Are You Ready?

ARE YOU READY???!! MOST PEOPLE ARE NOT……….
KJV 1 Peter 3:15
But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear:
Message Bible
MSG
If with heart and soul you’re doing good, do you think you can be stopped? Even if you suffer for it, you’re still better off. Don’t give the opposition a second thought. Through thick and thin, keep your hearts at attention, in adoration before Christ, your Master. Be ready to speak up and tell anyone who asks why you’re living the way you are, and always with the utmost courtesy. Keep a clear conscience before God so that when people throw mud at you, none of it will stick. They’ll end up realizing that they’re the ones who need a bath. It’s better to suffer for doing good, if that’s what God wants, than to be punished for doing bad. That’s what Christ did definitively: suffered because of others’ sins, the Righteous One for the unrighteous ones. He went through it all—was put to death and then made alive—to bring us to God.
In previous articles just posted I shared some messages the Holy Spirit gave our church prayer groups back in the 1980’s and early 90’s. As my much loved brother Lorenzo Cruz pointed out, we have so many people making reference to the antiChrist, the last days and when the Lord is returning. We also have people arguing over whether He is coming before, during or after the Tribulation. And some other deluded individuals are still fighting over whether the earth is flat or round!!!???
SO let’s review what I have shared before, Mathew Chapter 23: KJV states that the Pharisees were to be listened to in regards to the delivery of the Mosaic Law as given by Moses. But the Jesus goes on to say that the Pharisees had so substituted little issues and arguments for the Word that they would strain out a dead gnat from their drinking water, but be blind to the real issues of God’s Word, hence the indictment that they would swallow a camel in the same drinking water. It is hyperbole of course in that verse, Used to illustrate a critical issue that the Pharisees were neglecting and to open the eyes of the people to the fact that religion, no matter how sincere will not save a person. The point of the Law was not to save, (read Paul’s letter to the Romans) but to reveal we were desperately enslaved to sin and death and needed a savior to reach down from Heaven and save us from the consequences of our own stupidity and foolishness.
Here is Mathew Chapter 23
Matthew 23
King James Version
23 Then spake Jesus to the multitude, and to his disciples,
2 Saying The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat:
3 All therefore whatsoever they bid you observe, that observe and do; but do not ye after their works: for they say, and do not.
4 For they bind heavy burdens and grievous to be borne, and lay them on men’s shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers.
5 But all their works they do for to be seen of men: they make broad their phylacteries, and enlarge the borders of their garments,
6 And love the uppermost rooms at feasts, and the chief seats in the synagogues,
7 And greetings in the markets, and to be called of men, Rabbi, Rabbi.
8 But be not ye called Rabbi: for one is your Master, even Christ; and all ye are brethren.
9 And call no man your father upon the earth: for one is your Father, which is in heaven.
10 Neither be ye called masters: for one is your Master, even Christ.
11 But he that is greatest among you shall be your servant.
12 And whosoever shall exalt himself shall be abased; and he that shall humble himself shall be exalted.
13 But woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye shut up the kingdom of heaven against men: for ye neither go in yourselves, neither suffer ye them that are entering to go in.
14 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye devour widows’ houses, and for a pretence make long prayer: therefore ye shall receive the greater damnation.
15 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye compass sea and land to make one proselyte, and when he is made, ye make him twofold more the child of hell than yourselves.
16 Woe unto you, ye blind guides, which say, Whosoever shall swear by the temple, it is nothing; but whosoever shall swear by the gold of the temple, he is a debtor!
17 Ye fools and blind: for whether is greater, the gold, or the temple that sanctifieth the gold?
18 And, Whosoever shall swear by the altar, it is nothing; but whosoever sweareth by the gift that is upon it, he is guilty.
19 Ye fools and blind: for whether is greater, the gift, or the altar that sanctifieth the gift?
20 Whoso therefore shall swear by the altar, sweareth by it, and by all things thereon.
21 And whoso shall swear by the temple, sweareth by it, and by him that dwelleth therein.
22 And he that shall swear by heaven, sweareth by the throne of God, and by him that sitteth thereon.
23 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone.
24 Ye blind guides, which strain at a gnat, and swallow a camel.
25 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye make clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess.
26 Thou blind Pharisee, cleanse first that which is within the cup and platter, that the outside of them may be clean also.
27 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men’s bones, and of all uncleanness.
28 Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity.
29 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! because ye build the tombs of the prophets, and garnish the sepulchres of the righteous,
30 And say, If we had been in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partakers with them in the blood of the prophets.
31 Wherefore ye be witnesses unto yourselves, that ye are the children of them which killed the prophets.
32 Fill ye up then the measure of your fathers.
33 Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers, how can ye escape the damnation of hell?
34 Wherefore, behold, I send unto you prophets, and wise men, and scribes: and some of them ye shall kill and crucify; and some of them shall ye scourge in your synagogues, and persecute them from city to city:
35 That upon you may come all the righteous blood shed upon the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel unto the blood of Zacharias son of Barachias, whom ye slew between the temple and the altar.
36 Verily I say unto you, All these things shall come upon this generation.
37 O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!
38 Behold, your house is left unto you desolate.
39 For I say unto you, Ye shall not see me henceforth, till ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord.

Wow!! What a damning condemning statement! Jesus does rebuke the evil He encounters and He does rebuke people bent on doing evil. Yah, I know, all you Grace only people are already getting your sleeves rolled up for battle. I would suggest you read Jesus’ messages to the 7 churches in the opening chapters of Revelation.
FACT: Whenever the Holy Spirit is moving He will convict the world(people) of sin, of righteousness, and of judgment.

SO, a lot of people troll on Facebook and other social media. But instead of withdrawing friends I will first try to reason with them from scripture and with a decent attitude. Too many people use the wrong and disrespectful language to condemn someone else’s beliefs. What would you rather have. Jesus commending you for turning someone from error, or seeing a person head closer to condemnation and hell because you gave them a push to hurry them along? You really do have a choice.
So to briefly answer some questions that come my way.
Yes, I believe there are Christians in politics, but I also know they are human and will make errors from time to time. No one is perfect. I also know there are politicians who are actively seeking more and more control of the people in any country they may be in and that is true always because any politician who is not a Christian will willfully sin because after all he/she is a sinner.
Here is a heavy one for you, I don’t think God has to actively hammer most people when He wants to get their attention, not like Ananias and Saphira for example, for if He did we would be dead by now for lying in oaths and promises to the Lord over the years. No, in the majority of situations God just withdraws His protection from a person and Satan will make sure that all Hell breaks loose. Lived through a bit of that myself, so not really wanting to lead anyone else to believe that under Grace there are no consequences for foolish decisions. Any decision to ignore God’s leading and do your own way is both a sin and foolish.
So, you might ask “Did God send the Corona Virus outbreak?” I don’t think He had to ‘send’ it, He merely allowed it and is using it to get the attention of any person who is sincerely and actively striving for real life, eternal life. There will be many other outbreaks as we enter the last days of this tired sin corrupted world. So brace yourself.
So what else will happen?
Mathew Chapter 24 says much, and Old Testament Prophets and New Testament Apostles point out what Jesus summarized,
Matthew 24
King James Version
24 And Jesus went out, and departed from the temple: and his disciples came to him for to shew him the buildings of the temple.
2 And Jesus said unto them, See ye not all these things? verily I say unto you, There shall not be left here one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down.
3 And as he sat upon the mount of Olives, the disciples came unto him privately, saying, Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world?
4 And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you.
5 For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many.
6 And ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet.
7 For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places.
8 All these are the beginning of sorrows.
9 Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye shall be hated of all nations for my name’s sake.
10 And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another.
11 And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many.
12 And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold.
13 But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.
14 And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.
15 When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand:)
16 Then let them which be in Judaea flee into the mountains:
17 Let him which is on the housetop not come down to take any thing out of his house:
18 Neither let him which is in the field return back to take his clothes.
19 And woe unto them that are with child, and to them that give suck in those days!
20 But pray ye that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the sabbath day:
21 For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be.
22 And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect’s sake those days shall be shortened.
23 Then if any man shall say unto you, Lo, here is Christ, or there; believe it not.
24 For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect.
25 Behold, I have told you before.
26 Wherefore if they shall say unto you, Behold, he is in the desert; go not forth: behold, he is in the secret chambers; believe it not.
27 For as the lightning cometh out of the east, and shineth even unto the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.
28 For wheresoever the carcase is, there will the eagles be gathered together.
29 Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken:
30 And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.
31 And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.
32 Now learn a parable of the fig tree; When his branch is yet tender, and putteth forth leaves, ye know that summer is nigh:
33 So likewise ye, when ye shall see all these things, know that it is near, even at the doors.
34 Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled.
35 Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away.
36 But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only.
37 But as the days of Noah were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.
38 For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark,
39 And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.
40 Then shall two be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left.
41 Two women shall be grinding at the mill; the one shall be taken, and the other left.
42 Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come.
43 But know this, that if the goodman of the house had known in what watch the thief would come, he would have watched, and would not have suffered his house to be broken up.
44 Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh.
45 Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his lord hath made ruler over his household, to give them meat in due season?
46 Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall find so doing.
47 Verily I say unto you, That he shall make him ruler over all his goods.
48 But and if that evil servant shall say in his heart, My lord delayeth his coming;
49 And shall begin to smite his fellowservants, and to eat and drink with the drunken;
50 The lord of that servant shall come in a day when he looketh not for him, and in an hour that he is not aware of,
51 And shall cut him asunder, and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

NOW, I WOULD LIKE TO POINT OUT FOR THE PRE, MID, AND POST TRIB RAPTURE DEBATERS, JESUS SAID NO MAN WOULD KNOW THE DAY OR HOUR!!!!! SO WHY ARE YOU ARGUING ABOUT SOMETHING OF NO PROFIT WHEN SOULS ARE DYING EVERYDAY AND GOING TO HELL WHILE YOU STRAIN OUT GNATS???!!!

YOUR JOB IS EXPLAINED VERY CLEARLY, IT IS TO PREACH THE GOOD NEWS THAT THERE IS SALVATION, DELIVERANCE AND LIFE EVERLASTING AVAILABLE BOUGHT BY THE LORD JESUS CHRIST HIMSELF.
So one more time, this time from the Berean Study Bible,
1 Peter 3:14-16
Suffering for Righteousness
14But even if you should suffer for what is right, you are blessed. “Do not fear what they fear; do not be shaken.” 15But in your hearts sanctify Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give a defense to everyone who asks you the reason for the hope you possess. But respond with gentleness and respect, 16keeping a clear conscience, so that those who slander you may be put to shame by your good behavior in Christ.…
Berean Study Bible · Download

This is illustrated in Jesus’ testimony of the story of the Good Samaritan, who was living a godly life and by his example gave rescue to the man who fell among thieves. Yes, as is pointed out in 1 Peter 3:14 you very well may suffer as a Christian. But be worthy of it, by following in the steps of the Lord Jesus Christ and be transformed by the renewing of your mind and conformed to His image so that you may become a light in the dark world that others may see and find their way out from the culture of death that will destroy them if they cannot escape. You are the light, the city on the hill, the people showing the way to those who have not yet see Jesus for themselves, but if you live for Him, they will see Him through you.
The only way you can change a nation is to change the people, and the only way you can change the people is by turning their hearts to God.
No power formed on earth can turn a heart from darkness to Light. Only the Lord Jesus Christ the ministry of His Holy Spirit can turn a heart from dark to Light. And everyone who truly follows Christ soon learns that when He is Lord, there is a corresponding deep hunger in the Christians heart for the Word of God. And those filled with that self same Holy Spirit are always motivated by His Love to share with whoever will listen the deep and abiding love and peace that are only available in Walking with the LORD Jesus Christ.