What the Lord’s premiere enemy began soon after His (God’s) founding of the New Testament Church in 31 A.D. has paid off supremely as this and many other series have confirmed.  As the result of her rejection of the Bible, the Serpent of Eden now controls all but a few thousand of those who profess to be God’s children.  Satan has accomplished this miracle by convincing professing Christendom to place herself under his power and leadership just as Adam and Eve had done following a conversation with him in the Garden of Eden.  As had their original parents, the backsliders in the New Testament Church gained the right of self-direction, meaning that God would do nothing to interfere with their everyday lives which they would live according to each group’s (denomination’s) rules.  The Lord’s only involvement in their lives would be to forgive them when they broke one of their own rules.  Otherwise, He would be hands-off, except when nature inflicted some negativity into their lives in the form of sickness, weather problems, wars, etc.  Then, and only then, would He interfere in their daily lives.  This theological system was embraced, first by only a few, then, with the passage of time, many more.  By the beginning of the third century, only one thing separated Satan from total control of the church–the writings of the prophets and apostles.

In order for Satan to circumvent God and take Him completely out of the picture, Satan had to nullify the only source of man’s knowledge of Him–His writings which, through His Holy Spirit, He had prompted His prophets and apostles to speak, write and preserve.  Simply stating that they were unimportant would not sit well with religious people.  The solution to the problem was to give parishioners the power to change any parts of those writings of which they did not approve.  Adam and Eve had set the perfect example when they rejected God’s Words concerning death as a result of their rebelling against His Word.  They rejected God’s warning: “you will die” and embraced the Serpent’s promise: “You shall NOT surely die.”  The rest is the sordid history of the church’s rebellion against God.  Over the generations fewer and fewer church people refused to go with the religious flow.  Today their number is so few that the two-headed monster known as “the church” sees them as reprobates–mindless hold-outs from a previous age who have no place in the more sophisticated modern church.

The warfare being waged within professing Christendom has become so much a part of modern Christianity that it goes unnoticed by those participating in it, who do not realize that their editing of God’s Word makes them His enemies.  Believing themselves to have already received eternal life, they see no reason for leaving the Catholic/Protestant Church, turning full force to God (being converted) and obeying His Word as written.  Such people do not realize that a Catholic or Protestant can become eligible for eternal life only by performing such a complete spiritual about-face.  Jesus warned that few would make such a turn and walk such a walk (Mat. 7:13,14).  By counting the number of churches in any particular location proves that Jesus was right.  I hope that some of you will desire God so powerfully that you will study His Word intently along with me so that together we can show ourselves “approved of God” (2 Tim. 2:15,16; 3:14-17).  Notice that in these passages the Apostle Paul is reminding Timothy the evangelist that HE, ALONG WITH PAUL,  MUST CONTINUE TO STUDY GOD’S WORD IN ORDER TO MAKE THEMSELVES “WISE UNTO SALVATION.”  If the Lord’s established evangelist and His most prolific New Testament writer had to continuously study the Word, and obey it, in order to affect their eventual salvation, what does that say about us?  This example of God’s “find print” carries life and death implications.

The Almighty is no respecter of persons.  What he requires of one He requires of all–INCLUDING JESUS OF NAZARETH WHO HAD TO KNOW HIS WORD, BELIEVE IT AND OBEY IT IN ORDER TO FULFILL THE MISSION FOR WHICH HE HAD COME TO EARTH.  If He had failed in this regard, God would have had to spend eternity alone.  Like the Lord Jesus, we must prove our worthiness to live with Him in His earthly kingdom.  We must prove our worthiness to rule, first the earth, then the universe for kingdom headquarters in New Jerusalem which will be located where ancient Jerusalem is located today.  THUS SAIS THE LORD.  L.J.