, I also will forget your children.
Hosea 4:6 (NKJV)
The government school system has nothing to do with teaching God’s law, yet Deut. 6 tells us that immersion in God’s law (mandated by God in all of Scripture) is the requirement for a people who would not be destroyed. The government school system teaches children to forget God’s law. God says that when a people are in such a state He will forget their children. The forgetting of God’s law is evidenced by the fact (So. Baptist survey and other surveys) that 85% of children schooled by the GS leave the church by the time they exit high school.
To say, “Our schools are different” or “we have Christian teachers and a Christian principle”, is to overlook two things:
- The curriculum is not mandated locally (by either the teacher or principle) but by the state and federal governments and the NEA (there may be some local autonomy in selection between different curriculum which the above mentioned entities preselect; there is no local autonomy to outright select whatever curriculum the local school, principle, or teacher would like to select). Therefore though there is a semblance (appearance) of autonomy to select curriculum locally, in reality the curriculum is mandated via the preselecting process.
- Those teachers who refuse to teach what is mandated by the GS are probably breaking their covenantal obligation as employees of their employer which requires them to not teach about God’s law and God’s righteous requirements, obedience to which is sanctioned by God’s blessing on those who obey Him and God’s curse on those who do not. Both teacher and principle promise (i.e. they sign on the dotted line) when they become employed by the GS, to teach what the employer mandates. To fail to teach as required by their employer/employee agreement is to break a legitimate covenantal obligation toward the employer. Does the Bible teach Christians to do this? I think not.
Something Else to Consider and a Question to Ask
Self-government, church-government, family-government and civil-government are all realms of government to which God has given sovereignty. To each He has given a sphere of jurisdiction and to each He has given limits to their reach and legitimate involvement. Scripture shows us that God has given indoctrination (education) into the hands of the family and the church. Nowhere in Scripture do we find it intimated that indoctrination or education is within the sphere of the civil government. For this reason Christian teachers and administrators should ask themselves, “If God has not allowed the civil government to be an indoctrinator/educator, is it legitimate for me to participate in its effort to do so?”
A closing thought - Paul tells fathers to bring up their children in the fear and admonition of the Lord (Eph. 6). To delegate one’s child to thirty plus hours of indoctrination per week by a system that certainly does not teach either the fear or admonition of the Lord, is to abdicate one’s fatherly commission toward his children. On percentages alone this ought to be clear - Do such fathers (who send their kids to GS) spend 50% (15 hours a week) of the time the GS spends (3o hours a week) indoctrinating their own children into the things of God? I think not. How can we say we are being faithful fathers if the lion’s share of indoctrination comes from a system that teaches neither the fear nor the admonition of the Lord while at the same time Deut. 6 testifies to us that teaching the fear and admonition of the Lord is an all day activity!?
May God deliver His Church from this great error and gigantic compromise with the GS culture!
Good dialog Christian!
I invite you to see this excellent short video: The Call to Dunkirk
Tags: children raised by community, christian clingman, christian community, christian principle, christian teacher, covenantal obligation, Ephesians 6, eugene clingman, fear and admonition of the lord, free tract, government schools, homosexual agenda, homosexual agenda in schools, indoctrination, indoctrination of children, Kids and Parents, NEA, our school is different, public schools, the call to dunkirk, we have a christian principle, we have christian teachers
Dear Beloved Brother,
Warm Christian greetings!
It was a joy to be with you last night.
Today as I was scanning ahead in a book I have been reading I came across the appendix section that contains an article by David Chilton titled “Looking for New Heavens and a New Earth: A Study of 2 Peter 3″. Second Peter 3 is one of the passages we were considering last night. I thought to myself, I wish I could scan this and get it to you, but I don’t have a scanner. Then it occurred to me that I might be able to find it on the web - and I did! I am glad to continue to answer questions and dialog as God enables me. I want you to know and I am sure Mike would also say the same, that there is no requirement among us for a certain eschatological viewpoint. We are passionate about eschatology because we see that what one believes/anticipates about the future will determine to a large extent how he lives in the now. On the one extreme there are those who will not get married or have kids because they suppose the “tribulation” is coming or the rapture imminent and so “why have kids only to have them face the tribulation”, or, “no time to get married…pursue education…pursue a career…etc.”. On our side on the other hand, we believe Jesus is not coming soon (though He will certainly come at the end (last day), and in addition, He may come for you or me before the day is out today). We believe that there are generations yet to live on planet earth as God continues to work out the promise to Abraham (Genesis 12:1-3) which is fulfilled through Jesus Christ, but which is not yet fulfilled completely, for He must reign (presently) until (future) all his enemies are made a footstool for His feet (1 Corinthians 15:25-26; see also Romans 4:13; Matthew 28:18-20; Psalm 22:27-28; Isaiah 2:1-4). And so we, rather than thinking and acting (living out presently) the idea that Jesus could come anytime or is about to come to end history, we have a vision for the future that allows us to build for the future, to build generationally; to have kids, to teach them to move out into their own generation into every legitimate realm of human endeavor, and to raise kids to go forth and do the same in their generation (Deuteronomy 6:4-9). For our, and their’ faithful work will surely prevail in history (Habakkuk 2:13-14). So, without taking too much time and space here, it can be said that there is a difference in how life is lived that directly results from how one perceives the future.
There are many questions for you yet to be answered; you have been taught a certain way, and lived in that understanding perhaps from youth. Yet there are many verses and passages that can be seen in a different light that makes much more sense and fits with the whole Bible (notice how many places I have noted verses from Genesis into the New Testament; the whole Bible has a single testimony of what God is up to on planet earth). You have lived in the culture of Dispensationalism (from your youth?). Dispensationalism is a new way of viewing Scripture, originating in the early 1800’s, popularized by J.N. Darby and C.I. Schofield, and continues to be popular through the writings of Hal Lindsey, etc. But a vision of victory in history is taught from Genesis to Revelation; a victory which Christ’s people not only are given (by the “it is finished” of the Cross), but in which they also participate as in “The God of Peace will soon crush Satan under your feet” (Romans 16:20). We follow Him who goes forth conquering His enemies (Rev. 19:11-14) until all His enemies are subdued (Heb. 10:12-13; Psalm 110:1; Rom. 16:20), and the final enemy, death, conquered (legally and effectively at the Cross by Christ “the firstfruits”) but not fully subdued until the “rapture”, the resurrection (conquered for all of God’s people - 1 Cor. 15:24-27, on the last day when no more days of earth history follow (John 6:39-40).
Well, here is finally, the article in the appendix of the book I am reading, but which I also found on line:
http://www.preteristarchive.com/Modern/1996_chilton_looking-heavens.html The book I am reading, by the way, is by Gary DeMar titled Why the End of the World is Not in Your Future: Identifying the God-Magog Alliance. It deals with Ezekiel 38-39, showing that this prophecy has already been fulfilled, and therefore is not to be anticipated for fulfillment sometime in the future as claimed by Hal Lindsey’s Late Great Planet Earth, and most of the popular prophetic writings of today.
God bless you my dear brother! I believe that if you continue on this “eschatological journey” with us, you are in for much delight! I commend you for your passion for discovering and affirming what the Bible itself says; this is an excellent character quality. Don’t lose this. I praise God that you are like the Bereans (Acts 17:11), who were of more “noble character…for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true.”
Before the Throne of Grace,
www.Blog.GranolaDelights.com
Tags: 2 peter 3, ci schofield, dispensationalism, eschatology, jn darby, post, postmillennial, Postmillennialism, postmillennialist
Inheritance
It is Your Father’s Good Pleasure to Give You the Kingdom
Luke 12:22-34
Eugene Clingman
Christ the King, Springfield, MO (July 31, 2011)
Preliminaries:
- Introduce yourself and how you came to Christ the King
- Tell about new church plant in Mtn. View
Read: Luke 12:22-34
Pray
Text: Luke 12:32 - “Do not fear, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.”
I want to speak to you today about inheritance. During the service some Scripture has been read that tells about inheritance.
- We read from Psalm 37:9 - “…evildoers will be cut off, but those who wait for the LORD, they will inherit the land.”
- In Philippians 2 we read about Jesus Christ humbling Himself to the point of death on a cross and because of it God gave Him a name above all names.
- And we read in 2 Kings 20 of good king Hezekiah who had no vision of inheritance for his children; his only concern being his own comfort and prosperity; “so long as there is peace and “truth” in my own days!”
An Inheritance so rich:
- Compared to a city of gold
- Gates of pearl
- Walls of Jasper
- Foundations of precious stones
Inheritance is no side issue!
- Inheritance encompasses the essence of life lived out.
- Faithful living produces a glad inheritance, and unfaithful living brings forth a rotten inheritance.
- The Bible always calls us to faithful living.
- A “once saved, always saved” theology is a broken theology (describe: walking isle, prayer, saved for life).
- The Bible’s theology is perseverance of the saints which teaches that God has not only ordained that His saints be saved; He also ordained that they continue in the faith, faithful!
- Do I believe in eternal election? Yes!
- Do I believe in the necessity of the saints continuing in the faith? Yes!
- Both are true. Inheritance comes to those who continue, to those who persevere.
- Psalm 37 says it this way - “Trust in the LORD and do good; dwell in the land and cultivate faithfulness. Delight yourself in the LORD; And He will give you the desires of your heart. (3-4).
- And Paul says it this way - God will “present you holy and unblamable and unreproveable in his sight: If ye continue in the faith grounded and settled, and be not moved away from the hope of the gospel, which ye have heard…” Colossians 1:22-23 (KJV)
Inheritance began in the Garden.
- To Adam - “be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth”. Inheritance!
- Adam sold his inheritance to satan.
- Adam was to be the king over creation but Adam gave his dominion to another, to satan, so that satan became the “prince of this world” as Jesus calls him.
- When Jesus was tempted by satan in the wilderness, Jesus did not deny that satan had the authority over the kingdoms of the world, able to give them to whom he wished.
- Jesus wanted dominion over all the kingdoms - but not that way.
- Jesus was going to get dominion through the promise God made to Adam and Eve as He pronounced satan’s coming destruction.
- The Protoevangelium! The First Good News! The Seed of the woman was going to crush the head of the serpent. Jesus did that at the Cross.
“Fear not little flock, it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the Kingdom!”
What is the Kingdom?
- The whole dominion that Adam was given before he rebelled.
- Dominion over the world and all things therein!
- God has destined His people to carry Christ’s dominion to every realm of life and living.
- Including all three realms of government: Family, Church, and State.
- Includes the realms of Law, Government (every Social/Political), Education (Colleges/Universities), Medicine, Psychology/Counseling, Science/Technology, Arts/Media, Economics, Business/Occupation, Poverty.
- Includes politics - “When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; But when a wicked man rules, the people groan.” Proverbs 29:2
- Is there any groaning today?
The Kingdom includes every area.
Paul said it this way, “…let no one boast in men. For ALL things are YOURS: whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas, or the world or life or death, or things present or things to come [the future]–all are yours. 23 And you are Christ’s, and Christ is God’s.”
1 Corinthians 3:21-23
Even decorations/aesthetics:
“In that day “HOLINESS TO THE LORD” shall be engraved on the bells of the horses. The pots in the LORD’S house shall be like the bowls before the altar. 21 Yes, every pot in Jerusalem and Judah shall be holiness to the LORD of hosts. Everyone who sacrifices shall come and take them and cook in them. In that day there shall no longer be a Canaanite in the house of the LORD of hosts.” Zechariah 14:20-21
“It is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the Kingdom.”
The Father’s “good pleasure”
Gk. = eudokeô - “well pleased” (same as - “My beloved son in whom I am well pleased”)[1]
God is really glad to give you the Kingdom! It is His delight!
To GIVE
Not earned by good works, but by faith and obedience. What is the difference?
To give YOU
Who is this YOU? - “The promise is to you and to your children, and to all who are afar off, as many as the Lord our God will call.” Acts 2:39
This calls to mind:
- The ancient blessing spoken to Abraham, “… your descendants shall possess the gate of their enemies.” Genesis 22:17
- And Isaiah’s prophecy that “…the nation and kingdom which will not serve you shall perish, And those nations shall be utterly ruined.” Isaiah 60:12
- And Habakkuk’s utterance, “Is it not indeed that the peoples toil for fire and nations grow weary for nothing? For the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the earth.” Hab. 2:13, 14
- Zephaniah 2:9-10 - “Therefore, as I live,” Says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, “Surely Moab shall be like Sodom, And the people of Ammon like Gomorrah– Overrun with weeds and salt pits, And a perpetual desolation. The residue of My people shall plunder them, and the remnant of My people shall possess them.” This they shall have for their pride, because they have reproached and made arrogant threats against the people of the LORD of hosts.”
“The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet.” Romans 16:20 (NASB)
Inheritance does not stop with you
First verbal command to Adam = “be fruitful and multiply”
First verbal command to Noah = same
Families having 7 kids:
5 generations = 117,649 descendants; 10 generations = 1,977,326,743
Families having 2 kids:
5 generations = 64 descendants; 10 generations = 2048
“The promise is to you and to your children…”
God wants us to have vision for our descendants.
Not be as Hezekiah:
“Then Isaiah said to Hezekiah, “Hear the word of the LORD of hosts: ‘Behold, the days are coming when all that is in your house, and what your fathers have accumulated until this day, shall be carried to Babylon; nothing shall be left,’ says the LORD. ‘And they shall take away some of your sons who will descend from you, whom you will beget; and they shall be eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon.’ So Hezekiah said to Isaiah, “The word of the LORD which you have spoken is good!” For he said, “At least there will be peace and truth in my days.“” Isaiah 39:5-8
Bumper sticker - “I am spending my child’s inheritance!”
Not as Hezekiah’s! God wants us to be among those whose hearts are turned toward our children; and the children’s hearts turned toward the father and mother.
Vision and preparation for our children.
Doug Philips of Vision Forum - 100 year plan.
“Fear not little flock! It is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the Kingdom!”
The Kingdom includes winning outsiders/the lost. Evangelism
- We are the children of Abraham through faith in Jesus Christ.
- God promised to bless Abraham and make him a blessing to all the families of the earth.
- The Jews, (most of whom were) the physical descendants of Abraham, did not bring forth the fruit of the Kingdom.
- Kingdom given to others.
We need to be evangelizing the lost.
The Great Commission - Mat. 28:18-20 - Disciple the nations!
- Begins with Proclamation - verbal witness, tracts, inviting to church, church, functions, home
- Continues with teaching (church, Bible study)
- The end = Christianized nations
- I believe this will be accomplished
- “All the ends of the earth will remember and turn to the LORD, And all the families of the nations will worship before You.” Psalm 22:27 (NASB)
Calvinists accused of being non-evangelistic by our Armenian brothers.
True Calvinist:
- Men dead in sins, unable to receive the gospel
- God, before foundation of the world predestined and chose
- In time, they hear the Gospel and are made alive
- They become “…born again, not of corruptible seed but incorruptible, through the word of God which lives and abides forever” 1 Peter 1:23
- Paul asks, “How shall they hear without a preacher?”
What is the message of the Gospel?
- “Repent, for the Kingdom of God is here!”
- John writes in Rev. 14, “Then I saw another angel flying in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach to those who dwell on the earth–to every nation, tribe, tongue, and people– 7 saying with a loud voice, “Fear God and give glory to Him, for the hour of His judgment has come; and worship Him who made heaven and earth, the sea and springs of water.” Rev.14:6-7
“How beautiful are the feet of those who bring glad tidings of good things!”
“Have your feet shod with the preparation of the Gospel of peace!”
“Fear not little flock, it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the Kingdom!”
Winning the lost is part the Kingdom.
Summary:
“It is the Father’s good pleasure to give you the Kingdom!”
- He is well pleased to do so!
- To you and your descendants, both physical and spiritual
- The Kingdom is “all things”, including the future
Hope:
The Lord Jesus will help us. We are not required to do all in a day. But to daily take the cross, and follow Jesus. The Lord will work in you and make you inherit. He will give you the Kingdom. Those who are faithful DO receive the crown! (Rev. 2:13)
Let us pray!
May God bless you and yours! In Jesus name!
[1] “to be pleased with something or someone, with…resulting pleasure - ‘to be pleased with, to take pleasure in.(Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament: Based on Symantic Domains.)
Tags: Inheritance, It is your Father's good pleasure to give you the Kingdom, Luke 12:22-34
Dear xxxxxxx,
Thank you for sharing your heart, your struggles, real and pressing daily upon you. I know a smidgen of health struggles of late, and am sure in part that I might know the better how transient I am, and might the better have compassion on and commiserate with others struggling with this temporary body, doomed to return to dust because of sin, but also to rise again because of grace. May God bless and strengthen you.
I believe it is good and right to hold to golden streets, pearly gates and the like. This is the New Jerusalem, which the Lord has set before us in these wondrous forms. Let your heart hold to all the hope and delight the Lord has given. I believe the Book of Revelation is about the New Jerusalem in contrast to the Old Jerusalem, Babylon, Sodom, “where also their Lord was crucified” (Rev. 11:8). It is the removal of the Old Jerusalem that had killed the prophets and the Lord Jesus (1 Thess. 2:15; Luke 13:34-35; Rev. 1:7). From John’s perspective, and from the perspective of the seven churches of Asia, fulfillment of Revelation was all future, and shortly to take place (Rev. 1:1). The goal - the New Jerusalem of which we are assured we are a part now (Hebrews 12:22), but which is “coming (”ing”) down, is descending (”ing”); has begun coming down, but is not yet in fullness, will not be in fullness until the last day when we are resurrected in body (John 6:40). So, Revelation from our perspective is partly past (Old Jerusalem judged/destroyed), partly now (building/growing), and partly future (fullness).
“Be glad and rejoice…” in the New Jerusalem, which is, and is becoming, and which shall one day be in fullness (Isaiah 65:18-ff). Let your heart be glad and take comfort! The Lord no doubt will remove misconceptions we have, will ruffle our feathers and will stir up the nest in which we find comfort (Deut. 32:11). As a mother eagle He will push us out of the nest, catching us in our fall if need be, but will in the process teach us to fly!
www.4HisName.com
www.Blog.GranolaDelights.com
www.GranolaDelights.com
From: Xxxxxx Xxxxxx [mailto:xxxxxxxx@msn.com]
Sent: Monday, July 04, 2011 7:02 PM
To: eugene clingman
Subject: RE: Heaven verses
Thank you Eugene! I have absolute confidence that whatever eschatology God prescribes to, it is the right one, (smile) and that it is all going to be wonderful beyond our comprehension in the end. I have assurance that whatever He has in store for us is just, perfect, and glorious.
That said……I used to care very little about “endtime” issues. I felt we were in the “now” time and walking with God ( in all that means ) is the business of the day. But as life presents more and more of its ugly side to me, I find that I have need to meditate on “how it turns out in the end” just to get me through the day. Keeping my thoughts focused on the hope, so to speak, keeps despair at bay. Looking to the “things hoped for” and “not yet seen” is what sustains me. Because what I see, definitely holds NO hope. Not everyone may be that way or have that need because the current trajectory of things around them look good. That is wonderful.
But for me, when you go messing with the specific concepts on how it all ends/progresses you are messing with my nest of happy thoughts that sustain me. Sometimes between you and Mike, as you each say, oh but that verse has already happened…..I fell like you are disassembling that nest, one woven piece of grass at a time. A vague “yeah, it is all gonna work out in the end, because God is God” isn’t much to sink into. That is why I like the streets of gold, walls of beautiful stones, tree of life, and a river through it all, lit by the radiance of God. I couldn’t even hope to imagine it, but trying is sure comforting. I figured just being in the presence of God would be all the fullness of joy I needed. Didn’t need to be beating swords into farming implements etc. So to Mike I say, if God is so clear and doesn’t want to confuse us, what was He doing talking about the walls and the gates etc. with such specificity? Talk about bait and switch………
Obviously I want to have a firm hold of the truth, no matter what it is……so go ahead and mess with my nest, rip it apart and I suppose I’ll survive the process. But that is what makes me so cranky about the whole deal. I know it isn’t an absolutely clear deal, or more of the believers would come down firmly in that eschatological camp. So it is possible, I could be staring at a mess of grass and sticks for a good long while with no form to it. That doesn’t make me happy. I kinda feel like I have a hard enough time just dealing with the daily stuff much less massive nest reconstruction…..only so much energy in the day.
Eugene I deeply appreciate your teaching, the study that goes into it and the gentleness with which it is given. Thank you!
Xxxxxx Xxxxxxxxxxx
From: eugene@4hisname.com
To: xxxxxx@xxxx.com
Subject: Heaven verses
Date: Sat, 2 Jul 2011 16:02:35 -0500
Dear Xxxxxx,
Warm Christian greetings!
Thank you for the question you asked toward the end of our time on Wednesday night. Perhaps I can bring a teaching about this sometime soon. I wanted to give you some “Heaven verses.” There are plenty to comfort our hearts and give us confidence and faith and understanding. I present here a few.
We will be present with the Lord Jesus:
Luke 23:43
2 Corinthians 5:1-4
We will be like the Lord Jesus:
1 John 3:1-3
We will have rest:
Revelation 14:13
We will have gladness and joy:
Revelation 7:16-17
It is much better:
Philippians 1:23-24
We will not be naked, but clothed:
2 Corinthians 5:1-4
These are a start for you. Perhaps you can do some cross-referencing and find others you can add to these.
Eugene Clingman
573-226-1312
www.4HisName.com
www.Blog.GranolaDelights.com
Tags: 1 Thess. 2:15, Hebrews 12:22, Isaiah 65:18, Luke 13:34-35, new jerusalem, old jerusalem, pearly gates, postmillennial, Postmillennialism, Rev. 11:8, Rev. 1:7, Revelation 1:1
Dear Xxxxx,
Several days ago I attempted to send you a birthday greeting. The email came back undeliverable and so I searched to see whether I might find another address for you. Having found this address I send you Birthday Greetings!
While looking for your email address I came upon your websites including: www xxxxxxx.html. And now knowing beyond doubt what I had suspected for a couple years, I feel compelled to write regarding these things.
I write as one who himself might have traveled the road you are on; as one who knows something of his own vulnerability and sinful humanness; As one who has received mercy and so extends mercy. “Grace AND TRUTH came through Jesus Christ” (John 1:17).
There are at least two things that are clear in the Bible: 1) God is a God of love and mercy, and, 2) Those who practice such things as you are practicing shall not inherit the Kingdom of God. “Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor sodomites, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God.” 1 Corinthians 6:9-11 (NKJV)
And yet there is room for repentance for the Scripture continues, “And such were some of you. But you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of our God.”
There is no such thing as a “gay Christian”. “Gay” and “Christian” are antonyms. The two words do not go together. The Apostle says, “Do not be deceived.” All who carry the nomenclature “gay Christian” are indeed deceived, for there is no such thing. I could call myself a brown cat, but that does not make me so; and if I believed myself to be a brown cat it would be evidence of my being deceived, as also is the case with any who call themselves “Christian” while practicing that which will disinherit them from the Kingdom of God.
This is a painful letter for me to write (and no doubt painful for your to read), but I feel I must write, for in your website and no doubt in other ways, you “Display your sin like Sodom! You do not even conceal it!” (Isaiah 3:9). I could pile up passages that explicitly condemn homosexual activity of EVERY kind. I would be happy to send such Bible passages to you if you are interested.
Leave off the hypocrisy and admit that far from the Christian spirit of love to God and neighbor is the homosexual spirit which is shown with unveiled face in these passages: Judges 19:22-24; Genesis 19:4-9.
Every time you speak the name of Jesus joined to your lifestyle, you trample under foot the blood of the covenant by which you were sanctified (Heb. 10:29). “Of how much worse punishment, do you suppose, will he be thought worthy who has” done this! The Bible shows us where gay lifestyle and gay rights leads (Judges 19:22-24; Genesis 19:4-9). You apparently are pursuing gay rights for in the face of all that is reasonable and right you have had “ceremony”, thinking it your right to be joined in holy matrimony. The passage in Judges and in Genesis shows where such pursuit of these rights leads.
I seek to be an instrument of mercy; mercy/grace and TRUTH. “Such WERE (past tense) some of you!” Repentance is possible if you have not gone too far. I and my family and my friends are ready to help any seeking deliverance from the homosexual life. For God takes the chief of sinners and turns them into saints; a saint is a holy one, one who has been sanctified, and does not include any who “ARE” but only “such [as] WERE some of you.”
With concern I write!
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Tags: do not be deceived, gay, gay christian, gay lifestyle, grace and truth, homosexual christian, homosexuality, sin like sodom
Thank you for asking hard questions last night when I was sharing with you the Postmillennial vision and understanding of the Bible. Let me first say that in order to embrace a doctrine as a faithful Christian all the Bible verses must work together. Secondly, whatever system of eschatology one embraces as a faithful Christian (and there are faithful Christians in all the millennial camps) there are hard questions to be answered. Each system must deal with verses that do not seem to fit their millennial view. Theology is no child’s game and yet the Bible is understandable to children. Augustine said that the Bible was shallow enough for a child to wade in and at the same time deep enough for an elephant to drown in.
So then I must answer as best I can the question of how the verse in Matthew fits in the Postmillennial view of things.
The verse you brought to our attention is:
Matthew 7:13-14 (NKJV)
13 “Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it.
14 Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.
I will mention several points:
* On the surface it must be admitted that this verse looks like it is saying only a few will be saved by comparison with those lost.
* In the not too distant context (other verses surrounding the verses in question) we hear the same Jesus say this:
Matthew 8:11 (NKJV)
11 And I say to you that many will come from east and west, and sit down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven.
This is in keeping with God’s promise to Abraham regarding his descendants:
Gen 22:17- blessing I will bless you, and multiplying I will multiply your descendants as the stars of the heaven and as the sand which is on the seashore; and your descendants shall possess the gate of their enemies.
By the way, the last phrase of this verse is in keeping with the Postmillennial understanding - “your descendants shall possess the gate of their enemies.” Jesus wins in history. The devil does not take over, but Jesus, through the preaching of the Gospel to all nations, wins the nations so that the nations, along with their kings come bowing before Him (Isaiah chapter 60 and chapter 2; see also Habakkuk 2:13,14).
Abraham is to have not a few descendants but so many that they cannot be counted, so many that they must be compared, not to the grains of wheat in a massively large wheat field, but with something truly innumerable, the sand and the stars.
The book of Revelation displays God’s promise to Abraham as fulfilled:
Revelation 7:9-10 (NKJV) - 9 After these things I looked, and behold, a great multitude which no one could number, of all nations, tribes, peoples, and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, with palm branches in their hands, 10 and crying out with a loud voice, saying, “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!”
Since we know that the Bible does not contradict itself we must attempt to discover how the verse you presented fits into the overwhelming biblical evidence that there are not a few who will be saved, but an innumerable company.
- At this point I want to quote from a book which I highly recommend if you would like to do further study in Postmillennialism, He Shall Have Dominion by Kenneth Gentry. Dr. Gentry writes:
“The resolution to the matter is to realize “our Lord’s purpose is rather ethical impression than prophetic disclosure.” That is, He is urging His disciples to consider the present situation they witness round about them. They are to look around them and see that so many souls are presently perishing, so few men are seeking righteousness and salvation. What will they do about this sad predicament? Do they love Him enough to seek its reversal? Christ’s challenge to them is ethical.
In John 4:35, He urges the dim-eyed disciples to see that there was much work to be done: “Do you not say, ‘There are still four months and then comes the harvest’? Behold, I say to you, lift up your eyes and look at the fields, for they are already white for harvest!” In Matthew 7, He warns against false prophets that will arise among the people (Matt. 7:15-20). Then, He warns that a man must hear and act upon His words (Matt. 7:21-27). His disciples must feel the horror of the present vastness of the multitude entering the broad way to destruction.
Certainly the gate is narrow: only He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life (John 14:6). But His statement in Matthew 7:13-14 does not imply that it will always and forever be the case that few will be saved in every era of history…”
I hope these things are helpful to you. There is certainly more that can be said, and I am happy to answer questions you might have. Again, a very helpful book, if you desire to pursue understanding Postmillennialism is He Shall Have Dominion. You can get He Shall Have Dominion here: http://www.nordskogpublishing.com/bookshelf.shtml
May the Lord bless you two hungry hearts and make you a blessing to many!
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Tags: broad way, eugene clingman, granola delights, habakkuk 2:13-14, Isaiah 60, narrow way, Postmillennialism
2 Samuel 22 (Psalm 18)
Thesis:
Jesus is called by theologians the “Greater David”, indeed He is the Son of David to whom the promises are ultimately and fully given. What David accomplished was but a foretaste and foreshadow of what would be done by the Greater David. God intervened on David’s behalf with supernatural interventions. If, or rather, since he did so for David, surely we can expect God’s supernatural intervention during Greater David’s reign. David was enabled to subdue his enemies and put them under his feet (39, 40, 44, 45, 48). This subjugation took place in history. God promised Greater David that His enemies would be put under His feet (Psalm 110:1-2). It is now the season in which God is making Christ’s enemies His footstool; this has been going on since God exalted Him to His right hand (Heb. 10:12, 13). That is, this subjugation of Christ’s enemies has been progressing since Christ returned to heaven after His resurrection (Mark 16:19). Jesus will remain in heaven until the subjugation is accomplished (Acts 3:21). Christ is now reigning (1 Cor. 15:25) and will do so until all enemies are made a footstool for His feet (Heb. 10:12, 13). This “mode of operation” will continue until all enemies are subdued; the last enemy to be subdued is death (1 Cor. 15:26), which is synonymous with the resurrection. After the resurrection (conquering of the last enemy, Death) Christ “delivers the kingdom to God the father” (1 Cor. 15:24).
In short, if God so helped David in the foreshadowed kingdom to subdue his enemies, how much more now, in this, Kingdom of the Greater David! Jesus even now rides forth on a white horse and the armies of heaven follow him also riding on white horses (Rev. 19:11-16). “In righteousness He judges and makes war”! How? “Out of His mouth goes a sharp sword, that with it He should strike the nations”! Guns and bombs are not His weaponry as suggested by Dispensationalists. Rather a sword, not a sword of steal (as Muslims) but a sword that comes out of His mouth, a sword of righteousness and judgment (Psa. 45:2-7), a sword of healing and helpful words (Rev. 1:16-18). (Other verses about sword and mouth: Job 5:15; Psalm 149:6; Psalm 49:2; Rev. 2:16; 19:21).
And what sort of help did David receive? He watched God intervene from heaven. God, from heaven supernaturally dealt with the enemies of David:
Supernatural interventions in 2 Samuel 22 (Psalm 18):
• The earth shook and trembled, foundations of heaven quaked and were shaken, because hHe was angry (8)
• The LORD thundered from heaven, uttered voice (14)
• Sent out arrows and scattered them (15)
• Lightning bolts and vanquished them
• Channels of the sea were seen (16)
• Foundations of world uncovered
• Delivered me from my strong enemy, those who hated me, too strong for me (18)
• The LORD was my support (19)
• Delivered me because he delighted in me (20)
• You will save the humble people (28)
• Your eyes are on the haughty, that You may bring them down.
• The LORD shall enlighten my darkness (29)
• By You I can run against a troop, leap over a wall (30)
• A shield to all who trust in Him (31)
• Makes my feet like deer feet (34)
• Teaches my hands to make war, strengthens (35)
• You have given me the shield of Your salvation, yYour gentleness has made me great (36)
• Enlarged my path under me, my feet did not slip (37)
• Given me the necks of my enemies (41)
• Delivered me from the strivings of my people, kept me as head of nations (44)
• Subdues the peoples under me (48)
• Lifts me above those who rise against me (49)
• Delivers me from my enemies, from the violent man
David was Enabled to:
• I pursued my enemies and destroyed them, they were destroyed (38)
• Enemies under my feet (39)
• Subdued under me those who rose against me (40)
• I destroyed those who hated me (41)
• I beat them fine as the dust, trod them like dirt in the streets, I spread them out (43)
• A people I have not known shall serve me (44)
• Foreigners submit to me, they obey me (45)
• Foreigners fade away, come frightened from their hideouts (46)
Passages showing the Church’s mission of dominion
Romans 16:20 (NKJV)
And the God of peace will crush Satan under your feet shortly. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Amen.
Psalm 149:5-9 (NKJV)
Let the saints be joyful in glory;
Let them sing aloud on their beds.
[6] Let the high praises of God be in their mouth,
And a two-edged sword in their hand,
[7] To execute vengeance on the nations,
And punishments on the peoples;
[8] To bind their kings with chains,
And their nobles with fetters of iron;
[9] To execute on them the written judgment–
This honor have all His saints. Praise the Lord!
Micah 5:5-9 (NKJV)
And this One shall be peace.
When the Assyrian comes into our land,
And when he treads in our palaces,
Then we will raise against him
Seven shepherds and eight princely men.
[6] They shall waste with the sword the land of Assyria,
And the land of Nimrod at its entrances;
Thus He shall deliver us from the Assyrian,
When he comes into our land
And when he treads within our borders.
[7] Then the remnant of Jacob
Shall be in the midst of many peoples,
Like dew from the Lord,
Like showers on the grass,
That tarry for no man
Nor wait for the sons of men.
[8] And the remnant of Jacob
Shall be among the Gentiles,
In the midst of many peoples,
Like a lion among the beasts of the forest,
Like a young lion among flocks of sheep,
Who, if he passes through,
Both treads down and tears in pieces,
And none can deliver.
[9] Your hand shall be lifted against your adversaries,
And all your enemies shall be cut off.
Luke 10:19 (NKJV)
Behold, I give you the authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you.
Deut. 8:15 (NKJV)
who led you through that great and terrible wilderness, in which were fiery serpents and scorpions and thirsty land where there was no water; who brought water for you out of the flinty rock;
Matthew 16:18 (NKJV)
And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.
Psalm 110:1-3 (NKJV)
A Psalm of David.
The Lord said to my Lord,
“Sit at My right hand,
Till I make Your enemies Your footstool.”
[2] The Lord shall send the rod of Your strength out of Zion.
Rule in the midst of Your enemies!
[3] Your people shall be volunteers
In the day of Your power;
In the beauties of holiness, from the womb of the morning,
You have the dew of Your youth.
1 Cor. 6:3 (NKJV)
Do you not know that we shall judge angels? How much more, things that pertain to this life?
Romans 4:13 (NKJV)
For the promise that he would be the heir of the world was not to Abraham or to his seed through the law, but through the righteousness of faith.
Rev. 1:6 (NKJV)
and has made us kings and priests to His God and Father, to Him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.
Rev. 5:10 (NKJV)
And have made us kings and priests to our God;
And we shall reign on the earth.”
Isaiah 60:10-12 (NKJV)
“The sons of foreigners shall build up your walls,
And their kings shall minister to you;
For in My wrath I struck you,
But in My favor I have had mercy on you.
[11] Therefore your gates shall be open continually;
They shall not be shut day or night,
That men may bring to you the wealth of the Gentiles,
And their kings in procession.
[12] For the nation and kingdom which will not serve you shall perish,
And those nations shall be utterly ruined.
Isaiah 2:2-4 (NKJV)
Now it shall come to pass in the latter days
That the mountain of the Lord’s house
Shall be established on the top of the mountains,
And shall be exalted above the hills;
And all nations shall flow to it.
[3] Many people shall come and say,
“Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord,
To the house of the God of Jacob;
He will teach us His ways,
And we shall walk in His paths.”
For out of Zion shall go forth the law,
And the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.
[4] He shall judge between the nations,
And rebuke many people;
They shall beat their swords into plowshares,
And their spears into pruning hooks;
Nation shall not lift up sword against nation,
Neither shall they learn war anymore.
by Eugene Clingman
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Tags: 2 samuel 22, christ reigns, christ's enemies a footstool, christian victory, dispensationalism, greater david, isaiah 2, Isaiah 60, kingdom of christ, psalm 110, psalm 18, psalm 2, son of david
Some hold it as a doctrine while others have simply absorbed the assumption that the Law of God was for another day and does not apply today. Some believe the Law of God is for the Christian only and that it does not apply to the unbeliever or to the social order. Many believe that a “pluralistic” society should not be tied to one or another law standard but rather be a mix of the opinions within the society. Others say that the social order should be determined by what is commonly called “natural law”.
We believe the Law of God* applies to the Christian, to the unbeliever, and to the social order. The Law of God applies to the Christian, not as a basis for justification, but as the standard that the justified-by-faith-Christian lives within when he lives in love, for “love is the fulfillment of the law” (Romans 13:10). The law of God applies to the unbeliever as the continuing standard of morality because the Law reflects God’s own unchanging moral character and all of Adam’s descendents, Christian and non-Christian have the Law of God written upon their hearts - Romans 2:14. The Law of God is the required standard for the societies and cultures of every nation because that Law is the requirement for each individual as Romans 2:14 states. In other words, since the law of God is the moral requirement for each and every individual person everywhere all the time, how could there be a different moral requirement for the social order in which those individuals live?
It is the ambition of the International Church Council Project to create a succinct theological document that will clearly demonstrate the necessity of the Law of God for all men and all societies. Please pray for us as we take steps toward this goal.
* The Law of God being referred to is the moral law set forth in the Ten Commandments and includes the explanations or expansions of the law commonly called “case laws” in which the Ten Commandments are explained. An example of this is the commandment, “You shall not murder.” The case laws define murder as being neither an accidental killing nor capital punishment (Deut. 19:4-6; 19:11-13).
by Eugene Clingman
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Tags: case law, Deut. 19:11-13, Deut. 19:4-6, eugene clingman, granola, Law of God, natural law, Pluralism, pluralistic society, Romans 13:10, Romans 2:14, ten commandments
Religion and politics are the two topics to be avoided in polite company. Why? - Because as a man’s heart is, so are his politics and so is his religion. These two unveil the hearts of men.
David was a faithful servant in the kingdom of Israel under Saul - “Who among all your servants is as faithful as David, who is the king’s son-in-law, who goes at your bidding, and is honorable in your house?” (I Sam. 22:14). Yet after Saul attempted on two occasions to murder David and David escaped into the wilderness, opinions about David became divided in Israel. Nabal and Abigail display this division in the macrocosm of a single family (1 Samuel 25). Nabal held that David was a runaway slave and claimed ignorance of David’s plight in his flight from Saul. Abigail, Nabal’s wife on the other hand:
- Saw Nabal’s opinion of David as deserving God’s judgment (1 Sam. 25:14-17).
- David’s house would endure but his enemies and those who pursue him (Saul) would be cast from the presence of God as a stone is cast from a sling (1 Sam. 25:28-29).
- David was fighting the Lord’s battles (1 Sam. 25:28).
- No evil was in David (1 Sam. 25:28).
- Saul was wickedly pursuing David (contrary to Nabal who said David was an escaped slave (1 Sam. 25:29).
- David was destined for the throne and would be preserved to that end while his enemies would be rejected and cast as from a sling.
The difference between the political opinions of Nabal and his wife are poles apart. God himself demonstrated which opinion was right when Nabal was struck dead by God. May God vindicate the right in this our day! May God display and defend the right and show folly for what it is!
by Eugene Clingman
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Tags: eugene clingman, granola, granola delights, political opinion, righteous politics, wicked politics