The Doctrine of the Pivot Part 5. The Relationship between
the Pivot of Believers toward the Jews and the Nation of Israel. (continued)
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Prepare yourself for learning the Word of God!
Before we begin, if you are a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ (that is; you have believed [trusted] in Him for His promised gift of eternal life), it is important to prepare yourself to learn God's Word so take a moment to name, cite or acknowledge (confess) your known unconfessed sins privately to God (i.e.; with your thoughts directed only to God the Father).
1 John 1:9 says: "If we confess our sins, He (God) is faithful and just to forgive us our sins (known sins) and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness [unknown or forgotten sins]." NKJV (New King James Version) [italics added]; we call this REBOUND, read the full doctrine as to “why” we need to use 1 John 1:9 to grow spiritually. REBOUND
If you have never personally believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, that He is the Son of God, the promised Messiah, as your Savior (that is, believed in Him for eternal life), the issue for you is not to name your sins; the issue for you is to simply exercise faith alone in Jesus Christ alone for eternal life; when you do, you will instantly receive Eternal Life: John 3:16, 5:24, 6:47, 20:30, 31.
John 6:47 says: "Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me [Jesus Christ] has everlasting life." NKJV [italics added]
Notice again what Jesus said in John 6:47: "…he who believes in Me (Jesus Christ) has everlasting life." It doesn't say, "will have"; it says, "has." Therefore, the very moment you believe in Jesus Christ for His promise of everlasting life, you have it (it's really just that simple; nothing more and nothing less), and it can never be taken away from you (John 10:28-29). Furthermore, the gift (Ephesians 2:8c) of everlasting life (also called eternal life in scripture) is available to every human being; there are absolutely no exceptions.
John 3:14-15, 16, 17, 18, says: "14 And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, 15 that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. 16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. 17 For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. 18 He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God." NKJV
Let us now bow our hearts and take a moment to prepare for worship and learning God's Word. If there is any known sin in your life, this is the time to just cite it privately to God the Father with your thoughts directed towards Him. With your head bowed and your eyes closed, you have total privacy in your mind and soul:
Study to show yourself approved to God!
Grace Bible Church
Robert McLaughlin Bible Ministries
The Tree of Life is a weekly teaching summary:
God’s Word is taught Wednesday, Friday, and Sunday
God’s Word is taught Wednesday, Friday, and Sunday
STUDY TITLE:
The Doctrine of the Pivot Part 5. The Relationship between
the Pivot of Believers toward the Jews and the Nation of Israel. (continued)
Point 4 in our doctrine of the Pivot deals with the Relationship between the Pivot of Believers toward The Jews And The Nation Of Israel. We have noted some of the principles that the pivotal believer must learn from the nation of Israel when they failed as nation being under the Law and we must learn from born again Jews who failed to fulfill their responsibilities to God. What are some of the most important principles of doctrine we can learn from them?
First of all, you need to remember that Israel was founded on God’s word, dedicated to His will, and set apart for His purposes. Isa 43:21, “The people whom I formed for Myself, Will declare My praise.” God blessed them with prosperity, power, security, peace, and a place at the head of nations. But the people of Israel made a fatal mistake, in the midst of their blessings, they turned away from God. They began to remove Him from their lives. They began to do something we must guard ourselves against and that is THEY BEGAN TO FORGET!
This is what happens within a Client nation when it rejects the Lord, let’s begin by identifying historical trends that a nation will and what the manifestations of their negative volition will look like. So, we need to identify the times in which we live as well as discern the historical trends that are taken place in our nation today. Need I remind you of the signs given in the last days before the Lord comes back or in the last days of a client nation to God, before the Lord takes them out by means of defeat on the battlefield and-or by means of the fifth cycle of discipline.
We begin again in 2Ti 3:1, But realize this, that in the last days difficult times will come. Paul is saying, Don’t be naive. There are difficult times ahead.
2Ti 3:2-6, For men will be lovers of self, people are going to be self absorbed, lovers of money, money hungry, boastful, self promoting, arrogant, revilers, disobedient to parents, or literally contemptuous of parents or scornful of parents, speaking evil of their parents and judging them. unloving, irreconcilable, malicious gossips, without self control, brutal, haters of good, treacherous, reckless, conceited bloated windbags, lovers of pleasure or lust rather than lovers of God; holding to a form of godliness, although they have denied its power; and avoid such men as these. For among them are those who enter into households and captivate weak women weighed down with sins, led on by various impulses, always learning and never able to come to the epignosis knowledge of the truth.
These are the kind of people who smooth talk themselves into the homes of unstable and needy and take advantage of them. Usually, they are males who work on the needs of females. The reason why the carnal believer does not metabolize doctrine is simply because the power of the Holy Spirit does not function in the cosmic system. They are always learning academic subjects and doctrine, but it is all gnosis and only academic. They are never able to come to epignosis doctrine.
2Ti 3:8, And just as Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses – that is they opposed the authority of Moses, so these men also oppose the truth, men of depraved mind, rejected as regards the faith or regarding doctrine.
Jewish tradition says that Jannes and Jambres were the two chief magicians who withstood Moses and Aaron in Exo 7, when Pharaoh asked Aaron to do a miracle in front of him to prove that God was with the Jews. So, Aaron threw his staff down in front of Pharaoh and his officials, and it became a serpent. Now, apparently Pharaoh was not impressed, and so thinking that it was just a trick, he summoned his so-called wise men and sorcerers, and the Egyptian magicians also did the same things by their secret arts: Each one threw down his staff and it became a snake. Aaron’s staff swallowed up their staffs” (Exo 7:10-12), and under the first mention principle it illustrated that the plan of God would destroy the work of Satan.
The names “Jannes” and “Jambres” appear in the Talmud as well. According to one commentator, the two magicians left Egypt with the Israelites after the first Passover and were later instrumental in promoting the worship of the golden calf that Aaron made (Exo 32). In other words they were constantly a thorn in Moses’ side and continued to exert a wicked influence on Israel until the time that Moses finally drove them out. Always remember Gal 5:9, A little leaven leavens the whole lump of dough. Sometimes you just have to get rid of those who attack the one in authority over the people of God before it’s too late. As the apostle Paul said in 1Co 15:33, Do not be deceived: “Bad company corrupts good morals.”
Now, since we are in the epistle of Timothy look at 2Ti 2:16-17, where later on the apostle said in 2Ti 2:16-17, But avoid worldly and empty chatter, for it will lead to further ungodliness, and their talk will spread like gangrene or cancer. [Then Paul did something that a lot of believers don’t like, he named those who would cause division when he said Among them are Hymenaeus and Philetus] ,
In 1Ti 1:19-20, Paul said keeping faith and a good conscience, which some have rejected and suffered shipwreck in regard to their faith. Among these are Hymenaeus and Alexander, whom I have delivered over to Satan, so that they may be taught not to blaspheme. Then later on Paul said in 2Ti 4:14, Alexander the coppersmith did me much harm; the Lord will repay him according to his deeds.
So back in 2Ti 3, Paul’s His intention was to use the wickedness of Jannes and Jambres, as presented in the Torah, as an illustration of a widespread, active rejection of the truth in the last days. Paul goes on to say in 2Ti 3:9, But they will not make further progress; for their folly will be obvious to all, as also that of those two came to be
The point is to remind us of the fact that we live in a day an age and in a time of human history in our nation that if believers do not become a part of the pivot, we are going to be in real trouble as a nation. There is absolutely no hope whatsoever for our nation to recover from its fallen state unless the pivot of believers increases. This falls under the principle that: As goes the believer, so goes the nation.
How important is having a pivot of spiritually adult believers?
Well, let me illustrate it for you with a passage. In Gen 18, Abraham was sitting at the tent door (in Mam-ra) and he lifted up his eyes and there were three men, actually Angels, coming toward him and when he saw them, he ran from the tent door to meet them, and bowed down before them. The reason why he bowed down before them is because he knew one of them was Jehovah Elohim, the Lord God, appearing as a Theophany.
In Gen 18:20-22, the Lord said, “The outcry of Sodom and Gomorrah is indeed great, and their sin is exceedingly grave. I will go down now, and see if they have done entirely according to its outcry, which has come to Me; and if not, I will know.” Then the men turned away from there and went toward Sodom, while Abraham was still standing before the Lord.
The best estimates from Historical and Archaeological Evidence for Biblical Accounts, the population of Sodom at this time was anywhere between 600-1,200 people, so it was not an over-populated city. Just to play it safe, we will compromise and say the population of Sodom to be around 900. So, next, let’s get a little background to our passage.
The names Sodom and Gomorrah are actually bywords in our modern society used especially for a wicked place, especially in the sexual realm. Pastors are sometimes said to be preaching “fire and brimstone” when they talk about sexual sins because the Lord destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah with fire and brimstone. And we also have the legal term sodomy for unnatural sex acts.
In Jud 1:7 we read, just as Sodom and Gomorrah and the cities around them, since they in the same way as these indulged in gross immorality and went after strange flesh, are exhibited as an example, in undergoing the punishment of eternal fire.
This reference to “going after strange flesh” is understood in different ways to include bestiality, having illicit sex with strangers, having sex with angels, but most often God’s destruction of the populations of the four cities is interpreted to mean homosexuality. Now this was the sin of Sodom: She and her daughters were arrogant, overfed and unconcerned; they did not help those in need at all but were known for using people for self-gratification. The Bible that they were arrogant and did detestable things before the Lord and therefore the Lord did away with them. In fact, notice the indictment God accused the apostate Jews of: Eze 16:48, “As I live,” declares the Lord God, “Sodom, your sister, and her daughters, have not done as you and your daughters have done.” The Lord is saying to the apostate Jews, this was the iniquity of your sister Sodom: pride, overabundance of food, prosperous ease, and idleness were hers and her daughters neither did she strengthen the hand of the poor and needy. Eze 16:49-50, “Behold, this was the guilt of your sister Sodom: she and her daughters had arrogance, abundant food, and careless ease, but she did not help the poor and needy. Thus, they were haughty and committed abominations before Me. Therefore, I removed them when I saw it.”
Gen 18:23-32, And Abraham came near and said, “Wilt Thou indeed sweep away the righteous with the wicked? “Suppose there are fifty righteous within the city; wilt Thou indeed sweep it away and not spare the place for the sake of the fifty righteous who are in it? Far be it from Thee to do such a thing, to slay the righteous with the wicked, so that the righteous and the wicked are treated alike. Far be it from Thee! Shall not the Judge of all the earth deal justly?” So, the Lord said, “If I find in Sodom fifty righteous within the city, then I will spare the whole place on their account.” And Abraham answered and said, “Now behold, I have ventured to speak to the Lord, although I am but dust and ashes. Suppose the fifty righteous are lacking five, wilt Thou destroy the whole city because of five?” And He said, “I will not destroy it if I find forty five there.” And he spoke to Him yet again and said, “Suppose forty are found there?” And He said, “I will not do it on account of the forty.” Then he said, “Oh may the Lord not be angry, and I shall speak; suppose thirty are found there?” And He said, “I will not do it if I find thirty there.” And he said, “Now behold, I have ventured to speak to the Lord; suppose twenty are found there?” And He said, “I will not destroy it on account of the twenty.” Then he said, “Oh may the Lord not be angry, and I shall speak only this once; suppose ten are found there?” And He said, “I will not destroy it on account of the ten.”
Using our estimate of 900 people populating Sodom, there were not even 10 righteous believers found in Sodom, which would have been a pivot of about 1%. Because the Lord is the same yesterday, today and forever, and because of Act 34, we are forced to conclude that if the pivot of believers is as low as 1% , that because of them God would spare their nation. As goes the believe, so goes the nation!
Now, it has been said, “A nation that does not learn from history, is bound to repeat it.” As Hegel said If we have learned anything from history, it is that we have learned nothing from history. In fact, Aldous Huxley said “That men do not learn very much from the lessons of history is the most important of all the lessons of history.” Another epigram is that “History repeats itself because no one was listening the first time.” “If we do not learn from the mistakes of history, we are doomed to repeat them.” I was given an article once entitled “Will America Learn from Rome?” by Art Fisher. And I would like to end this message with some interesting observations concerning our country and its’ client nation status.
Mr. Fisher states “It is evident that the United States has ignored the lessons of the past and has trodden the same road that led to the decline and fall of great nations like Carthage, Greece, and Rome.” Now, there are several absolutes which stand out in the 6,000+ years of recorded history that are worthy to note:
Let’s note some of them;
1. First of all, no nation has survived its greatness beyond 50 years once it lost its first war. By the way, we did not win in Korea or Vietnam! And although we have not been completely destroyed as a nation, we have definitely been on the road to losing our greatness.
2. Secondly, every nation that has neglected or refused to stand by and defend its allies has perished. This does not mean to interfere with their governments and to police the world. It does mean however to operate as trustworthy friends who can be trusted.
3. Every nation that has compromised with its enemies eventually finds itself “conquered by” or “left at the mercy of its enemies.”
4. Every nation that openly condoned sexual deviancy ended up on the dung heap of “has-been” empires.
5. Every nation that refused to execute its capital crime offenders succumbed to a lawless society before losing its sovereignty and status as a nation. They literally destroyed themselves from within. Some of these facts may have changed a little but if they have they have changed for the worse. And this does originate with me the research of Mr. Fisher, though I have found other survey’s and statics that agree with his.
It is a sad commentary on the United States of America today that: Every 6 seconds a major crime occurs, every 30 seconds a personal assault occurs, every 50 seconds a robbery occurs, every 6 minutes a person is raped, every 22 minutes a murder takes place. We are literally destroying ourselves from within.
6. Without exception, when a nation’s people turn their back on morals, that nation always falls back into a state of slavery and tyranny.
7. Whenever a nation fails to support its military as a protector of national freedom, politicians always bring forth tyranny and use the military to enslave the nation’s citizens.
Abraham Lincoln gave fair warning of these facts of history when he confirmed that America would never fall by an overwhelming enemy invasion from without, unless the people from within, failed to maintain the strength, morals, and foundations this “republic” was founded upon. As a free people, Americans have forfeited their rights of “liberty” by permitting this nation to deteriorate and evolve from a Republic into a Democracy. Professor Alexander Fraser Tytler wrote two hundred years ago when America was still 13 colonies: “A Democracy cannot exist as a permanent form of government; it can only exist until the voters discover they can vote themselves gifts and benefits, such as welfare, out of the public treasury.” He said from that moment on the majority always votes for the candidate promising the most benefits from the public treasury with the result that Democracy always collapses over a loose fiscal policy, always to be followed by a dictatorship.”
Now, I thought it would also be interesting to note the conditions which existed in Rome around the year 200 AD just before the Roman Empire was about to crumble from within, just as America is today:
1. The Romans had become corrupted by their wealth, prosperity, and materialism, it being the criteria for their social and political status. This, of course, produced a society of spoiled little brats who were very unappreciative of what they had.
2. The population of the cities, especially in Rome, was decreasing. People fled the big cities in favor of the country because of crime, inflation, and loss or lack of employment. Family life was in a shambles.
The Free Farmer class had literally disappeared, due to Rome’s interference with trade and farm programs. Finally, all the food was being imported, even from some of Rome’s enemies. The provinces did their own manufacturing and farming and no longer needing to trade with Rome.
The cost of living was sky high with inflation sweeping the land. The cost of government stole a major portion of the people’s prosperity and existence.
Government promoted welfare programs, supported many thousands of people. Unemployment was rampant; as Rome perpetuated its welfare state. Poverty and deprivation rapidly increased.
Government intrusion into the lives and privacy of the people accelerated as Rome sent hundreds of information gatherers and tax collectors, using the pretext that it was necessary in order to help the people.
7. The economy was in constant upheaval. Since Rome had gone off the gold and silver standard, the money was unstable and continuously being devalued. —- just like our dollar — becoming less and less valuable.
Rome was heavily in debt. – last I heard we are 18.1 trillion in debt.
8. Manufacturing continued to decline, world trade dwindled. Imports far exceeded exports.
Trade balances were critical.
9. Finally came the time when the Roman government offered free land, if the people would only farm it.
But the people preferred ‘the government handouts of free bread and circuses. Sound familiar? They had become totally dependent on government for their very existence.
10. Immorality, greed, and fear swept the land like wildfire, as crime of every category increased at a rapid pace. Perversions of every sort flourished.
11. Taxation increased by leaps and bounds, along with the confiscation of property. Imprisonment and even death were the result of not being able to pay the taxes. Those who refused to conform were considered as political prisoners.
12. The people turned from morality. Those who didn’t were persecuted, laughed at, and mocked. They were considered not to be politically correct! Religious false doctrines and heresy became common. Free speech and religion became criminal acts against the state.
As a result of all this, the barbarian tribes to the north and east of Rome saw that the Empire was weakening from internal turmoil and dissension. Therefore, they developed and pursued campaigns to capitalize on Rome’s weakness to their advantage. Rome was forced to fight many wars to keep her enemies from invading and entering the Empire. And these wars taxed and fatigued the Roman armies and brought about many desertions and lowering of the morale of the troops. Pacifism and cowardice became rampant. Many refused to serve Rome, while others cried for peace or outright surrender. Fear of the Barbarians overruled their nationalistic allegiance to Rome.
The Barbarians also saw that the frontier forts were not well manned or armed and the men poorly trained. Rome had refrained from supporting her allies in the time of need, which contributed to the loss of Rome’s outer perimeters of defense. Rome could no longer hold her defenses and continued to lose one war after another. The Roman senate began to appease and compromise with the Barbarians without success. The combination of internal strife with the onslaughts of the Barbarians ultimately toppled Rome. The Roman Empire ended in 476 AD.
It becomes painfully obvious that the United States has been following the same path as Rome since the early 1900’s. Americans have failed to learn the lessons of history or to heed the warnings of their forefathers. And therefore, God gives us a warning of what He will do to a client nation that rejects Him and ends up on the road to self-destruction.
Therefore, we are now ready for Lev 26 and the five cycles of discipline next.
The following link is to a good news message describing how one can receive eternal life: Ticket to Heaven, it was written for anyone not absolutely certain about their eternal future.
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