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"Take
Heed" Ministries
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Cecil Andrews, PO BOX 13, Ballynahinch, BT24 8AL, Northern Ireland. Telephone/Fax 028 9756 5511. E-MAIL - takeheed@aol.com WEBSITE - http://www.takeheed.net |
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NEWS
FROM THE FRONT
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SEPTEMBER 2002
"Be not afraid or dismayed by reason of this great multitude for the battle is not yours but God's" (2nd Chronicles 20v15)
Dear
praying friends,
From
time to time I am asked about the need for the ministry of “Take Heed”.
Earlier this year I was sent, by way of encouragement from a brother in Christ
the
following ‘daily devotional’ and I would like to share it with you and may it encourage
us all to be on our guard and to “Take Heed”.
Your servant for Christ
CECIL ANDREWS
MEMBERS
OF PARLIAMENT
As you know
from the ‘Creation Appeal’ insert with our June newsletter, we sent in May,
a copy of the video ‘A Question of Origins’, featuring Roger Oakland
as presenter, to all 659 Members of Parliament.
Let me first
say a sincere ‘thank you’ to the many who so generously responded to
this appeal. The overall costs were more than covered and as a result we were
able to send gifts [representing the surplus donated] to both the video ministry
who sacrificially helped with this appeal and also to our brothers and sisters
in Christ, in Bayou Du Large Baptist Church in Louisiana, to help them with
the refurbishment of their recently returned Church building. I had a phone
call from the principal of the video ministry asking me to convey sincere
thanks to those who supported the appeal and informing me that the gift [£400]
would help towards the purchase of much needed duplicating equipment.
I also had a lovely telephone conversation with
Pastor Jerry Moser in Louisiana and he told me how surprised and thrilled
the Church there had been when the gift [$600] arrived with them They have
been truly amazed at the unexpected sources of provision that the Lord is
using to meet their needs and again Jerry wanted all those who supported the
appeal to be aware of just how much this kindness had meant to them.
‘Feedback’ from MP’s in relation to the video
has been minimal.
In total
there were 4 personal written responses.
A standard
printed card ‘acknowledgment with thanks’
was received
from John Healey [Labour – Wentworth].
The following
letter was received from
Boris Johnston
[Conservative – Henley]
Dear Mr Andrews,
Thank you for your letter and for sending me a copy
of the video A Question of Origins. You are quite right in identifying
the controversy, which surrounds to the long-standing debate between those
who believe in biblical creation and supporters of the theory of evolution.
I believe this debate to be another part of a wider agenda which seeks to
replace the Judeo Christian beliefs that underpin society with secularism,
a product of political correctness and in my view with little to offer any
of us. Thank you for writing. Best wishes.
BORIS JOHNSON MP.
Dear Cecil
Thank you very much for your recent letter and the
enclosed video in relation to the scientific case for ‘creation’. I appreciate
you taking the time to write to me. Best Wishes
NIGEL DODDS MP
Nigel also
added a personalised ‘PS’ of encouragement.
The one ‘dissenter’
who put pen to paper was
Elliot Morley
[Labour –
Dear Mr Andrews
There is no scientific case for creation and it is
quite wrong that children should be taught something in school, which is
not true. Yours sincerely
ELLIOT MORLEY MP
On 23 July I wrote to Mr Morley
Dear Mr Morley
As MP’s will shortly be recessing for their summer
holidays I am sending on herewith, with my compliments, a copy of the book
‘The Evidence For Creation’ in the hope that perhaps you like me take the
opportunity of using a summer holiday to catch up on some reading. I did
by the way very much appreciate you taking time to write to me in the wake
of receipt of the video we sent to you [even though your comments were what
might be described as ‘negative’]. Have a good break. Yours sincerely. CECIL
ANDREWS
In addition
to these ‘personalised’ responses I also received a letter from the ‘Department
for Education and Skills’ in
‘With regard to creationism and evolution, I can assure you that pupils do learn about evolution and creationism within Science and Religious education lessons. They explore the nature and meanings of the Genesis creation stories, creationists and others learn about some of the main ideas in the bib bang and evolution theories, such as how life progressed and how mankind came to be on earth. Through a balanced study of each theory, pupils can make informed judgments and independent decisions about these issues. Creationism is but one of many differing and often conflicting beliefs which pupils might discuss and consider. This is an essential part of enabling young people to develop their own mature and informed views on moral and ethical issues to become responsible and active citizens’.
That all sounds very fair and balanced but to my readers I
ask - has that been your experience? And if this really is the position why
was there all the fuss and outcry from ‘scientists, philosophers and church
leaders’ as detailed in The Independent newspaper report that I
referred to in my last newsletter [page 4]. Clearly this ‘fair and balanced’
line would also obviously find no favour with ELLIOT MORLEY MP.
In conclusion, perhaps humanly speaking it might have been nice to receive greater ‘feedback’ from more MP’s but I am content to leave this matter in the hands of the Lord and I would ask for your ongoing prayers that these videos will be used for the glory of our
Lord Jesus Christ – the One concerning whom Paul wrote
“by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that
are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions,
or principalities’ or powers – all things were created by him and for him”
Colossians 1:16
SPURGEON’S CHILD CARE
And ROMAN CATHOLICISM
Since
June of last year it has been sad to report in various newsletters the ecumenical
compromise of organisations such as ‘Spurgeon’s College’, ‘Scripture Union’
and Scripture Gift Mission’. Yet again it has been regrettable
to see the name of Spurgeon once more linked in ecumenical compromise
with Roman Catholicism – this time through the organisation known as ‘Spurgeon’s
Child Care’. A concerned Pastor friend wrote to them towards the end of
last year concerning their ‘Christmas Appeal’ and this is the reply
he received –
Thank you for your
letter dated 15th November about our Christmas Appeal. I am interested
that you picked up the quotation from Diane quoting Mother Theresa but did
not mention the biblical quote on
page 2, which came
before it.
I cannot comment on
your views on Roman Catholics for the organisation. However within one small
office at Head Office we have a Baptist, an Anglican and a Roman Catholic
working in perfect harmony. To me, the most important things they have in
common are their love of OUR [emphasis
mine] Lord and their commitment to the work of Spurgeon’s Child Care.
We carry on the work
of our founder Charles Haddon Spurgeon, by demonstrating Christian love
in a very practical way.
Yours sincerely
Marilyn Willis
Public Relations Manager
PS On a personal note,
I am to be ordained in the Anglican church in July 2002, but have a Baptist
tutor and work for a Baptist organisation.
Let me once more quote Spurgeon from January 1873
‘The sooner we let Archbishops and Cardinals know that we are aware of their designs and WILL IN NOTHING [Christian] co-operate with them the better for us and our country. Of course we shall be howled at as bigots, but we can afford to smile at that cry, when it comes from the church, which invented the Inquisition. “No Peace with Rome” is the motto of reason as well as of religion’.
TRINITARIAN
BIBLE SOCIETY
In
the light of the ecumenical compromise of a growing number of organisations
that were formerly perceived as ‘evangelical’ perhaps I could COMMEND the
work of the Trintarian Bible Society.
The
aims of the Society are stated as follows
To publish and
distribute the Holy Scriptures
throughout the
world in many languages.
To promote Bible
translations
which are accurate
and trustworthy.
To be instrumental
in bringing light and life,
through the gospel
of Christ,
to those who are
lost in sin and in the darkness
of false religion
and unbelief.
To uphold the
doctrines of reformed Christianity,
the bearing witness
to the equal and eternal deity of
God the Father,
God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,
three persons
in One God.
To uphold the
Bible as the inspired, inerrant Word of God.
Contact
addresses are
Rev T Kirkland 5 Greenwood Avenue, Ballyclare,
BT39 9PN
TBS, Tyndale House, Dorset Road, London,
SW19 3NN, England
TBS, 1600 Leonard Street, NW, Grand Rapids,
MI49504, USA
TBS, 259-7610 Evans Road, Chilliwack, BC,
V2R 2 Z5, Canada
TBS, PO Box 123, Mt Pleasant 2749, NSW,
Australia
Their annual report for the year ended 31 December
2001 contains a most interesting and enlightening report [pages 13-16] on
how ‘political correctness’ and ‘gender-inclusive’ terminology is influencing
and being incorporated into a number of recent bible translations and cites
the difficulties caused by such action.
INTERNET EXCHANGES
Following
my comments on the Roman Catholic ‘trinity’ in the article on Scripture Gift
Mission in my June newsletter [pages 15-16] the guest book of our ministry
on the Internet web site suddenly sprang to life with lots of ecumenists,
apologists and spokespersons for Rome challenging my comments and that in
turn led to other issues being openly debated.
I thought
I would just share some very limited extracts from some of the exchanges that
took place as we sought to faithfully
‘earnestly contend for the faith’ [Jude 3]
9 July - ‘Father’
Bernard Savage wrote
Cecil
Andrews has clearly missed, if not avoided, the point of my argument in respect
to the Trinity. As I already pointed out, it was a ROMAN CATHOLIC POPE (do
I have to emphasise), surrounded by ROMAN CATHOLIC BISHOPS who affirmed and
subsequently promulgated the doctrine of THE TRINITY.
10
July - Cecil Andrews wrote
In
response to Mr Savage it is actually he who has ‘missed the point’ concerning
the truth of the Trinity – this is a truth revealed to people by God in His
Word,
the Scriptures alone, which are truth [John 17:17].
On
the back cover of a helpful book by E Calvin Beisner called
‘God
in Three Persons’
Josh
McDowell wrote the following
‘This
book should put to rest forever the allegations that the
doctrine
of the Trinity is the invention of
fourth-century theologians
11 July -
William Simms wrote
A
few observations, Mr Andrews, this is just my opinion. I have been to one
of your debates and have read your writings in the papers and on your Internet
site. I find your attitude to our fellow Christians in the Roman Catholic
tradition quite staggering. My impression of you is that you are a very angry
man trying to be polite and nice, but your anger leaks out all the time. Your
views about Catholics simply do not tally with reality as I know many devout
Catholics and am deeply impressed by their love for the Lord. Who are you
to judge? You come across as sanctimonious, self-satisfied, self-righteous,
judgemental, arrogant, irascible and unreasonable. Let me emphasise this is
how I perceive you - I leave your judgement of course with the Lord.
When is a
judgment not a judgment? – when it
is merely the ‘opinion’ of Mr Simms
We
all need to cultivate the virtue of humility. I'm certainly far from perfect
myself. I have read all the anti-Catholic works. I don't agree with many things
in Catholicism but I try to humbly listen and understand.
12
July – Cecil Andrews wrote
Mr
Simms states in his email 'I don't agree with many things in Catholicism'
- I'm sure readers of this guest book, both Roman Catholic and Protestant,
would be interested to learn from Mr Simms which are the 5 most important
matters that he doesn't agree with in Roman Catholicism and I would invite
him to publicly list them for our consideration.
I’m still
humbly and patiently waiting for a response from Mr Simms
15
July -‘Father’ Patrick McCafferty wrote
The
Mass is indeed one and the same Sacrifice with Calvary.
Yet
on 10 July – Cecil Andrews wrote
So
Rome teaches that Calvary and the Mass ‘are one single sacrifice’.
At Calvary, Christ died sacrificially, but apparently in the sacrifice of
the Mass Christ does not die so how can these be ‘one single sacrifice’? [To
further confuse the issue the Council of Trent says that in this sacrifice
Christ is IMMOLATED – Session 22; Chapter 2 and the Collins Gem Dictionary
Definition of Immolate is kill, sacrifice]
At Calvary, Christ offered Himself, [see Hebrews 9:14] but in the Mass
He is offered by priests so how can these be ‘one single sacrifice’? At Calvary,
Christ offered Himself in a bloody sacrifice, [see 1 Peter 1:18-19] but in
the Mass He is offered in an unbloody manner so how can these be ‘one single
sacrifice’?
There were quite a number of exchanges between ‘Father’ McCafferty and
myself
and the following extracts of replies from myself should I hope be self-explanatory
In response to Patrick McCafferty, the Bible teaches that 'The Kingdom
of Heaven' will only be inhabited by Christians - see Matthew 25:24 when the
Lord says to 'the wheat' "Come ye blessed of my Father inherit the Kingdom
prepared for you from the foundation of the world". At the start of the parable in Matthew 13 when
the Lord says "The Kingdom of heaven is like etc" He is not talking
of its 'composition' [ie being made up of 'wheat' and 'tares'] but He is talking
of its 'construction' ie the battle between the seeds of truth and error during
the 'gospel age' and the lesson is that only those in 'the truth' eventually
enter it as they are truly in 'God's Family’ ["the good seed {ie 'the
wheat'} are the children of the Kingdom" - see verse 38]. Is Patrick really serious when he refers to
Matthew 7:21-23 and teaches that some people ['tares'- who are actually the
offspring of "the wicked one" - see verse 38 who are "of their
father, the devil" - see John 8:44]] are presently part of 'God's Family' who will then
later be told "Depart from me I never knew you". 'Never' is 'never'
so they were 'never' part of 'God's Family'.
Patrick McCafferty wrote 'The Catholic Church teaches the possibility
of salvation for all human beings - including those who, through no fault
of their own, never heard the Good News of Christ' - please note that this
is the teaching of the Roman Catholic Church. God's Word, the Bible teaches concerning salvation
and the Lord Jesus Christ "Neither is there salvation in any other, for
there is none other name under heaven given among men whereby we must be saved"
[Peter - Acts 4:12]. The Lord Himself said "no man cometh unto the Father
but by me" [John 14:6]. Paul wrote, "For there is one God and one
mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus" [1 Timothy 2:5].
In Luke 13:24 the Lord Himself said "Strive to enter in at the
strait gate: for many I say will seek to enter in, and shall not be able".
According to the Lord Himself the way of salvation is "strait" which
means, "narrow" and "few there be that find it" [see Matthew
7:14]. It is "strait" because it will not admit those who know not
Christ for He Himself said "I am the door: BY ME if any man enter in
he shall be saved" [John 10:9]. He also said, "I am the way"
- there is no other way to the Father apart from Christ. As Bishop Ryle wrote
'All that are ever saved, will be saved only by Christ, and only through simple
faith in him'. Paul wrote, "For whosoever shall call upon the name of
the Lord shall be saved. How then shall they call on him in whom they have
not believed? And how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard?"
[Romans 10:13-14]. Here we have 2 conflicting
teachings on 'salvation' - those of the Roman Catholic church and those of
God's Word, the Bible - it is for readers to prayerfully decide who they will
believe on this issue of 'salvation' and also to decide who they believe constitute,
in today's professing Christian world, the "many" and the "few"
Patrick McCafferty
writes - 'Mr.
Andrews and the others are constantly pointing the accusing finger at the
Catholic Church. It would never occur to them to go and look at the multiplicity
of sects and denominations within Protestantism'. Those familiar with and informed about the ministry
of 'Take Heed' will immediately recognise how inaccurate this statement by
Patrick is. A large amount of our time has been devoted to challenging practical
and doctrinal error emanating from 'Protestant' sources. Several examples
would be the so-called 'Toronto Blessing', the ongoing promotion of the teachings
of the heretical William Branham ['oneness', 'serpent seed' errors etc] and
the heresies of the so-called 'Health & Wealth' preachers like Kenneth
Copeland. In addition we are engaged
in seeking to counter the errors of other major influential cults like the
Mormons and the Jehovah's Witnesses. Patrick's statement 'It would never occur to
them' [ie to 'Take Heed' Ministries] is an error of judgment on his part.
As I said earlier these
have been very ‘limited’ extracts from the matters
we have responded to but
one thing I can assure readers of is this –
The Roman Catholic ‘spirit
of the inquisition’ is still very much alive!
If you have Internet access
please visit our web site on a new address
www.takeheed.net and
browse the guest book entries from early July
The
Christian’s ‘INHERITANCE’ and ‘REWARDS’
Newspaper articles and ‘Take Heed’ Ministry guest book entries
penned by local priest Patrick McCafferty have prompted this article.
‘INHERITANCE’
God’s Word,
the Bible, teaches that every ‘born again’ child of God receives an ‘inheritance’.
Currently the fullness of this ‘inheritance’ is “reserved in
heaven” [1 Peter 1:4]. However,
at the moment of being ‘born again’ the child of God receives an “earnest
of their inheritance” [Ephesians 1:14]. The “earnest” for the Christian is, according
to Vine’s Expository Dictionary, ‘the Holy Spirit” who is given to
them ‘as the divine pledge of all their future blessedness’.
When Adam
sinned, the divinely promised judgment of “death” [see Genesis
2:17] became a reality, not only for him, but also for all his posterity.
This state of “death” meant that Adam and his posterity could be physically
alive but spiritually “dead” which meant being separated from communion
with God and this state was symbolised by Adam being evicted from the Garden
of Eden [see Genesis 4:23-24].
Since the
time of the fall of man, man has naturally been born into this state of “death”.
Paul speaks of people who were physically alive yet spiritually “dead
in trespasses and sins” [Ephesians 2:1]. By nature, man is not in communion
with God. The Lord Jesus declared that when someone becomes a ‘believer’
that person “is passed from death unto life” [John 5:24]. This
means that they have been resurrected spiritually which explains what Jesus
said in John 5:25 “The hour is coming AND NOW IS when the dead [those
physically alive, but spiritually dead] shall hear the voice of the Son
of God and they that hear shall live” [spiritually resurrected through
the preaching of the gospel. Paul says in 1 Corinthians 1:21”it pleased
God through the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe”].
God’s “earnest”,
His divine ‘down payment’ of this spiritual life is His gift of the Holy
Spirit to everyone ‘born again’. Paul speaks of believers being “sealed
with that Holy Spirit of promise” [Ephesians 1:13]. On the day of Pentecost
Peter preached that every believer receives “the gift of the Holy Spirit”
[Acts 2:38]. This new spiritual life is called by the Lord Himself “eternal
life”. He said in John 10:27-30 “My sheep hear my voice and I know
them and they follow me. And I give unto them ETERNAL LIFE and they shall
never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. My Father who
gave them to me is greater than all and no man is able to pluck them out of
my Father’s hand. I and my Father are one”.
Believers
in this life possess “eternal life” – a restored ‘measure’ of communion
with God, which is obviously limited and restricted by the constraints of
this mortal existence but the ‘good news’ is that the full, eternal ‘measure’
of intimate communion with God is “reserved in heaven” [1 Peter 1:4]. No
wonder Paul wrote that “for me to live is Christ and to die is gain” [Philippians
1:21].
An ‘INHERITANCE’
is something given to someone. It is something that they did not work
for or ‘go to war’ for. It is something bequeathed to a person by someone
who has died. An ‘INHERITANCE’ is a gift received as a result of someone
else’s labours and death. Present restoration of and the assured possession
of eternal communion with God is for every believer based ALONE on the life
and death of their Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ. It is His sinless life
and His substitutionary sufferings ALONE that form the grounds on which every
believer receives the gift of “eternal life”. A true ‘born again’ believer’s
work and conduct here on earth has no bearing upon their ‘INHERITANCE’.
In Hebrews
9:12 we read of Christ “having obtained eternal redemption for us”
and in verse 15 we read “that by means of death [the death
of Christ]…they who are called might receive the promise of eternal inheritance”.
When Christ spoke in John 11:25-26, although He was assuring Martha
of the assured resurrection of the physical body, He clearly had this ‘INHERITANCE’
of spiritual “eternal life” also in mind when He said “I am
the resurrection and the life; he that believeth in me, though he were dead,
yet shall he live. And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die”.
The most
precious aspect of the believer’s ‘INHERITANCE’ will be the Lord Jesus
Christ Himself – no wonder the Psalmist wrote
“The Lord is the portion of mine inheritance”
[Psalm 16:5]. Commenting on this verse, C H Spurgeon wrote
‘We
too can make our boast in the Lord; He is the meat and drink of our souls.
He is our portion supplying all our necessities and our cup yielding royal
luxuries; our cup is this life and our inheritance in the life to come. As
children of the Father who is in heaven, we inherit by virtue of our joint
heirship with Jesus, all the riches of the covenant of grace; and the portion
which falls to us sets upon our table the bread of heaven and the new wine
of the kingdom. Who would not be satisfied with such dainty diet?’
When Paul
considered the marvel of his new life in Christ and that would have included
consideration of his ‘INHERITANCE’, no wonder he declared in
Galatians 6:14 “God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our
Lord Jesus Christ” – he recognised that at Calvary his ‘INHERITANCE’,
his “eternal life”, was worked for and won by Christ ALONE.
Just as the
promise of an ‘INHERITANCE’ [“eternal life”] based ALONE on the finished
work of Christ at Calvary, is given to every ‘born again’ believer,
who is now no longer “in Adam” but is “in Christ” [1 Corinthians
15:22], so the prospect of heavenly ‘REWARDS’, based ALONE on their
work for Christ, is set before every faithful ‘born again’ believer
who is “in Christ”.
Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 3:12-15 “Now if any man build upon this foundation
gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble; Every man's work shall be
made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed
by fire; and the fire shall try every man's work of what sort it is.
If any man's work abide which he hath built thereupon, he
shall receive a reward. If any man's work
shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet
so as by fire”.
Paul is talking about ‘born again’ believers, particularly
those charged with the responsibility of preaching the gospel, who “build upon this
foundation” – he is talking
about believers who by their work for Christ build upon the
“foundation” of the finished work of Christ.
This is why Paul basically said [verse 11] that before a saved believer
can work for Christ, that believer must be relying ALONE on the finished work
of Christ for their salvation – “other foundation can no man lay than that
is laid, which is Jesus Christ”.
In verse 14 he states, “if any man’s work abide
[a heavenly testing of “fire” identified in verse 13] which
he hath built upon it [built upon the “foundation” of Christ’s
work] he shall receive a REWARD”. This reward cannot be ‘salvation’
for a faithful workman must already be in possession of that great blessing.
Only the work of those already ‘born again’ and consequently in receipt of
that “that Holy
Spirit of promise” [Ephesians 1:13] is pleasing to God and worthy of ‘REWARD’. Remember
that Paul wrote in Romans 8: 8 “they that are in the flesh [those who
are not indwelt by the Holy Spirit] cannot please God” and in verse
9 he adds, “if any man have not the Spirit of Christ he is none of
his”
In verse 15 if a believer’s work fails the heavenly
test of “fire” and is “burned” the consequence is “he shall
suffer loss” - in other words he will miss out on receiving a ‘REWARD’.
However, irrespective of the record of their work, whether
good or bad, their ‘INHERITANCE’ is assured by the words of verse
15 when Paul writes “he himself shall be saved yet as by fire” –
the reason the ‘INHERITANCE’ is assured is because it is guaranteed
by the finished work of Christ and not by the work of
the believer.
As I said at the start of this article, it was prompted
by the public teaching in newspaper articles and entries in our ministry guest
book
of local Roman
Catholic priest, Patrick McCafferty, that the
Lord’s parable in Matthew 25:31-46 teaches that
‘Those who will be
saved are those who served Jesus in the poor and needy. The acid test
of a true child of God is this love in action - not what people say - not
denouncing others - the Last Judgement will NOT be a Theology exam’
[entry
posted by Patrick in the ‘Take Heed’ Ministry guest book on 24 July 2002].
In
this parable, having placed “the sheep on his right hand, but the goats
on the left” [verse 33] we read in verse 34 “Then shall the King say
unto them on his right hand, Come ye blessed of my Father, INHERIT the kingdom
prepared for you from the foundation of the world”.
As
already explained, an ‘INHERITANCE’ is based upon the work and death
of another and here this ‘INHERITANCE’, entrance into the Kingdom of
God, is secured ALONE by the work at Calvary of Christ, described in
Revelation 13:8 as “the lamb slain from the foundation of the world”.
It
was God’s eternal purpose to grant as an ‘INHERITANCE’ “eternal life” to
those “redeemed… with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without
blemish and without spot, who verily was foreordained before the foundation
of the world” [1 Peter 1:18-20]. On the Day of Pentecost Peter told the
“men of Israel” of Christ “being delivered by the determinate counsel
and foreknowledge of God” and told how they took him “and by wicked
hands have crucified and slain” him [Acts 2:22-23].
Returning
to the parable “the King” goes on then to refer to acts of charity
and kindness carried out by “the sheep” and refers to them as having
been done unto Him. When questioned by “the sheep” about this “the
King” explains that when a kindly act was done “unto one of the
least of these, my brethren” in reality it was “done
unto me” [verses 35-40].
These
kindly acts were evidence that these were truly the good shepherd’s
“sheep” and constituted those of whom Christ spoke when He said
in Luke 12:32 “Fear not little flock, it is your Father’s good pleasure
to give you the kingdom”. The gift of entrance into the Kingdom of God
is an ‘INHERITANCE’ based upon the redeeming work of Christ ALONE and
evidenced in the life of true ‘born again’ believers by their kindly acts
to Christ’s “brethren”.
These
kindly acts will in turn earn a ‘REWARD’ in [not ‘of’] the Kingdom
of God. In Matthew 10:40 the Lord says “He that receiveth you [a
disciple of The Lord – see verse 24] receiveth me” and in verse
42 the Lord says that “whosoever shall give to drink unto one of
these little ones [“one of the least of these my brethren” Matthew 25:40]
a cup of cold water only in the name of a disciple [and consequently
in the name of the Lord Himself] verily I say unto you, he shall in
no way lose his REWARD’.
Returning
once more to the parable, the absence of kindly works done to Christ’s “brethren”
by the “goats” – “in as much as ye did it not to one of the
least of these [‘my brethren’] ye did it not to me” [verse 45] was
evidence that this group were never the Lord’s “sheep” and so had no
part in the ‘INHERITANCE’ secured by His redeeming work at Calvary.
Patrick McCafferty wrote
‘Those who will be
saved are those who
served Jesus in the poor and needy’.
This parable does not
teach that. Rather it teaches
[1]
That those who are truly saved, INHERIT the Kingdom of God [because
of Christ’s life and death ALONE] and
[2]
That the evidence of being a true child of God will manifest itself
in kindly acts to fellow believers and
[3] That when read in the light of Matthew
10:40-42 these kindly acts will themselves attract a REWARD in
[not ‘of’] the Kingdom of God.
Following the horrors of last
September 11, George Bush organised a ‘Coalition Against Terror’ and
it is becoming ever more evident that where the truth of the gospel of the
Lord Jesus Christ is concerned, the devil is busy organising his own ‘Coalition
Against Truth’ and this is forming the nucleus of ‘The Religion of
Antichrist’. Fellow ‘contenders’ such as Rob Zins and Roger Oakland have
I believe identified how this ‘Coalition Against Truth’ is taking shape
before our very eyes. In an article entitled ‘Wrong On Both Ends’ Rob
Zins astutely shows how Rome now operates since they have fully entered into
ecumenical dialogue. They head up a religious coalition that declares a false
Christian faith and also defends non-Christian faiths – hence they are ‘Wrong
On Both Ends’.
If
you would like a copy of this article please contact me
Then, Roger Oakland, in his
latest book entitled ‘New Wine and the Babylonian Vine’ [available
from us – price £5.50 includes p&p]
writes on page 109
‘Even the most casual observer
of current events can see there is a major shift going on today in the arena
of religious discussion. While [professing] Christians are busily redefining
what it means to be Christian, other world religions are expanding their boundaries
in order to embrace the new Christian that is being redefined. As we begin
a new millennium there seems to be an organised effort uniting the religions
of the world in a common hope that global peace can be attained here on earth’.
Just consider these headlines
from the Roman Catholic Zenit news service
VATICAN CITY, JUNE 20, 2002 (Zenit.org).- Christian, Buddhist, Muslim and Jewish religious leaders
met here last week to study ways of promoting collaboration in the wake
of January’s Day of Prayer for Peace, held in Assisi.
ROME,
JULY 16, 2002 (Zenit.org).- With an eye toward addressing the problems of terrorism, poverty
and globalization, about 350 Jewish, Muslim and Christian religious and
lay leaders will meet in Sicily later this summer… The upcoming meeting in Sicily may also be important
for ecumenism. The Orthodox patriarchates of Moscow and Constantinople have
confirmed they will send representatives. Ishmael Noko, secretary-general of the World Lutheran Federation, and Suday
C. Mbang, President of the World Methodist Council, will attend the meeting,
as will dozens of bishops and more
than 10 cardinals. Rabbi Rene Samuel Sirat, president
of the Conference of European Rabbis, will address the opening session.
Muslim representatives will
include Iranian
Ayatollah Mohammed Ali Taskhiri
and Burundian President Pierre Buyoya.
Sicily being ‘Mafia-land’ there are no prizes for spotting the ‘God-Father’