Today more than a third of the inhabitants of the earth call themselves “Christians”. If this were the case, we would all be “born again” within a few weeks. But this will not happen because most of those who call themselves “Christians”, followers of Christ Jesus, are not. The catastrophe is that more or less everybody of the approx 2.4 billion who make the claim to “be saved” are not even born again. But they think they are OK. They think they are on their way to Heaven, because they have been told a lie.
So who and how many are on their way to Heaven? How many are born again? Well, only Jesus knows that. Let’s make a calculation. Let’s say 5% of this 2.4 billion are born again. According to the Baptists like Paul Washer he claims that Billy Graham would be pleased if 5 % “got saved” of those who came forward at the alter call in his campaigns. So 5 % of 2.4 billion gives 120 million born again Christians. That should be 120 million burning-hot missionaries on this planet, and if that were the case, this planet would be totally born again in a few years.
Peter made his speech on Pentecostal day and 3,000 came to believe and were baptised, and later about 5,000.
Act 4:4 However, many of those who heard the word believed; and the number of the men came to be about five thousand. (NKJV)
Or it can be, when it says; “came to be about five thousand”, that it was all together 5,000 so it was meaning to say they added 2,000 to the 3,000. This is of course of no importance in this context, but I’d like to mention that is the this kind of thing we are occupied by studying. We might need to learn Greek just to understand whether the total amount was meant to be described as 8,000 or “only” five thousand. Ridiculous!
Acts 4:4 (NLT)
4 But many of the people who heard their message believed it, so the number of believers now totalled about 5,000 men, not counting women and children.
It can even be that they counted only the men so we have to add a few thousand women also, and maybe even a few teenagers. Those people were normally not counted in those days. Only Jesus knows, and He is the one who knows who endured to the end.
1 Timothy 1:3-11
Warnings against False Teachings
3 When I left for Macedonia, I urged you to stay there in Ephesus and stop those whose teaching is contrary to the truth. 4 Don’t let them waste their time in endless discussion of myths and spiritual pedigrees. These things only lead to meaningless speculations,[a] which don’t help people live a life of faith in God.[b]
5 The purpose of my instruction is that all believers would be filled with love that comes from a pure heart, a clear conscience, and genuine faith. 6 But some people have missed this whole point. They have turned away from these things and spend their time in meaningless discussions. 7 They want to be known as teachers of the law of Moses, but they don’t know what they are talking about, even though they speak so confidently.
8 We know that the law is good when used correctly. 9 For the law was not intended for people who do what is right. It is for people who are lawless and rebellious, who are ungodly and sinful, who consider nothing sacred and defile what is holy, who kill their father or mother or commit other murders. 10 The law is for people who are sexually immoral, or who practice homosexuality, or are slave traders,[c] liars, promise breakers, or who do anything else that contradicts the wholesome teaching 11 that comes from the glorious Good News entrusted to me by our blessed God.
Footnotes:
1:4a Greek in myths and endless genealogies, which cause speculation.
1:4b Greek a stewardship of God in faith.
1:10 Or kidnappers.
When we preach a simple, full and pure Gospel, many will believe, and many will like to call it a revival. (Let’s remember that the congregation who want to have a revival first need to have their own revival…)
In one of the meetings with Reinhard Bonnke there were once registered one million names for making a decision to devote their lives to Christ Jesus. We don’t claim that all this fruit will endure to the end, or were even converted there and then. But we claim it is a start for somebody, if the local congregation will follow up with baptism and sound teaching. And that we pray in the name of Jesus.
What one man who believes in Jesus can do, another man can do. Jesus is not a respecter of persons. It just depends if you are totally surrendered to the Truth. For the eyes of the Lord look for those who are totally with Him to powerfully strengthen them.
We need to use this example to make it clear that with 120 million fully surrendered believers, this planet will be turned upside down in a pretty short time. But of course some will claim that we need to go out in teams, and that we need a team to make big revivals. Let’s say that we need some to go together and make up around one million teams with 120 people in each. In that case with only some thousands added to the churches (teams) every week, it would be pretty much the same case. The newspapers and TV news will be full of stories of changed communities.
Likewise, we would have the same effect if every believer would preach to someone he met every week or every month. But this is not the case, because the changes are not there, the changes that will come out of this accelerating, accumulating super-effect.
We can see some of this of course in places like China, South America and Africa and even in India and Pakistan, but that is not the point. The point is that worldwide there are very few totally surrendered followers of Christ or “born again”. Few as maybe 5 % of those who call themselves “born again”! Maybe even only 2 % are in what we can call “charismatic” congregations. The backsliding is enormous in all these mass meetings we have, may be as much as 80-90 %, or may be even more. It is all because of unbelief and haughtiness.
A survey in USA once asked the following question to the congregation. It was done in 1000 churches; “What is the reason for attending church?” 90 % claimed it was to cover their spiritual needs and 10 % mentioned they were able and equipped to preach the Gospel. This was about 20 years ago. Today I think the number of those who have “got it” is more like 5 %. Or fewer! So it’s like there are 5 % who have “got it” and even fewer who go out!
Therefore, we make this claim that the condition of the church is extremely negative, both when it comes to teaching and to fulfilling the commission. Also, let’s consider how many are walking the narrow way to the narrow gate. Let me remind the reader that it is those who do righteousness who are righteous, and that your faith is dead without actions. Let’s hope we are wrong in these figures, but sadly it seems that this is indeed the case. The catastrophe is therefore a fact.
We can’t just say, “No it is not like this”. There are too many who point to it is being like this. May be over one billion (1,000 million) that think they are on the way to Heaven, but are roaming around on the highway to Hell, and all of this is because of haughtiness and unbelief. How many will be eternally lost because of this inaction from the church? This is the worst catastrophe!
When will the church be aware of this catastrophe? I hope it’s before they stand in front of the Judgement Seat of Christ.
For so many years now, we have been focused on un-reached nations (people), the “10/40 window”, and there is much prayer for countries like China (rightly or wrongly), and so on and so forth. But nobody really talks about those who are led astray by false doctrines. We are responsible for those who have been led astray by “brothers” under a false flag. We need to ignore the one or two percent and go after the other 98%, so to speak.
This mega-catastrophic problem doesn’t seem to worry most people. But the most blessed thing to be heard that there is a kind of revival going on, one which is focused and pinpointed at the existing congregations. More and more people with Fire take responsibility and shout out about this problem. Ever heard that type of shouting before? It was Jesus who shouted out these, and before that it was John the Baptised.
There are already books on the market which are sharp enough to shake the most lukewarm out of his sleep. Congregations, large congregations take responsibility and throw themselves to the ground and cry out, mercy Lord, mercy!
Hopefully soon more congregations will come out of their cowardly inaction and join, before it is too late. The Ecumenical will be more and more rampant, if not to say “Chrislam”. This is the start of the WorldChurch. This is of course prophetic and we shall not fight this, but we shall warn, and warn loudly! The Shofar must sound! We have to blow, so the night is turned into day!
If we don’t do this we are haughty, and of course without any faith at all. We are in for a fall, a big fall. If we don’t warn people, the snowball will continue its progress and build up as it runs down hill and end in a giant crash for the church. The crash will be so great that most will read in the morning newspaper next day; “all small children disappeared and also many adults around the world. Many accidents are happening in every country and some are saying that Jesus has come back!”
Therefore we have to stop being lukewarm and lazy, and pick up our Bible and start to read about the warnings. Especially:
1 Corinthians 5:1-13
Paul Condemns Spiritual Pride
5 I can hardly believe the report about the sexual immorality going on among you—something that even pagans don’t do. I am told that a man in your church is living in sin with his stepmother.[a] 2 You are so proud of yourselves, but you should be mourning in sorrow and shame. And you should remove this man from your fellowship.
3 Even though I am not with you in person, I am with you in the Spirit.[b] And as though I were there, I have already passed judgment on this man 4 in the name of the Lord Jesus. You must call a meeting of the church.[c] I will be present with you in spirit, and so will the power of our Lord Jesus. 5 Then you must throw this man out and hand him over to Satan so that his sinful nature will be destroyed[d] and he himself[e] will be saved on the day the Lord[f] returns.
6 Your boasting about this is terrible. Don’t you realize that this sin is like a little yeast that spreads through the whole batch of dough? 7 Get rid of the old “yeast” by removing this wicked person from among you. Then you will be like a fresh batch of dough made without yeast, which is what you really are. Christ, our Passover Lamb, has been sacrificed for us.[g] 8 So let us celebrate the festival, not with the old bread[h] of wickedness and evil, but with the new bread[i] of sincerity and truth.
9 When I wrote to you before, I told you not to associate with people who indulge in sexual sin. 10 But I wasn’t talking about unbelievers who indulge in sexual sin, or are greedy, or cheat people, or worship idols. You would have to leave this world to avoid people like that. 11 I meant that you are not to associate with anyone who claims to be a believer[j] yet indulges in sexual sin, or is greedy, or worships idols, or is abusive, or is a drunkard, or cheats people. Don’t even eat with such people.
12 It isn’t my responsibility to judge outsiders, but it certainly is your responsibility to judge those inside the church who are sinning. 13 God will judge those on the outside; but as the Scriptures say, “You must remove the evil person from among you.”[k]
Footnotes:
5:1 Greek his father’s wife.
5:3 Or in spirit.
5:4 Or In the name of the Lord Jesus, you must call a meeting of the church.
5:5a Or so that his body will be destroyed; Greek reads for the destruction of the flesh.
5:5b Greek and the spirit.
5:5c Other manuscripts read the Lord Jesus; still others read our Lord Jesus Christ.
5:7 Greek has been sacrificed.
5:8a Greek not with old leaven.
5:8b Greek but with unleavened [bread].
5:11 Greek a brother.
5:13 Deut 17:7.
“Your boasting about this is terrible. Don’t you realize that this sin is like a little yeast that spreads through the whole batch of dough? “
and
“When I wrote to you before, I told you not to associate with people who indulge in sexual sin. 10 But I wasn’t talking about unbelievers who indulge in sexual sin, or are greedy, or cheat people, or worship idols. You would have to leave this world to avoid people like that. 11 I meant that you are not to associate with anyone who claims to be a believer[j] yet indulges in sexual sin, or is greedy, or worships idols, or is abusive, or is a drunkard, or cheats people. Don’t even eat with such people.”
It is unbelief and haughtiness if we don’t take the above seriously. On top of that claiming to have clean hands. But in reality, we are not willing to lift a finger to make the church clean. Don’t’ we know that Jesus will come for a clean, white Bride?
It is time to look up into the sky and expect the return of the Bridegroom at any moment. It will be only, and we mean only, those who are ready and white who will be lifted up to meet Him. A lot of “believers” are interpreting the Scripture in that way that it is going to take time and that His return is not imminent at all.
Well the Scripture is clear. If you don’t await the Bridegroom and expect His early coming every day you have lost your first love and need to repent. If not, you will see the catastrophe first hand in the newspaper one day. As it is today it looks as if it will be mostly small children who will meet their Lord in the sky … All because of rebellious unbelief and hardening of hearts.
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