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THIS WEEKEND: Many of the
most celebrated artists live within a couple of miles of Mt. Celo Church off of 80 S, a State Scenic Highway leading up to
the National Scenic Highway and America’s Favorite Drive, the Blue Ridge
Parkway. Many of the artists on the
tour are internationally acclaimed.
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My Meditations on Today’s Readings
(Ellipses are mine
and used for contemplation.)
Key Words/Phrases: his heart lifted up with success and
riches; in rage against and moved
against the holy covenant; with great fury, rage and violence destroys and
annihilates many; stirs up strife; at the appointed time; shall corrupt with
flattery; shall act deceitfully; comes in peaceably and seizes by intrigue; the
power of the holy people; for You have magnified Your word above all Your name;
light vs. darkness; truth vs. lies; believers vs. deceivers; how we know that
we know Him, the anointing and the anointed
The Prophecy of God’s
Word – Daniel 11 and 12 – (Facts:
What It Says – Summarized) The North and the South rage against each
other in wars under different kings. The Antichrist and Abomination of
Desolation: 1) But in the North, “shall arise…a
vile person…to whom they will not give the honor of royalty…2) coming in peaceably…but will seize…the
kingdom…by intrigue. 3) They will be swept away…broken…before
him and also the prince of covenant.
4) After the league is made with
him…he shall deal deceitfully. 5) He
shall be moved against and rage against the covenant. 6) He
shall show regard for those who forsake the covenant. 7) They shall defile the sanctuary and take
away the daily sacrifices and place there the abomination of desolation.
8) Those who do wickedly against
the covenant…he shall corrupt…with flattery. 9) He
shall exalt and magnify himself, 10) and speak blasphemies against the God of
gods. 11) He shall neither regard the God of his fathers nor the desire of
women or any god, for he shall exalt himself above them all.
Success Amidst Horror for God’s People: BUT…1)
the
people who know their God…shall be strong…and carry out great exploits.
2) Those of the people who understand…shall instruct…many. 3) Yet…for many
days…they shall fall…by sword, flame, captivity and plundering. 4) Many shall
join them…by intrigue. 5) Some of those of understanding shall fall…to
refine…purify…make them white…to the end. The Angel of Israel and Judah:
The angel Gabriel tells Daniel that the angel of the Jews – Michael – shall
intervene to deliver his people, including the awakening of many who are dead –
“some to everlasting life and some to
everlasting shame and contempt.” Daniel does not understand: The man clothed in
linen raises his hands to heavens and swears by Him who lives forever that “it shall be for a time, times, and half a
time…and when the…power of the holy people…is shattered…all these things shall
be finished.” And Daniel concludes
the consideration of his vision: “Although I heard, I did not understand. Then I said, “My lord, what shall be the end
of these things? Gabriel replied that
they are closed up, sealed till the end of time. “Many shall be purified, made white, and refined,
but the wicked shall do wickedly; and none of the wicked shall understand, but
the wise shall understand. But you go
your way till the end; for you shall rest…and will arise…to your inheritance…at
the end of days. Principle: Only
partial understanding is given for most prophecy. Even the most “awakened”, “greatly beloved”,
“the friend of God” – even they had trouble understanding all that was given to
them by divine inspiration or revelation.
Daniel was told “to go your way
till the end” – to maintain till the end his way, his walk of faith. It was his faithful walk in obedience to God - not his understanding of prophecy - that
would lead to “his rest…to his arising to
his inheritance at the end.” So it
will be with us.
The Supremacy of
God’s Word – Psalm 138:1-3 (Facts:
What It Says – Summarized) The State of the
Psalmist – Praising God…with all his heart…singing praise…to
God…worshipping God…toward His holy temple…praising His name.
The Reason for His Praise: 1) For Your lovingkindness, 2) and Your truth 3) for You have magnified Your word above all Your name. Result of This
Divine Knowledge: “In the day when
I cried out…You answered me…and made me bold…with strength…in my soul.” Principle: The Word of God DOES embolden us…with
strength in our souls. The answer may
have been on any of several levels – strength in the midst of trouble, out of
trouble, persevering in trouble – but…he heard God, felt His lovingkindness and
discerned His truth, all because he knew the power of God’s word. His natural, soulful response: Praise.
The Keepers of God’s
Word – 1 John 2 – (Facts: What It
Says – Summarized) John and James leave little room for doubt,
misunderstanding or confusion in their epistles. Here is the narrow focus from the broad
perspective: How
we KNOW we are in Him:
“Whoever…keeps…His
word…truly, the love of God is
perfected in him. By this…we KNOW…that we are…in Him.” What happens if we sin as believers? We have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the
righteous. He Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not ours only…but
also for the whole world. What if I hate my brother? He who hates his
brother walks in darkness, and does not know where he is going because the
darkness has blinded him. He who loves
his brother abides in the light, and there is no cause for stumbling in
him. Should
I love the world? Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the Father is not
in Him. For all that is in the world –
the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life – is not of
the Father but of the world. And the
world is passing away, and the lust of it.
What abides forever? He who does the will of God abides forever.
(The word of God abides forever. 1 Peter 1:25, Psalm 119:89, Isaiah 40:8, 1
Peter 1:23) How will we know true believers?
It is the last hour. You know that the
Antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have come, by which…we
know…that it is the last hour. They went
out from us…but they were not of us; for if they had been of us…they would have
continued with us; but they went out…that they might be made manifest…that none
of them were of us. If you know that He
is righteous, you know that everyone who practices righteousness is born of
Him. Who are the anointed? But you…have an anointing from the Holy
One…and you know all things. The
anointing you have received from Him…abides…in you…teaches you…concerning all
things, and is true. I have not written
to you because you do…not…know the truth…but because you…know…it, and that no
lie is of the truth. Who is a liar but
he who denies that Jesus is the
Christ? He is antichrist…who denies…the
Father and the Son. Whoever denies the
Son does not have the Father either; he who acknowledges the Son has the Father
also. What
is the promise that He has promised us?
Eternal life. Why is this so important to know? Because there will be those who try to
deceive you. How
can I be confident and not ashamed when He comes? Abide in Him.
Principle: This is the
true circle of life: The Word in the beginning, the Word being made flesh, believers abiding in the Word - in Christ and He in us, and life eternal for those abiding in
Him, “to whom God willed to make known what is the
riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles, which is Christ in you,
the hope of glory.” Colossians 1:27 “In
the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He
was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through Him, and
apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being. In Him
was life, and the life was the Light of men. The Light shines in the darkness,
and the darkness did not comprehend it.” John 1:1-5
My Lessons and Applications: This is the reason we need to
know…study…meditate…daily on the Word of God – the entirety of Scripture – not
just a verse here and there. We must be
ready to “give a defense for the hope that is within us” (1 Peter 3:15), to be
able to “withstand deception” (1 John 3:7), to know God and love Him more and
more, "to be emboldened and strengthened in our souls by His word" (Psalm 138:3), to glorify and honor Him with our
lives. This can only be done through the
help of the Holy Spirit…at the feet of Jesus…sitting under the ministry and personal study of His
Word.
The Spirit of the Antichrist
Charles Stanley –
Life Principles Daily Bible – pg. 1472
What really matters is if our
beliefs measure up to God’s Word, or whether we’ve been taken in by the spirit
of the age – which the Bible calls the
spirit of antichrist. Although Antichrist is the Bible’s name for a specific
individual who will someday lead the earth to rebel against almighty God, antichrist also means the spirit
underlying our culture as it opposes the lordship of Jesus Christ.
The spirit of the antichrist is the willful determination to usurp the
place of God by making our own decisions and ignoring His wisdom and
sovereignty. Unfortunately, this lawless
spirit has penetrated every part of the world we live in – it fills our
universities, our businesses, and even our pulpits.
Therefore, it is vitally important that we know what we
believe and why we believe it. We must believe that the Bible is the Word of
God. We must believe Jesus is the Son of
God, deity in human flesh, and that He is the only way to salvation. We must believe that He died on the cross as
full payment for our sins, and experienced a bodily resurrection, so that we
may be forgiven and have eternal life.
We believe that the Holy Spirit indwells every believer and has sealed
us as children of God. Finally, we
believe that Jesus Christ is coming again and will take us to the eternal home
He has prepared.
If we don’t have Jesus Christ,
we have nothing. All else is vain and
empty philosophy and can only offer us death.
The opposition may seem powerful
today, and it may seem to have won the war for our culture. Yet, Christ is still Lord of all creation,
and He will have the final word. In the
meantime, you and I must know our
beliefs and know them well, so that we can communicate them to a world
hungry for truth.”
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