The Doctrine of Idolatry – Part 73: Spiritual Adultery With Demons - Part 34
January 12, 2012
OUTLINE:
Grace Shines Light (from 9/23/10)
There’s always a bright side of things if you learn to live by means of grace.
The Value of Testing
Testing is how faith is validated in the A.C., making it paramount to the spiritual life.
Eph 3:19
and to know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge [gnosis only], that you may be filled up to all the fullness of God. [ref: sum total of blessings from God]
Life Beyond Knowledge
There exists a transcendent, spiritual life that is far beyond mere knowledge of scripture. It begins at salvation with a naivety and ends with being “filled up to all the fullness of God” at spiritual maturity.
Phi 4:7
And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
1Ti 1:14
and the grace of our Lord was more than abundant, with the faith and love which are found in Christ Jesus.
Equal Privilege / Opportunity
Regarding the so-called “worst” of us, the Bible tells that those that are forgiven much, love much! (Luke 7:47) Therefore, passing tests should NEVER be artificially tied to our past failures.
Evangelism: True vs. Counterfeit
The Holy Trinity has ordained intensified evangelism for Christ in the Tribulation. The unholy trinity will oppose that with evangelism for the antichrist.
Tribulation Martyrs
The Tribulation martyrs will overcome evil with good by casting their doctrine out in front! Rom. 12:21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
Fear Is Lack of Thinking
Recall of doctrine under pressure becomes increasingly difficult as fear increases.
Fatality – The Ultimate Test
The Bible articulates the fear of death as the great test of faith for man in time. Fatality to the uneducated Christian is scary. To the educated Christian, fatality is promotion.
Objectivity Means Deliverance
Death is a promotion, not something to be feared. Security in His promises sheds all fear on the subject.
“we have as our ambition”
from philotimeomai – expresses the deeper concepts regarding capacity for love; there is no human striving here; present tense means to keep on considering it an honor
Eyes On the Prize
Our focus shouldn’t be related to whether or not we are physically on earth or in Heaven, but rather the issue is that we love Him and consider it a supreme privilege/honor to be able to even DO so!
Eyes on Christ
Life and death become merely details in the grand scheme of thing!
Objectivity Means Deliverance
One must possess an absolute and complete understanding of physical death in order to be delivered experientially from the fear of it.
God Loves Us
When the pressure is on, we have to make a choice: fear or trust. Fear (ala of death) or trust that God loves us.
Doctrine Is Love
Love and fear are mutually exclusive. (1Jo 4:18)
Fear of Death
If you fear death, it means you are not “perfected” (matured) yet in the doctrine of death… the one who fears is not perfected in love. (1Jo 4:18)
Life Is Short
Life is too short to focus our attention on earthly things. Col. 3:2 Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth.
The Facts of Life
Job understood life, death, and resurrection so he possessed a certain stillness in his soul.
1Co 15:52
in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet; for the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed.
*** click here for The Resurrections diagram ***
Fear of Death
If you fear death, it means you are not “perfected” (matured) yet in the doctrine of death… the one who fears is not perfected in love. (1Jo 4:18)
Fatality – The Ultimate Test
The Bible articulates the fear of death as the great test of faith for man in time. Fatality to the uneducated Christian is scary. To the educated Christian, fatality is promotion.
The 7 Churches (Rev 2-3)
2 Viable Interpretations:
- Portray seven historical stages the church would go through.
- Portray seven different types of churches or individual believers that live in every generation
In Life and In Death
How you live is highly related to your attitude towards death.
God’s Reality
Through the eternal lens of God, the reality of physical death represents promotion for the believer and instills immediacy in the mature believer regarding the production of evidence for the A.C. appeal trial.
“ten days”
In the Bible, ‘ten days’ often describes a short time; a brief period; a few days. (Gen 24:55; 1Sa 25:38; Dan 1:12, 14)
“faithful until death”
means that doctrine gives us the ability to remain steadfast and surefooted in the spiritual life, even when death is upon us
Testing Our Faith
The reality of death is the test of the believer’s spiritual condition and true scale of values. The experience of dying is a test of our living values.
Testing Our Faith
Dying can be the greatest happiness in life or the greatest misery, and it depends upon the content of Bible doctrine in your soul.
Testing Our Faith
If Bible doctrine is not first in your scale of values dying is a nightmare.
Testing Our Faith
Carnal believers renounce their faith in TLJC when faced with martyrdom.
Testing Our Faith
Fear of death becomes fear of life. If you are afraid of death you are afraid of life.
Testing Our Faith
Believers with PVTD refuse to renounce their faith in TLJC when faced with martyrdom because there is no fear of death. Doctrine prepares a believer for death.
Testing Our Faith
If there is nothing worth living for there is nothing worth dying for ( ala Martin Luthor King, Jr: “If a man hasn't discovered something that he will die for, he isn't fit to live.”)