only 1/3...(ONE THIRD) will make it through what's coming?

D

dottiejean Sep 9, 2012

Zechariah 13:8,9:

"And in all the land, says the Lord, two-thirds shall be cut off and perish, but one-third shall be left alive.

"And I will bring the third part through the fire, and will refine them as silver is refined and will test them as gold is tested. They will call on My name, and I will hear and answer them. I will say, It is My people; and they will say, The Lord is my God."

I find that very sobering. The context seems to indicate that the group as a whole are the ones professing to be His people...but only 1/3 of the professors are truly His kids.....and the other two thirds perish.

This already happened once in 70 AD when Jerusalem was destroyed. But as Ecclesiastes states: If you want to know the future....study the past.

Any feedback???

sermonindex Sep 9, 2012

Zechariah 13:8,9:
"And in all the land, says the Lord, two-thirds shall be cut off and perish, but one-third shall be left alive.
"And I will bring the third part through the fire, and will refine them as silver is refined and will test them as gold is tested. They will call on My name, and I will hear and answer them. I will say, It is My people; and they will say, The Lord is my God."

Amen. God is going to try every tree to ensure there is fruit on it. Our mere profession will not save us but we must be possessors of the living Christ. What a wonderful thing to trust in Christ who saves us and makes us fruitful for Him.

Hear the Heavenly Voice

25 See that you do not refuse Him who speaks. For if they did not escape who refused Him who spoke on earth, much more shall we not escape if we turn away from Him who speaks from heaven, 26 whose voice then shook the earth; but now He has promised, saying, “Yet once more I shake[h] not only the earth, but also heaven.”~~[i]~~ 27 Now this, “Yet once more,” indicates the removal of those things that are being shaken, as of things that are made, that the things which cannot be shaken may remain.

28 Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us have grace, by which we may[j] serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear. 29 For our God is a consuming fire.

(Hebrews 12:25-29)

D

dottiejean Sep 9, 2012

Hi Greg.....Thnx for your response. I have been a professing Ch'tn all my life, but back in 2002 I had my tree shaken and I have never forgotten it.

I was in worship one evening by myself when it seemed the Lord came and bent over me and said close to my ear, "Dege, Sweetheart. You have to admit that most of your life has been only wood, hay and stubble.....Correct?" He seemed to say it in such a non-threatening way. I didn't even feel the need to be defensive about it. But it was a heavy word...and I began to cry.

Then I ran into one of Chas. Wesley's sermons (perhaps even on this website...can't remember)....and it cut so deep...I felt like I was gonna get born again all over again. I was waking up.

Things have been different ever since. Now I get called names like...."O troubler of Israel." It's not meant as a compliment, but I sure take it as one, cuz I know that 2/3 of the church is not going to make it.

As one old commentator once said: "The day will come when we will wish we had taken better care of our souls."

Blessings.....dj

F

Fiat Sep 9, 2012

Hi DJ, my friend!
"If you want to know the future....study the past."
You have to go back to the flood to find something similar to whats coming, WORMWOOD is coming.
Yes DJ, God is looking into our souls, there is no hiting before the God all mighty, he will safeguard you if you are fit. Am I ready to meet the Loard..., who are? I just stumble along, taking the path I dimly see before me.
I belive God is calling all, some respond some dont. We are free to take our path, the hidhway or the stony hill path.

Lets light up the road for the 1/3; its so dim, there is so much noice; I am carlling but no one hears...

J

jimp Sep 9, 2012

hi, Jesus is here and He has all power over the power of the enemy.you need to quit going to scary movies and keep your eyes on Jesus,the author and finisher,the source, the redeemer,the fourth man, the one who shut the lions mouthsetc.jimp

sermonindex Sep 9, 2012

THE GREAT FALLING AWAY.

"Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day will not come unless the falling away comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition.

He who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God or that is worshiped, so that he sits as God in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God."

Who knows when it began? Perhaps corresponding to the 1967 Israeli War and the birth of the Charismatic Movement..?..But some where around there, that "old time" Gospel was thrown out the window with the baby's bathwater.

A Gospel arose that became MAN centered, and self-promoting and self serving, and wove a thread throughout Denominational Christianity, the once holy Baptist organizations and seminaries, all of Pentecostalism, and the Charismatic off-springs of her.

REMANANT.
"The remnant will return, the remnant of Jacob,
To the Mighty God.
For though your people, O Israel, be as the sand of the sea,.....
.....A remnant of them will return.

The destruction decreed shall overflow with righteousness.
For the Lord God of hosts
Will make a determined end
In the midst of all the land."

A Third?...maybe not that many.

"The Lord has removed men far away,
And the forsaken places are many in the midst of the land.

But yet a tenth will be in it,
And will return and be for consuming,
As a terebinth tree or as an oak,

Whose stump remains when it is cut down.
So the holy seed shall be its stump.”..Isahiah 6:12

The Holy Seed is the Remnant.

ALMOST ALL I HAVE KNOWN HAVE FALLEN AWAY! Perhaps hundreds. Some may bother to confess that they are Christians, but live the most hideous , selfish lives; devoid of true mercy and any hint of sacrificial love; they are cold.

HATE YOUR OWN LIFE? WHO DO YOU LOVE MORE? THIS IS YOUR GOD.

"And He turned and said to them,
“If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and his own life also, he cannot be My disciple. And whoever does not bear his cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple!"....Jesus.

The Great and horrible test coming upon us is sent, and allowed by God Himself to TEST and TRY this very remnant we speak of, be it a THIRD OR A TENTH. America will be invaded, and occupied, after a very terrible war that we lose. At that time, let us consider...Your children are hungry, and you are cold and ill.

The Sharia center down the street has everything you need live....and all that you have to do is bend the knee and proclaim; "Allah is Lord and God, and the only great one!"...and receive a physical ID that you are one of his. Then, your needs are met, your babies stop crying, and you join in life on Earth as a Muslim.

Only grace will allow you to stand in that day, but you must. "Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life!"...Jesus.

Do you love Him that much? Would you leave this Earth and you wife and children behind, and refuse all submission to Islam and proclaim Jesus as Lord as you face the guillotine? Many will face this dilemma one day. God only accepts this level of love.

"And the smoke of their torment ascends forever and ever; and they have no rest day or night, who worship the beast and his image, and whoever receives the mark of his name.”

Here is the patience of the saints; here are those who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus!"

The PATIENCE part is believing that the loss of your head in His name is but a promotion into the line waiting for the Marriage supper of the Lamb.

I was shown an air war over America that we lose, and an invading army of unbelievable number headed toward cities to occupy them, right here in America.

THE TRIAL THAT SHALL COME TO ALL OF THE EARTH, EVEN AMERICA!

"Because you have kept My command to persevere, I also will keep you from the hour of trial which shall come upon the whole world,.....
.... to test those who dwell on the earth. Behold, I am coming quickly!

Hold fast what you have, that no one may take your crown!"

http://brideinthewilderness.blogspot.com/2012/03/justice-and-glory-americas-time-in.html#comment-form

D

dottiejean Sep 9, 2012

Hi FIAT....Yes, we all stumble along in one way or another. But the more we practice on this heavenly terrain of a narrow path and enjoy His sweet companionship, the more we develop hind's feet. Blessings....

Hi JIMP....Good counsel about not going to scary movies. I stopped going years ago...to all movies. It will be wonderful to behold the "4th Man" in the fiery furnace with us. And even if we don't see Him, we know He's there cuz there is no particle/square inch anywhere in the universe that He does not fill. Blessings....

Hi BTom....When did the falling away begin? John mentioned that already there were many antichrists present. And certainly it has snowballed over the centuries to where we now find ourselves in a heap of trouble. Yes, I think June 7th, 1967 is a significant date. (Just my opinion: I add 49 years...a Jubilee...to 1967 and get 2016...an even more significant date. That thought is from Sir Isaac Newton regarding Daniel 9:25). Blessings....

The thing that saddens me about the 2/3 not making it means that in any typical church congregation, we could look out over our friends and realize that 2/3 of those people will find themselves careening into Hell crying..."But Lord, Lord...didn't I do all this and that for You?"

May we walk today as tho' it is our last...soberly, reverently, giving Him ALL of our love, praise and adoration....submitting our WILLS completely to Him....dj

sermonindex Sep 9, 2012

May we walk today as tho' it is our last...soberly, reverently, giving Him ALL of our love, praise and adoration....submitting our WILLS completely to Him....dj

Amen sister. I believe the falling away is happening already we must be on guard for this but must not let this fact scare us from having true unity in the body of Christ in which the Lord will be doing in the end times.

We cannot survive in the coming times without other brothers and sisters in the Lord.

A great book on this subject is: The Great Falling Away by Milton Green

sermonindex Sep 9, 2012

You'll just have to forgive me for a moment, but why bother saving anyone if they are just going to forsake you when hard times come?

Jesus said "it would have been better if they had not have known the way".

So if God who knows the end from the beginning know full well that some people will forsake Him, why bother saving them? God who is mercy, would want to give these people that "better" thing and not show them the way at all, knowing that they would reject Him in the end.

Any parent would do that for their children. If a parent knew that what they give thier child is going to cause them to run away from them when trouble comes, they wouldn't give it to them.

God who is greater than any parent sees that. If it would be "better" if they have not known the way, than don't cause anyone who is going to forsake Him to know the truth. Let them have that "better" thing.

There is no folly with God, there is something wrong with our, at least my, understanding.

Since God knows who shall be saved and who shall reject Him, and if He saves people only in the end they reject Him, to what purpose was it to save them in the first place?

To give them a chance? A chance at what? If they are going to reject Him it would have been better if they had not known the way at all.

Since God knows all things, the people that fall away, in God's mind were never saved to begin with, so why bother saving them at all?

If I knew that in the end that I was going to forsake Him, then I would have wished that I have never known Him at all so I can have that "better" or less punishment instead of getting the full gamut of eternal damnation.

Now, enough of the conjecture.

The otherside of the coin reveals to me of what John said, "They went out from us, but were not of us".

It's here that we have our falling away. Remember Korah? His heart was not with God and Moses. He followed his own ways and all that took his side were engulfed by the earth.

Their heart wasn't with God. They came out of Egypt but not all came out.

In the Revelation, Jesus said, "You have a name". And that is all they had, just a name.

The Church is huge, but not everyone that is in it has the spirit of Joshua and Caleb. Not everyone has the Spirit of Christ residing in them.

The falling away is the best thing that could ever happen to the Church. It clears out all the dross. It is my conviction that the people that fall away have never had the Spirit of Christ residing in them. They had a name, they were in the Church, they felt the presense of God, but they would not let God in. Even with all the singing, all the preaching, everything was laid before them but somehow faith never ignited.

Sad.

F

Fiat Sep 9, 2012

Hi Sad, Yes,yes, we got free will thats our problem - not Gods.
God is caling us to go his ways and quit ours.
God know every thing, YES. Free will gives us a chance to change histery - ours and the rest. YES, the future have some fixed cross points and the most depent on us, on our free will.
Dont be too sad, Sad; God loves you!!

And for you DJ, you have given me cold water for a time now, but I love you anyway :)

Fiat

D

dottiejean Sep 9, 2012

Greg...Thnx for the recommendation of Milton Green's book "The Great Falling Away". I'm gonna look for it.

Hi Approved & Fiat,

Regarding free will v. predestination....I love what Charles Spurgeon once said about that debate. He leaned toward the predestination side of the coin and remarked,

"He's the Bridegroom and He has a right to choose His own bride."

That said, the Wesleys leaned more toward free will.

All I can say is...."Did ya ever see a 1-sided coin?"

It's probably one of those awesome mysteries that we can't solve right now...but will be able to see it when we have new eyes. Blessings and Favor.....

J

jimp Sep 9, 2012

hi, i feel that the great falling away stems from fear and error and pride.faith in the finished work of the cross and in Jesus will not fail you. thinking there is going to be a pie in the sky for you so you do not have to see difficulties that might arise ;if wrong, might lead you to dispair and a lack of faith.when you are tought something all of your life and it does not happen the way you have been taught might confuse you into asking the question... well if this is wrong, what else?be ready today and enjoy each moment of life for the joy of the Lord is your strength.He has defeated the enemy already.jimp

L

lylewise Sep 9, 2012

Inevitably the differences of those who hold to a reformed theology over those who are Arminian leaning emerge in topics like this. Regardless of view, the narrow path is just that....narrow! I have found a great resistance by many to even consider the numbers associated with that narrowness. With so little discernment within the church, there is no wonder why such a subject is frowned upon when there is any attempt to define the term narrow. It's not good that it is narrow but do not attempt to make it more so. We desire a big narrow not a narrow narrow. So when we hear men who have been recorded here on SI that are grieved because they wished that there were as many as a third, they wished there were a fourth, and some wished it were more than 1% to 2%, we should be as concerned that the broad and wide road to destruction is just as underestimated as the narrow road that leads to life. I'm not a great mathmatician but I do know that there is a great difference between 33.3% and 1%.

I do know the very words of Christ can be misinterpreted by how one holds to the concept of narrowness. Christ loved the rich young ruler but Mammon was his God? The weeds and thorns choke out the seed that is scattered, but it still bears fruit, even though its fruit never matures which renders its fruit inedible. "Ahhhh... but it is fruit never-the-less", one may say. Yes it is, but try eating a Persimmon that is not ripe.

J

jimp Sep 10, 2012

hi, the way is so narrow for it is Jesus and Him crucified. the door to the way is narrow for it is Jesus and Him crucified. no smell of man on that.the rth is Jesus and Him crucified.it is amazing that christianity is all about Jesus and very little about you and i.He has already defeated sin, death,hell and the devil. we need to labor to enter into His rest.cease from self salvation and praise Him for providing an easy yoke...Jesus.jimp

D

dottiejean Sep 10, 2012

Hey Jimp & Lylewise...thnx for more feedback.

Can we add ANGER & PRESUMPTION to that list of reasons why there is a falling away?

Think how many hundreds of thousands of Christians worldwide in the Prosperity Movement will be enraged when this global economic collapse comes to maturity...and they are left with....not much. No Rolls Royce, no mansion, no Armani suits, no island paradise as promised. They will jump ship just as quickly as they signed on.

I have a dear friend who is waiting for the prosperity that God has "promised" him. If he could only know that his very comfortable middle class life makes him already filthy rich in the eyes of 3rd-world Christians. It would probably do us all good to learn how poor Christians overseas seek SPIRITUAL prosperity v. financial prosperity.

Luke 13:24 (Strive to enter by the narrow door):

ALBERT BARNES: The word strive means to agonize and is taken from the Grecian games where they agonized to win in races, wrestling and various athletic exercises and trained all year long for it. Be diligent, in earnest, active; our 1st and chief business is to overcome our sinful propensities.

JFB: It is a life-and-death struggle.

WEYMOUTH: Strain every nerve to force your way in.

ST. AUGUSTINE: What is it that makes this gate so small to us? It is not that it is strait or narrow in itself, but that we want to take in our pride, our self-will, our darling sins.

J

jimp Sep 10, 2012

hi dottie, i think that it is more our religious ideas that derail us more than the other sinful propensities. that darn tree of the knowlege of good and evil(religion)rather than the Tree of Life(Jesus)surely i must follow some rules so i can have some feeling of accomplishment. anything added to Jesus is leaven.we live in a time where we are more prosperous than kings and Queens of old even if we live in public housing.God hath made us to prosper .jimp

L

lylewise Sep 10, 2012

DJ, I must agree with this Augustine fellow. I make difficult this narrow path by all the baggage I check for the journey. May the Spirit teach me the ways of daily death.

D

dottiejean Sep 10, 2012

Hey Jimp....I'm betting Albert Barnes would agree with you about our religious ideas derailing us. Our having the audacity to create our own religious ideas is sin in itself. Doing that is arrogance, presumption, etc. And religious folks are prone to doing that kind of thing cuz it feels comfortable to our way of thinking and puts us right back to sleep.

And very true about following rules so I can feel good. (Oops...."not of works lest any man should boast"). The wrong kind of works is definitely leaven and to be avoided.

D

dottiejean Sep 10, 2012

LW...I have to agree that St. Augustine's thoughts do put light on the matter. The difficulties and straitness is not on God's part but on our own. If I'm willing to lay down my self-will and surrender up everything as a bond-servant, then slipping thru that narrow gate shouldn't actually be all that hard.

Suzanna Wesley raised a "boatload" of children and said to her son when asked about the most important thing in raising Godly children:

"See to it that each child is able to surrender their WILL. If they can't surrender their will to you as a loving/guiding/Godly parent, then they will have difficulties surrendering up their will to God."

I was saddened when I read Billy Graham's Association statement that only about 2% of all their converts at crusades continue to follow the Lord. I think the truth of surrendering the WILL probably needs to be explained and understood much better when the altar call is given.

J

jimp Sep 10, 2012

hi, how many people will come forward if the evangelist said in the invitation ... altars are places of sacrifice so i invite you to come and die so that you can be buried with Him into His death so that you then may be risen up to walk in newness of life... His life and His control. about 2% of those who come for a free ride.jimp