Archive for February, 2006

Acts 26:19 - “I was not disobedient to the vision from heaven.”

What set Paul apart from many other Christian ministers was this: when the Lord corrected him, he immediately repented and became obedient to God’s revelation.  We see this at his conversion (Acts 9), when he changed in a single moment from a man who persecuted the Lord Jesus to one who obeyed Him as God.  This willingness to obey the revelation of the Lord was a crucial factor in his conversion, and was a trait throughout his apostolic ministry.  The Lord made him one of the most fruitful preachers in the history of the church.  The amazing fruit of his ministry came because of Paul’s zeal to obey the Lord’s revelation.   continue

OFFICIAL STATEMENT OF FAITH OF MARANATHA CHRISTIAN CHURCHES continue

1 Thessalonians 2:9 - “Surely you remember, brothers, our toil and hardship; we worked night and day in order not to be a burden to anyone while we preached the gospel of God to you.”  

Acts 20:33-35 - “You yourselves know that these hands of mine have supplied my own needs and the needs of my companions.  In everything I did, I showed you that by this kind of hard work we must help the weak.”  

Paul knew that many religious leaders in his day saw their ministry as a way to get financial gain.  (1 Timothy 6:5).  This is often a bad testimony for the gospel.  Paul wanted to reach the lost, and unbelievers are naturally suspicious that preachers just want their money.  He made a decision that many of his peers rejected – as do most preachers today.  Paul did not depend on tithes or offerings for his income.  He worked hard at manual labor – so that he would not have to get money from the people whom he converted.  He left behind his emerging career as a Jewish Rabbi, which would have given him social prestige, pride, influence in the community, and good income.   continue

1 Samuel 30:11-15 -  They found an Egyptian in a field and brought him to David.  They gave him water to drink and food to eat – part of a cake of pressed figs and two cakes of raisins.  He ate and was revived, for he had not eaten any food or drunk any water for three days and three nights.   David asked him, “To whom do you belong, and where do you come from?”   He said, “I am an Egyptian, the slave of an Amalekite.  My master abandoned me when I became ill three days ago.   We raided the Negev of the Kerethites and the territory belonging to Judah and the Negev of Caleb.  And we burned Ziklag.”   David asked him, “Can you lead me down to this raiding party?”  He answered, “Swear to me before God that you will not kill me or hand me over to my master, and I will take you down to them...”

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Revelation 8:7-13 – “The first angel sounded his trumpet, and there came hail and fire mixed with blood, and it was hurled down upon the earth. A third of the earth was burned up, a third of the trees were burned up, and all the green grass was burned up…”

The first trumpet speaks of destruction of vegetation on the earth. The last century saw widespread deforestation and expansion of the deserts. Many places that once had forests or farmlands now are dry and bare. Some of this is caused by natural events, but mostly the destruction is man-made. Most of the killing of the trees, grass and other vegetation are the result of man misusing the land on a large scale.  Never before in history has there been so much destruction of the greenery on the earth.

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Revelation 8:9-10 – “The second angel sounded his trumpet, and something like a huge mountain, all ablaze, was thrown into the sea. A third of the sea turned into blood, a third of the living creatures in the sea died, and a third of the ships were destroyed…”

The second trumpet in Revelation 8 describes the destruction of marine life (in the oceans) that took place in the last 100 years. Many species of fish have become extinct, and others are struggling for survival. This was a prophetic sign that we were entering the End Times, the last days before the Rapture of the faithful church and the Second Coming of Christ.

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Revelation 8:10-11- “The third angel sounded his trumpet, and a great star, blazing like a torch, fell from the sky on a third of the rivers and on the springs of water- the name of the star is Wormwood. A third of the waters turned bitter, and many people died from the waters that became bitter…”

The third trumpet in the book of Revelation deals with the destruction of fresh water sources – rivers, streams, and lakes. It is a well-known fact that the lack of fresh water has become a worldwide crisis. The trumpets in the book of Revelation represent major signs that the world has entered the End Times, the last days before the Rapture and the Second Coming of Christ. The first three trumpets have already sounded. Today we await the fourth trumpet, which corresponds prophetically to the Rapture of he faithful church.

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Revelation 8:12-13 – “And the fourth angel sounded, and the third part of the sun was smitten, and the third part of the moon, and the third part of the stars; so as the third part of them was darkened, and the day shone not for a third part of it, and the night likewise.  And I beheld, and heard an angel flying through the midst of heaven, saying with a loud voice, Woe, woe, woe, to the inhabitants of the earth by reason of the other voices of the trumpet of the three angels, which are yet to sound!”

What is the fourth trumpet in the book of Revelation?  The fourth trumpet corresponds to the Rapture of the church. The trumpets are a prophetic symbol in the Bible, announcing the End Times. Jesus is coming soon, even if the world around us is oblivious to this fact (unfortunately, many churches are also unaware of the prophetic moment in which we live). The fourth trumpet is the next one to sound, and it could occur at any time. There are no other signs that must occur first – the first three trumpets have clearly sounded, and now we wait in suspense for the next one to sound.

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