-THE WRITTEN WORD OF GOD-
“Then all the men which knew that their wives had burned incense unto other gods, and all the women that stood by, a great multitude, even all the people that dwelt in the land of Egypt, in Pathros, answered Jeremiah saying, as for the word that thou hast spoken unto us in the name of the Lord, we will not hearken unto thee.
But we will certainly do whatever thing goeth out of our own mouth, to burn incense unto the queen of heaven, and to pour out drink offering unto her as we have done, we and our fathers, our kings, and our princes, in the cities of Judah, and in the streets of Jerusalem: for then had we plenty of victuals, and were well, and saw no evil.
But since we left off to burn incense to the queen of heaven, and to pour out drink offerings unto her, we have wanted all things, and have been consumed by the sword and by the famine. And when we burned incense to the queen of heaven, and poured out drink offerings unto her, did we make her cakes to worship her, and poured out drink offerings unto her, without our men?”.....JEREMIAH 44:15-19.
“Nevertheless, the foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, the Lord knoweth them that are His. And let everyone that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity”…2ND TIMOTHY 2:19
-THE RECEIVED WORD OF GOD-
Men and brethren, is it not a vile thing that some folks, commissioned and mandated by Master Jesus to preach His gospel are busy telling folks that “because it works then it must be of God”? That is lie from the pit of hell. There are many things that are working in this life that are not of God and have nothing to do with Him – so many things indeed.
People of God, the simple fact that one is prospering materially, even in the Church of Jesus Christ, DOES NOT MEAN THAT GOD IS WITH him or her. The fact that some nations are prospering and advancing in all areas of this life does not mean that our God has anything to do with them. Indeed, it is even truer that the most prosperous nations of the earth are equally the most adulterous and perverse nations on earth.
When believing folks understand and internalize this very truth, church pulpits world-wide would be spared the agony of many testimonies of “God’s blessings” shared by folks who are not in right standing with God! There are many things making rounds in our churches these days that do not have the signature of the Holy One of Israel. To come closer to what we know, let me warn believers world-wide that the very fact that a ministry is growing in leaps and bounds does not in any way mean that God is with that ministry or with those involved in the leadership of that ministry. This is one of the critical mysteries of godliness.
Brethren, there are many ministers of large Christian ministries presently bound for hell fire except they repent before it is too late. I know what I am talking about. I have no mandate from the Lord to name names in public, and He rarely gives such mandate - except in rear and exceptional circumstances - and I can testify that such circumstances have not presented themselves in our times. Therefore wherever such name calling is found we must note that God is not involved.
Men and brethren, it may have worked for your ancestors, it may have worked for your community: it may even have worked for your parents – yet if it is not of God it is not of God. In true Christianity we must learn not to justify anything or any process by sight – for we live by faith and not by sight. It amounts to spiritual suicide for a believer to justify things by sight, by history, or by any other standard other than the standard of the living God as established in His word. He who has ears let him or her hear.
Let us come closer home. Brethren, the fact that what a man or woman is preaching "is working’ is never a conclusive evidence that our God has sent that preacher, or has anything to do with what that preacher is preaching in the first place. Indeed, anything that works, even in the Church, which is founded outside the sound doctrines of our Lord Jesus Christ, is not of God and cannot be. And there is only one acceptable doctrine in heaven – and that is the doctrine of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Men and brethren, the guiding light must at all times be the word of God - and all of the word of God. And for the avoidance of doubt, when we are talking about the doctrine of Christ we are simply referring to the entire counsel of God as revealed in the biblical books of Genesis to Revelation. Anything short of that is of men and must be cast down and trampled upon. The ways of our God are indeed and in truth not the ways of men..
In today’s scriptures, the Jews, whom God had driven into exile for wanton and wicked lifestyle, continued even in that exile with their abominable practices. They continued to pour drinks unto the queen of heaven, a demon. And when Jeremiah the prophet confronted them with the commandments of God, they quickly justified themselves thus: that they had discovered that as long as they poured such drinks to the demon they prospered materially. According to them, whenever they ceased to worship that demon and turned to God they stopped prospering! That was their testimony. And as strange as it may sound, such testimonies are also common in our days, even in the very Church of Jesus Christ.
Often times, when folks forsake evil for the Lord, especially those who had prospered in the ways of satan and of the world, they initially encounter all manners of issues with their finances and general well-being. What actually is happening at that point is that satan is trying to cause such folks to return to their vomits. And that is what we call the trial of faith. And it often comes with the express permission of our God Himself. And in that process many do indeed go back to their vomit just as the Jews in today’s scripture. Even some who do not out rightly go back to the world would adopt the middle of the course approach - one leg in church and one leg in the world. And I make bold to write that majority of folks in today’s Church are of this latter group.
When we walk by our natural senses we come to carnal and often ungodly conclusions. When we judge our circumstances by what we see or see not we run into natural and carnal conclusions. And when our lives are guided by such conclusions, we are bound to make spiritual mistakes. And when such mistakes linger, we enter into the bad books of our God. And when that happens we practically become enemies of God even with the attendant consequences.
Yes, indeed, those Jews in the days of prophet Jeremiah were quite right but in their own eyes and vain imaginations. They were very sensible folks, very wise indeed– but not the wisdom of God Who is Christ Jesus. They were dwelling in the wisdom of this world which is utter foolishness to our God. They were walking by their natural senses, and by so doing they came to wrong conclusions even in the sight of our God. Are you also like them, you that is reading this message? Search yourselves before it is too late.
But as it was with those erring Jews so it is with many in our Church today. Many in Church today walk by sight – they just follow whatever works –every doctrine, even the traditions of men and of women. They follow perverse and adulterous preachers who preach the things of this life as the gospel of Jesus Christ. And as they practice such things they prosper materially even while their souls continue to decline and eventually decay. What most of such folks do is this – they sow all manners of material seed in Church even while reeling in all manners of wickedness and impunity. And because of the natural law of sowing and reaping, they are also able to reap what they sowed. Yes, they reap material things, but on top of it, corruption embellished eternal damnation.
Brethren of the Lord, the foundation of our God stands very very sure –and having this seal, that whosoever names the name of our God must of necessity depart from iniquity. Living in wickedness and prospering materially is one of the greatest deceptions of satan to lure many folks to eternal damnation.
Please follow me carefully. A man or woman in Church who lives in sin does not experience satanic resistance in his or her ways and means. He or she would always have unhindered access to the things of this life, with little or no opposition from satan. So also it is with ministries that walk in ungodliness – they expand and grow even in the midst of wickedness and compromise.
That simply explains the mystery of the prosperity of the wicked. I have always told believing folks that the fastest way to prosper materially is to live in compromise. If you desire to be rich very very quickly, you must be prepared to offend God, you must be prepared to live in your ways and understanding – you must be prepared to live even as the world lives. But before you take to that option, you must also bear in mind that the prosperity of the wicked would ultimately slay them.
As believers, we must not walk by sight. And added to this, we must not be impatient with God. We must learn to wait on the Lord Who makes all things beautiful even in His own time. The prosperity that endures unto eternity is that which is obtained under tasking patience which often stretches unto long suffering. We must never forget that the true blessings of our God maketh rich and added no sorrows to it. Whenever we secure anything outside the perfect will of God we are bound to encounter sorrow. It may not come at the time and manner we expect. But it will surely come, and that at a time we would never expect and in a manner we would never imagine.
The instruction from the Holy Ghost is this that all those who name the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, world-wide, must not only depart from sin and iniquity; they must also of necessity live above all appearances of sin.
Till I receive another word for us, let us strive to live by the word and commandments of our God at all times. It is well.
NB: WHOSOEVER DESIRES MORE FROM MY MINISTRY MAY PLEASE GO THROUGH MY EARLIER POSTS ESPECIALLY ON FACEBOOK. YOU WILL NEVER REGRET DOING THAT IN JESUS NAME. AMEN.
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