Two or Three Witnesses

Two or Three Witnesses

Matthew 18:16 “But if he will not hear thee, then take one or two more, that in the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established.”

Matthew 22:29 “Jesus answered and said unto them, Ye do err, not knowing the scriptures, nor the power of God.”

F

rom time to time someone garners a lot of publicity while attempting to predict the end of the world. In the process many, who stake their lives on such erroneous statements to the point of financial ruin, not to mention the emotional stress endured by friends and family. They sell everything, move to the mountains and desert places, hoping for that which is false. Did not Jesus warn us of such deceivers?

   So where do they all go wrong? How can so many mislead so many? I believe the answers lie with the two scriptures above.

The first is originally intended to be administered in a court of law requiring two or three witness to establish guilt or innocence. The second is referring to being asked, by the Sadducees, concerning one’s wife in the resurrection. So how do these passages relate to the subject of the end of the world and when it should take place?

The answer is that first of all any doctrine must be established by two or three other passages. Far too many attempt to build a teaching based on one verse thus ignoring all others.

   Second, there is error in not knowing the scriptures and power of God; which means that because one takes it upon himself to build a doctrine upon one verse he is in error; and thus produces an erroneous teaching.

Setting the record straight with two or three witnesses:

   An in depth study of Mt.24:1-31; Mk.13:1-37; Lu.21:7-38; 2Thess.2:1-17; Dan.9, 10, 11, and 12 are all in agreeance with the God’s timetable for the end times, including the ingathering (rapture) of God’s children, the Church [the bride of Christ].

The disciples asked same three questions in the three gospel accounts, and Jesus answered all  three questions in the order in which they were asked, leaving no doubt as to the timetable of the end of the world.

Three questions:

1.     When shall these things be?

2.     What shall be the sign of thy coming?

3.     And of [or when is] the end of the world.

Three answers; these things must come to pass before the end of the world:

1.     Deceivers and many antichrists will come.

2.     Wars and rumors of wars, nations against one another, famines, earthquakes all over the world, and pestilences. [You may say, But we’ve always had these things. Yes, we have but never so many in so many different places one right after the other. (the Beginning of sorrows)

3.     Unparalleled persecution of the church [and Israel]

4.     Kingdom gospel is to be preached to the end. [of the world]

5.     The Great Tribulation

6.     Sun, moon and stars cease to shine [darkness, real, not symbolic]

7.     Then the sign of the Son of Man (Jesus Christ, the bridegroom)

8.     Then the ingathering of God’s Firstfruits [the Church and Israel]

The Feast of Trumpets [Ingathering of Firstfruits:] [the day when all the Firstfruits of the crops were gathered and offered unto the Lord at the end of the growing season.]

Author’s Note: ladies and gentlemen; we, you are I as believers in Christ [including the believers of Israel] are the Firstfruits of God’s harvest!!! Though the crop endure the harsh weather nature brings, yet we will be a part of that great harvest when the Lord God sends his angels to gather the harvest!!!

All this fits perfectly and is in harmony with the rest of Scripture, including Revelation wherein the prophecies are fulfilled with pin point accuracy.

The following passages describe the last day, the day of the end of the world [as we know it]. They also describe the Feast of Harvest [Ingathering] and emphasize the darkness of that day when the sun, moon and stars refuse to shine.

·       Amos 5:18-20 “Woe unto you that desire the day of the Lord! To what end is it for you [what can you benefit from it]? The day of the Lord is darkness, and not light .As if a man did flee from a lion and a bear met him; or went into the house, and leaned on the wall, and a serpent bit him. Shall not the day of the Lord be darkness, and not light? Even very dark, and no brightness in it?

·       Zephaniah 1:14-18 “The great day of the Lord is near, it is near, and it hasteth greatly, even the voice of the day of the Lord: the mighty man shall cry there bitterly. That day is a day of wrath, a day of trouble and distress, a day of wasteness and distress, a day of darkness and gloominess, a day of clouds and thick darkness. A day of the trumpet and alarm against the fenced cities, and against the high towers. And I will bring distress upon men, that they walk like blind men, because they have sinned against the Lord: and their blood shall be poured out as dust, and their flesh as dung. Neither their silver not their gold shall be able to deliver them in the day of the Lord’s wrath; but the whole land shall be devoured by the fire of his jealousy: for hew shall make even a speedy deliverance of all them that dwell in the land.”

·       Joel 2:30-32 “And I will shew wonders in the heavens and in the earth before the great and terrible day of the Lord come. The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and terrible day of the Lord. And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be delivered: for in mount Zion and in Jerusalem shall be deliverance, as the Lord hath said, and the remnant whom the Lord shall call.

·       Isaiah 13:9-13: Behold the day of the Lord cometh, cruel both with wrath and fierce anger, to lay the land desolate: and he shall destroy the sinners thereof out of it. for the stars of heaven and the consolations thereof shall not give their light: the sun shall be darkened in his going forth, and the moon shall not cause her light to shine. And I will punish the world for their evil, and the wicked for their iniquity; and I will cause the arrogance of the proud to cease, and will lay low the haughtiness of the terrible. I will make a man more precious than fine gold; even a man than the golden wedge of Ophir. Therefore I will shake the heavens, and the earth shall remove out of her place, in the wrath of the Lord of hosts, and in the day of his fierce anger.

·       Isaiah 34:2-6, 8 “For the indignation of the Lord is upon all nations, and his fury upon all their armies: he hath utterly destroyed them he hath delivered them to the slaughter. Their slain shall also be cast out, and their stink shall come up out of their carcasses, and the mountains shall be melted with their blood. And all the host of heaven shall be dissolved, and the heavens shall be rolled together as a scroll: and their host shall fall down, as the leaf falleth off the vine, and as a fig from the tree. For my sword shall be bathed in heaven: behold it shall come down upon Idumea, and upon the people of my curse, to judgment. The sword of the Lord is filled with blood, it is made fat with fatness, and with the blood of lambs and goats, and the fat of the kidneys of rams: for the Lord hath a sacrifice in Bozrah, and a great slaughter in Idumea. For it are the day of the Lord’s vengeance, and the year of recompenses for the controversy of Zion.”

·       JOEL 3:15 “The sun and moon shall be darkened, and the stars shall withdraw their shining.”

·       Acts 2:19-20 “And I will shew wonders in heaven above, and signs in the earth beneath; blood and smoke, and fire, and vapor of smoke: the sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and notable day of the Lord come: and it shall be that whosoever shall call upon the name of the: Lord shall be saved.”

·       Revelation 6:12-17 “And I beheld when he had opened the sixth seal, and lo, there was a great earthquake; the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood; and the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig tree casteth her untimely figs, when she is shaken of a mighty wind. And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together; and every mountain and islands were moved out of their places. And the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men, and every bondman, and every free man, hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains; and said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the lamb; for the great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand.”

·       Revelation 11:15-19 “And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven saying, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of His Christ; and he shall reign forever and ever.

·       1 Corinthians 15:52 “In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised, incorruptible, and we shall be changed.” Here we can see the “last trumpet” is sounded which agrees with Rev.11:15-19 when the seventh or last trumpet is sounded. Rev.6:12-17 parallel both Rev.11:15-19 and 1Cor.15:52, save that in one the trump is sounded but the darkness is not mentioned, whereas, in the other not mention of a trumpet is recorded and yet the similarities are so close that one is almost compelled to conclude them to be describing the one and same event.

Author’s note: the preceding passages describe the wrath of God and stand in stark contrast to the great tribulation. Whereas, the great tribulation is the time of persecution of Israel and the Church by the Anti-Christ and man.

A note of comfort:

Throughout these passages the writers pen words of comfort and peace as opposed to panic and chaos. Though the end times will be filled with violence and chaos, yet we are to remain steadfast, full of faith, joy and expectation.

Even Jesus spoke hope and faith to the disciples and not despair. He went on to say that all the negative things aforementioned are destined to come to pass. It is the last of the last days.

The question remains—how close are we to the last day?

Are we in the beginning of sorrows now?

I don’t know, but what I do know is that when I see the signs noted above; then I know my redemption draws nigh.

We may have to endure the great tribulation—but we are not appointed unto wrath [the wrath of God].

I am comforted by those thoughts.

This is where all those false prophets err. They know not the Scriptures or the power of God.

Little pinch of Bible knowledge

·         Little pinch of Bible knowledge (just enough to be dangerous)

·         1 huge inflated ego

·         Plenty of arrogance

·         Add a sinful lifestyle, adultery, lies, hypocrisy, unloving, backbiting, gossip, malice, unforgiveness etc.

·         Blasphemy, just a touch

·         Blend with red hot, fiery anger, insults, insinuations etc.

·         Add a touch of resentment

·         6 measures of impatience (if they don’t get saved NOW) they’ll be in hell!

·         Plenty of judgmental comments and condemnation

·         A splash of Racial slurs

·         Carry a huge Bible and quote lots of condemning Scriptures

·         1 loud braggadocios  testimony (repeat often, to the point of making them sick)

·         4 large cups of feigned love for fellow man

·         Slam the door in the face of all Mormons, Jehovah’s Witnesses etc., followed by railing accusations

·         Look down on those who are lost, as if they were lepers

·         Argue minutest details with vehement anger, regardless of who is right (after all you’re the Christian)

·         Have plenty of disdain for those not of your  denomination

·         Heap on strive and division, carefully ridiculing and judgment of others.

Blend all ingredients with periodic displays of contempt and disdain for your fellow man, and serve generously to everyone.

Be sure to provide extra servings especially to those most undeserving, the widows, fatherless, homeless, helpless, etc.

Serving size: Be sure to heap on you can dish out.

Yield: serves and passes judgment on millions.

Results: countless lost souls!!!

Now Thank God that you’re not one of those HEATHENS!

Laid to Rest

Laid to Rest

After a tumultuous week at the Lakewood Police Department in Lakewood, Co. officer James Davies was Laid to Rest on Thursday November 15^th.

What do we mean by the phrase laid to rest? From a biblical perspective man, from the fall of Adam and Eve, our first parents, has been ordained to labor by the sweat of his face until he returns to the dust from which he came(Genesis 3:19). Thus when we die we are to be laid to rest from the labors of our profession.

Before the fall man’s task was to till the soil in the beautiful Garden of Eden, a seemingly enjoyable experience, but afterward it became laborious, toilsome, and difficult as now they were thrown out of the Garden into a world where death was to be prevalent. Before the fall there was no death; not of man, nor beast, not even the plant and vegetation. Now, outside the Garden, thorns and thistles [weeds] became man’s constant companion and enemy.

The first biblical account of man’s physical demise is recorded in Genesis 4:1-13 when Cain slew Abel, his own flesh and blood brother, because of jealousy. From that point forward history records mankind as full of violence. Full of hatred, malice, covetousness, murders and runs the gamut of human depravity and lawlessness.

It is for this very reason that God ordained human powers or rulers, to combat the lawlessness in the world and champion the innocent and fatherless. It is for this reason that Officer James Davies chose the honorable, God ordained profession of Law Enforcement. It is said that Officer Davies referred to the lawless as “dirties”, and himself as a “dirty hunter”. Though God does not use the term “dirties” yet He ordained human government to prevail over human activities whether good or bad. Though, perhaps, James Davies never realized or fully understood his divine appointment as an officer of the law, nevertheless, James Davies was ordained of God to fulfill the high office appointed to him. Most of us rarely understand it ourselves.

Regardless of the profession one chooses there are always thorns and thistles, or as Officer Davies put it “dirties”. Meaning that in every profession we must work by the sweat of our face/brow until the day we are called home. Every profession has its “dirties”, its low points and high points, its disadvantages and advantages.

An earlier study on passion revealed that in order for one to really succeed and prosper in a profession, one must have a passion for the said profession. Passion is that element which provides the staying power to tough it out regardless or the ups and downs, regardless of the adversity; as I put it, regardless of how often life poops and pees on you it’s the passion that will keep you from abhorring the profession. I believe that the passion you feel is a sign that you have entered your God given profession or assignment. Furthermore, one may have numerous passions or professions in this life. As one passion wanes yet another arises from within. Passion is a MUST in marriage as well. If the couple is not passionate for one another the marriage will shipwreck in the first gale that blows upon it. (See Matthew 7:21-27). Believe me, strong vehement storms will eventually beat against every marriage and every career a person chooses.

So it is with the profession chosen by James Davies and countless others in the honorable profession of Law Enforcement. I challenge each of you in that profession to look inside your heart and soul for that passion that will take you far beyond the vehement storm that beat against your noble profession this past week. It’s that very passion that will get you through this stormy weather safely to the other side. Do not be afraid to seek help in the form of counseling and guidance or merely sharing your brokenness with a confidant.

 For the spouses of those wounded by this tragedy, you must stand by your companion with increased vigilance and support, ever watching for possible telltale signs of needing help. Signs such as a change in behavior may be sudden or subtly changing, or erratic behavior like uncharacteristic outbursts of anger, moodiness, and overt increase in alcohol consumption or even smoking. Withdrawal from social activities or changes from normal temperament may all be signs that help may be needed. Remember, you also are reeling from the severity of this tragedy and may be in need of help as well, though perhaps not on a professional level. I am convinced that Scripture mandates every believer be a sort of first responder to administer aid and comfort until more professional assistance may be obtained as needed.

I’m encouraged by the reports of some who’ve cried until their tears would no longer flow. It’s a sign of releasing the pressure and anxiety from within. Verbal expression of their feelings may also be of help. Expressing oneself through writing, whether private or public may also be a good sign. Unfortunately, far too many warning signs have been ignored until it’s too late. From the outset the feelings expressed may seem extreme, but remember there is a whole lot more pressure built up within than anyone could possibly imagine. The objective is to spot early warning signs and seek to head off possible future disaster. For more on helping those in need please refer to Officer Down Part 2.

I’ve met people who’ve gone on for years and years with negative behavior patterns without seeking professional assistance. Many times they are in a perpetual denial of their abnormal behavior.

For those who are hurting, what you’re experiencing are normal emotional reactions to an extreme circumstance. You are not losing it! You can and will make it with proper help and the prayers and support of your loved ones. You may also be able to see some signs of needing to seek out further help. If so, please seek help. Don’t be anxious of sharing your innermost feelings with a trusted friend or loved one. Many times this is all you need to pull you through. You have many loved ones who depend on you and will support you no matter what you’re going through. Just promise you’ll not try to go it alone.

Officer James Davies has been properly Laid to Rest. It is his time to sleep while the rest of us continue to toil under the sun, knowing that someday we too will be laid to rest.