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In Hebrews chapter 10.
And verse 36.
For ye have need of patience that after ye have done the will of God, you might receive the promise.
For yet a little while, and he that shall come, will come, and will not tarry.
Now the just shall live by faith, but if any man draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him.
But we are not of them that draw back unto perdition, but of them that believe to the saving of the soul.
That we pray our God and Father.
Reading the second chapter of Second Thessalonians.
If someone has some comments about the first chapter, feel free.
Second or first Thessalonians chapter 2, Second. Excuse me.
2nd Thessalonians, Chapter 2.
Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, that by our gathering together unto him, that ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter from us, as that that the day of Christ is at hand. Let no man deceive you by any means, for that day shall not come except there come a falling away 1St and that man a sin, be revealed, the Son of perdition.
Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worship, so that he has God sitting in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God. Remember ye not that when I was yet with you I told you these things, and now you know what withholdeth that he might be revealed in this time.
For the mystery of iniquity doth already work. Only he who now letteth will let until he be taken out of the way, and then shall that wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming even him whose coming is after the working of Satan, with all power and signs, and lying wonders, and with all deceivableness of unrighteousness.
And then that perish, because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie, that they all might be damned, who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness. But we are bound to give thanks always for God, to God, for you, brother beloved of the Lord, because God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation through sanctification of the Spirit.
And belief of the truth we're up to. He called you by our gospel to obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore brethren, stand fast and hold the traditions which he had been taught whither by word or our epistle now our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God even our Father, which hath loved us and have given us everlasting consolation and Good Hope through grace.
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Comfort your hearts and establish you in every.
Good word and work.
It's in beautifully with what we've had the last two nights in the gospel, especially last night when Brother Bob.
It's exceedingly solemn.
These verses in anticipation of the Antichrist specifically.
His work during the tribulation period he is not yet manifest. He will be afterward gone, along with the Beast, the other beast of Revelation 13.
But when you think of.
Such verses as verse 12.
The 11:00 and 12:00 For this 'cause God shall send them unbelievers, rejecters of Christ, strong delusion, that they should believe a lie, or the lie, the lie of the Antichrist, that they all might be damned, who believe not the truth, but had pleasure and unrighteousness.
It's exceedingly solemn to think on these things and realize that there are those who are hearing the gospel today, but they have pleasure and unrighteousness.
Something that already works, doesn't it? It's the mystery of a work of the iniquity that already does work. We are seeing the progress of it in the world that we live in today.
What it seems that happened here in Second Thessalonians, I'm sure it's often been explained, but it's important to understand that someone had seemingly troubled the Thessalonian believers because of all the persecution and trial they were going through.
And told them that they were already in the day of the Lord, that day of judgment. And if you read verse two, he says that you be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter, as from us. Perhaps they'd even send a letter forging the Apostle Paul's signature, telling them that the day, and it should be the day of the Lord, is present.
Their words They thought that perhaps they were already in the day of the Lord. And the Apostle Paul writes to them to tell them that that day could not take place until there was the falling away first the apostasy and the revelation of the man of sin, and that the man of sin could not be revealed until he who was hindering be taken out of the way.
So he's writing now to clarify this, and it's really instructive to see.
Where we are in connection with this, it's very possible that this man of sin.
The son of iniquity that it speaks of in this chapter is already alive in this world.
But he cannot be manifested as such until that which hinders is taken out of the way. And so he beseeches them here, and it's beautiful in verse. One brethren again to comment on it by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto Him in this day and age we gather to His precious name.
And.
Brethren, we need to hold that truth in humility of mind, realizing that.
The ruin is great and that we are part of the ruin too.
Need to hold it in real humility of mind. God sees our hearts, and He will test what He sees that is not of him. May the Lord grant that we hold it in humility of heart and mind, but at the same time, rather than to realize that all our beloved brethren in the faith, wherever they may be, are included in God's purposes.
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That everyone who is a member of the body of Christ.
Is going to be gathered together unto him at this supreme moment. What a glorious moment as our brother was praying in the in the prayer that all those differences are going to.
Remain behind When we're called in this presence, isn't it great to realize that and hold dear in our hearts the truth of the whole body of Christ?
In this world, O brethren, we're going to be gathered. Everyone of them is going to be gathered at that supreme moment when we are called into the Lord's presence. That's our gathering together unto him.
Another thing to look for? It's not the Antichrist, it's the true Christ.
What a comfort. If we just get a hold of that, it's enough we won't see the Antichrist and know him.
They'll never come under his dominion. We come under the true Christ. He's looking to get us out. He's our deliverer from the coming wrath.
When the day of the Lord comes, that'll be the day of the wrath. But Jesus is our deliverer from that day of the coming wrath. I'm referring to 1St Thessalonians chapter one and the last verses. It's so simple in the first epistle.
The order of the blessing that came to.
Thessalonians in the last two verses of First Thessalonians one for they themselves show of us what matter of entering in we had unto you use us alone in and how ye turn to God. That's the first thing they did. They turned to God, and left their idols from idols. Then they became servants to serve the living of the true God, Not a dead idol, a living in a true God.
And the next thing was to wait for his Son from heaven. And what does he do?
Whom he raised from the dead, even Jesus.
Delivered us from the coming wrath, our deliverer from the coming wrath, that's Jesus. He's going to take us out before the wrath of God falls on this world.
No, brother, it's just looking at the 5th chapter of the first Epistle. I think it'd be good to just read a couple of verses there in connection with what we're talking about in.
Yes, in verse 8 or verse 7 rather says they that sleep sleep in the night, they that be drunken or drunken in the night. But let us who are of the day be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love and foreign helmet the hope of salvation. Here's the reason for God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ. We're going to be out of here, brethren, one of these days.
That's the salvation that we're looking at here. But it's lovely to see that those three beautiful attributes, faith, hope and love, and every believer possesses them. If you're here today and you know the Lord Jesus as your Savior, you have these three things. Maybe we don't exercise them as we ought to, but it's lovely to see. Especially I was thinking of that statement there foreign helmet, the hope of salvation. It is the hope of His coming. The hymn writer could say that gladdens my heart, is what makes this poor world tolerable. To realize that we're soon.
Are soon going to be with him and like him forever.
Rapture and error often comes in installment and I worked with a man who believed in a partial rapture If you just go down in that 5th chapter you mentioned 7:30 because that's really the subject of they that sleep in the night if you get out of the.
At first it says who died for us, that whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with him, and I puzzled over why, it mentions the waking ones first, but if you turn to Mr. Darby's translation, it says whether we watch or sleep.
I don't believe it's Speaking of the dead and the living there, but it's Speaking of those that are looking for the Lord's return and those that are not. We're all going to be caught up together. There's going to be a lot of surprise Saints at the Rapture, whether we're watching or sleeping.
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Many Saints we can fall into a slumber and sleep as you read there in that verse that.
As those that are drunken in the night going on with the world and seeking pleasure in the world and so on, but but they're watching us or or sleeping. We're going together with him.
Even if I am, even if I am watching, is that any credit to me? You know, some Christians, they might say, well, I'm watching for the Lord to come and I might be very proud about that, you know. But the fact is, is that because the Spirit of God keeps it before our souls, it it's it's he that does the work. So the credit goes to him. No credit to me.
Sure, God stays here.
As long as the Saints are here and then he leaves.
The hindrance to the falling, the apostasy, and the.
Tribulation is the presence and power of the Spirit of God down here in the Saints at the end of the book says the Spirit and the bride say come. That is the Spirit is down here in this world looking for asking for Jesus to come.
So that he can go up with us and we're taken out.
And.
When a person gets saved.
He gets the Spirit of God.
Sealed with the Spirit of God.
And always has the Spirit of God.
When the Lord Jesus comes.
And were taken up, it says, Then so shall we ever be with the Lord.
The spirit will be up there and we'll be up there. This is the next event to expect.
Would you say, Brother Clint, the Spirit of God leaves as the habitation of God, That is the habitation of God with the Spirit When the church leaves he leaves in that sense. And then would you say that he would probably work as he did in the Old Testament times? What I mean by that is in Matthew chapter.
10 as well as other places.
There's some indication of.
The Spirit of God, working as He did in the Old Testament times in verse 19.
Matthew 10 But when they deliver you up, this is during the tribulation.
Take no thought how or what she shall speak for shall be given you in the same hour what ye shall speak for. It is not she that speak, but the spirit of your Father which speaketh in you. I think there's a place in Luke 1212. I'm not sure.
What is characteristic of this dispensation?
Is that there's a man in the glory.
And the Spirit of God on earth dwelling in the individual believer and in the church collectively.
That was not the case ever before, and we know that the Spirit worked.
And even came upon.
And came even upon unbelievers, as we know with Balaam and with Saul. He was not a believer, King Saul. And so there is a distinct difference. And David when he sinned, remember.
He prayed, Take not thy Holy Spirit from me. You know the Spirit could come upon and also leave people in the Old Testament. But according to John 14, the Lord Jesus said when he would come, he shall be with you and in you forever, with you collectively, in you individually forever. And he is going to leave this scene.
With the church when the church is raptured, but he will work and continue to work like he did in the Old Testament.
And.
These servants, the brethren of the Lord that will preach the gospel of the Kingdom, you know the Spirit will direct them and guide them in their activities. But how wonderful to live at this time in this world's history.
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Where the work of redemption is accomplished, and that the Lord Jesus as the ascended, glorified Christ, sent forth the Spirit, you see, he received the Spirit and sent it sent the Spirit here to dwell in US individually and collectively. But what a solemn truth that is. You know the Spirit is given us so that he be in charge of us individually and in the assembly collectively collectively.
But how wonderful too. And it's important to emphasize that when the Lord Jesus comes for us to take us home, he comes in the character of him being the Son of God.
He doesn't come as the Son of Man for the Church. You know that verse already quoted in the First Epistle, chapter one. We're waiting for his Son from heaven and we have various passages in Matthew where his coming as the Son of Man is spoken of in connection with setting up the Kingdom of the Son of Man. You know at the at the present time we have the mystical form of the Kingdom of Heaven.
That it has taken because he is rejected, but that Kingdom will become the Kingdom of the Son of Man when he comes back.
In power and glory. And you know, the day of the Lord is when he comes back and cleanse the earth with judgments, preparing it for that glorious reign. And that has not taken place. The apostasy, as our brother Bob said, has to come first. Now the spirit of apostasy is already at work today, and this is, I believe, something.
That is very solemn. Do you realize? Do I realize if I give up any aspect of God's truth, it is really the spirit of apostasy? Giving up, abandoning that which God has revealed, That's a very solemn thing of where does it end? You know, if the grace of God doesn't arrest us, but that spirit of apostasy is active, you know? And isn't that what the enemy is trying to do, rob the Saints of God?
Much of the precious truth, including the truth of the Rapture, that will take place before the Tribulation.
Laboratories can never be in the class state, but he can be affected by the spirit of apostasy, and that's what we need to be exercised about. I'd just like to point out in verse 3 the words that really Mr. Mr. Darby translates in his translation, Apostasy is. And let no man deceive you by any means for that day he's talking about the day of the Lord, which is the day that is.
Introduced at the end of the tribulation period in awful judgment.
That day shall not come except there be a falling away, that those words. A falling away is apostasy. It means to go back means it someone who has made the profession of Christianity and then goes back from that profession. In times of the early church, there was a lot that did that in connection with Judaism. They made a profession of Christianity and then they went back again.
To Judaism, that's apostasy. But apostasy can be giving up Christ in any way and going back. But here is a He's. He's saying something that is different. It's the apostasy. We have apostasy in our days, but the apostasy is something that takes place after we are gone. And what is it? It is when the man of sin will be revealed. This is.
Dirt during the tribulation period.
He opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God or that is worshipped.
So that he as God, sitteth in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God.
In other words, the time will come and the tribulation period. The Jewish people are going to have their form of worship again, as they did in the old times. There's going to be the sacrifice.
In a holy place that speaks about in Matthew 24. And then that's going to be taken away. The Antichrist is going to say, in effect, no more worship of any God in heaven.
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I'm God, and he's going to sit down in the temple of God to be worshipped as God, and that is the apostasy. And that's what initiates the last 3 1/2 years that are properly called the Great Tribulation. And when that happens, God is not going to wait any longer. He's going to begin to pour out his wrath on this earth in increasing furor right down to the end of the tribulation period.
That is the apostasy that is when man turns away from even the outward form of a worship of a God in heaven and worships a man here in this world. But brethren, what is so tremendously searching is that the Spirit is working in the world today. And we mentioned there's been a number of references during these meetings to humanism and how it permeates the society we live in.
Basically it makes.
Man, the center of his world.
It's the old lie of Satan that he used on even the Garden of Eden.
Ye shall be as gods your God. It's interesting.
What I heard a report some time ago that when that man, David Koresh down in Texas was still alive and he had his followers and they believed that he was Christ.
What A report from one of the local radio stations said They were not so surprised at that.
But at how many phone calls they got from different parts of the United States to say he cannot be Christ because I'm Christ?
They got it from all over the states. The spirit of it is alive. And they say, brethren, even we in this country, if we're not careful as believers, can become affected by that spirit by thinking that we are the center of our world and not let Christ be supreme in our lives. He is the reference point. We are not. He is the reference point in the truth of gathering how important to set Christ forward.
That Christ be exalted not us, brethren. By grace we may be at the divine center.
And that's where we desire to be, I trust. But we are not the reference point. It's Christ that is the reference point. And we need to make a special emphasis when we talk about the truth of gathering that Christ be exalted and glorified.
So there, Dawn, you expressed.
Believe in a helpful way in connection with the presence of the Spirit of God in this present dispensation. And I'd like to pick up on that. That is that a Pentecost spirit of God came down and filled the whole house. And I think sometimes we're led into error because we hear young people and others say, well, I was in such and such a place and I saw the Spirit of God working. The Spirit of God came down and killed the whole house, and the Spirit of God will work wherever he has given liberty to work. It's true that immense systems that.
There's dispensationally sin against the Holy Ghost.
That is, they conduct their services and their order of things as if there was number Holy Ghost on earth at all. And it's important to see that because our brothers spoke yesterday and he spoke, what characterizes the gathering center is not the presence of the Spirit of God, but the Lord's authority. And that is really what characterizes the two or three gathered to the Lord's name is the Lord in the midst and his authority. The Spirit of God will act in the entire house wherever He's given liberty. But the fact is.
That systematically he is displayed.
I was visiting with a Christian friend in his home, and his pastor and the assistant pastor made an excuse to drop off a cake pan or something. And they came and he wanted to kind of put me on the spot. And he said, where do you go? Do you have a pastor where you go? And I said, yes, I've had the benefit of men who hazarded their lives and given of themselves for my good in my care. I said, I've had pastors and we have pastors. And he said, you didn't get my question. He says, is there one man to run things there?
And I said yes, and he's sitting on the throne of God.
But the Spirit of God is free to work in the house, and that ought to be characteristic of the assembly, that the Spirit of God has liberty. But it is the house that the Spirit of God filled in Pentecost. And we as an assembly gathered to the Lord's name, surely ought to give the Lord the Spirit of God liberty. But when he is withdrawn, the house will be still here, so to speak. It will be left desolate, and there will be the outward form of Christianity going on, and they'll go on as usual.
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But it will apostasize, as we've seen here. The house will be left empty and desolate because the true church, every believer, those that are watching and those that are not are going to be caught up. Every believer, every redeemed one. But there are going to be many professors going on and they're going to believe this lie that her brother was Speaking of, and they're going to give up the entire profession and foundation of Christianity, and that is Christ.
They or the hour of our Lord's return.
I remember a brother who was a great help to me in this back in. Matthew won't take the time to turn to it, but there are two instances that are mentioned about that evil day that's coming, and it is the days of Noah and the days of love. Now Christians sometimes think that those two days are on us now. They're not. They will not be until we're taken out of here. The days of Noah, what did they, what did they set before the idea of violence? The earth was filled with violence.
And the days of Locke, what do they represent? Corruption. If that's so, brethren. And we know that it's true.
We see things that are developing in the world at the present time, How close the Lord's coming must be. We're at the very doors, there's no question about it. But the full development of of violence and the full development of corruption, be it of a sexual nature or whatever, will not really fully develop until the church is taken home. It's frightening when you think about it. If it's that bad in the world at the present time, think of how more intimately worse it's going to be after the true Church of God is taken home.
Daniel speaks of the Antichrist as.
The king shall do according to his will. He's the willful king.
He will be manifested as that, but we have a warning in Hebrews 10.
That is for us in this day.
And our brethren might have used.
This 25th verse of chapter 10 on their invitation to come to the conference.
It's right to use and wonderfully use for a conference invitation. So I'll read verse 25, Hebrews 10/25. Not forsaking the assembling of yourselves together, ourselves together, as the manner of some is.
But exhorting one another and so much the more as you see the day approaching, the day that is seen approaching here is apostasy. Because the next verse says if we sin willfully, that's what apostasy is. Willful sin. Man doing according his will, just like the Antichrist will do, He'll do his will and there's already indications of that spirit in the world.
In many, many places. Well, if we know these things are coming up, the next thing to look for is the Lord, not the Antichrist. The next thing to look for is the Lord. He'll come ahead of the Antichrist.
I believe the Spirit of God focuses a good deal upon this personality.
Although right in this passage, he is not clearly.
Defined, but he's only spoken of as the man of sin. But this personality is the one that is so greatly in contrast to the Lord Jesus Christ in every respect. And we see that he is the one that promotes the political beast of Revelation. Chapter 13, the first part.
So this personality is really the second beast of Revelation 13 that that has two horns like a lamb, but he really speaks as a dragon and he's a religious person. We see where he is. So he has to be the leader of Israel. So if you trace this personality out, you can see a terrible, terrible description of such wickedness. And as a leader of the people, he has no regard for the people at all because in John chapter 10, he's like the wolf that flees or like the.
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Hireling that flees when the wolf comes, and he's like the idle shepherd, he has no concern or care for the sheep. And as you've already mentioned, he's the willful king. He does according to his own will. And what is that? Well, he puts an idol right in the holy place and that which is an holy place. He's so brazen in everything that he does, and it seems like the spirit of God focuses a good deal upon this personality.
Now he works in conjunction with the first piece, the political beast, and he does that as the false prophet. So he establishes him before the eyes of the people, makes the image according to the first piece. So you can see how this we have what in effect is kind of a Trinity of evil, Satan being the wicked spirit behind it all. Terrible, isn't it?
No.
The beast, the political power of the revived Roman Empire, the woman writes. That beast, you know that the ecumenical church. But then the beast will cast off that woman, and then the Antichrist will be all you know. Isn't that a solemn thing that Christendom will recognize and go along with? It's not just the Jewish people.
It's christened up that will accept the Antichrist and the ecumenical movement that we see already, you know, pulling together.
And.
Forgetting about.
Their doctrinal differences and so on. You know Rome will head up this world church, you know, and that will be for some time.
This woman will ride the beast, control the beast, and then the beast will cast her off, destroy her, and in cahoots with the Antichrist will.
Present him as the object of worship.
I remember a year ago being at a conference that had an ecumenical conference in Sweden, and the conclusion was that it was Christ with the obstacle to union. I can't quote it exactly the way you said it, but that's really the point. And that's what we need to be on guard on, because the spirit of things in the world is, even among evangelicals, is to set aside the person and glory of Christ so that we can get together.
And we need to realize that it really is the spirit of this thing that we're reading up here.
People getting together in a stadium and singing how great thou art with Mormons and blasphemers of every kind and going on in movements like this. It's the Spirit. It's not the thing itself, but it's the spirit of it that's leading up to that.
Yes, the.
Decision they came to at that conference in Sweden years ago, these religious leaders said, well, we can't get, the only way we can get together is to get rid of Christ.
That's the end motive under the Antichrist.
To refer to this in connection with the Jew, the Jewish nation is over there. Go to Isaiah 28 because I think it's helped to see how Scripture is bound together.
At the beginning of these meetings.
A brother read from.
Matthew 13.
Where there is the treasure, that's.
Kept up from which is brought forth things new and old, and we had about the appearing of Christ and the rapture, and we've had especially the truth of prophecy, as to the Lord coming with 10,000 of his Saints to execute judgment. And it all fits together, but God has the earthly people.
And he was going to send the true Christ to them, and he did send the true Christ to them.
But there are some words in Isaiah 28 that come down to.
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Refer to things that are about us now.
At least they are.
Seeing.
And there is a nation over there in Israel, and I believe that.
Isaiah 2814.
Seems to be almost directly written for those leaders of Israel over there today.
Call them yeast. Hear the word of the Lord, ye scornful men that rule this people which is in Jerusalem. It's the people in Jerusalem. There are scornful men ruling them.
And they are saying at that time in this prophecy because.
You have said they're thinking this in the heart. We have made a covenant with death and with hell. Are we in agreement there's going to be a covenant made with the Western powers? Evidently soon not while we're here or we won't know it, I don't believe. But there's going to be a pact made for protection.
When the overflowing skirts will pass through, it shall not come unto us. I think that's the Assyrian of the last days, perhaps, for we have made.
Lies our refuge. There's another place the Prophet says he's at the same table. When you have a Treaty of these leaders of these nations, that's what you hear coming out of that table.
Under falsehood are we? Have we hit ourselves?
Therefore, thus saith the Lord God. Now God is talking. Behold, I lay in Zion for a foundation stone.
A Cride stone.
A precious cornerstone.
A sure foundation. Can anybody doubt who God is talking about? This is the rock upon which the church is built. God has put his son there on that holy hill of Zion, and he laid that stone in his own plan. Then he says, and I believe he's saying it to any Jew that's in that area now.
To listen to.
He says he that believeth shall not make haste. That is, he's saying to any Jew over there now anyone in that area.
Don't get in a hurry and receive the Antichrist, because the next one that's coming over there now is the Antichrist.
He'll open up all this sin ordered of God for the true Christ to come later and put down the Antichrist.
So we are in very sensational times.
And it ought to turn us to look for the Lord for our deliverer from the coming wrath, And our the Jews deliver, if they will have him, the only deliver the Jews can have that are over there now to save them from the seven years of great tribulation which are going to come upon Israel especially, but upon all the world to try them as well on the earth. I say, the only thing that will save anybody is Christ.
Put your trust in him and don't go to over there and support Jews to go over there, because that's going to be the most.
Horrible center of the coming round.
Brother Neil.
We can be a little more specific. You were hinting at the movement that is going on, which is really an ecumenical movement. The Promise Keepers.
You know the enemy has used various movements.
In Christendom, to bring about union in the Christian profession, the charismatic movement was a very distinct movement in that direction. See, people were looking for the same experience. Forget about doctrine and differences, as long as you have the same experience of speaking in tongues, we are having fellowship.
Catholics and Protestants and all of these differences didn't mean anything as long as they had that.
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Experience then. Now with the Promise Keepers, it's the same thing they link together regardless of what their doctrinal differences are. Then another thing that has taken place is that evangelicals have joined forces with Catholics and others against abortion. And then they have come to an agreement that they will not try to win Catholics away from Catholicism. You see, they have to.
Tolerate each other, so these movements by the enemy are used to try to bring about.
This One World church, it hasn't yet taken place, although the World Council of Churches certainly is all heading in that direction and.
The.
Rural church.
Will come about, but how wonderful that we have the word of God.
That shows us that we ought to walk apart from all of these things, and that we should cling with purpose of heart to the Lord Jesus and to the word of truth. You know, when Paul said farewell to the same the elders from Ephesus in Acts 20, he did commend them to God and to the word of his grace, you know, and for young people.
This scripture here.
Along with other scriptures, very plainly teaches that the Rapture will take place before the Tribulation. You know reference has been made to Revelation chapter 5 during these meetings. That's another scripture that very plainly shows that the Church will be all redeemed for a matter of fact, as a matter of fact will be with Christ worshipping him as we see it in Revelation 5.
Before he takes the book out of the hands of him that sits upon the throne.
Which is the book of judgment, or Brother Clem called it the title deed to the earth, you know. And then these judgment will prepare the earth for the glorious rain of Christ. But the redeemed are already roundabout, the throne worshipping the lamb. Then in Revelation we have that before the hour of temptation which comes upon the earth. It's another indication the hour of temptation is this time.
Of trial when the Antichrist is revealed, but we will be taken out of it, We will not be here. The word of God clearly teaches that the Church will not go through the tribulation, and then reference was made to the partial rapture. Well, for the landing called that the doctrine of pride. You know in other words, those who are spiritual and go on for the Lord, they will be raptured. The others are left behind.
Nobody is going to be in the glory because of anything that they have done.
All of us will be there with Christ because of his work.
None of us will be there because of anything that we have done, even as believers. We will all be there because of His work.
Be nice, brother, if we could get down.
At the end of the chapter, before the time runs out. It's very bright there from verse 13.
Paul by the sphere.
Says we are bound to give thanks always to God for you, brethren, beloved of the Lord. That's what the Thessalonians were to him.
That's what the Saints all are to God. He has saved us and pulled us and brought us in, and feeds us and fills us and satisfies us and directs us, He goes on in the verse. Brethren, beloved of the Lord, because God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation, where you're going to get any pride for yourself in that it's all of God. He has chosen us for salvation.
In the first, in Acts chapter 2, as many as were ordained were saved. God has done the whole thing. He did it for the Thessalonians. He has done it for everyone who is here. Yesterday, talking to a young man reminded me of another one in a simple way.
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This man had gotten saved. And he was asked, well, how did you get saved? He said, well, God saved me. How did you get saved? That's the way it is. God saved us. And God has chosen the Thessalonians. He's chosen us. He's brought us here to this conference to hear about the Lord's coming. And he is coming, and he is coming before the Antichrist, the appalling ways around us. So we need to be worried about it. Concerned, I should say.
And be careful and seek to help the lambs and the sheep. Keep them from the clutches.
Of all of these movements of men which have men's wills at their base.
Not the will of God, nor the glory of Christ. It goes on and says here, and I mentioned that the truth is mentioned four times toward the end of the chapter. It's not always.
That they believed it. But the truth. The truth. The truth. But here is.
God has chosen you to salvation through sanctification of the Spirit. We had that.
So blessedly in our prayers.
From this room this morning.
Sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth. Believe this word because God says it.
We don't have to.
Reconcile 2 scriptures. We don't have to do that. It's a wrong thesis. We're to believe it. Believe this book whether you understand it or not. It is true belief of the truth.
Where to He called you by our gospel? To the obtaining of the glory.
Of our Lord Jesus Christ, what could be more blessed? What's going to be your end?
The glory, that's where you're going to end when you belong to God, and it must be getting close. But it's so, so good to be stirred in our souls about the state of things around us. Because the apostasy is coming forward more and more. I didn't ever think I'd see so much truth given up. My brother and I love so much. I thought it would be impossible. I tell you, we can't trust our own hearts. He that trusts his own heart, His own hearts of who?
Trust your belief of the truth.
Well, these last verses are positive and nice.
We've set apart and marked out for the truth, the sanctified them through Thy truth. Thy word is truth, and the Spirit of God has written it and He teaches from it. That's our sanctification as we make progress in the truth. It might be more than that.
The Word of God sets us apart. The Spirit of God sets us apart. We don't really belong to this world.
Truth is important because you don't reconcile railroad tracks. If you try to, the train will derail. And there's many truths that go on in parallel in the word of God, God's sovereignty, and man's responsibility. And if you try to reconcile them, you get into difficulty. You're the Lord's servant, and yet you're also subject to your local assembly. And if you try to reconcile those truths, you know that you answer to the Lord, and you try to reconcile that with something else. It's only faith that, so to keep speak keeps the truth going on together.
And it's not just the activity of the mind to try to rationalize things together. And the reason we get into difficulty and stress is because we try to reconcile things that God has left apart to go on.
There are the traditions here that are nice.
Sometimes.
We rather speak against traditions, that is, the traditions of the elders. When the Lord was here, they were teaching for doctrines of commandments of men. Those traditions were wrong and bad. But you get good traditions here in this epistle.
In verse 15, therefore, brethren stand fast and hold the traditions which he had been taught, whether by word or our epistle. That's the traditions that Paul introduced in Christianity, and they are good.
Something that was handed down by word of mouth before it was all written down, and that's really what traditions are, is something that's handed down now we have them all written for us.
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Mr. Garvey uses the word instructions and I think that's that's good. So it's not really traditions of men that it refers to, they're what is was handed down before it was all written down.
Is that what you get in Second Timothy chapter one from which all in Asia have turned away?
The the teachings of Paul himself.
Think about it. The word was not all written.
I don't even suppose Matthew was written. They had no written New Testament. It was coming. This is the first. These two books of a Thessalonians are the first appalled document written down, and they hand it down from word of mouth, from Colossa. They'd take it to Ephesus and so on. That was a handicap, I suppose. I would sure think it was. How wonderful to have the written word.
And oh, how we ought to value it and look at that and compare spiritual things with spiritual.
That we might be kept in the traditions of the Apostles.
The church fathers today, but that both versa quoted from Timothy shows that they were all an error rate from the beginning. They'd all forsaken Paul in Pauls lifetime. So it wasn't the church fathers And I think you made reference to the meaning of the word us when we get that your fellowship might be with us is really referring to the apostles. He's not referring to the Brethren. They went out from us for they were not of us. It may we may be able to apply that. That may be the reason a person leaves the assembly because they want to forsake the Apostles.
But it's really the awesome scripture is the apostles.
There are such things as traditions that or practices that we do not necessarily have from the word of God, and as long as these practices and traditions do not.
Undermine the truth of scripture. Don't try to force the change. But I'm referring to, for instance, is when I grew up.
In Europe, the custom was, and the tradition was that the women were sitting over there and the men were sitting over here.
And.
In most of the world, that's the way Christians sit when they come together. It's really only, I believe in the English speaking world that we sit together as families. Now, I myself prefer it that way, but I do believe that if we happen to be in a place where Saints have other customs, I don't think we should try to force a change that doesn't collide, I don't believe.
With Scripture, the same we used to stand up, all of us.
When somebody would pray anytime during the breaking of bread or during a ministry meeting, a brother would pray, all the Saints would stand up. Now I would personally prefer to do that that way, but am I going to force a change according to what I like and cause disturbance? So I'm using some of these examples to show that there are customs.
That are not in collision with the truth of scripture, which we go along with and but if there are customs that would set aside scriptural teaching, then that's a different thing. Then we have to set aside these customs or these traditions and bow to the word of God. What about if women?
Come from groups of believers where they're permitted to participate.
In meetings, well, they might be accustomed to doing that, but that is contrary to the word of God, and we cannot allow that kind of.
Tradition to find its way amongst the gathered things. But young people go along with whatever you find to be customary wherever the Lord puts you, as long as these traditions and customs do not clash with the word of God.
Another height you mentioned about.
You were raised where the stood up. Would it be all right if we said Amen?
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And I believe the word of God teaches that very plainly. And I have found that that was a better custom. Over in Europe, there was always a loud Amen when somebody prayed.
In the local assembly, when someone prays and there's no amends, you wonder if you should hide yourself or or whether what you said was contrary to scripture. But when there is. I was in Fullerton recently not to bring focus on any particular assembly, except I am.
We were there for a couple months and it was beautiful. Not just my prayer, but anyone's prayer. You knew that your brethren were listening and that they were in Concord with what you said because they said it. They said Amen. And one particular brother, and I won't mention his name, but if you're ever there, you know who I'm Speaking of. He said it loudly enough that you knew that his heart was with you. And I'll tell you it does something if we don't stand. And I remember my my wife's grandfather, Ruskin Gill, saying that if we don't stand.
Shouldn't we, Brethren, and I say it almost pleadingly, can't we at least say Amen?
Now the last two versions.
Now our Lord Jesus Christ Himself, and God even our Father.
Which hath loved us, and has given us.
Everlasting consolation and Good Hope through grace comfort your hearts and establish you in every good work.
Word and the word how full is this?
Last part of this epistle to give us to rejoice, having been in this conference, and having the word of God before us, and have our Lord Jesus Christ Himself and God even our Father.
Here to give us everlasting consolation and Good Hope through grace comfort our hearts.
And establish you we're not gone. There's still something to say. There's still something to do in every good word and work.
The progress of evil is so evident in the world sometimes, said Brother. And I really think it's something we need to meditate. If we walk in the fear of the Lord, we do not have to fear the devil, nor all the hosts of hell, nor any man we can go on. We can be established in every good word and work, and we need to be encouraged in these last days to go on, even though we live in days of small things.
We have a great God, brethren, and he's not any less great because we live in days of small things. He's not any less great because we have failed as much as we have. He's still as great as he ever was, and we can count on him. We have a God we can count on even today.
Over 270.
Pray, I'd like to read a few verses in Acts 20 and Acts 21.
In connection with departing one from another. And for the apostle Paul, it was the last time that he felt that these Saints would see one another, and it may be because of the Lord's coming that that will be so with us. And so in that spirit I would like to read Acts 20 and verse 25.
And then the first verse of the 21St chapter and verses five and six of that chapter.
And now, behold, I know that ye all among whom I have gone preaching the Kingdom of God.
Shall see my face no more. This is not on my part of prophecy, but it may well be because of the nearness of the Lords coming that we will not see one others faces again. And then the first part of the first verse of chapter 21, and I want to give what I think is the is, is a nice little meaning to two words there. And it came to pass that after we were gotten from them it's as if some of us that know about barnacles at the sea.
They have a special way of attaching themselves and to get it loose it takes a great deal. And that's the thought that after we were gotten from them And so because we've been together, it is with difficulty, no difficulty to to walk to our car and to turn the ignition. But emotionally, spiritually, it's difficult for us to to go away from one another. And now verses 5:00 and 6:00.
A little different incident and maybe not the same intensity of getting, but still the thought is there.
And when we had accomplished those days, we departed and went our way.
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They all.
Brought us on our way with wives and children till we were out of the city, and we kneeled down on the shore and prayed what a scene like to have been there. And we kneel down on the shore and prayed. And when we had taken our leave one of another we took ship.
And they returned home again.
Our God and Father we are going.