Author: ShapedByTruth

no private interpretation

2 Peter 1:20 Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation.

Beware when any say they have an exclusive on God’s “truth”.  Gnostics are famous for luring people in with promises of “hidden” knowledge and access secrets.

The wisdom of God is a gift that is free for the asking.

James 1:5 If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all [men] liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.

Also, God’s word is open to all who seek after it…

Luke 11:9 And I say to you, Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and you shall find; knock, and it shall be opened to you.

Luke 12:2 For there is nothing covered, that shall not be revealed; neither hid, that shall not be known.

The Lord your God proves you

If there arise among you a prophet, or a dreamer of dreams, and gives you a sign or a wonder, and the sign or the wonder come to pass, whereof he spoke to you, saying, “Let us go after other gods, which you have not known, and let us serve them;” 
You shall not listen to the words of that prophet, or that dreamer of dreams: for the LORD your God proves you, to know whether you love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul. 
Deut 13:1-3

And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light.

2Cor 11:14

But though we, or an angel from heaven, should preach unto you any gospel other than that which we preached unto you, let him be anathema.

Gal 1:8

contrary doctrine

“Now I urge you, brethren, note those who cause divisions and offenses, contrary to the doctrine which you learned, and avoid them. For those who are such do not serve our Lord Jesus Christ, but their own belly, and by smooth words and flattering speech deceive the hearts of the simple.” – Romans 16:17-18


Whenever I speak the truth in love and identify false doctrine, I’m often accused of being divisive and part of this verse is quoted out of context: “Mark them which cause divisions”.

Note however, the divisive ones are those who are touting the contrary doctrine and using flattery to tickle ears and win hearts away from the truth.

Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world. – 1 John 4:1

the bride

Genesis 2:20-24


And Adam gave names to all cattle, and to the fowl of the air, and to every beast of the field; but for Adam there was not found an help meet for him.  


And the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, and he slept: and he took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh instead thereof; And the rib, which the Lord God had taken from man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the man.


And Adam said, “This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man.”


Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.

Notice how this is a foreshadow of Messiah, the second Adam (1Cor 15:45-47) and the “Bride of Christ” (Eph 5:22-33):

1) The “deep sleep” foreshadows Jesus’s death
2) There is a wound in the side
3) Out of that wound a Bride is made (rib -> Eve; blood -> the congregation of believers)
4) The Bride is brought to Adam

same color

We are all the same color, brown.   We just all have different levels of melanin in our skin.

There is only one race, the human race.  Race is a concept born out of a mistaken and unfounded belief in evolution.

We are all of one blood, one family.  We are all descendants Noah, and further back, all descendants of Adam.

Through one man (Adam) sin and death entered the world and in this way death came to all people.

Through one man (Jesus) we are justified and we can be born again into life; and, for those who receive this free gift, we are all of one “body” in Messiah. (Rom 5:12-20; 1Cor 12:12-20)

Armstrongism

I recently had some conversations concerning Armstrongism and the Worldwide Church of God (WCG) and here is some of the background concerning it.
The WCG was basically a cult up until the years following 1986 (after H.W. Armstrong died) when they began changing their doctrines to conform to more biblical doctrines and practices.
The modern WCG (now known as Grace Communion International) can no longer be considered a cult — at least according to their public doctrinal statements.
Things that are critical to Biblical Christianity involve a right understanding of the nature of God, the nature of Jesus, and soteriology (we are sinners, wages of sin is death, Jesus died in our place, we need to repent and receive what Jesus did for us).
A cult is a perversion of any of those critical doctrines and are typically centered around the exclusive teachings of a single man or organization.  Another common trait goes back to Satan’s lie that we can become a god or be like God (Genesis 3:5).
Other issues are good topics for study and discussion, but disagreement on those issues does not make for a cult or a reason to break fellowship.
What made Armstrong’s WCG a cult was their unbiblical understanding of 1) the nature of God, 2) that man can become God, and 3) exalting the authority of a single man above scripture.
They believed that Armstrong was “The Apostle”, the second coming of Elijah and that the Bible and all other churches had been perverted over time and that ONLY Armstrong and ONLY the WCG knew the truth.  Armstrong had the ultimate authority in the same way that the Pope is considered to have the ultimate authority over Catholicism.
They believed that man was completely mortal (do not possess an immortal soul).
They believed in the “Family of God”, that the Godhead started out as God the Father and God the Son and that men can be “born again” into this family after the resurrection and become part of God.

Some family members (including myself) were reading WCG materials back in the 80’s and we recently had some discussions about it.
One of the possible holdovers from the WCG that I did have a conversation about, was annihilation.  
Annihilation is the belief that when unbelievers are thrown in the Lake of Fire (Rev 20:14-15) they cease to exist.  It is something I believed for years, but repented of it when confronted with the truth in the Bible.
Annihilation, while not necessarily what I would call “heresy” or a “salvation issue”, it is not supported by the Bible.  
Folks usually justify the belief by saying “God is so loving, He wouldn’t punish someone forever…”.  There are many answers to this, here are two quickies: 1) God created hell for Satan and his angels (Matt 25:41); 2) Our offense is against and Eternal God
There are also many scriptures (including Jesus’ own words) that talk about an eternal hell (Matt 18:8; 2 Thess. 1:9; Jude 1:7, 12-13; Rev 19:3; Rev 20:10)
And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life (Matt. 25:46)
(More info here: http://carm.org/hell-eternal)
In any case, my intention is to inform and motivate folks to do their own research.  Don’t believe me, read the Bible and trust the Holy Spirit to lead and guide to truth.

All that would live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution

2 Timothy 3:12
Yea, and all that would live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution.
John 15:18-21
If the world hateth you, ye know that it hath hated me before it hated you.  If ye were of the world, the world would love its own: but because ye are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you.
Remember the word that I said unto you, A servant is not greater than his lord. If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you; if they kept my word, they will keep yours also.  But all these things will they do unto you for my name’s sake, because they know not him that sent me.
Matthew 10:14-25 (excerpts)
And whosoever shall not receive you, nor hear your words, as ye go forth out of that house or that city, shake off the dust of your feet.  Verily I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment, than for that city.
Behold, I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves: be ye therefore wise as serpents, and harmless as doves.  But beware of men: for they will deliver you up to councils, and in theirs synagogues they will scourge you; yea and before governors and kings shall ye be brought for my sake, for a testimony to them and to the Gentiles.  
And brother shall deliver up brother to death, and the father his child: and children shall rise up against parents, and cause them to be put to death.  And ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake: but he that endureth to the end, the same shall be saved.
A disciple is not above his teacher, nor a servant above his lord.  It is enough for the disciple that he be as his teacher, and the servant as his lord. If they have called the master of the house Beelzebub, how much more them of his household!  
Think not that I came to send peace on the earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword.  For I came to set a man at variance against his father, and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter in law against her mother in law: and a man’s foes shall be they of his own household. 

surveillance society

God’s attributes include omniscience and omnipresence, or that He knows everything, everywhere, all the time.

Satan is not all-knowing and he can’t be everywhere at once.

Since it is part of satan’s plan to “be like the Most High” (Isaiah 14), it makes sense that part of his new world order would be ubiquitous surveillance.

Camera’s everywhere, UAVs/drones, TSA inspection points, all transactions made electronically (and tracked), all news and entertainment delivered electronically (and monitored), neighbors spying on neighbors (see something, say something)…

satan’s five point plan

Isaiah 14:12-14

How are you fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! How are you cut down to the ground, which did weaken the nations!

For you have said in your heart,

1) “I will ascend into heaven”
2) “I will exalt my throne above the stars of God”
3) “I will sit also on the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north”
4) “I will ascend above the heights of the clouds”
5) “I will be like the most High”