Carey posted in message #11:
Originally Posted by Bible2:
But "taking heed" to all the horrors of the coming
tribulation ...
Not horrors for everyone only those who are strong
enough if they are true believers but yet weak they
will be protected or nartyred or their hearts might
just fail them in fear and they will not be present
for the "HORRORS"
Weak believers could be included in those whom God
will let die before the tribulation begins (Isaiah
57:1), or let flee into protected wilderness places
during a part of the tribulation (Revelation 12:6),
as God never lets believers be tested beyond their
strength, but provides them a way of escape
(1 Corinthians 10:13).
Carey posted in message #11:
Originally Posted by Bible2:
But "taking heed" to all the horrors of the coming
tribulation causes one, like Job, to remember what is
truly all-important ...
If they are " LIKE " Job
Job was righteous before God tested him (Job 1:1,8).
Job's righteous character shone forth during his
trials, when he refused to curse God for all his loss
and suffering (Job 1:21-22, 2:9-10, 13:15). May we
all have the patience of Job (James 5:11) during the
coming tribulation (Revelation 13:10, 14:12-13).
Carey posted in message #11:
Originally Posted by Bible2:
So "taking heed" to all the horrors of the coming
tribulation causes one to remember not to lay up
treasures on this earth (Matthew 6:19-20) ...
Unless those treasures are invested as any good
steward should do and the dividends are used to feed
Jesus sheep.
There could be some good stewards who will be the
"they" who will feed the Church in the wilderness
during the reign of the Antichrist (Revelation 12:6b),
and then up to the coming of Christ (Matthew
24:45-46). But there could be other stewards who have
merely fooled themselves and others that they will do
so, in order to have a religious cloak for their
present covetousness (1 Thessalonians 2:5).
Carey posted in message #11:
Originally Posted by Bible2:
So "taking heed" to all the horrors of the coming
tribulation causes one to give up everything for
Jesus, as one must do if one is to be saved (Luke
14:33).
But you must understand what you believe giving up
everything is is not the same as another mans. If a
rich man had not been rich Jesus body would have had
no tomb.One of Gods faborites was also the richest
man on earth Solomon. Its what you do with your
riches and possessions not just having or not having
them.
Giving up everything is giving up everything (Luke
14:33). If God subsequently entrusts some things back
to somebody to be a steward over them for God's
purposes, then that person will be held strictly
accountable for how he deals with those things which
are no longer his own (Luke 16:11-12).
But it is part of "the deceitfulness of riches"
(Matthew 13:22) for religious people to cloak their
covetousness, even in their own minds, with the idea
that "Only if I stay rich can I can give more money
to the Church". They think that keeping a million
dollars in the bank and giving $100,000 of it to the
Church is worth more to God than having nothing in
the bank and giving one's last 2 cents to the Church,
when exactly the opposite is the case (Mark 12:41-44),
for God cares nothing about how much money we give to
the Church in absolute terms, but only cares about how
much money we give to the Church in relation to what
we hold back and hoard for ourselves.
For God knows that if we hold back and hoard anything
for ourselves, no matter how we might try to justify
it as "investment to reap dividends that I can donate
to the Church later", our hearts will become attached
to our hoard (Matthew 6:21); we will end up serving
Mammon first instead of God first (Matthew 6:24).
One cannot seek first Mammon so that one can then
serve the kingdom of God. It has to be exactly the
opposite. One has to seek first the kingdom of God
(Matthew 6:33), which involves forsaking everything
else (Luke 14:33), and then God will entrust back to
one any material things one may need to do the
specific work that He has given one as an individual
to do (Mark 13:34); and the greatest work, even that
of an apostle, has nothing at all to do with having
wealth:
"For I think that God hath set forth us the apostles
last, as it were appointed to death: for we are made
a spectacle unto the world, and to angels, and to
men. We are fools for Christ's sake, but ye are wise
in Christ; we are weak, but ye are strong; ye are
honourable, but we are despised. Even unto this
present hour we both hunger, and thirst, and are
naked, and are buffeted, and have no certain
dwellingplace; And labour, working with our own
hands: being reviled, we bless; being persecuted,
we suffer it: Being defamed, we intreat: we are made
as the filth of the world, and are the offscouring
of all things unto this day" (1 Corinthians 4:9-13).
But some in the modern Church have turned this on its
head, saying instead: "For I think that God hath set
forth us first, as it were appointed to life, the
richest and best lifestyle of all: for we are made an
example of God's material blessings unto the world,
and to angels, and to men. We will not appear as
penniless fools in the eyes of the world for Christ's
sake. But ye poverty-lovers think you are so wise in
Christ. We are strong witnesses for the Lord with our
rich lifestyle, but you are weak witnesses, for who
wants to be poor? We are honourable in the eyes of the
world; unbelievers want to become Christians so they
can get rich like us. But you poverty-lovers are
despised by the world. Even to this present hour we
never hunger, never thirst, never are naked, never are
buffeted, and never have no certain dwellingplace.
Indeed, we own many different houses, all with pools
and all the best amenities; even our dogs have air-
conditioned doghouses! And we never labour, working
with our own hands; that's for suckers. We 'invest'
and get 'dividends', which are from the profit earned
by the sweat of others laboring with their hands. When
the poor revile us for our greed and hoarding of our
wealth, we revile them for their laziness and tell
them to get a job! (In a company we can 'invest' in so
we can sit back and sip cocktails by the pool and get
'dividends' from the profit made with their labor.)
We are never persecuted or defamed by the world, for
we tell the world what it wants to hear, and the world
loves rich people. And when poverty-lovers defame us,
we cry 'You're just jealous!'. It's those poverty-
lovers who are as the filth of the world, and are the
offscouring of all things unto this day. We're sitting
pretty instead, by our pools or in our Rolls Royces
or in front of our huge plasma TVs; and God loves us
for it, just like He loved Solomon!"