Saturday, April 30, 2016

More on the matter of Christians keeping the Jewish Feasts


by Dr. Diane M. Hoffmann


I t is quite disturbing to see and hear of the interest of this movement picking up increasingly in our country as well as others.

An article in Breaking Israel News entitled “Christians Are Celebrating Passover. But Should They? By Adam Eliyahu Berkowitz April 28, 2016, brings some good points in the explanation of what is happening with this issue:

“The unique phenomenon of Christians participating in Passover seders is beginning to catch on, as many non-Jews delve into the Jewish roots of their faith – but it is taking on new forms that are unexpected and may cross some delicate red lines."

It then tells the story of a woman in the United States who held a seder for about 20 people in her home. The article says that her husband then slaughtered a lamb – as a memorial mind you, not a sacrifice!

What is disturbing is that this is not happening just over in another country… it is even going on close to home. The movement is growing. What began as an innocent new experience some years ago for Christians to “connect with their Jewish roots”, picked up momentum to the point where now, it is not enough to re-enact the food symbolism of the Old Testament, or the shadow of the Christian Christ to come, but little by little and very subtly (the devil’s way of operating), now the ritual is graduating to the slaughtering of animals (lambs) in the individuals’ homes. 

Is this not a sign, in part, of the development of a cult? There is a story about Louis Riel from Canadian history that a lot of people do not know, told in the May/June issue of "Faith Today". 

I go into great details through a thorough search of scriptures from both the Old and the New Testaments to show whether or not Christians are required to keep the Jewish Feasts in this  time.

It actual became too long an article to put it up on this post, so I have available for you as a FREE e-book which you can get at the following link:

http://www.hofron.com/OnChristianKeepingJewishFeasts.html

Just go there now which is one of my other web sites that I use for downloading e-books.
See you there!


.-------------------------------------------------------------------

Diane M. Hoffmann, B.Th., M.Th., Ph.D./Th.
Author of "24 Hot Potatoes in the Church Today"
Just released by Xulon Press, a div. of Salem Media.
To watch the Video Trailer:
http://www.godtube.com/watch/?v=YLZYLGNX

web site: http://24hotpotatoes.blogspot.ca/


Order a copy of
"24 Hot Potatoes in the Church Today"
for yourself or as a gift for a friend,
at:
Amazon.com, Barnes&Noble.com, Xulonpress.com,
Your Local Book Store,
(in Campbell River: North Island Inkjet-Christian Corner).
or
from this site direct through PayPal...
See See this page...
 

.






Thursday, April 21, 2016

Do Christians need to Keep the Jewish Feasts?

by Diane M. Hoffmann


There continues to be a lot of buzz going around regarding the keeping of the Jewish Feasts by Christians -- particularly around the Passover.

In listening to some of the talks on the subject, there are a couple of things I am concerned with which I need to cover here today.

First of all, some people in their response to support this theory say that because Jesus kept the Jewish Feasts, we should also … don't we want to be like Jesus?

That is fine, of course we want to be like Jesus... but this statement is not applicable here to the context of Christians keeping the Jewish feasts.

The Jews kept the Feasts, not the Gentiles. And at that, the Jews only kept them until they received the message of Jesus Christ and His ultimate sacrifice on the cross.

Some quote Paul as saying, “let us therefore celebrate the feast, not with the old leaven of malice and evil, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth” (1 Corinthians 5:8). 

This also is out of context because he was then speaking of the new feast celebration. It was now some 30 years after the first preaching of Christ’s work on the cross. The Corinthians were well aware of the meaning. They were not keeping the Old Testament Feasts. The context of this letter is all about the moral character of the church at Corinth and the problems of divisions, covering subject after subject -- the most serious to do with Judaists in the church. It was not within a context of the keeping of the Jewish Feasts.

The second item is about the interpretation of the statement of Jesus in Luke 22:19. 

Referring to the line, some say that when Jesus told His disciples, "whenever you do this, do it in remembrance of me.  What was "this"?  These people say that it was the celebration of the Passover, coming out of Egypt...

However, this was not about the Old Testament Passover. Jesus was bringing about for the first time the institution of the last supper which became our communion observance today. “This” was the new liturgy of the last supper which was about His broken body that was just less than a day away at the time He spoke it. 

This was not, as some teach wrongly, referring to the celebration of the Old Testament Passover of coming out of Egypt... but it was referring to the New Covenant for which Jesus was giving His body that took the Jews (and the world) out of 4,000 years of law keeping.

This is exactly the same thing that I heard a local radio talk show host teach in his radio program just a couple of weeks ago his whole issue of Christian having to keep the Sabbath and Jewish Feasts.

The problem is that this individual is a British-Israel believer, which means that he believes in keeping the Old Testament Jewish Sabbaths and Feasts because he believes that he is an Israelite – all Anglo-Saxons and Americans are the lost tribes of the Northern Kingdom, according to this theory, who went up to Ireland and Britain and America as Ephraim and Manasseh respectively. This is contrary to what the Word of God teaches. They stand on misinterpretations of some scriptures that don’t mean Ireland, Britain and America. I’ve written about that on my post of January 27, 2016)

Here’s what took place at the last supper:

"And he said unto them, With desire I have desired to eat this passover with you before I suffer:
"For I say unto you, I will not any more eat thereof, until it be fulfilled in the kingdom of God.
"And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and said, Take this, and divide it among yourselves:
"For I say unto you, I will not drink of the fruit of the vine, until the kingdom of God shall come.
"And he took bread, and gave thanks, and brake it, and gave unto them, saying,
"This is my body which is given for you: this do in remembrance of me.
"Likewise also the cup after supper, saying, "This cup is the new testament in my blood, which is shed for you."

Notice He did not make that statement when He took the cup… He said it when He broke the bread which was about His body being broken for us. It was clear that He was the Matzo, the unleavened bread of the Passover. He was fulfilling that feast at this time. And of course that also pertained to the next line where He said, “Likewise” also the cup which He proclaimed as “the new testament in my blood which is shed for you.”

The teaching of the meaning of the Old Testament to the work of Jesus on the cross is fine for the most part. The problem is that some present it within the context of defending the theory that is going around now about the need for Christians to keep the Hebrew Feasts… this is very confusing for people and actually wrong…

…because that theory also contains the keeping of the Sabbath on Saturday by Christians. A lot of people are asking questions. Some people even use these kinds of confusions as an excuse to stay away from the Church. If we have to keep the Jewish Feasts and Sabbaths, then we have to keep the circumcision and all the rest of the ordinances.

This whole thing is from the enemy who wants to create divisions in the Church. We should not support or defend it ever as being scriptural.

As for the Sabbath which many people bring into this picture, this is part of the Ten Commandments and is to be kept. We Gentiles call it The Lord’s Day and keep it on Sunday, based on the triumphant Resurrection of our Lord and Saviour. It is interesting to see that among the old writings of earlier fathers of Christendom, many called it 'our Sabbath'.

We can teach the meaning of the Feasts in the Old Testament, that’s good. Most people know about it, except of course the new babes in Christ. This would be a good topic for a Bible study, or a discipleship program -- but not, in my humble opinion, a preaching message connected with this erroneous theory that plagued even the Christians in the early Church.

Acts 15:10 says: “Now therefore why tempt ye God, to put a yoke upon the neck of the disciples which neither our fathers nor we were able to bear?”

Acts15:19 wraps up the council meeting at Jerusalem with, “Wherefore my sentence is, that we trouble not them which from among the Gentiles are turned to God: But that we write unto them, that they abstain from pollutions of idols, and from fornication, and from things strangled, and from blood.”

Jesus kept the Sabbath, yes, and other Holy Days as well. He was a Jew, living among the Jews… His atoning death had not yet been consummated. Remember on the cross He cried out “It is finished”. That’s when His ultimate sacrifice became in effect.

When Jesus said, "It is finished", wow this was the whole of the Old Testament He was referring to. Four thousand years of spiritual hardship and temporary animal sacrifices. The old shadows of things to come finally came to the promised reality of being changed into the promised New Covenant.

“Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.
“And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation;
“To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation.
(11 Corinthians 5:17-19, KJV)

If you have a contract about a house sale, and in a span of time, the house breaks down, and begins to fall apart, the roof leaking, the patched up fixes coming undone, etc... and you’re stuck with this signed contract, you are bound by it…

…But, on seeing this, the previous owner, who has now become a Christian, has compassion and says, I will tear up the old contract I gave you and make a new one with a brand new house, never been lived in before…

… You move in the new house. Do you continue celebrating the old one? Of course not. It's done, it's gone, it's past, forgiven and forgotten. The previous owner does not say, let's drink to this new day and remember what I have done to you in the old house. No, he wants you to remember the sacrifice, the kind action he did for you and your family, not the old selfish malice he had done previously.

Jesus said in an earlier statement, one does not put old wine into new skin. He was speaking of the old and the new testaments -- the new is totally new and overtakes the old fully and completely. The shadows in the feasts were temporary until the cross. Even the book of Hebrews covers that clearly. One should not emphasize the Old Testament ordinances, but use it in passing into the explanation of the New.

Re the statement by many that, "Early Christians continued to observe God's feasts, but with a new spirit and a sense of Christ's death as the true Passover Lamb."

Actually the Christians did not continue to observe God's feasts. Acts 2:42 says, "and they continued steadfastly in the apostles doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers". Not "and continued steadfastly in the keeping of the Jewish Feasts".

The apostles did go into Synagogues, and to Feast events where Jews were gathered, but it was to bring them the good news of Jesus Christ and to ‘contend for the faith’. The Christians began to keep Sunday – Resurrection day – immediately (after Christ returned to heaven), and especially, later on, after they were forbidden to come into the synagogues.

The Jews did keep the Feasts until they got saved by the belief in Jesus Christ’s work. And the Gentiles were never asked to keep the law after they came to the Lord – this was actually a big problem for Paul having to deal with the Jews who wanted to impose the old rules on the new Christians.

The original Holy Days are still on for the Jews as long as the New Covenant is not accepted individually… that’s why Jews still observe them, however they observe them in vain for they still need to receive Christ as their personal Saviour. If all 7 billion + individuals today received the free gift of salvation, there would be no more observing.

During His ministry, Jesus was constantly attacked on the issue of the Sabbath where He responded that the Sabbath was made for man and not man for the Sabbath and that He was even the Lord of the Sabbath (Matthew 12:8). But they didn’t understand this yet, for He was going to give His life for that “fulfilment” of the law requirements later on at the end of His ministry on earth.

Jesus not only “liberalized” but He actually fulfilled all the demands of the law in His death and Resurrection. Otherwise, if He did not, why did He die a most humiliating death before His whole Creation.

As for Zechariah 14, which some people point to as support to keep the Sabbath now… the observance of the feast of Tabernacles will be kept as a reminder of what happened in the end times of the previous era before Jesus’ second coming.

This feast is the last of the yearly feasts that were observed by the Jews for the whole of Israel’s history. It was the most joyful and colourful of all and lasted 7 days. It represented the coming out of Egypt and the future return of Messiah. In the new millennium which Zechariah speaks about, it will be rolled over as the one Feast that will continue for that final 7th millennium until its end, when Satan will rise up again and lead people to disobey and turn away from God’s commandments once more (Rev.20:7-8 – that’s when the Gog and Magog battle will take place).

But that will be the last and final time (Rev.20:10). Then the whole universe will be rolled up as a scroll, as predicted in Rev.6:14), and everything will be renewed (Rev. 21:1) as it was at the beginning of Genesis, where God pronounced His creation that “it was good”. And then the new Jerusalem will come down from God out of heaven prepared as a bride adorned for her husband… (Rev.21:2). Wow, something to look forward to.

“Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holy-day, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days:  Which are a shadow of things to come; but the body is of Christ.” (Colossians 2:16-17)

To the scriptures used to support that the law was given as "a sign for ever" or a "perpetual covenant" as being the interpretation for believers today to still have to keep the feasts, a search of the word “perpetual” and "forever" shows that the Hebrew word used is ‘olam’ which means a thing concealed, a vanishing point, used as in continually, lasting, long time, etc.  It does not always refer to forever in the sense of never ever ending throughout eternity.

However in some scriptures, the same words, perpetual and forever, are from another Hebrew word. Based on the context of the scripture we can tell what the sense of it is. For example, when a scripture refers to God's eternal glory as in Psalm 104:5, the same word is used and we know that it means eternal, because He is eternal.

In Isaiah 57:15 where it speaks of God as the "lofty one that inhabits eternity"; here, the word in Hebrew for eternity is 'ad' which means a duration, everlasting, perpetuity throughout God’s eternity. And in another scripture, Isaiah 60:15, speaking of Zion, the Hebrew word for 'eternal' is 'olam'.

In the Gesenius' Hebrew-Chaldee Lexicon to the Old Testament, there is a whole page-and-a-half spent to explaining the varieties of meanings for this one word 'olam'.  One portion of it I quote: "(2) It more often refers to future time, in such a manner, that what is called the terminus ad quem (the goal, the object) is always defined from the nature of the thing itself. When it is applied to human affairs, and specially - (a) to individual men, it commonly signifies all the days of life, as a perpetual slave (not to be discharged as long as he lives)... poetically used as a beast, Job 40:28..." etc. The Lexicon goes on to show a multitude of examples to this effect.

 So, the scriptures referred to in the book of Exodus, in context, is actually saying:

 “Wherefore the children of Israel shall keep the sabbath, to observe the sabbath throughout their generations, for a perpetual (olam) covenant.” (i.e.: for a time concealed, till a vanishing point, always as in continually every day for a long time, etc. during their life time).

When did that time come to an end?  In the New Covenant when God, through the death of Jesus Christ His Son (God in the flesh) gave His life on the cross, as the ultimate sacrifice that the previous ordinances could not permanently cover.

This had been promised for over four thousand years, through the prophets and the shadows of the feasts and sabbaths of things to come.  To the people living at that time, that four thousands years was an eternity!  The explanation of all of this is given in the many books of the New Testament, especially Romans, Hebrews and others that specifically refer to the books of the Law in the Old Testament.

"God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds; Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high.” (Hebrews 1-3).

Atonement is received by faith and grace, “lest any one should boats”, not by grace + works.

The problem is that some people are stuck in the Old Testament still. We need to know it but we need to move into the full grace and mercy of the New Covenant promised in the Old -- otherwise what we’re saying is that Jesus’ ultimate sacrifice and His resurrection is not enough and was in vain. It is an insult to our Lord and Saviour who came to give Himself a ransom for our sin.

“For if they which are of the law be heirs, faith is made void, and the promise made of none effect. Because the law worketh wrath.” (Romans 4:14-15)

“… ye are not under the law, but under grace.” (Romans 6:14)

Romans 7:7-12 tells us that the law cannot help us be good, perfect or holy.

 “And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power: In whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ: Burried with him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with him through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised him from the dead.” (Colossians 2:10-12).

“Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross; And having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a show of them openly, triumphing over them in it.” (Colossians 2:15).

“Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us; for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree.” (Galatians 3:13)

And there are many other scriptures that show the law no longer has a hold on those who are saved by grace, through faith and repentance.


The key is that our preaching of the feasts has to be clear that we are no longer under the law that required the keeping of the ordinances until the time of Jesus’ final sacrifice. 

We do not need to keep any of the Feasts that were there to point to that ultimate sacrifice of our God for His Creation -- because that is now done. We celebrate Good Friday and Easter.  \dmh

.-------------------------------------------------------------------

Diane M. Hoffmann, B.Th., M.Th., Ph.D./Th.
Author of "24 Hot Potatoes in the Church Today"
Just released by Xulon Press, a div. of Salem Media.
To watch the Video Trailer:
http://www.godtube.com/watch/?v=YLZYLGNX

web site: http://24hotpotatoes.blogspot.ca/


Order a copy of
"24 Hot Potatoes in the Church Today"
for yourself or as a gift for a friend,
at:
Amazon.com, Barnes&Noble.com, Xulonpress.com,
Your Local Book Store,
(in Campbell River: North Island Inkjet-Christian Corner).
or
from this site direct through PayPal...
See See this page...
 

.




.

Friday, April 8, 2016

How Do You Rid Yourself of Temptation

by Diane M. Hoffmann

The title of this post is a question recently sent in to a Christian discussion forum by someone. Many people responded to the sad and desperate plea by giving tons of long doctrinal answers and instructions.

Here's my practical guideline which I contributed to the forum:

Three Practical Ways to Overcome Temptation:

1.Stay in the Word of God, every day - get excited about it.

2.Start a ministry helping others in the church and community. (You'll get so busy you won't have time to struggle.)

3.Be sincere -- God will not be mocked. (Galatians 6:7
Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.)

Three Practical Scriptures to Overcome Temptation:

1 Timothy 6:11
But thou, O man of God, flee these things; and follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, meekness.

2 Timothy 2:22
Flee also youthful lusts: but follow righteousness, faith, charity, peace, with them that call on the Lord out of a pure heart.

James 4:7
Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

Follow this everyday and you shall be a successful overcomer./dmh

.-------------------------------------------------------------------

Diane M. Hoffmann, B.Th., M.Th., Ph.D./Th.
Author of "24 Hot Potatoes in the Church Today"
Just released by Xulon Press, a div. of Salem Media.
To watch the Video Trailer:
http://www.godtube.com/watch/?v=YLZYLGNX

web site: http://24hotpotatoes.blogspot.ca/


Order a copy of
"24 Hot Potatoes in the Church Today"
for yourself or as a gift for a friend,
at:
Amazon.com, Barnes&Noble.com, Xulonpress.com,
Your Local Book Store,
(in Campbell River: North Island Inkjet-Christian Corner).
or
from this site direct through PayPal...
See See this page...
 

.




Tuesday, April 5, 2016

On Divorce and Remarriage - "I do, But"

On Divorce and Remarriage - "I do, But"
by Diane M. Hoffmann

There was an article that appeared in The Light Magazine recently that spoke on the issue of divorce and remarriage.


The following is my reply to some of its content:

There is a big problem in the Church concerning the teaching on divorce and remarriage; this is why there is as much divorce/remarriage going on in the Church as there is in the World.

The article is void of many necessary scriptures.  In answer to some of the comments expressed in the article, we need to understand three things:

1)_Marriage is a covenant. And it is not just a covenant but a blood covenant. “Malachi 2:14 confirms this quite clearly. Marriage is a sacred institution of God for mankind.

2)_The adultery is not in the divorce. It is ‘divorce and remarriage”. Divorce alone is not adultery. It is when one remarries after divorce, when the spouse is still alive, that is cause for adultery – because a covenant can only be broken by the death of the partner.

3)_The exception clause Jesus told about in Matthew 19:9, and which everybody uses as the excuse for ‘self-legitimizing’ divorce/remarriage, is not ‘immorality or infidelity’ within a  marriage. It is ‘fornication’.

“And I say unto you, whosoever shall put away his wife, except it be for fornication, and shall marry another, commits adultery: and whoso marries her which is put away does commit adultery.” The word “fornication” refers to sexual sin before marriage.”

Excerpts from "24 Hot Potatoes in the Church Today":


“In the book Divorce is not a Choice, Marriage is a Blood Covenant until Death by Ian Taylor, it says:
 A valid marriage requires a virgin bride, vows before man and God and consummation. The consummation under these circumstances will involve the shedding of blood … Such a covenant, according to Biblical principles is in effect until the death of one partner.

"Without getting too complicated here, in ancient times, it was known that a girl had a hymen (a membrane) to protect the proof of her virginity to her new husband. We don’t even know or hear about this anymore. But people of that day knew. The eternal life of the groom was at stake. If the woman had had intercourse with a man prior to their marriage, he could divorce her for that betrayal. But he only had her word and that of her parents until their first wedding night took place where the hymen would rupture and shed the blood (thus the blood covenant). That would be the proof or the ‘tokens of virginity’ (Deuteronomy 22:15). This was what Jesus referred to in Matthew 19:9 when he said, “And I say unto you, whosoever shall put away his wife, except it be for fornication, and shall marry another, commits adultery: and whoso marries her which is put away does commit adultery.” The word “fornication” refers to sexual sin before marriage.

"But today, we are taught that committing adultery, or sexual immorality as some modern translations have it, on the part of the marriage partner is permission to divorce. That’s a long way from the original intent of the wedding night discovery of “fornication.” Anyone suspicious of male chauvinism here might say: “But why is the woman the only one required to shed the blood? Does that leave the man free to not keep himself a virgin? Is man again getting away with male favoritism?” Hardly, his blood covenant had already been made with God by circumcision. This ritual was his blood ordinance with God to live righteously before Him—which included to keep himself pure until marriage. Through marriage, the woman made her blood covenant with the man, and the man with God in the circumcision. Just as God is the head of Christ, Christ is the head of the man, and man is the head of the woman, so is the covenant made between God, man, and woman.

"However, please take note that rituals required in the Old Testament such as circumcision are no longer required in the New Testament under the new covenant of grace. The heart now is circumcised, “But he is a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God” (Romans 2:29).

"In Deuteronomy, the law stated that if a man had an intimate relationship with a woman, he had to marry her (Deuteronomy 22:29). If he didn’t and married another, this was then considered adultery. How far we have come from the sanctity and seriousness of sex and marriage today! Just because we no longer follow or honor those old customs today—since we have been freed from the Law by the grace and mercy of God in our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ—does not mean that the underlying meanings have changed. The principles are still the same right from the very beginning of time in Genesis 1:27. That’s how the Old Testament is still relevant today—we read it to understand the original intent of the principles that we now can live out through the righteousness of Jesus Christ. Unfortunately, we have come a long way from those Godly principles in our self-righteousness and there is no more teaching about it."

The article says, “Yet sometimes people choose divorce for other reasons.  If that happens, is remarriage in God’s eyes still possible? To answer that question, we look at Jesus’ words and God’s mercy. First, whether the reason for divorce was biblically legitimate or not, Jesus assumed that those who divorce will likely remarry.  That’s why he says any man who divorces his wife for a reason other than adultery makes her (and the man who marries her) commit adultery. Jesus presupposes the woman will remarry, as marriage was often her sole means of support. The implication is that if this happens, the responsibility is placed not on the woman who remarries, but on the man who first divorced her for reasons other than adultery."


Let’s decipher this:

1)_Re “whether the reason for divorce was biblically legitimate or not”,  Jesus says there’s only one exception and that is “fornication”.

2)_The implication is not that the responsibility is placed on the man only, but on the woman also because Scripture says if she marries another man she makes him commit adultery. And if she divorces her husband and marries another, she commits adultery. (Mark 10:12). It works both ways.


The article says, "For those of us who have experienced divorce and possibly remarriage, what are we to do?"

Well, there is forgiveness available. Someone said to me one day, “Don’t you think that Jesus’ blood is powerful enough to cover divorce and remarriage?”  To this I say, the blood of Jesus is powerful enough to even cover murder. But we still have to teach to not commit murder.

So there is forgiveness once we come to know the truth and we repent. But Jesus said to the woman caught in adultery, "Go and sin no more". Just because there is forgiveness, does not give approval to go ahead and remarry after divorce. Once we know the truth we cannot say, “Oh, well, I’ll divorce and remarry because God will forgive me.  But if we’ve already divorced and remarried, then we ask forgiveness, we repent and God forgives us through His grace, mercy and blood shed on the cross. Then we don’t divorce and do it again.

God will not be mocked. If we know that something is sin, we cannot go ahead and do it. That’s what Paul is talking about in Romans 6:15.

Let’s not forget that the scripture about divorce and remarriage is quoted by Jesus in the New Testament. There is so much more on this subject, such as understanding what is fornication and what is adultery, what is the connection to the blood covenant for the man and for the woman, what is the token of virginity that fornication refers to, etc.  Let’s not forget that Jesus’ quote in Matthew is in the New Testament, but it underlays the original principles of the covenant of marriage.

It is so important to understand this issue, because for many, there will be eternal consequences.\dmh

.-------------------------------------------------------------------

Diane M. Hoffmann, B.Th., M.Th., Ph.D./Th.
Author of "24 Hot Potatoes in the Church Today"
Just released by Xulon Press, a div. of Salem Media.
To watch the Video Trailer:
http://www.godtube.com/watch/?v=YLZYLGNX

web site: http://24hotpotatoes.blogspot.ca/


Order a copy of
"24 Hot Potatoes in the Church Today"
for yourself or as a gift for a friend,
at:
Amazon.com, Barnes&Noble.com, Xulonpress.com,
Your Local Book Store,
(in Campbell River: North Island Inkjet-Christian Corner).
or
from this site direct through PayPal...
See See this page...
 

.

Saturday, April 2, 2016

Are We Predestined, Chosen or Elected To Be Lost or Saved?

by Diane M. Hoffmann

I am writing this article for two reasons:

1)_Many people are led astray by this made-up theology idea that people are predestined or elected or chosen to be saved. That is a lie from the devil. 

I know of a local man (he represents many others) who actually believes that God has already predestined individuals to be either saved or not saved, and that no matter what he would do, he was not guaranteed salvation. He lives a miserable and sad Christian life based on that.

The Bible says that God is “long-suffering (patient) to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.” ALL should come to repentance! (2 Peter 3:9)

2)_The second reason is that someone who is looking for the truth did ask me to write a chapter in my next book on this subject. Many churches believe this lie. I even witnessed Bible studies at other people’s homes where videos of preachers propagating this false doctrine were used. 

As in all false doctrines, scriptures are used to make it look as truth, but these scriptures are taken out of context, twisted in meaning and totally out of place in the same way as the teachings of cults and false religions are.  This is how Satan, the father of lies, operates to deceive people.

Let’s look at some of the Bible verses used to support predestination and/or the doctrine of election. Please note that all scriptures are quoted from the King James version.

Psalm 65:4

“Blessed is the man whom thou choosest, and causest to approach unto thee, that he may dwell in thy courts: we shall be satisfied with the goodness of thy house, even of thy holy temple.”

This verse is not referring to predestination. It refers to “chosen” as in Israel as a nation. In Deuteronomy, verse 6 it says: “For thou art a holy people unto the Lord thy God: the Lord thy God hath chosen thee to be a special people unto himself, above all people that are upon the face of the earth.” 

It speaks of those individuals who are drawn to Him by faith. This has nothing to do with  individuals being predestinated for salvation or for destruction without any means of our will. We as individuals will to receive or reject the Gospel of Salvation – by faith in Christ.

“What must I do to be saved? The jailer asked Paul. His reply was, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and THOU SHALT BE SAVED, and thy house. And they spake unto him the word of the Lord, and to all that were in his house.” (Acts 16:30-32). Clear and simple truth from the Word of God.

Proverbs 16:4

“The Lord hath made all things for himself: yea, even the wicked for the day of evil.”

It’s amazing how people will use wrongly scriptures to support their made-up beliefs. Again this scripture does not refer to predestination or election. Yes, the Lord has made everything for Himself.  He knew from the beginning that there would good and evil. He knew this from the time of His instruction to Adam and Eve not to eat of the tree of good and evil for at that moment they would die – decaying both spiritually and physical.

The wicked are subservient to His eternal purposes and will. They will experience the day of wrath and receive their deserved punishment. HOWEVER, even the wicked can get saved by receiving the gift of Salvation. All have sinned and come short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23) and the only way for every one is to avoid the wrath of God is though faith in the mercy and truth of God.

God created all things – every baby that is born is created by God whether they will choose to stay in their sins or receive the gift of redemption is up to each one.

Matthew 24:31

“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.”

Again this has nothing to do with predestination as in God already marked some to be saved and some not. The elect are those who have come to faith in Jesus Christ through the grace and mercy of God.

Luke 18:7

Again the word elect refers to those who have accepted and received the grace and mercy of God unto Salvation. Even the context here tells us that the persistence of the widow won the favour of the king and Jesus then says, “nevertheless will I find faith when I come… so faith is what is needed for man to turn to God and believe on the works of Jesus Christ.

Acts 15:17-18

Once more we see that this has nothing to do with predestination. God is speaking to a disobedient people, unbelievers, just like in Acts 13:46 where God told Paul to turn their ministry of the Gospel unto the Gentiles.

Verses 17-18 of Acts 15 is a reference from Amos 9:11-12 which speaks of the future restoration of Israel where God will give the remnants of Israel and Gentiles another chance at seeking after Him.

Romans 8:28-30

“And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose” (v.28)

“To them who are called” is specific to them who comprise the family of God, those who are in Christ and justified by His blood. This is as it is clearly defined in Romans 9, verses 6-7: “Not as though the word of God hath taken none effect, For they are not all Israel, which are of Israel, neither because they are the seed of Abraham, are they all children: but, in Isaac shall thy seed be called.” In other words there are natural Israelites and spiritual Israelites – not all descendants of Abraham will accept God’s redemption; Abraham had two sons, Isaac and Ishmael.  But through Isaac’s seed they are called.  People are called within a certain group of people or family. Individually we are called to receive the salvation or redemption of God through the plan of God as told to us in the Bible’s history. We are so justified by faith, each one of us.

“For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.” (v.29)

God already knew who would receive Him, and those were predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son – not predestined to be saved or lost.

Romans 9:11

“(For the children being not yet born, neither having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God according to election might stand, not of works, but of him that calleth;)” (read within the context of the passage).

Here too, some use this scripture to show predestination of individuals. However what this is all about (and the rest of the chapter) is that in God’s sovereignty, God can supersedes the natural or spiritual processes, including the first birth privileges, as in this case of verse eleven, where God selects Jacob to be the heir of the promise instead of the older brother Esau. God can do whatever He wants according to His ultimate purpose.

But that does not change the salvation availability to every individual who will accept the redemption plan of God down through history. God is always working from the physical and the spiritual aspect of mankind, always with the goal in mind of Salvation through Christ.

Romans 11:2-7

(Read the passage in the Bible).

Again, these scriptures are taken out of context. Foreknowledge and election of grace are not referring to predestination of some will be lost and some will be saved. It is about the acceptance or rejection of the people of God and others who hear the gospel, toward the grace offered by God for redemption from sin.

Ephesians 1:5-6, 11-12

“Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will, to the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved.”

“In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will, that we should be to the praise of his glory, who first trusted in Christ.”

Again, people pick any scripture that has the word “predestination”, “choosen” or “elect/ion”  as to do with God having predestinated us to being saved or being lost in spite of what we do. That is criminal – spiritually speaking.

We have to read these scriptures form the basis of the scripture that says that God is “long-suffering (patient) to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that ALL should come to repentance.” (2 Peter 3:9)

What predestination is referring to is that, when God created the world and the people in it, He predestined ALL for Redemption.  That is the whole purpose of God on this earth – for us to make a decision for God or against Him.

Yes, God has “chosen” us all from the beginning unto salvation through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth whereunto he called us by the gospel to the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.
(2 Tessalonians 2:13-14).

Revelation 13:8

Even this scripture is used by some to support the lie of salvation being available only to a number of people “predestined” beforehand to be either saved or lost,

“And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.”

Yes there is a book in which the names of those who are saved are written; these are the saints of God, those who turned to Him when called by the Gospel of Jesus Christ and received His sacrifice on the Cross for the remission of the sin of mankind.  And those whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world are those who refused to accept the free offer of Salvation.

Again this is not a predestination of being lost without the availability of Salvation through faith in the work of Christ on the cross. That is a terrible lie.

Those who spread this lie of predestination in that way, give all sorts of misinterpretations of the reason why God would do such a thing.  To believe in such a theory, one must be in the camp of those who believe there is no hell. Because there are only two places that the soul of man can go to after death: heaven or hell. God sets before us life and death and says “choose” life. \dmh

.-------------------------------------------------------------------

Diane M. Hoffmann, B.Th., M.Th., Ph.D./Th.
Author of "24 Hot Potatoes in the Church Today"
Just released by Xulon Press, a div. of Salem Media.
To watch the Video Trailer:
http://www.godtube.com/watch/?v=YLZYLGNX

web site: http://24hotpotatoes.blogspot.ca/


Order a copy of
"24 Hot Potatoes in the Church Today"
for yourself or as a gift for a friend,
at:
Amazon.com, Barnes&Noble.com, Xulonpress.com,
Your Local Book Store,
or
from this site direct through PayPal...
See See this page...
 

.


.