J.A. Matteson

“…and day and night they do not cease to say, ‘holy, holy, holy is the Lord God, the Almighty, who was and who is and who is to come.’” Revelation 4:8

Pharaoh’s question of Moses was wise, although he was not sincerely seeking an answer, “But Pharaoh said, ‘Who is the LORD that I should obey His voice to let Israel go? I do not know the LORD, and besides, I will not let Israel go” (Ex. 5:2). The king’s glib response to the friend of God revealed a fatal contempt for the truth that would have rescued his everlasting soul from divine wrath; he chose death over life and the trajectory of his condemnation was sealed, “For the Scripture says to Pharaoh, “For this very purpose I raised you up, to demonstrate My power in you, and that My name might be proclaimed throughout the whole earth” (Rom. 9:17).

That which is proclaimed on earth finds its origin in heaven. As a fallen man Pharaoh was blind to the Person of the LORD, lacking a fundamental relational knowledge of the Almighty which Adam and Eve knew prior to the Fall. He was held captive in darkness by Satan (2 Cor. 4:4) and by his own fallen nature (Rom. 1:18-20), and yet completely accountable to a just God for his rebellion in rejecting the delegated authority which the LORD bestowed upon Moses (Rom. 13:2). To answer the question raised by Pharaoh, “Who is the LORD?” many attributes found in Scripture are employed to describe Him who lives in unapproachable light.

Of all the attributes of the Almighty there is one in particular which is raised to the superlative, His Holiness. Modern written language underscores the importance of a statement in a number of ways such as highlighting the text in bold print or italics, or perhaps underlining it. In the ancient world repetition in the text signaled great importance and we see the Lord Jesus frequently using this form of speech with His many statements that began with “Truly, truly, I say to you….” The attribute the angelic host elevate to prominence is the holiness God, “Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God, the Almighty.” We often think of the holiness of God in terms of moral perfection, and that is true and appropriate, and in this regard pilgrims are instructed, “but like the Holy One who called you, be holy yourselves also in all your behavior” (1 Pet. 1:15); moral perfection, however, will not occur for the saint until he is glorified and forever rid of sin.

The aspect of the holiness of God to which the angels sing includes not only His moral perfection but His transcendence, or his otherness. To plumb the depths of the holiness of God is to contrast the Creator against that which He has created, for example: God is infinite, man is finite; God is eternal, man is temporal; God is omnipresent, man is bound by space and time; God is omniscient, man knows only in part; God is omnipotent; man is feeble; God is sovereign, man is accountable; God is self-existent; man is dependent on God for his existence. The grandeur of God’s holiness demands worship, “The whole earth is full of His glory” (Isa. 6:3). The holiness of God magnifies human sinfulness and the natural response of a darkened soul is to hide, while the regenerate life is drawn toward the light of God, “For everyone who does evil hates the Light, and does not come to the Light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. But he who practices the truth comes to the Light, so that his deeds may be manifested as having been wrought in God” (Jn. 3:20-21).

While the pilgrim comes confidently and boldly into the presence of the Lord he is to do so with the utmost reverence and never in a impertinent fashion, for the Lord does not suffer fools who trifle with His holiness as Nadab and Abihu discovered, “Then Moses said to Aaron, ‘It is what the LORD spoke, saying, ‘By those who come near Me I will be treated as holy, And before all the people I will be honored.’ So Aaron, therefore, kept silent” (Lev. 10:3-7).

Pilgrims, let us join the heavenly anthem and every day declare, “holy, holy, holy is the Lord God, the Almighty, who was and who is and who is to come.”

Copyright (c) 2009 Immutable Word Ministries (”…the word of our God stands forever.” Isaiah 40:8)

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“Woe to the rebellious children,” says the LORD, “who take counsel, but not of Me, who devise plans, but not of My Spirit that they may add sin to sin.”
Isaiah 30:1

As the people of God we are spiritually distracted in our day and the consequence of our neglect of piety is evidenced by the dire state of spiritual apathy. Any desiring to be much like Him must by necessity tarry long with Him. On the mount the transformative nature of the Son of glory is revealed and too often the eyes of the curious become weak and heavy prior to His disclosure of Himself and the resultant miscalculation by the impatient as to His will predictably ends in many sorrows.

The distraction of busyness presented in the form of technological allurements has induced as state of disobedient slumber to many naming Christ as Lord. Agitated minds given to constant external stimulation risk the danger of losing the capacity to wait in quiet upon the mount of the Lord. A pseudo faith defines much of biblical faith in our day as those naming Christ attend conferences, read an endless list of books rather than The Book, download endless mp3’s and engage in various activities in the fleeting hope of discovering the present reality of God, their minds have become numb and their hearing dull; their eyes do not perceive the providences of the Lord all around them. Seldom do they take counsel of the glorious beauty of Jehovah, constant noise and sights tickle the mind, giving expression to the delights and lusts of the old nature. Diligent study and meditation upon the Word of God is tragically ignored to the harm of those so malnourished.

Something is indeed horribly wrong in the church today. And when the Word is read or studied it is seldom done so with a view toward obedience and self-denial, whereas knowledge too often has become the end rather than the means to the end; namely, knowing the Word of God so as to know the God of the Word. There is so much noise today amplified in the minds of men and so few places where one can escape it and wait upon the Lord in solitude and silence. Technological advancements have become a curse to the Lord’s people, a source of stumbling, a source of false security, and certainly a diabolical substitute for His presence, these tend to lead the church away from those things that result in increased faith and dependence on the mercies of the Lord.

Blessed is the saint whose eyes have been opened by the Lord to the subtle dangers of technology that blinds the mind and dulls spiritual discernment. This is the age of microwave faith where instant results are expected by parishioners who have not sought the mind of God to their circumstances because they are too distracted by their technological allurements to seek His face or hear from Him. As the cycle intensifies more will seek solace and answers second hand from every source but the primary source, the Lord Himself. The Lord Jesus rightly asked if He would find faith upon the earth at His return.

O may the grace of the Lord be granted to this generation in repentance. May the Lord look upon His people with compassion and lead them in the paths of humility and righteousness. Let us lay aside the allurements of the world which so easily beckon to replace the sweet presence and counsel of the Lord. As the Apostle Paul was alone with the Lord in Arabia, let us seek Him in the desert places. As Jesus was alone with His Father on the mount when His disciples sailed upon the sea, let us seek Him on the mount during the early morning watches. As the Apostle John was alone in exile on Patmos due to the testimony of the Word of the Lord, let us seek Him while enduring isolation. When Stephen was alone in his stoning as result of bearing witness to the Truth, let us seek Him should the gate of hell be opened upon us, standing fast in the knowledge that it shall never prevail against the Rock and Fortress of our faith Who is the Chief Cornerstone of the Church, for our Redeemer lives and is ever with us.

Beloved, let us silence the technological noise of our day and seek the counsel of the Lord while He may be found, by His Spirit, through His immutable Word.

Copyright 2009, Immutable Word Ministries. All rights reserved. Used by permission. www.immutablewordministries.blogspot.com

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In whom we have boldness and confident access through faith in Him. Ephesians 3:12

Spiritual pettiness displays a diminished comprehension of intercession by exhibiting a preoccupation with the temporal over the eternal, “When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures” (James 4:3). The veracity of intercession is grace, its means is faith, and its end is the privileged access behind the veil into the most holy place for the redemption of sinners and sanctification of saints. Let not a man presume upon the grace of the Lord by pursuing access before Him recklessly. Only by the atoning blood of Christ is a man able to come before the holy presence of El Shaddai, “since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand” (Romans 5:1-2). Presumption upon the grace of the Lord can result in tragic consequences, as was the case with Nadab and Abihu who were struck down for their brash arrogance. Intercession affords the man of God manifold opportunities to give glory to the Lord for the redemptive activity of the Spirit: by giving thanks for those being saved, “many who heard the message believed, and the number of men grew to about five thousand…all the people were praising God for what had happened” (Acts 4:4, 21); recognizing the sanctifying work of grace in the saints, “We give thanks to God always for all of you, making mention of you in our prayers” (1 Thessalonians 1:2); pleading for mercy on behalf of sinners to quell divine wrath, “O Lord GOD, do not destroy Your people….”(Deuteronomy 9:26); and requesting that spiritual wisdom and insight may be granted to believers, “I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you will know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints” (Ephesians 1:18). Through intercession the Lord reveals Himself to His servant; the servant speaks to God about men, and subsequently speaks to men about God. Unlike Moses who wore a veil over his face lest the children of Israel should behold the fading refracted glory of the Lord upon his face, the Spirit’s presence within the Christian does not diminish, “And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory” (2 Corinthians 3:18). The Apostle confidently yet cautiously measured his access to the throne of the Lord in respectful submission and adoration, “I bow my knees before the Father” (Ephesians 3:14), soberly aware that he came before the King of kings and Lord of lords. The Spirit works within the saint to reorient him to intercede along the line of divine redemptive priorities. And grace persists until the will is conquered and brought into alignment with heaven and it is at that place where heaven is moved through the intercessor, “Elijah was a man just like us. He prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the land for three and a half years” (James 5:17). Submission produces requests from the saint that find their origin in the heart of the Lord, “This is the confidence which we have before Him, that, if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us” (1 John 5:14). Effective intercessors restrain from entertaining fleshly speculations as to the will of the Lord, by virtue of their time in His presence they know his mind along a particular line and are readily brought into conformity with it, “For who has known the mind of the Lord, that we will instruct Him? But we have the mind of Christ” (1 Corinthians 2:16). From the Father the divine will concerning men finds its genesis; the Son is the medium through whom the intercessor is received by grace, and the Spirit supplies unction and heavenly insight so that the intercessors prayers are effectual. The high priest was granted access into the holy of holies once a year on the Day of Atonement. The once and for all atonement of Christ rendered the temple veil of separation torn and obsolete, permitting direct access the Lord—“I AM”—for all who believe, by grace through faith. Unlike the high priest of old the believer now comes confidently and boldly before the throne of grace without a safety line tied to his body, to speak to God about men, and then men about God—as Moses and Christ. Let the servant of the Lord remain faithful to and diligent in intercession, cherishing it as most a sacred privilege and responsibility.

Copyright 2009 Immutable Word Ministries (“…the word of our God stands forever. Isa 40:8)

(Reproduced with permission)

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The Christian ought not to naively entertain the notion that in his natural endowments he is Satan’s equal. In the natural those in the Beloved are no more a match for the prince of darkness than is a squirrel to the ravenous the lion. In the natural Satan will devour you swiftly, effortlessly, and thoroughly while contemptuously mocking and laughing at your naivety. The adversary is adept at being crafty and modifies the variety, intensity, and duration of his assaults.

His relentless pursuit is intended to wear you down as a predator his prey. By race the Christian can withstand this fiendish assailant, but to do so he must heed the conditional directive of the Lord, “Abide in Me and I in you… apart from Me you can do nothing” (John 15:4-5); to be victorious the branch must remain in the Vine. The Roman coat-of-arms was intended to protect the soldier’s body from a mortal blow. The battlefields of the world experience periods of violence followed by peace. The spiritual battlefield on which the saint finds himself is vehemently more hostile, and perpetual. There will be no truce, as it is a fight to the finish; there will be no treaty, in that light and darkness have no part with each other; there will be no peace until the Prince of Peace returns in glory and His enemies become His footstool. The serpent loathes the Seed of the woman and marshals every force of hell in a vain attempt to destroy her children; their existence is in defiance to his temporal dominion, “No one who is born of God practices sin, because His seed abides in him; and he cannot sin, because he is born of God” (1 John 3:9).

In the Greek the Apostle refers to the armor of God in the singular. The translators have supplied the antecedent “whole” so that the English reader would understand that the Lord’s armor consists of the entirety its parts; if a part is missing the armor has not been put on and the saint cannot prevail. With the armor Christians can be victorious to stand against demonic forces that in the natural would obliterate them instantly. With God’s spiritual armor Joshua came against Jericho and David against Goliath—it was not their physical armaments that won the victory, “Some boast in chariots and some in horses, but we will boast in the name of the LORD, our God” (Psalm 20:7).

Truth: God’s Word is the foundation upon which you stand and Satan tirelessly tempts you to doubt it, “Has God said?” (Genesis 3:1). Additionally, as children of Abraham the saint instinctively imitates his Lord by walking in the truth.

Righteousness: the breastplate protected vital organs from injury, especially the heart; the heart is deceitful and must be guarded from worldly pollution “Watch over your heart with all diligence, for from it flow the springs of life” (Proverbs 4:23).

After Bathsheeba grieving David reflected on the importance of guarding his heart, “Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Your sight, O LORD, my rock and my Redeemer” (Psalm 19:14).

Shod your feet: proclaiming the Gospel is every saint’s obligation as it is a message of peace to sinners, alerting them that they are at enmity with God and that peace with Him is available through Jesus Christ.

Shield of faith: the natural circumstances of life do not define spiritual reality; do not attempt to apply human reasoning to them. Practice childlike trust that your heavenly Father is providentially working things together for good and reject the fiery darts of doubt, “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways”, declares the LORD” (Isaiah 55:8).

The helmet: the helmet protected the head which houses the brain—the center of life; deliver a forceful blow and life will cease. After the Fall the Lord told the serpent that the Seed of the woman would crush his head, sealing his ultimate fate. Spiritual regeneration brings life eternal and while Satan may bruise and harass you on your pilgrimage he cannot extinguish the spiritual life which God supplies, “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who hears My word, and believes Him who sent Me, has eternal life, and does not come into judgment, but has passed out of death into life”(John 5:24).

Sword of the Spirit: the sword is both defensive and offensive and to be wielded every time the enemy releases an accusation or statement antithetical to the Word of God, “The Lord rebuke you Satan, for it is written….!”

Copyright 2009 Immutable Word Ministries (“…the word of our God stands forever. Isa 40:8)

(Reproduced with permission)

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“…for by what he saw and heard that righteous man, while living among them,felt his righteous soul tormented day after day by their lawless deeds.” 2 Peter 2:8

Is the wickedness in the world a perpetual source of spiritual mourning, inciting you to call down fire from heaven that justice might be vindicated? Is your heart griped with compassion for the wicked and your intercession being that the Lion of the tribe of Judah might not appear today in order that the wicked may have one more opportunity to repent? As aliens upon the earth anguish of heart to the wickedness in the world is the spiritual address of pilgrims.

Saints experience words and activities that deeply grieve their redeemed soul, those which are base and foul, indicative of unregenerate hearts. Responding to the effectual call of God grace translates the sinner from the kingdom of darkness and death to the Kingdom of God and life, transforming him into a new creation in Christ Jesus, one which possesses a new nature infused by the Holy Spirit, the Law of God being inscribed on the heart, “’This is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after that time,” declares the Lord. ‘I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people’” (Jer. 31:33).

The sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit causes the sinner, turned pilgrim, to be aghast at his former manner of life, and grace destines him to live among and behold fallen humanity, lost souls that remain in bondage to sin and death, subjects of the prince of darkness, depraved individuals who by nature engage in detestable acts, speaking blasphemous words, driven on by abominable thoughts. And lest the saint become boastful toward the wicked the Holy Spirit impresses that it is only by grace that he stands justified. Grace imparts to the pilgrim new dispositions—positive and negative—which empower him to sojourn upon the earth as an ambassador of Jesus Christ, constrained by the love of God to preach the redemption of the cross: the pilgrim is sanctified to holiness as the Lord is holy and he is not to be defiled by the world; the pilgrim is sanctified to compassion as the Lord is compassionate and he is not to become indifferent to the plight of wicked men and eternal damnation. In the Saviors stead the saint is constrained by love, seeking the good of
all men, irrespective of whether or not it is appreciated. The saint remains keenly aware that wickedness will be judged, and consumed with that knowledge the love of the Savior compels him to beg men to be reconciled to God, “For Christ’s love compels us….” (2 Cor. 5:14).

The regenerate spirit within the pilgrim is daily provoked by ungodliness in the world, longingly seeking a better country and the city whose foundation and walls are not made by human hands. The pilgrim patiently waits for the appearing of his Lord while seeking to faithfully carrying out that to which he is called, “Peace be with you; as the Father has sent Me, I also send you” (Jn. 20:21).

Engaged in the work of the cross the pilgrim is well served to soberly assess his vulnerability to the ways of the old man within, “Do not be deceived; bad company corrupts good morals.” (1 Cor. 15:33). In this regard the pilgrim’s tendency is to turn away from the world as an act of self-preservation, but he cannot cloister himself from the world and remain salt and light to it. And a callous heart of in-difference as with Jonah is equally unfitting for children of the Lamb of God, “Should I not have compassion on Nineveh, the great city in which there are more than 120,000 persons who do not know the difference between their right and left hand, as well as many animals?” (Jonah 4:11).

As ambassadors of Jesus Christ it is the pilgrims destiny to live among the people from which he was redeemed—being tormented within by the sin of the world—and “to proclaim the favorable year of the Lord” (Lk. 4:19), to be in the world but not of it, to direct the hearts of men to Christ Jesus who is the Way, the Truth, and the Life, the only mediator between God and men.

Immutable Word Ministries (…Word of Our God Stands Forever Isa 40:8)

Side note: Future readings can be accessed at: Immutable Word Ministries–www.immutablewordministries.blogspot.com

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J.A. Matteson

“And I saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne, and books were opened; and another book was opened, which is the book of life; and the dead were judged from the things which were written in the books, according to their deeds.” Revelation 20:12

Two dreadful occasions await the unrepentant wicked at death: a definitive tribunal judgment and conviction before Almighty God, and being cast away for all eternity from the presence of God to suffer the indescribable anguish of hell, “And inasmuch as it is appointed for men to die once and after this comes judgment” (Heb. 9:27). And in as much as eye as not seen nor ear heard, nor has it entered into the heart of men the blessed wonder of all that God has in store for the redeemed in heaven (1 Cor. 2:9), neither has it truly been understood to the fullest extent just how unimaginably horrible hell will be for the wicked.

Beloved, the terse language of the Scriptures and especially that by the Lord Jesus Christ ought to serve as a strong warning and convincing proof that no man should dare trifle with it and that the administration of the Gospel is urgent to the hearing of all in danger of perishing. As for the redeemed they will stand before the judgment seat of Christ where each pilgrims work will be evaluated by the Lord Jesus Christ, faithful service being recognized and rewarded (2 Cor. 5:10).

The unregenerate, however, will stand before the Lord Jesus Christ at the great white throne of judgment and all of their wicked deeds laid naked, serving as the basis for their just condemnation (Rom. 2:5). All who rejected the salvation offered in the Lord Jesus Christ will stand before Him condemned (Jn 3:18-19)—the educated and ignorant, the wealthy and poor, the charitable and stingy, the politically powerful and the weak, the moral and immoral, the religious and impious—all will stand individually before God Almighty and hear the piercing indictment of their eternal sentence of doom, their sins itemized one by one, the foremost and eternally damning sin being unforgivable; viz., the sin of unbelief in the Son of God as the spotless Lamb of God and the rejection of His vicarious substitutionary death atoning for sin on the cross, “But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us” (Rom. 5:8).

On judgment day saints will have The Advocate, Jesus Christ the Righteous, Who will plead their pardon before the Father, these being justified by faith in the Lord’s atoning work on their behalf, “Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ” (Rom. 5:1). Woe to the prideful man who brashly contends that he is righteous apart from the imputed righteousness found only in the cross of Jesus Christ, he is utterly deceived and by his boasting a deceiver of the simple, deluded in mind and worse than a charlatan, a diabolical fraud, for he has denied that “He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him” (2 Cor. 5:21).

Diabolical is the teaching the Emergent Church movement that denies Scripture pertaining to the penal substitution of sin laid upon the spotless Lamb of God, the Lord Jesus Christ, “In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins” (1 Jn. 4:10; see also Rom. 3:25; Heb. 2:17; 1 Jn. 2:2)—it is the foundation of the Gospel. These fail to understand that apart from the shed blood of Christ they are still in their sin, justly condemned, twice dead, and in danger of hell fire.

Apart from the vicarious substitutionary death of Christ there is no hope, only a sure consignment to eternal darkness. These delusional teachers will not have The Advocate by their side to defend them for they have denied the very work He performed that they might be saved. By their words and deeds they are enemies of the blessed cross of Christ.

Copyrigtht (c) 2009 Immutable Word Ministries (“…the word of our God stands forever.” Isaiah 40:8)

(Reproduced with permission)

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For our citizenship is in heaven, from which also we eagerly wait for a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ… Philippians 3:20

Slumbering soldiers on foreign soil behind enemy lines quickly find themselves in mortal peril. The life of faith requires that the saint press on toward the goal of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus and be constantly on guard against temporal sidetracks that hinder progress in grace. The realization of desired attainments in grace appears elusive for the weary pilgrim, yet the Lord in His goodness has ordained that grace be extended towards His saints ensuring their progress in their travels towards the New Jerusalem, for the Apostle confidently asserts, “I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus” (Philippians 1:6).

Human governments and citizenships are instituted by God and are a shadowy representation of a supreme heavenly reality. All earthly authority is delegated and subject to the Creator who upholds all things by the power of His word. To be a citizen of a human government is to enjoy particular protections and provisions that are withheld to aliens. The Bill of Rights to the Constitution of the United States of America extends privileges to its citizens. And unlike earthly citizenships which may be acquired either by birth or immigration, citizenship in the kingdom of heaven can only be acquired by rebirth, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead” (1 Peter 1:3). The outworking of the heavenly citizenship within the saints is Christlikeness. Pilgrims trod the battlefields of the mind, remaining in mortal combat against the desires of the flesh, while at the same time faithfully endeavoring to pluck from the flames through the agency of the Gospel the living dead. The battlefield on which the pilgrim finds himself is a perpetual place of violence and horror where endurance remains a continual plea. The Lord has extended to the pilgrim positive graces so that he may not loose heart; viz., purification, protection, and provision. Providences, in that the citizen of heaven is to interpret every circumstance—from the largest to the smallest—as lovingly engineered for the purpose of transforming him into the likeness of his Lord, “And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose” (Romans 8:28); purification, in that fleshly lusts are being daily mortified by the power of the indwelling Spirit, yielding increasing fruitfulness to the Lord, “For by these He has granted to us His precious and magnificent promises, so that by them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world by lust…For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they render you neither useless nor unfruitful in the true knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ” (2 Peter 1:4, 8); protection, for the armies of heaven are sentinels against the frontal assaults of Satan and his fallen world system, “The angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear Him, and rescues them” (Psalm 34:7); the provision of spiritual and natural graces, “I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you” (John 14:18), and “seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you” (Matthew 6:33). Let the man on pilgrimage to the New Jerusalem rejoice that the end of his sojourning is glory on high. Pilgrims sojourning upon the earth are foreigners keeping a watchful gaze heavenward, eagerly awaiting their Savior and the fist glimpse of the City whose foundation and walls are not made by human hands. And as the ocean mist and Autumn flower are momentary their weary pilgrimage will soon conclude and they will be at the City gate.

Copyright 2009 Immutable Word Ministries (“…the word of our God stands forever. Isa 40:8)

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“…and you shall know My rejection.” Numbers 14:35

The Lord, incomprehensible in grace towards those who love Him, is likewise severe in His retribution against those who hate Him. The wicked Israelites who returned from the promised land with a bad report, demonstrating open distain for the previously revealed word of the Lord, brashly revealed hearts of contempt, leading many in the congregation astray in unbelief. The tragic result was their coming to personally know a fearful aspect of the Lord’s holiness; viz., His wrath. While the Lord is longsuffering a time does come when grace transitions to justice. As the writer to the Hebrews soberly noted, it is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God, for our God is a consuming fire (Heb. 10:31, 12:9). To this sober reality four observations may be made.

First is the certainty of God’s rejection of the wicked. The Lord knows those who are His (2 Tim. 2:19) while those who perish in a hardened state of unbelief—the reprobate—are likewise foreknown to the Lord, these being vessels of dishonor (Rom. 9:22), raised up in their proper season so that His magnificent grace to the vessels of honor might be revealed. The certainty of the Lord’s retribution will visit the wicked, and while it may appear delayed and that they are prevailing against the Lord, its inevitable consummation is assured and will be unleashed with unimaginable fury, “Those who contend with the LORD will be shattered; against them He will thunder in the heavens, the LORD will judge the ends of the earth….” (1 Sam. 2:10). Let not the wicked naively presume for a moment that their wickedness has escaped the notice of Him to whom they will one day give a full account.

Second is the justice of God’s rejection of the wicked. The Lord’s holiness demands a corresponding recompense against wickedness which is antithetical to holiness. The divine essence of the living God is pure, undefiled, glorious, and in all ways incomprehensible to man; wickedness is an affront to the divine order and viewed by the Lord as far more than merely a repugnant annoyance. Wickedness, from the Lord’s perspective, is tantamount to cosmic treason, a frontal challenge to His person and authority, and the omnipotent Lord of Hosts is just in forcefully responding to all who transgress His Law, those following in the way of Lucifer, who with a third of the angelic host, arrogantly rebelled against the Lord, with the just result being their exile upon the earth, having been cast out of His presence in heaven. Contrite king David confessed the Lord’s righteous judgments leveled against sin, “Against You, You only, have I sinned and done what is evil in Your sight, so that You are proved right when You speak and justified when You judge” (Ps. 51:4).

Third is the severity of God’s rejection of the wicked. The same king in fear of God’s rejection pleaded that His Holy Spirit not be taken from him after his sins of adultery and murder, “Do not cast me away from Your presence, and do not take Your Holy Spirit from me” (Ps. 51:11). The Apostle Paul speaks of the terror of the Lord’s wrath as an urgent plea to unbelievers, “Knowing, therefore, the terror of the Lord, we persuade men….” (2 Cor. 5:11). But David as a beloved son of faith in the likeness of Abraham, an elect vessel of honor before the Lord, came to know His chastening and not His condemnation. The chastening leveled against the king by the King was intended for his sanctification as an object of grace, while the fury of the wrath of the Lord of Host’s towards objects of dishonor is indescribably horrifying, terrible beyond comprehension, and intended for their destruction. For just as eye has not seen nor has it entered into the heart of man all that the Lord has in store for those who love Him, in a similar fashion humanity cannot fathom the actual horrors of hell. Day by day the wicked are storing up for themselves divine wrath, with each act of wickedness the restrained vengeance of the Lord’s hot fury is further kindled, awaiting the moment in which it will be unleashed as a torrent, and the wicked will be consumed with terrors, vainly seeking to hide from the presence of the Almighty, “Therefore wait for Me,” declares the Lord, “for the day I will stand up to testify. I have decided to assemble the nations, to gather the kingdoms and to pour out My wrath on them– all my fierce anger. The whole world will be consumed by the fire of My jealous anger” (Zeph. 3:8).

Fourth is the permanence of God’s rejection of the wicked. It is appointed for man to die once and then comes judgment (Heb. 9:27). The decree of hell upon the wicked is eternal, and once the divine sentence has been enacted there is no appeal, “And the smoke of their torment rises for ever and ever. There is no rest day or night for those who worship the beast and his image, or for anyone who receives the mark of his name” (Rev. 4:11). Let every man, therefore, seek the Lord while He may be found, today is the day of salvation, and harden not your heart to His loving kindness and grace. Call upon the name of the Lord this hour and be saved from the wrath to come.

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“…but they presumed to go up to the mountaintop.” Numbers 14:44

He who promised Israel would be given a good land, one flowing with milk and honey, demonstrated His faithfulness by previous miracles. While in Egyptian bondage the children of Israel witnessed no less than ten occasions where the Lord spoke judgment upon the Egyptians and carried it out. Hemmed in between the sea and Pharaoh’s army without a natural escape route the children of Israel witnessed the salvation of the Lord, the waters parted and they crossed on dry ground and once on the other side watched in amazement as their enemies drown in the midst of the sea. Arriving at Marah in the wilderness of Sinai the waters were bitter, then Moses called upon the name of the Lord and they were made sweet. Not withstanding the Lord’s subsequent supernatural provision of manna and quail the children of Israel continued in unbelief.

The tragic pattern was cyclical: the Lord would speak to the congregation who quickly responded positively only a short time later under divine testing to refute their earlier profession. And so the spies came back from Cannan, two brought a good report rooted in faith; ten brought a bad report manifesting unbelief. Two examined the land promised with eyes of faith based upon the previous word of the Lord; ten shook in fear in response to beholding the formidable size and fortification of their adversaries. That the inhabitants of the land were a powerful people was reality and to deny it would have been to entertain a delusion. Where the ten failed was in not accounting for the presence of the Lord with them, by questioning His promise to them that He would give them the land, by assessing their relative probability of victory over their adversaries by natural means rather than taking into account the supernatural presence of the Lord their God.

Unbelief in the promise of God, that He would give them the land, that He would go with them and fight for them to assure their victory, was their first sin in this setting. In response to their sin the Lord pronounces judgment and rather than being repentant and sorrowful for their sin, humbling themselves, they now sin a second time by disbelieving the judgment of God and brashly charge the mountain, presuming upon their own strength, only to be roundly defeated, unable to rescind the decree of the Lord spoken against them.

Pilgrim, if you are to take hold of that which the Lord has promised, let not unbelief fill your heart, for that which He has promised can only be secured by Him. Soberly consider and bring to remembrance the word of His promise in light of the pressings dangers that surround you; the dangers are real and not to be trifled with in the natural, but, thanks be to God, His presence is supernatural and exceptional to their hellish taunts, well able to vindicate your faith in due season—only trust Him. Remember too that the Lord tests the hearts of His servants to determine whether they will believe Him or not, so be prepared for the crucible of testing. It is in the chamber of temptation to doubt the word of the Lord that your faith is refined, learn therefore to embrace the providences of God that appear contrary human reasoning, as they are designed for your sanctification and as such are good. There are only two options available to the pilgrim in response to the word of the Lord: proceed forward confidently in faith, or hastily retreat in fear.

In the final analysis the testing of the Lord is not for His benefit, as though He lacked knowledge of the true state of your heart, for He is omniscient, but rather it is ultimately intended for your benefit, dear pilgrim, so that you might know by your perseverance that you are an heir of the King in the likeness of Abraham and not an illegitimate child, for this is “the perseverance of the saints who keep the commandments of God and their faith in Jesus” (Rev. 14:12). But in like manor let us also not presume upon the mercy of Lord should we falter at the promise of His word, ascending the mountain of promise in our own strength, for to do so is sin and will result in our ruin as it did Israel. But rather, let us learn from their error the sacrifice of a broken spirit and contrite heart, thus being restored in fellowship with the Lord; for, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 Jn. 1:9).

Copyright (c) 2009 Immutable Word Ministries (“…the word of our God stands forever.” Isa. 40:8).

(Reproduced with permission)

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Consider Him who has endured such hostility…that you will not grow weary and lose heart. Hebrews 12:3

The Lord Jesus Christ is the quintessential example of perfect single-minded devotion to God. The Lord began and concluded His earthly ministry displaying an unshakable resolve to faithfully discharge His Father’s will, irrespective of how men interpreted it; an inner awareness of absolute devotion to His Father existed from the earliest years, “Why is it that you were looking for Me? Did you not know that I had to be in My Father’s house?” (Lk. 2:49). This compulsion towards obedience defined the Lord’s life and finds resemblance in the circumcised heart, inclining it toward the faithful discharge of the saving truth entrusted to it, “For if I preach the gospel, I have nothing to boast of, for I am under compulsion; for woe is me if I do not preach the gospel” (1 Cor. 9:16).

The Lord Jesus Christ serves not only as a perfect model for obedience, but also as an exemplary standard of endurance in the midst of suffering—the result of obedience—and to this end the faith of the saints of old serve as an encouragement. Along the pilgrim’s path unexpected dangers lurk and their intended end is to divert the pilgrims devotion away from the Savior and Calvary, tempting him to concentrate upon temporal concerns, the utmost of which is to preserve personal autonomy while serving his Master, to which the Lord warns, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me” (Matt. 16:24). The Apostle daily mortified the flesh with its vigorous tendency towards self-determination exclaiming, “I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me” (Gal. 2:20).

The Lord encountered overt hostility to His Gospel, enduring all things for the joy set before Him, so too the pilgrim is called to endure while maintaining an eternal perspective. As the Son of Man the Lord Jesus Christ experienced humanity completely, if this were not so He could not qualify as the pilgrim’s high priestly intercessor. He was misunderstood in His speech and reviled, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.’ The Jews then said, ‘It took forty-six years to build this temple, and will You raise it up in three days?” (Jn. 2:19-20); He was ridiculed for His stated identity, “In the same way the chief priests and the teachers of the law mocked him among themselves. “He saved others,” they said, “but he can’t save himself” (Mk. 15:31); He was vilified regarding the perceived source of His empowerment, “He casts out the demons by the ruler of the demons” (Matt. 9:34); He was mocked, beaten, bled, and died in response to His unwavering convictions, “…after having Jesus scourged, he handed Him over to be crucified” (Matt. 27:26).

In spite of ill treatment the Lord was never demoralized, discouraged, distracted, doubtful, scared, concerned, bitter, envious, inclined to outbursts of anger, cynical, pessimistic, disparaging, or in any other way unsettled within, for these things depict the fallen depraved nature of man. In the midst of the storm the Lamb of God knew nothing but perfect obedience and peace. It is this disposition that the Spirit steadily produces in the hearts of the saints so that they “not grow weary and lose heart.” Let the saints of old serve to encourage you as you sojourn, for they like you were mortal men who, gazing into the future looked intently for a better city, whose foundation and walls are not made by human hands. And knowing that God was for them they remained undaunted in their mission of mercy to proclaim the excellencies of Him who calls and sanctifies in order that men might escape the coming wrath of the Lamb. The impetus of obedience is love, and the fruit of love is endurance, “…love… bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails” (1 Cor. 13:7-8). And love comes full circle in that the object of the pilgrims love is Jesus Christ the Son of God, who is love. Perfect loves casts our fear in the face of violent hostility to the messenger and his message; therefore, let the pilgrim be fully persuaded of the Lord’s immutable love for him. And let him not entertain the false conclusion that opposition signals defeat, “What, then, shall we say in response to this? If God is for us, who can be against us?” (Rom. 8:31).

Let him recognize, rather, that terse opposition indicates the Lord is taking enemy ground and that he may confidently stand firm in the administration of the Gospel to which he has been called.

Copyright 2009 Immutable Word Ministry (“…the Word of our God stands forever. Isa 40:8)
(Reproduced with permission)

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J.A. Matteson

“And I took the little book out of the angel’s hand and ate it, and it was in my mouth sweet as honey; and when I had eaten it, my stomach was made bitter.”
Revelation 10:10

The Word of the Lord is a delight to the tender heart of pilgrims who are sustained by it, “The precepts of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart: the commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes” (Ps. 19:8). While sweet during consumption the Word’s effect on the obedient pilgrim is often bitter when it is a corrective Word to be broadcast to a wicked individual or culture that reject it.

The prophet Jeremiah attested to the delightful nature of the Word of the LORD received, “Thy words were found and I ate them, and Thy words became for me a joy and the delight of my heart; for I have been called by Thy name, O LORD God of hosts” (Jer. 15:16). The prophet Ezekiel also fed upon the words of the LORD prior to declaring it to a decedent culture, “’Now you, son of man, listen to what I am speaking to you; do not be rebellious like that rebellious house. Open your mouth and eat what I am giving you’…And He said to me, ‘Son of man, feed your stomach, and fill your body with this scroll which I am giving you.’ Then I ate it, and it was sweet as honey in my mouth’” (Ezk. 2:8; 3:3).

Samuel understood personally the bitterness of the Word of the LORD he had consumed and proclaimed when it was sternly rejected by Israel, yet grace supplied divine perspective to the prophet, “And the LORD said to Samuel, ‘Listen to the voice of the people in regard to all that they say to you, for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected Me from being king over them’” (1 Sam. 8:7). John the Baptist understood the bitterness of a corrective Word preached when the wickedness of the king was denounced, “For Herod had laid hold on John, and bound him, and put him in prison for the sake of Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife. For John said unto him, ‘It is not lawful for thee to have her’” (Matt.14:3-4). That corrective Word eventually resulted in John’s execution to silence his opposing voice.

Stephen experienced the bitterness of the corrective Word of the Lord when upon hearing it wicked men picked up rocks and stoned him to death, “Ye stiff necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears, ye do always resist the Holy Spirit: as your fathers did, so do ye. Which of the prophets did not your fathers persecute, and they killed them…But they cried out with a loud voice, and stopped their ears, and rushed upon him with one accord; and they cast him out of the city, and stoned him….” (Acts 7:51-52, 57-58). The corrective Word of the Lord Jesus Christ directed at the religious elite stirred their wrath, culminating in His crucifixion whereby they sought to silence the Word, “… the Pharisees went out, and took counsel against Him, how they might destroy Him” (Matt. 12:14).

By nature unregenerate sinners seek to suppress the truth of the Word in unrighteousness (Rom. 1:18). As John received the apocalyptic Word pertaining to the end times its ingestion was sweet—as all divine revelation—but its effect would be bitter upon the one delivering the message. Faithful pilgrims endure the bitter aspects of the Word of the Lord, and motivated by the love of God proclaim it to a wicked generation, deleting nothing, adding nothing, delivering it unedited and raw as written, letting the Holy Spirit perform that which is pleasing to the Father, that the recipients might turn from their erring ways and be saved.

Pilgrims today delivering the Word of the Lord are also experiencing its bitter effects, being mocked, ridiculed, marginalized, and at times violently attacked and killed. In spite of intense opposition they humbly remain undaunted to deliver the Word. As the time of His appearing nears wickedness will increase. It is incumbent upon every pilgrim to contend earnestly for the faith once for all delivered to the saints (Jude 1:3), and to call to repentance a generation gone astray. Pilgrims do not have the option of enjoying the sweetness of the Word apart from its bitterness; it is their calling and destiny.

Copyright 2009 (c) Immutable Word Ministries (“…the word of our God stands forever.” Isaiah 40:8)
(Reproduced with permission)

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1. Divine Testing

Unlike the ceremonial and dietary laws the moral Law of God is permanent and will be the plumb line by which the sons of Adam will be judged. The Apostle briefly outlines representative behavior patterns that typify the fallen depraved nature, behaviors that are odious before a Holy God, their just compensation being righteous condemnation. Through the Law the Holy Spirit mercifully confronts sin, convicts, generates repentance, and compels the transgressor to embrace the cross of Jesus Christ for salvation by faith, “Or do you think lightly of the riches of His kindness and tolerance and patience, not knowing that the kindness of God leads you to repentance?”(Romans 2:4).

The mood of the present culture is increasingly one of brash lawlessness and hatred towards godliness. The sons of Adam are becoming increasingly emboldened, proudly flaunting sin. Tares are intertwined with the wheat, having crept into the fellowship of the Church by stealth and are seducing naïve saints into accepting abhorrent behavior as something pleasing to God. The Apostle lists only a few reprehensible behaviors to illustrate his point: the lawless, rebellious, profane, murders, immoral, homosexuals, kidnappers, liars, perjurers, and “whatever else is contrary to sound teaching.”

Note carefully that those who seek to advance such behaviors are teaching what is “contrary to sound teaching.” Mark such teachers and avoid them. These teachers have crept in among Christians and they are maligning Scripture, “For certain persons have crept in unnoticed, those who were long beforehand marked out for this condemnation, ungodly persons who turn the grace of our God into licentiousness and deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ” (Jude 1:4).

While professing the Lord Jesus Christ they deny Him by their deeds, demonstrating conclusively that their hearts remain uncircumcised, they are false brethren. These professors proudly pursue legitimacy and empowerment through the civil magistrate. Increasingly the children of Light are being marginalized and vilified by them in their stance for the truth of the immutable Word of God. This is to be expected, for the saints are not of the world, but have been chosen out of the world, therefore the world hates them.

Genuine grace expressed in love does not conceal sin, for to do so is to withhold the Law of grace and capitulate to the sinners path of self- destruction; rather, grace and love expose sin, allowing it to stand naked and vulnerable, not to destroy the transgressor, but that he may be granted the gift of repentance and be saved, “Do not participate in the unfruitful deeds of darkness, but instead even expose them….” (Ephesians 5:11).

All of the sinful behaviors highlighted by the Apostle are noteworthy. In the present culture one in particular is gaining rapid acceptance; viz., that which God unmistakably identifies as evil being labeled as good; the sin of homosexuality. Note closely that the Apostle identifies this and other sins as something that formerly described the believer prior to conversion.

The Apostle describes the sinful patterns in the past tense, not the present or future tense. The circumcision of the heart by the Holy Spirit results in a new creation in Christ Jesus whereby the old inclinations and desires are nailed to the cross and are now regarded in the past tense, “…do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; either…homosexuals…will inherit the kingdom of God. Such were some of you; but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God” (1 Corinthians 6:9-11).

The moral Law of God is immutable. Let not the man of God be seduced by strange teachings, following after the doctrines of demons and men. Never is the Word of God to be conformed to the culture; rather, let the culture be transformed by the Word of Truth and thus be saved from the wrath to come.

Copyright 2009 Immutable Word Ministries (“…the Word of God stands forever.” Isa. 40:8)

(Reproduced with permission)

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If indeed you continue in the faith….Colossians 1:23

That which God ordains as holy remains holy unto the Lord in that positional sanctification is a sovereign work of God and does not depend upon the merit of its object, “For while we were yet sinners Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). And even if what is holy suffers desecration—such as the temple by Nebuccanezzar—it does not diminish its intrinsic holiness; that which is holy is holy perpetually, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9)—“us” in whom the Holy Spirit tabernacles.

The Apostle employs the term “saints” before his readers, “To the saints….” (Colossians 1:2) reminding them that by grace they have been set-apart as God’s people to His service and purposes through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ; that they have been bought with a price and are not their own; that they have been mercifully rescued from the authority and domain of Satan, “For He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son” (Colossians 1:13), and that the outworking of their deliverance—its validation or proof to themselves and others—is evidenced by a transformed mind resulting in a renewed life—the distinguishing mark of which is a persevering faith which does not diminish, but steadily grows deeper, manifesting good works which God foreordained, “And although you were formerly alienated and hostile in mind, engaged in evil deeds, yet He has now reconciled you in His fleshly body through death, in order to present you before Him holy and blameless and beyond reproach” (Colossians 1:21).

To the reprobate sanctifying grace possesses both a curious magnetic and repulsive characteristic. The Lord Jesus illustrated the magnetic attributes whereby a temporary outward piety, void of inner regeneration by the Holy Spirit, eventually manifests the bitter fruit of apostasy (Mark 4:1-9); the Apostle John reiterates the Lord’s dire warning, “They went out from us, but they were not really of us; for if they had been of us, they would have remained with us; but they went out, so that it would be shown that they all are not of us” (1 John 2:19). Saving faith—that which the Holy Spirit supplies—does not renounce Christ by apostasy. Beloved, what is the basis of your assurance that you are in Christ? Is it your confirmation, baptism, church membership, service, tithe, or some past “decision” for the Savior? Do you not know that apart from a vital living faith that these things are dead works, the end result of which is eternal damnation? The unpardonable sin is unbelief and those who belong to Christ cannot—rendered unable—forsake Him, “No one who is born of God practices sin, because His seed abides in him; and he cannot sin, because he is born of God” (1 John 3:9).

The power of the Seed which indwells the saint saves and the same power secures unto eternal life. The saints of redemptive history have all displayed an abiding faith until death, one which does not perish. For many their testimony is one of unspeakable suffering at the hands of wicked men, many joyfully choosing horrible deaths while scorning the suggestion of apostasy by their perpetrators— this is the saving grace of the Holy Spirit. Shall we speak of Abraham, Noah, David, Joseph, Samson, Gideon, or the Apostles? The epitaph of Scripture to the enduring faith of such men declares, “And all these, having gained approval through their faith….” (Hebrews 11:39).

And beyond them we could speak of Polycarp, John Huss, Martin Luther, Jim Elliott, and countless others. The Scripture declares that, “…the righteous will live by his faith” (Habakkuk 2:4). The faith the prophet speaks of is not mere knowledge of theological propositions, but an intimate growing relationship with the risen Lord, the great I AM. Biblical faith daily seeks to work out its salvation with fear and trembling, hating sin, and puts no confidence in the flesh for salvation, while at the same time earnestly desiring to be pliable in the Potter’s hands so that the sweet fruit of good works unto the glory of God will be evident to all men. The holy ones of God, while imperfect and who stumble, die in a state of faith; this is the testimony of Scripture and Church history, “Here is the perseverance of the saints who keep the commandments of God and their faith in Jesus” (Revelation 14:12).

Beloved, let us offer thanks and praise for His marvelous grace to save and to keep!

Copyright 2009 Immutable Word Ministry (“…the Word of our God stands forever” Isa 40:8)

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This updated and revised manuscript is copyrighted © 2000 by Tony Capoccia. All rights reserved.

This file may be freely copied, printed out, and distributed as long as copyright and source statements remain intact, and that it is not sold.

Go here to read. It is lengthy but well worth the effort…

The Sovereignty of God in Salvation

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See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception, according to the tradition of men…Colossians 2:8

All a man needs is Jesus Christ “in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge” (Colossians 2: 3). Regeneration begets conversion and the saint is sealed with or in (__) the Holy Spirit—not merely by, implying an incomplete work of grace—but with, indicating a thorough internal transformation and empowerment by the Holy Spirit. At conversion the saint stands as a new creation in Christ Jesus, complete as His ambassador, lacking nothing, looking to the Head alone who is able to keep him from stumbling and to present him blameless on that Day. The Apostle confronted head-on the evil traditions and teaching of men that were not founded by Christ—the Chief cornerstone of the Church, nor the teaching of the Apostles—its foundation, viz., that faith was insufficient for justification and that men were obligated to follow human philosophy and tradition, binding their consciences to the delusional whims of men rather than to Christ. In the present day there is an evil at work through human philosophy and traditions of men that is subverting the word of Christ and His Apostles. The Reformers confronted Papal decrees and councils, the vile sale of indulgences for absolution, and the viewing of relics to circumvent time in purgatory.

Protesting these and many other unbiblical teachings the evil was unmasked and those advancing the cause of doctrinal reform were vilified, many brutally killed by a man-centered religion desperate to remain in control over the souls of men. As the masses were led astray in past generations by men who engaged in fanciful esigesis of Scripture leading to extra-biblical doctrines that enslaved the consciences of men, so too the present generation is being held hostage to doctrines of men that have been elevated as authoritative for faith and practice, the end result has been the subversion of the inspiration, inerrancy, authority, and sufficiency of Scripture to which the Apostle decries to the Corinthians, “But I am afraid that, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, your minds will be led astray from the simplicity and purity of devotion to Christ” (2 Corinthians 11:3).

From the humanists who denounce the inspiration of Scripture; to the proponents of higher criticism who reject its inerrancy; to the existentialist who holds to experience as the end authority of truth; to the proponents of the “church growth movement” who profess the sufficiency of Scripture, but by their deeds deny the same; to the charlatans of the word-of-faith movement who devilishly prey upon the simple for sordid gain, living in luxury and promising health and wealth to all who surrender to them their paychecks; to the contemporary Gnostics who being deceived by angels masquerading as messengers of light seek after experience and esoteric knowledge, opening their minds to the principalities and powers of darkness; to the post-modern emergent church and its aversion to propositional truth, denying that truth can be known and by implication denying Christ who is Truth; to the misguided theology and praxis of the “seeker-sensitive movement” that exchanges Christo-centric worship for man-centered entertainment and titillation, designed and produced to amuse the unregenerate, feeding the goats while starving the sheep; and to the Later Rain movement’s self-appointed “apostles” who arrogantly proclaim a new “Word of the Lord”, uttering delusions amongst the gullible with insatiable appetites.

Evidence of the distance the Church has wandered from the truth of Scripture is recognized by the hostile reaction by the many to few who dare question the teachings and doctrines found in extra-biblical non-authoritative resources in the form of Christian books, seminars, DVD’s, CD’s, etc. Many Christians unwittingly have elevated these to the position of papal inerrancy—anathema! Cast aside the yoke of slavery and return to the Word of the Lord and the simplicity of Christ, “Do not be carried away by varied and strange teachings” (Hebrews 13:9).

Copyright 2009 Immutable Word Ministry (“…the Word of our God stands forever. Isa 40:8)

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In the comment thread that followed the post, I ended up making a reply to a lady who remarked strongly against the idea of our eternal security, at least from the reformed perspective, and instead laid the success of our salvation upon the believers own faithfulness. To someone such as myself, who has been brought out of a place of fear of losing my salvation, because I know I am too weak to hold on, this challenge is extremely offensive to me. What is more, and this is my own personal opinion only, I believe is offensive to God also.

I would just like to paint a little picture to explain my own understanding, and if wrong about this, please someone put me right, as this has so far been crucial to my understanding:

If a heavy stainless steel chain was stretched between two immovable rocks, and the links of that chain were solid throughout it’s length, then it would be virtually immovable too. However if one link of that chain was weakened anywhere throughout the length, the whole set up could not be stronger than the weakest link. In effect, it would mean nothing how strong the rocks the chain was connected to, but simply how weak was the weakest link of the chain.

So it is with our faith in Christ for salvation. On the heavenly side we have the Father choosing us, and calling us to be with Him. And on the earthly side, we have the very sacrifice of Christ crucified and risen again, that makes that journey possible. These would be like the two immovable rocks in the illustration. However if there was any reliance at all upon my own faithfulness to hold on till the end, I become the weakest link in the chain, and the strength of both Father and Son is nullified!

The crux of the matter then is, how do I hold on? After all, if I don’t, then it’s true I am lost without any doubt whatsoever.

In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory. (Ephesians 1:13-14)

God does not make guarantees without being able to back them up, and most certainly does not leave the authenticity of His guarantee at the mercy of us, in any way, shape or form!

What I have come to realise is that, whilst it’s utterly ridiculous to suggest that if I don’t hold on until the end, I will be saved anyway. It is not I but the Holy Spirit who holds on, and so it remains solely by the hand of the Lord, and not I, that I am saved for eternity. I know that beyond doubt, from before I even knew God existed, to the most distant points in eternity, God has placed His hand upon my life to save me from eternal destruction. Why? I have absolutely no idea, other than His love knows no bounds. But the truth of this makes an everlasting fount of thanksgiving bubble up from my innermost being, and leaves me with no room to boast in my own strength, my own wisdom, or my own faithfulness whatsoever.

So finally I would like to leave you with a different illustration to emphasize my point:

Take something as flimsy as a loaf of bread, and then bury a solid stainless steel link in the very centre of it. Then attach a solid stainless steel chain to each side of the link, as with the illustration previously. If we looked upon this set up we would see two rocks either side, with a chain attached to each, and all being supported by a loaf of bread! In truth, would this have anything to do with the strength of the loaf of bread, or the stainless steel link buried at the heart of it?

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“If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me.” Mark 8:34

Self-determination constitutes the foundational bitter fruit of the Adamic nature and left unbridled it is the ruin of men. Here in the Lord’s injunction lies the central issue by which all men are held responsible before their Creator;’ viz., the Lord Jesus Christ has spoken, will I trust in Him and believe that all things work together for good to those who love God and are called according to His purpose, or will I call Him a liar by shrinking back through disobedience?

Certainly as the First cause the Lord has decreed from eternity past the outcome of all things and He often employs Secondary causes, human action or inaction, to bring them about. While certain aspects and workings of Providence have been make known to man, such as His moral Law found in the Ten Commandments, some of His eternal decrees remain cloaked according to the wise counsel of His own will. The Lord Jesus Christ knew that the decree of His Father for Him was the cross, and that the Father would utilize secondary causes—the evil within fallen men—to bring about that which He had decreed from eternity, and that He would do this in such a way that men were responsible for their evil acts, God in no way be author to them, “this Man, delivered over by the predetermined plan and foreknowledge of God, you nailed to a cross by the hands of godless men and put Him to death” (Acts 2:23).

The omniscient glorified Lord Jesus Christ spoke to apostle Peter after His resurrection and shared with him God’s decree regarding the future manner of his death by crucifixion, “Truly, truly, I say to you, when you were younger, you used to gird yourself and walk wherever you wished; but when you grow old, you will stretch out your hands and someone else will gird you, and bring you where you do not wish to go” (John 21:18).

The old hymn “Wherever He Leads I’ll Go” aptly describes the mindset pleasing to the Lord where pilgrims obediently follow their Lord trusting that whatever comes to pass is ultimately for their good and the glory of God. A failure to understand this results in a disobedience which may incur divine correction, “And the LORD appointed a great fish to swallow Jonah, and Jonah was in the stomach of the fish three days and three nights” (Jonah 1:17). It is not the pilgrims business to attempt to direct the Lord’s decree regarding his service on earth. Rather, faithful servants of the Lord seek the mind of Christ with a view toward complete obedience, leaving the outcome to their loving Lord who causes all things to work together for their good; delayed obedience is immediate disobedience and partial obedience is complete disobedience.

For the Lord Jesus Christ the endurance of the cross encompassed far more that physical pain and death, are horrible as they were; it also brought public shame and humiliation to the Servant of the Lord of Hosts. The sons of Adam are opposed to the message of the cross, it is foolishness and a stumbling block, and as the Chief Shepherd was ridiculed for proclaiming the kingdom of God and repentance, how much more are His servants who bear His name and likeness?

Beloved, to deny yourself is to obey the Lord Jesus Christ to the best of your ability and release the outcome of your faithfulness to His providential care, even if the path leads to shame and death. Indeed, faithful servants die daily and many are publically ridiculed. If you believe that all things work together for your good then you will obey completely, if not you will rebel, and if that is the case then repentance of your sin is in order.

Copyright (c) 2010 Immutable Word Ministries (“…the word of our God stands forever….” Isa. 40:8).

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01.21.10

J.A. Matteson

“…And so it was that as they went, they were cleansed.”

Luke 17:14

Two observations may be made with regard to this text; that the Lord tests the faith of His people, and that thankfulness for His grace revealed in response to obedience is pleasing to Him.  First, testing of the would-be follower of Jesus Christ unto obedience characterizes the Lord’s wisdom in strengthening their faith as well as ferreting out the sincere from the disingenuous, “Why do you call me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say?” (Lk. 6:46).

On pilgrimage saints repeatedly encounter stretches of difficulty where the path ahead is ominous, uncertain, confusing by means of natural reason.  Herein is the crux of faith; the Lord has spoken, will the pilgrim believe Him or not?  Faith is active with her fruit known by deeds.  The activity of faith to the natural man is an enigma and he does not understand or accept it, “The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned” (1 Cor. 2:14).  The Law of Moses required a man cleansed from leprosy to present himself to the priest so that his healing may be verified, thus enabling him to rejoin the community.  The ten who called out to the Lord for mercy were instructed to commence their trek to visit the priest prior to being cleansed.  By their departure they demonstrated that their faith in the word of the Lord, as spoken to them, was genuine.  Their action demonstrated they were legitimate children of faith in the likeness of Abraham who, in the instance of having been instructed by the Lord to sacrifice Isaac, “reasoned that God could raise the dead” (Heb. 11:19).  With certainty in their hearts they left the Lord’s presence as the perplexed crowd watched, and by their obedience received the promised blessing of healing.

To this supernatural infused faith the writer to the Hebrews by inspiration of the Holy Spirit states, “Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen” (Heb. 11:1).  Oh Beloved, consider how many blessings are forfeited by pilgrims due to a lack of faith in the word of the Lord?  Moses was denied access the Promised Land due to unbelief; Joshua burdened Israel for generations with the presence of idolatrous pagans among God’s by failing to obey the Lord in not making a covenant of peace with them; David brought misery to his family and Israel by failing to obey the Lord in the area of sexual fidelity, heaping sin upon sin; Solomon experienced the bitter fruit of intermarrying with the native women of the land who drew his heart away into idolatry; king Uzziah finished his course a disgraced leper by usurping the office of the priesthood; Demas abandoned the apostle Paul and became unfruitful having cast his gaze and attention upon that which is temporal rather than that which is eternal.  All these, along with many others, forfeited blessings because during their pilgrimage they, at some level and some point failed, to believe the word of the Lord.  Second, the encounter further instructs the pilgrim to express gratefulness to the Lord for His blessings and answers to prayers and petitions.  Of the ten cleansed only one, a Samaritan, returned to express thanks.

Beloved, let us never take for granted the mercies of God, but day by day present an offering of thanksgiving and praise to the Lord through whom we live and move and have our being (Acts 17:28).  Cultivating an attitude of gratitude is pleasing to the Lord and the pilgrim owes Him nothing less.  As the pilgrim sojourns, when the pathway becomes narrow and difficult, and his strength begins to wane, and the former times of ease seem as a distant memory, he need look no further than the present day, for in so doing, even in the midst of suffering, the goodness of the Lord will bring to mind His providential hand of grace in times past and present.  And to this marvelous grace the pilgrim’s heart will sing with joy inexpressible.

Copyright (c) 2010 Immutable Word Ministries (“…the word of our God stands forever….” Isa. 40:8).

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“Consecrate yourselves therefore, and be holy, for I am the LORD your God.” Leviticus 20:7

As a pilgrim you are an ordinary individual, but one who has been miraculously translated from the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of light, a soul that by grace has been regenerated and converted to life in the Beloved. Instantaneously you received an imputed righteous—a righteousness not your own—by means of the atonement, and are now positionally justified by grace through faith in Christ.

Infused with a new nature by the Holy Spirit the Lord has set you free from the fetters of bondage to sin and death, although practically you must learn to walk in that freedom by struggling against the latent desires of the flesh, characterized by improper thoughts, words, and deeds. Like Israel occupying a new land you are a sojourner and the Lord calls you to abstain from the wicked practices of the pagan people who dwell among you.

You are foreigner in the land, your citizenship being in heaven, and while you sojourn you are not to be swayed into worshipping the gods recognized by the peoples around you; indeed, some that you personally may have adored before your life in Christ. You are now called to be as salt and light to a fallen world. While separate in conduct and devotion you do not have the option of physically withdrawing out of the world as the monastics, for to do so would nullify your influence as an ambassador of Christ to the nations.

The gods of the people around you today are essentially the same as those of old, although their form and names may have changed; predictably they grow in the depraved soil of minds hostile to the Lord, those in rebellion against the Lord of Hosts, dedicated to the pursuit of power over others through position; fame rooted in a vain search for significance in the eyes of others also living under the sun; sensual depravity as a result of a debased mind evidenced by a pornographic and homosexual culture, one that deceives the simple by championing and parading indecent acts as an expression of enlightened personal liberty, when bondage to sin remains the genuine outcome; and an insatiable pursuit for worldly wealth whereby its adherents pit themselves against each other in the hope of its attainment, biting and clawing their way to the top of the heap.

Pilgrim, these types of pursuits occupy the attention and fan the flames of passion among those who do not know God, but they are to have no place in your heart. Flee from them at once, run for your life when they subtlety and seductively seek to take hold of you, cleverly appealing to the old man within. Like Joseph make up your mind before the test comes that you will not willingly sin against God, when the test comes run for your life, flee immediately…right now, get going, do not tarry and thus be deceived in to thinking you are able to remain and calmly consider the merits or faults of the proposition offered, rather get out of there now, leave your garment and exit in haste, “She caught him by his garment, saying, ‘Lie with me!’ And he left his garment in her hand and fled, and went outside” (Gen. 39:12).

Beloved, spiritual syncretism is seductively subtle, able to slowly trap you in its web of lies if you remain ignorant of its intent and abilities, until one day you come to your senses only to grieve as to just how far off course you have traveled in your sojourning, and like Bunyan’s Pilgrim you find yourself backtracking a good distance, dismayed at how easily you were duped while vowing never again to be taken in by the prince of darkness.

Consider the Apostles warning, “But each one is tempted when he is carried away and enticed by his own lust” (Jas. 1:14). The innate lust of the flesh remains within you and you must daily mortify its desires which wage war against the Spirit. Prevailing soldiers know the tactics of their enemy and have taken a sober assessment of their weakness before engaging their opponent. Offer to the Lord your points of weakness before the battle and He will enable you to stand on that day victorious just as Joseph on that day stood victorious as an ambassador of Christ.

Copyright (c) 2009 Immutable Word Ministries (“…the word of our God stands forever.” Isa. 40:8).
(Reproduced with permission)

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For God has not destined us for wrath, but for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ.
1 Thessalonians 5:9

God’s sovereign purposes and means with regard to salvation are problematic to human inclinations and reasoning. The sons of Adam by nature establish errant particulars on how things ought to be with regard to the things pertaining to salvation, chaffing under the notion that the ultimate destination of their souls is in the hands of the great I AM who extends mercy and compassion to those whom He choose while passing over others. That men stumble over the salvific aspects to sovereignty is expected as it has biblical and historical precedent. In this regard the Apostle anticipated an objection by his readers to his assertion that it was by divine election Isaac was saved and Esau damned, “What shall we say then? There is no injustice with God, is there? May it never be!” (Romans 9:14).

Behold both the kindness and severity of God: to the reprobate a hardening ending in damnation, to the elect grace unto saving faith, “having been predestined according to His purpose who works all things after the counsel of His will….” (Ephesians 1:11). The redeemed are His workmanship created in Christ Jesus and the grace they enjoy is an unmerited gift from Him. To these things men of good intention have taken opposite and passionate positions. Some holding to a deficient anthropology whereby they ascribe an undue—unbiblical—ability within fallen man to seek and respond to God apart from grace and the end result of such thinking is boasting; such is the error of the Pelagians, semi-Pelagians, and Arminians.

In their estimation it is by their doing they are in Christ; the Gospel was articulated and they responded with a faith apart from that which God supplies; while in the flesh—unregenerate—faith was exercised and they were born again. A fanciful interpretation is applied to election and predestination whereby God from eternity past gazed passively into the future and saw how each man would respond to the Gospel, some positively and others negatively. On this basis they were elected and predestined to either salvation or damnation.

The end result is a man-centered doctrine far removed from biblical revelation. For it is the Spirit who gives life, the flesh profits nothing. God knows the course of all future events because He foreordains them to come to pass. The entire human race has rebelled against God and is worthy if eternal damnation by a just and holy Creator; all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God; there is none righteous; there is none who seek after God, each has turned to his own detestable way; each has stored up wrath for the day of wrath; the work of each being contemptible and as a filthy rag. Grace has been extended to some in the form of saving faith through the agency of the Holy Spirit through the Gospel, “In the exercise of His will He brought us forth by the word of truth….” (James 1:18).

Those to whom grace is extended believe the Gospel and produce fruit in keeping with repentance and the remainder receive divine justice—the wages of sin is death— none receive injustice. But lest a man presume upon the grace of God let him make his calling and election sure and so press on toward the goal of the upward prize in Christ Jesus. Let such a man prove himself a doer of the Word and not merely a hearer, deluding himself. Let him work out his salvation with fear and trembling knowing God will not be mocked, for whatsoever a man sows that he will also reap. It is not by works that a man is saved, it is by faith alone; but it is by good works that the genuineness of his salvation is manifested, testifying to the Holy Spirit within him. In this regard the words of our Lord bear repeating, “My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit, and so prove to be My disciples” (John 15:8). Beloved, let your profession of Christ and production of good fruit be in alignment, so that God may be glorified, men may be edified, and salvation be the outworking of your time and testimony on earth.

Copyright 2009 Immutable Word Ministries

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