Deuteronomy 6, the words of Moses: “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.”
Proverbs 22:6, “Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it.”
And a warning from Jesus in Matthew 18, “Whoever receives one such child in My name receives Me, but whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to sin, it would be better for him to have a great millstone fastened around his neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea.”
Many of you are already aware that Kathy and I recently leased office space for The Transforming Word Ministries (Dr. Mike Live, Soaring Eagle Radio, The Transforming Word radio program, The Verum Monitae Report). God is growing the ministry and we simply could not continue to operate out of our home.
Here is a quick update on our office project:
Kathy and I moved all of our ministry materials from our home to the office space yesterday. We had to remove a lot of things left there by the previous tenant. We are able to use two desks left there but will likely replace those in the future.
In my last message, I shared with you the Globalist plan for planetary genocide — mass depopulation of the Earth, which has long been the dream of people like Bill Gates, Anthony Fauci, Klaus Schwab, and Luciferian “elites” throughout the world, in preparation for their “Great Reset” which has already been launched.
Their method is the COVID so-called “vaccines,” which in fact, are not vaccines at all, but experimental DNA- and RNA-altering poisons. I told you how — according the the CDC’s own VAERS data — more than a half million people in the US alone have suffered severe and terrible side effects, including strokes, heart failure, blood clots, brain disorders, convulsions, seizures, paralysis, Bells Palsy, inflammations of the brain and spinal cord, autoimmune diseases, miscarriage, infertility, deafness and blindness. I also shared that in addition to these “side effects,” more than 16,000 people have “officially” died as a result of these injections.
You may subscribe to the Wisconsin Christian news here.
In one of the apostle Paul’s last letters — the one he wrote to Timothy — he gave some vitally important words of caution and warning. 2nd Timothy 4, starting at verse 2: “Preach the Word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all long suffering and doctrine. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts, shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears. And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned to fables.”
Then, he added, “But watch thou, in all things, endure
afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, make full proof of thy ministry.”
I have been working in full time ministry for nearly 20 years now. I remember when I began, I was astonished at the many churches that were no longer enduring sound doctrine. The “seeker friendly” movement, which morphed into the “Emergent Church” movement was on a “fast track.” Mega churches were springing up with massive buildings. So large, in fact, they call them “campuses.” And many of these mega-churches have MULTIPLE campuses in various areas of their cities, because one building will not hold all those who want the feel-good, false “love gospel” message that is preached there.
I was saddened in
those early days of this work, to see so many formerly rock solid, Bible-based,
Scripturally sound churches DEvolve into nothing more than “happy fun
time.” A “feel-good experience,” where
one could go and see a show, lift their hands in mock reverence to God, dance
and sway, while being promised all manner of prosperity, health, wealth, and a
life of abundance. “Your BEST life
NOW.” This is just SO contradictory to
everything God’s Word says about the Christian life. Sin is no longer a word allowed to be spoken
of in many churches, and if it IS spoken of, it’s only to say that once we
simply say a prayer or walk an aisle (or worse yet, just raise our hand “with
all eyes closed and all heads bowed”); we are “good” with God.
We can then go
about our normal lives as usual. Except
now, we are told, we are assured of heaven… just because we repeated a few
words and sheepishly raised our hand while no one was looking. COME ON folks! Talk about biblical illiteracy. Talk about wolves in sheep’s clothing….
HIRELINGS lulling fat and happy fools into a false sense of eternal
security. This is so sad.
But you know, we
cannot put all the blame on the pastors.
They’re just giving the people what they want. Look again at the Scripture from 2nd
Timothy: it says THE PEOPLE will not
put up with sound doctrine any longer, and so THE PEOPLE heap up for themselves
teachers to tell them what they want to hear, to soothe their itching ears.
It is the great
apostasy, the great “falling away.” And
I have watched it begin as a tiny sprout many years ago, and I’ve watched it
grow, blossom, flower and then re-seed itself many times over the years… Today it is so prevalent in Christendom that
one is hard-pressed to find a faithful congregation of true believers
anywhere. I guess that’s why God’s Word
says there will only be a small “remnant” that stand firm to the end.
During my time in
ministry, I have seen the old timers, the pastors who were faithful in teaching
the WHOLE counsel of God’s Word grow older and retire from the ministry… or
in many cases, be FORCED OUT of their ministry by church boards and elders —
only to be replaced by somebody younger, more “hip,” more “in step” with the
culture and times we are living in. In
other words, a more CARNAL “pastor.”
These “cool” new pastors often use Hollywood films on their big
projection TV screens to illustrate their sermons… they make off-color jokes
from the pulpits. They wear t shirts and
ripped blue jeans as they speak, to appeal to the average “Joe six-pack” in the
audience. They have a “hot” worship
team, complete with electric guitars, drums, smoke and mirrors and in some
cases even laser light shows. “It’s all about the EXPERIENCE,” they
say.
Friends, I’m not
some old fashioned stick in the mud.
I’ve been around. And I can tell
you, this ain’t “church.” At least not a
biblical church. It MAY be a “synagogue
of Satan.” But it’s not church, and it
most certainly is not God-honoring.
There is NO reverence for Him; no fear of God there at all. I have seen youth leaders take their group
of kids to R-rated movies as their Youth Group “activity” for the week; I have seen pastors hold community events
called a “car smash,” which apparently the kids love… they get an old car,
put it in the middle of their parking lot, and let the kids destroy it with
baseball bats, spray paint, and tire irons.
This is their “entertainment” for the evening — a way to get kids to
“come to church.”
I’ve seen pastors
dress up like Hollywood movie characters, or the Easter Bunny or Santa
Claus. I’ve seen the bounce houses and
carnival games and rock concerts… nowadays, they will do ANYTHING to get kids
— AND ADULTS — to come to church, and KEEP coming to church… KEEP RIGHT ON
filling those collection plates. Just
don’t DARE tell them what the Bible REALLY says…. are you KIDDING? That’s MUCH too harsh. That’s no fun. Who would want to hear THAT?!
So when it comes to
doing things of any real significance; when it comes to being SALT AND LIGHT
and IMPACTING our society and culture with what our society and culture is
in DESPERATE NEED OF — the TRUTH, for heaven’s sake — they are all
AWOL… oh NO! They CAN’T “go there!” People don’t want to hear about sin and evil,
or the consequences of sin and evil in their lives. They don’t want to be CONVICTED in their
hearts. They want to be COMFORTED and
entertained. And they call this “going
to church.” Preach the WORD? Are you kidding? Reprove, rebuke, exhort with all LONGSUFFERING
and DOCTRINE? WHO in the world wants
THAT?! Endure afflictions for the sake
of the Gospel? “NO, thank you. I’ll take a
large coffee, please, and if it’s not too much trouble, please make sure the
service is over with by noon, because we need to get home to watch the game.”
If you want to know
why our world is the way it is, it’s because professing Christians have given
up. It began at least a generation or
two ago — and maybe longer. But at some
point, we stopped taking God and His Word seriously. And the Great falling away began. Instead of serving CHRIST and HIS KINGDOM, we
began seeking after things we perceived to be “good, fun, enjoyable,
entertaining.” Instead of afflicting the
comfortable and comforting the afflicted, we BECAME the comfortable,
…and we like it that way. So as for
those old time preachers who just want to preach the “hard stuff,” “hit the road, Jack, we’ve decided to go a
different direction.” Yes, indeed,
they have.
Over the years I
have known countless faithful men of God who have been run out of town by these
congregations that no longer wish to hear the truth. I, myself, have been “disinvited” from more
churches than I can count. But let me
tell you about a friend of mine who has recently experienced this at his church
in California. His name is Pastor Justin
Hoke, and he is a faithful truth-teller, a watchman on the wall. He doesn’t allow political correctness to
dictate his message. He speaks the WHOLE
counsel of God’s Word — out of love for the lost, and to inform those who
profess Christ of the spiritual culture war we are SUPPOSED to be fighting
— as we stand our ground against the enemy and his demons.
He recently put a
message on his church sign stating common sense, simply TRUTH. The sign read: “Bruce Jenner is still a man.
Homosexuality is still sin. The
culture may change. The Bible does not.” According to a news story by
PulpitAndPen.org, LGBT activists swarmed the church recently, claiming the sign
was “hateful.” They later vandalized the
sign. And less than a week later, Pastor
Hoke made the following announcement on his Facebook page:
“As of today, I am no longer the pastor of
Trinity Bible Presbyterian Church. After
much prayer and counsel, I have decided that it is best to briefly communicate
what has taken place. 1) I was informed by our other elder that he
felt he could no longer follow my lead as pastor. 2) I
was informed that essentially all but one couple in membership would leave the
church if I continued as pastor. 3) Our
other elder and the couple felt that those who left would likely return if
I would leave.”
Pulpit And Pen
commented, “Apparently, the public
outrage was enough to cause discontent within the local congregation, which
appears to value the opinion of men more than the Word of God. May it not be said of us.” I should note that this came after the pastor
gave one of the most powerful sermons I’ve heard in a long time, entitled “Love Warns.” In his sermon, Pastor Hoke noted that to
“accept and affirm” what the culture embraces, but which God’s Word calls
abomination is NOT to love those trapped in sin; but rather WARNING the
wicked of their need for repentance and forgiveness by the shed blood of Christ
is the definition of truly LOVING your neighbor. It was an incredibly powerful message he
gave. And then he was immediately
tossed out of his role as pastor. For
simply telling the TRUTH, straight from God’s Word.
I’m reminded of the
prophet Jeremiah, known as the “weeping prophet,” because he wept for the
nation of Israel. God sent him to
declare His Word and Truth to the people, and sound the warning regarding all
their iniquities. But the people did NOT
want to hear. Instead they demanded, “Jeremiah, tell us something GOOD for once…
tell us what we want to hear!”
Let’s read just a
little bit from chapter 7 as God explains things to Jeremiah: “But
this command I gave them: ‘Obey My voice, and I will be your God, and you shall
be My people. And walk in all the ways
that I command you, that it may be well with you.’ But they did not obey or incline their ear,
but walked in their own counsels and the stubbornness of their evil hearts, and
went backward and not forward. From the
day that your fathers came out of the land of Egypt to this day, I have
persistently sent all My servants the prophets to them, day after day. Yet they did not listen to Me or incline
their ear, but stiffened their necks. They did worse than their fathers.”
And so God
continued, “So you shall speak all these
words to them, but they will not listen to you. You shall call to them, but
they will not answer you. And you shall
say to them, ‘This is the nation that did not obey the voice of the Lord their
God, and did not accept discipline; truth has perished; it is cut off from
their lips.”
Does that not sound
like America today? Truth has
perished. It’s DEAD! Evil is called “good” and good is called
“evil” and we LIKE it that way.
And anyone who DARES defy the celebration of sodomy or speak TRUTH on
this matter is virtually crucified by all — even those you would THINK would be
on your side — the “church” people.
Indeed, we are at a place and time now where even those who profess to
be people of God will no longer endure sound doctrine. Instead, they heap up for themselves teachers
who tell them what they prefer to hear.
I can tell you,
from PERSONAL experience, being a watchman on the wall puts a target on your
back — for Satan to aim at, AND, sadly today, for many church-goers to aim at
as well. You WILL be persecuted for
speaking truth. It is SO SAD realizing
just how many — I dare say, the VAST MAJORITY of regular church-goers today —
have NO IDEA what the Scriptures actually say; nor do they have any intention
of finding out, of “studying to show themselves approved.” They would rather just attend the weekly
meetings at their local “Religious Service Provider” … as long as it’s a
message that makes them feel good about THEMSELVES.
In the Gospel of
John, Jesus said, “IF YOU HOLD TO MY
TEACHING, you are really My disciples.
THEN you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” You see,
every church-goer claims to want to follow Jesus — until they find out
where He’s taking them. If the truth be
told, they don’t really want Jesus, nor do they want His TRUTH. They just want the benefits. They just want to feel good. But apart from Jesus you can’t even know the truth… and unless you HOLD to His teaching,
you are not His disciples at all. So if
you’re not serious about being His disciple, then by calling yourself a
“Christian” — you are actually taking the Lord’s name in vain. So stop it.
America is in the midst of serious judgment. We are a nation of depraved minds. God has sent strong delusion upon our people
because we refused to hear and heed His Word.
If you want to know WHY the world is in such a mess, I can tell you. We have deserted our Heavenly Father, and shunned His Son. America will never be great again, unless we turn back to God, — who promises if we do, THEN He will heal our hearts and our minds, and our land. America needs Jesus. And men and women of true faith and courage, willing to preach the Word — in season and out. Reprove, rebuke and exhort with all longsuffering and SOUND doctrine. Unfortunately, in our world today, TRUTH sounds like HATE, because our people hate the truth…
By “The Boys of the Bible, by Hartwell James, published by Henry Altemus Company, 1905, 1916 – http://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/Pictures/The%20Boys%20of%20the%20Bible/index.html, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=49274164
It must have been quite the scandal. A young, 14 year old girl, Mary, engaged to be married, had just returned from a visit to her relatives, Elizabeth and Zechariah who lived in the hill country of Judah. She had been gone for three months, and when she returned, she was pregnant.
She had not seen her fiance’ Joseph in all that time. We can assume that Joseph knew nothing of Mary’s delicate condition; as a carpenter by trade, he had likely been busy working, perhaps building a house for himself and Mary to live in after they were married. In those days, a young man would not marry until he was well established, with a way to provide for his new wife and a place for them to live and raise a family. Joseph was looking forward to the wedding day, and doing his best to make everything ready to receive Mary as his bride.
Imagine his shock and dismay when Mary returned to town. Imagine what HE must have thought… his hopes and dreams dashed; all he had been working for these many months, seemingly gone. He may have thought to himself, “Well, at least I found out what sort of girl she is BEFORE we got married.” But he did not know what he was about to find out.
We can only imagine the buzz around town. You know how people talk, especially in small towns. Mary takes off for three months and comes back pregnant. Obviously the child was not Joseph’s… how her reputation must have been dragged through the mud among the townspeople. She perhaps went from being a “nobody” to being despised.
And her STORY! “The child she was bearing was not by the act of fornication, but of the Holy Spirit!” She may as well have claimed she’d been abducted by a UFO. How the people must have whispered and gossipped behind her back. Her parents, also, must have had doubts. Often times we read the story of Jesus’ conception and birth, but do not really think much about what the people involved endured through it all.
Yes, surely, Mary was the target of much controversy in her little village. And surely most people expected Joseph to call off the wedding, and abandon her in her “sin.” “She made her bed,” they likely said, “and now she’ll have to sleep in it.”
Things were different in those days. Premarital sex was absolutely off limits. Fornication was perhaps the greatest sin one could commit, other than murder. Sex outside of Holy Matrimony just was NOT acceptable. And Mary, they thought, had committed that horrendous crime. There could be no forgiveness for her, at least among the townspeople, to say nothing of the religious leaders of her day.
But Mary knew something no one else did. And she had no doubts. Because three months earlier, she had seen something no one else in town ever had: she saw for herself the angel Gabriel. He came to her in person — in her home town of Nazareth in Galilee. Mary was not only pure of heart and innocent of the crime people accused her of. But Gabriel declared, in Luke 1, “Hail, thou art highly favored. The Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women.”
The Holman Standard version of the Bible continues, “But she was deeply troubled by this statement, wondering what kind of greeting this could be.” Obviously. Here was an angelic being, the angel Gabriel, standing before her, calling her “highly favored” and “blessed among women.” She must have been shaking in her shoes… but then imagine how much more disturbing the news must have been for young Mary, as Gabriel went on to explain: “Do not be afraid, Mary. For you have found favor with God. Now listen: you will conceive and give birth to a son, and you will call His name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David. He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and His kingdom will have no end.”
Can you imagine YOUR response in such a situation? Luke simply states, “But Mary asked the angel, ‘How can this be, since I have not been intimate with a man?’” ABSOLUTELY she would ask that. But the mere words do not convey the emotions and doubts and fears this young maiden must have been experiencing… on top of that, these were the words of an angel. Angels didn’t just go around appearing to EVERYONE in those days, anymore than they appear to us today. This was something truly fantastic and supernatural. And it was happening to HER!
Gabriel explained, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. Therefore the Holy One to be born will be called the Son of God.”
What would YOU have done in Mary’s situation? I can only imagine. But likely still trembling in fear and excitement, Mary responded, “I am the Lord’s slave. May it be done to me according to your word.” By the way, Gabriel also let Mary know that her relative Elizabeth had ALSO conceived a son — even in her old age — and was at that very moment, six months pregnant. And he added, “For nothing will be impossible with God!”
Immediately Mary set out to visit Elizabeth and Zechariah… and when Elizabeth heard Mary’s voice in greeting, the baby inside her lept for joy! Elizabeth then CONFIRMED what the angel had told Mary: “You are the most blessed of women, and your Child will be blessed!” Elizabeth went on, with sheer joy: “How could this happen to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For you see, when the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby leaped for joy inside me! She who has believed is blessed because what was spoken to her by the Lord will be fulfilled!”
Such joy, such excitement. And such wonder! How could all this BE? Yet it WAS. And it was happening to Mary, just 14 years old, some say, and not yet even married.
Mary must have wondered what her fiance’ Joseph was going to think of all this. Would he believe her story about the angel’s visit? And the confirmation from Elizabeth? Yet she had great faith, and great obedience to the Lord. Luke goes on in verses 46-55 with Mary’s song of praise because of what the Lord was doing in her life. Unbelievable, yet very, very true.
And what about Joseph? We don’t know a lot about him, but we can surmise what HE must have been going through as well. After a three month visit away from home, Mary returned, pregnant. He KNEW the baby was not his. Matthew tells us only, “When Mary was espoused to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Ghost.”
We know from Scripture that Joseph was a “just” man, an honorable man, and a Godly man. He was a FAITHFUL man, one the Lord knew He could count on to provide for Mary and the baby Jesus, to protect and defend them. Yet, Joseph could not wrap his mind around the situation. After all, he was only human, and this was the first he had heard of the situation. He could have joined the rest of the townspeople in their derision and slander. He could have accused her of sleeping around and he could have made it public record that this baby was NOT his — HE was not a fornicator! He could have defended his own pride and reputation. Imagine Joseph’s turmoil. The sleepless nights, the anguish as all his hopes and dreams had been dashed, yet he knew he had to do the right thing. He loved Mary, still, regardless of what she might have done. But what would he do now? Matthew tells us, “Being a just man, and not willing to make her a public example, was minded to put her away privately.”
But then we read, “But while he thought on these things, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a dream, saying, ‘Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife. For that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost. She shall bring forth a Son, and thou shall call His name Jesus, for He shall save His people from their sins.”
Matthew reminds us that all these things were foretold by the prophet Isaiah… which Joseph likely was familiar with, being a Godly man. You, too, can read about it in Isaiah 7. But still: how INCREDIBLE that the Lord had chosen HIM as the husband of that virgin, foretold in the Scriptures so long ago. But Joseph was a good man. When he awoke, the Bible tells us, without a second thought, he did as the angel had told him, and took Mary as his wife. Yet Mary and Joseph did not consummate their marriage until after Jesus had been born.
We all know the rest of the story of the birth of the Savior, how the entire heavenly host of angels praised the God of Creation, how the shepherds came and, in awesome faith, worshiped the baby Savior, as He lay sleeping — in of all places, an animal’s feeding trough in a barn. We also know what took place after. Joseph proved himself to be a faithful man, a good provider and protector of his family. When Herod sought to kill the infant Jesus, he again did as the angel of the Lord instructed him: with NO hesitation and with no doubt in his mind, he immediately took his family to safety and settled in Egypt until after Herod’s death. Then, again following the Lord’s instructions, he returned his family back home to Nazareth.
It’s a beautiful story. But it is also a TRUE story. It is HISTORY, not a fairy tale. It’s the miraculous story of the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ. The ENTIRE story of Jesus’ birth, childhood, ministry, death, resurrection and His soon return is indeed, the greatest story ever told. And depending on where YOU stand with God, it’s either real GOOD news or real BAD NEWS for you.
As the song says, “Wonderful, Merciful Savior, precious Redeemer and Friend; who would have thought that a Lamb could rescue the souls of men?”
Such is the love of our Heavenly Father for His children. Jesus said, “There is no greater love than this: that a man lay down his life for his friends.” But second to that, as a father myself, I can tell you there is no greater love than a parent for their precious child. I cannot imagine the INFINITE love it must take to sacrifice your own Son to save the souls of those that are born predisposed to hate you. Scripture tells us, “While we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.”
Jesus came to show us Who God is, and like His Father, during His earthly ministry, He called the “least in the Kingdom” — men and women of no reputation to be His followers, ministers and disciples. Imagine, a 14 year old girl and a carpenter, from the middle of nowhere, bearing and raising the very Son of God Himself… because God knew, these were FAITHFUL people He could trust. These were His true servants. They BELIEVED God and they OBEYED Him, without hesitation. That’s real faith.
It is the same today. God calls those who love Him, those He can count on to be faithful to Him, who believe Him. He calls faithful men and women to be His servants, His hands and feet in this world, and those who are the MOST faithful you will probably never hear of in this life. To the world, they are “nobodys.” But the prideful, the “high and mighty,” the famous — those He has little use for, and in fact, Jesus Himself most often had to condemn the religious leaders, the Priests, Scribes and Pharisees — as well as the rich people — for their hypocrisy. Those He made examples of, for us NOT to follow.
It’s sad that so many today follow and worship the celebrities, the fancy folks who we see on TV, in movies, in politics, in popular music, in the media… even many church leaders. Worldly people LOVE the rich and famous. But those rich and famous ones may have made a name for themselves here in THIS world, but unless they repent and turn to Jesus Christ as their LORD, and not JUST their pseudo-Savior, life on this earth is the only heaven they will ever know. Because it doesn’t matter that they know who Jesus IS. What matters is, does Jesus know YOU. For what does it profit a man if he gains the whole world but loses his soul? God doesn’t care if you’re a ‘nobody’ in this world. In fact, that’s usually who He chooses to do His best and most important work. In the Kingdom of God, the first become last and the last become first and the greatest is servant of all. These are the ones who honor Him with their HEARTS AND LIVES, not just with their lips. Those who BELIEVE and OBEY.
So let us each examine our own hearts today. Do we truly BELIEVE and OBEY God, or do we just know OF Him? Could YOU have done what Mary did? WOULD YOU have done as Joseph did? Or would your response – today – be drastically different?
You may not be seeing angels, but God has still given you His Word. Will you believe? Will you obey? Jesus commanded us to go into all the world and preach the Gospel to every creature, teaching them to OBEY all He had commanded. Not just the “nice” parts — not just the warm and fuzzy parts, those parts of God’s Word that make us and other feel GOOD — but the HARD parts too. You see, Truth is often a hard pill to swallow, but it’s always what we need. If we neglect to preach ALL Jesus commanded, in order to be popular and well-liked in this world, we are not good and faithful, nor are we servants to those who need Jesus’ saving grace the most. So let us be faithful. Let us be servants to all. Let us always tell the WHOLE truth, protect and provide for the helpless and innocent. Be about His Kingdom business, occupying until He returns. Let us judge with righteous judgment, never afraid or ashamed of the only One Who offers a transformed heart and mind, and everlasting life, for all who will forsake the world, lay down their lives and humbly seek the Savior. And then, when our time on this earth is through, we may hear those amazing words that Mary heard: “you are highly favored; you are blessed. Enter into the joy of your Lord.”
Audio CDs and transcripts of this message are available when you call me at (715) 486-8066 or email Rob@WisconsinChristianNews.com. Ask for message number 238.
