End Time Warnings II

Jesus' Letters to the Churches

Jesus’ letters show His true Spirit toward sin and toward righteousness. Therefore, they are very important not only for instruction, but to show what God does really cares about. It will show that the spirit loose today that claims God is mainly interested in whether we show clarity or not and is not too upset with misconduct and sin is false. I will emphasize the truths that the church seems to have lost or mislaid.

Rev: 2:1-3: Unto the angel of the church of Ephesus write; These things saith he that holdeth the seven stars in his right hand, who walketh in the midst of the seven golden candlesticks; 2: I know thy works, and thy labour, and thy patience, and how thou canst not bear them which are evil: and thou hast tried them which say they are apostles, and are not, and hast found them liars: 3: And hast borne, and hast patience, and for my name’s sake hast laboured, and hast not fainted.

4-7: Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love. 5: Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent. 6: But this thou hast, that thou hatest the deeds of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate. 7: He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God.

(Jesus emphasizes His office as head of the church. He then tells the church at Ephesus what they are doing that pleases Him. That is the tactful way of doing things. If He had given the negative first, He risks turning them off so that they could not accept the negative nor rejoice in the positive. They were doing a good many things right. I would guess that most churches today would think they were doing quite well if they had this list to their credit.

They were obviously hard at work for the Lord and not only that, but they were practicing patience. They were addressing the issues and standing against sin. What more could He want?

He wanted something more so much so that He warned them that their candlestick was in danger. In other words, they would not even be considered His church if they did not do their first works; which I would guess was to love, care, and reach out to people, having the good news flourishing in their hearts.

Please take note that Jesus doesn’t settle for half measures or partial truth.)

8-9: And unto the angel of the church in Smyrna write; These things saith the first and the last, which was dead, and is alive; 9: I know thy works, and tribulation, and poverty, (but thou art rich) and I know the blasphemy of them which say they are Jews, and are not, but are the synagogue of Satan.

10-11: Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer: behold, the devil shall cast some of you into prison, that ye may be tried; and ye shall have tribulation ten days: be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life. 11: He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; He that overcometh shall not be hurt of the second death.

(Jesus identifies Himself as the resurrected Christ to put across what He wants to say to the church at Smyrna. This church was having it rough – persecution and poverty. And apparently the Jews were calling their Savior bad names. That’s why He identifies Himself as the one who was dead and is alive – because their very lives were being threatened.

Jesus tells them not to fear what they might suffer, even jail. He lets them know it will be for only a definite period of time and that they are to focus on the crown of life that they are winning.

He does not reprimand them for anything. They apparently were just trying to be Christ followers. He encourages them.)

12-13: And to the angel of the church in Pergamos write; These things saith he which hath the sharp sword with two edges; 13: I know thy works, and where thou dwellest, even where Satan’s seat is: and thou holdest fast my name, and hast not denied my faith, even in those days wherein Antipas was my faithful martyr, who was slain among you, where Satan dwelleth.

14-15: But I have a few things against thee, because thou hast there them that hold the doctrine of Balaam, who taught Balac to cast a stumblingblock before the children of Israel, to eat things sacrificed unto idols, and to commit fornication. 15: So hast thou also them that hold the doctrine of the Nicolaitans, which thing I hate.

16-17: Repent; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will fight against them with the sword of my mouth. 17: He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the hidden manna, and will give him a white stone, and in the stone a new name written, which no man knoweth saving he that receiveth it.

(The church at Pergamos was unfortunate enough to be located in a wicked city. The church was holding fast to Jesus’ name and keeping the faith even in the midst of violent persecution. But that was not enough for Jesus. He wanted them to have nothing to do with those whose lewd behavior was a stumbling block to all those who might have been drawn to Him by them.

He calls for them to repent of their tolerance of these things. If they wouldn’t repent, they would be cut off from the true vine or true church by the sword of Jesus’ mouth which is the Word of God. He will quote scripture that tell what happens to those who practice such things.

If they repented of this wrongful tolerance, they would be included with the recipients of the hidden manna and white stone. I don’t know what these two mean exactly, but I know it’s going to be good)

18-19: And unto the angel of the church in Thyatira write; These things saith the Son of God, who hath his eyes like unto a flame of fire, and his feet are like fine brass; 19: I know thy works, and charity, and service, and faith, and thy patience, and thy works; and the last to be more than the first.

20-23: Notwithstanding I have a few things against thee, because thou sufferest that woman Jezebel, which calleth herself a prophetess, to teach and to seduce my servants to commit fornication, and to eat things sacrificed unto idols. 21: And I gave her space to repent of her fornication; and she repented not. 22: Behold, I will cast her into a bed, and them that commit adultery with her into great tribulation, except they repent of their deeds. 23: And I will kill her children with death; and all the churches shall know that I am he which searcheth the reins and hearts: and I will give unto every one of you according to your works.

24-29: But unto you I say, and unto the rest in Thyatira, as many as have not this doctrine, and which have not known the depths of Satan, as they speak; I will put upon you none other burden. 25: But that which ye have already hold fast till I come. 26: And he that overcometh, and keepeth my works unto the end, to him will I give power over the nations: 27: And he shall rule them with a rod of iron; as the vessels of a potter shall they be broken to shivers: even as I received of my Father. 28: And I will give him the morning star. 29: He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.

(He comes to the Church a Thyatira emphasizing His office as the son of the living God. He mentions his flaming eyes and brass feet. Apparently the flaming eyes cannot look on things such as Jezebel is doing and the feet of brass address how Christians should walk. Brass is used in musical instruments, it is used to note high-ranking offices, and it is used as a term to describe the bold. Jesus notes their works, which are impressive – works of charity, service, faith and patience.

Then He tells them what He thinks of those who teach others to behave lewdly or commit adultery and He reveals the punishment that is coming on those who practice these things. He wants the church to know just how bad an abomination these things are. He warns them that He searches the heart and know what’s hidden there.

He encourages those who are holding fast to the truth to continue to do so till He comes. He assures them that their reward will be to rule with Him and enforce the truth forever.)

Rev: 3:1-3: And unto the angel of the church in Sardis write; These things saith he that hath the seven Spirits of God, and the seven stars; I know thy works, that thou hast a name that thou livest, and art dead. 2: Be watchful, and strengthen the things which remain, that are ready to die: for I have not found thy works perfect before God. 3: Remember therefore how thou hast received and heard, and hold fast, and repent. If therefore thou shalt not watch, I will come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee.

4-6: Thou hast a few names even in Sardis which have not defiled their garments; and they shall walk with me in white: for they are worthy. 5: He that overcometh, the same shall be clothed in white raiment; and I will not blot out his name out of the book of life, but I will confess his name before my Father, and before his angels. 6: He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.

(To the church at Sardis, Jesus points out that He is the fullness of the Spirit and that that church was not living up to their calling in any way. He tells them to pay attention and to do their homework otherwise they are about to lose it all.

He then encourages the few who have not defiled their garments, telling them that they will walk with Him in white. He again promises to confess the name of those who overcome to the Father and that their names will be found listed in the book of life.)

7-9: And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write; These things saith he that is holy, he that is true, he that hath the key of David, he that openeth, and no man shutteth; and shutteth, and no man openeth; 8: I know thy works: behold, I have set before thee an open door, and no man can shut it: for thou hast a little strength, and hast kept my word, and hast not denied my name. 9: Behold, I will make them of the synagogue of Satan, which say they are Jews, and are not, but do lie; behold, I will make them to come and worship before thy feet, and to know that I have loved thee.

10-11: Because thou hast kept the word of my patience, I also will keep thee from the hour of temptation, which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon the earth. 11: Behold, I come quickly: hold that fast which thou hast, that no man take thy crown.

12-13: Him that overcometh will I make a pillar in the temple of my God, and he shall go no more out: and I will write upon him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, which is new Jerusalem, which cometh down out of heaven from my God: and I will write upon him my new name. 13: He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.

(He shows Himself as holy and truth to the church of brotherly love. He finds no fault with them. He tells them that He has opened a door to them and that no man can shut it. Based on what Jesus said, I think the key of David is reverential fear and awe of the Lord. Once one is fully armed with it, God can open doors for them, because he or she will heed the holy and true.

He tells them that because they have been true to Him, He will spare them from going through the great tribulation. He assures them also that those who say they belong to God but don’t obey Him will bow down to those who do revere and obey Him.

This time the over-comers are promised to be publicly acknowledged as belonging to God, having Jesus in their heart, and that they are citizens of the new Jerusalem. And not only a citizen, but an important citizen – a pillar [support] of God’s temple.)

14-17: And unto the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write; These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God; 15: I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot. 16: So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth. 17: Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked:

18-19: I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see. 19: As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent.

20-22: Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me. 21: To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his throne. 22: He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.

(Jesus addresses the church at Laodicea presenting Himself as the Amen – the last word, the faithful and true witness, and the beginning of creation. Apparently their lukewarm works were evidence that they were not a faithful and true witness. Here He makes it completely clear what will happen to those who are not faithful and ture – who are luke warm in their heart and their behavior toward God. They will lose their way. They will not overcome. They will not be acknowledged as belonging to Him.

According to Peter it is the Christian’s faith that is tried to see if it is gold. So Jesus is telling them to shape up and be faithful and true to Him and to put on their white [pure] garments. The New Testament tells us what to put off and what to put on. Christians that do not heed these things that Jesus is referring to will be caught naked and vulnerable. He tells them to tend to the matter of seeing with their spiritual eyes. True to character, He then assures them that He is being hard on them because He loves them.

He gives us a picture of Him standing at the door of our heart knocking, if we let Him in, He will give us spiritual food and share its true meaning with us. And He finishes by promising that the over-comer will sit with Him on His throne.)

There you have it church. Heed these seven letters and you will overcome. You will eat of the tree of life and live forever. You will be given a new name – a fitting and highly honorable name. You will be given heavenly garments, acknowledged as prominent citizens of the New Jerusalem, and you will sit with Jesus on His throne and reign with Him.

© Sylvia Huffnagle

The Word of God

This is for all those who believe or were told that God is overlooking sin because of the blood. Read this very carefully. God tells us all through the Bible that He is doing away with sin and the sinner. If you don’t get rid of sin by repenting of it now, God will deal with you as He says here:

Rev: 19:1-6: And after these things I heard a great voice of much people in heaven, saying, Alleluia; Salvation, and glory, and honour, and power, unto the Lord our God: For true and righteous are his judgments: for he hath judged the great whore, which did corrupt the earth with her fornication, and hath avenged the blood of his servants at her hand: And again they said, Alleluia. And her smoke rose up for ever and ever. And the four and twenty elders and the four beasts fell down and worshipped God that sat on the throne, saying, Amen; Alleluia. And a voice came out of the throne, saying, Praise our God, all ye his servants, and ye that fear him, both small and great. And I heard as it were the voice of a great multitude, and as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of mighty thunderings, saying, Alleluia: for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth.

7-10: Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready. And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints. And he saith unto me, Write, Blessed are they which are called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb. And he saith unto me, These are the true sayings of God. And I fell at his feet to worship him. And he said unto me, See thou do it not: I am thy fellow-servant, and of thy brethren that have the testimony of Jesus: worship God: for the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.

11-16: And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war. His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself. And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his name is called The Word of God. And the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean. And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.

17-21: And I saw an angel standing in the sun; and he cried with a loud voice, saying to all the fowls that fly in the midst of heaven, Come and gather yourselves together unto the supper of the great God; That ye may eat the flesh of kings, and the flesh of captains, and the flesh of mighty men, and the flesh of horses, and of them that sit on them, and the flesh of all men, both free and bond, both small and great. And I saw the beast, and the kings of the earth, and their armies, gathered together to make war against him that sat on the horse, and against his army. And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of the beast, and them that worshipped his image. These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone. And the remnant were slain with the sword of him that sat upon the horse, which sword proceeded out of his mouth: and all the fowls were filled with their flesh.

© Sylvia Huffnagle

Woe to the Foolish Prophets

Ezek: 13:1-2: And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, 2: Son of man, prophesy against the prophets of Israel that prophesy, and say thou unto them that prophesy out of their own hearts,

(The foolish prophets I have in mind in this paper are those who address the church, but are speaking out of their own heart and understanding rather than from the written word and God’s Spirit. This article is intended to show the difference between God’s message and the dreamer.)

3-5: Hear ye the word of the LORD; 3: Thus saith the Lord GOD; Woe unto the foolish prophets, that follow their own spirit, and have seen nothing! 4: O Israel, thy prophets are like the foxes in the deserts. 5: Ye have not gone up into the gaps, neither made up the hedge for the house of Israel to stand in the battle in the day of the LORD.

(The first thing the false prophets don’t do, which causes them to perceive God’s message wrongly, is that they are blind to the fact that the people don’t have on the full armor of God, yet they assure them that they are safe. God hates this. No one is safe unless they have on the full armor of God.)

6-9: They have seen vanity and lying divination, saying, The LORD saith: and the LORD hath not sent them: and they have made others to hope that they would confirm the word. 7: Have ye not seen a vain vision, and have ye not spoken a lying divination, whereas ye say, The LORD saith it; albeit I have not spoken? 8: Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Because ye have spoken vanity, and seen lies, therefore, behold, I am against you, saith the Lord GOD. 9: And mine hand shall be upon the prophets that see vanity, and that divine lies: they shall not be in the assembly of my people, neither shall they be written in the writing of the house of Israel, neither shall they enter into the land of Israel; and ye shall know that I am the Lord GOD.

(God is saying here, that because the teachers and preachers are not telling it like it is, they and all the people will not be able to go forward with Him. They will stay the same – not poured from one vessel to another. See what happened to Moab: Jer: 48:7-12: For because thou hast trusted in thy works and in thy treasures, thou shalt also be taken: and Chemosh shall go forth into captivity with his priests and his princes together. 8: And the spoiler shall come upon every city, and no city shall escape: the valley also shall perish, and the plain shall be destroyed, as the LORD hath spoken. 9: Give wings unto Moab, that it may flee and get away: for the cities thereof shall be desolate, without any to dwell therein. 10: Cursed be he that doeth the work of the LORD deceitfully, and cursed be he that keepeth back his sword from blood. 11: Moab hath been at ease from his youth, and he hath settled on his lees, and hath not been emptied from vessel to vessel, neither hath he gone into captivity: therefore his taste remained in him, and his scent is not changed. 12: Therefore, behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will send unto him wanderers, that shall cause him to wander, and shall empty his vessels, and break their bottles.)

10-16: Because, even because they have seduced my people, saying, Peace; and there was no peace; and one built up a wall, and, lo, others daubed it with untempered morter: 11: Say unto them which daub it with untempered morter, that it shall fall: there shall be an overflowing shower; and ye, O great hailstones, shall fall; and a stormy wind shall rend it. 12: Lo, when the wall is fallen, shall it not be said unto you, Where is the daubing wherewith ye have daubed it? 13: Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; I will even rend it with a stormy wind in my fury; and there shall be an overflowing shower in mine anger, and great hailstones in my fury to consume it. 14: So will I break down the wall that ye have daubed with untempered morter, and bring it down to the ground, so that the foundation thereof shall be discovered, and it shall fall, and ye shall be consumed in the midst thereof: and ye shall know that I am the LORD. 15: Thus will I accomplish my wrath upon the wall, and upon them that have daubed it with untempered morter, and will say unto you, The wall is no more, neither they that daubed it; 16: To wit, the prophets of Israel which prophesy concerning Jerusalem, and which see visions of peace for her, and there is no peace, saith the Lord GOD.

(Notice that God calls it seducing His people when speakers assure them that it is well with them when it is not. People look at me funny when I call a spade a spade these days. People are used to beating around the bush and mellowing everything. He calls it building with weak materials. He is angry because His children’s houses are not ready for the storm.

Note what Jesus said in Matt: 7:24-28: Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock: 25: And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock. 26: And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand: 27: And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it. 28: And it came to pass, when Jesus had ended these sayings, the people were astonished at his doctrine:

Here again, today the people are being assured of their well-being, yet they are not doing what Jesus taught.) 17-23: Likewise, thou son of man, set thy face against the daughters of thy people, which prophesy out of their own heart; and prophesy thou against them, 18: And say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Woe to the women that sew pillows to all armholes, and make kerchiefs upon the head of every stature to hunt souls! Will ye hunt the souls of my people, and will ye save the souls alive that come unto you? 19: And will ye pollute me among my people for handfuls of barley and for pieces of bread, to slay the souls that should not die, and to save the souls alive that should not live, by your lying to my people that hear your lies? 20: Wherefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against your pillows, wherewith ye there hunt the souls to make them fly, and I will tear them from your arms, and will let the souls go, even the souls that ye hunt to make them fly. 21: Your kerchiefs also will I tear, and deliver my people out of your hand, and they shall be no more in your hand to be hunted; and ye shall know that I am the LORD. 22: Because with lies ye have made the heart of the righteous sad, whom I have not made sad; and strengthened the hands of the wicked, that he should not return from his wicked way, by promising him life: 23: Therefore ye shall see no more vanity, nor divine divinations: for I will deliver my people out of your hand: and ye shall know that I am the LORD.

(How does this apply to today? The pillows and kerchiefs imply the use of magic and there’s a lot of that going on as well as Christians paying attention to the Zodiac simply because they are not being taught that God hates divination. But I’m going to address the wily ways in which the gospel is presented in many cases today. Often people are told that all they have to do is what it says in Rom: 10:9-10 and they will be saved or they take John 3:16 and tell people that that is all there is to it in order to be saved.)

Let’s look at these verses:

Rom: 10: 9-10: That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. 10: For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.

John 3:16: For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

(They tell people these things and then make the people who are proclaiming all of God’s word the bad guys. You know – Bible-thumpers – long-nosed finger pointers – legalist – super-Christians.

That’s how they are making the righteous sad and strengthening the arm of the wicked.

Those two verses are true, but they must be taken in context with all of scripture and therefore the truth is that if you believe Jesus is the Son of God and confess Him as Lord, you will act like it – if He is Lord, you will listen to what He teaches. If He has saved you – you have His Spirit living within you and you live your life led by it. Rom: 8

Back to what God is saying here in Ezekiel, why is God so angry? Because when the gospel is mishandled, people only pay attention to some of what God has taught and therefore they are not equipped to overcome. When they do not overcome, they take others down with them and the number who are hurt by this practice or lack of it multiplies as fast as rabbits do. All the ills of the church and America can be traced to this mishandling of the gospel. God has given Christians everything they need to overcome. Church should be the place where they share every word of God and see that the people are fully equipped to overcome and to help others overcome.)

Matt: 4:3-4: And when the tempter came to him, he said, If thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread. 4: But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.

2Cor: 2:17: For we are not as many, which corrupt the word of God: but as of sincerity, but as of God, in the sight of God speak we in Christ.

2Cor: 4:2: But have renounced the hidden things of dishonesty, not walking in craftiness, nor handling the word of God deceitfully; but by manifestation of the truth commending ourselves to every man’s conscience in the sight of God.

© Sylvia Huffnagle