“HOW TO KNOW WHEN A WOLF COMES TO CHURCH”
If you do not know a wolf from a dog, you are in trouble.
Copyright © 2008 by J.A.Mcbean. Library of Congress Washington.D.C.20559
W olves are a symbol of greedy rulers, hypocrites, and false prophets. Years ago my wife and I started a Church in Hartford CT. Some Church people came in to join us. Every time a sinner made a confession of faith, one brother would take them aside and whispering to them. I never did see the converts again. He was bringing them right to his church.
Mat 7:15 Beware of false prophets who come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves.
“WOLVES IN SHEEP CLOTHING”
No other animal, apart from the snakes, bears the bad name that wolves bear. However, wolves through great ingenuity as continue to breed, and thrives right down through the ages. The people stigmatized wolves, simple because wolves target sheep for food. Shepards hates wolves, simple because wolves outsmart them all the time. One man feed the wolves; and it was after the wolf left, that he found out that, it was not his dogs he fed. Wolves are very smart, and fearless. They can take off at forty five miles per hour. In addition, continue running for many miles at twenty two miles an hour. They can run the whole day at a speed of five miles per hour. If you saw a wolf in the evening and get away. It is somebody dog you have seen. If you truly saw a wolf up close! In addition, getting away unharmed, you have nothing he want.
“WOLVES IS AN IDIOM USE FOR FAKE PASTORS”
The wolves followed the sheep around, but they are after one thing only. “Self gain” Wolves can also disguised themselves to look like sheep. If the shepherds are not paying close attention, the wolves came right in to the fold along with the sheep. To catch a spiritual wolf, the pastor has to be wise as a serpent and harmless as a dove. Serpents never unduly expose themselves to attack and doves never provoke hostility. Ancients considered serpents as emblems of cunning and wisdom (Genesis 3:1; 2 Cor. 11:3). Used of crafty hypocrites and Satan (Matthew 23:33; Rev. 12:9).
“HOW TO REALLY KNOW A WOLF”
A person who came to church and are very zealous, and wanting to work, or take part in the running of the church. We quickly expose such a person to be a wolf. However, a wolf is somebody who came in solely to draw away believers. To split the church and went away with one part to start his or her own church.
Act 20:29 For I know this, that after my departure grievous wolves shall enter in among you, not sparing the flock. Act 20:30 Also men shall arise from your own selves, speaking perverse things in order to draw disciples away after them.
These do not waste time. By the second visit a wolf, know all the members by name. In addition, started to get phone numbers, and begin to give out invitations to home prayer meeting or something like that. A wolf has an agenda. I am not talking about a calling. A pastor has to worship in some church, while waiting on his or her ministry. I am talking about deliberately and maliciously trying to split the church, or trying to start his or her own church out of that church. I am talking about member stealing.
“CHARACTERISTICS OF WOLVES”
The wolf comes in with doctrinal issues. The wolf came in gathering names and phone numbers. The wolf came in befriending members and giving out secret invitations. Above! All. A wolf cannot bridle his tongues. Each believer must be taught to know wolves. A spiritual wolf is very pushing up, more like a suck up. They keep turning up where they can sense that they are not wanting. Where they are ignored, walk over and step upon. Once you visit a church and the people insults you, is because they think you are a wolf. Like I say, some of whom the church dub as wolf, are lonly people looking for a place of worship. If the person pays a visit, worship and leave your members alone, keep his false doctrines to himself or herself. You have no cause to dub him or her a wolf.
Jas 1:26 If anyone thinks to be religious among you, yet does not bridle his tongue, but deceives his own heart, this one's religion is vain. Jas 1:27 Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, to visit orphans and widows in their afflictions, and to keep oneself unspotted from the world.
Hab 1:8 His horses also are swifter than the leopards, and are more fierce than the evening wolves.
Zep 3:3 Her rulers within her are roaring lions; her judges evening wolves.
Mat 10:16 Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves. Therefore, be as wise as serpents and as harmless as doves.
Luk 10:3 Go your ways: behold, I send you forth as lambs among wolves.
John 10:12 (KJV) But he that is an hireling, and not the shepherd, whose own the sheep are not, seeth the wolf coming, and leaveth the sheep, and fleeth: and the wolf catcheth them, and scattereth the sheep.
Seven Ways to Test False Prophets:
1. By their confession of Jesus (1 John 4:2-3) 2. Their relationship with the world (1 John 4:5; 1 John 2:15-17; James 4:4)
3. How they receive Christianity (1 John 4:6)
4. Their attitude toward the commandments of God (1 John 4:6; 1 John 3:20-24; John 14:15)
5. Love of the brethren (1 John 4:7-21; 1 John 3:11-16; John 13:34-35; John 15:12-15)
6. The indwelling Holy Spirit (1 John 4:4-6)
7. The Word of God (1 John 4:6; 1 John 5:10; 2 Tim. 3:16; 2 Cor. 4:4)
2 Peter 2:1 (KJV) But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction.
Acts 20:28 (KJV) Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood.
SOMETIME ONLY JESUS CAN HELP US:
Matthew 6:33-AV But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.
Isaiah 55:6-AV Seek ye the LORD while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near: Isaiah 55:7-AV Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the LORD, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.
LOOK AT THE BENEFITS OF BECOMING A CHRISTIAN:
How does a person become a Christian, and are sure that he/she is save? First the person must know that he/she is a sinner and need deliverance from the lord.
Romans 3:23 (KJV) for all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;
Galatians 3:22 (KJV) But the scripture hath concluded all under sin, that the promise by faith of Jesus Christ might be given to them that believe.
THE SINNER MUST BELIEVE THAT THERE IS A GOD:
Hebrews 11:6 NKJV But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.
THE SINNER MUST BELIEVE THAT GOD IS READY TO FORGIVE HIM:
Isaiah 55:7 (KJV)Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the Lord, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.
THE SINNER MUST BELIEVE THAT CHRIST DIED FOR HIM:
Romans 5:6 (KJV) For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly.
Romans 5:8 (KJV)But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.
1 Cor. 15:3-8 (KJV) For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; [4] And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures: [5] And that he was seen of Cephas, then of the twelve: [6] After that, he was seen of above five hundred brethren at once; of whom the greater part remain unto this present, but some are fallen asleep. [7] After that, he was seen of James; then of all the apostles. [8] And last of all he was seen of me also, as of one born out of due time.
MUST BELIEVE THAT GOD CAN KEEP HIM:
Ephes. 3:20 (KJV) Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us,
Jude 1:24 (KJV) Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy,
PERFECTING THE SAINTS IS A WORK OF GOD:
1 Peter 5:10 (KJV) But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, establish, strengthen, settle you.
THE SINNER MUST KNOW THAT ONLY JESUS CAN SAVE THEM:
Acts 4:12 (KJV) Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.
THE SINNER MUST MAKE A DECISION TODAY:
Isaiah 1:18 (KJV) Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.
2 Cor. 6:2 (KJV) (For he saith, I have heard thee in a time accepted, and in the day of salvation have I succoured thee: behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.)
BOW YOUR HEAD AND PRAY THIS PRAYER:
Lord I am a sinner and need your salvation. Forgive all my sins. I accept your son Jesus as my savior today.
We can sing with the song writer" I rise walk in heaven’s own light above the world and sin with heart made pure and garments white, and Christ en-throned with in. The cleansing stream I see I see I plunge, and O It cleans-eth me. O praise the Lord, it cleans-eth me, it cleans-eth me yes, cleans-eth me."
DROP ALL PRE-CONCEIVE IDEAS OF CHRISTIANITY:
Drop all preconceived ideas of Christianity because these conflict with the reality of Christianity. The lord will live the life through you day by day. You do not drop things from your life on your own. The spirit of God will walk you out of sins in his own time.
FIRST HUMBLING YOU:
Ephes. 2:8-9 (KJV)For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: [9] Not of works, lest any man should boast.
If you stop sins and get holy before God’s timing you will begin to boast how it is your own magnetism got you so far, then you became a source of discouragement to others. Therefore, you are going to stuck upon a sin or two. The sin always getting the better of you. This will push you to always accept God’s grace, and to see your own frailness.
1 John 1:8 (KJV) If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.
TO CONTINUE GROWING IN GOD:
1 Peter 2:2 (KJV) As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby:
2 Peter 1:5-10 (NKJV) But also for this very reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, 6 to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness, 7 to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness love. 8 For if these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 For he who lacks these things is shortsighted, even to blindness, and has forgotten that he was cleansed from his old sins. 10 Therefore, brethren, be even more diligent to make your call and election sure, for if you do these things you will never stumble.
FINDING OUT YOUR CALLING:
When I was newly save, the believers always, ask me if I know the will of God for my life! I never really know what they were talking about. Every person that was saved had a mission and a gift. However, because you are just a babe in Christ you do not know any of these. As you go on with the lord his will for you will unfolds day bay day. Do not run off and make any big commitment. Your mate has to be tailor made for you by God. You are now a citizen of heaven. Heaven does not rule by democracy. You cannot serve God with democratic mind set.
WHAT YOU MUST DROP OFF:
Hebrews 12:1 (Living Bible) Since we have such a huge crowd of men of faith watching us from the grandstands, let us strip off anything that slows us down or holds us back, and especially those sins that wrap themselves so tightly around our feet and trip us up; and let us run with patience the particular race that God has set before us.
Ephes. 4:31 (Living Bible) Stop being mean, bad-tempered, and angry. Quarreling, harsh words, and dislike of others should have no place in your lives.
Col. 3:8 (Living Bible) but now is the time to cast off and throw away all these rotten garments of anger, hatred, cursing, and dirty language.
GET A GOOD BIBLE, AND FIND A GOOD CHURCH:
One of the best Bibles out there is the New King James Version. Dake’s annotated Bible is very good. Next, you need a living bible to make some thing simple.
Hebrews 10:25 (Living Bible) Let us not neglect our church meetings, as some people do, but encourage and warn each other, especially now that the day of his coming back again is drawing near.
PROTECTING YOURSELF FROM BEING SPOILED BY MAN:
Col. 2:8 (KJV)Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ.
Hebrews 13:9 (KJV) Be not carried about with divers and strange doctrines. For it is a good thing that the heart be established with grace; not with meats, which have not profited them that have been occupied therein.
Seven Ways that People Can Spoil Christians:
1. Through philosophy (Col. 2:8)
2. Through vain deceit (Col. 2:4,8,18-19)
3. Through human traditions (Col. 2:8)
4. Through human religion and world principles contrary to the gospel (Col. 2:8,14-23; note, §Galatians 4:3)
5. Through circumcision (Col. 2:11-13; Acts 15:1; Romans 4:9-16; Galatians 5:1-11)
6. Through the law of Moses, demanding observance of the laws on meats, drinks, holy days, new moons, feasts, and sabbaths (Col. 2:14-17)
7. Through cults that puff up and imitate the gospel (Col. 2:18-23)
By all these means, unsuspecting souls are being carried off as plunder and booty by false teachers. The founders of false religions and human philosophies which pamper the flesh and give their victims elated feelings of importance make an appeal to them.
Christianity is loaded down with some false concept. Some little believe system, which are spread by false believers. One of such teaching is that you must “Look like Christians” How does Christians look? Genuine Christianity is not an external thing but of the heart and spirit.
Micah 6:8 (KJV)He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the Lord require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?
When cults capture a newly converted Christians, the cult first job on that new believer is to close their mind. Preventing the new believer from reading any material from other churches. So that new believer will never get out of their trap.
YOUR HORMONE DOES NOT STOP WORKING WITH CHRISTIANITY:
Philip. 3:20-21 (KJV)For our conversation is in heaven; from whence also we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ: [21] Who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body, according to the working whereby he is able even to subdue all things unto himself.
Romans 8:23 (KJV) And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body.
Our bodies were not save at conversion. The work of redemption took place in your spirit man. Our body will be redeemed at the return of our lord. We are still waiting for the redemption of our body.
According to Philip 3:20-21 and Romans 8:23. You are still going to have urges. You have to present your body to the lord as a living sacrifice. Not dead one. Living sacrifice give trouble, you will have trouble keeping that body tied to the altar. However, as you and I grow in the lord what seem impossible will be quite possible.
Come back for update soon.
"Sword Bearer"
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