I Timothy 6:10-14
10)
For the love of money is the root of all
evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and
pierced themselves through with many sorrows.
11)
But thou, O man of God, flee these things; and
follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, meekness.
12)
Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on
eternal life, whereunto thou art also called, and hast professed a good profession
before many witnesses.
13)
I give thee charge in the sight of God, who quickeneth all things, and before Christ Jesus, who before
Pontius Pilate witnessed a good confession;
14)
That thou keep this commandment without spot,
unrebukable, until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ:
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y now, we all know that many people
have “fallen by the wayside” after manifesting a good start with the Lord. We
also know through scripture and from experience that God saves no one to lose
him. Undoubtedly, many give up their salvation due to a lack of commitment.
What is so easily “besetting” the people of God? Basically,
the fact that we are required to go through testing. It never has been
and never will be God’s intent for us to give up because of our tests. It is
the Enemy who “skews” our vision concerning what we must endure for the Lord.
Tests are to be greeted with thanksgiving and joy (believe it or not), for it
is they which will qualify us in the presence of the Lord. Obviously implicit
in this statement is that one must desire to be in the
presence of the Lord above all else. God has always meant for us to do all that
we can to stand (the test)—and then some.
Each of us must recognize and accept
that we are not our own. Those who are saved cannot afford to retain any
vestiges of self-rule, for this leads to just about all of our trouble.
God is sending the message that now is
the time for men to be restored to their rightful place in the work of the
Lord. Through numerous prophecies, the Lord has established His ministry here
at Living Faith, and it is of Living Faith that the Lord is now speaking.
We are nearing the end of the five-year
“ingathering” period prophesied by Bishop Norman Wagner and confirmed by the
Lord. God has steadily revealed Himself, His standard and His wishes to us
since the time of this initial prophecy, that He might
now proclaim the urgency of the return of those who intend to be saved! Whether
one was “born,” brought or led here, he must return to the place were his
commitment to God was formed!
Undoubtedly, all will not return; but
they must reckon with the knowledge that by not doing so, they are ignoring the
invitation of the Lord—to follow their own way. This makes one an authority
over God, and once this is your assertion, then you
must assume the “position” of God and be self-sufficient.
Hear and hear well: To be saved, you
cannot choose whether or not to accept the truth. All who were ever part of
this ministry were meant to be here. You see, God leaves nothing to chance or
loose interpretation. His every act, though often seemingly casually manifested,
is calculated, deliberate and specific.
Examine yourself: Why did you come here
in the first place? Whether initial knowledge, or later revelation, you
acknowledged that you could receive the truth and that same truth is from what
you later ran.
You see, the issue goes much deeper
than what you did not like, how you did not like it said, and from whom you did
not want to hear it. The issue is one of the acceptance
of truth—and that issue is never put to rest in the life of the saint. As long
as he intends to be saved, he deals with truth. Once one begins to run, he
begins to run from salvation, too. You see, every issue in scripture has always
centered around truth and its acceptance. There is no
other controversy and no other “yardstick” for measuring righteousness and
unrighteousness.
We will acknowledge that most people
have left this work thinking the choice was theirs to do so. But the Lord is
speaking loudly and clearly that a saint’s only choice is to do what He says to
do—period. When one chooses not to accept truth, then it necessitates that he
believe a lie—and be damned.
If you have left this fellowship and
the truth of God’s Word, only to find none concerned for your salvation, you
are forced to accept a lie—that is, to deny what truth really is. Now, if one
is ever to have spiritual integrity or self-respect, he must learn to deal with
fact. You can no longer measure a person’s concern for your soul with how
willing he is to leave you alone or preach “love” to you. His amount of concern
is directly proportional to how much truth he desires for you to hear and what
he is willing to give up that you might hear it.
You know if you are saved. If you know
that you are not, you are doing yourself a disservice to stay in that
condition. All ministers are neither called nor commissioned by the Lord and
some are not concerned with the salvation of their members, but rather their
membership.
This is a certainty: God’s requirement
of us does not change no matter where we find ourselves. What does change is
one’s willingness to accept doctrine—and the devil’s answer to a “palatable”
(or convenient) doctrine is Humanism.
Salvation lies in his acceptance of the
fact that the Lord must make all his decisions after salvation. Those of you
who have left must deal with the truth that He did not “chase you away,” but
rather tried to make something of you. He told each one then, as He tells them
now, to “stand still.” The choices made to run may have allowed many to escape
from pressure, but not from God.
Holiness, godliness and commitment
equal truth. If you currently have less (namely, the
“freedom” to do what you want), you cannot be operating in the truth.
So, if you really want to show yourself
saved and a child of God, what is your recourse? You have only one avenue:
you must return and “get it right.” You must be interested enough in your
own salvation to seek out those interested in your salvation.