Episode 28 lists reasons not to become discouraged by our dark times and cites Biblical prophecies that reassure us of the coming of supernatural help in overcoming secularism and evil.

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Transcript
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The Future of the Teachings of Jesus
17. Encouragement and Victory in a Secular World
Biblical Reassurance of Coming Supernatural Help (Ep. 28)

 

Review of the three phases of Jesus’ spiritual kingdom. We have distinguished three phases of the Jesus’ spiritual kingdom. Phase 1, inner spiritual fellowship and communion with God, occurs when we believe Jesus’ gospel that we are all children of God and choose to do our Father’s will. Phase 2, the brotherhood of believers who devote themselves to the doing of God’s will, is the natural outgrowth and expansion of Phase 1. The next phase of Jesus’ inner kingdom, the advance to the more perfect doing of God’s will, is yet to come and will constitute the next major evolution of religion on our planet.

The birth of the new phase will occur in our secular and ever-changing social order. The birth of this new phase of Jesus’ inner spiritual kingdom is immanent and will take place in spite of the secular domination of culture, organizations, and governments, and amid continuous and on-going social and culture changes. We must understand that the new revelation of Jesus will be born not only in a world ravaged by a militant godless secularism but also in the dangerous and uncertain times of transition from one phase of civilization to another, from one level of culture to another.

The time to choose is now. We live in a rapidly changing social order that is presently dominated by an extreme secularism that seeks to force a secular lifestyle on all. This growing power of secular economic, social, and political institutions to enforce their godless ways on the world is a great evil that deprives us of our natural liberties, prerogatives of will, and moral choices. In the past we may have had more time and leisure to make the fundamental choice between the service of God or the service of self, following the way Jesus or following the ways of the world. However, in modern times the dominance of secularism and its efforts to destroy religion and wipe the religious way of life from the face of the earth has made this decision more pressing. The time to choose is now.

Even though evil is rising the good can also rise and oppose it. We should not become overly discouraged as we clearly and courageously face the dark, dangerous, and testing times that lie before us. First, we must realize that even though evil is rising this does not mean that the good cannot also rise and oppose this growing force of evil in our world. In fact, this growth of evil is itself a great stimulus to choose the good, and fight for its victory. We must bravely carry on, trusting in God, resisting the evil, and seeking to live a good and moral life in spite of present world conditions. Let us “Be of good cheer” as we go forward countering evil with the potent force of good. We are on the right side of history, and we will eventually triumph.

Great testing and threatened defeat bring great revelation. The second reason we should not become discouraged by present world conditions is that we know from history that such times of great testing and threatened defeat are always times of great revelation. These difficult times with their growth in evil should stimulate us to become stronger in our faith and encourage our efforts to bring the new revelation of Jesus to our dark and confused world. We should let the world’s opposition to God and his moral order activate us to live a moral and Godly life as we seek to bring the light of the new revelation to those living in darkness. We may go forward in the confident faith that the way of God, the way of Jesus, will fully triumph in the end. The mission of God’s divine Son to bring the kingdom of God to our world will not fail; the teachings of Jesus will eventually rule our world.

Supernatural help and the destruction of the evil and ungodly. The third, reason to not become discouraged is that we know from Biblical prophecy that as evil times intensify we will soon reach the point where we will receive direct and supernatural help from above. The growth of evil, sin, iniquity, totalitarianism, and godless secularism will reach a critical point where God will directly intervene to destroy those who embrace evil and the unjust rule over others, and open the way for the rapid expansion of the way of Jesus.

The latter days. We need to understand the times in which we are living. We are in the latter days, the times leading up to and reaching their climax in the events of the tribulation period depicted in both Old and New Testament prophecy. “Judgment Day” (2 Pet. 3:7) is coming, and soon we will be arriving at “the valley of decision.” (Jl. 3:14)

Reassurance from Biblical prophecy. The following are a very few of the many assurances from both Old and New Testament prophecy that predict the coming of supernatural help in triumphing over the rising evil, secularism, and iniquity of our world. Notice in these prophesies that it is the evil who will be destroyed, not the Godly, those who are dedicated to doing God’s will.

The first prophecy is from Isaiah Chapter 13. Here we read of the coming of God’s punishment for those who choose the way of evil, sin and iniquity:

Behold, the day of the LORD comes, cruel, with wrath and fierce anger, to make the earth a desolation and to destroy its sinners from it.

         I will punish the world for its evil, and the wicked for their iniquity; I will put an end to the pride of the arrogant, and lay low the haughtiness of the ruthless. (Is. 13:9,11)

Isaiah Chapter 26 reaffirms God’s punishment of evil doers:

For behold, the LORD is coming forth out of his place to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity (Is 26:21)

Malachi Chapter 4 warns us of the fate of the wicked and the triumph of the righteous:

For behold, the day comes, burning like an oven, when all the arrogant and all evildoers will be stubble; the day that comes shall burn them up, says the LORD of hosts, so that it will leave them neither root nor branch.

         But for you who fear my name the sun of righteousness shall rise, with healing in its wings. You shall go forth leaping like calves from the stall.

         And you shall tread down the wicked, for they will be ashes under the soles of your feet, on the day when I act, says the LORD of hosts. (Mal 4:1-3)

Second Peter Chapter 3 confirms the judgment and destruction of the ungodly:

First of all you must understand this, that scoffers will come in the last days with scoffing, following their own passions….        

  the heavens and earth that now exist have been stored up for fire, being kept until the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men. (2 Pet 3:3,7)

Finally, Revelation Chapter 19 details the climax of the latter days, the coming of God’s Messiah and his heavenly forces, to defeat the antichrist and those who follow in his evil way:

Then I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse! He who sat upon it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he judges and makes war.

         And the armies of heaven, arrayed in fine linen, white and pure, followed him on white horses.

         From his mouth issues a sharp sword with which to smite the nations, and he will rule them with a rod of iron; he will tread the wine press of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty.

         And I saw the beast and the kings of the earth with their armies gathered to make war against him who sits upon the horse and against his army.

         And the beast was captured, and with it the false prophet who in its presence had worked the signs by which he deceived those who had received the mark of the beast and those who worshiped its image. These two were thrown alive into the lake of fire that burns with sulphur.

         And the rest were slain by the sword of him who sits upon the horse, the sword that issues from his mouth; and all the birds were gorged with their flesh. Rev 19:11,14,19-21)

Conclusion. So, we can see that it is evident from Biblical prophecy that God will destroy the evil and Godless personalities who rule our world and thus make way for the coming triumph of the new revelation of Jesus. This promise of the destruction the wicked and ungodly will be revealed in greater detail in forthcoming discussions.

 

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