AMERICAN APOCALYPSE PART 3

                                            AMERICAN APOCALYPSE PART 3

                                                                            Prologue

    We are talking about the four heavenly horsemen in this series, and have covered the first two--Salvation and Faith. If you have studied the Book of Revelation, you know about the four evil horsemen. They are described in Rev. 6:1-8. We are examining the four good horsemen,

Salvation, Faith, Hope and Charity. We can liken this simile to our Christian attempt to mount, ride and complete our journey. Mounting is accepting Christ and Faith is learning to ride properly. This third horse, Hope, is where we can get in trouble. You might fall off while  learning to ride, but in this advanced stage, you have to be careful or you might be bucked off.

                                                           Part 3

     Hope is described as things desired or your wishes for things that may be obtainable. Like the other horses, Hope is spiritual and thus cannot be seen. Everyone has hopes, and some of them may cause a Christian grief. For example, have you ever had a serious episode or disagreement with someone? If they were extremely obnoxious, you may have some black cloud thoughts about them and their future. Thoughts such as I "hope" they break a leg, or I "hope" they fail miserably, or damnation, I "hope" they die. It is difficult to control the carnal mind when we are in a state of distress. Following in the footsteps of Christ is challenging at times. This situation offers you an opportunity to grow in the Word. You may not be able to stop the

wicked thoughts, but you can realize your problem and pray for forgiveness and repent. You need to get a handle on the carnal temper.

    We usually equate hopes with desires for good things we want to happen. God can do anything, so nothing is off the board. However, we should be realistic to understand that certain hope fulfillment depends on reason and God's plan and will. A short boy with average

skills would be a long shot to become a player in the National Basketball Association. God could use such a boy to demonstrate His power and guide the boy to something spectacular with the ball, which would exalt God and lift up others as well as the boy. This actually happened a couple of times last year when a challenged high school boy with the team as a helper rather than a player got to play a couple of minutes at the end of a game. He was on fire, and canned every shot he took from all over the court. This was a one time occurrence, but illustrates how easy it is for God to fulfill a hope. The boy didn't expect to play in the NBA, and what he was able to do in that brief exhibition served to inspire those who watched. It also strengthened the boy to BELIEVE (have Faith) in being able to accomplish other things in life.

    We are warned to be careful what we wish or hope for. There are sometimes consequences we don't foresee in the future because we don't have any experience in the subject. To be a success as a movie star or singer requires a rigid regimen and lots of time. Your work may actually control your life. It's rare that a star performer has a satisfying personal life. Money and fame are not in themselves satisfying. Personal relationships suffer. The hope to be rich is quite common. Having lots of material wealth is no guarantee you will have peace and satisfaction. If there is no specific purpose for fulfillment of your hope, God may not grant it.

    As a Christian, we usually forget that there are two players in the subject of Hope. Both are invisible, and both have "super"  powers. Do you remember the other player from Matt. 4:1-11? Satan can bless those who follow him, and he can give a person almost anything. If Satan tempted Jesus, don't you think he will go after everyone, especially a person who is willing to accept Christ? Satan can richly reward someone who agrees to worship him, including, money, power and fame. If Satan knows your specific hope, he can zero in on you. He will use you as long as you perform well for him, but you should know the end isn't eternal life, but endless hell.

    If your hope is something that will serve the Lord and place Him as the One who is exalted, you are on the correct track. If the hope gives you the opportunity that will exalt you, there is need for study of the four gospels. Christ gave all the credit for things He did to the Father. If we can't do that, we are not Christians. That's why it is wrong for a wealthy person to have his/her name on a building built with his/her money. That is exalting the person. After all, all things, including money, are God's. And, it's a good bet the wealthy person used the donation as a tax write off. It wasn't a sacrifice or a tithe. God knows the reasons and the intent. He warns us in the Ten Commandments that He is a jealous God. When we claim credit for something, we establish an "idol" situation. How many times have you heard "I idolize him/her?"

    Hope is important in a Christian's life. You see, however, there are pitfalls if you aren't careful to stick to Christ's teaching. Your first and most important goal should be to be Christlike. Most of us, including me, tend to move a few other things to the top and concentrate more on specific carnal things. This is especially true for younger people who are learning about the carnal world. There are certain attractions that move Christ and scripture to second

place upon occasion. I'm guilty of this, but I have discovered that most of these attractions become muted or lost with age. The older we get, the more likely we understand the fleeting "glory" of such things as a football game. There's nothing wrong with entertainment as long as the hope to watch a game or television program doesn't overshadow a Christian duty.

    Keeping in mind that becoming Christlike is the top priority for Hope, there is no limit on other possibilities. You should consider that God will not likely fulfill a particular hope unless you are properly prepared for any responsibilities that fulfillment will require. We all have at least one gift of the spirit, and development of a gift can fulfill a hope. Like anything else, a gift of the spirit should include preparation and continued effort to improve your ability to use the gift. If you hope to be a teacher, and you possess the gift of teaching, you need to study the material you will be teaching. There are more common hopes such as hoping to find a husband or wife, raising children to be positive citizens, having a comfortable home and good job. These do not usually require special training, but fulfillment may be enhanced by spending time

reading others' experiences or taking courses in subjects such as child rearing.

    This is not to say you shouldn't have what we shall call "exotic" hopes such as becoming a recording artist, actor or professional athlete. These may be gifts but, like others, probably will require extensive training. Common sense needs to be applied as well. For example, you should think twice before hoping to become the president of our country or a similar position. For some things like these, your hope must be matched with extremely hard work to prepare you for unknown rigors. This means you must keep in sight your primary responsibility of serving God before adding a further responsibility to fulfill a possible career hope. This is especially

important if you have hopes of becoming a leader in anything.

    A leader must follow Christ's teaching in the four gospels and control personal desires for leadership. The power of being a leader is similar to the power of money. It tends to corrupt. In both instances, a person must overcome the carnal satisfaction of having others agree to a strict position and attitude. This is a mistake, because Christ taught that religion and human rights are by choice, not by rules and laws. Some hopes, such as a specific career, can cancel out other hopes, including happiness, marriage and family. There is much truth in the adage "be careful what you wish (hope) for, because it may come true." All the conditions that accompany the fulfillment may not be pleasant. There is only one hope that will always be free of unwanted conditions, and that is Salvation and being Christ-like. If you follow Christ's footsteps, you will be led to eternal life. That is the Hope to hope for. Part four of this study will be on Charity, the most misunderstood of the four good horsemen.

Rev. Walbear

AMERICAN APOCALYPSE TWO

                                                 AMERICAN APOCALYPSE TWO       

                                                                         Prologue

    In Part One, we looked at scripture to see the meaning and requirements to fulfill the Four Horsemen of Christianity. The first horseman is salvation, and it consists of a gift that costs us nothing, but does place us under an obligation. That obligation is to follow the teaching of Christ and to show our obedience through the things we do in life. We'll move on to the other horsemen--Faith, Hope and Charity, paying special attention to Charity, whose meaning should
not be confused with alms. The original Greek carried the meaning of Love. Charity (alms) without love is creating a major problem for many people, including Christians. We'll get to that in due time. Now on to the second horseman--Faith.

                                                                         Part Two

    In religious terminology, faith means many things including  belief, confidence, persuasion, dogma and trust. What sickens me emotionally is the casual way I hear the word used to indicate the speaker is a pious person. We should never accept a declaration of faith for religious belief until we examine that person's history. Like salvation, faith has the requirement that the person stands for the teaching of the four gospels. It wouldn't hurt to also look at the Sermon on the Mount (Matt. 5,6 and 7). Faith requires certain personal qualities; among them are the combination of not making a false witness (the 9th Commandment) and giving respect where civility and Christian decency is due. Christ taught us to value truth and to diligently seek truth. That is not being done today, as many Christians accept and enlarge upon rumors. Our news media contributes to this mess, and, for the most part, is unreliable. There is no control or bias by either political party. The people in the media seem to only be interested in sensational stories or digging up suspected dirt about prominent individuals.

    It is the responsibility of editors to clean up reporters' messes, but editorial content is often controlled by advertiser's opinion or the owner of the publication. There isn't much effort to learn the truth or verify information. It's become so bad, you can tell an outrageous story with virtually no truth and be unchallenged. This has been particularly true during the summer's political campaign. When any individual makes a false claim, he/she is breaking the ninth
Commandment : "Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor." Telling a lie is bad enough, but when the intent is to vilify someone for your personal edification, you are willfully acting contrary to Christ's directions. Going along with this is the total lack of respect for other people. Christ teaches us to respect all people, and if you understand His Sermon on the Mount, you understand how to treat others. I learned a long time ago that every person, no matter how poor or uneducated, could "educate" me in some way. Respect doesn't cost you anything materially, and Christ showed His respect for individuals through acceptance and compassion. Today, there is wicked slander and virtually no respect. When I taught in the public school system many years ago, I was astounded with the lack of respect the students had for other people, including teachers. It is much worse now, and adults are showing children they don't 
have to respect anyone. There is no excuse for any Christian to accept or promote the lack of respect. When someone says they have faith, but then goes on to ridicule someone because it is "their opinion (judgment)" of that person, their credibility is lost.

    Some theologians describe faith as the hope for results unseen and the answer to future needs and goals. Faith should not infringe on Hope, which is a much different animal. Faith should represent your positive belief in Christ's Christian principles and be absolute. There should be no "maybes." Faith requires your mind to lock in to the full meaning of belief. We are warned about the lack of faith in Matt. 17:20. Christ told the disciples faith as slight as a grain of
mustard seed will move mountains. That is why healing and other miracles do happen. It is not easy to have this depth of faith because we are impatient, and we have become spoiled to expect things to happen immediately if not sooner.

    Faith is a vital quality for citizens of any country. This is not exclusive of non Christians. People of other faiths and no faiths contribute to every nation. The faith of Christians alone probably will not be enough to continue America's role nationally and internationally. You learn in the Old Testament that God eventually has to step in and change the direction of His people. He always preserves a remnant, and uses the true believers to rebuild earth. This may not always be a comfortable remnant, if you see what role Daniel fulfilled. You should note he was emasculated and made a slave. Because he had Faith, God used him as a teacher, and he was able to not only have a productive life, but cause the ruler of the world to understand that the God of Israel was the supreme being.

    If you have faith, you will not be concerned about who the worldly or national leaders are. God is always in control, and He chooses who will be the leaders. He permits bad leaders as well as good ones. God does expect our religious leaders to carefully perform their duties. They must have faith to follow His teaching in the four gospels. It is not enough to preach or administer according to  Christ's directions. Having youth programs, inspiring music, dramas
and missionary programs is part of a church's responsibility. These good works are second fiddle to the teaching of the gospels and the preservation of Christ's Word. Church leaders and pastors have a continuing obligation to know what's going on in the community and nation. When there are major issues, especially affecting the church and personal freedom, these leaders are duty-bound to speak up. When they do, they need to be accurate and truthful.
At present they are mostly neither.

    I don't rely on congregational support, so I am free to speak out and call the game as I see it. There has been much church activity concerning sexual issues. This has been brought to a front burner by politicians to stir up voters, and church leaders have dutifully followed along. It's not that these issues are unimportant, but the most serious issues are ignored. Wouldn't you, as a christian, be very concerned if our national law canceled entire parts of scripture? I heard whimpers when some corporations or groups forbade the traditional "merry Christmas" greeting. Only whimpers, mind you. Then I discovered the Supreme Court, dominated by conservatives, Christians, made Citizens United the law of the land. This ruling makes any corporation a person and gives them Constitutional privileges. The ruling also refutes the basic Christian scripture in Genesis 1:26-27 where God creates man in His likeness; John 1:1, where the Word (scripture) IS God, and much of the four gospels where millions of people saw and heard Christ. This makes these judges who approved this law heretics, guilty of heresy. This means they deliberately violated scripture, rejected the above verses, and further violated additional scripture in Revelation 22:18-19. If you are unfamiliar with these last two verses, they declare anyone who adds to or takes away any of the bible will face God, who will "take
away that person's part from the Book of Life." 

    If you don't oppose Citizens United, you give passive approval,  which means you are placing your eternal life in jeopardy. A person  of Christian FAITH is bound by accepting Christ's offer to defend the Faith. This ruling is a sin, and your sin may be forgiven, but only if you repent. I have mentioned this ruling to many church people,  including pastors, and none have shown any interest in pursuing a remedy. In fact, pastors don't bother to tell congregations about it. How do you think God will look at you if you idly sit by and accept these judges' ruling that any corporation looks like God, but His only begotten Son doesn't resemble God's likeness? And, just wait until people of other faiths realize the opening this ruling gives them to
bring their organizational  (corporate) desires to become legal. For example, how would you feel if people of the Islamic faith took advantage of the ruling, and had all the vast Arab money from oil to use in political campaigns? When you violate God's very basic teaching, you can expect dire consequences. Americans, are you listening?

    There is a concerted effort by some politicians to place Christian rules above the Constitution. Considering the ignorance of Citizens United, it would seem such people are just plain ignorant. The two measures are exact opposites. I would hope you spend some serious
time in research before you throw your vote away. Pastors are not supposed to be political, but many churches have become openly part of campaigns, and there is much confusion about the issues and what some politicians stand for. As a Christian, or any other Faith, you are obligated as an American citizen to cast an honest vote that supports Christ and scripture. Don't be misled by hot button issues that evoke emotion. This is a vital time in America's future, and failure to separate fiction from fact WILL affect our future and the end time.

    People with real Christian faith should acknowledge God's rules and sovereignty.  That means we recognize God is always in full  control--ALWAYS!  We know Christ taught freedom, not slavery. Yet,  we've already had a bloody civil war and American slaves were not freed until almost 100 years after the Constitution was ratified. Lincoln, the president who oversaw the Civil War, was assassinated. Although elected as a Republican, he was not the
man party leaders wanted. People in states that supported slavery withdrew from the Union in an effort to impose unChristian will upon all Americans.

    Things haven't changed much, because there is still a vicious racial divide. Don't think so? You should hear the comments from  many people in the former slave states and other states that joined the union after the Civil War. The hatred that flows from these people,  including some Christians, is difficult to believe  nearly 150 years after that war. I was astounded to learn from a group at a dinner gathering nearly 20 years ago about a "solution" for the slave 
problem. Apparently this division of races will continue until God puts a final stop to it...AND He will. The solution was to put all the  Negroes on farms. They would all be farmers, and supposedly would provide our food and fiber. The proposal didn't include information as to ownership of land or share cropping, or regulations to control voting. I didn't want to hear more because I didn't think the idea or anything like it would survive. There is still a concerted effort to take away freedoms from other than the white race. We began this nation, not by freeing ourselves from England, but by cheating or taking away the land from Native Americans.

    Faith is a quality that white people get mixed up between God's directives and our personal ego and self confidence. I've heard a  group of preachers pray before a joint service, and then attended the service. They were preaching their program of church, which was not very scriptural at all. Oh, they used some scripture, but it was taken out of context. It was really nothing Christ would  likely have said. The congregation never questioned a word, and for the most part it was a service that only pushed the faith of leaders with personal agendas.

    You show your Faith when you follow through on Christ's teaching in the gospels and honor all individuals of other races and faiths with dignity and respect. Of course that doesn't mean we have to accept the radicals and terrorists, especially when they use mental and physical means to destroy us and our Faith.  The most accurate measure of our faith is shown not by rambling profession, but by our actions. Are we demonstrating our obligation for the gift of salvation we accepted? Next installment is the third horseman, Hope.

Rev. Walbear



    

AMERICAN APOCALYPSE

                                                           AMERICAN APOCALYPSE

                                                                           Prologue

    Most people, whether saved or not, know the word "apocalypse" refers to the bible Book of Revelation, which in turn refers to some awfully bad happenings including the end of the world as we know it. This message is not a prophecy, but a state of condition America is struggling in, which, in turn, will determine how our nation will face the future. Lots of bad things are happening, and the guidelines scripture gives us are being ignored. This is serious stuff, friends,
because if Christians (church people) don't use the intelligence God gave us, we are headed for trouble. This message is not intended to predict the end time or future. It is intended to explain truths we are neglecting, mostly because of pressure in our busy lives.

                                                                               Part 1

    
    When we talk of the apocalypse, we often equate the four horsemen mentioned there. They represent the main troubles the world will face as God pours out justice. For those of us who have a sports background, the oldest of us will remember the four horsemen of Notre Dame football fame. One portends evil, the other portends good. While this message is for Christians and non Christians both, the content will probably be more understood by church people. We will take an in depth look at the real background leading up to the contents of Revelation. Like the reference to the four horsemen, the concentration  is on four conditions. Go to 1 Corinthians 10:3-7. Here we find where we should apply our attention  and corrective efforts to solve earthly problems.

    "For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for  pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ, and being ready to punish all disobedience when your obedience is fulfilled." The second part of our direction for correct application of scripture to our life and future is found in 1 Thessalonians 5:8. "But let us who are of the day be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love, and as a helmet the hope of salvation. Add verse 9, "For God did not appoint us to wrath, but to obtain salvation to our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us, that whether  we wake or sleep, we should live together with Him."

    These verses of scripture explain to us that the problems we are dealing with are actually not the physical problems politicians keep trumpeting, but spiritual problems. Everyone, including Christians is missing this explanation given in the Epistles. People, especially Christians, are given this message in 1 Corinthians and 1Thessalonians to augment the four gospels given us by Christ. The entire world,  according to God, is ruled by substances we cannot see with our eyes,
or with any scientific instrument. These substances are spiritual, and we should know spiritual values consist of four elements.

    Everything in existence is controlled by the spiritual values of  Salvation, Faith, Hope and Charity. All are free. Charity is largely misunderstood because of translators' choice of a word to explain the original Greek "Agape." Christians should know that word should have been translated "Love," but charity was selected because it  means a combination of giving with love. We tend to equate charity to giving, but not with loving giving. Herein is a major problem for many Christians. This requires much more definitive explanation, but that needs to follow a look at the first of the four horsemen, salvation.

    Christians understand the spiritual process of salvation, but we have a serious problem with professing Christians who think they understand this cornerstone, but actually don't. Accepting Christ's offer of salvation is easy enough, but requires two things of the  person. Words do not a Christian make. A commitment from the heart is the first requirement. If this requirement is met, there will be  evidence of the completed spiritual contract. We know this because
scripture tells us so. The evidence will be the saved person's  adherence to Christ's teaching in how we should live. If we don't follow through on instructions in the four gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke and John), we show a serious lack of FAITH, which calls major attention as to your salvation. Was it a commitment from your heart, or otherwise? Otherwise could be you want to be a good person, or it could be you were afraid you wouldn't be going to heaven. Neither of these reasons cashes your ticket to salvation.

    Christians make a major mistake when they say salvation is free. Friends, it is not free. It is worldly free, but not spiritually free. There are strings attached, and they are vibrantly explained in the four previously mentioned gospels. Those gospels are God's rule book,
and He expects you to faithfully honor and obey them. If you know anything about sports, you know you must know and understand the rules to be a positive participant. That means you never quit studying the rules and methods required to be a winner. James 2:17 sums up
Christ's instructions for a saved person, "Thus also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead." You see, the four horsemen of  God's spiritual world require fulfillment of each part to guarantee each other. That is the only way to achieve victory in the future. We cannot be a part of God's ultimate victory unless we're fruitful and obedient soldiers.

    Obviously most of the world's people aren't Christians, but God uses all peoples profitably. America has received blessings largely unmatched in history. As the leader of the world, America has a large obligation to God and the world. If America falters because of wrong
choices, Americans must expect the hand of God to bring about corrective measures. If you study the Old Testament, you will be familiar with the consequences of bad choices. Israel, as God's Chosen, became very self satisfied after a period of comparative wealth and peace. The religious leaders liked the privileged living of the times, because if the people were happy, their religious leadership was much easier. They did not rock the boat of good times, and when things began to fall apart, they weren't up to the task of standing strong and listening to God. The prophets were listening, but their voices were ignored or shouted down by the people who were or who wanted to be the governmental leaders. The temple pulpit was quiet and permitted the people to persecute the prophets and condemn Christ to death. Have you ever given thought to God's solution to bring Gentiles into eternal life? He used the desire of carnal (money) leadership to lure the misguided people into killing the Savior, which opened the way for the salvation of untold numbers of people.

     All this is to point out yet another scripture, Luke 12:48. Christ was speaking here of faithful and evil servants. As Christians, we are His servants. Christ uses this verse to describe what should and will happen to His servants--that's us, friends. "But he who did not know, yet committed things deserving of stripes, shall be beaten with few. For everyone to whom much is given, from him much will be required; and to whom much has been committed, of him they
will ask the more." There are two important points here. Not every American is a committed Christian, and these people are those who did not know. They will suffer the consequences for doing things unscriptural, as will much of the world's people. For those who are committed Christians, things have been wonderful. In addition to the spiritual blessings such as happy marriage and children, they have material blessings in jobs, homes, cars, vacations and such.
If you are among this fortunate group, you are one of the people  from whom much will be expected. In addition to eternal life, God has blessed you on earth. Now we get to the required part of this scripture. MUCH will be required. Scripture doesn't say SOME will be required. It also notes that "they will ask the more."

    Christ died for us, and if you know the New Testament, you know that His apostles, teachers and supporters sometimes were required to be killed. They were "asked the more." There is a saying, "if you want to get something done, ask a busy person." While this saying has been applied to the material world, it also applies to the spiritual world. God knows how much time you spend attempting to learn the Word. You do know the Word actually represents God, right? See John 1:1 in your manual. "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." The biggest  hindrance I see in studying the Word is a combination of other interests. These include, lust for power, lust for money, and lust for entertainment. Lust becomes worship in many cases. As long as a Christian tithes or donates money to an organization, the obligation is considered done. Or attendance at church or teaching Sunday School satisfies the obligation. Friends, all of these actions are good if your intention is to serve God, except when you want to be recognized by people for your supposed generosity. All blessings come from God. They include a committed spouse, a comfortable
home, a successful business, good job, respectful children and many other good things. You may have performed the above good deeds, but everything is God's doing, and He deserves the credit. You can see how far we've deviated from this principle in actions such as naming stadiums and buildings for people or corporations. Neither is Godly, but money has prevailed. The Christian community in America permits this to happen when some church member with deep pockets donates a large sum of money. Some "Christian" radio stations are circumventing the paid advertisement code by accepting donations in the name of the giver. Do you believe God doesn't know what is going on? What do you think about the Christian dominated Supreme Court ruling that corporations are people?

    This decision was a legal bit of trickery based on the need to provide an organization (corporation) a method of making contracts. The group could be considered  a person  to enable business contracts to be legal. For Christians to accept the Christian Supreme Court ruling, they must ignore basic scripture: Genesis 1:26-27, John 1:1, and the undisputed reality of Christ, in person, to prove that Christ, the man, was the image and likeness of God. Yet, there has been no movement by Christian leaders to have this terrible ruling thrown out. The result has been an atrocious collect of "donations", not for Christian purposes, but to satisfy the lust for power and to establish rules, whether liberal or conservative, that history has proven unworkable.

    To sum up the requirements of salvation and the relationship to the three other horsemen of Christianity, we should understand that real, committed salvation is free in that it can't be earned or purchased. But, we must understand that strings are attached to our membership
in eternal life. We are expected to follow the directions given in the four gospels. If there is a problem understanding the parables, it is an indication you are not following God's reasoning; or you need the help of the Holy Spirit, or have listened to the wrong pastor or teacher. As
we are told in Matt. 7:7-8, "Ask and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened." Every Christian needs to understand the invisible four horsemen who give us the meaning of spirituality. The message will continue in Part 2.

Rev. Walbear