The Great Falling Away

These questions boggled me because they weren’t addressed in Bible. We were being taught this stuff in school, but the Bible seemed silent On these issues.

I would day dream about what life must have been like right Before the flood. Think about it. Could you imagine Walking with Dinosaurs?

What I find most interesting about history is not so much the Period of time of events.

But rather, how life must have been on the cusp of change in the Timeline in history

For instance, pre flood life must be interesting but to me, it is far more interesting to experience what Noahs crew Did, when they stepped off onto the dry land of a new earth.

They were there, at the moment of change in world history.

They lived life before and after the change one day, life was like this. The next day its totally different how about the wheel,

I bet there were a lot of relieved slaves and workers when that invention “rolled out” lol Pun intended.

Wow, talk about something that totally changed the world and how things were done. Fast forward to middle ages. People were employed as scribes.

Meaning their profession was writing and copying. Then, 1436, Johannes Gutenberg invented the first printing press The spreading of information radically changed after that moment In history forever.

And very soon after, the profession of the scribes faded into history.

Then we have the invention of radio and television. Now, every nation and every tongue are once again connected as they were in during the days of Nimrod and the tower of Babel At the flip of a switch.

The world suddenly became very small

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With the advent of air flight for travel we can be in any location on earth In a matter of hours.

Before that is was months and years for that kind of travel Imagine living in the days of titanic, within a few short years, you could have booked a ticket on a plane and flown across the oceans

Look at history of warfare. What started out with sticks with sharp blades on the end of them morphed into arrows, and spears. Then gun powder was invented and the age of “Firearms” entered and changed the trajectory of world history making the last century.

The bloodiest on record. Could you imagine Living in these times showing up to that first battle where you quickly realize history has changed? Where you and your team showed up with what you thought was normal weapons, axes, arrows, and spears , and these dudes show up with rifles, and cannons?

Talk about bringing a knife to a gun fight

Then, imagine how surprised the world was when warfare graduated to the age of nuclear capacity

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Like, Hiroshima and Nagasaki did at the end of WW2

Obviously, that is what won the war,

They were on the wrong side of history & they found out the hard way.

Why mention all of this?

I attended a few Pastors meetings, and conferences not long ago and had many conversations with pastors and leaders of churches on the subject of why aren’t people coming to church anymore?

Obviously, as individual churches see their numbers dwindle, they began to assume something is wrong internally, etc.

Maybe we need to start more programs, maybe we need better youth events, maybe its the pastor, or the leadership, or this or that or the worship music is too loud or not loud enough or the music too old, or its too new .

Unfortunately, I think its just plain old, They don’t want to go to church.

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They have no serious interest in coming to church anymore you know them.

Soccer games for the kids, have become more important than going to church this Sunday

The lawn has taken priority over the Lord’s day.

Missing church in order to catch up on yard work or house work seems not only acceptable logic but letting it go the entire week.

As to use it as an excuse is quite common Looking for things that can offend is another trait that is becoming common.

“The pastor did this, or didn’t do that or sister so and so said this or brother so and so did that”

Its all a big excuse to cover the fact that you just aren’t interested in going to church anymore and you’re trying to find ways around it.

Throwing everything else under the bus to cover it. Those excuses don't play well with me, because In my years of ministry, I have worked under and with several self grandizing pastors, and leaders who really did offend me, or write me off etc.

And you know what? Every Sunday, I was in church worshiping the Lord Not the pastor, or leaders or their programs but worshiping the Lord So, I don’t buy all these other offense excuses,

If you really want to serve the Lord you’d be at church every week.

I lost count at how many people have told me they are angry with God. Thats why they don’t come.

I think what we are experiencing in these days is exactly what Paul Spoke of when he said the end times would be preceded by The Great falling away

Where many in the church would walk away from the faith

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2 Thessalonians 2:1–4 CSB

Now concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered to him: We ask you, brothers and sisters, not to be easily upset or troubled, either by a prophecy or by a message or by a letter supposedly from us, alleging that the day of the Lord has come. Don’t let anyone deceive you in any way. For that day will not come unless the apostasy comes first and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the man doomed to destruction. He opposes and exalts himself above every so-called god or object of worship, so that he sits in God’s temple, proclaiming that he himself is God.

I believe the excuses are just a cover up, for simply not wanting Church.

The world is too comfortable for you to leave.

After all, you can engage in fornication, which is widely accepted if not Promoted as a “Regular Lifestyle”

Meaning, If you go to church you will be convicted of it, but you don’t want to give it up. Because you’ll be considered a Jesus Freak, Bible thumper Anti-social, or a number of the other things they call Christians.

The world tells you the lustful desires of your heart are normal and you shouldn’t deprive yourself of your natural urges etc, but if you go to church, you’d learn that Jesus Himself said the Heart if man is wicked, no wonder why you have such desires.

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Mark 7:20–23 CSB

And he said, “What comes out of a person is what defiles him. For from within, out of people’s hearts, come evil thoughts, sexual immoralities, thefts, murders, adulteries, greed, evil actions, deceit, self-indulgence, envy, slander, pride, and foolishness. All these evil things come from within and defile a person.”

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Jeremiah 17:9 (CSB)

The heart is more deceitful than anything else, and incurable—who can understand it?

What used to be considered normal is no longer normal

What used to be wrong is now right in the current world system.

The Bible said these things would happen, and behold, we are seeing them with our own eyes Guess what?

I believe, we are living right now, in the cusp of another major change In world history,

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I believe the church is currently experiencing the beginning of the Great apostasy, or the great falling away

How can we deny it?

If we examine it through what Paul write to Timothy in

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1 Timothy 4:1–2 CSB

Now the Spirit explicitly says that in later times some will depart from the faith, paying attention to deceitful spirits and the teachings of demons, through the hypocrisy of liars whose consciences are seared.

Who can deny this is not happening before our eyes, and we are powerless to stop it.

Its not the programs, its not the leaders, its not the worship Its because your heart isn’t right.

When ever Yadi and I go on vacation, we always plan it around Sundays services somewhere. If we go camping, we always, have Sunday in mind IE: How can we break it down before Sunday morning, or do we pay an extra day so we can break down Monday instead Even when we travel, we are always traveling with Sunday as our ] Guide post.

Now you’ll say, well you have to, your the pastor No, We did this even when we weren’t pastors, Im not saying, Do what We do, or we are better than you but, only that, we take the Lord’s day seriously.

You know why? Because God does,

I know people who have been healed by prayers from members of this Church, and have not stepped foot into this building to thank God, or these people for praying for them.

They can give what ever reasons satisfy their need to justify. But, if were me, I would have found a Donkey to ride into church, or got a skateboard, or asked for a ride Wild horses couldn’t keep me from coming to praise His name for my healing.

But, as you can see, Some of these pews remain empty.

Now, as a church, that is established, we do have a responsibility to be ready for them when and if they come.

And, to encourage them to come’ If they come when we serve food, then we need to serve more food If they come when their kids are involved in plays. Then we need to do more kids plays.

If they come when they need healing, then we pray for it when they come. If we don’t take care of the resources God has given us Then, He will take them away.

How many churches are closing these days?

I have gone through many poor and bad neighborhoods one thing that I always see and question constantly Is all of the broken down, abandoned and closed churches.

I also asked this. Did the neighborhood fail because the churches failed, Or did the churches fail because the people of the neighborhood failed?

I believe its because the people of the neighborhood failed and that is what we are witnessing right now, right here in our own towns, and communities.

So, what does that mean for us?

We need to be a shining example of a Solid Christian life we need to show up to church,

We need to prioritize the Lord’s day again.

Listen, if you leave the window open to Sundays the enemy will target that day to prevent you from participating In worship. He will, cause the neighbor to want to come over and chat on a Sunday Or, the dog will get sick on a Sunday, Or, your favorite tv show will start on Sunday, Or whatever, will find a way to rob you of worship on Sunday Unless, you make a decision to come to church, no matter what Happens.

Because if you don’t others are going to see you home on Sunday barbecuing, when you should be here worshipping the Lord.

Now, if you absolutely don’t like this church, there are others across the land who would be happy to have you join them

But, my guess is, if you’re not here today, you’re not at any church at all, but have spent your day with the world.

We who are serious Christians, need to wake up and realize that all of these people are going to die in their sins, if we don’t reach them.

That means we need to get active in our evangelism. We need to put our heads together and come up with a strategy that will serve to pull in as many people as we can through the gospel Before the rapture, and the man of sin is revealed.

We are on a sinking ship. It’s not going to get better for us church. Its actually prophesied to get worse, until that great and awesome day of the Lord Jesus and we are gathered Together with Him finally to be with Him for eternity.

After all, thats what the entire Bible is about anyway. Its about Him, and Him dying for our sins, so that you and I Could be reconciled with Him in heaven for eternity.

He spilt His blood for you and I on that cross so that Our sins would be forgiven.