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God says to me in prophecy: "I have called you and set you into the body of Christ as an apostle."
I was very shocked and set about to find out what this was.
I knew what it says in Ephesians 4 ...
After Jesus arose, HE gave gifts to the church ... 11-12 And HE gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ:
After Jesus arose, HE gave gifts to the church ... 11-12 And HE gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ:
Though many churches teach there are no apostles or prophets today, I
believed what this scripture said and the church I was attending at that
time professed to believe there are apostles and prophets in today's
church ... but no one knew who the apostles were at our church group and no one knew what apostles do in the NT church.
I turned to God with this, asking Him to teach me what apostles do in the NT church today ... and God taught me.
*****
God used a section of scripture in Acts 15 to help me to understand the work of an apostle in today's NT church.
A problem arose in the church. Should they require the Gentiles who believed to be circumcised?
The apostles and elders met to discuss this.
The Pharisees who were now believers said they should circumcise the believing Gentiles and also they should require the Gentiles to follow all the law of Moses.
Peter stood up and stated we now believe in God by faith in Christ Jesus and no longer follow the law of Moses, such as sacrificing of animals, but the blood of Jesus is our sacrifice now.
Paul and Barnabas also spoke.
Then the apostle James reviewed the scriptures and gave a "sentence", a judgment.
I saw this as being like a judge in the supreme court of USA where one of the judges renders the decision which they go by.
Acts 15:13-20 And after they had held their peace, James answered, saying, Men and brethren, hearken unto me: Simeon hath declared how God at the first did visit the Gentiles, to take out of them a people for His name.
And to this agree the words of the prophets; as it is written, After this I will return, and will build again the tabernacle of David, which is fallen down; and I will build again the ruins thereof, and I will set it up: That the residue of men might seek after the Lord, and all the Gentiles, upon whom My name is called, saith the Lord, who doeth all these things.
Known unto God are all His works from the beginning of the world.
Wherefore my sentence is, that we trouble not them, which from among the Gentiles are turned to God: But that we write unto them, that they abstain from pollutions of idols, and from fornication, and from things strangled, and from blood.
A problem arose in the church. Should they require the Gentiles who believed to be circumcised?
The apostles and elders met to discuss this.
The Pharisees who were now believers said they should circumcise the believing Gentiles and also they should require the Gentiles to follow all the law of Moses.
Peter stood up and stated we now believe in God by faith in Christ Jesus and no longer follow the law of Moses, such as sacrificing of animals, but the blood of Jesus is our sacrifice now.
Paul and Barnabas also spoke.
Then the apostle James reviewed the scriptures and gave a "sentence", a judgment.
I saw this as being like a judge in the supreme court of USA where one of the judges renders the decision which they go by.
Acts 15:13-20 And after they had held their peace, James answered, saying, Men and brethren, hearken unto me: Simeon hath declared how God at the first did visit the Gentiles, to take out of them a people for His name.
And to this agree the words of the prophets; as it is written, After this I will return, and will build again the tabernacle of David, which is fallen down; and I will build again the ruins thereof, and I will set it up: That the residue of men might seek after the Lord, and all the Gentiles, upon whom My name is called, saith the Lord, who doeth all these things.
Known unto God are all His works from the beginning of the world.
Wherefore my sentence is, that we trouble not them, which from among the Gentiles are turned to God: But that we write unto them, that they abstain from pollutions of idols, and from fornication, and from things strangled, and from blood.
I saw by this scripture that NT apostles have an anointing from God to deal with scripture, and to establish church doctrine.
This is what I do constantly in the church concerning subjects such as
* divorce/remarriage
* homosexuals/lesbians
* drunkards
* hair length for men and women
* antichrist in the church today.
There are many false doctrines in today's churches. Scriptures have been explained away to please people. This is the end-time apostasy spoken of by the apostle Paul in II Thessalonians 2.
A few decades ago, multiple churches taught against a man marrying a divorced woman.
This agreed with that which Jesus taught us in the Bible.
Matthew 5:32 But I say unto you, That whosoever shall put away his wife, saving for the cause of fornication, causeth her to commit adultery: and whosoever shall marry her that is divorced committeth adultery.
In 1936, the church of England was still teaching some doctrine close to this. Edward VIII wanted to marry a divorced woman but the people of England, according to Parliament, would not allow a divorced woman to be their Queen. So Edward renounced the throne of England.
In the years following WWII, many churches began to eliminate these scriptures and began approving all sorts of divorce and remarriage.
Yet the apostle Paul taught the following in the Bible, which does not change though churches change the doctrine which the Bible teaches us.
I Corinthians 7:10-11 And unto the married I command, yet not I, but the Lord, Let not the wife depart from her husband: But and if she depart, let her remain unmarried, or be reconciled to her husband: and let not the husband put away his wife.
We will be judged by the Word of God, the Bible, and not by that which the churches approve.
Therefore our doctrine must conform to the doctrine of the Bible.
The removal of such doctrine in the church is the removal of the restraint that has been holding antichrist back from the church. When the portions of scripture are changed from the Bible, antichrist comes into the church and the apostasy of the end time begins in the church.
II Thessalonians 2:3-8 (NASB) Let no one in any way deceive you, for it (the day of the Lord) will not come unless the apostasy comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, who opposes and exalts himself above every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, displaying himself as being God.
Do you not remember that while I was still with you, I was telling you these things?
And you know what restrains him now, so that in his time he will be revealed.
(That which restrained antichrist was the scripture. When churches allowed portions of scripture to be removed, the restraint was removed and antichrist moved into the church ... this is the end-time apostasy in the church ... the "falling away" spoken of in KJV which was a falling away from scripture by the church.)
7 For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only he who now restrains will do so until he is taken out of the way.
(When these portions of scripture were removed from the church, "he" Jesus, The Word, was removed, "taken away", thus opening the door for antichrist and the apostasy in the church group.)
8 Then that lawless one will be revealed whom the Lord will slay with the breath of His mouth and bring to an end by the appearance of His coming;
This removal of portions of scripture is taking place in the churches today, thus we are seeing today the end-time apostasy.
Those called by God as apostles will fight against this, but I have never seen a pastor repent when I have shown him scripture which he has twisted or removed from the congregation. I have gone to several pastors through the years and never has a pastor repented when he did this with scripture.
When God showed me the word "restraint" I knew what was happening in those churches.
Antichrist had moved into the church by the removal of specific scriptures. This is the end-time apostasy in the church which had to happen before Jesus returns. We are seeing it today. It opens the door for the return of Jesus.
There are many other doctrines from Bible which are twisted or changed or explained away in the churches today .
In Bible we see homosexuals went against nature and chose unnatural acts of sex.
Romans 1:26-27 For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections: for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature: And likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another; men with men working that which is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompence of their error which was meet.
These homosexuals try to explain themselves saying they were born this way and therefore have always had this unnatural sexual attraction to the same sex. (Some churches today are approving homosexuals and lesbians and some churches even ordain homosexuals and lesbians to be their ministers.)
But the Bible teaches us they chose this unnatural way.
This is what I do constantly in the church concerning subjects such as
* divorce/remarriage
* homosexuals/lesbians
* drunkards
* hair length for men and women
* antichrist in the church today.
There are many false doctrines in today's churches. Scriptures have been explained away to please people. This is the end-time apostasy spoken of by the apostle Paul in II Thessalonians 2.
*****
A few decades ago, multiple churches taught against a man marrying a divorced woman.
This agreed with that which Jesus taught us in the Bible.
Matthew 5:32 But I say unto you, That whosoever shall put away his wife, saving for the cause of fornication, causeth her to commit adultery: and whosoever shall marry her that is divorced committeth adultery.
In 1936, the church of England was still teaching some doctrine close to this. Edward VIII wanted to marry a divorced woman but the people of England, according to Parliament, would not allow a divorced woman to be their Queen. So Edward renounced the throne of England.
In the years following WWII, many churches began to eliminate these scriptures and began approving all sorts of divorce and remarriage.
Yet the apostle Paul taught the following in the Bible, which does not change though churches change the doctrine which the Bible teaches us.
I Corinthians 7:10-11 And unto the married I command, yet not I, but the Lord, Let not the wife depart from her husband: But and if she depart, let her remain unmarried, or be reconciled to her husband: and let not the husband put away his wife.
We will be judged by the Word of God, the Bible, and not by that which the churches approve.
Therefore our doctrine must conform to the doctrine of the Bible.
The removal of such doctrine in the church is the removal of the restraint that has been holding antichrist back from the church. When the portions of scripture are changed from the Bible, antichrist comes into the church and the apostasy of the end time begins in the church.
II Thessalonians 2:3-8 (NASB) Let no one in any way deceive you, for it (the day of the Lord) will not come unless the apostasy comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, who opposes and exalts himself above every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, displaying himself as being God.
Do you not remember that while I was still with you, I was telling you these things?
And you know what restrains him now, so that in his time he will be revealed.
(That which restrained antichrist was the scripture. When churches allowed portions of scripture to be removed, the restraint was removed and antichrist moved into the church ... this is the end-time apostasy in the church ... the "falling away" spoken of in KJV which was a falling away from scripture by the church.)
7 For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only he who now restrains will do so until he is taken out of the way.
(When these portions of scripture were removed from the church, "he" Jesus, The Word, was removed, "taken away", thus opening the door for antichrist and the apostasy in the church group.)
8 Then that lawless one will be revealed whom the Lord will slay with the breath of His mouth and bring to an end by the appearance of His coming;
This removal of portions of scripture is taking place in the churches today, thus we are seeing today the end-time apostasy.
Those called by God as apostles will fight against this, but I have never seen a pastor repent when I have shown him scripture which he has twisted or removed from the congregation. I have gone to several pastors through the years and never has a pastor repented when he did this with scripture.
When God showed me the word "restraint" I knew what was happening in those churches.
Antichrist had moved into the church by the removal of specific scriptures. This is the end-time apostasy in the church which had to happen before Jesus returns. We are seeing it today. It opens the door for the return of Jesus.
There are many other doctrines from Bible which are twisted or changed or explained away in the churches today .
In Bible we see homosexuals went against nature and chose unnatural acts of sex.
Romans 1:26-27 For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections: for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature: And likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another; men with men working that which is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompence of their error which was meet.
These homosexuals try to explain themselves saying they were born this way and therefore have always had this unnatural sexual attraction to the same sex. (Some churches today are approving homosexuals and lesbians and some churches even ordain homosexuals and lesbians to be their ministers.)
But the Bible teaches us they chose this unnatural way.
Concerning drunkards ... some medical groups are saying drunkards have a disease causing them to be drunkards.
But the Bible teaches us drunkenness is a sin, a work of the flesh, and they who do such things as this will not inherit the kingdom of God.
The apostle Paul explains as follows:
I Corinthians 6:9-10 Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate (homosexuals), nor abusers of themselves with mankind, Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God.
These are not diseases as cancer is a disease, but these are sins, the work of the flesh, their own uncontrolled fleshly desires manifest in them.
These people who continue these sins will not inherit the kingdom of God.
The real apostles, appointed by God and ordained by God to the NT church, will not approve sin in the church but will hold fast to Bible doctrine regardless of the words spoken by religious people against these doctrines of the Bible.
*****
In the next chapter, I speak about prophets in today's church.
Notice how different the work of the apostle is from the work of prophet.
The apostle uses much scripture, comparing scripture against scripture.
The prophet rarely speaks scripture but gives specific words and concepts to the church.
*****
HYMN: I SERVE A RISEN SAVIOR
I serve a risen Savior
HE's in the world today.
I know that HE is living,
Whatever men may say.
I see HIS hand of mercy;
I hear HIS voice of cheer;
And just the time I need HIM
HE's always near.
(Chorus:)
HE lives, HE lives,
Christ Jesus lives today!
HE walks with me and
talks with me
along life's narrow way.
HE lives, HE lives,
salvation to impart!
You ask me how I know HE lives?
HE lives within my heart.
(To
hear this hymn played on piano and to follow along with the words,
click on the following link and then when it appears on screen, tap on
the play arrow, > )
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