Post by Les Brewer on Jun 16, 2012 6:11:44 GMT
Calvary's Cross Ministries
Preaching Christ Crucified
From the Pastor's desk.... I Cor.1:18-25
Good morning and greetings in the Name which is above all names,Jesus Christ.
We will begin our study of the "falling away" or the "apostasy" spoken of in II Thess.2:1-12.We will not so much try to defend the doctrine... of the Rapture/Resurrection to which this context of Scripture refers,which can be found in I Thess.4:13-18,which see,but to defend the falling away of the essentials of the historic Christian faith,that has been taught since the Apostles of our Lord.
At the beginning I will say this:It is my belief,after studying the Scriptures for myself,and after examining the different teachings that are out there concerning the Rapture/Resurrection,both the pros and cons for it,it is my contention that the subject is a genuine teaching of Scripture.I believe it to be soon and without any further prophecies needing to be fulfilled.I believe it will be before the beginning of the Great Tribulation,which will be at least seven years in duration and also just prior to the advent of the Anti-Christ.....Now back to the original subject.
The "falling away" is spoken of in these verses as a departure FROM something,TO something.The Greek word for "falling away" is "apostasia" which means a departure from truth to error;a forsaking of truth to embrace a lie,which is bourne out in the context itself in verses 10-11.You can find this definition in the Strong's Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible,available at any Christian book store.
A belief in a pre-tribulation Rapture/Resurrection is not to be considered an essential doctrine for one's salvation.Jesus said you must be born again to receive salvation,not, believe in the Rapture to be saved.What I will be contending and showing is that the apostasy spoken of in II Thess.2:1-12 is not still in the future,it is already here,and is growing worse,which is a definite sign of the soon,un-announced return of the Lord in the clouds to take His church out.
A departure from the historic Christian faith has been taking place for many years now,possibly as far back as the time when the second Great Awakening began approx.200 years ago.A departure of true Christians leaving the truth to embrace error began with a slide down into the kingdom of the cults,back in the early 1800's,with the mind science cults such as New Thought,and the false predictions of the return of Jesus Christ to the earth by preachers such as William Miller/Ellen G. White of the Seventh Day Adventist group,Mary Baker Eddy of Christian Science fame,Charles Taze Russel of the Watchtower and Bible Tract Society (Jehovah's Witnesses),P.P.Quimby and E.W.Kenyon of the mind sciences.
Sadly,even in the realm of orthodox historical Christianity,there have been individuals such as Kenneth Hagin,Kenneth Copeland,Benny Hinn,Robert Tilton,John Avanzinni,Fred Price,Jerry Saville,Charles Capps and many,many more who have descended the steps of heresy,to embrace the "Born Again Jesus" teachings,which teach that Jesus had to be "born again" in the pit of hell,before He could be resurrected.Should you think that I have an ax to grind,anyone who wishes to examine the facts,they are well documented in the books "Kingdom of the Cults" by Dr.Walter Martin or "Christianity in Crisis" by Hank Hanegraaff.
It is my belief and I think the Scriptures bear this out,that,if a person holds to a false view of Jesus Christ,who He is and what He came to do,that person can not understand the story of the Bible and God's purpose for sending His Son to this world.It is my hope and prayer that this study will encourage those who maybe have not read their Bibles in awhile to get a renewed interest in doing so.It is also my hope and prayer that maybe those who have embraced such false ideas of the cults,to come out of these beliefs and back to a true biblical understanding of Jesus Christ and Him crucified.
Tomorrow we will continue with the apostasy that is taking place in the Body of Christ all over the world.Until then may God richly bless you,and have a wonderful day....Love in Christ....bro.John.
Preaching Christ Crucified
From the Pastor's desk.... I Cor.1:18-25
Good morning and greetings in the Name which is above all names,Jesus Christ.
We will begin our study of the "falling away" or the "apostasy" spoken of in II Thess.2:1-12.We will not so much try to defend the doctrine... of the Rapture/Resurrection to which this context of Scripture refers,which can be found in I Thess.4:13-18,which see,but to defend the falling away of the essentials of the historic Christian faith,that has been taught since the Apostles of our Lord.
At the beginning I will say this:It is my belief,after studying the Scriptures for myself,and after examining the different teachings that are out there concerning the Rapture/Resurrection,both the pros and cons for it,it is my contention that the subject is a genuine teaching of Scripture.I believe it to be soon and without any further prophecies needing to be fulfilled.I believe it will be before the beginning of the Great Tribulation,which will be at least seven years in duration and also just prior to the advent of the Anti-Christ.....Now back to the original subject.
The "falling away" is spoken of in these verses as a departure FROM something,TO something.The Greek word for "falling away" is "apostasia" which means a departure from truth to error;a forsaking of truth to embrace a lie,which is bourne out in the context itself in verses 10-11.You can find this definition in the Strong's Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible,available at any Christian book store.
A belief in a pre-tribulation Rapture/Resurrection is not to be considered an essential doctrine for one's salvation.Jesus said you must be born again to receive salvation,not, believe in the Rapture to be saved.What I will be contending and showing is that the apostasy spoken of in II Thess.2:1-12 is not still in the future,it is already here,and is growing worse,which is a definite sign of the soon,un-announced return of the Lord in the clouds to take His church out.
A departure from the historic Christian faith has been taking place for many years now,possibly as far back as the time when the second Great Awakening began approx.200 years ago.A departure of true Christians leaving the truth to embrace error began with a slide down into the kingdom of the cults,back in the early 1800's,with the mind science cults such as New Thought,and the false predictions of the return of Jesus Christ to the earth by preachers such as William Miller/Ellen G. White of the Seventh Day Adventist group,Mary Baker Eddy of Christian Science fame,Charles Taze Russel of the Watchtower and Bible Tract Society (Jehovah's Witnesses),P.P.Quimby and E.W.Kenyon of the mind sciences.
Sadly,even in the realm of orthodox historical Christianity,there have been individuals such as Kenneth Hagin,Kenneth Copeland,Benny Hinn,Robert Tilton,John Avanzinni,Fred Price,Jerry Saville,Charles Capps and many,many more who have descended the steps of heresy,to embrace the "Born Again Jesus" teachings,which teach that Jesus had to be "born again" in the pit of hell,before He could be resurrected.Should you think that I have an ax to grind,anyone who wishes to examine the facts,they are well documented in the books "Kingdom of the Cults" by Dr.Walter Martin or "Christianity in Crisis" by Hank Hanegraaff.
It is my belief and I think the Scriptures bear this out,that,if a person holds to a false view of Jesus Christ,who He is and what He came to do,that person can not understand the story of the Bible and God's purpose for sending His Son to this world.It is my hope and prayer that this study will encourage those who maybe have not read their Bibles in awhile to get a renewed interest in doing so.It is also my hope and prayer that maybe those who have embraced such false ideas of the cults,to come out of these beliefs and back to a true biblical understanding of Jesus Christ and Him crucified.
Tomorrow we will continue with the apostasy that is taking place in the Body of Christ all over the world.Until then may God richly bless you,and have a wonderful day....Love in Christ....bro.John.
