PROPHESIED DAYS ARE HERE

(Understanding our day)

William Andrew Dillard

“And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many. And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold.” Matt. 24:11-12

The words of the above scripture were spoken by Jesus as He foretold conditions approaching the close of the present age. At that point in time, the church was being cared for by the personal presence of the Son of God. It was totally Jewish as it would be until sometime post-Pentecost. Notice the key words in Greek New Testament writing, their import, meaning, and fulfillment in the present day.

“False Prophets” is “Pseudoprophetes” “False or lying prophets.”
“Deceive” is “Planao” “deceit, fraud, lead one cunningly away from truth.”
“Iniquity” is “Anomia” “Not observant of rule or law; esp. that of God; anarchy.”
“Abound” is “Plethuno” “Multiplied; multitudinous.”
“Love” is “Agape” “Genuine love as for God and His work.”
“Wax cold” is “Psucho” “to cool by blowing (process of evaporation)”

Let us rephrase this precious verse with the definitions above: “Lying prophets shall rise up to cunningly deceive and lead nominal Christians away from truth. Due to the lack of their observing the teachings of God’s Word, spiritual anarchy will be multitudinous and the sweet, pure love for God and His work shall evaporate.”
For the first 1500 years of the Lord’s church, there was persecution from state religion. It never succeeded in eliminating it. So the devil changed tactics beginning with the Protestant Reformation. Now, the church would be counterfeited again, and again, and again practically without end. As those multi-viewed organizations permeated society, all claiming to be the Lord’s church, and engaging in evil and iniquitous practices, there would ultimately come the discouragement, and falling away by those who would rather listen to man than to search out answers from the Creator Himself.
Certainly, the conditions described by Jesus, and those evidenced by present day status appear to coincide. Who, then will stand in this evil day, and in that near day of our King’s appearance Whose question was: when the son of man comes will He find faith on the earth? Those who stand will be those who have sought the true answers; who are not content to hinge their eternal destiny with that of other religious sinners who may be as wrong as wrong can be. Certainly, the world is full of them, and they shall not stand when the Son of Man appears, but will cry for the rock and mountains to fall on them; to hide them from the face of Him Who comes.
To whom are you listening today? Is it the proverbial Dr. Whizbang, or the Word of God? Has your love of God and His Word waxed cold (evaporated)? It is time for each one to get into the Word. Let Dr. Whizbang answer to God for himself, which he most surely will, but he will not, cannot answer for you! You and you alone will do that!

Parson to Person

 

By: William Andrew Dillard

Ancient Daniel was given much information relating to end-time events. Some of it was not to be published. In Daniel 12:4 it is written, “But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased.”

There is no theological argument across the spectrum of “Christianity” but that the present time is the ending of the age, and a new age under the direct rulership of Christ Jesus is about to dawn. So, please give consideration to the prophecy that has become history.
Many shall run to and fro. This in the simplest of terms denotes men transporting themselves from one place to another often. For over 1900 years of the present age, men could not imagine the literal fulfillment of this prophecy as it has come to pass. With the advent of modern, luxury ocean liners; jet aircraft, high speed trains, etc. men are moved in mass internationally in the employment of increased knowledge as it affects lives globally from industrial, financial, political, medical, and technological aspects of day to day living. Truly, the running of men to and fro has practically shrunk the globe to little more than a giant country.
But, are men smarter? A good deal of term discrimination must be employed here. The Bible does not say that men will become smarter, but that knowledge shall increase. The vaunted progress of knowledge is being employed as an ecumenical movement to shrink the world. It is making a platform from which a world dictator whom the Bible describes as antichrist will bring mankind to its ultimate chaos and destruction in Armageddon. That is not so smart. But it is in full keeping with the prince and ruler of this world who is known as Abaddon, the destroyer.

True “smarts” are the knowledge and fear of the Lord from Whom all good things originate. By Divine inspiration, sages of old have recorded for all to know, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom…” Psalm 111:10; “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge…” Proverbs 1:7; “The fear of the Lord prolongeth days….” Proverbs 10:27; “The fear of the Lord is a fountain of life….” Prov. 14:27.

Yes, many do run to and fro, and certainly knowledge has greatly increased, but men are far from smarter in increasing numbers. A pertinent question for men to seriously consider is: “Are you following the world’s broad path of increased knowledge or are you walking the narrow path of life in evidence that you are smarter?

Prophecy of the King

 

Zechariah 9:9

 

“Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem: behold, thy King cometh unto thee: he is just, and having salvation; lowly, and riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an ass,” Zechariah 9:9.

 

Jesus came exactly as planned and prophesied. “The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh [Prince of Peace] come; . . . binding his foal unto the vine, and his ass’s colt unto the choice vine; he washed his garments in wine, and his clothes in the blood of grapes” (Gen. 49:10, 11).

 

On the fourth day of the month of Nisan, the people of Israel were to bring the Passover lamb to their houses. On the fourth day of Nisan, Jesus, our Passover Lamb, entered Jerusalem, riding a donkey, coming in peace (shalom). On the fourteenth day of Nisan, the Passover Lamb was to be killed. Jesus was killed on the fourteenth day of Nisan, “He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter” (Isa. 53:7). That evening He was buried with the rich. “And he made his grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death” (verse 9). Three days and three nights later, on the day of the Feast of First Fruits, He arose from the grave, the first fruits from the dead, never to die again. “For thou wilt not leave my soul in hell; neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption” (Psalm 16:10). Every prophetic prediction of Jesus’ sacrifice was fulfilled. If all the prophecies of His first coming that were made thousands of years ago and have come to pass, there’s no reason to doubt that the prophecies of his second coming will come to pass.

 

 

Just Saying

 

What a great inheritance! No matter what the world does, we have a more sure word of prophecy; the Day Star has arisen in our hearts.

 

 

Robert Brock

 

 

 

24 – Jan. 24 – THIS DAY IN BAPTIST HISTORY PAST

Rev. Larkin always exhibited a gracious spirit.
Clarence Larkin died on Jan. 24, 1924 at age 74.  He was born on Oct. 28, 1850 in Chester, PA.  He was converted to Christ at age 19 and became a member of the Episcopal church.  Knowing that his sins were forgiven, he desired immediately to preach but it was a few years before he left employment at a bank and entered college.   He had a methodical mind, and graduated as a mechanical engineer and later became a teacher of the blind.  As an engineer and a teacher of the blind, the Lord was preparing him for his life’s work of organizing the scriptures into visual charts on prophecy and doctrine that people were able to understand clearly the great truths of God’s Word.  At 32 he was immersed and united with a Baptist church.  Two years later he was ordained.  He became pastor of the Baptist church in Kennett Square, PA.  His second church was at Fox Chase, PA where he remained for twenty years.  At the time of his ordination Larkin was not a pre-millennialist, but as he studied the scriptures literally he was forced to come to that conclusion.  For years the postmillennialists had taught that the world was getting better and better, and that the church would convert the world and Christ would then return.  Rev. Larkin made huge wall charts describing his views on this subject and great numbers would come to hear him present these prophetic truths.  He reduced his teachings to Dispensational Truth (or God’s Plan in the Ages), which was his crowning work.  The Book of Daniel, The Spirit World, and The Second Coming.  Often it has been said that one can be dispensationally correct while being dispositionally mean spirited.  Those who knew him best reported that Rev. Larkin always exhibited a gracious spirit.
Dr. Greg J. Dixon from: This Day in Baptist History Vol. IIII: Cummins, pp. 49-51.

BETH MOORE AND KEN SILVA DISCUSS HER DEMONIC VISION : Apprising Ministries

BETH MOORE AND KEN SILVA DISCUSS HER DEMONIC VISION : Apprising Ministries.

Beth Moore receiving visions that no one else receives and relating them to others. She is unscriptural and unstudied in prophecy and leading many away from the truth. John the Revelator sealed revelation when he ended his book that he wrote. Rev 22:18 For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book:
Rev 22:19 And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.

WHAT THE BIBLE TEACHES ABOUT THE CHURCH – THE VERY BEGINNING

THE BEGINNING

Today there is a lot of misconceptions about the Church. Because of this we will begin before the beginning of the Church. There is a prophecy that was fulfilled that one would come and prepare the way for another.

THE PROPHECY
Isaiah 40:3-4

“The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the LORD, make straight in the desert a highway for our God. 4. Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made ow: and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain:”

An explanation of this verse will help us to see what this prophecy means in the New Testament. Prepare ye the way. This is a picture of a king that will be travelling among the countryside in his domain. There would be those that would herald the coming of the king and preparation would be made for his travel. My dad used the terminology – this road is crooked as a dogs hind leg. Roads would be straightened as much as possible, valleys filled in or bridges built, mountains reduced in size where the road went and pot holes filled. The purpose was to make the travel a little easier for the king. As the king travelled a herald would precede the king announcing, “the king is coming, the king is coming.”

We need to see the application of this principle in fulfilled scripture. Matthew 3:1-3 gives this picture to us – “In those days came John the Baptist, preaching in the wilderness of Judaea, 2. And saying, Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. 3. For this is he that was spoken of by the prophet Esaias, saying, the voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.

Matthew makes the statement that John the Baptist is the fulfilment of this prophecy. We then have in John 1:23 John the Baptist statement about himself. “He said, I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, Make straight the way of the Lord, as said the prophet Esaias.”  Here we see that John the Baptist is the herald for the Saviour that was to come. John the Baptist had a very specific message. Matthew 3:2 – “And saying, Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” Notice the response to this message in Matthew 3:5 – “Then went out to him Jerusalem, and all Judaea, and all the region round about Jordan, 6. And were baptized of him in Jordan, confessing their sins. Now what was John the Baptist doing? Preparing the way for Jesus.

How is this preparing the way for the Lord?  John chapter 1 explains a lot that was prophesied. Verse 15 records John the Baptist witness of the Word that was made flesh – “…This was he of whom I spake, He that cometh after me is preferred before me: for he was before me. Verse 29, John utters those immortal words “Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.” John stands with two of his disciples saw Jesus and made the claim – Behold the Lamb of God! These two disciples them followed Jesus. As we read further we find Jesus calling Philip and Nathanael to follow him. Matthew 4:18-22. This is the passage where Jesus walks the seashore of Galilee and calls his disciples to follow him. Verse 19 contains the words that every child knows – Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men. Their response contained in the next verse – “And they straightway left their nets, and followed him.

Let us now examine the purpose of John the Baptist as he came to prepare the way for the saviour. 1. He preached repentance in the wilderness. 2 When a person repented, John the Baptist baptised them. 3. He preached and extolled the superiority of Christ. Now Jesus has come and preparation has been made for his coming. There are saved and baptised believers that are ready to be put into the church. Jesus walked the seashores of Galilee and called out his church that had already been prepared.

God made great provision for his Son to come and give his life for the lost and also to give his life for his church.

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