Acts 2:47 ... And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved.
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God puts HIS truth into the hearts of those persons who are to be the church.
The church is built on that word revealed by God to the individual.
Here is an example of this:
Matthew 16:13-18 When Jesus came into the coasts of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, saying, Whom do men say that I the Son of man am?
And they said, Some say that thou art John the Baptist: some, Elias; and others, Jeremias, or one of the prophets.
He saith unto them, But whom say ye that I am?
And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.
And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven.
And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.
God had revealed something to Peter, and for this reason Jesus says Peter was "blessed".
The church is built upon that word revealed by God to the individual. And the gates of hell will never prevail against that word that is revealed by God.
Over and over as we continue to live on this earth, we encounter issues and God reveals "His Word" to us and by that word we know what we are to do.
We are thus led by the Spirit of God, the Holy Spirit.
Those of us who have this happen to us are the church.
It is by the will of God ... and God causes it to happen.
We are created in the image of Christ, The Word, each time God gives us the word on an issue and when we choose to follow that word.
If we develop a pattern of rejecting "that" word given to us by God by HIS Spirit, and we choose to go another way by our own fleshly preferences, the time could come when we would be turned over by God to a "reprobate" mind, then we would no longer have God's judgments on the issues at hand.
Romans 1:28-32 And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient;
Being filled with all unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, debate, deceit, malignity; whisperers,
Backbiters, haters of God, despiteful, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents,
Without understanding, covenantbreakers, without natural affection, implacable, unmerciful:
Who knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them.
Paul tells us to examine ourselves to see if we are in the faith.
II Corinthians 13:5-6 Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves. Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates?
But I trust that ye shall know that we are not reprobates.
There are many opportunities in this life time to turn from the way of God and to follow our own fleshly desires and the way of other people.
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After I was born again in 1975, my best friend told me I had to go to church.
So I went to church with her and her husband.
At the time I began going there, the preacher was teaching a series on the subject of "tongues". This is the first time I had heard of this.
He was teaching that tongues were of the devil.
One day, I was reading the Bible and came upon the following instruction given by the apostle Paul for the church.
I Corinthians 14:26; 39 How is it then, brethren? when ye come together, every one of you hath a psalm, hath a doctrine, hath a tongue, hath a revelation, hath an interpretation. Let all things be done unto edifying.
39 Wherefore, brethren, covet to prophesy, and forbid not to speak with tongues.
Paul said, "Forbid not to speak with tongues." I Corinthians 14:39
At the church I was attending they not only "forbade" speaking in tongues … they were teaching that tongues were of the devil.
I had to make a choice between going in the way of that church group and that preacher, or going in the way of the Bible. I could not do both.
I chose the Bible and left that church group.
Matthew 7:13-14 Jesus says: Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat:
Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.
Few will choose the Word of God over their church group for all their friends and often their families are in that church group.
But the way of life is not in the church group.
The way of life is in the Bible, in the Word of God.
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In the early church, in the days of Paul and John, antichrist was always trying to change the doctrines of the church.
Control was kept by the apostles who would not allow this to happen in the churches while they were there.
But the time was coming when the apostles would not be there to deal with antichrist. And Paul foresaw this and warned the church.
Acts 20:29-30 For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock.
Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them.
Paul also knew some very serious things were ahead for the churches, and Paul said:
II Timothy 3:1-8 This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come.
For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy,
Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good,
Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God;
Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.
For of this sort are they which creep into houses, and lead captive silly women laden with sins, led away with divers lusts,
Ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.
Now as Jannes and Jambres withstood Moses, so do these also resist the truth: men of corrupt minds, reprobate concerning the faith.
13 But evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving, and being deceived.
14-17 But continue thou in the things which thou hast learned and hast been assured of, knowing of whom thou hast learned them;
And that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.
All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:
That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works.
Two-thousand-years passed and things got worse and worse in the churches with men setting up all manner of doctrine opposite to scripture, thus "antichrist" in the church groups.
Church groups which once taught against divorce and remarriage "fell away" from these doctrines of the Bible and set up other doctrines to please their congregations and to attract more people to themselves.
And we who care about scripture were constantly confronted from church group to church group with perversions which taught opposite to scripture.
Some of us went to the pastors and elders to show them the truth of the Bible, but they wouldn't listen and they showed no shame over that which they were teaching in the churches.
In such cases, we could not stay there among those church groups. We just had to leave them.
Basically, in leaving these groups, we did what Paul said to do in II Timothy 3:5 Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.
We must always choose the Bible over the church group.
These deviations from scriptures in the church group are antichrists taking over in the church group.
The "restraint" holding antichrist back were those scriptures which they removed. As soon as the scriptures were explained away or removed, antichrist took over that church group, setting up his own way of thinking over that group. And church people moved from one church to another until they found a way that suited themselves, not considering the whole body of scriptures.
So today we see the end time antichrists in the church groups.
Paul says Jesus could not return until this apostasy happened in the church groups.
II Thessalonians 2:3-4 NASB Let no one in any way deceive you, for it will not come unless the apostasy comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, who opposes and exalts himself above every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, displaying himself as being God.
In the next chapters, I will show you some of the apostasy in specific church groups and among various ministers.
These examples should not depress us, we just have illumination in seeing these things that had to happen in the churches before Jesus returns, and we see these are indeed happening according to the Bible.
But of course we do not stay in these groups nor do we continue with preachers who twist the word of God and exalt themselves and will not be corrected for this is antichrist in the church.
II Thessalonians 2:3-4 KJV Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;
Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.
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