Faith for the End Times*

When Jesus first came, the religious experts missed the signs of His coming. As we look to His return, could the Church also miss the signs of the End Times, and Christ's appearing? As Jesus dealt with His disciples and the people of God, He repeatedly remarked about the importance that faith plays in our connection with Him. Jesus told a parable about a certain unjust judge, and a widow who continually came before him asking this judge to avenge her of her adversary. The unjust judge finally agreed to avenge her, because she would weary him with her continual petitions. "And the Lord said, Hear what the unjust judge saith. And shall not God avenge his own elect, which cry day and night unto him, though he bear long with them? I tell you that he will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless, when the Son of Man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth? (Lk. 18:1-8). Jesus told this parable in order to teach the people "that men ought always to pray, and not to faint." The kind of faith that Jesus is looking for is the Greek word pistis, which means "conviction of the truth...with the included idea of trust and holy fervor born of faith and joined with it". Faith is active. It is a holy fervor with the conviction of truth. In the same idea, Jesus addressed those who had cares and worries for the necessary things of life, and had fear of what tomorrow might bring, "O ye of little faith...for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things. But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you..." (Mt. 6:30-34). The faith that Jesus is exhorting us to have is especially necessary for the Church in these end times. More than ever before, we see great challenges and dangers that will call for faith for miracles, and faith for the intervention of God. Jesus said this: "Believe me that I am in the Father, and the Father in me: or else believe me for the very works' sake. Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father. And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If ye shall ask anything in my name, I will do it." (Jn. 14:11-14). Do we believe this with the conviction of truth, with a holy fervor born of faith and joined with it? If so, we shall do the works of Christ, and even greater works. In this ministry, we have seen many of these miracles. These miracles are based on this very promise of Christ. The Book of Hebrews instructs us, "Let us draw near with a true heart, in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast the profession of our hope without wavering (for he is faithful who promised). Hebrews goes on to tell us to provoke and exhort one another to the good works "and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching". (Heb. 10:19-25). As we see the day approaching for the return of Jesus, we should be believing and acting upon that belief to be doing the works of Christ. Our assurance in that faith mentioned in these verse comes from our having washed and sprinkled ourselves in the blood and water of the Lamb of God (see also 2 Chron. 7:14). As the disciples failed to cast out an evil spirit that convulsed a man's son, Jesus said, "O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you, and suffer you? Bring thy son hither." Of course, Jesus rebuked that evil spirit, and the man's son was delivered. (Lk. 9:38-42). When the disciples later asked Jesus why they had failed to cast it out, He answered them, "Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you. Howbeit this kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting." (Mt. 17:17-21). These wonderful works of Jesus require faith, and not great faith, but even faith the size of a small mustard seed. Did the disciples not even have enough faith to be in readiness through prayer and fasting? Do we? As Jesus described the signs of the end times, and His return, many of which we are already seeing, He talked about false Christs that would appear and deceive many. The love of many will grow cold. He told of how those who knew Him, would be hated, betrayed and persecuted. He said, "But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved." (Mt. 24:3-13). A key component of our end time "endurance" is faith. From the Apocrypha, 2 Esdras 13:23 says, "He that shall endure the peril of that time hath kept himself: they that be fallen into danger are such as have works, and faith toward the Almighty." 1 John also says, "We know that whosoever is born of God sinneth not; but he that is begotten of God keepeth himself, and that wicked one toucheth him not." (5:18). Faith for endurance, faith to "keep" ourselves, faith to minister greater works to others as Christ's in these perilous end tmes will be required and necessary for believers. *Based upon Dr. Stevenson's 12/27/20 message to the Church. To contact: Everlastingcovenant@ymail.com or PO Box 154221, Waco, TX 76705 Look for us on Facebook and Twitter also.

Confirm Scripture With Scripture*

We mentioned last week that we were going to begin to unlearn error so we can learn truth. One of the strongest confirmations that the scriptures are truth, and inspired by God, is the fact that it contains prophecies, especially dealing with the Messiah, that have been fulfilled. If the books of the Apocrypha also contains fulfilled prophecy, then why are they not also considered inspired scripture? These books were once included in the King James Bible, and they are still included in the Catholic Bible. Jewish religious leaders first contended that the books of the Apocrypha did not rise to the level of scripture. However, these same books point directly to the Messiah being Jesus. Could this be the reason that these books began to be disregarded? Jude, the writer of one of the books of the New Testament, and one of the brothers of Christ, who also held the position of Bishop of Odessa, quoted from the Book of Enoch, one of the Apocryphal books. Jude wrote: "And Enoch also, the seventh from Adam, prophesied of these, saying, Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousand of his saints, to execute judgment upon all, and to convince all that are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have ungodly committed, and of all their hard speeches which ungodly sinners have spoken aginst him..." (v. 14-21, excerpt). In another example from scripture, the Apostle Paul, speaking to the Greeks, told of how the LORD created all peoples from one blood, and determined beforehand the geographical boundries of their habitations (Acts 17:24-27). Genesis 10 tells us of the three sons of Noah and their sons after the flood. From those sons, came the various people, both Gentiles and Jews, with their physical locations named after them. In the beginning of the earth's creation, all of the seas were gathered in one place, and the same being true of all of the land, which the LORD called "earth", or eretz in Hebrew (Gen. 1:9-10). However, along the descendants of Noah was born one named Peleg (meaning "division"), because it was in Peleg's days that the land, or eretz, was divided (Gen. 10:25). As we see on maps today, the continents could fit together like puzzle pieces, if we brought them together without the water dividing them. This could be one reason why various peoples, including Native Americans on this continent, show a DNA relationship with Middle Eastern Jews. Many of God's people, the Israelites, have been, as Moses prophesied, rooted up from their land (Deut. 29:19-29): "And the LORD rooted them out of their land in anger, and in wrath, and in great indignation, and cast them into another land, as it is this day." According to the Jewish Encyclopedia, Columbus' explorations and discoveries were based in part upon the earlier astronomical and geographical writings of learned Jews. He also took several Jews on his voyages to the new world. This is during the same period when Spain was expelling Jews from their nation, and those Jews were seeking new homelands. The Apocryphal Book of Esdras 2, Chapter 13, includes descriptions of Jews, ejected from their lands because they did not keep the ways of the Lord. They became determined to keep His ways in their new lands where men had never before dwelt: "...37 And this my Son shall rebuke the wicked inventions of those nations, which for their wicked life are fallen into the tempest; 38 And shall lay before them their evil thoughts, and the torments wherewith they shall begin to be tormented, which are like unto a flame: and he shall destroy them without labour by the law which is like unto me. 39 And whereas thou sawest that he gathered another peaceable multitude unto him; 40 Those are the ten tribes, which were carried away prisoners out of their own land in the time of Osea the king, whom Salmanasar the king of Assyria led away captive, and he carried them over the waters, and so came they into another land. 41 But they took this counsel among themselves, that they would leave the multitude of the heathen, and go forth into a further country, where never mankind dwelt, 42 That they might there keep their statutes, which they never kept in their own land. 43 And they entered into Euphrates by the narrow places of the river. 44 For the most High then shewed signs for them, and held still the flood, till they were passed over. 45 For through that country there was a great way to go, namely, of a year and a half: and the same region is called Arsareth. 46 Then dwelt they there until the latter time; and now when they shall begin to come..." In the Gospel of Matthew, when Jesus was crucified, He was mocked, reviled and scorned by spectators, saying, "If thou be the Son of God, come down from the cross." Even the religious leaders mocked Christ saying, "He saved others; himself he cannot save. If he be the King of Israel, let him now come down from the cross and we will believe him. He trusted in God, let him deliver him now, if he will have him: for he said, I am the Son of God." (Mt. 27:39-43). The Apocryphal Book of Wisdom (of Solomon), Chapter 2, tells of an identical event: "16 We are esteemed of him as counterfeits: he abstaineth from our ways as from filthiness: he pronounceth the end of the just to be blessed, and maketh his boast that God is his father. 17 Let us see if his words be true: and let us prove what shall happen in the end of him. 18 For if the just man be the son of God, he will help him, and deliver him from the hand of his enemies. 19 Let us examine him with despitefulness and torture, that we may know his meekness, and prove his patience. 20 Let us condemn him with a shameful death: for by his own saying he shall be respected. 21 Such things they did imagine, and were deceived: for their own wickedness hath blinded them. 22 As for the mysteries of God, they knew them not: neither hoped they for the wages of righteousness, nor discerned a reward for blameless souls." As is mentioned in the above Book of Wisdom, the Apostle Paul also spoke about the spiritul blindness that had in part come upon the Jews for the sake of the Gentiles, until the fulness of the Gentiles has come in (Rom. 11:25). However, let us also keep in mind the next verses concerning Israel, which includes: "As concerning the gospel, they are enemies for your sakes: but as touching the election, they are beloved for the fathers' sakes." If the Apocrypha is judged the same way that we judge scripture, as containing fulfilled prophecy especially those dealing with the Messiah, we can see why these Books had originally been included in our scriptures. We can also see, why they have likewise been removed: because they testify specifically and in detail as to Jesus being the Messiah. It is time to unlearn error, and learn the truth. We can do that by confirming scripture with scripture. *Based on the 12/6/20 message of Dr. Stevenson to the Church; To Contact: PO Box 154221, Waco, TX 76705, Everlastingcovenant@ymail.com