 001 - KARMA KARMA originated from ancient pagan religious teaching which refers to all acts, words and thoughts of one life, supposed to determine a person’s fate in his next stage of existence. Karma is always refers to bad fate which results from evil deeds, thoughts and words. Karma today is defined as divine requital or retribution for evil done to another person. It portrays God as a “Terminator” of wicked people who abused, withhold justice, or plotted mischief against another. God is perfectly righteous and just in everything and if He is going to kill or exterminate all the wicked, then this planet will be empty of human being. For all have sinned. Divine discipline is executed against the carnal believer who ignores the Word of God not because of their sins. Divine judgment is executed against unbeliever who rejected the Gospel of Christ not because of their evil deeds. A wayward person will accumulate self-made miseries for him to suffer in as much, he made other suffers. Majority of our miseries are self-made not from God or from the Devil. Jesus Christ died for the sins of the entire human race. He died for the sins of every human being in every generation in every place. He paid it in full –no sin is excluded. God is not in business of punishing for their sins because there is nothing (sin of men) which Christ did not include in His death. A person who violates the Laws of Divine Establishment and the Laws of the land will suffer the consequence of his action [Romans 13:4]. Karma is outside the essence and personality of God. God is not happy about the death of evil people. God will destroy his enemies not our enemies [Nahum 1:2]. God will judge the believers in time by divine discipline [1 Corinthians 3:11-15, Hebrews 10:30, 12:6-8]. God will also judge all the unbelievers at the same time in the Great White Throne judgment at the end of the 1000 years reigns of Christ [Revelation 20:11-15]. God is not punishing anyone on earth because of his evil deeds. The misery of a person is always the result of previous bad decisions or evil deeds he made. Deuteronomy 32:35-43 is a promise given to the Jews under the curse and blessing clause [Genesis 12:3] and not to us. God will destroy all the anti-Jews or anti-Semitics, not our personal enemies. Karma is outside the nature, character and personality of God. God solved the problem of man, namely sins because there is no way we can solve it. Would God punish men because of something He already dealt with? Karma cultivates fear in the hearts of the ignorant and deceived. It distorts the truth of God’s Word and enslaved many into human good. Although karma encourage good deeds yet in the eyes of God it does more harm than good it deceives people. It distorts the goodness of God. Divine retribution because of human rejection of God’s grace is not karma. Divine discipline because of ignoring or rejecting Bible doctrine is not karma. Karma is not of God but of the Devil. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries 002 - FENG SHUI FENG SHUI is more than 3000 year- old Chinese Philosophy and art of placement. It is means “wind and water” which claims to create spiritually, healthful and appealing home. FENG SHUI is a balance of yin and yang- that is finding harmony between energy flows. Practitioners believe that certain places are luckier, certain shapes are more conducive to a balanced life, some symmetry are preferred over angles. FENG SHUI popularity is alarmingly high. Developers, builders, home- owners are all consulting FENG SHUI masters. Even Christians are affected and it deceives the elite, intelligent, the rich and poor alike. Let us consider several things about FENG SHUI: It originated from the cultic practices of astrology, fortune telling, charms of the ancient Eastern religions, and a mixture of science and superstition. God alone has the Master Plan for the life of every person base on their personal decisions as foreknown by God in the eternity past and included in the divine decree. To trust FENG SHUI for your future health and wealth is to accept satanic lies and human viewpoint. FENG SHUI objects and charms looks harmless ad decorative but without knowing that some pagan religions are actually using them as religious object of worship. To display those icons is to invite the curse of God into your home. FENG SHUI like any other icons has power supplied by Satan, whose demons attends and ministers to their devotees. FENG SHUI is a false hope and a false object of confidence for your wealth and health. Nothing in this world can guarantee your good health and future except God. It claims to provide somewhat perfect environment that provide good future. But not even the perfect garden of Eden was able to guarantee good and healthy future. Your good future begins at the very moment you believe and accept the free gift of salvation and it continues in your spiritual growth and maturity. No objects (like FENG SHUI fishes and plants) can create a happy and lasting marital relationship. Good health and wealth comes from the justice of God through His grace pipeline. FENG SHUI designed porcelain jars and items (like frogs, horses) are all related to ancient Chinese folk religion that dominates the Chinese culture. FENG SHUI is a demonic cult dressed as science and philosophy. To many, it is innocent and harmless looking. Some FENG SHUI rituals and traditions are widely welcome without suspicion that they are demonic (like the blood of animals or man offered during the digging of building foundation 1 Cor. 10:20). FENG SHUI is a booming business and a growing cult religion that is creeping the doors of many homes undetected by ignorant believers. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries 003 - GHOST STORIES The term “ghost” did not appear in the Greek New Testament, because there is no word for ghost in the Greek language. The Greek word “PNEUMA” is translated “ghost” twice by King James Version [Matthew 27:50 & John 19:30] And as “spirit” 268 times. The Hebrew word ‘NEPHESH” (spirit) is translated “ghost” twice by KJV [Job 11:20, Jeremiah 15:9], and as “spirit” 230 times, and as “wind” 90 times. The title “Holy ghost’ occurs 86 times by KJV and “ghost” twice in Matthew 14:26 and Mark 6:49. Ghost [PHANTASMA is “a thing seen only in one’s imagination”, a supposed appearance of an absent person – in a shadowy form. Ghost as define by the dictionary is the spirit of one who is dead, who is supposed to live in another world and appear to living people as pale, dim, shadowy form. Unbelievers are dichotomous [soul and body] without human spirit. Only the believers have human spirit [body, soul and spirit]. Therefore, unbelievers cannot have ghost. The Holy Spirit is not a ghost, because He is not a dead person, He is not a PHANTASMA. The Holy Spirit is not a ghost because he is not human spirit. Ghost stories were created by pagan religious fanatics who capitalize on such superstition to support their false and heretical doctrines as a tool or machinery for manipulating the ignorant. The human body [soma, is the material organism animated by soul and by human spirit [if believers]. The spirit may be separated from the body while the soul can only be distinguished. When a person died, his soul directly go to heaven or hell –it has no capacity to stay on earth. The Greek verb to breathe out, and out the soul, to expire [Mark 15:37,39, Acts 5:5, 12:23] denotes the fact that the soul of a dead person has no part in the world of the living. The traditional religion teaches that the soul person stays for 40 days on earth before departing to purgatory or heaven. Such teaching is fictional and heretical. At the point of physical death, the soul and human spirit [if believer] separate from the body and go directly to heaven [Luke 16:22] and go directly to hell if unbeliever. The demons are playing on people who believed in ghost, and they are using the features, voices and characteristics of the dead people to deceive the living. Ghost stories are designed to create terror and fear in the hearts and minds of the ignorant. The demons are good impersonators –they take the physical form of the dead. They pretend as the ghosts of the dead. Ghosts are no fiction but genuine demons disguising as spirits of the dead roaming the world of the living. The KJV had committed serious error by translating “Spirit” to “ghost”. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries 004 - WE DO NOT PRAY FOR THE DEAD Salvation is the finished work of Jesus Christ on the cross. Salvation is final-it is a privilege of a living person to believe and receive the free gift of redemption of his soul while he is alive. The final destination of a dead person, either heaven or hell is no exchange no return. Every person has the chance to be saved while alive. The dead has no chance to change their situation. They are permanently assigned their everlasting destination. Praying for the dead, lighting candles, honoring them with praises, offering flowers (but insulting and mocking them while living) is fictional, heretical and unbiblical teaching. Many pagan religions honor their dead on certain occasions. The practice did not originate from the Bible. The traditional religion introduced the prayer for the dead only in A.D 300 but many Eastern religion and Chinese folk religion pray for their dead several thousand years ahead. The dead people has no capacity to hear, prayer, or mass and indulgences Offered in their behalf. God does not listen to the prayer of the unbelievers. God determine the final destination of the dead based on the individual decision to accept or reject Christ’s finished work. No person can change his decision after his physical death. Our final destiny depends on our own decision now: believe or reject Jesus Christ. Prayer for the dead was designed to increase church revenues through the sales of candles, indulgences, payment for mass, flowers and other gimmick. Praying for the dead builds false hope and confidence for life after death. It creates false expectation that dead men can change their final state. Praying for the dead to change their final state is like asking the president to pardon a criminal already executed by lethal injection – an entirely useless effort. Talking to a dead person through prayer is like talking to someone in the telephone when the line is dead. Dead people cannot hear the prayer of the living. They have no capacity to know what is going on earth. A birthday or anniversary celebration for a dead person is ridiculous since the dead person ceased to exist. Age is the duration of life in the world and it stops at the moment the person dies. It is stupid to continue counting years, which the dead person did not utilize for living. God will not hear the prayer for the dead people since there are no longer on earth. God cannot change their final state because His decision is not based on the petition, request or prayer of men. He acts according to His essence. God cannot change the decision He made. He cannot revise the action He made He is perfect. His actions and decisions are all based on his perfect nature. Revision or change is for something not perfect. Prayer cannot change His perfect decision or action. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries 005 - THE TEACHING OF PURGATORY THE DOCTRINE OF PURGATORY IS AN INSULT TO GOD AND HIS FINISHED WORK OF REDEMPTION THROUGH JESUS CHRIST. In effect, it implies that the death of Christ is not sufficient for the sins of man. It implies that human good work is the final authority for one’s final destiny of the soul. It implies that religious traditions and rituals [like mass, prayer for the dead, indulgences, etc.] are more powerful and authoritative than the Creatorship and Messiah-ship of Jesus Christ THE DOCTRINE OF PURGATORY IS AN INSULT TO THE GRACE PLAN OF GOD. It insults salvation by grace alone by faith alone in Christ alone. It implies that salvation is by human good works –by the will of man and not by the work of God [John 1:11-13]. Acceptance of purgatory is rejection of God’s plan of grace. Purgatory is a devious invention of the traditional church released only in A.D. 1414 together with the dogma of sin. The Lord Jesus Christ did not mention purgatory in any of His preaching. No writers of the Canon of the Scripture mentioned anything about purgatory. No Old Testament writer or prophet or judge ever mentioned purgatory. Even the very text use by the Catholic as proof-text for their dogma of the purgatory IS NOT ACTUALLY ABOUT PURGATORY [see 2 Maccabees 7:9, 14:46, 12:43-45]. PURGATORY INSULTS THE HUMAN RATIONAL REASONING. There are too many questions that has no answ
The Bible is the Word of God. God is Truth. God is true to Himself and there is no lie in Him. Who is lying? The Bible? God? They are liars- the sons of their father [John 8:44b] and there is no truth in them. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries 006 - SAINTHOOD? BEATIFICATION is the declaration by a decree of the pope that a deceased person is among the blessed in heaven and deserved religious honor. A beatified person is entitled “blessed”. Beatification is prelude to canonization into sainthood. CANONIZATION is a ritualistic mass where the pope formally declared and officiate dead people into the official list of saints of the Catholic Church. The canonization of dead people was pioneer by Pope John XV in A.D. 995. SAINTHOOD is not an attainment but a state, a condition into which God in grace calls men. It is a spiritual positional status in Christ. Positional sanctification is the state that predetermined by God for all regenerated believers into which He calls them and into which they begin their Christian course and pursue it. Genuine sainthood has several characteristics:
The Lord Jesus Christ did not beatify or canonize anybody into sainthood. No apostle or disciple of the Lord Jesus beatify or canonize anybody into saint hood. It is ridiculous that legendary people l who allegedly existed and died hundred of years ago was declared blessed and declared saints by a decree of the Pope. The beatification and canonization of dead people is an old political gimmick and financial strategy of the church to force the nation into total submission. The Pope is a political strategist who knows how to manipulate the affairs of a nation. A person with old sinful nature all throughout his life on earth has no power or authority to ordain another sinner into sainthood. The Bible called the living regenerated Christians as the genuine saints [HAGIOS meaning separated from sin and consecrated to God [1 Corinthians 1:2, 2 Corinthians 1:2, Ephesians 1:1, Galatians 1:1, Philippians 1:1]. Saints by the authority of man, saints in the eyes of men, saints respected and honor [even worship] by men BUT SUFFERING IN HELL! J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries 007 - HALLOWEEN IS DEMONIC THE HOLLOWEEN FEAST started out long before the birth of Christ in Eastern Europe and ancient China when people would go out dressed in gory and horrifying costumes made of animal skins to cast away the spirits of the dead who returned as wandering witches. Halloween officially began in early 7th century A.D. It was inspired by the ancient Celtic rituals of the Druids help in honor of SAMBAIN, the god of the dead, whose feast falls on the first day of November. The Druids believed that on October 31, SAMBAIN summoned all the evil spirits that had inhabited the bodies of animals. Candles were lit to guide the evil spirits to the home of their kinsmen. The Druids believed that the souls of the good where taken into paradise while those of the wicked were left wandering between the space of moon and earth. To appease those evil spirits who were believed to haunt the living and cast misfortunes on them, they offered food and shelter. Luxurious tombs in the cemetery are adaptation of this belief. The term Halloween comes from Medieval England meaning “All hallow eve” or the eve of the saints. The practice of “tricks or treat” originated in Ireland, the pumpkins from America and the flying witches on sticks from England. The Catholic adapted the feast of All Hallow and All Souls day in 7th Century A.D. FALLACY OF HALLOWEEN FEAST: The soul of a dead person whether in heaven or hell cannot leave their final state to visit the living [Luke 16:26, 31]. At the moment of physical death, the soul separate from the deceased body and immediately go to heaven or to hell [Luke 16:22-23]. There is no purgatory-otherwise, Jesus Christ need not come and die for the sin of the human race. [Romans 3:21-28, 8:1]. If a person rejects the plan of grace and His salvation, then nothing and nobody can change the divine decision [Matthew 12:32b]. There is nothing spiritual about the feast of Halloween. It is not spiritual to celebrate the Halloween. There is nothing logical about the feast of Halloween. All Souls day and All Saints day are purely superstition. Halloween is a satanic scheming that diverts people from the truth of God’s Word. Halloween is religious commercialism and business that makes life in this world more difficult and bitter. Halloween is hallucination, a substitute for the Truth of Scripture. It is slavery in the form of religious tradition. All Saints day which actually do not in anyway relate to genuine saints use by the cults to scare and trick people. All Souls day supposedly remember the departed ones. It is ridiculous to celebrate the feasts of souls when in reality they are in severe pains in hell. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries 008 - ST. VALENTINE? VALENTINE’S DAY originated from a Roman fertility festival known as the FEAST OF LUPERCALIA observed in Ancient Rome as a day of offering gifts to the goddess of free-sex and fertility. The Catholics substituted it with some “Christian” symbolism There were three origins of St. Valentines according to variety of legends. The most famous was that of a Roman priest martyred around A.D. 269. Here we see that a man who renounced and vowed not to marry inspired Valentine’s Day. He was known as VALENTINUS a replacement for Roman god LUPERCALIA. According to another religious legend, VALENTINUS condemned to death by Emperor CLAUDIUS II, for converting the family of ASTERIUS. On the eve of his execution that fell on February 13, 270 A.D., he wrote a farewell love letter to young girl and signed it “From your Valentine”. The second legend was that of the bishop of TERNI who was martyred in the same time frame [VALETINUS was martyred] for crime of loving a young girl. POINTS TO CONSIDER: Valentine’s Day and everything about it came from pagan ritual of sex and fertility. Our modern Valentine’s Day originates from priests who renounced marriage but both were in love with young girls The color red is not the color of love of God. Love has no color. Love is not just romance or sex. Cupid is not an angel of God. There is no such thing as angel of love. Valentine’s Day enslaves people to do things that are burden some. It creates false hope and expectation from human solution. The feast of St. Valentine and its romantic celebration has no biblical and spiritual relevance. Valentine’s Day is commercialism and bondage of high degree. Its concern is romance, sex and lust. The believers are not commanded to celebrate Valentine’s Day and there is no room for it in the Christian churches [Galatians 4:9-10]. Valentine dinner date will not solve or improve your marital conflict or secure your marriage affair. The Lord Jesus and His disciples did not celebrate Valentine’s Day. The Bible is silent about it because it is not biblical but pagan. Some apostate churches are joining the world in the celebration of this evil ritual of sex and fertility. Such affairs cannot glorify the church. To use pagan activities such as Valentine’s Day to raise money for the church is devious and blasphemous. We cannot join people who claims that they are fundamentalists yet observe and celebrate pagan rituals like New Year, Christmas, and Valentine’s Day. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries. 009 - THE TRUE CHRISTMAS We do not believe that Jesus Christ born on December 25, A.D. 1. IT WAS NOT DECEMBER 25 BECAUSE: December is winter in Palestine region and the whole land would be wet. But the shepherds were out in the fields watching their flocks by night [Luke 2:8]. The shepherds will never bring out their flocks into the field during rainy season because the sheep will get sick and die. The baby was wrapped only in swaddling clothes and yet he did not freeze to death [Luke 2:7]. The registration of all citizen of the SPQR took place during summer [Luke 2:1]. Luke mentioned QUIRINIUS the governor of Syria whom the Roman Emperor CEASAR AUGUSTUS visited in Syria sometime in March where he signed the decree for worldwide census. The census took effect 30 days after it’s signing. It was bishop LIBERIUM of Rome [the fox] who officially proclaimed in A.D. 354 that all Catholics celebrate Christmas day on December 25. December 25 was adopted by the Catholic from the Roman feast of the UNCONQUERED SUN, which falls on the midnight of December 24. The Roman unconquered sun god is SATURNALIA [SATURNALA] but the Roman Catholic took the symbolism and applied it to Jesus Christ as the UNCONQUERED SUN OF JUSTICE. DIONYSIUS EXIGUUS, the man who invented the modern calendar widely use by the Catholic around the world assigned December 25, A.D. 1 as the birthday of Christ. Tradition claimed that Jesus Christ was born on midnight but there is no way to prove that. The Bible did not say He was born at midnight. Tradition claimed that Jesus Christ was visited by three kings whose names were GASPAR, MELCHOR & BALTAZAR about ten days He was born. They were not three but presented only three pieces of gifts. They were not kings but sorcerers or magicians. The Bible did not mention their names. They came two years after when Jesus was no longer wrapped in swaddling clothes. DIONYSIUS invented the year of the birth of Jesus Christ as commanded by the Pope without scientific basis and without mathematical formulation. He created his calendar in six century based on spurious records and which are not historically accurate. DIONYSIUS counted the first year as 1 A.D. with the year preceding Christ’s birth. Scientists and astronomers were Obliged to subtract I year, so that 4 B.C. becomes 3 B.C. Jesus Christ was born in Bethlehem, Jerusalem but not on December 25, 1 A.D. So, December 25 is happy birthday unconquered sun god SATURNALA not happy birthday Jesus! The sun god and goddess come with many names and faces but continue to infiltrate the local churches unopposed and happily welcome by the ignorant. WHAT CHRISTMAS IS ALL ABOUT YULE, which means 12 days of gluttony and cavorting Scandinavian nudists, the word came from Norse. CHRISTMAS TREE, which came from tree worshiping Scandinavians, who passed their PINETHEISM to the pagan Roman Catholic who modified it into CHRISTMAS TREE-FETISHISM. The ancient Egyptians, Chinese and Germans had their tree gods, which they decorated in some occasion. SANTA CLAUS, which came from the Netherlands introduced by the Dutch throughout the world. From Nicholas to Santa Claus, the name varies from one language to another. Washington Irving gave Santa Claus the superman power to fly in 1809. Cartoonist Thomas Nast made him puffed cheeks and marsupial paunch look in 1813, becoming more popular than the Lord Jesus Christ. Satan Claus is a cute substitute for the Savior of mankind. EXPENDING MONEY. The Spanish word for spending money is PAGAR, from the same root word we get the term PAGAN and PASCUA [Christmas]. FIRE AND LIGHTS, which came from ancient Germans and Normans who burn their evergreen trees to ward off evil spirits. The ancient Chinese use firecrackers to scare big evil spirits. CHRISTMAS LANTERNS especially the five-pointed star that symbolized Satan, the god of this world, who brings the Christmas evil spirits around and invites the money hungry fund-raisers. GIFT-SEEKERS everywhere. Endless envelops, and crisp paper money. Some public servants had their envelopes ready as early as October. COLOR LIGHTS, which signifies that you are believer of Christmas [not necessarily Christian] and that you moneybag is ready. MERRY CHRISTMAS means give me money. MANO PO NINONG- MANO PO NINANG means three to five hundred bucks. CHRISTMAS PARTIES EVERYWHERE, it is better to go on vacation [hide away] than to stay home. KRISS KRINGLE, which means Santa Claus with his stupid exchange gift. The witches of Scotland practiced this exchange gift using evil curses for their enemies. MR. LONELY, which means that suicide is on the rise because depression is very high on the air. MORE ROBBERY because materialism is high and majority is in financial crisis or out of job. HIGH PRICES BUT GOOD BUSINESS for the greedy crocodiles. RELIGIOUS HYPOCRITES giving gifts of sardines and few kilos of rice to the poor but keeping the imported items for themselves. GOOD POLITICIANS giving gifts from public funds with their own name printed on plastic bags – good time for campaigning and political gimmick. Christmas is all about hypocrisy, heresy, gimmick, lies, commercialism and Satanism. Christmas is not for Christians! J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries 010 - NEW YEAR: A PAGAN REVELRY NEW YEAR celebration connotes heathenism and paganism. Its origin is difficult to determine since most ancient pagan religions have their own version of New Year revelry –based on their own calendar. Ancient religions based their New Year celebration on the movement of the sun, moon, stars and earth –that is astrological not astronomical. ASTROLOGY is the supposed science of the effect of celestial bodies on human affairs, and related to ASTROLATRY, which is worship of the heavenly bodies [ASTROLATREA). ASTROLOGER is a person who claims to know and interpret the supposed influence of the stars and planets on persons or events. Could a person foretell the events in people’s lives based on the happenings in heavens? This is what the fortune-tellers and horoscope are all about. The New Year Celebration is based on Taoism, FENG SHUI and combination of pagan practices like preparing fruits on the table to invite abundance of food for the coming year. The noise making and fireworks is to drive away evil spirits [like the spirit of famine, poverty, bad lucks, etc.], which are the primary teaching of cults. Believers are not supposed to share in the table of demons or cup of demons or sacrifice to demons [1 Corinthians 10:19-22]. SHARERS IN DEMONS refers to the activities, practices of believers that are not of the Lord. [Like, when you consult a FENG SHUI master regarding your house construction]. The believer is said to be SHARERS IN DEMONS whenever he consult his zodiac prediction for guidance. The CUP OF DEMONS and TABLE OF DEMONS refers to practices, traditions and rituals of the world adapted by the believers [like celebrating Christmas, New Year, Valentine]. Paying homage to the dead on November first, hanging Christmas lanterns or putting up a Christmas tree are partaking in the cup of demons. Celebrating new moon, New Year, new millennium is actually celebrating the feast of some astrological deities [gods]. It is not Scriptural and it is demonic in nature. FIRECRACKERS are to scare evil spirits of poverty, sickness, misery, and poor health. It originated from ancient pagan practices of driving out the evil spirits from animals. THE MIDNIGHT MEAL is an adaptation of midnight offerings of foods and drinks to pagan gods. The New Year celebration is a mixture of ancient superstitions and traditions disguised as Christian celebration. “What do I mean then? That a thing sacrificed to idols is anything? No, but I say that the things which the Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice to demons, and not to God; and I do not want you to become sharers in demons”. “You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons; you cannot partake of the table of the Lord and the table of demons”. [ 1 Corinthians 10:19-21] New Year celebration is burdensome and costly for some. For some it is their source of pride and self-glory. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries 011 - THE FAKE HEALERS MIRACLES, including healing the sick were the credentials of the Lord Jesus Christ and His disciples, to whom He gave the spiritual gift of healing but the cessation of the gifts came at the end of the apostolic age. GOD WANTS YOU WELL is a statement of the most presumptuous and most arrogance statement of ignorance. Some disoriented believers assumed that the will of God excludes sufferings and troubles in this world. PHYSICAL HEALTH is not a sign of true spirituality or poor health is a sign of carnality. Our physical condition has nothing to do with our spiritual life. We are to continue our momentum toward spiritual maturity regardless of our physical condition. Apostle Paul suffered severely from his so-called thorns in the flesh. Majority of God’s servants are afflicted with some kind of illness. In God’s plan, affliction and sufferings are normal parts of the Christian way of life. MIRACLES are divine prerogative. He does it by His own decision apart from human intervention or request. God does not operate from human request or demands. God will not interrupt or change the law of nature for the sake of believers pleading ignorantly and aggressively. Yes, God heals today! God heals according to normal natural laws. God acts based on His essence [nature] not on the presumptuous faith of fake healers. If it were the sovereign Will of God to heal all illness, sickness and affliction, then, all human would be immortal. There is no promise in the Bible that God will heal all the sickness and illness of men. There is no promise in the Bible of miraculous healing for those who will claim it. The employment of such method is contrary to the way and manner God operates in relationship to man. What we have is not Jesus Miracles Crusade’ but “Satan Unscrupulous Crusade”. MIRACLE DOES HAPPEN TODAY on personal affair, according to the grace of God on the individual, not according to the command of the fake healers. Jesus Christ did not heal all the sick people in the crowd but individually. The apostles and disciples did not heal in that manner. GOD WILL NOT OBEY THE DEMAND OR REQUEST OF A MAN TO HEAL ALL THE SICK PEOPLE IN THE CROWD AT THE SAME TIME. God will not obey the capriciousness and arrogance of the fake healers. It is not their faith in God that works since they are ignorant of Divine Will, plan, and purpose. Satan is feasting with healing crusades nowadays. He is trapping thousands into the snare of deception. Satan is using them as his instrument of deception. Satan empowered and energizes them to do his will. Their faith is not faith in God because they are ignorant of Bible doctrine. Their healing is questionable. Their so -called authority is not from God. 012 - HYPNOTISM HYPNOTISM is the act or process of putting into a sleeplike state a person with little will of his own and little feeling, or consciousness. The victim acts according to the suggestions of the hypnotist [the person who hypnotized him]. HYPNOSIS is from the Greek word “HYPNOS”, the god of sleep and the English word “OSIS”. A condition somewhat resembling deep sleep but more active in the state of unconsciousness, in which a person has little will of his own and little feeling, acts according to the suggestion of the person who brought about this condition. HYPNOTHERAPY is the treatment of mental or physical disorders by means of hypnotism. Hypnotherapy is being use by paramedics, faith healers and modern witch doctors as substitute for anesthetics. Some called it “spiritual injection”. A more popular version of hypnotherapy is now being use by the cults. The so-called HYPNOSOPHY, the science of hypnotism, has infiltrated the religious main stream, a practice once exclusive only to the pagan cults, voodoos, sorcerers, magicians and the occults. THE 4 STAGES OF HYPNOTISM: 1. THE MENTAL AND EMOTIONAL RELAXATION STAGE designed to recondition the emotional and psychological state of the person/s being hypnotized. Relaxing and sugar coated words of encouragement and lies from human viewpoint prepares the souls of the deceived. 2. THE RE-INFORMATION STAGE where suggestive information [a mixture of truth and lies] is injected to the soul, replacing the previous stored information in the soul of people under hypnotism. 3. THE ACCEPTANCE STAGE under which the hypnotize person will receive, accept and believe the suggested informations or data planted upon him during the hypnotic session. Such data or informations are very difficult to erase. The lies planted in his soul are accepted as truth. 4. THE ILLUSION STAGE in which the hypnotized person will live according to the information planted in his soul during the hypnosis session. Modern False preachers and false prophets are using hypnosis to deceive the ignorant with their extra Biblical teachings, practices, and sensational ministries. Therefore, the deceived followers accept the imaginary cures for the genuine illnesses or the real cures for the imaginary illnesses. The so-called “slaying of the spirit”, a practice popularized by the PSEUDO BELIEVERS invites demonic spirit to take control over the unbeliever in the crowd. FOR THE DECEIVED BELIEVERS such healing, miracles, wonders are reality and truth. They cannot see the lies and deception behind it. Because they accept the lies-they have to reject the truth of Bible doctrine. THE ILLUSIONS HAS BECOME TRUTH IN THEIR SOULS. They have no room for the truth. Beware of hypnotists in sheep clothing! Beware of those sweet and comforting words! 013 - EXORCISM Believers are not vulnerable to demon possession since they have the permanent indwelling of the Holy Spirit [1 Corinthians 6:19]. Only unbelievers are vulnerable to demon possession. There are 2 physical manifestations of demon possession: 1. Demon induced mental illness [Mark 5:1-5]. 2. Demon induced physical illness [Matthew 8:16, 9:32-33] 3 BONA FIDE MEANS FOR REMOVAL OF DEMONS: Ø Satan personal intervention or decision to leave the body of a person he possessed [Matthew 12:24]. Ø Direct Divine intervention or command to the demons to leave the body of a person the demons possessed [Mark 5:8]. Ø Personal decision of the person possessed to believe and accept the Gospel. The baptism of the Holy Spirit automatically kicks out the demons from the body of man they possessed [1 Corinthians 3:16, 9:32-33]. There is no Christian Exorcism in the Bible: The Lord Jesus Christ and His disciples CAST OUT demons to authenticate theirs divine calling- as proof of being servants of God. The Jews were looking for a sign of their calling. The Greek verb for CAST OUT is EKBALLO which is used in all account when Christ or His disciples CAST OUT demons. The verb EXORKIZO, the derivative of English noun EXORCIST, and the Greek noun EXORKISTES, and its cognate verb HORKIZO, is used in reference to religious fakers who attempted to expel demons by uttering mysterious incantations [Acts 19:13-17, Matthew 7:22-23]. The Bible used EXORCIST for pagan Jews who attempted to evict demons by religious oaths and rituals. Exorcism is never an indication of salvation or a sign of God’s approval or sign of spirituality. Exorcism and deliverance ministries are out of line with God’s plan. THE APPARENT SUCCESS of those who engage in exorcism can be attributed either to the cooperation of Satan to leave or direct involvement of demons to evacuate the body of a person, or JUST A BIG HOAX. PSEUDO CHRISTIANS and religious unbelievers are using exorcism as a heretical sign of divine favor and PSEUDO SPIRITUALITY to deceive the ignorant of Bible doctrine. The Lord Jesus Christ warned that religious fakers who exorcise have no part with Him [Matthew 7:22-23]. The vast popularity of the modern exorcists is just preparation where they will mushroomed. Satan has just begun empowering his fake healers like the nuns and priests, the miracle workers, the cultic healers. The priority of the Lord Jesus Christ and the apostles was the Gospel and the Bible doctrine NOT EXORCISM. 013 - IS FASTING APPLICABLE TODAY? FASTING IS THE INVENTION OF MAN and not commanded by God. Fasting was borrow by the exiled Jews in the early part of theirs Babylonian exiled to commemorate the destruction of Jerusalem. The Jewish exile had inserted the ceremony of fasting in the fifth month of the Jewish calendar. Later, they added fasting in the fourth, seventh and tenth month. The ritualistic ceremonial rites of fasting took place without real meaning in the Old Testament time. Zechariah raised a very timely and vital question; “Shall I weep in the fifth month and abstain [ritualistic fasting] as I have done these many years? [170 years in captivity] (Zechariah 7:3b). GOD ANSWERED THAT QUESTION WITH FOUR MESSAGES: · The Jewish exiled fasted for 170 years of captivity but not for God [Zechariah 7:4-7]. · The Jews fasted but refused to pay attention to God and to His Bible doctrine [7:8-14]. · The Jews prayed and fasted but violated the Mosaic Laws and Word of God [8:1-17]. · Genuine prayer and fasting will have real meaning during the millennial kingdom [8:18-23]. TO FAST (nesteo) is to abstain from eating and used for voluntary fasting. Fasting is based on the free will decision of the positive volition believers. CHRIST AND HIS DISCIPLES OBSERVED voluntary fast [like on the day of Atonement] but imposed no frequent fasts in addition [Matthew 9:15]. Christ taught the need of purity and simplicity of motive. What He taught was suitable to change the mental attitude. The very purpose He designed for all believers. THE FAST OF ACTS 27:9 refers to the Day of Atonement of the Jews not a fasting instituted by the Church Age believers [Leviticus 16:29]. THE JEWISH BELIEVERS IN ACTS 13:2-3 had carried over to Church Age time the Jewish practice, which the LORD JESUS CHRIST AND THE APOSTLES DID NOT COMMANDS the Christians to practice. SOME PRINCIPLES: THE JEWISH EXILES IN BABYLON INVENTED & INSTITUTED FASTING but never commanded by God. THE LORD JESUS CHRIST DID NOT COMMAND THE CHRISTIANS TO PRACTICE FASTING. THE DISCIPLES AND APOSTLES DID NOT COMMAND THE CHURCH AGE BELIEVERS TO FAST. FASTING WAS NEVER A SPIRITUAL ACTIVITY IN THE OLD TESTAMENT and it has no spiritual relevance in the Old Testament and today. We are not more spiritual if we fast and we are not less spiritual if we do not fast. When it comes to our spiritual life, BIBLE DOCTRINE IS TOP PRIORITY not fasting. 014 - WHAT IS ANOINTING? The Hebrew verb “MASAH” [TO ANOINT] has three meaning: 1. To smear something on the object [Genesis 31:3], 2. To anoint the shield, meaning to lubricate [Isaiah 21:5] 3. To temper with oil, meaning to butter bread [Exodus 29:2] The Hebrew noun “MASIAH” that means ANOINTED ONE was used only for Jesus Christ [Psalm 2:2, 18:50, 89:38]. MASIAH was used figuratively for king Saul as the LORD’S ANOINTED [1 Samuel 24:6] and Cyrus as HIS ANOINTED [Isaiah 45:1]. GREEK VERBS FOR ANOINTING: MURIZO, meaning to anoint the body for burial [Luke 7:46, Mark 14:8] “You did not anoint [ELAION] MY head with oil, but she anointed [MURON] MY feet with perfume (embalming ointment)”. EPICHRIO, to rub on used for the blind man when Jesus healed him from blindness [John 9:6, 11]. ENCHRIO to rub in, or to smear with the eyes of the LAODICEANS meaning to beautify it [Revelation 3:18]. ALEIPHO used for an anointing of any kind: a. A physical refreshment [Ruth 3:3, Daniel 10:3] b. Anointing of the sick that is to heal [Mark 6:13, James 5:14] by applying some medicinal ointment or oil, c. Anointing a pillar or foundation [Genesis 31:31] d. Anointing the captives [2 Chronicles 28:15] e. Anointing the priests or kings [Exodus 40:15] CHRIO confided to sacred and symbolic anointing of Christ as the ANOINTED ONE OF GOD [Luke 4:18, Acts 4:27, 10:38, Hebrews 1:9] CHRIO also refers to ANOINTING OF BELIEVERS FROM GOD [2 Cor. 1:21]. CHRISMA a Greek noun stands for ANOINTED ONE meaning Christ, standing by metonymy for the Person Himself (as for the Holy Spirit), [1 John 2:20, 27, Daniel 9:26]. CHRIO refers to the work of the Holy Spirit at the point of salvation imputing righteousness of God to the believer. ANOINTING is the exclusive work of God for man. MAN CANNOT ANOINT AN OBJECT OR A PERSON FOR GOD. THERE IS NO COMMAND FOR THE BELIEVERS TO ANOINT ANOTHER PERSON TO DO SERVICE FOR GOD. THE BELIEVERS HAS NO POWER, AUTHORITY, OR COMMISSION TO ANOINT AN OBJECT OR A PERSON FOR GOD. A PERSON ANOINTED BY A SO CALLED “ANOINTED PERSON” IS NOT HOLY IN THE SIGHT OF GOD. TO CLAIM THAT YOU HAVE THE POWER OR AUTHORITY TO ANOINT ANOTHER PERSON FOR GOD IS HIGH LEVEL ARROGANCE! 015 - SUICIDE SUICIDE is the act of killing oneself on purpose. There are two (2) kinds of suicide: the honorable suicide and dishonorable suicide. HONORABLE SUICIDE refers to suicide missions designated as a military action or operation that is certain to result in the death of the persons involved, like a suicide missions inside the enemy territory. DISHONORABLE SUICIDE refers to a suicide in a moment of extreme fear, extreme despair or deep anxiety, the result of which is often ruinous to one’s own interests. SEVEN CASES OF SUICIDE IN THE BIBLE: TWO BELIEVERS committed suicide but different in category. Samson’s was of honorable purpose [Judges 16:30], but king Saul’s was of dishonorable purpose [1 Samuel 31:4]. FOUR UNBELIEVERS resolved to die by suicide because of personal failures: ABIMELECH (the son of Gideon) committed suicide because of failures in his political career [Judges 9:54]. The armor bearer of king Saul committed suicide as sympathy to failure of his master [1 Samuel 31:5]. AHITHOPHEL, (private counselor of king David) resolved to commit suicide because unfulfilled dreams and ambitions [2 Samuel 17:23]. ZIMRI, (servant of king ELAH) also resolved to die by suicide because of political failures [1 Kings 16:18]. JUDAS ISCARIOT was the only one from the New Testament who died by suicide. ONLY SAMSON died in the state of spirituality, from weakness was made strong [Hebrews 11:32,34]. THE REST OF THEM refused to accept defeat and failure –and was overcome by emotion. ONLY GOD has the authority and right to terminate our biological life on earth. The time and manner of our physical death is divine prerogative. SUICIDE IS COWARDICE to face the trials and pains of life. It is not an escape from reality. SUICIDE MAY RESOLVE TO MORE SUFFERINGS and problems rather than solve the present problem. It will hurt your love ones more than your self. SUICIDE IS FAILURE to know and utilize the divine solutions God has provided to every believer. We are not left in this world without divine resources. SUICIDE IS HUMAN SOLUTION that actually is not a solution but a trap from Satan. SUICIDE IS EMOTION that kicks out reason and truth. It is emotion out of control and reality. SUICIDE IS THE REJECTION OF GOD’S PLAN FOR YOUR LIFE and acceptance of satanic schemes to resolve human problems. DISHONORABLE SUICIDE is not the will of God for man. WHY WE DO NOT CELEBRATE BIRTHDAY AND ANNIVERSARY The Scripture speaks specifically only have two birthdays, both were from royal family and pagan family. The first was pharaoh, who declared an amnesty on his birthday [Genesis 40:20]. The second was Herod ANTIPAS, in whose birthday revelry, John the Baptist was beheaded as a gift for HERODIAS [lady Herod]. The celebration of the anniversary of one’s birth is universal practice, originating from early Egyptian era, passed to Church Age believers. Under the Mosaic Laws, age was the chief qualification for authority and office. This implies that the Jews of the Old Testament and New Testament times kept record of theirs birth [John 9:21 Luke 2:42]. The Jews had recorded theirs date of birth as time reference and as per requirement of the Roman Laws that requires counting of birthdays. However, there is no recorded birth -day celebration of any kind among the Old Testament believers. There is no recorded birthday or anniversary celebration of any kind among the New Testament saints. THE CELEBRATION OF BIRTHDAY AND ANNIVERSARY ORIGINATED FROM PAGAN RELIGIONS NOT FROM SCRIPTURE OR BELIEVERS. SOME PRINCIPLES: Birthday or anniversary celebration is a big financial burden for most believers. Church anniversary celebration is not only a financial burden for church members but entirely not Scriptural. Giving a lavish birthday celebration promotes the uplifts the arrogance and ego of many. Lavish birthday celebration is only waste of money, time, effort and energy after all you cannot every body. The believer does not live for this world or for the things of this world but for God. We are here to please God and not men [Colossians 3:2-3]. The world is not our home, but we are the citizens of heaven. We are to set in our souls the heavenly things as our top priority in life. [Philippians 3:20, Colossians 3:2]. The believers are the stewards of God’s logistical blessing. Therefore we must properly dispose our own resources for eternal and profitable things things that are eternal in values. OBSERVING DAYS, months, days or season is a direct disobedience to God and His Word [Galatians 4:9-10]. The believers are no longer slaves of the cosmic systems. We are no longer the blind followers of satanic traditions, trends, religious rituals, trends and practices. The issue here is not financial but spiritual. WE DO NOT CELEBRATE BIRTHDAY AND ANNIVERSARY BECAUSE IT IS NOT BIBLICAL. It is not spiritual to celebrate. There is nothing spiritual about church anniversary celebration. It is not biblical. 016 - DANCING IN WORSHIP THE SO CALLED MUSIC MINISTERS have infiltrated the churches with their heretical music and practices such as “SPIRITUAL DANCING”. THEY CLAIMED THAT DANCING IS AN EXPRESSION OF WORSHIP and legitimate in the church because it glorifies God. They based their teaching on Psalm 149:3 and 150:4 as supporting text. A careful study of Psalm 149 and 150 reveals that the context refers to Israel after the second coming of the Lord Jesus Christ NOT for Church Age Christians. The setting of the text is the millennial kingdom not the Church Age era. GENUINE PRAISE AND WORSHIP IS POSSIBLE ONLY in the absence of unrighteousness in the world. Ecstatic worship is not possible in our time because of our old sinful nature. Genuine praises, verbal expression, [such as singing doctrinal oriented music, new tongues], and physical expression [such as dancing] is the general characterize the people of God. DAVID DANCED because the Ark of the Lord was going back to Jerusalem [2 Samuel 5:12-23]. DAVID DANCED BEFORE THE LORD –before the Ark of the Lord. It was a personal matter between him and God. Nobody told him, nobody commanded him, or asked him to dance. He danced from his free will volition [1 Chronicles 15:29]. DAVID DANCE IN THE STREET not inside the Temple or worship hall. Not during worship but in the street. Note the phrase “looked out of the window” of 2 Samuel 6:16. MICHAL saw the king, her husband from her window. “The young girl will rejoice in their dance” [Jeremiah 31:13a] refers to revive Israel during the millennial kingdom not during the Church Age time. The Lord Jesus Christ did not dance to worship. No disciples or apostles ever dance during worship. Old Testament believers did not dance during worship. THERE IS NO COMMAND FOR THE CHURCH TO DANCE. Dancing can- not proclaimed or explained the Word of God. Dancing is expressions of the body [body language] that invites sexual acts. In ancient times, dancing was associated with idol worship and temple sex [Exodus 32:19]. DO NOT SPIRITUALIZED THE THINGS OF THE WORLD SYSTEM -no matter how professional and “good” in the human eyes”, your dancing in the church it is still evil and unbiblical. Emotional church musical rendition plus emotional dance expression is not by any means can become a spiritual experience. Religion and dancing is twin, the two cannot separate. Where there is religion there is dancing. Since our nation is very religious, we have dancing anywhere. Those who missed the dancing floors of disco pubs and bars will surely enjoy dancing in the church, especially the gays. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries 017 - PRAISING GOD “THE SACRIFICE OF PRAISE” [Hebrews 13:15] is one of the most distorted teachings in many churches today. The phrase “the sacrifice of praise” was first used by Jeremiah [33:11] referring to animal sacrifice and to thank offering of the revive Israel during the millennial kingdom. THE SACRIFICE OF PRAISE refers to their [Israel] act of bringing animal sacrifices and offerings as expression of worship. The phrase “JOYFUL LIPS” [Psalm 63:5b] is a figure of speech that denotes the soul [KARDIA] in the state of sharing the happiness of God. The phrase “WITH THY PRAISE” also refers to a soul that is knows the happiness of God through the Word of God stored in his KARDIA and not by emotion [Psalm 71:8]. Take note, His praise, not the praise of men. Both the JOYFUL LIPS and MOUTH FILLED WITH HIS PRAISE refers to soul with Bible doctrine. Praises such as “PRAISE THE LORD, HALLELUJAH”, “GLORY TO GOD”, “PRAISE JESUS” and etc. are useless if it comes from the lips of the unbelievers. CARNAL BELIEVERS who habitually praise God with religious phrases are just wasting theirs saliva –they are like noisy gongs and cymbals. Such emotionally motivated and habitual mannerism of verbal praises does not glorify God rather it is using the name of the Lord in vain. The glory of God is intact within Himself, whether man praises Him or not. His glory does not depend on man. GENUINE PRAISES TO GOD focuses on the Person and works of the Lord Jesus Christ on the cross. Real praise center on divine essence not on man who is worshiping [Psalm 7:17]. TRUE PRAISES is based on the Word of God [Psalm 56:4, 10] not on human faith or righteousness. THE FRUITS OF THE LIPS comes from spiritual maturity of the souls that has been nurture with the Word of God [not from emotional experiences in our religion]. OVER PRAISING is when the lips of a person verbally expresses some religious phrase [like “praise the Lord] without knowledge of Bible doctrine. It is taking the name of the Lord in vain [Deuteronomy 5:11]. THE LIFE OF BELIEVERS INSIDE THE WILL, PLAN AND PURPOSE OF GOD IS THE LIFE THAT GLORIFIES GOD. Not just the lips that expresses some religious phrases [Matthew 15:8, Mark 7:6]. “THIS PEOPLE HONORS ME WITH THEIR LIPS, BUT THEIR HEART IS FAR AWAY FROM ME” [Mark 7:6]. OVER PRAISING is pure arrogance wrapped in hypocrisy of verbal and emotional expression apart from the Truth of God’s Word in his mind and heart. IT IS NOT A SIGN OF SPIRITUALITY BUT OF DEEP IGNORANCE OF BIBLE DOCTRINE AND CARNALITY. LET YOUR WORDS BE SEASON WITH SALT [SALT is Bible doctrine not non-sense praises]. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries 018 - RAISING HANDSWHY DID DAVID raise his hands while praying? He lifted his hands toward the holy sanctuary [Jerusalem] in order to identify with the offering up of sacrifices by the priests since he was far away in exiled [Psalm 28:2, 63:2-4]. He prayed at the time the sacrifice was being made in Jerusalem. David expressed his oneness with the evening sacrifice when he was away from the holy sanctuary. That is the reason why he raised his hands toward Jerusalem (not toward heaven) [Psalm 14:2]. SHOULD WE DO THE SAME? NO! – Because the sacrifices of animals had ceased. The Lord Jesus Christ died to fulfill the sacrificial law- once and for all. He paid in full. NO! – Because we do not have the altar [sanctuary] with us. NO! – Because there is no command for us to raise our hands during worship or prayer. NO! – Because physical posture has nothing to do with true worship. It is not sign of spirituality to raise your hands in worship or prayer. NO! – Because everyone is doing it even the cults and pagans. THE LIFTING OF HANDS has nothing to do with genuine worship. The lifting of hands is not an expression of worship, it is not an element of worship and it is not a spiritual experience. We do not become more spiritual if we raise our hands and we do not become less spiritual if we do not. It has nothing to contribute to our spiritual life or experience. 4 General categories of lifting hands in the Scripture: Lifting of hand in reference to everyday obedience to Bible doctrine [Psalm 119:48] as an expression of submission. Lifting of hands in reference to priestly function of offering sacrifices in the altar or [Psalm 134:2] as an expression of identifying himself to the sacrifice. Lifting of hands referring to David personal volition to lean toward God and toward His Word [Psalm 143:6]. Lifting of hands in prayer refers to the Church Age believer’s act of praying for others the ministry of intercession for the lost [1 Timothy 2:8]. The above-mentioned categories of lifting hands are figurative never literal and physical. David did not actually raise his hands in reference to Psalm 143:6. Believers do not have to raise theirs hands to show off positive volition toward God and His Word. We do not have to raise our hands while praying because “LIFTING UP HOLY HANDS” means to pray for the lost [1 Timothy 2:8]. Christianity is not a religion that blindly follows practices, rituals, traditions invented and taught by man. We have to examine every ritual, every practice, every tradition, and everything the preachers are proclaiming as the Word of God. We are not blind followers following blind leaders. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries 020 - CHURCH CHOIR MUSIC in the Old Testament had accompanied all of Jewish life and it was parallel practices in other religious systems. TRAINED MUSICIANS appeared around the time of Solomon in the Temple worship with elaborated adaptation of pagan rituals and practices. THE TABERNACLE WORSHIP MUSIC has six characteristics: No untrained musicians were commissioned and given responsibility. Professionalism was the rule in the Temple services. The Temple Choir was consisted only of 12 male adults above 30 years old. No young people or female were involved. There were no percussion instruments and there were no dancers. The music was traditionally Jewish and purely religious. The congregation was musically involved. The music was never emotionally manipulated to produce results. A handful of New Testament passages provide us information how music was performed during the early church: Jewish music styles were not carried over to Church Age music. No disciple or apostle mentioned the existence of choir or any person giving a special number during worship. Their music was short and doctrinal in nature. It was actually Bible doctrine preaching added with melody [Acts 16:25, 1 Corinthians 14:15, 26]. The priority of the Lord Jesus Christ was to teach Bible doctrine not to teach church music [Ephesians 5:19]. Both in the Old and New Testament, music did not take the center-stage of theirs spiritual life. The center of our spiritual life is the Word of God. Modern day religious music is devious and deceitful. MUSIC MINISTERS are skillful in manipulating and captivating ignorant followers into emotional and ecstatic experience. They can easily sway the life of the church into a new dimension of religious experience with out spirituality. The priority of every local church is to teach Bible doctrine using the 4 basic systematic approaches to biblical studies: exegetical, exegetical, historical and grammatical methods The local church is robbing the believers not only with their precious time, energy and resources but also with spiritual blessing in eternity. THE “HOLY ENTERTAINMENT” [musical presentations, concerts, choirs, etc], provided by some churches are not only diverting the focus of believers to the Lord but also substituting God with church celebrities [church singers]. CHURCH MUSICIANS are always the source of problems and conflicts in the congregation. They are often the most carnal and arrogant. Music does not prepare the heart and soul for worship. Filing of the Holy Spirit is the only preparation we need for worship. We are filled with the Holy Spirit by rebound not by asking God to fill us with Holy Spirit. Music only excites the emotion of man. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries 021 - THE PHRASE “GOD BLESS YOU”IT IS DIVINE PREROGATIVE TO BLESS or not to bless. He bless according to divine essence –His perfect standard, unaffected by what a man does or not [Genesis 49:25]. GOD BLESSES HIS PEOPLE [the saved or regenerated] not all the people, according to what a man demands or asks in prayer [Psalm 29:11b]. Man has no power or authority to compel God to grand or answer their request to bless a person or group of people. GOD WILL NOT HEAR THE REQUEST OF THE UNBELIEVERS for blessings except the blessing of salvation. ALL BELIEVERS ARE UNDER THE DIVINE BLESSING of logistical grace. Logistical grace is the divine provision for material and spiritual needs of all believers necessary for their existent while in the world. God Made Covenant with Abraham to bless Israel [Genesis 12:2-3, 22:17 26:3]- not Abraham but God. Man is not in position to make Covenant with God. Isaac pronounced blessings to his sons based on that Covenant, but the blessing was conditional: “If they live by the Covenant”. Moses pronounced blessing for Israel but the blessing was possible only if they live by the Covenant, that is, if they live according to the Word of God [Numbers 6:24-25, Deuteronomy 1:11, 15:4]. God is blessing the believers based on the righteousness He imputed at the point of salvation- not because of our effort to please God. All believers by position in Christ are already blessed. The life we have received from God is accompanied by more than 40 blessings. God is waiting to bless His children. To receive the blessings from God –man must be adjusted to the justice of God. There are three adjustments to the justice of God. For all unbelievers: the adjustment of salvation, that is, salvation in Christ alone, by faith alone. For carnal believers: the adjustment of rebound through the grace of God. For growing believers: the adjustment of spiritual advancement toward maturity by continuous intake of Bible doctrine. TO BLESS GOD is not just verbal or written expression of magical religious words such as PRAISE THE LORD, but to live inside the will, purpose, plan and system of God while moving toward the goal of spiritual maturity. God blesses the positive volition believers so that they can glorify God in time and eternity [Psalm 16:7, 34:8, 145:1, 21]. Therefore, the phrase GOD BLESS YOU is exclusive for growing and advancing believers living in the will, purpose and plan of God. GOD BLESS YOU is not for unbelievers and not for carnal believers under divine discipline. Man has no power, authority to grant blessing to another person. Man has no power or authority to ask God to bless anybody –no matter how spiritual he is. To bless a person or not is a divine prerogative. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries 022 - THE DOCTRINE OF SEPARATION The scripture forbids us to have fellowship with God to have fellowship with unbelievers who have rejected the Gospel of salvation. They attached the title CHRISTIAN to themselves but denied the power of Christ to save. They are the unbelievers among the believers [2 John 7-11]. They are the goats among the sheep. The Scripture commands us to expose apostasy [Ephesians 5:11] in the light of God’s Word. The Scripture mandated believers not to YOKE TOGETHER IN ANY SPIRITUAL ENDEAVOR [2 Corinthians 6:14-18]. The term yoke in this context refers to any spiritual endeavor. Believers are commanded to separate from DISOBEDIENT BRETHREN who made decision not follow the Word of God. THOSE WHO DISOBEY THE WILL, PLAN, OR PURPOSE OF GOD in their lives [Matthew 18:15-17, 1 Cor. 5:11, 1 Timothy 6:3-5 and 2 Thessalonians 3:6]. God’s work done in God’s way and God’s time produces good result. God’s work done in man’s way in man’s time produces bad results. Believers and unbelievers doing the work of God in God’s way produce only bad results. Believers and carnal believers doing the work of God in God’s way produce only bad results. Believers who apply human ability and resources in doing the work of God will produce only bad results. We obey God by not affiliating our local church with apostate churches, mission or evangelistic effort, which is ecumenical in nature and purpose. We obey the Word of God by not affiliating our church with those who do not practice Biblical separation. We cannot join the heretics, the schematics and backsliders on reason because the Holy Spirit will never work in the life of believers contrary to the will of God. The will of god for the local church is not ecumenicalism, or political unity of all believers, not inter-nationalism, not inter-denominationalism. Christians must concentrate on Bible doctrine-the top priority of all believers in the world. We must refuse to waste the logistical blessing for spiritual growth by useless inter-fellowship with the apostate. THERE IS ONLY ONE FAITH and that faith is the Bible doctrine given by God written in the pages of the Bible. THERE IS ONLY ONE BIBLE DOCTRINE but many church doctrines and if their doctrine is not Bible doctrine, then we cannot accept them. We cannot have fellowship with them. ONLY BIBLE DOCTRINE IS PERFECT and all church doctrines are corrupt and misleading -deceiving people. Biblical separation is justified because God cannot tolerate any compromise when it comes to our spiritual life. God separated Israel by calling them out Egypt into the wilderness [literal] and made His own people. God separate the Church as His own people. Believers are in the world but not of the world. We are on earth but we must live for the things above. We cannot obey God without separation. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries 024 - PROSPERITY THEOLOGY PROSPERITY THEOLOGY is the belief that God wanted every believer to be financially prosperous in this world. Some claimed that the Bible promises tremendous material blessing for every believer. MATERIAL PROSPERITY IS NOT A SIGN OF SPIRITUALITY OR VIBRANT RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD. The top 200 most riches people of the world are unbelievers. The Bible does not teach such doctrine [prosperity theology] but rather rebuke the selfish ambitious of the believers to become rich. Believers are warned not to double time to become materially prosperous. BUT THOSE WHO WANT TO GET RICH FALL INTO TEMPTATION AND A SNARE AND MANY FOOLISH AND HARMFUL DESIRES WHICH PLUNGE MEN INTO RUIN AND DESTRUCTION [1 Timothy 6:9] Material prosperity is very dangerous for immature and carnal Christians. It is a snare that drags believers into a deep pit of spiritual stagnation. Genuine promotion comes from the Lord. Self-made success is never long lasting and often filled with miseries and pains. Everything in this world is a matter of God’s grace not of human effort to improve or promote him. FOR THE LOVE OF MONEY IS A ROOT OF ALL SORTS OF EVIL, AND SOME BY LONGING FOR IT HAVE WANDERED AWAY FROM THE FAITH AND PIERCED THEMSELVES MANY A PANG [1 Timothy 6:10] The lovers of money will find it hard to love God with their entire mind, with all their soul and all of the heart. THE LOVER OF MONEY are pretending as LOVERS OF GOD and teaching wealth and health doctrines to deceive the unsuspecting. They are using the Bible in their fraudulent scheme to earn big amount of money from their ignorant followers [1 Timothy 6:3-9]. They invented the so-called SPIRITUAL SEED MONEY, FAITH OFFERING, LOVE GIFT and numerous terms to deceive their followers. God does not prosper a believer because he tithes. The Old Testament believers paid their tithes but God did not prosper them all. God is perfect and His standard is perfect. We cannot adjust to God’s standard by imperfect tithing or giving offering. Tithing was for Old Testament Jews not for Church Age believers. We are not Jews and we are not under Mosaic Laws. Tithing was never a spiritual act but an obligatory national religious taxation for all Jews- believers and unbelievers alike. Most religion teaches physical and material prosperity in the world. Pagan religion emphasizes on prosperity disguises as spirituality. Material prosperity in the world is not a sign of spirituality or good relationship with God. Poverty is not a sign of carnality or poor relationship with God. GOD LEFT US IN THE WORLD not to accumulate wealth for ourselves. And as long we are in flesh [corrupted with old sinful nature] we shall remain sickly and weak. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries 025 - CULTIC CHRISTIAN MUSIC HOW DOES A SONG BECOME A SPIRITUAL SONG? There are four things that determine the spirituality of a song: FIRST, The composer and singer/s must be both regenerated and spirit-filled believers. SECOND, The lyrics of the song must be an expression of Bible doctrine resident in the soul of both the singer and composer. THIRD, The lyric of the song must be doctrinally correct and consistent with the Word of God as a whole. FOURTH, The central point of the message of the song must be the essence or character of God and the works of God. The focus of any so called Christian music must be the essence or nature of God and His perfect work, not human passion, desire or ambition to work for God or to serve God through ministry with men. SPIRITUAL SONG is a song based on the Scripture written and sang by mature believers [Colossians 3:16, Ephesians 5:19]. Singers in the Old Testament Temple were adult male not below 30 years old, no youth or female choir members. The purpose of the local church is not to refresh or unload the cares of believer but to know God and His will for our life. The local church is not an entertainment theater to applause and gives recognition to talented but carnal believers. The church is not for the lonely in hearts to relax but a school to learn Bible doctrine. Christian music or song is basically preaching and proclaiming Bible doctrine and not to entertain people. The purpose of singing spiritual song is to teach the plan, the will and purpose of God. Spiritual song is for SINGING PREACHERS TO PROCLAIM THE WORD OF GOD with melody. Singers are also preachers of the Gospel and Bible doctrine. PRAISE IS NOT JUST VERBAL EXPRESSION OF THE TONGUE BUT THE EXPRESSION OF GRATEFUL SOUL BASED ON PERSONAL KNOWLEDGE OF GOD. GENUINE PRAISE COMES FROM THE SOUL MOTIVATED BY THE WORD OF GOD [COLOSSIANS 3:16]. Praising God is always connected to what the Lord has done- we do not praise God for nothing. The cult of Christian music glorifies the celebrated singers or song leaders. The church can exist with the three essentials (salvation, spirituality and Scripture), even without gifted singers and dynamic song leaders. THE MOST IMPORTANT THING IN THE LOCAL CHURCH IS DOCTRINAL STUDY NOT MUSIC. The Church is being deceived by music that is doctrinally incorrect. We must examine every line of the song to see if they fit into the truth of the Bible. Beware of music that uplifts the feet and upbeat the hands but stagnate the soul. Emotionally touching songs are capable of bringing the mood of the congregation into different emotional experience. ONLY BIBLE DOCTRINE IS CAPABLE OF GIVING US A GENUINE WORSHIP EXPERIENCE. Whenever we sing spiritual song, let God alone be the center of our souls, not the song or worship leaders, not the singers. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries 026 - THE TRADITIONAL GOOD FRIDAY The teaching of traditional religion about the day the Lord Jesus Christ was crucified is fictitious and purely unbiblical. JESUS CHRIST DID NOT DIE ON THAT PARTICULAR FRIDAY. Let us consider the following truth: There were 4 Sabbaths that fell on that week Christ was crucified:
The Jews measure their days from sun –down to sundown [from 6:00 PM to 6:00 PM], not from midnight to midnight [12:00 MN to 12:00 MN]. On that week, from 6:00 PM Tuesday to 6:00 PM Wednesday was the Feast of the Passover. The Passover lamb was slain [1 Corinthians 5:7] and the memorial meal was eaten on Tuesday night, [not on traditional Thursday], the eve and the preparation for the actual Passover which fell on Wednesday [not on traditional Friday]. The Jews celebrated the Passover once a year every Wednesday of the Jewish month of NISIN [April], which is the last week of the 50 days celebration of Jewish religion. Gregorian calendar was not yet in used them. That particular Wednesday was also the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread described in John 19:31, designed also as the preparation day for the rest of the week [Exodus 12:11, Leviticus 23:6-7] That particular Thursday and Friday was designated as Jewish holy days as no worship or killing days, which they cannot violate by having somebody, hang and died on a cross. THERE WAS NO CRUCIFIXION THAT FRIDAY. Jesus was in the tomb for three days and three nights (72 hours) based on the veracity of the Scripture [Matthew 12:40, 1 Corinthians 15:4]. If Jesus Christ was crucified and buried before 6:00 PM of Friday and was resurrected on early Sunday morning- then He was dead and buried in the tomb for only one and half (1½) day and not three days and three nights as declared by the Word of God. The Word of God cannot lie. The Bible is the Truth not the teaching of self-righteous men who invented foolish church doctrines. We also reject the teaching about Resurrection on Sunday because He rose from the death not on Sunday early morning. Jesus Christ did not die on Friday and He did not rise from the grave on Sunday. We have to reject the traditional views and teaching of holy week because of its erroneous and fictitious nature. We reject the teaching of traditional Good Friday because Jesus Christ was crucified during the Passover as the Lamb of God. Jesus Christ rose from the grave before 6:00 PM of Saturday because 6:01 PM was already Sunday. He was in the tomb for 3 days and 3 nights. If Christ was buried on Friday, then, He was in the tomb for 1½ day only. When it comes to spiritual truth, the Bible is always the authority not the church dogmatic teachings J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries 027 - PALM AND EASTER SUNDAY Jesus Christ and His disciples went to Bethany six (6) days before the Passover [John 12:1-11]. On the next day, five (5) days before the Passover, Jesus Christ and His disciples entered Jerusalem [John 12:12]. If the Passover was celebrated on the first Wednesday of April, therefore, Jesus Christ and His disciples entered Jerusalem on Saturday (not Sunday). THERE WAS NO PALM SUNDAY SINCE THE LORD JESUS CHRIST ENTERED JERUSALEM ON SATURDAY AND NOT ON SUNDAY. The Lord Jesus led the apostles in celebrating the Passover mean on the eve of Passover. They ate the Passover meal before 6:00 PM of Tuesday since 6:01 PM is already Wednesday. For reference, take note that in Luke 23:44, 12:00 NN is sixth hour and 3:00 PM is ninth hour. Also, 5:00 PM is the eleventh hour. There was no Good Friday because Jesus Christ was hanging and died on the cross on Wednesday. There was no Ash Wednesday in the Bible. No writer of the Scriptures ever mentioned it. There was not Black Saturday in the Bible. No writer of the Scripture ever mentioned anything about it. God did not die. It was the humanity of Christ that was slain. His perfect humanity died spiritually. His Deity cannot die. The early Church did not celebrate Ash Wednesday, Holy and Good Friday, Black Saturday and Easter Sunday. The Bible mandated the believers to celebrate only two symbolic rituals: namely the Lord’s Supper and water Baptism by immersion. Satan is the master of deception and two of his favorite schemes are seclusion of believers and substitution in the area of truth, teachings, and practices. He secludes the genuine believer from the truth or he secludes the truth from the believers. He hides them behind the bushes of lies and deception. He brings something that looks like the genuine or truth and replaces it. Satan wanted to displace all the truth in the hearts of believers something that is exactly the look alike. Denominational doctrines are nothing but look alike of the Biblical truth. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries 028 - THE LAST TEN DAYS OF JESUS ON EARTH.
029 - PETER WAS NEVER A POPE The apostle Peter was well aware of his role and function in the infant Church. He never claimed himself as the highest leader or the first Pope of the Church [1 Peter 5:1]. Peter challenged the local church leaders to serve freely and without motivation for sordid gain [1 Peter 5:2]. He did not assume the role of an overall leader. Peter rebuked the local church leaders for their greed for power. He warned the potential abuser of authority and dictators [1 Peter 5:3]. He encouraged the demonstration of genuine humility [1 Peter 5:5, Philippians 2:3-9] among fellow saints. PETER REFUSED TO RECEIVE HONOR AND GLORY from men. He rejected all forms of human approbation [Acts 10:25-26]. Peter was sharply rebuked by the Lord Jesus Christ for his pride and ignorance of divine will and divine purpose [Matthew 16:23]. Apostle Paul rebuked Peter for his double-mindedness and hypocrisy that almost mislead others [Galatians 2:11-14]. Peter was married [Matthew 8:14, Luke 4:38, 1 Corinthians 9:5]. Peter never went to Rome not even for a short visit –since he was an apostle for the Jews not for the Gentiles. If he was in Rome, then could never left him out in his greetings in Romans 16. Peter was never the head of the Church [Revelation 16:18-19, Psalm 61:2-3, Revelation 3:7]. The Pope is the successor of Peter. There is no Biblical record that peter visited Rome and that he shared the same prison cell in Rome. Paul was beheaded alone in Rome not together with Peter. Peter was not a Pope because he was never a Roman Catholic. The Roman Catholic priestly system was installed only in A.D. 294 or 270 years after the dead of Peter. Peter cannot be a Roman Catholic or Pope because his view of priesthood is contrary to the Roman Catholic system and traditions [1 Peter 2:5,9]. The apostle Peter is not the gate -keeper of heaven. The KEYS of Matthew 16:19 is the Gospel of salvation. By believing a person receive access to heaven, by rejection a person is condemn to hell by his own choice, not by decision of Peter. Peter has no power or authority to forgive the sin of another person. The Lord Jesus Christ is the Head of the Church [Colossians 1:18] not Peter or the Pope. Christ alone has the power to reconcile men to Himself, not the apostle Peter [Colossians 1:20]. Apostle Peter was crucified upside down and beheaded when he was already dead because he lived based on Bible doctrine, which is contrary to traditional viewpoint of the Romans. The Romans was responsible for the death of Peter. So, they killed their Pope. “You are Peter (PETROS, a tiny stone), and upon this rock (PETRA, a great mass of solid rock) I will build MY Church” [Matthew 16:18]. JESUS CHRIST IS THE ROCK of offense [1 Peter 2:6-8, Romans 9:33]. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries 030 - MARY IS NOT THE MOTHER OF GOD THERE ARE SIX Mary in the Gospels. The famous of which is MARY THE MOTHER OF CHRIST’S HUMANITY, who did not claim herself as the mother of God. The Lord Jesus Christ did not call her as the mother of God. No writer of the Scripture ever called her the mother of God. She is the mother of Jesus not the mother of God. Mary did not claim herself as mediator between sinners and God. The Lord Jesus did not address her as the mediator between man and God. No writer of the Scripture addressed her as the mediator [1 Timothy 2:5, John 14:6]. Nowhere in the Bible Mary is called the mother of God. Christ did not mention that she is the mother of God. The Vatican conferred her the title mother of God” only in A.D. 431. The Vatican council instituted prayer to Mary in A.D. 600. The Roman Catholics officially adapted HAIL MARY in A.D. 1508 [see Romans 8:34 and Hebrews 7:25, 9:24]. Mary is not the GATE OF HEAVEN and that no one can see heaven without passing through her [see Acts 4:12 and John 14:6]. Mary the mother of Jesus has genuine humility. The writers of Scripture did not ascribe to her titles that belong to God alone. She is not above all the woman but a sinner just like anybody else [Luke 1:47]. Mary was a sinner but forgiven because she trusted Jesus as her Savior. Only Jesus Christ was born without sin (without old sinful nature). Mary was born sinner just like the rest of humanity [Luke 1:46, 1 John 1:8-10]. The dogma of Immaculate Conception of Mary was officially adapted in A.D. 1854 by Pope Pious IX. Jesus Christ is the only Person who ascended to heaven in His resurrected body being the FIRST BORN AMONG THE RESURRECTED. Christ ascended to heaven with witnesses looking up to Him [Acts 1:9-11]. There are seven resurrections in the Bible. The first was history since Jesus ascended to heaven. The second is yet to come- the rapture of the Church. If Mary ascended without the Bible predicting is very questionable. How come the Vatican formulated the dogma of Mary’s ascension only in 1950? Why Pope Pious XII was forced to sign it. Mary the mother of Jesus is not a virgin forever because she gave birth to several sons and daughters after the birth of Jesus [Matthew 13:54-56, Mark 6:3, John 7:5]. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries 031 - HOMOSEXUALITY HOMOSEXUALS ARE NOT BORN but made. God created a 100% male and a 100% female –nobody in between. After creating man, God said, “It is very good”. HOMOSEXUALS ARE MADE, and it begins at home. Homosexuality is not biological. There is no such thing as abnormal DNA or cell that triggers such malady. Homosexuality is a mental attitude sin, resulting from build-up of satanic doctrine in the soul. There are several factors that help in the making of a homosexual:
Homosexuality is spiritual sin, under the same category as idolatry, lying, hatred, envy, etc. The homosexual are not more sinful or less sinful. ALL MEN ARE EQUAL when it comes to standing before God. WE ARE ALL SINNERS. God gave them over in the lusts of theirs hearts to impurity, that their bodies might be dishonored among them [Romans 1:24]. Just like anyone who is filled with lust, they corrupt the Word of God [Romans 1:25]. God gave them over to degrading passions; that they exchanged the natural function for that which is unnatural. They burned in their desire toward one another of same sex [Romans 1:26-27]. They receive in their own persons the due penalty of their error they have loss their human integrity. God gave them over to a depraved mind, to do those things, which are not proper [Romans 1:28]. They are motivated to do improper things. Homosexuals are filled with all types of unrighteousness, deceit, murder, envy fornication, wickedness, maliciousness and malignity, malice, strife [Romans 1:29]. Homosexuals are gossipers, slanderers and backbiters, haters of God, arrogant, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, covenant breakers, unloving, unmerciful, implacable, without understanding and compromisers with evil [Romans 1:29c-32]. Homosexuality leads to more serious problems like alcoholism and drugs, seduction of kids, masochism, sadism, incest, AIDS, serious psychological damages, satanic possession, crimes, and many more. Christians must disagree with the new morality. Reject homosexuality but accept the person. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries 032 - CAPITAL PUNISHMENTGOD HIMSELF authorized retaliation laws of punishment for crimes, administered by duly appointed authority (government) as part of divine establishment that insure freedom, security and peace within a national entity which provides precedence for remembering the victim. GOD HIMSELF instituted government for man [Genesis 9:5-]. He authorizes capital punishment as a consequence to the crime of murder [Genesis 9:6a]. The divine reason-viewpoint for the implementation of the death penalty is stated in Genesis 9:6 b and James 3:8b. The IMAGE OF GOD and the LIKENESS OF GOD refers to soul life of every person, therefore, he who unjustly kills a man dishonor God-the Creator of all life. All form of government and types of leadership comes from God [Romans 13:1], which authority has been given and delegated by God to carry out the purpose for which He established it [Daniel 2:20-21]. Satan is the author of rebellion, and all forms or resistance against established authority. Those who opposed any established authority has opposed the word of God and they will receive the condemnation upon themselves [Romans 13:2]. The national government is justified to sentence a criminal guilty of heinous crime to die by execution for several reasons: God has duly appointed the national government to penalize murderers to die under the force of the law [Leviticus 24:17, 22]. The government of the people was instituted by God to insure freedom, security and peace [Genesis 9:5-6, James 3:9b, Daniel 2:20-21]. The criminal must be eliminated for people to live in peace and security. The government is responsible for the enactment and enforcement of laws and including the capital punishment. The criminality will increase if the guilty criminals are not executed. WHOEVER SHEDS MAN’S BLOOD, BY MAN (GOVERNMENT) HIS BLOOD SHALL BE SHED (CAPITAL PUNISHMENT) [EXODUS 21:23, 12]. God is perfectly just and righteous. All men are equally sinful before God. All men are under the SENTENCE OF JUDGMENT [2 Corinthians 1:9], so, all men are criminals in the eyes of God. JUDGMENT (KRIMA which meanssentence) is a decision passed on the sin of others. KRIMA is especially designated the sentence from God toward men [2 Peter 2:3]. KATADIKE is the divine judicial judgment for a person sentence to eternal damnation by the ONLY TRUE AND PERFECT JUDGE [Acts 25:15]. Since criminal instinct is present in every human being, therefore, all men are under condemnation, unless acquitted by the grace of God [Romans 8:1]. Men will go to hell because they have rejected the grace of God, not because they are criminals found guilty by the human court. Believers are mandated to exercise virtue impersonal love towards all men criminal or not. Study also: Exodus 21:12, 23-24, 22:20, Deuteronomy 13:4-5, 17:8-12, 22:20, 22:25-27. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries 033 - STO. NINOSTO. NINO according to traditional religion is the representation of Jesus Christ true humanity. STO, NINO is not the representation of the Lord Jesus Christ BUT ONLY THE ASSUMED REPRESENTATION because of the following reasons: ITS IDENTITY IS UNCLEAR. There are too many forms from here and around the world. Almost every community has their own version- representing a different a people. JESUS CHRIST DID NOT REMAIN A CHILD. It is ridiculous to say that the Lord Jesus remained a little boy. JESUS CHRIST DID NOT MINISTER to man not until after His baptism or when He was 30 years old. CHRIST DID NOT HAVE MANY FACES like the STO. NINO scattered around us. Even the unsold plastic dolls in the market are being converted into STO. NINO. JESUS CHRIST IS NOT A SAINT. Saint is a living regenerated believer [Colossians 1:1, Philippians 1:1-2], once a sinner before God but by faith received the free gift of salvation. IT IS TREATED irreverently. They just put it anywhere- inside the motel rooms, karaoke bars, sauna cubicles, drinking saloons, etc. GRO, swindlers, Drugs pushers are wearing tiny icons of STO. NINO. IT HAS BEEN COMMERCIALIZED. Some barter it for wrappers of soaps, toothpaste, etc. They are peddling it and even available for installment. STO. NINO is nothing but superstition because of so many baseless claimed attributed to it. Its various form is often similar to pagan deities. Its miracles are often doubtful and ridiculous contrary to the will and plan of God. Its miracles are often inconsistent with God’s perfect character and way of doing things. Its miracles are not the act of God for it did not point to the way of salvation [Job 1:16, 19, 2:7, Rev. 13:1-4, 11-15]. Its messages leads the blind devotees astray and depriving them with the precious truth of God’s Word [Deuteronomy 13:1-3]. It does not point to the true salvation but misleading the people. Like all the other icons, it is nothing but the worship of pagan gods [Exodus 20:4-5, Acts 17:29-30, Psalm 135:15-18, Revelation 21:8]. ALL THE VENERATION, ADORATION, PRAISE, WORSHIP, AND OFFERING ON STO. NINO IS SACRIFICES TO DEMONS AND NOT TO GOD [1 Corinthians 10:20]. It is ridiculous that even the street kids have their very own STO. NINO DE PALABOY. The STO. NINO is not cute and harmless because it is an object of demonic worship and household god representing the Devil. THE LORD JESUS CHRIST IS NOT THE STO. NINO, but Satan in his cutest form. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries 034 - THE LAYING OF HANDS THE PHRASE “laying of hands” on somebody could mean: “to kill, to murder or to destroy” [Genesis 22:12, 37:22, Nehemiah 13:21, Job 9:33]. ANOTHER meaning of the Hebrew SHALACH or “laying of hands” is to attack the enemies [Joshua 8:19, 26]. The phrase lying of hands was used in reference to Jacob’s ritual ceremony of blessing the heirs (when the grantor was dying). The laying of hands originated from the Egyptians not from the believers of Old Testament. In the Tabernacle, the laying of hands [CAMAK in Hebrew] was used as a symbolic substitution of priestly act designed to transfer sin from man to animals sacrificed at the altar [Leviticus 3:2,8,13, 4:4, 15,24, 6:12, 16:21, 24:14]. The laying of hands were used in the Old Testament for ordination of kings and prophets, adapted by the New Testament early believers for ordination of missionaries- men who were spiritually mature and capable of leading a local church [Acts 13:1-3, 1 Timothy 4:14, 5:22]. The laying of hands was used during the early Church Age by apostles and disciples of Jesus Christ in relation to their ministry of healing the sick [Mark 16:18, Luke 20:19] as authentication of their apostolic calling. Since the lying of hands was common practices of the Old Testament prophets, there fore it was widely accepted by the unbelieving Jews of the early Church Age [Matthew 9:18, Acts 8:18-19] After the book of Acts, there are no mentioned of laying of hands for the sick, demon-possessed or for the problematic. The prophecy of Mark 16:18 were fulfilled in the apostolic era. The Bible is closed- the Canon is completed. The lesser gifts of the Spirit (tongues, healing and miracles) have already ceased [Hebrew 6:2 1 Corinthians 13:8b]. The sign gifts are for the unbelieving Jews [1 Corinthians 14:1-19] and not for the believers of the Church Age. We are not Jews. There are several principles that we have to remember related to laying of hands. The historical inferior sign gifts are no longer applicable to Church Age. It is doing what God has already stopped. There is no command for us to lay hands to heal the sick, to cast out demons, to rebuke human problems, to anoint or to bless anybody. The laying of hands has no spiritual relevance; it is not a symbol of spiritual truth. The laying of hands is not Biblical doctrine since its authority had already lapsed. The laying of hands is not a symbol of spiritual authority. The laying of hands is an ecumenical practice – now widely circulated among the cults and pagan. Everybody seems using it for his personal benefits. Our priority is not to lay hands but to grow and mature spirituality through consistent study of the Bible doctrine. We are to examine every teaching, every ritual and every practice. We have to investigate every teaching and everything we do in the church- to see if it is Biblical doctrine. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries 035 - THE APOCRYPHATHE APOCRYPHA includes 14 books added to the Septuagint and also found in the Vulgate but not in the Hebrew Canon. It came from nowhere 280 after the Hebrew Canon was close. APOCRYPHA means a secret or spurious teaching. It was originally written in Greek [except for some portion of BARUCH, JUDITH, TOBIT and First MACCABEES and ECCLESIASTICUS which were written in poor Aramaic]. We REJECT THE APOCRYPHAL BOOKS for several reasons: The Apocrypha was not included in the Canon because of its imperfect and poor historical background and setting. The Lord Jesus Christ did not quote from any book of the Apocrypha. No writer of the Scriptures ever quoted or mentioned anything from the books of the Apocrypha. The Hebrew historian Josephus expressly excluded the Apocrypha books from the list of the sacred writings because they were spurious. The Hebrew historian Eusebius also excluded the Apocryphal books in the list of sacred writings. No mention of the Apocrypha was made in any catalogue of the Canonical books before the 5th century because the Catholics slipped it in during the middle of 5th century. These books were never asserted to be divinely inspired or to possess divine authority in their contents. No prophets were connected with these writings unlike the Old Testament Canon were written by a prophet, either by office or by gift or both. The Apocrypha contained many historical, geographical and chronological errors. It teaches doctrines and upholds practices, which are contrary to the Canon of the Scripture. It teaches prayer and offering for the dead [2 MACCABEES 12:41-46] and the justification of suicide. It teaches the atonement sin and salvation of the soul by almsgiving [ECCLESIASTICUS 3:33, 25-29] and justified the cruelty to slaves. It advocates hatred of the Samaritans, sanctioned lying, encourage magical incantations, it encourage and justified assassination. It teaches the doctrine of purgatory and angelic power for intercession. MODERN APOCRYPHA is a collection of 14 religious books- mostly written within the last hundred years and purporting to add to the revelation of the Canon of the Bible. They claimed to be genuine documents of the Christian antiquity but proven by the scholars as hoax. Some of them are:
There were many attempts to infiltrate the Bible with spurious writings but failed the test of Biblical Canon. The genius of God had protected the Canon of the Scripture by His power and wisdom. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries 036 - CHRISTIANITY IS NOT RELIGIONTHE TERM “RELIGION” is never use for Christian but only for false object and subject of worship. There are two words for religion. THRESKEIA used to denotes unreal and deceptive, false reverence [Acts 26:5, Colossians 2:18] DEISSIDAIMONIA used to denotes fear of gods and also refers to superstitious practices [Acts 25:19, James 1:26]. JAMES made a clear boundary line between unreal, deceptive reverence and THEOSEBI that is the reverential worship of God [James 1:27]. All religion is demonstration of false reverence, superstitious practices and pseudo love toward God or gods. Religion is a masterpiece of the devil. He taught man the principles of human religion (superstitious, deceptive, and unreal) and made them accept it with open arms [Genesis 3:5, 4:3-5]. Satan gained great advantage in misleading and deceiving people. Religion is the futile effort of men to reach God. It is trying to find God. It is trying to please God through human means and systems, human standards and self-righteousness. Religion is trying to be good to win God’s favor- trying to gain God’s love and approbation by giving more, doing more, praying more, serving more. Religion is blinded by its arrogance to see the work of Christ from the cross down inside the soul of every maturing believer. Religion lacks the power of the indwelling Holy Spirit in leading, teaching, and renewing the heart and mind through Bible doctrine. Religion is blind to see the traps laid by Satan to destroy both the ignorant believers and unbelievers. Satan is loading them into the ecumenical ship ready to sail in the ocean of religious heresies. Religion is a satanic trap to hook all sects and denomination into ecumenical bandwagon preparing them to form the one world UNITED RELIGION of the Great Tribulation. Religion is blind to realized that theirs is another gospel, another Lord, another faith, another Christ. Religion is humanistic in its viewpoint and practices. Man is exalted above God and above the Word of God. It rejects the Bible as the final authority of truth and reality. When religion is oppose by any system or by Christianity, it becomes hostile and antagonistic. When threatened, it exercises intimidation, when uncertain, it emphasizes tradition. When suspicious, it employs interrogation. When corrected, it retaliates by destroying their persecutors. Satan is the author of religion. God is not the author of any religion, sect or denomination. Religion is imperfect work of imperfect man. God is perfect and He demands perfection from imperfect man. That perfection is possible only through the perfect Work of Christ for man. God accepted us based on that perfect Work, not because of what we are or not. God accepted us on the merits of Christ. Our merits are not acceptable because of our imperfection. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries 037 - ECUMENISMSATAN is building the ONE WORLD CHURCH [ecumenical church] that will be revealed in its ugliness during the Great Tribulation. Satan aim to enlist all local churches and attach them to ecumenical bandwagon. He has the NATIONAL COUNCIL OF CHURCHES, THE WORLD COUNCIL OF CHURCHES and all the religious sects around the world. The Roman Catholic is now using the ploy of praying for world peace as the bait to trap religious group into this evil and monstrous scheme. THE PRESSURE IS ON. Satan wants to make connection with every local church around the globe (maybe with the help of the internet). THE PRESSURE WILL INCREASE every day until the lord Jesus Christ takes the Church Age believers by rapture. ECUMENICAL is not from God-it is not Scriptural but invented by the Roman Catholic. Ecumenical is a theological term dealing with universality, unity and dominion of the “Christian faith” [Catholic doctrine] and the “Christian church” [the holy Catholic church]. The unity of the ecumenical church is political in nature not spiritual. The universality refers to every kind of doctrine and belief [pagans, cultic, occults, liberal and anything]. The dominion is the revival of the old Roman religion in a world power and absolute dictatorship. The ecumenical church is not concern about beliefs and doctrines of the churches because the anti Christ will disband the One World Church after using it and force it to worship Satan [Revelation 13]. Ecumenism in the seminaries and universities has dethroned God and replaced Him with man. They openly rejects the Word of God, accepts any humanistic viewpoint. They apply evolutionary philosophies to the Bible and Christianity. They are working now toward widespread rejection of the Bible as the Word of God. They reject the divine inspiration and direct revelation from God of the Bible. They reject the accuracy of historical accounts of the Bible, and the miracles as actual events. They claimed that many characters of the Bible did not really exist and nothing but fictitious. ECUMENISM capitalizes on human love toward others. “LOVE YOUR BROTHER” regardless of his views, beliefs, and race, colors, creed, doctrine, and principles in life. They are accusing the fundamentalists as unloving and unchristian because of Biblical separation. Their love is full of hypocrisy because it does operate on the basis of truth and reality. Their acceptance of another person is simply minding your own business. DO NOT MIND OTHERS are translated as love your neighbors. Ecumenicalism is good for many since it appeals to the ego and sinful nature of man. It is well accepted among the nominal Christians because it provides adequate room for surface level peace and goodwill. ECUMENICALISM is a hungry wolf in sheep clothing pretending as lovers of God. It is the tail of the dragon dragging men to hell. What is good in the eyes of men and Satan is not good in the eyes of God. Beware its power of enticement! J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries 038 - SCIENCE AND THE BIBLETHERE IS NO precise data and tools for determining the geological age of the planet earth. Carbon and radiometric dating system are based on widely divergent and speculative interpretations of data that which cannot be verified. The Bible was not designed to be a scientific textbook, however, actual scientific data recorded in the Bible is limited but accurate. No conflict exists between what the Bible says in the original text and the correct interpretation of natural science or of the natural phenomena by science. God sustains all scientific laws and all phenomena which science seeks to categorize and classify. The purpose of the Bible is to communicate God’s spiritual law and spiritual phenomena. However, the infallibility of Scripture extends to every subject touched on by the Bible not only spiritual truth. Whenever a conflict exists between scientific theory or principle and what the Bible says the Bible is always true and right. When a conflict arises between a historical interpretation and what the Bible says the Bible is always right. Wherever the Bible comments on science – science must agree with the Bible for it is the truth. The Bible is not required to agree with science. Since God existed before science. God’s Word is the point of reference and authority, not science. God created all so called scientific laws and sustains all the laws in the entire universe. The term SCIENTIFIC LAWS is a misnomer because science does not develops or enforces these laws. The so-called scientific laws are based on the statistical assumption that the universe, which operates according to fixed norm, will continue to do so. SCIENCE can observe, classify, describe and apply these normative operations but is powerless to control them. A DISTINCTION must be maintained between illegitimate scientific speculation and legitimate observation. Only God in His grace can guarantee the continuation of these laws [Colossians 1:16]. KNOWN SCIENTIFIC LAWS and phenomena which man has been able to observe, classify, and apply depend entirely upon the faithfulness of God. The Lord Jesus Christ at the present time guarantees the continuous operation of every bona fide scientific law [Colossians 1:17, 2 Peter 3:4-5]. The entire human race with the entire creation, the stability of out environment and the condition of the atmosphere depends on the Lord Jesus Christ and His perfect will for the imperfect man. JESUS CHRIST holds the universe together by the power of His Word. He postpones eternity to give the members of the human race ample time and opportunity to appropriate the grace of God [2 Peter 3:9]. That opportunity begins at the moment of faith in Christ and continues throughout the believer’s life in the world. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries 039 - THE BIBLE AND EVOLUTIONSCIENCE CANNOT CONTRADICT THE BIBLE because (the Bible) is the very foundation of all Truth. Physical matters are not reality but spiritual matters. The Bible is the only prolific source of all truth. Science is the systematized knowledge of truth and from where we can identify every truth. Science is not the source of truth, the Bible is. The Bible teaches that physical realm is not all of reality, but that is coexistence with a spiritual realm [John 4:24, Revelation 16:24]. The physical realm is permeates by the spiritual realm [Ephesians 6:12]. The physical and spiritual realm interacts on each other [Matthew 17:19-20, John 13:2]. The ultimate source of all knowledge and power is the spiritual realm not the physical realm [Psalm 111:10, Matthew 28:18, Romans 11:33-36]. Most of the men who laid the very foundations of our modern science were also men of Biblical faith like GALILEO, COPERNICUS, FRANCIS BACON, JOHN NEWTON, KEPLER and others. BUT THERE WERE also stupid men who wanted to be known as scientists and inventors. Their works were merely just hypothesis and theories that can- not be proven. Foremost of this is the Darwin’s theory of evolution. THE “PROOFS” of evolution will dissolve under scientific process of investigation. The hypothesis of the evolution is still a hypothesis. EVOLUTION cannot account for the first atom. It cannot explain how the original matters were changed from homogeneous to a moving and living one. It fails to give clear explanation how the present universe is a cosmos and not chaos. It fails to explain how life came from non-living original form. It fails to explain the leap from botanical world to that of animals. It fails to explain the leap from animal world to that of man. It fails to explain the law of continuity-why does a dog produce a dog and not an evolutes specimen. It fails to explain the present distribution of matters on numberless stars, planets, and moons in numberless galaxies. These are but few of the questions that the Darwinians have no answer. Science is something that can be proven, categorized, applied and supported by facts and data. It evolution cannot produce proofs, facts and data the laboratories cannot analyze, categorize and apply, then it is just a theory. Maybe, it is better to call it as: Darwin’s Fairy Tales of Evolution. Let us try some practical questions: Have you seen anything evolves from something? Have seen something that changes it form? Why the dogs are still the dogs? Be careful! The traditional religion have already approved and adapted the theistic evolution theory as church dogma. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries 040 - DIVINE PROTECTIONTHE COSMOS DIABOLICUS (the world system) is a very dangerous place for the regenerated believers. Our short or momentary stay before going home to our final destination is described, as “THE DAYS ARE EVIL”. THE DAYS ARE EVIL applies only to believers living according to the will, plan and purpose of God. The days are evil for the growing believers because Satan is the god of this world. The days are evil described the condition of the world since the fall of man [Ephesians 6:11], and where the scheming of the devil focus on the advancing believers. GREATER AFFLICTIONS and sufferings awaits the advancing saints –yet, they are to be completely preserved [1 Thessalonians 5:23, 2 Thessalonians 3:2-3, 2 Timothy 4:18]. God in His perfect justice may deliver the saint physically through or from disaster or pains, or His sovereignty may allow the death. God will deliver us, not necessarily from suffering but out of the midst of suffering [1 Corinthians 10:13]. For a believer with nurturing relation-ship with God and in constant fellowship with Christ, any place is a safe place. The only safe place in the world is in the center of God’s will. Outside the will and plan of God is the most dangerous situation for any believer wandering restlessly in the world [Ephesians 4:27]. The indwelling Holy Spirit in the life of every believer guarantees the physical protection- meaning to say, physical death will come in the perfect time. It will come in perfect time, neither early nor late. Divine protection is absolute. However, the believer cannot endanger himself and them ask God to rescue him. Divine protection is lifted up by the time the believer has to depart from the world as schedule [Hebrews 9:27]. God’s timing, manner and place of the believer’s physical death are perfect. There is no crisis or disaster in life, which God is unable to deliver the saint, but He will not deliver us from all of it. If deliverance is not in God’s perfect plan –it is because God has a perfect purpose for the dead of the suffering believer. Basic steps for handling the crisis: Hand over the problem or situation to the Lord [Psalm 55:22]. Accept the crisis as a test from the Lord [Isaiah 28:29]. Counter the pains with the fact that God has a perfect knowledge of everything. Continue to be occupied with the Lord from the doctrine in your souls [Psalm 37:4-5]. Continue to be undisturbed by worry and fear [Isaiah 26:3-4]. Continue to depend on God-rest in Him. Confidently be secured in His infinite power [Psalm 57:2-3]. Never threaten by human power but continue to put your trust in divine power. A believer with Bible doctrine in his soul can be happy in a lion’s den while the immature believer can be miserable in a comfortable palace. God’s plan for the believer continues regardless of his situation, failures and mistakes. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries 041 - FREEDOM OF RELIGIONGOD HONORS the individual privacy and free will decision. God will never stop or prevent you from doing what you want to do. He will never interfere with your free will decision. FREEDOM OF RELIGION is a matter of individual volition expressing its options. FREEDOM however demands that practicing religion be a matter of individual options rather than be mandated by the state. A LEADER is wrong to force his subjects to worship a false god. In the same way, it is wrong to demand that they worship the true God. GOD NEVER needs the sponsorship of any leader or state. Alliance of religion and state constraints invariably cloud the issue of the Gospel. A STATE sponsored religion is anti-biblical. Believers in mistaken zeal should never promote or uphold legislation whereby the government supports Christianity. This is not a legitimate function of the government. Christianity becomes anti-biblical when they support a candidate or a party. This is not the legitimate function of a local church. There is nothing spiritual about the believers supporting their most preferred candidate [1 Samuel 8:6-7]. THE BELIEVER’S SERVICE to God and to his nation never depends on his political, economic or academic status or that of his nation but on the great faithfulness and grace of God. Anybody can work out his success story but real success comes from the Lord. Promotion is from the Lord not from self-effort. FROM THE SAME faithfulness and grace of God that set up presidents, kings, establishes nations – He also abolishes empires, removes presidents and leaders that no longer fulfill God’s purpose [Daniel 2:21]. Regenerated Christians should never allow the state or any person (political or spiritual leaders) to dictate their spiritual life convictions [Daniel 3:18, 1 peter 4:19]. WHEN HUMAN POWER persecutes true believers- Divine power protects the saints in relaxed mental attitude [Psalm 33:9-11]. Man’s extremity is God’s opportunity- man’s weakness is God’s showcase of strength. God can turn cursing into blessing when the believer refuses to compromise. God cannot honors any compromise of divine standard [Daniel 3:30, Isaiah 41:10, Psalm 31:15, 37:1-10]. The welfare of a nation does not depend on political leaders but on God alone. The function of the local church is to proclaim the Gospel not to ride on politics. The function of the state is to rule the people by legislation not to intrude with the private volition of the saints. There is nothing spiritual about supporting good beats in the politics. Supporting political party or individual candidate as “spiritual endorsement” is good milking cows for greedy pastors and religious leaders. GOD RESPECTS the free will decision of every individual while some are playing little god in the lives of others. IT IS YOUR DECISION –IT IS YOUR LIFE! J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries 042 - SPEAKING OF TONGUES SPEAKING OF TONGUES is no longer a legitimate spiritual gift in our present age for several reasons: The only purpose of speaking of tongues as revealed in the Scripture is as sign for the unbelieving Jews. [Study Acts 2:5-8, 36,41 10:9-48, 19:1-7, Mark 16:15-18]. The gift of tongues was not meant to continue throughout the history of the Church [Study 1 Corinthians 13 & 14]. The apostle Paul did not mention or name the gift of tongues in his two last epistles [Romans 12 and Ephesians 4]. Tongues are not the sign of baptism of the Spirit because all believers have been baptized with the Spirit at the point of salvation [Study 1 Corinthians 12 & 13]. Those who ask for it do not receive the baptism of the Holy Spirit and there is no command for us to seek for it. Tongues are not the biblical method of Christian growth. Tongues are never mentioned after 1 Corinthians. We can grow only through continues intake of Bible doctrine. We cannot use the Corinthians church as model for speaking of tongues when in reality Paul corrected their deceitful mistakes. Tongues are not exclusive domain of Christianity. Majority of the pagan and cultic religion practice the speaking of tongues. Speaking of tongues is not the mark of spiritual maturity. Christ commanded Christians to bear fruits that remain [John 15:16]. Tongues are temporal gifts and now a history [1 Corinthians 13:8]. Speaking of tongues is not church edifying spiritual gift but only the one speaking [1 Corinthians 14:14]. Speaking of tongues is not the basis of Christian unity. The basis of our unity is spiritual- that is Christ and His Work on the cross for the entire humanity. We are united in the Blood of Christ and not by political and mystical unity invented by men. Speaking of tongues in the Scripture is not babbling of unknown words but well understood by those who heard it [1 Corinthians 14]. Speaking of tongues is divisive. It has buried many local churches that broke apart. Instead of building up- it divine and destroy. Speaking of tongues is diverting the focus of the believers away from God and away from His Bible doctrine. Only Christ is the center of our spiritual life and ministry not tongues. Speaking of tongues is a minor and unimportant doctrine that does not have basis for our generation. The Lord Jesus Christ did not command us to speak in tongues. There is no verse in the Bible that command to practice speaking of tongues Speaking of tongues is dangerous since the deceitful spirits are using it for advancement of satanic lies [1 Timothy 4:1, 2 Thessalonians 2:11-12] Speaking of tongues is not the proper way to glorify Jesus Christ but through consistent study of Bible doctrine and spiritual advancement toward spiritual maturity. We glorify God by receiving blessings that results from spiritual maturity. Speaking of tongues is the least among the spiritual gift. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries 043 - ALCOHOLISMDRINKING alcoholic beverage is an ancient issue in the human race. The Bible issued neither a license to drink nor a command to abstain. The Bible comments on the correct and incorrect use of alcohol along with its many variables. ALCOHOL is toxic, destructive, a curse and detrimental when used as escape from reality or for licentious purposes. ALCOHOL is a blessing, helpful, and beneficial when used for various medicinal purposes. It is good for the dying person when used as depressant to produce sedation [Proverbs 31:6-7] It improves blood circulation and it stimulates the appetite of the older person [Psalm 104:15, 1 Timothy 5:23]. The condemnation of drunkenness not the alcohol itself or the drinking per se is classified as sin [Proverbs 23:30, Isaiah 5:11, Romans 13:13]. HABITUAL drunkenness incapacitates anyone, rich and poor alike, but especially those in temporal authority like government, military leadership and other authority [Proverbs 31:4-5]. Those in spiritual authority like pastors and deacons [1 Timothy 3:8]. SPIRITUAL PRINCIPLES IN THE CHRISTIAN LIFE THAT APPLIED TO DRINKING: The principle of expediency: The saint should never drink where drinking becomes an issue to the unbeliever. The principle of love: The believer should refrain from drinking so as not to lead weaker believer astray. The principle of supreme sacrifice: The believer is warned not to drink when his life is completely dedicated to a specific church ministry, mission, and spiritual leadership. The principle of liberty: The believer must exercise his spiritual freedom to drink or not to drink with respect to Bible doctrine. Some adverse effects of alcohol:
Drunkenness is just a waste of money, time and energy. It is classified as sin in the Bible. Avoid the danger of being filled with alcohol that destroyed your focus and concentration on Christ [Ephesians 5:18]. The habitual drunk believer fails to use the grace provision for learning and applying Bible doctrine. He fails to use the divine resources for spiritual growth and maturity. Christ did not advocate social drink when He turned water into wine [John 2:1-11] since wine was part of their daily meal. The real issue is WHO AND WHAT CHRIST IS and not the wine. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries 044 - IDOLATRYIDOLATRY is the giving of honor, worship, adoration and veneration, any form of devotion, reverence, respect, and praise to any person or anything other than God. IDOLATRY is anything that occupies the FIRST PLACE in a person’s KARDIA or soul and succeeds to dislodge God’s Lordship to be the seat of a creature or something. An idolatrous act is committed when a person exhibits respect, admiration, adulation, devotion or love for some body or something, taking the place of Christ in the life of a person. IDOLATRY is as old as the Devil. The modern form of idolatry is nothing but the revival of some ancient forms. The first to be mentioned in the Bible as temple of idolatry was built by Nimrod 400 years after the flood [Genesis 10:8-12, 114]. The god of Nimrod was also worshiped in some other names as MARDUK, SHAMASH, BAAL, BUL and BEL. During the reign of NABOPOLASSAR, the emperor of the New Babylon, the city known for its 53 temples of gods and 180 altar to SUN-god ISTAR. In the Old and New Testament Israel, the gods of EGYPTIAN, BABYLONIAN, ASSYRIAN CHALDEAN, MEDES, MACEDONIAN, PERSIAN, GREEKS and ROMANS took various modification and changes. New names and facelifts were added. Several religious sects appeared in Israel with ancient gods with new names and in their new forms. It was the Romans who internationalized many of the ancient gods in their new forms and names. For example, the Babylonian god BAAL was also called MARDUK, BEL, and BUL by the Israelites. The CHALDEANS called it SHAMASH. The Greeks called it ZEUS or JUPITER. The Romans called it ST. PETER. The Babylonian god ASHTORETH was renamed ASTARTE by the Greeks and Romans. The SIDONIAN (Nineveh) called it ASHTOROTH. The PHONICIAN called it THE LADY OF THE SEA, while the Romans called it THE QUEEN OF HEAVEN. 4 TYPES OF MAN-MADE IMAGES:
For God’s commandments concerning idolatry, study Exodus 20:4-5, and Deuteronomy. 5:6-9, and also Isaiah 45:20. For God’s distress call against the act of idolatry, study Deuteronomy 4:16-20, 29:16-17, Leviticus 19:4, 26:1, Ezekiel 22:3-4, Galatians 5:20-21. Studying the following text will be a great help for refuting the teaching and practice of idolatry: Isaiah 44:9-20, 45:16, Jeremiah 10:1-15, Hosea 8:4, 13:2, Romans 1:17-22, Ezekiel 14:6, Acts 17:29, Colossians 3:5 and Revelation 21:8. IDOLS ARE NOTHING and the worship of idols is actually the worship of Satan behind the idols [1 Corinthians 10:20-21]. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries 045 - HOUSE VISITATION The Greek verb which was translated into English as TO VISIT, which means to inspect, to look upon or to exercise oversight. It signifies four things:
VISITATION - EPISKOPE, that could means INSPECTION by God for the purpose of rewarding, blessing [1 Peter 2:12], or punishing, or for the judgment His people for their deeds. There are two primary Divine visitations –FIRST: the visitations of God for the purpose of blessing the believer [Genesis 50:24, Ruth 1:6]. SECOND: The visitation of God for the purpose of punishment [Jeremiah 5:9 and Lamentations 4:22. Jesus Christ visited (inspected) the homes of his disciples FOR ONLY ONE PURPOSE and that is to preach the Word of God. His visitation was to preach the Gospel and the Word of God- NOT TO ENCOURAGE THEM TO ATTEND SUNDAY SCHOOL OR worship service. THE HOMES were often the venues of His proclamation of Gospel since there were no church building for preaching and teaching the Word of God. The only purpose of house visitation is for preaching and teaching the Word of God –not for raising funds. The apostle Paul visited homes for the purpose of preaching and teaching the Word of God. Today, in areas where we have church building as the proper venue for preaching and teaching Bible doctrine, our gathering and coming for fellowship is a matter of free will volition [Hebrews 10:24-25]. We are responsible to exercise our volition. Every believer is under obligation and responsibility for him self to grow and mature spiritually. Because we are mandated by the Word of God not to neglect our gathering for the fellowship in the Word-there is no need to invite the members. House visitation is for the physically sick and afflicted church members who cannot come to church venue- not for lazy and negative volition church members. The pastor and the church leaders are not mandated by God’s Word to keep visiting the church members in routine basis. The New Evangelicals not the Lord Jesus Christ or any of His disciples invented House visitation. They are using it for monkey business [2 Timothy 3:1-6]. Fetching church members to attend the regular worship services is like forcing a bull to drink water when it is not thirsty. Visiting female church members in unholy hours in unholy situation is very dangerous for any pastor. Those who are ignorant of Bible doctrine and especially the emotional are very fun of visitation because they feel accepted and recognized. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries 046 - MODERN DAY PROPHETS400 YEARS before the birth of Christ (400 B.C.) no true prophets of God appeared for the following reasons: The entire Old Testament has been written and its books were made available as guide for God’s people. It was God’s will that a period of about 400 years should lapse between the prophecies of the Messiah and His actual (first) coming. The cessation of New Testament prophecy came when this portion (NT) of God’s Word was completed in 69 A.D. The completion of the Canon of the New Testament explained the absent of prophecy in the post-Canon Church Age. In the early Church Age, men were called prophets only in the extended sense of presenting the people of God truths received from careful study of the Bible doctrine. Not truth received by direct revelation from God. PURPOSES OF PROPHECY in the Old Testament:
TEST FOR OT PROPHETS:
FALSE PROPHETS were men predicted or prophesied in the name of a false god or idol [Jeremiah 2:8, 23:13]. False prophets are men who falsely claimed to receive messages from the Lord [1 Kings 22]. False prophets are men who ceased to be true prophets of God because of material benefits they gained or because of compromise with false and twisted doctrine they upholds [1 Kings 13]. False prophets are teaching another Jesus and another salvation. They have another faith and another gospel. They glorify and exalt men above God. They honor men above the Lord. The modern day false prophets are worse than the Old Testament false prophets in the sense that they are more greedy, devious, wicked in many aspects. They are excellent deceiver and liars that their very words are regarded as the word of God. YES INDEED! We have prophets today and they are 100% false prophets of Satan, men who reverse the Word of God for their own gains. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries 047 - ANTICHRISTS & ANTICHRISTANTICHRIST refers to a person who denies Jesus Christ as God and Savior of all men. The term is found only in John’s epistles, which can mean: AGAINST CHRIST one who opposes Christ or INSTEAD OF CHRIST –one who assumes the guise of Christ. There is a great difference between ANTICHRIST and ANTICHRIST. ANTICHRIST refers to the various forerunners of the Antichrist himself. There are four categories of antichrists in the world today: A PERSON WHO IS AGAINST CHRIST refers to anyone who rejected Christ from personal conviction, deceived by erroneous doctrines, evil scheming or enticed by antichrists movements. They are antagonistic, negative and critical toward God and His plan of grace. They are enslaved by established and legalistic religion. They are enslaved by some distorted idealism, church rituals and traditions, or by demonic power. A PERSON WHO PROFESS TO KNOW GOD BUT REJECTS CHRIST refers to the professing believers without true relationship with God. They are the wolves in sheep clothing, replacing Christ with another Jesus. They replaced Bible doctrine with another gospel, and the true salvation with another faith. They are enslaved to humanistic social gospel. They accept the secularization of the church with all kinds of modern and liberal humanistic views. They are open to ecumenism, liberalism, and to all kinds of new teachings. The local churches are infiltrated with their new ideology without knowing it. A SAVED PERSON WHO IGNORES THE LORDSHIP OF CHRIST in his life [1 John 2:8-11] refers to carnal believer who ignores the Lordship. They are ignorant of Bible doctrine and always running ahead of God. They are walking against the will of God in every way and all the way. They reject the plan of God and substitute it with their own plan. A PERSON WHO CLAIMED TO KNOW CHRIST BUT OPENLY OPPOSES HIM refers to those who made decision to reject and replace Christ with someone else. They are the religious leaders who are deceiving and misleading people. They are satanic emissaries who hinder the preaching of the true Gospel and persecute believers. THE ANTICHRIST will appeared during the Great Tribulation and refers to the evil power that already operates anticipatively of the Antichrist [1 John 4:3]. He is the first Beast [Revelation 13:1-10], the man of sin [2 Thessalonians 2:3-4]. He is the false Christ of the Great Tribulation who will not deny the existence of Christ, but will trade upon the very expectation of Christ Second coming, affirming that he is the true Christ. He is Antichrist theologically because he will claim to be God himself [2 Thessalonians 2:4]. He is Antichrist politically because he will attempt to rule the whole world. He is Antichrist satanically because he will use and prosper in satanic power. The ANTICHRISTS could be anybody who reject and ignore Christ. The Antichrist is one and only person of the Tribulation whose triple imperfection is symbolize by 666 [Revelation 13:18]. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries 048 - APOSTASYTHERE ARE 5 categories of APOSTASY (APOSTASIA: falling away) in the Scripture: FALLING AWAY AS TO REJECT THE PERSON OF CHRIST (1 John 2:19, 4:6) refers to a person who does not depart from where he is, but standing away – having chosen from the beginning to stay away, not to believe instead of believing. This refers to those who would reject Christ not to the saved persons who would depart [2 Thessalonians 2:3, Acts 21:21]. FALLING AWAY AS IN LIVING A LIFE OF SIN THAT DENIES THE FAITH. This is in reference to believers who have been enlightened, tasted the goodness of the Lord but turn away from faith. It involves the deliberate shifting of the KARDIA from partial obedience to total disobedience. The issue here is not salvation but the lost opportunity to spiritual maturity [Hebrews 6:4-8] It is IMPOSSIBLE TO RENEW THEM AGAIN TO REPENTANCE. It indicates several things: The statement is an unclear translation of a Greek philosophical language. The believer cannot loss his salvation. For it is based on the essence of God not on wavering faith [2 Timothy 2:11-13]. Our salvation is the finished Work of God, there is nothing to add and there is nothing to change. The believer in this context decided NOT TO REBOUND or changes his mind. God respect that decision and execute the divine discipline of SIN UNTO DEATH [Hebrews 10:26, 1 Corinthians 11:28-32]. APOSTASY will cause the execution of painful SIN UNTO DEATH [2 Peter 2:20-22] against the carnal believer. SIN UNTO DEATH means the painful preservation of the soul, but the destruction of the body [1 Corinthians 5:5, 1 Timothy 1:20]. FALLING AWAY AS IN TIMES OF SUDDEN MATERIAL PROSPERITY [1 Timothy 6:9-10] refers to immature or carnal believer who have been engulfed with the blessing of the world system, and deliberately choosing to fall away from faith. The believer finds “happiness” in his prosperity, success, power, wealth and glory. The believer thinks that he has find security in the material things. The believer in this category will rebound after God has removed his most treasured wealth and success. FALLING AWAY AS WHEN UNDER THE GREAT PERSECUTION [Matthew 24:9-13] refers to persecution under the Great Tribulation. FALLING AWAY FROM DIFFICULT TO ACCEPT BIBLE TEACHING [John 6:60,66] refers to those who cannot accept the truth of the Scripture, both the unbelievers and believers. The unbeliever does not fall away from the faith because they are outside the plan and will of God. The so-called BACKSLIDING is NEVER falling away from the faith BECAUSE OF SOMEONE’S character or evil deeds but BECAUSE OF HIS NEGATIVE MENTAL ATTITUDE toward God and toward His Word. We do not fall away because of someone but because of our negative mental attitude and rejection of the truth. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries 049 - THE DOCTRINE OF TIME GOD IS LIFE and His life is eternal life [Jeremiah 10:10, 1 Thessalonians 1:19]. There never was a time when God did not live. The eternal God is the caused and origin of time. He invented time for man. God is not subject to time. TIME IS FINITE, consisting of duration and succession. Eternity is infinite, it has duration without succession. Eternity is infinite duration. GOD IS INFINITE and has duration only. Man is finite-having duration and succession while in the world. The human life is but a temporal duration and succession. GOD TRANSCENDS TIME as well as all creation. God always accomplishes in time WHAT HAS TO BE DONE in time as part of plan of grace. There is nothing to add or subtract from the plan of God. The plan of God for man in time includes the variations of blessing and adversity. TIME IS A LINE OF PROCEDURE as far as man’s perspective is concerned. Eternity is beyond human natural perception –since God is not the subject of time [Deuteronomy 32:40, Psalm 90:2, 102:27, 1 Corinthians 2:7]. God uses time for the benefits and advantage of the believers in the world. Our eternal life has two phases: First: ETERNAL LIFE IN TIME. God gives us one day at a time to live. A portion of which belongs to Him for our learning of his Word. Second: ETERNAL LIFE IN HEAVEN. By the effects of ultimate sanctification all believers’ will received their glorified resurrected bodies designed for eternal fellowship with God. 5 REASONS WHY GOD INVENTED TIME:
The believer must walk as a WISE MAN and make use of their time by consistent study of Bible doctrine [Ephesians 5:15-16]. Basic giving is GIVING OF TIME in true worship, service, prayer, grace giving and in others expression of worship. Since the generosity and faithfulness of God is giving us time, therefore we must give time back to God. REDEEMING THE TIME or making the most of your time is a mental attitude of the believer dominantly occupied with the person of Jesus Christ- It is using God’s given time TO KNOW GOD THROUGH HIS BIBLE DOCTRINE. It is the intrinsic ability of the soul saturated with Bible doctrine to keep focus on Christ. It is not from the natural determination or human will or sincerity to know God but the over-flowing virtue personal love toward God. Redeeming the time is a choice between enjoying the pleasure of the world [miseries] and the pleasure of knowing Christ [Ephesians 5:16a and Colossians 4:5b]. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries 050 - FALSE PROPHETS / TEACHERSTHEY REJECT the authority of the Scripture [1 Peter 1:12, 2 Peter 1:20-21]. Some agreed with the infallibility of the Scripture but honors their religious leaders above the word of God. Some partially rejected the authority of the Word and at the time recognizes the authority of their leaders above the Scripture. Some totally reject the authority of the Word and accept nothing but the authority of their leaders or gods. THEY REJECT HERMENEUTICS or the science that deals with the principles. They interpret the Scripture without going through the process of historical, categorical and exegetical studies [1 Corinthians 2:6-8, 10-14]. They interpret the Scripture from ignorance [1 Timothy 1:7, Hosea 4:6-9, James 3:1-5] and from arrogance [Philippians 1:15-17, 1 Timothy 5:22, 2 Timothy 3:6-7].
J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries 051 - THE CROSS OF JESUS The cross (stauros) was instrument of death. Death by crucifixion originated somewhere in the East. Alexander the Great learned of it from the Persians. The SPQR borrowed the idea from the Phoenicians through Carthage and perfected it as a means of capital punishment. The Romans reserved crucifixion for slaves, assassins, and for those who committed heinous crime like rebellion and sedition against the SPQR. Only rarely were Roman citizens subjected to this kind of treatment. Upon receiving the death sentence the condemned person was flogged with Roman’s lashes or a whip loaded with sharp metal, bones and stones. He was then required to shoulder the cross bar upon which he was extended and carry to the place of his crucifixion. At the crucifixion site he was stripped and tied or nailed to the cross bar, which then was fastened to an upright post. A projecting peg gave the condemned a place to sit his feet to relieve the strain on his arms. Death therefore was slow in coming, except when it was hurried by soldiers breaking the crucified man’s leg [John 19:31]. Crucifixion was abhorrent to the Jews [1 Corinthians 1:23, Galatians 3:13], as much to the Romans (Cicero, in Verses 1, 5, 66). The Jews considered crucified men accursed by God [Deuteronomy 21:22-23]. In the New Testament, when the term STAUROS (cross) refers to Jesus Christ the term has both a literal and figurative meaning. Literally, it meant the physical instrument by which Jesus was put to death [John 19:17, 20:25, Matthew 27:35 and 2 Corinthians 13:4]. Figuratively, the cross of Jesus became the mark of God’s redemptive action in history. It was symbolic of the means God employed for releasing into the world a power that is sufficient to save men for good [1 Corinthians 1:18]. Since the cross was reserved for the criminals, it symbolized the sufferings and humiliation Jesus endured with joy for the Royal Family of God [Hebrews 12:2]. It indicates the depths to which He was willing to go to lift up the worst and lowest of men. The cross of Christ also stood as the symbol of God’s unique purpose for Him [Acts 2:23, Matthew 16:21, John 18:11]. The is a metonym for Christ's mission, a symbol both of God the Father will for Jesus Christ and His voluntary submission to the will and purpose of God. In relation to Christ, the literal and the figurative cross has spiritual meaning to us His beneficiaries. There was only one cross where Christ died and the cross that saved us through His death. The cross is just the instruments not the cause and source of redemption. Jesus Christ is the only cause and source of salvation and redemption of the human race. The cross is just like the electric chair or lethal injection today. Wearing a cross as in pendant is like wearing an electric chair. The Lord Jesus Christ did not remain on the cross. He was buried but rose from the death. To depict Him still hanging on a cross is to say that He did not raise from the death and that is blasphemy.
J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries
052 - AN IDOLATROUS CROSSIn one of the military campaign of Israel to free Edom from heathenism, they became impatient of the terrible journey and so they grumbled against God [Numbers 21:4-5]. The Lord sent fiery serpents to bit the Hebrews, so that many of them died. They asked Moses to intercede and the Lord told Moses to make a bronze serpent, mounted it on a standard (a measuring rod) for every one to see. Everyone who was bitten but looked at the bronze serpent did not die [Numbers 21:6-9]. Numbers 21:8 was an exemption of Exodus 20:4 for several reasons: The Hebrews repented prior to the making of the bronze serpent. The purpose of the bronze serpent was to remove the effect of poisonous venom in the bodies of those bitten by snakes. The bronze serpent was to serve as a reminder of their disobedience and the resulting divine discipline that lead to their sin unto death (1 Corinthians 10:9). The bronze serpent was not designed to be an object of worship. No personal faith was involved in the part of those who were bitten, but only obedience to take a look. 100 years later, Hezekiah broke into pieces the bronze serpent that Moses had made. For almost 100 years, the Israelites burn incense to it. The idol was called Nehushtan, the name given by King Hezekiah [2 Kings 18:4]. There was no time in the history of Israel that they did not worship idols. They were never free from attraction of idols worship. When they went out of Egypt, they brought the idols of their Egyptian masters and worshipped them [Joshua 24:14, Ezekiel 20:8-18, 23:3-8]. The worship of idols was an abomination to the protagonists of Hebrew monotheism. The prohibition against idolatry found expression in the Decalogue [Exodus 20:4] that forbade the representation of God in any form. The commandment was not an attack to artists or sculptors but on the idolaters. To worship idols to go a whoring after other gods, therefore idolatry was described as adultery [Hosea 1:2,9:1, Ezekiel 16:15-17, 23]. Idolatry degrades both God and man. It denies the existence of the only true God whose glory cannot be adequately captured in any tangible form. A visible representation of the deity tends to restrict a person’s concept of God, for he will base his concept of God, consciously or unconsciously upon the image or idol. The crucifix or cross is lifeless, powerless and cold. It cannot bring hope or real comfort to anyone. It cannot drive away demons or spiritual beings since they are not threaten by material objects that have no power. If Hezekiah destroyed the bronze serpent because the Israelites offered incense to it, then all the assumed representation of the true God must be destroyed also. Anything can be an object of worship whenever a person ascribe to it any form of adoration, veneration, praise, worship, reverence and honor that truly belongs only to God.
053 - CARRYING YOUR CROSS DAILYThe cross was used also of the followers of Jesus Christ, both literally and figuratively. Literally, because crucifixion was a frequent occurrence and the spectacle of condemned men carrying their crosses to the place of execution was very common. Christ’s words about taking up the cross daily and following Him must first of all have been interpreted literally. These words must have been understood as a prediction of the same physical means of death for His disciples. It was fulfilled in the early Church early history [Matthew 23:34, Romans 5:3]. Metaphorically, it was for Christ, the symbol of our sacrifice that His followers must bear the cross [Mark 8:34-35]. To bear the cross means a growing progressive life under the control of the Holy Spirit- that is to reside inside the plan, will and purpose of God. To deny self means to live and function under the power of the Holy Spirit and to reject the leadership or dictatorship of the old sinful nature. The cross means the will, the plan, and the purpose of God for every regenerated believer. The cross is not our personal problems, self-made miseries, poverty, injustice, hardship in life. To take up your cross and deny yourself is to live under the power of the Holy Spirit and to accept the leadership of the Holy Spirit in all aspects of your life while advancing toward the goal of spiritual maturity, which is the will of God. If in the experience of Jesus the cross was a metonym for His mission (death on the cross), the believer is called upon to do the will, the plan, and purpose of God in positive volition. The cross symbolizes His life under the will of the Father. The cross has become a symbol of full obedience and positive volition for the Lord Jesus. The bearing of literal cross has nothing to do with repentance or obedience, humiliation, self-sacrifice of the person doing it for God. God despise it no matter how sincere it maybe. There is no need to imitate the cross- bearing of Christ, because we cannot duplicate His redemptive work on the cross. God the Father accepted His once and for all sacrifice not because of the cross but because of He is the One and only God-Man. If Christ would die today to redeem men, He will die by lethal injection or by electric chair. Then, some people will be wearing a miniature lethal injection or of an electric chair. The cross does not symbolizes Christianity but criminality, not salvation but deception, not the power of God but the power of the Roman Empire. The cross of Calvary must be printed in the soul of every regenerated saint not in any where in the house or building. The house is not a believer Jesus did not die for the house. It nice to see crosses of many variations in the cemetery since it symbolizes death not life. The cross of the believer is to do the will and purpose of God. The cross of every believer is invisible but glorious. The result is far greater than anything in this world the glorification of God in time and in eternity.
054 - CHURCH HOPPINGA NEW TREND IN SELECTING A LOCAL CHURCH has arise not base on doctrinal position but for many humanistic reasons. People hop from one church to another looking for their most perfect church. PEOPLE GO FOR CHURCH STYLE OF WORSHIP – worship that satisfies their carnal senses, emotion and ego. They ignored the theology of worship as long as it exalts the worshipers rather than exalting God. The name, denomination, doctrines and leadership are not important to many ignorant churchgoers. They go for church that has sensational worship. PEOPLE GO FOR CHURCH THAT PROMOTES UNITY OF ALL CHURCHES. In the late 70s the compromise of many churches was in the issue of soul winning. In the 80s was in the issue of mission work. Churches then joined and cooperate with the task of soul winning and mission regardless of their doctrinal stands. Today the compromise is the area of unification of all churches that is ecumenism. Churches today are all unified in church style of worship that leaves out Bible doctrine and God. Churches today are music centered and man-centered. Music and the so-called music ministers have dethroned God and have taken away the role of the preacher. Pastors are now taking the role of praise and worship leaders. PEOPLE GO FOR CHURCH THAT THE ONLY ACCEPTANCE IS ATTENDANCE. The gauge of success in the churches today is big attendance. Big crowd is the bait that keeps people coming back. Big attendance is the center of their success. The gimmick is how to make the attendance keep growing climbing and increasing regardless of teaching and leadership. They care less about Biblical rejection and doctrinal heresy or massive corruption. PEOPLE GO FOR CHURCH WITH HUMAN LEVEL OF PERCEPTION. People go for easy to understand Bible, easy to understand messages that are always out of context. Such people are hypnotized not think and search the validity of the teaching. PEOPLE GO FOR CHURCH THAT ENTERTAINS rather than edify the body of Christ. They sacrifice the Truth for performances centered worship. PEOPLE GO FOR CHURCH WITH MULTI LEVEL PROGRAMS FOR EVERYONE. They have something for everybody. There are endless activities for the whole year. PEOPLE GO FOR CHURCH WHERE THEY DO NOT UNDERSTAND WHAT THEY ARE DOING. They are sincere and faithful but they are sincerely and faithfully wrong. If only they will come to the point of realization that what they are doing are wrong. PEOPLE GO FOR CHURCH THAT GIVE WAY TO THE CLAMORING OF THE PEOPLE. The leaders are listening to the demands and requests of the people. PEOPLE GO FOR THE CHURCH WHERE THE PREACHING IS ALWAYS MAN-CENTERED AND GOOD FOR THE EARS. PEOPLE GO FOR THE CHURCH WITH DYNAMIC MAN-PLEASING PASTORS. If the Lord Jesus and the apostles are here today, they will not make the mistake of going to any of these local churches.
055- IDENTIFYING THE CULTSA CULT is a group of people, which claiming to be Christians embraces a particular doctrinal system taught by an individual or group of leaders, which denies one or more of the central doctrines of the Christian faith. A CULT is a deviant group from orthodox Christianity that deviates from one or more of the fundamental teachings of the Christian faith. A CULT is professing Christianity but denies and rejects the major doctrines of the Bible. The cults are professing Christians. Islam and Buddhism for example are not cults because they never claimed or called themselves as Christians. The major cults in our country are the Jehovah’s witnesses, the Mormons, the New Age movement, the Moonies, the Freemasons, the Christian Science, the SDA, the INC, the RC and most of the Full Gospels and Charismatic groups. The cults deny intensely or cleverly some or all of the doctrines of the Christian faith while at the same time profess themselves as Christians. The cults normally have a dogmatic and legalistic leadership structure with a closed ecclesiastical system. The cults have some secrecy about their leadership personalities and people behind, organizational system, dogmatic teachings, and meetings. The cults openly or clandestinely deny salvation by grace through faith alone. They undermine the saving work of the Lord Jesus Christ by requiring additional works or co-operation effort. The cults are reducing the absolute authority and sufficiency of Scripture. They expressly accuse the Bible of containing errors. The cults are using the Christian vocabulary-but they mean different things. The cults redefined biblical terms with different meaning for their own gains and benefits. The cults have their own exclusive belief system and practices. The cults by large, rejects and denies the doctrine of eternal punishment. Some says that hell and its fire is not literal fire or punishment. Some are teaching universalism –that all will be saved at the end. Some are teaching annihilation- that God will destroy into nothing. They teach that there is no conscious eternal suffering. The cults emphasis on direct revelation or vision from God and that God spoke to their leaders. The cults claimed signs and wonders in various forms. Some claims that they have raise a large numbers of genuine Christians from the death. The cults put strong appeal to the false knowledge of the future. Because of widespread ignorance of the Bible, many are attracted to the one who seems to know what is ahead and are able to convincingly promote it. The cults thrive on their inaccurate prophecies of the future events. According to the record of the major cults groups, majority of their converts are from mainline denomination churches who are ignorant of the Christian doctrines. Let us take the warning of Hosea 4:6 seriously and take the radical steps to prepare for spiritual battle ahead of us [Ephesians 6:10-18]. We must be vigilance and discerning [1 Peter 4:7-8] proving all things related to our faith [1 Thessalonians 5:21].
056 - MONEY Money was designed as medium of exchange. Coined money was unknown until the middle of 7th century B.C. Before the invention of coins, gold and silver metal was measured in terms of ingots or rings. Croesus king of Lydia was the first to preserve his money in form of coins. When Cyrus the Great captured Lydia, he adopted the concept of coinage. Cyrus spread the concept throughout the Persian Empire and beyond. Monetary transactions are a legitimate function of life. Barter trading was not only burdensome but also inaccurate in transacting the values of goods. Money makes life easier and better in many aspects [Genesis 23:9, Jeremiah 32:44]. Money at this point is a useful servant and effective tool. The giving of money is an expression of the believer’s royal priesthood [Hebrews 13:15-16, 1 Corinthians 16:2, 2 Corinthians 8-9]. It replaces the animal sacrifices and offerings of the Old Testament believers. Money has no credit with God meaning to say, the amount we give is not the issue, but the mental attitude of the believer in giving [Proverbs 11:4, 13:7, 11]. The love of money is the head of the materialism lust and slavery to details of life [Matthew 6:24, Luke 16:9, 11]. The desire for money is very perilous for any believer. No amount of money can purchase the salvation of our souls –the Lord Jesus paid for it in full by His blood (that is his spiritual death), so that we can live for God [Mark 8:36-37, 1 Peter 1:8-19]. The love of money can cause the rich man to put his trust in the wrong things [Mark 10:23-25]. It can hinder the unbeliever from seeking salvation [Luke 16:19-31]. The love of money can become part of slavery to the details of life [Ecclesiastes 5:10-6:2]. The love of money will become the root of kinds of evil in the soul of a person [1 Timothy 6:6-12,17-19]. Money can destroy the grace orientation of a believer and contribute to his carnality and reversion of his mental attitude [Acts 5:1-10, James 4:14-5:6]. Money can be a source of deceit [Jude 11, Numbers 22-23]. Money at this point has become a cruel master and a dangerous enemy. Money is the means for happiness. For the believer there is no happiness from the details of life, including money. The believer’s happiness is built on his progressive advancement and growth toward spiritual maturity. Money is never the means for security. Grace provides a security for which there is no substitute [Matthew 6:24-33]. Money has wings and it can fly away. Money cannot guarantee anything. God is the best security in life –He guarantees everything. Few can pass the test of prosperity for money can easily change the mental attitude of a person for the worst. Money cannot buy salvation, happiness love, spirituality, stability, tranquility and the grace of God. Some, instead of using their money and loving people are actually, loving their money and using people.
057 - NATIONAL DEGENERATION DEGENERATION is the process of spiritual deterioration of a nation, which leads to the loss of national identity. God use armed conflicts to execute the highest degree of divine discipline to a nation, which continually reject His plan, purpose and will. THE 5 CYCLES OF DIVINE DISCIPLINE: ONE. National spread of diseases and big percentage of the population are in decaying health status. There is a brisk decline in agricultural prosperity. There is terror and fear everywhere –the government is disabled to control the raising criminality. There is steady death in combat, and loss of personal freedom. TWO. There is a repeated economic recession and depression. The market is falsely stabilizes by the government. There is an increasing personal and national discipline because of continuous negative volition. THREE. There is a widespread violence and breakdown of law and order. There is disorder everywhere starting from the high-ranking government officials to the poorest of the poor. There is also a chain of national disasters. The nation as a whole is very insecure The insecure husbands will result to insecure wives. Insecure parents results to insecure children. Insecure children produce an insecure generation. Insecure generation will demands security from insecure government. Insecure officials will offer entitlements to insecure people. Insecure generation becomes arrogant people who are divorced from divine establishment and divine institutions. Insecure generation becomes slaves to false theories and human viewpoints. They resolve to breaking the family system and trying to replace it with something else of which they are not sure what. They resolve to break the government system and trying to replace it with their unrealistic ideologies. Insecure people dwells in unreality, false hope, and false solutions to human problems. They are often disillusioned and without spiritual integrity. FOUR. The fourth cycle of discipline comprises of military conquest or aggression of foreign or local or both working for the overthrow of the government. There is widespread famine, separation of families, poverty and political dissolution. FIVE. The fifth cycle of discipline comprises of the destruction of a nation due to maximum rejection of Biblical and established principles [study: Deuteronomy 28:15-48, Hosea 1:2-3:5, and Leviticus 26:14-39]. Some factors that contribute for the degeneration of a nation:
058 - EARTHQUAKE EARTHQUAKE is the shaking of the ground resulting from the release of stored elastic strain energy due to sudden deformation of a region of the earth surface. The destruction with which earthquake are commonly associated is caused by seismic waves that travel outward in all direction. The focus of most earthquakes is less than 100 meters below the earth’s surface. The Bible contains numerous facts about earthquake (RA’ASH), the Hebrew word for earthquake, which literally means CRASH [Amos 8:8, 9:5]. The increase of the number of earthquakes is notable: In 1970s – 40,000 earthquakes /year In 1980s – 55,000 earthquakes /year In 1990s – 76,000 earthquakes /year During the Old Testament times, very destructive earthquakes had occurred in the ancient Palestinian area and most part of the Middle East [Joel 3:16, Amos 1:1 and Zechariah 14:5]. The shaking of the earth is always attributed to God [Psalm 68:8] and to His presence [1 kings 19:11] and to His anger [Isaiah 13:13]. There are several scientific reasons for earthquakes like volcanic and tectonic in origin. An earthquake is the sudden release of elastic strain energy in the earth’s crust, caused by movements deep beneath the surface. Earthquakes occur where sizeable stresses build up in the rocks along fault lines, which are associated with movements of the tectonic plates. From time to time, this build up is discharged in zones where the rocks are weakest causing a series of shock waves known as seismic waves. These waves can have high destructive effects on the earth’s surface as they caused the ground to roll or undulate and shake from side to side. Earthquakes are divine instrument of judgment for the unbelievers who are ignoring or has rejected God’s plan of grace [Amos 1:1, 6:9,11]. Earthquakes are instrument of divine discipline for the carnal and backsliding believers who continue to reject the Bible doctrine. Earthquakes will increase in numbers and in magnitude as Rapture and the Great Tribulation are nearing it realization. The worst earthquakes are yet to come during the Great Tribulation. It will break all the record of the strongest earthquakes. Believers must overcome the fear of future crisis and national disasters such as strong earthquakes. Spiritually mature believers are not exempted from the effects of destructive earthquakes. For them it is undeserved suffering or disaster testing for blessing not for destruction. No place on earth is safe from earthquakes. No man-made structure is earthquake proof for the coming series of earthquakes to come. The only secure and safest place in the world against anything is in the center of God’s will, inside the plan and purpose of His grace. God is our refuge in times of “earthquakes”.
059 - THE HOPE OF THE BELIEVERSThus says the Lord, (being) Curse is the man who put his confidence (trust) in man and makes flesh (old sinful nature) his strength, so that his heart (KARDIA kardia) turns away from the Lord, for he shall be like TUMBLEWEED in the desert [Jeremiah 17:5-6]. Blessed (being made happy) is the man whose confidence (trust) is in the Lord and whose confidence (trust) is the Lord [Jeremiah 17:7] Fearful people are like tumbleweeds in the desert, they live in the parched places (stony wastes). Tumbleweeds have no roots, they are vulnerable to any wind that blows, and they are being carried in many different directions. Dried or parched places refers to spiritual condition of the souls that turned away from God. It refers to souls that have chosen to trust in man rather than in God and souls that constantly ignores and rejects the Word of God. It refers to the souls that failed to wait upon the Lord and resolved to seek help from man. Believers who remain negative towards Bible doctrine will not see prosperity (Christian values) when they come [Jeremiah 17:6]. Prosperity in this context refers to spiritual maturity not material wealth. Tumbleweed is a Christian of the world living without God in his life and without Bible doctrine in the soul. Tumbleweed is a person living in fear and insecurity who is always seeking help from just anybody, even from the Devil. Tumbleweed is a person without confidence in God but most of the time confident and dependent on human resources. Most of the unhappiness of believers is the results of direct involvement of his soul in the affairs of the world. His soul is saturated with the things of the world [Ephesians 5:11, Colossians 3:2a]. Genuine happiness is the result of the fortification of the soul with Bible doctrine. Believer with confidence on God is like a tree planted by the water (Bible doctrine), that extends it roots by a stream (metabolized Bible doctrine). Such person will not fear when the heat (sufferings) comes, but its leaves will be green, (progressive spirituality) and it will not be anxious in a year of drought (suffering for blessing), nor cease to bear fruit (reach maturity), [Jeremiah 17:8]. Genuine happiness is sharing the joy and happiness of God, and any other source of happiness from the world will bring nothing but pure unhappiness. Satan is like a partridge that hatches eggs, which he has not laid. He promises happiness that he cannot give [Jeremiah 17:11]. Satan is without integrity, without moral values and without satisfaction and therefore forever unhappy. If Satan is very unhappy, how do you expect him or his world systems to make you happy? To deceive people Satan initiates continuous changes that produce nothing but false hope. Cosmic people (like politicians) can give nothing except change that produce worse results.
060 - INNER HAPPINESS Genuine happiness is a by-product of grace orientation in the life advancing believers. The grace of God fills the emptiness in the soul through the resident EPIGNOSIS. SHARING the happiness of God has nothing to do with our surroundings or circumstances like the details of life. It is the result of knowing God and being saturated with HIS THINKING. The more we know God, the more we know His thinking. The more we know His thinking, the happier we become. Inner happiness is the result of continuous spirituality and spiritual advancement toward maturity of the believer. It is not based on our present conditions, surroundings or situations in life. Inner happiness is based on Bible doctrine resident in the soul called EPIGNOSIS and not on our emotional conditions. Inner happiness is dependent on our relationship with God and our spiritual standing not on our success in life. Our material, physical, sexual, and emotional conditions have nothing to do with true happiness. Inner happiness is not the enthusiastic joy that is trigger by emotions like the so-called HOLY LAUGHTER. Inner happiness is from the grace of God and not from our emotion. Inner happiness is not laughter. Laughter can be empty of happiness. Inner happiness is something you cannot command or dictate to happen. It is the fruit of continuous spirituality and growth of the believer. Inner happiness is something you cannot beg or ask God. The justice of God initiates the inner happiness when the believer has reach the maturity mark. Inner happiness surpasses all human understanding because the believer can possess it even in the midst of severe sufferings and crisis. Inner happiness is a sign of spiritual maturity and spirituality not a sign of outward joy. It is peace within the soul and mind of the believer. Inner happiness is not boasting of self or man but of Christ. Not of the great things you wanted to do for God but of things Christ has done. The unspiritual and immature believer cannot fake the inner happiness that comes from God. No amount of prayer or fasting can produce it. LAUGHTER is not inner happiness for several reasons: Laughter is an expression of ecstatic delight but inner happiness is not an ecstatic experience [Psalm 126:2]. Laughter is often the expression of disdain or derision against somebody rather than expression of inner happiness. Our God is not a God of laughter [Psalm 2:4]. Laughter can be a manifestation of deep sorrow [Proverbs 14:13] or an expression of rebelliousness or defiance of the soul [Job 5:22]. Laughter can be expression of joyful wonder [Genesis 17:17] or disbelief [Genesis 18:12]. Laughter is easy to fake, easy to emote or imitate, it is from man, not from God. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine ministries
061 - GENUINE REVIVALREVIVAL (anathallo), meaning to flourish anew, used metaphorically for mental change of attitude [Philippians 4:10]. REVIVAL (anazao), meaning to live again, to regain life, used of moral revival from sin [Luke 15:24 and Romans 7:9]. The term revival appear only 4 times in the Old Testament and 5 times in the New Testament is never applied to physical or spiritual death. There is no revival for the unbelievers because you cannot revive the spiritually death person. Man cannot bring about authentic revival because revival can come only from the hand of God. Revival is not something you ask or demand from God. It is something you do as an act of obedience to the word of God. It is the decision of the soul to return back to God. Revival is the work of God. No human being can bring revival in the life of another person, either in particular or by group. Only the person involved is capable of making decision for himself as express in rebound. It is a personal decision. Genuine revival is free from human manipulation, gimmick, trickery, power or utilization of human resources. True revival is free from people’s power, human program and political machinery. Genuine revival is never divorce from the proclamation of the genuine Bible doctrine. There is no genuine revival without Bible doctrine in the souls of the believers. Only Bible doctrine can change the thinking or mental attitude of a person. The sovereignty of God chooses the proper time for the revival of every believer. No human timing or program and arrangement can decide for the time of revival. Collective revival is the result of divine intervention in the life of believers under the state of reversionists who individually decided to rebound after hearing the proclamation of Bible doctrine. Genuine revival comes from the work of the Holy Spirit in convicting and restoring the carnal believers. Revival is for believers under the state of operational and temporal death, not for those under the spiritual death. Revival is the result of rebound and the act repentance and not of prayer and fasting, penance and sacrifice of the rebellious in hearts. The dynamic praise and worship leader has nothing to do with genuine revival because they are not vital for such revival to take effect. The cults of praise and worship has deceived the ignorant of Bible doctrine into believing that music is the key factor in modern day revival. The religious ecstatic experiences of the charismatic are mistaken for true revival. Genuine revival is the work of the Holy Spirit deep in the souls of spiritually sleeping and inactive believers. The Word of God change their mental attitude not the pleading, urging and influence of the preacher or musicians. The Holy Spirit will use the Word of God to change the mental attitude of the believer. Nobody can take that capacity to revive anybody except God. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine ministries
062 - PRESERVATION OF THE WORLD THE moment a person step out of the kingdom of Satan [Colossians 1:13] and transferred into the kingdom of Christ, he declared war against the devil- his former father [John 8:44]. The believer is never safe in the devil’s world from that time. God provides trained and always available special invisible forces to back up every believer in the world [Hebrews 1:14]. It is improper to always pray for your protection while in trouble waters when God has already settled everything –for the protection of His beloved. Satan chose the planet earth for his place of exile and GHQ during the angelic conflict [Genesis 1:1-2]. The fall of Satan and the resultant angelic conflict led to the desolation of earth. The earth and the whole universe with its laws of operation will not always exist as it does at the present time [2 Peter 3:10-12]. The preservation of the world, including the human race depends exclusively on the omnipotence and immutability of the Lord Jesus [Colossians 1:17]. The reason for the preservation of the world and the human race is to resolve the angelic conflict in human history and to bring many sons into glory [Hebrews 2:10]. Jesus Christ holds the universe together by the power of his Word [Hebrews 1:3]. And especially, He holds the life and welfare of His sons in the hallow of His hand. Divine protection guarantees that any place is a safe place because God is in control of everything – if the believer is in His will, plan and purpose. He postpones eternity, meaning to say that God delays the destruction of the planet earth, to give the human race ample opportunity to appropriate the grace of God [2 Peter 3:3] The earth will be preserved until the end of the millennial kingdom of Christ. No weapon of destruction made by man will demolish the world. During the Great Tribulation, Satanic forces will cause terrible damage to the planet but it will survive. At the Second Coming of Christ, great physical changes on earth’s surface will occur. All the man-made structure will disappear. Christ will dispose all the garbage of the planet. No trace of the old things will be visible. The preservation of the planet is not the priority of the believers. The so-called ecological gospel is nothing but garbage. There are 5 INDESTRUCTIBLE THINGS with permanent values: The soul of every person is permanent and indestructible. The salvation of every person is permanent. Nothing can destroy the everlasting life we receive from God [Romans 8:38-39]. The Word of God-the Bible doctrine in the soul is indestructible [Isaiah 40:8]. The resurrected glorified body of all believers is everlasting [1 Corinthians 15:40, 49-54]. The historical records of spiritually mature believers (including his blessing in time) are indestructible [Philippians 4:3, Psalm 69:28]. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine ministries
063 - BIBLICAL SEPARATION Several words are important for this doctrine. First, the Greek aphorizo, that means “to mark off by bounds or to put asunder. Second, the word chorizo, that means to separate oneself or to depart. Third, the word apodiorizo, that means to make separation. Biblical separation refers to several things: THE DIVINE ACTION IN CALLING MEN apart for Himself, that separation for God’s own possession [1 Peter 2:9-10] God’s imputation of divine perfect righteousness and eternal life carries with it the privileges of election and positional sanctification. THE DIVINE ACTION IN SETTING MEN apart for the work of the Gospel. They are separated for the ministry [Acts 13:2]. They are called, prepared and send by God not by men [1 Corinthians 1:1, Colossians 1:1], but trained among men [1 Timothy 5:22]. THE DIVINE JUDGMENT UPON THOSE who would reject Christ for eternal separation from God [Matthew 13:49-50, 23:32-33]. THE DIVINE COMMAND TO SEPARATE FROM UNBELIEVERS:
THE VOLITIONAL SEPARATION the believer must do in order to reach spiritual maturity. That is to separate from any form of distractions or to fully concentrate in learning the Word of God. This is not necessarily physical separation but the concentration of the soul in learning Bible doctrine [2 Timothy 2:21, 15]. THE SEPARATION THE BELIEVER MUST AVOID: 1. Separation in marriage of both believers because of immorality [1 Corinthians 6:13, 18, Hebrews 13:4]. 2. Separation that causes division or faction in the church [1 Corinthians 3:3]. THE SEPARATION OF BELIEVERS BY UNBELIEVERS:
THE SEPARATION THE BELIEVERS MUST prepared to suffer –maybe not a physical separation but emotional. That is being alone in a crowd because Of his faith, calling and beliefs [2 Timothy 1:8, 12, 3:11-12]. THE DIVINE COMMAND TO SEPARATE FROM COSMIC BELIEVERS who are living in the world without God [Romans 16:17-18 and 1 Corinthians 5:11-12]. Every believer must be prepared to encounter most of the 14 categories of separation and to apply the divine problem solutions to each case. Such separations are often painful and disheartening. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine ministries
064 - PEACETHERE are 14 Greek terms for peace in the Bible that can translate in English as soundness, safety, security, welfare, harmony, concord, assurance, prosperity, good health, completeness, and peace. The Old Testament widely used the term SHALOM, which describes prosperity of material sort, regarding welfare [Genesis 43:27]. The word SHALOM also means prosperity of all wealth and health [Exodus 18:7, Isaiah 38:19, Psalm 38:1] or the safety of a person [Job 5:23]. When someone says, SHALOM it is like saying “Good morning, good afternoon, good evening, good day, happy New year, happy birthday!” All in one word. The PEACE OF GOD [Philippians 4:7, Colossians 3:15] refers to Christ’s finished work of redemption. That is the reconciliation with God, the justification in His sight. The PEACE WITH GOD is the result of His finished work on the cross for man [Romans 5:1]. All the recipients of the free gift of salvation through their simply and non-meritorious faith have PEACE WITH GOD –that is the effect of Christ’s spiritual death for the human race [Romans 1:7, 1 Corinthians 1:3, Galatians 1:3, Ephesians 1:2, Titus 1:4, Philippians 1:2]. The GOD OF PEACE refers to the only source of peace for the believers trapped in Satan’s cosmic system. The PEACE in this context is not something men derive from within the man, from others or from something. GOD IS GOD of peace whether there is peace or wars in the world [Romans 15:33, 16:20, Philippians 4:9, Hebrews 13:20]. The PEACE OF GOD is not dependent on the situation of the world but on perfect character of God. GOD IS OUR PEACE regardless of our situations, and we cannot expect peace from anyone else but from the KING OF PEACE alone [Ephesians 2:14, Hebrew 7:2]. The peace of 2 Thessalonians 5:3 is pseudo peace, that is human good works motivated by old sinful nature and inspired by Satan. God will frustrate this man-made peace during the Great Tribulation. All the man-made peace in this world can produce only more troubles rather than provide genuine peace. God cannot provide the kind of peace familiar in the world –the peace that comes from material success and prosperity. Genuine inner peace that comes from God is available to every believer at the point of spiritual maturity. It is the peace that comes from knowing God and His happiness [John 14:27, 16:33] Ecumenicalism cannot provide peace but division and faction. No political body can provide peace to antagonistic people around the globe. Genuine maturing believers are the targets of more satanic assaults than the unbelievers but at same time, they experience the peace that comes from God. The peace of God is not restricted to any place, even in the middle of chaos and conflict; the believer can experience the peace that passes all understanding. The Muslims will traditionally enter a room (empty or with people) by greeting with "peace upon you" referring to bad spirits or jinn. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine ministries
065 - THE DAY OF THE LORDGod always accomplishes in time what has to be done in time as part of His plan for man. Therefore everything will come as decreed by God- and that is without doubt. Since time is a line of procedure as far as man’s perspective is concerned, everything is in order of events according to divine decree. Apostasy, a sign to watch is now a reality. The term apostasy in this context refers to collective and world -wide apostasy and not to individualize or small group of falling away, which is on going since the beginning of the Church Age. The day of the Lord refers to the massive and collective falling away or apostasy before the rapture of the Church. All false Christian churches and all false Christians around the world will join the ecumenical church or the UNITED RELIGIONS. The United Religions is a charter of the United Nations – a community of faith united for the sake of peace and healing among religious sects. People from all nations united for the sake of peace and prosperity toward all men, regardless beliefs and doctrines. The UN and the Roman Catholic Church is responsible for the birth and growth f the United Religions. The United Religions or One World Religion will revealed the Antichrist, the MAN OF SIN (lawlessness), the son of destruction and demand that all the people of the earth to worship him as the “Christ” [2 Thessalonians 2:3]. The ecumenical church has started condemning the fundamentalists and separatists claimed for exclusivity and uniqueness of the independent local churches. The ecumenists are condemning the genuine Bible doctrine as hostile toward the unification of all religions into one-world religion. The One World Religion is the “NEW CHRISTIANITY” comprising of cults, humanists, occults, atheists, and all kinds of antichrist bounded together for “creating an inclusive process” that will work for world peace [1 Thessalonians 5:3]. The day of the Lord refers to the Great Tribulation when everyone will greet anyone with “PEACE BE WITH YOU” while killing each other. The day of the Lord refers to the ANTICHRIST reigns on earth. The antichrist is the worst kind of dictator in the entire human history. The son of destruction will be a Jew by blood with dynamic personality and super IQ and born politician. He will deceive the world with his very charismatic personality and articulate linguistic ability [2 Thessalonians 2:10, Revelation 13:8]. He will assume the role of Jesus Christ as the Messiah by deception and intrigue. He will be the greatest impersonator of Jesus Christ because he will imitate His life and works. He will claimed Himself as the Christ. He will not deny the existence of Jesus Christ but rather claim that he is the Christ. He will work upon the expectation of his appearing by through mystical manifestations like visions, dreams, apparitions, and some extra-biblical heresies. Satan is preparing his followers in some fellowships by singing “This is the day” of the Lord affirming that they are part of the Tribulation. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine ministries
066 - REBOUNDREBOUND is the recovery from carnality. It is the only problem-solving device from God that function outside spirituality. Rebound is not operation by human power or human resources. Rebound is the non-meritorious and non-emotional acknowledgment of sins. Rebound is not sorrow for sins but the decision of the soul to follow divine instruction. Rebound is the trend reversing decision and the only solution provided by God for carnal believers to recover from sins. Rebound is a decision because the believers use his volition to sin and enter the state of carnality. Likewise, the believer must use his volition to recover from sin. Volition is the decision of the soul not of the brain. Rebound is not emotional because emotion is never a criterion for the spiritual life, and it has no value for God’s forgiveness. SYNONYMS FOR REBOUND: BE HEALED: [Hebrews 12:12-14] means that rebound transform you from weakness of carnality to spiritual strength of restored spiritual life. The dreadful curse has turned into blessing and its weakness become the strength of the suffering for blessing. Those who come short of God’s grace are those who respond to discipline with bitterness. CONFESS: [1 John 1:9], the naming of your personal sins in the privacy of your Royal Priesthood. Naming your sins does not require a lot of guts and faith. Confession with a man is a big traditional error, since all men have sins and fall short of the glory of God [Psalm 38:18] JUDGE YOURSELF [1 Corinthians 11:31] is the act of acknowledging that your personal sins were crucified on the cross and that Christ paid the full demand for penalty. Christ paid every sin in the world. YIELDING is the act of surrendering your ego and self-righteousness by admitting that you have sin [Romans 6:13, 12:2]. Rebound is the admission of guilt. LAY ASIDE EVERY WEIGHT is to cut-off by your volitional the state of your carnality and reversionism. To cut off is to enforce a radical mental change of attitude toward his personal spiritual status [Hebrews 12:1]. BE SUBJECT TO THE FATHER is the decision of the soul to return to the Father under the authority of the Lord [Hebrews 12:9]. LIFT UP THE HANDS THAT HANG DOWN is to remove the shackle that bondage you from doing the will and purpose of God [Hebrews 12:13]. MAKE STRAIGHT PATHS is the decision of the soul to choose the divine viewpoint and reject the human viewpoint and solutions [Matthew 3:3, Hebrews 12:13]. ARISE FROM THE DEATH is to stand up again out from temporal or operational death [Ephesians 5:14]. PUT OFF THE OLD MAN is to put the old sinful nature out of control of your soul and make the Holy Spirit the president instead [Ephesians 4:22]. There are many synonyms for rebound in the Old Testament like Jeremiah 3:13, Psalm 32:5, 38:18, 51:3-4 and Proverbs 28:13. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine ministries
067 - DIVINE COMMISSIONS God gave the Church Age believers dual commissions
IN THE CHURCH AGE, every believer is a priest [1 Peter 2:5] who represents himself before God [Hebrews 13:15-16]. Our Royal priesthood is the basis for spiritual privacy and the ground for effective prayer [Romans 14:4, 10:2]. Every believer is a priest from the time he is born again, but this priestly function becomes effective only at spiritual maturity. Spiritual maturity is a result of the believer-priest function before God. The only setting for priest function is inside spirituality. The universal priesthood does not imply total independence of believers from one another because priesthood and the spiritual gifts create a balance. Success in the ministry does not belong to the priests but to God alone. We do not count heavenly success in our earthly ministry. The most visible and outward proof that we are rightly related to God is our service to God in season or out of season. The priests are servants of God, and the servants simply obey regardless of his own feelings, moods, health or physical condition. Inspired or not. We do not need any “spiritual inspiration” before we move to obey. The true priests of the Old Testament functioned from reaching the age of 25 until their compulsory retirement at 50 forsaking their personal conditions and situation in life. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine ministries
068 - THE ROYAL AMBASSADORS God appoints the royal ambassador to be His representatives on earth. No ambassador appoints himself for such position and no ambassador is appointed by just anybody. God supplies all the logistical grace needed and necessary to perpetuate the believer’s physical and spiritual life in the devil’s world. No ambassador has to support himself while working for his country. The royal ambassador operates according to the written mystery doctrines of the New Testament. This is the written instruction related to our function. The royal ambassador of Christ has his citizenship in heaven. They are not the citizens of the country they serve. We are in the world but we are not of the world [Philippians 3:20]. The royal ambassador lives to glorify Christ and personally benefits not by following his own agenda but through fulfilling his royal merit by following the divine protocol. He does not stay behind on this planet to advance his personal interests. The royal ambassador does not take the negative volition of the people as a personal insult but continues to faithfully represent Christ regardless of mockery and offenses he receive. The insults they throw against Christ and His Word is not personally for the ambassador. The recall of the royal ambassadors on earth by rapture will commence the Great Tribulation. That is divine declaration of war against nations. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine ministries
069 - BARRIERS FOR SPIRITUAL LIFE THE CALL of God to serve him is understood or implicit. It is call for comradeship with Himself for His own purposes. The concern of every believer is spiritual reality not to serve God as soon as possible. Genuinely growing believers set their hearts on God but the religious people sets their hearts on their works and great ambition for God. The only goal of every Christian when it comes to spirituality IS TO DO THE WILL OF GOD and nothing else. COMMON BARRIERS: PRIDE. Christians are not immune to develop the deadly virus of arrogance that desire to do great things for God FAKE OBEDIENCE. Some believers are willing to do great sacrifices rather than do the will of God. They invest on big shows of half-hearted sacrifices for God than to obey God daily. WAITING FOR THE GREAT MOMENT. Some believers are praying and fasting asking God for the big thing to do instead of obeying him in every little details of life. WORLD SYSTEM. Some believers have adopted the world business system into their ministry. They are utilizing all the resources of the world. They baptized it with Christian names and spiritualized the carnal things. ENDLESS ACTIVITIES. Some modern day Christians are thinking that God is demanding for greater production like more tithes and offering, more people, more programs and more activities. Their endless activities are uprooting their faith from the truth of the Word. They are immerse in works for God but not rooted in the Word of God. WRONG DEVOTION. They are devoted to their work and ministries but very unfaithful to God and to His Bible doctrine. NEW MINISTRIES. They always have new ministries born out of impulses and pride. They planned their ministry out of their passion and emotion, which they mistaken for the voice of God. PIOUS GREED. They serve with great anticipation and expectation that God will bless them above the others. They have the burning desire to be promoted and exalted by God. COMFORTABLE MINISTRIES. They are willing to serve God but only in the comfort and luxury of the world. They are unwilling to leave their beautiful and cozy community. They decide where and how to serve God. SPIRITUAL SLUGGARD. They are always praying and praying without doing anything. They defy the plan and purpose of God with their prayer ministry. I MUST DO IT SYNDROME. They are always on the go –doing something for somebody. Their priority is to serve not to know God, not to learn the will and purpose of God. ANOTHER DOCTRINE. They are always hungry for new practices and teaching for the church. Since they are blinded by the ignorance of the Scripture they are always seeking for revelation from the visiting REVERSIONISTS preachers and musicians. The only antidote for the above cases is the act of rebound and the intake of Bible doctrine. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine ministries
070 - FEARFEAR has many faces and sources. The Greek word PHOBIA (phobia) or fear in English, is a learned response and can be unlearned through the inexpensive fortification of your soul with Bible doctrine. No amount of behavioral therapy or systematic desensitization (that is psychological therapy combined with hypnosis) can successfully eliminate fear in the mind and heart of a person. Satan bombarded the entire human race with humanistic viewpoint since the beginning of human history, making man believe his lies and fearful of his schemes. The primary source of fear is the old sinful nature bombarded with satanic lies (that is the combination of satanic and human viewpoints). Satan is working overtime creating and building up tensions, worries, panic, lies, confusions, and fear in the hearts of men. RELIGIOUS TEACHING, PHILOSOPHY, AND SUPERSTITIONS PASS FEAR TO HUMAN SOULS. Religion has succeeded in creating fear in the hearts of men in a very subtle and unsuspecting manner. Religion is the best instrument of Satan in pulling men into the pit of demonic influence. There is a very long list of fear, most of which are illogical, pure superstition and unreal. YOU MUST DEFEAT FEAR BEFORE IT DEFEATS YOU AND ONLY THEN YOU CAN DEFEAT YOUR ENEMY. When it strikes, it must not be allowed to ignite a devastating chain reaction of mental attitude sins that always incapacitate thinking, decision-making and actions. CATEGORIES OF FEAR:
Fear develops slowly, gradually and progressively until it engulf the whole of your being. Give fear an inch today, and tomorrow, it will destroy everything you have. FEAR FOCUS ON THE PROBLEM but the Word of God focuses on the divine solution to human problems. The only way to solve human problem is by divine solution. Human solutions to human problems are NO SOLUTION but breeds more problems leading to fear. Fear exemplifies human viewpoint and obstructs problem solving. JR Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries
071 - VICTORY OVER FEAR GOD EXPECTS every Church Age believers to overcome his fear through the divine provision and divine problem-solving devices provided at the point of salvation. NO BELIEVER is left without defense and protection in satanic cosmic systems. It is irrational, illogical and useless to pray for some kind of power to overcome your fear when in reality God has already provided everything we need pertaining to life and godliness. God has provided every thing in advance and nothing is lacking or missing. God has provided a ten (10) line of defense in the soul of the believer against the four (4) intense conflicts: 1. Temptation of the old sin nature (OSN) 2. The pressure stress in the soul of the believer 3. The enticement or allurements of false doctrines 4. The tendency to trust in human solutions and human viewpoint The ten problem-solving devices are:
Fear breeds arrogance while the Word of God in the soul nurtures genuine humility. Fear prevents living the spiritual life while Bible doctrine rejuvenates the spiritual life. Fear obstructs problem solving while the Word of God initiates problem solving. How to handle the stress of the battle and pressure of life is something you cannot learn apart from the actual situations. Psychology, psychiatry and hypnosis with positive thinking will not solve the fear that dominates the human souls. No believer will survive the cosmic system without Bible doctrine in the soul. God will not remove the problem or the suffering but God will convert the evil that assails us to our benefits. He will build a wall of fire around the believer and protect him by the power of God [Zechariah 2:5, 1 Peter 1:5a]. There is nothing as accident in the life of the believer-everything is part of His decree, nothing is unknown to God. Nothing we do will ever surprise Him. God deliver and rescue us in His perfect timing. Nothing is too late and nothing is too early- everything is just in perfect timing [Psalm 91:14-16, Romans 8:28]. No believer will die of famine (that is economic recession or depression) or from war (that is disaster, calamity and death) [Job 5:19-20]. No weapon of war will take your life as long as God’s plan for your life is to stay on earth. The believer with Bible doctrine in the soul will survive the scourge of the tongues (that is slander, mockery, insults, unfair dealings). The life of the believer is insured by the Character of God-you are under His security blanket. When you loss everything but not your integrity, your future is secure by the integrity of God –not by anything else. Bible doctrine in your soul is the guarantee. God honors his Word wherever it may be found. The life of the believer is secured and protected by the power of God, which is the best and perfect protection in the entire universe. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine ministries
072 - SECURITY IN THE MIDST OF FEARYOUR TENT IS SECURE (PERIKRATES- perikrates) signifies having full command and control. The English term secure is from the Latin SECURA meaning free from anxiety. It has the Greek equivalent AMERIMNOS (amerimnos), meaning stability, security [Job 5:24, 1 Peter 5:7, Philippians 4:6-7]. THE ANTONYM of secure is insecurity meaning, loaded with cares. YOU WILL LAUGH [Job 5:22a] means to have humor. It is an indication of inner contentment and peace of mind amidst severe tragedy. His sense of humor is the result of sharing the happiness of God that knows the mind of Christ. The WILD BEASTS is metaphor for the sudden violent disasters. The believer is under instruction not to be frightened by the possibility of violent devastation or changes. God will not drive away the wild beasts but He will make the VENUM or poison totally ineffective against the growing and advancing believers. FOR YOU WILL BE IN LEAGUE with the stones of the field [Job 5:23] refers to the stones that were designed to use as weapon against you. The same stones will be your friends –they will not hit you. There are bullets without your name on it. THE BEASTS OF THE FIELD will be at peace with you [Job 5:23b], refers to the effects of disaster and calamity turned into blessing for your welfare. YOUR DESCENDANT will be many [Job 5:25]; means that life must go on for the believer regardless of his situation or condition, regardless of his pains and sufferings. Life must go on. No one and nothing could destroy the believer until his final appointment to depart from this planet. Likewise, the planet earth will be preserved for the purpose of God until at the end of the millennial reign of Christ. Worldwide destruction is impossible because only God has the right to destroy this planet. God created it and He alone has the right to destroy it [2 Peter 3:10-13, Revelation 21:1]. LIKE THE STACKING OF GRAINS in its season [Job 5:26] is metaphor for the security provided by divine logistical grace –a guarantee from God. ROOT CAUSE OF INSECURITY:
The believer has no entitlement to be insecure in the world because God has provided already the remedy. The believer becomes insecure when he focuses on the crisis not on God. There are seven emotional sins that stems from fear:
J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine ministries
073 - VIRTUES AGAINST FEARTHE Christian life is a life of victory for we have the VICTOR Himself. We are not aiming, aspiring or fighting for victory but FROM VICTORY. THE victory of the Christian life is not goal, not the objective, not the project but the CAUSE, the REASON why we endure, the very purpose why we have to continue advancing. The growing believer who is residing in the will and purpose of God is secured even in the midst of trouble waters-in the worst conflict and disaster. Whenever fear strikes, the believer must resolve to apply the divine solution –that is to totally rely and put your confidence on God [Psalm 56:3]. The Bible doctrine in the soul of the believer is the antidote for fear. God will not remove the cause of our fear but He will reverse the effects of fear by His presence [Psalm 118:6]. DO NOT ANXIOUSLY LOOK ABOUT YOU refers to believers who are seeking human solutions to resolve their problems [Isaiah 41:10]. God in His perfect omniscience knows exactly our problems and the exact solutions. We must look for God who has the solution. Remember, human solution is no solution. VIRTUE AGAINST FEAR: BE STRONG…DO NOT BE AFRAID. The souls of the believers are not immune to fear that affects the human will and effectiveness to keep advancing toward the goal [Deuteronomy 20:1-]. STRONG refers to the power of the spiritual life. Courage is the expression of this strength. Combine strong and courage and you have moral courage. DO NOT BE AFRAID, means that we do not dwell on the possibility of personal injury or death but the objective set before us. As Christians, we do not dwell on losing the battle but we focus on the VICTORY we already possessed. DO NOT PANIC. Some irrational and emotional terror may paralyze the mind and the heart. Bible doctrine alone has the power to clear this panic and fear. Only the ENCOURAGEMENT FROM THE WORD OF GOD CAN ERADICATE this kind of panic. But the encouragement from human viewpoint creates pseudo peace and more fear. Tranquility under severe pressure is the overt expression of a courageous soul with Bible doctrine. DO NOT TREMBLE. The fear in the soul cause incapacitating physical reactions or emotional outbursts, that continues to shake the believer for long. Battle courage that comes from the Word of God may not eliminate fear, but allows you to put your training in action in spite of it [Psalm 27:3, 46:6-9, 55:22-23, 140:1-2]. Trembling obscure your focus of divine reality and removes the possibility of good decision. It handicaps the believer from doing the will of God. GOD IS IN CONTROL of human history and of all events in the entire universe. Nothing comes as accident to believers. Everything is part of the divine decree. God in His perfect knowledge of all things related to man keep an eye on every event. Nothing escape His wisdom. Some events happen because God allows it and some happen because He causes it. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine ministries
074 - OVERCOMING FEAR PRINCIPLES OF VICTORY: 1. OVER FEAR OF DEATH The death of the believer is exactly God’s decision. The divine decision for us to die is victory since God is the absolute authority in life and death [1 Corinthians 15:55-57]. The divine decision regarding the believer’s death includes the manner, the time and place of death [Psalm 116:15]. The believer is always under God’s protection until the Lord takes him home. Since God is perfect, His timing is perfect in all manners of life and death [Job 1:21b]. Death is the wise and gracious choice of God and always the best for the believer. In death, we are face to face with the Lord. We are in a place of perfect happiness, leaving all the troubles and suffering behind. 2. OVER SUDDEN CRISIS GOD is in control of human history. All events in human history are for the benefits of the believers including the worst disaster and calamity. National discipline does not exempt the spiritual believer from sorrows and pains. Sufferings for the mature believers are not designed to destroy them but to accelerate their growth. The saints are expected to use divine solutions and not to seek more miseries for themselves. Disaster or crisis cause sorrows to the believer that leads to repentance [2 Corinthians 7:9-11]. More crisis and disasters are expected before the Second Advent. The believers are expected to endure such sufferings and never give up. 3. OVER SORROW AS believers, we have hope, a real confidence based on the Essence of God [1 Thessalonians 4:13]. Physical death is not the end of their story (the deceased). Enduring grief and sorrow becomes an imperative of the Christian life. You cannot stop normal living because people your love ones have died and gone to heaven (hell). You cannot resent others who are enjoying life when you are in a state of sorrow. You cannot demand your relatives and friends to join your extended grief and mourning. You must not tarnish their memory of the deceased by becoming morbid, bitter, resentful or vindictive. Your grief and loneliness is a private matter between you and the Lord. Your loneliness belongs to you alone, in the same manner; your confidence belongs to you alone. The death of the deceased is a perfect decision of God (no matter how brutal and ruthless the manner maybe). We know very little about them but God is perfectly knowledgeable. To complain and to ask God about His perfect decision is to question His sovereignty and righteousness. Our sorrow (no matter how grievous) is just temporal and personal matter. It is not the affair of the whole community or the affair of the local church. The believer is displaying his immaturity by asking or soliciting sympathy from others. The Christian life is a life of victory and the believer must appropriate or apply that victory from moment to moment of his sojourning in the world. We are fighting and advancing from the VICTORY OF CHRIST not to gain our own victory. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine ministries
075 - INCESTGOD is the source of perfect morality, but Satan introduced the new morality (part of human viewpoint), which the fallen man (corrupted by old sinful nature) gladly embraces. The big four (Satan, the old sinful nature, the ADAMIC evil trends, and the human negative volition) are campaigning for the promotion of incest. The two daughters of Lot, who were infected with the sin of Sodom, were the first to commit incest [Genesis 19:31-36]. They raped their aged father doubting the ability of God in providing husbands for them. They reasoned from the new morality (that is old immorality) that approved anything that feels doing good. Reuben had sex with his father’s concubine [Genesis 35:22) as proof of his macho-syndrome (machismo instinct) and thereby lost his father’s blessing [Genesis 49:3-4]. AMNON, the son of David by AHINOAM raped TAMAR (the daughter of David by MACAH, the mother of ABSALOM [1 Samuel 25:43, 1 Chronicles 3:2]. AMNON raped his half-sister TAMAR because of mistaken lust and passion mistaken for love. He displayed later on his sexual problems, strong moral corruption, brutality and masculine confusion [2 Samuel 13:10-14]. ABSALOM raped his father concubine publicly [2 Samuel 16:22] showing to all Israel his rebellious leadership, his domineering behavior and ignorance of the Divine establishment. The Corinthian Church tolerated a member who had sexual affairs with his father’s wife (not his own mother) [1 Corinthians 5:11]. INCEST is not new- it is as old as the devil. FACTORS THAT CONTRIBUTES TO INCEST: The old sinful nature (OSN) has a new defense counsel (the new morality), which justify incest as long as it feels good and enjoyable. The evil trends are gathering too much support from the media (all sorts of pornographic materials, sex gadgets and products, sexual stimulants like VIAGRA) and indorsed by the New Age Movement, bringing the moral collapse of our society. The public is receiving too much encouragement from prominent people who are preaching the “gospel of sex” through literature and media. The electronic media had added a new leap into what they called the cyber-sex. The public is being bombarded with numerous materials denying any moral values left in the soul of men. The hearts of many are occupied with sex 24 hours a day. The world accepts and encourages the new trends of broken marriages, broken homes, broken relationship. It is becoming normal. Because of this people are lonely and dishearten are searching for some kind of happiness. The search for frantic happiness resolves to commit incest as an expression of antagonism and anger against men and God. Some failed to carry on with their normal living are inflicted with psychosis. The rapid rise in idolatrous worship decreases the interest with Bible doctrine and has given way to more immoral acts. Immorality is the big sister of idolatry. Those who have committed incest are insane, demon-possessed or deceived by demonic doctrines. They are not in the right frame of mind. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine ministries
076 - NEW MORALITYWE CAN summarize the teaching of the new moralists related to sexual sins by the following: The new morality justified that no church or institution has the right to dictate how to satisfy sexual needs as long as no person is harm. Sex as long as it is good is justified, whether it between the same sex, or opposite sex or between man and beast or just with anybody. Homosexuality and lesbianism is very much welcome and justified as long as it does not hurt any person. To use another person for personal sexual gratification is justified. The failure to apply love is the real injustice. Love of course is define as sex and when it comes to love, there is no limitation. The new morality is more concerned with the “whys” of sexual behavior than sexual sins. They put more stress on motivation and attitude or better attitude for sex than the act of sexual lust or perversion. The new morality defined love as sex. It promotes the sex-saturated society and it honors sexual revolution. It accepts pre-marital sex, extra-marital sex, post-marital sex, virtual sex, and cyber-sex. Sex with anybody is not condemned. It uses sex-exploitation mediums such as pornographic movies, magazines, books, TV shows, and etc. It accepts any form of sex: heterosexual, homosexual and auto-sexual. It advertises safe sex, the use of contraceptives and the use of sexual gadgets and sex energizing drugs. The decay of a nation begins with the collapse of its sex standards (morality related to sex). The new morality is destroying nations silently and sweetly. People are learning to fornicate, create sexual situations, follow modern sexual trends and commit sexual perversion without guilt. Nothing can etch the indelible scars of sexual sins. The ugly memories will come and wrestle with your mind from time to time. Illegitimate baby cannot be unborn. Child rearing and financial responsibility will not just go away and self-made miseries will linger for a long time. The movie and TV personalities are the sex trendsetters and young people are following their reel life without proper evaluation. Following the cosmic standards and life style is very dangerous for the soul of the believers. There are ways that seem rights in the eyes of the believers but are entire disgracing and dishonorable to God. There are things that seems right in the eyes of men but improper in the eyes of God. There are things we called sins but they are not in the eyes of God. There are things we simply ignore or accept but are sins in the sight of God. This is because our standards are relative and bias. We must know what is sin and what is not before God. The new morality is just the revival of the old times morality. There is nothing new under the sun. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine ministries
077 - TRUE LOVE OR INFATUATIONTRUE ROMANTIC LOVE develops slowly and gradually. Infatuation develops at almost no time. True love always starts slowly. You have to know a person before you can truly love that person. Those who rush into marriage learn it by sad experience of self-made miseries. Infatuation is rushing into a bad decision. True is attracted in the total personality of the one love. Infatuation is mainly interested in the physical features. Infatuation depends on few non-sense things. True love is attracted with most of the qualities of the one love. True love affects your whole personality. Willing to learn, adjust and change to bring out the better qualities. Infatuation is blind and daydreaming –trying to believe that the only thing that matters is their love for each other. True love is not only interested in the whole person but that interest is growing warmer as the day goes by. In infatuation, the interest for each other grows between hot and cold –if not freezing. True love believes that the most important person in the whole world next to Christ is the one you love. Infatuation revolves only around the merry-go-round of fantasy but always searching for someone new. Separation and distance makes true love fonder. Infatuation will not survive the test of separation and distance but will seek happiness in another person. True love always cultivates and never dominates. True love causes two different personalities grow intimately together that when separated even for short time-a part of you seems to be missing. True love will live through quarrels and lots of disagreements-learning how to handle conflicts with poise. Infatuation may do a lot of kissing and making up but later may declare war that may never be solved. True love can easily resolve quarrels and disagreements for healthier relationship. Infatuation can ignite little disagreement into a massive forest fire leading into permanent break-up. True love is concern about giving way to improve and build stronger relationship. Infatuation is concern only about getting and receiving from the relationship for personal gains and interest. True love is always unselfish always giving. Infatuation is always waiting to receive and getting. True love dwells in genuine humility and sacrifice for the one love. Infatuation dwells in human ego and castle of arrogance. True love is always responsible-willing to pay the cost –willing to endure hardship and suffering. Infatuation is always ready to escape into the open sea of unreliability. True love is not love at first sight but the result of knowing and accepting the person just as he/she is. Some people are infatuated (not in love) with God, which they did not know about, as they are infatuated with a man or with a woman that they did not know. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine ministries
078 - HOW TO TELL IF YOU ARE IN LOVETRUE ROMANTIC LOVE distinguishes between a body and a person. Choosing a girl because of her beauty and shape is unstable criterion. She might become Coca-cola all right- but 2000 ml. in the next few years. Selecting a guy for his physique and good-looking face is like selecting a treacherous great white shark over the friendly ugly humpback whale. TRUE love generates respect. Erotic lover who whispers sweet nothing in private but tear you down in public is like a clown. He is using another person to produce laughter by giving his lover bad remarks. Such person will do well in circus but not in the family. TRUE is self-giving –it is not what you can get from another person but what you can give with out expecting anything in return. The passionate desire for her/his body is not love but lust. Any prostitute can fully satisfied that burning desires. TRUE LOVE can thrive without physical expression until full commitment for marriage. If your only reason for having a sweetheart is to have someone to hug and caress- better buy yourself a life size doll. True love will not pay with sex and escape. It will not hurt the other person after getting what he/she likes. True love is willing to pay the full cost of responsibility. True love seeks to build a life and permanent relationship of marriage. The objective and goal of any relationship is marriage. Marriage is a triangular relationship between God, a man and a woman, not a triangle between three persons. Lust will not settle for octagon. TRUE LOVE is not for experimental and trial purposes. The basic principle is not to be involved with anybody you are not willing to marry. Get involved only after you physically, emotionally and spiritually prepared. TRUE LOVE embraces difficult serious and difficult responsibility. Marital responsibility is far more than money. It is commitment to love the other person come what may. Lollipops and roses have nothing to do with true love. True love can postpone gratification of sexual passion. True love can wait till marriage. Only a righteous person with Bible doctrine in the soul can function in this manner. True love is basically a commitment. Feeling, emotion, selfish and childish expressions would change and fall-out of love. Fallen expectations and broken promises are basic elements that you can avoid. You have to endure them. Personality differences, unpleasant and bad communication, misunderstanding and numerous marital problems are subjects for rebuilding the relationship not a criteria for separation. Immature couple cannot handle such problems. Marriage is a garage where both the husband and wife work to repair the errors and damages of their blissful relationship. It is not a recreation center for children to pass away their boredom. Marriage is not the solution to many problems of the adolescent and teen-age life but a puzzle of problems for adults to solve and enjoy. TRUE LOVE is founded on the Word of God-ignite by the virtue love for God and for man. It is for the right man and right woman not for kids. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine ministries
079 - WHY SEX SHOULD WAIT UNTIL MARRIAGEGOD DESIGNED SEX exclusively for married couples only, not for those who are in love. Our liberated society under the influence of the new morality is destroying the divine will regarding this issue. Today, love is defined as sex. Many young lovers are interested only with their passions and desire and not with the relationship. SEX IS FOR PLEASURE of married couples and not for those seeking pleasures or sexual experiences. God designed sex for pleasure, procreation and physical intimacy of husband and wife not for those seeking sexual adventure outside legitimate marriage. SEX before marriage or outside the legitimate marriage may end-up to broken relationships, broken family, broken hearts, separation and painful memories. SEX outside or before marriage may result to unwanted child, which means additional responsibility and headache. Teen-age marriage always results to self-made miseries for both of the couple. Giving in to sex before marriage is not proof of your love but a sign of passion or lust. There is proper time for everything under the sun. Sex with the wrong person at the wrong time is unhelpful and sadistic disregarding the impact on the other party. The unbelievers are of the world but for Christian to adopt the trend of the world is to reject the will of God (and to manufacture self-made miseries). Sex is for mature people with genuine commitment to love each other –come what may. Believers who follow the trend of the world regarding free sex or the new morality code (of sexual perversion) are living under the satanic will. The ability to have sex is not a sign of masculinity for a man and is not a sign of felinity for a woman. Sex proves nothing. Dogs just do it for no reason at all, except for their biological instinct. Sexual pleasure is temporal. Those who are seeking frantic happiness from sex will always be disappointed because sex cannot fill up the vacuum in your soul. Sex cannot fill-up the loneliness, the boredom and emptiness of your soul. Only God can answer that emptiness. Sex is not everything but God is. The beasts have their own pleasure of sex but they cannot possess happiness from sex. Man in the same manner cannot find any happiness from sex. God alone is the source of true happiness. Sex is not love. Real love can wait but lust is very hungry for sex. Sexual purity is not replaceable. The real issue here is the soul for the person. SEXUAL PERVERSION is the deviation from the normal function and therefore, it is not only social, political emotional sin but as well as spiritual in nature. Christian must aim to become spiritual and advancing believer- the best for his/her lover. A person whose mind is always filled with sex will eventually become rapist sex maniac or adulterer. A person who is not satisfied with one wife or husband will always look for another. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine ministries
080 - UNDERSTANDING THE SEX DRIVE THE HUMAN SEX DRIVE is the normal, God given part of the mentality of every normal man and woman. To be ashamed of it is to doubt God’s perfect righteousness and faithfulness to us. To misuse it (the human sex drive) is to thwart God’s plan and purpose. The sex drive energizes or destroys relationship, depending on its uses, application or control. THE MALE SEX DRIVE develops in adolescent, producing sperm and stores them in the seminal vesicles. When they are filled, the sex drives climb-up or increases and demands a release of the seminal fluids. God designed the male’s body to handle this in a natural way –by means of night emissions or nocturnal releases, other by masturbation. The male sex drive is biological, emotional, psychological becoming greater when aroused by sight or mentally ad responds readily to any visual or touches stimuli. Male sperm releases by masturbation develop almost automatically because of the combine sex drive and the external nature of the male sex organs. Therefore, if it is to be avoided, it must be a choice, a decision of the soul. From biological standpoint, masturbation is not necessary. THE FEMALE BIOLOGICAL system does not automatically build up sex drive, which demands a release. A man naturally turns to masturbation for release, but female must be taught or learn it first. A woman is stimulated sexually more by touch than by sight. It is more difficult for them to develop a strong habit of masturbation but more difficult to break it. SEXUAL SINS. Two categories of sexual sins are prominent all over the Scripture. Fornication (PORNEA) refers to an illicit sexual relationship, and adultery while MOICHOS refers to a sexual relationship outside marriage.SEXUAL SINS never begins by accident but through a series of pre-sexual experiences, which involves the mind and the soul. These are the things that excite, train, develop, and move the sexual drives.Most of the pre-sexual experiences that are not related to preparation for marriage contribute only to illicit sexual activities, like masturbation. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine ministries
081 - MASTURBATION Masturbation is the gratification of the senses and the indulgence of the sexual appetite [Galatians 5:19]. The act of masturbation becomes an expression of sexual desires. Masturbation involves visualization and imagination of the physical body of man or woman as partner in the sexual act. The mind is involved in the act and therefore has committed the act of adultery [Matthew 5:28]. Masturbation is the selfish attempt to experience the sensations of sexual pleasure without having a physical sexual partner [Ephesians 2:3]. The act of masturbation always involved the mind. Masturbation can put a person in bondage of sexual passion and lust if not properly dealt [1 Corinthians 6:12]. Masturbation is a mental sin expressed overtly by physical gesticulation of muscles of the genital. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine ministries
PRAYERPRAYER comes in many sounds, styles, forms, concepts and variations linked with every religion. Most members of the human race practice it –but very far from Biblical perspective and principles. The prayer of the unbeliever are no less than a composition of pious words added with emotional flattery, most of which are borrowed from Christian dictionary reversed with invented meaning. God will hear only one prayer from the lips of the unbeliever and that is “Lord, save my soul through Jesus’ death on the Cross”. PRAYER apart from salvation is nothing but waste of time. God will not listen to their prayer because they are not His children. The prayer of the REVERSIONIST and carnal believers are all rejected except the prayer of rebound, that is “Lord, I have sinned against you”. PRAYER is God’s provision of grace for all believers in the world as a means of communicating with Him. Prayer indeed involves faith, but there is no recognition for the faith of the unsaved souls (unbelievers) and of the carnal believers. Prayer operates in the same way as grace. Faith is non-meritorious but God hears the prayer of the unbeliever for salvation through the merits of Christ who paid the sins of all men in full on the cross. Faith is non-meritorious but God hears the prayer of the carnal believer for rebound through the merits of Christ on the cross in behalf of all men. God do not honor our faith base on our perception of God. He is never move by our sincerity, sacrificial affection and devotion, sacrifices, penances or self-righteousness. God does not answer because we deserve it or that we have earned it. OUR PRAYER IS ANSWER BECAUSE OF WHO AND WHAT GOD IS, and not because of who and what we are. God’s answer is totally dependent on His character, on His divine will and purpose for the Church Age believers. God will never answer our prayer because of our faith; otherwise God will put the purpose of Christ’s redemption out of divine purpose. God will not accept man apart from the spiritual death of Christ. We ask God “in Jesus’ name” and not in our name, because it is Christ Who ahs the power, not our faith. Those who are trying to portrait themselves as men and women of fasting and prayer are also bragging that God will answer their prayer, are indeed ignorant of Bible doctrine. Their confidence is not based on the character (essence) of God; their hope is not based on the Word of God but on man’s (their own) misconception and misunderstanding of prayer. Their prayer is based on satanic and human viewpoint. Those who believe that God will bless them in answer to their prayer are missing the greatest blessing while we are in this world, and that is intimacy with God. THE MAJOR PURPOSE OF OUR SPIRITUAL LIFE IS TO KNOW GOD. And the purpose of prayer is to know God, and not get something for us One of the greatest areas of modern heresy is in the field of prayer. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine ministries
082 - THE PURPOSE OF PRAYERTHE PURPOSE is not to get from God what we wanted, but to make us accept what He wanted for us. All prayer is directed to God the Father [Matthew 6:9], in the name of the Son [John 14:13-14], in the power of the Holy Spirit [Ephesians 6:8]. Since prayer is an extension of the faith-rest exhales toward God [Matthew 21:22, Mark 11:24], it demands familiarity with the plan, purpose and will of God. It must be offered in the status of the filling of the Holy Spirit. Prayer is effective only when the believer is operating under the grace provision for perception of the Word of God. The believer is effective only inside the will, plan and purpose of God. THE god of this world [2 Corinthians 4:4] answers the prayer of those outside the will, plan and purpose of God. Satan answers the prayer that falls into the satanic viewpoint and satanic will [2 Timothy 6:9-10]. The devil will give worldly glory to his children, to whoever ask for it [John 8:44, Luke 4:5-7]. The irrevocable permanent indwelling of the Holy Spirit and the sealing of the Holy Spirit guarantees the eternal security of the believer [Ephesians 1:13 and 4:30] but it does not guarantee the answer to our prayer. There are times when God will not hear their prayer like when: They pray with sins in their souls [Ephesians 4:19] They are not filled with the Holy Spirit [Ephesians 6:18] They are controlled by the OSN [Ephesians 4:27] They are sinning [Psalm 51:4] God in His perfect power, knowledge and justice sustains the whole creation without help from imperfect humanity. His perfect plans of grace fro the imperfect man absolute. There is nothing to add, minus or alter in His perfect plan. Man has nothing to contribute to it. Inside the plan of God there is nothing as fate or accident. Nothing will happen without the perfect knowledge of God. Every thing is under His divine decree. God knows all the events in the life of all human being in the entire human history. Every event is dependent on the decision of the soul (volition). God respect the decisions of every person, whether good or bad. Some events God causes to happen, others He allows to happen. All events that happened and all that will happen are all in the divine decree. Prayer is powerless to change the divine decision. Prayer is powerless to change the will, the purpose and plan of God. PRAYER is the fellowship of the soul (with imputed righteousness and Bible doctrine, living in experiential spirituality) with God. Prayer is designed to know God through the diligent studies of His Word. Some worship their prayer life and prayer habit. PRAYERFULNESS IS NOT THE MEASURE OR A SIGN OF TRUE SPIRITUALITY. Never trust anything including your prayerfulness except the grace of God. It is easy to slander God by sincere prayer life and habit without knowing God. God answer our prayer because of His imputed righteousness in us, not because of our effective prayer and fasting. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine ministries
083 - MYTHS ABOUT PRAYER THE following are common myths about prayer that has successfully infiltrated the Christian churches: PRAYER is conversation with God. Whoever propagated the idea of this myth is unaware of several major doctrines related to Divine essence and attributes. God is perfect and man is imperfect. Man cannot simply approach God the way we use telephone to call our fellow man. God is not interested with our nonsense talking. PRAYER is to get God’s blessing. Prayer is to know God not to get material things from God. The children of the world ask for the things of the world, but the children of God ask for the things of heaven. The Lord Jesus Christ and His apostles did not ask for things of the world. It is easy to deceive the ignorant with their so-called great faith by asking God when in reality it is the devil that is answering their petition and requests. ANSWER to your material requests from god is not guarantee that you are a man of faith. The man of faith is a man of God’s Word. PRAYER is the ultimate power source. Prayer by itself has no power and there is no way that it can provide some kind of power or strengthening capability to the believers. Our faith has no power. God is the only and ultimate power source in the entire universe. Genuine prayer of the genuine believer is not mystical. Prayer is designed to make us one with Him and not to claim power for ourselves. Spiritual power is the result of Bible doctrine in the soul of the believer not by prayer and fasting. Some false teachers and prophets are always excited to pray anywhere and anytime. They are exhibitors of their so-called super faith, making false impression to the ignorant. Their faith and their prayer is nothing but a show. Being prayerful does not prove that we are rightly related to God. The cults and pagans are more prayerful but they are no rightly related to God. There is no place for boasting with regards to our prayer life. PRAYER prepares us for the greater work. Prayer does not prepare us for the greater work because it is the greater work. We do not pray to ask God for some power. Prayer is the exercise of drawing on the grace of God. Praying at all times- is like banking progressively. We cannot separate the habitual praying and the habitual studying of the Bible doctrine. The most difficult task inside the secret place of prayer is to concentrate on God. Prayer is the effort of the soul and mind to concentrate on the very presence of God. A SOUL WITHOUT BIBLE DOCTRINE WILL TALK TO GOD WITH HIS BRAIN AND TONGUE and sometimes with his tongue only. PRAYER IS THE COMMUNION OF THE SOUL WITH GOD, not a conversation with God using the tongues. Those who are known to men as very prayerful are seldom holy, and those unknown as prayerful men are always holy. The godly will never advertise his prayer life. The carnal and pseudo-Christians are building their faith in their experiences rather than in the word of God. Their prayer life is nothing but a show. Their faith is as good as there prayer life. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine ministries
084 - MYTHS ABOUT PRAYERPRAYER IS TO HAVE GREAT SPIRITUAL EXPERIENCE. Prayer is not for the sake of spiritual experience but for the purpose of spiritual discernment. Spiritual discernment is the result of stored and resident Bible doctrine in the soul. Some Christians pray because they get high, thrill, excited and felling spiritual without laboring on the line of God’s direction. They are surprise when the answer is different from what they asked. We are here not to prove that God answer prayer but to be living evidence and monuments of God’s grace. God did not save us in order to get answer from God, but to live for Him, to know His will and His purpose for our lives. It is dangerous to think that God wanted us to be His showroom or display center of His power. God’s purpose is to make us one with Him and not to show off the heavenly power in this satanic territory. PRAYER IS THERAPEUTIC AGENT FOR ALL AILMENTS. Majority of the cults and pseudo-Christians are prescribing prayer as all-purpose remedy for all kinds of sickness and ailments. Some combine prayer with fasting to be more effective. It is not the will of God for everyone to be perfectly healthy. This is a chaotic world of imperfect human beings. Only a perfect person will be free from all kinds of sickness and disease. If it is God’s will for us to be perfectly fit and healthy then, we are not going to die physically. Such teaching of false teachers is not supported by Bible doctrine. THE REAL FASTING is not from food, but from SELF (old sinful nature), from our ego and pride, self-glory, self-dependency, self-righteousness and anything that hinders us from true spirituality. Food has nothing to do with spirituality. We can eat with God in control of our lives and we can fast without God in our lives. PRAYER CAN CHANGE OUR DESTINY. The famous slogan or motto of the REVERSIONISTS that “prayer changes things” is a big moronic idea. Some believers are praying asking God to change their circumstances, situation, and the course of their life. They pray to change the historical events, people and event the course of nature. One of the many dangers of intercession is to pray and intercede in sympathy with those under divine discipline or judgment. Prayer could become the exaltation of our own compromise feelings and sympathy. In our act of kindness or respect to men, we disregard and dishonor Him. Only Bible doctrine can change man. No amount of intercession can remove and stop bad habits, bad temper, and habitual sins. Such things do not go away by praying and fasting but by act of kicking- through daily study of Bible doctrine. Radical actions without Bible doctrine can produce only bad results. If God is listening to human clamors and selfish requests, then God is out of control. PRAYER MOVES THE HANDS OF GOD. No human being can dictate or tell God what to do or what not to do. Prayer is not for man to give direction or guidance to God. God controls human history apart from the will and request of man. We cannot dominate His total and perfect sovereignty. All the above-mentioned myths about prayer are blasphemous. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine ministries
085 - THINGS WE NEED NOT ASKWE DO NOT ASK GOD FOR THE FILLING OF THE HOLY SPIRIT. The status of being filed with the Holy Spirit is the automatic result of being restored, cleansed, forgiven, and resumed his position for blessings [1 John 1:9]. The filling of the Holy Spirit is the result of obedience to rebound and not by asking or requesting God [Ephesians 5:18] for it is a command. WE DO NOT ASK GOD TO BLESS THE UNBELIEVERS. The unbelievers are spiritually death, separated from God. They are under the plan of salvation but not entitled to receive blessings. The only appropriate prayer is for their salvation. WE DO NOT ASK GOD TO FORGIVE OUR SINS. Prior to the death of Christ for the sins of the human race, “forgive” [Matthew 6:12] was still looking forward to that act of redemption where forgiveness was totally provided [Ephesians 1:7]. Our prayer of rebound is to acknowledge that Work of Christ. (See: Rebound) WE DO NOT ASK FORGIVENESS FOR SINS WE ALREADY CONFESSED. God is not absent-minded or forgetful. The effect of forgiveness and cleansing is eternal and permanent. The divine forgiveness is guarantee by divine essence or character not by our feelings [1 John 1:9, Psalm 38:18]. It is blasphemy to keep asking God for forgiveness for sins He has forgiven. WE DO NOT ASK GOD TO HEAL EVERY SICKNESS. There are 4 major cause of sickness: violation of the natural laws, divine discipline, undeserved sufferings and spiritual bondage (OSN). Each of this cause has the corresponding remedy. The cults are praying for sickness brought about by breaking the law of nature or divine discipline. That is a great ignorance! If a person walk under the rain without any protection and caught colds and flu – he needs medicine. If a believer is afflicted with sickness as divine discipline for his carnality he needs to rebound not prayer. WE NOT PRAY FOR THINGS GOD HAS ALREADY DECLARED NOT OF HIS WILL AND PLAN. Such prayer is presumptuous and arrogant. WE DO NOT ASK GOD TO BLESS OUR SELFISH AMBITION OR PERSONAL PLAN. A common error in our prayer is asking or commanding God to approve our plans and ambition. Some cults are backing up their personal ambition with prayer and fasting in order to make an impression that it is the will of God. WE DO NOT ASK GOD TO CHANGE A PERSON OR INSTITUTION. The right prayer for those in the seat of power is not for their effective and Christian like characteristics but for their salvation [Romans 13:1-4, 1 Timothy 2:1-4]. The right prayer for wicked unbelievers is for the salvation not for them to have Christian like behavior and lifestyles. We do not force the unsaved to adopt and practice Christian values without salvation. The right prayer for the carnal and those in prolonged REVERSIONISM is not for their prosperity or good conduct, or effectiveness but for their act of rebound and positive volition. WE DO NOT ASK GOD FOR THINGS HE HAS ALREADY PROVIDED. We must know God and His will for us. WHO AND WHAT HE IS –and what He has done. Otherwise, our ignorance will lead to serious errors like, asking God for the gifts of the Spirit, which God distributed to every Church Age believers at the point of salvation. Some are asking for re-baptism of the Holy Spirit or for the filling of the Holy Spirit. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine ministries
086 - THINGS WE NEED NOT ASKWE DO NOT ASK GOD FOR WHAT HE HAS NOT PROMISED in the Scripture for the Church Age believers. The exclusive and conditional promises for the Old Testament believers do not belong to us. The unconditional promises for the Tribulation and Millennial believers do not belong to us. The promises in the Scripture given to any particular person, group of people or nation do not belong to us. God is not going to do any promise made by certain preacher to his followers, which He did not promise in the Scripture. God will not give in to the capricious and illogical demands of man no matter how sincere and devoted their prayer might be. WE DO NOT ASK GOD FOR BLESSINGS GIVEN TO PARTICULAR PERSON OR NATION. The blessings of some Bible character do not belong to us. The blessing of a nation recorded in the Scripture does not belong to us. The experience of the Old and New Testament believers does not necessarily belong to us. We cannot ask God to repeat their blessing or experience for us. It is very wicked and selfish to ask God to give you the experience of people living in the different time and background. Numerous illogical and irrational practices of cults come from this satanic viewpoint. Miracle is an act of God based on His sovereignty, which operate apart from demands or request of man. All the act of God is free from human intervention and without human participation. Miracle is not miracle if human will, desire and action is involved. WE DO NOT ASK GOD FOR BLESSING OF A CONDITIONAL PROMISE without first fulfilling the condition required. Some believers are already demanding God to give them the ALL OF THESE THINGS of Matthew 6:33 without seeking the kingdom of God. They are asking God for THE DESIRES OF THEIR HEARTS without the effort of taking delight in studying the Word of God in consistent basis [Psalm 37:4]. WE DO NOT ASK GOD FOR THINGS HE ALREADY TERMINATED. Petition and prayer for things or experience that God has already terminated is a sign of arrogance. Asking God for historical gifts like the gift of healing and tongues is a terrible mistake. Majority of ignorant believers are committing blasphemy daily every time they come to God in prayer. For example, whenever a believer pray in tongues. Speaking in tongue today is counterfeit because the Holy Spirit is no longer anointing such person. Since tongue is already a historical gift, as a sign to the unbelieving Jews. Whenever the believer misapply literally the context of 1 Timothy 2:8 by raising his hand on the air and ask God to bless and prosper those in the position of authority. The phrase “lift up your holy hands” is not literal action but figuratively. It refers to the act of intercession not raising hands. The prayer for all unbelievers is for their salvation and not for anything else. Another common mistake of believers is when they spiritualize the non-spiritual things by their cultic practices such as laying of hands, anointing and prayer with fasting. There are more heresies and blasphemies in the area of prayer than in any other part of our Christian life. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine ministries
087 - THINGS UNNECESSARY TO PRAYERThere are 10 things with religious connotation that are not essential and has not relationship to genuine prayer. FASTING. There is no command for the Church Age believers to fast when praying. There is no command for us to fast. There is no verse in the Scripture that states the effectiveness of fasting if combine with prayer. POSTURE. No prescribed posture for prayer is stated in the Scripture. There is no prescribed posture for effective prayer. The raising of hands, the clasped hands, the clapping of hands, the beating of the chest and other irrelevant postures are all invention of man. Such postures are not related with spirituality and have nothing to do with the affectivity of prayer. PLACE. There is no required place for effective prayer. No prayer house, no prayer mountain, prayer garden are necessary for God to answer our prayer. The only right place for prayer is inside the will and plan of God [John 4:21-24]. God is unpractical to command us to pray at all times and pray at a very solemn and quiet place. The believer can be alone with God in the midst of a noisy crowd. If you do not know how to be alone with God, then even in the top of the prayer mountain, your mind is fill with the things of the world. PREPARATION. The only preparation needed for prayer and worship is the prayer of rebound. No religious music or singing, fasting and praise and worship are necessary for effective prayer. Music excites only the emotion and the mind but left out the soul with sins. Religious music is the greatest heresy of our time. The so-called music ministers are the greatest deceiver of the Church Age believers. PERSONALITIES. No super-faith and super-prayerful leaders are necessary to lead the congregation for effective prayer. God answer our prayer not because of who is praying –God has no favorite. The so-called prayer warriors are purely human viewpoint. Our weapon is the Word of God not prayer [Ephesians 6:17]. FAITH. The justice of God answers our prayer not on the basis of our faith but on the essence of God. It is not how much we can believe but WHO AND WHAT GOD IS. Faith is never the key for effective prayer but the grace of God. VISIONS. The mysterious illusion of the divine revelation or manifestation of the so-called God to some super-believer is hoax and not related to prayer. ANOINTING. Some cults claimed that they have received the double anointing or double portion of the spirit (of the devil of course) and that God will answer their prayer (as if they are God’s favorite). Such anointing is devious. COMMITMENT. Devotion to prayer does not guarantee effective prayer. It is easy to become devoted to prayer but never to God. Human sincerity is often sincerely wrong. PRAYER PARTNER. The prayer of others has nothing to do with our own effectiveness. Celebrated and dynamic prayer partner are not requirement for genuine prayer. God answers our prayer based on divine essence not because of our super-prayer partner. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine ministries
088 - PRAYING IN THE SPIRITPRAYING in the Spirit is not a spiritual gift [1 Corinthians 14:14-15, Jude 20], it is not praying in tongues, but refers to biblical principle that we are to pray only in the state of spirituality, even as we worship God through the Word of God under the filling of the Holy Spirit [John 4:23-25]. Praying in the Spirit is not mystical but refers to the act of obedience to be filled with the Holy Spirit during the entire course of prayer. The believer can only obey the command to pray at all times [1 Thessalonians 5:17] through the rebound provision of grace [1 John 1:9]. The believer can remain in the state of spirituality only through the grace provision. TO BE continually spiritual is to be in the spiritual praying ground at all times. Praying in the Spirit means praying while in the state of spirituality. God did not command the Old and New Testament believers or the Church Age believers to pray with fasting. The Jewish exiles in Babylon borrowed the practice of fasting and slowly integrated it into their religion. The believers of the infant Church Age practiced fasting for 4 reasons:
Fasting does not make prayer less or more effective since the vital thing is spirituality not fasting. FASTING IS POSSIBLE IN ANY SPIRITUAL STANDING:
Anybody can fast and pray. Few Christians can out beat the cults and pagan when it comes to fasting. Fasting is not a spiritual exercise. Fasting is not a sign of spirituality or superiority or spiritual maturity. Prayer with fasting cannot advance your spiritual life –it cannot accelerate your spiritual growth. PRAYER WITH GROANING: Groaning (STENAGMOS-stenagmos) is not crying in audible voice but something you cannot hear. It refers to silent and covert intercession of the Holy Spirit not to prayer of the one praying. The indwelling Holy Spirit intercedes for the believer according to the will, plan and purpose of God. The groaning of the Spirit is not express with the believer’s senses and therefore, does not produce some mysterious audible and non-sense sounds. The intercessory prayer of the indwelling Holy Spirit does not pray through speaking of tongues, because being Member of the Godhead, He will not communicate with God the Father in such foolish unknown tongues. There is no need to speak in tongues since the gift has already ceased. All the speaking of tongues today is not from God and they are all fabrication. There is no need to emote our emotion, since God does not answer because of our feelings, sincerity and devotion. The Prayer in the Spirit is something man cannot imitate or forged. It is the communication of the Holy Spirit from the life of spiritual believer to God. PRAYER AND LOGISTICAL GRACE BELIEVERS who are blowing their trumpets to announce their success in the area of prayer are also blowing the reality of their spirituality. Arrogant believers worship their prayer habits more than they worship God. They worship God in their prayer without removing the high places of idolatry in their souls. They are making false external obedience without spiritual reality [2 Chronicles 15:17]. Their prayer habit becomes their canon or measurement of holiness. They are building prayer as their altar of sacrifice – they worship their prayer not God. The ALL THINGS of Matthew 21:22 and WHATSOEVER THINGS of Mark 11:24 does not refers to desires of the old sin nature, but the desires of the indwelling Holy Spirit to glorify God in the life of the believers. God has already provided all the basic and necessary resources for the believer to reach spiritual maturity and thereby glorify God. However, God has to wait until the believer reach the state of maturity before He can pour out blessings (to believer) that will glorify Him to the maximum. Why would God excite us to ask material blessings when in fact He rebukes our carnal desires from Genesis to Revelation? The apostles and the disciples did not ask anything related to their physical needs from God. God has already promised to provide all the needs of His children [Philippians 4:19] called the logistical grace, made available to every believer regardless of spiritual status. Prayer is exhaling the spirit of man and inhaling the Spirit of God. The purpose of prayer is not to get from God what we wanted, to make us accept what He wanted for us. For this reason, we can only pray on the basis of God’s truth. The logistical grace covers our need in four aspects:
God supplies logistical blessing to all believers faithfully, constantly and unconditionally. There are no criteria for receiving the logistical blessing. No prayer is required and no need to ask God in prayer. If we say that we have faith but constantly asking God for material blessings, then we are lying. The believer continues act of asking God for his material needs is the denial of his faith [Matthew 6:25-34]. The faith that is always asking is not faith but pleading without knowledge. Logistical grace is for all believers but escrow blessing in time is for mature believers only. One of the most common forms of evil in the local churches today is the so-called prayer request. Their prayer is all about themselves, and for themselves. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine ministries
089 - PRAYER & INNER HAPPINESSINNER HAPPINESS is the state of completed happiness found only in the hearts of the advancing and mature believers. It is the place of spirituality and spiritual maturity where the believer based his happiness on the will, purpose and plan of God. It is the place of total blessedness. The state of happiness is the ultimate goal of the Christian life. THE COMPLETED HAPPINESS is the stabilized happiness of Christ while He was in the world. The peace of God in the believer is stabilized by Bible doctrine. The INNER HAPPINESS is found only inside the will, purpose and pan of God or DIVINE DYNASPHERE. There is no genuine inner happiness outside this realm of God. The inner happiness is the derivative of Bible doctrine in the soul of the believers. To reach the completed stated of happiness one must begin from positive volition to pursue the Truth of Bible doctrine. There is no short cut to inner happiness. The short cut is often leads to miseries. The COMPLETED INNER HAPPINESS comes to those who are diligent and discipline in studying, learning and applying Bible doctrine [Romans 14:19, Proverbs 3:13]. The phrase MAY BE FULL (PLEROO-pleroo) of 1 John 1:4 indicates that the action the Bible doctrine brings us to complete our inner happiness [2 John 12]. Satan’s substitute for inner happiness is PSEUDO –HAPPINESS from religion, in which emotion is integrated with some illegitimate and mystical forms of ecstatic expressions, like tongues, holy laughter and slaying of the Holy Spirit. PSEUDO INNER-HAPPINESS SATAN can counterfeit only the outward manifestation of the work of Christ and of the Holy Spirit. The inner happiness that comes from God is counterfeit-proof. Nobody can fake it, in the same way; nobody can fake genuine salvation, spirituality, spiritual maturity, and spiritual self-esteem Satan can satisfy the delusion of the ignorant and the carnal believers. The remedy for deception is the full-knowledge of the Truth (EPIGNOSIS), knowing the genuine manifestation, knowing the real thing from the bogus one. The counterfeit inner happiness of the cults is mostly outward shows. They spiritualized almost everything. The speaking of tongues and holy laughter is not manifestation of the genuine inner happiness. They have programmed and animated smiles –the reel type of happiness, one that comes out from their defiled souls as commanded by the old sinful nature. Their smiles and laughter are all counterfeit. The pseudo-inner happiness does not have degrees or categories. All of them can instantly reach the peak of ecstatic joy as they follow the mood of the praise and worship leader. We do not ask God to give us the inner happiness because it is not imputed or distributed. It is the result of life that nurtures on the Word of God for a long period of time. The cults have short cuts for everything: such as instant spiritual maturity, instant pastors, instant servants of God, and instant messages from God all comes from their super powerful prayer. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine ministries
090 - PRAYER IS…PRAYER IS NOT:
PRAYER IS:
IF GOD is perfectly immutable, infinite in knowledge and unchangeable, why do have to pray? Does the divine essence and divine decree eliminates the need for prayer? ANSWERS: Effective prayer makes requests which God answers. Things we ask in time are all incorporated into divine decree in the eternity past [Isaiah 65:24]. Effective prayer is our powerful weapon in the angelic conflict. It is our distress call. We are not capable and able enemies of Satan –but Satan is no match to our resources in Christ [Philippians 4:6, Colossians 4:2]. Prayer is not actually a weapon but like a bucket we use for drawing our resources in Christ. Effective prayer is the powerful and the strategic action of the spiritually mature believer for tactical victory. We are not praying for victory but from the victory of the Lord Jesus [Romans 8:37, Ephesians 3:10]. Effective prayer is enjoying the great presence of the Lord not just talking or asking Him for things. It is designed for knowing Him, knowing His plan, will and purpose through His Word [Philippians 3:10, 1 John 1:3]. THE ELEMENTS OF GENUINE WORSHIP: are salvation, spirituality or the Spirit filled life of the believer and Scripture in the soul. Prayer is an expression of true worship. Fasting is not an element of worship and is not an expression of worship. THE BASIS OF GOD FOR HEARING OUR PRAYER is not because of anything in the part of man, but because of the ministry of God the Son, Jesus Christ:
Our non-meritorious faith is not the basis of God for answering our prayer. Be careful of the cults of prayer that deceives the ignorant. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine ministries
091 - FAITH FAITH is one of the most misused and abused biblical term, distorted by some theologians and reversed by the cults and REVERSIONIST Christians to make its meaning favorable to their false doctrines. The Greek noun PISTIS (pistis) when translated as faith has dual meaning. First in the objective sense, PISTIS means WHAT IS BELIEVED that is the whole Bible doctrine. Secondly: PISTIS refers to the believer’s application of Bible doctrine to experience that is faith –rest. FAITH by itself cannot function as a virtue. Faith and hope are subordinate system that function within the sphere of the love complex. Love is superior to either faith or hope because love is the characteristic virtue of the entire divine sphere. FAITH represents an entire system of applying the word of God, while hope is a system derived from knowledge of Bible doctrine stored and residing in the soul. HOPE is absolute confidence in future divine provisions and blessings [Romans 8:24-25]. The believer can apply doctrine and advance from the hope of blessing in time to hope of blessing in eternity but only inside the sphere of God. In English Bible, Hebrews 11:1 is commonly mistaken for a definition of faith, but where PISTIS was used in its passive sense, what is believed –the object of faith, that is Bible doctrine. Hebrews 11:1 is actually a definition of hope. Bible doctrine reveals the plan of God. Under His plan, He glorifies Himself by blessing us. He can bless us only because of a series of imputations, which create a potential for blessing. Both hope and faith are part of confidence toward God, as a virtue, we must remember that the standard of virtue is His divine essence, and not the relative systems of human morality and ethics. Here is a corrected translation of Hebrews 11:1-2: “Now, Bible doctrine is the reality from which we keep receiving the hope, the proof of matters not being seen. For by it, (Bible doctrine in the soul) men of old gained approval (when they reached spiritual maturity)”. “By faith (means of doctrine) we under stand…by faith (means of doctrine) Abel offered a better sacrifice [Hebrews 12:3-4]. IN each CASE OF Hebrews 11- Bible doctrine made the difference. It converted each one’s potential into hope, and that hope gave him confidence which led him to spiritual maturity and beyond. Each person expressed his maturity in the various courses of action recorded in this honor roll. AND WITHOUT FAITH (BIBLE DOCTRINE IN THE SOUL) IT IS IMPOSSIBLE TO PLEASE GOD [Hebrews 12:6]. Seeking God is the determined, steady and regular academically disciplined, and diligent (self-motivated with spiritual concentration) intake of the Word of God. We cannot separate faith, and hope from Bible doctrine. Faith apart and depart from the Word of God is not the biblical concept of faith. We cannot separate faith and hope from love because it is the primary virtue of the divine sphere. Faith apart from Bible doctrine is not faith. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine ministries
092 - FAITH & THE GRACE OF GODGOD did not thwart our volition in salvation; otherwise, He would destroy His plan of grace. He would cancel the purpose of salvation that each person might choose to have a personal relationship with Him. God does everything for man to have salvation, except make the decision for us. Positive volition is the only missing link, the only factor needed to complete our reconciliation with God. Though we are born totally detestable to God, a single decision of non-meritorious faith in Christ closes the gap and establishes us as God’s children [John 1:11-12]. God’s plan of grace is based on God’s integrity, not on any merit in the human race. God loves us because of WHO AND WHAT HE IS, because of the provisions he has made, because of the cross that fulfilled the perfect demands of His righteousness. That is grace. After salvation the justice of God remains the source of our blessings- we are the beneficiaries of God’s plan of grace. We are always under grace, as we were saved by grace (not by our own faith) of God, and we are always under the grace of God as objects of God’s personal love [Ephesians 2:8-9]. We are saved by grace through faith, not by faith. At the moment of faith alone in Christ alone, God permanently imputes His absolute righteousness to every believer, eliminating any need to earn God’s approbation with human good or human self-righteousness. We live the Christian way of life by following God’s mandates, not by striving to fulfill our own legalistic ideas of what ought to please God. No human merit can earn God’s love or blessing after salvation. THE phrase THE UPWARD CALL OF GOD refers to the ministry of the Holy Spirit at the instant a person first believes in Christ [Philippians 3:13-14]. Every human being is born spiritually dead; we have a spiritually dead understanding of God, and spiritually dead faith to believe in Christ. We are unable to comprehend spiritual things and totally incapable of a relationship with God. The ministry of the Holy Spirit is vital, first, to make the Gospel clear, and second, to make our faith in Christ effective for salvation. In itself, our faith has no power to save us. The Holy Spirit must take our faith and make it effectual in establishing an eternal relationship with God [John 16:8-11]. We receive no credit or merit for believing in Christ. All glory belongs to God and to Him alone. We are saved exclusively by the power of God. The upward call is designated COMMON GRACE, extended to all individual, while the ministry of the Holy Spirit is converting the believer’s faith into salvation is called the EFFICACIOUS GRACE. In every case where common grace is not followed by faith in Christ, efficacious grace does not occur. The faith of the unbelievers is spiritually dead faith, and the faith of the carnal believers is operationally dead or temporally dead. Both faiths are useless [James 2:17-20]. Faith in salvation is non-meritorious in the same way, faith after salvation is also non-meritorious. Man has nothing to boast concerning his faith. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine ministries
093 - FAITH OR GOD’S GRACE The justice of God imputes the logistical grace to the righteousness of God to every believer [Psalm 23:1, Matthew 6:26], on the basis of equal privilege and equal opportunity to enable them to grow and mature spiritually. Every believer received the love complex but only few utilize its power. Many Christians today fail to progress beyond salvation. They are unable to utilize the grace and power of God [2 Peter 3:18]. The logistical grace includes the provision for the believer to advance and reach spiritual maturity. It is compose of four interrelated blessings: life support, temporal support, security provisions and spiritual provisions. The so-called prayer of faith of pseudo men of faith is always petition made under the grace provision. Praying for things God has already included in His provision. Asking great material things from God proves only that they are not men of faith. The Lord Jesus Christ and His apostles and disciples did not ask God for such things. Logistical blessing is provision for all believers. No prayer, petition or faith is required to receive such blessing. Prayer in relation to logistical grace is for the purpose of thanksgiving and gratitude not to demand or request. The Lord Jesus did not use His faith to ask the Father any of such provision. The Humanity of Christ did not use His faith to heal or to make miracles. His purpose on earth was not to be known as miracle worker, man of faith. His ministry was fourfold:
There were only 20 cases of healing recorded in 4 gospels, 5 of which are repetition. There were only 7 persons whom Jesus delivered from demon possession and there were only 9 miracles associated with Christ. FAITH IS NOT OUR DEFENSE AGAINST DEMONS: The Church is mandated to remain on the defense line against the Devil and his demons [Ephesians 6:11]. We are taking offense against old sinful nature (OSN) and against the cosmic systems by growing in grace and in knowledge of Christ [2 peter 3:18]. Defensive action is the only way to prevent defeat by Satan [James 4:6-7] Submission to God is our offensive action. Resisting the devil is our defensive action [1 Peter 5:8-9], and is by our daily and progressive study of Bible doctrine [Ephesians 6:10-17]. The battleground for the spiritual life is the soul. When the armor of God is in place, the soul is protected from the assaults of Satan. Where the defensive wall crumbles, the soul is left exposed to satanic darts and missiles. The battle is between divine viewpoint and satanic viewpoint, thought against thought, mental attitude against mental attitude. We do not win such battle by driving away or casting out evil spirits. We can win the spiritual warfare only through the power of God in our lives, as we are control and energize by the Holy Spirit and empower by the Word of God (the EPIGNOSIS in the soul). We have the victory; we are winners if only we are not going to surrender before the battle starts. Faith (Bible doctrine in the souls) is the victory [1 John 5:4]. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine ministries
094 - FAITH AS MEANS OF PERCEPTION Never do we earn or deserve any credit in the entire plan and system of God. His entire plan is alive with grace not with human achievement. The imperfect man cannot and will have no meritorious role in God’s perfect plan. Man has 3 basic means of perception: RATIONALISM relies on human reason and logical consistency as the criterion for reality, totally apart from authority and revelation of the Scripture. In rationalism man engages his intellect, deducing a logical system to explain reality. EMPIRICISM establishes reality based on the experience of the senses because reality is what you see, hear, smell, taste and feel. In empiricism man hones his powers of observation for discovering answers in the world and the universe around him. FAITH is reality based on confidence in the authority and veracity of God. Faith, the non-meritorious system of thinking comprehends infinite spiritual truths that are beyond the finite mind reasoning powers and sensory system. IN FAITH the credit does not belong to the subject but to the object. Not to the one who believes but to what is believed. After salvation, we must live by grace. Grace includes all human merits. Faith remains the only means of perceiving and applying Bible doctrine. God has provided everything we need for learning God’s Word. They are called grace provisions for the saints to understand doctrine through spiritual IQ not human IQ. Human IQ is an index number indicating degree of human intelligence and is the result of meritorious perception. SPIRITUAL IQ is created by the filling of the Holy Spirit, related to the amount of Bible doctrine stored as EPIGNOSIS in the right lobe of the soul [Colossians 1:9], is the result of non-meritorious faith perception. Believers has the ability to learn Bible doctrine apart from human IQ-since it is not a factor for learning doctrine. The mentality of the soul has two lobes. The left lobe is the home of GNOSIS (gnosis) that is academic knowledge of the Scripture. The right lobe is the repository of EPIGNOSIS (epignosis) that is full knowledge. GNOSIS is receptive comprehension, the academic knowledge that is not usable for application in life. It is non-edifying. The application of gnosis doctrine is reversion of the Bible doctrine where true doctrine may generate pride, legalism, inflexibility, inconsiderateness, narrow-mindedness and compounding superiority. EPIGNOSIS is designed for application as wisdom and spiritual common sense in the spiritual life –it is available for application unlike gnosis, which is not applicable for any application. This is the reason why the REVERSIONISTS are very good in human viewpoint reasoning. Filling of the Holy Spirit and positive volition are equally essential in faith perception, otherwise, the Holy Spirit cannot convert and transfer gnosis from the left lobe to the right lobe to become EPIGNOSIS. The positive volition believer filled with the Holy Spirit concentrates on the pastor’s teaching, resulting in gnosis. The believer clearly perceives the doctrine and believes what he has learned. The Holy Spirit takes the gnosis and converts it into EPIGNOSIS and seals it eternally –to be reinforces by more doctrines while on earth. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine ministries
095 - THE OBJECTIVE OF FAITH THE objective of faith (for the unbelievers) is not to make you pleasing, approvable, or acceptable before God but to receive the free gift of salvation by believing Christ alone could save us. The faith we utilized to receive salvation in non-meritorious and has no power to save the soul. The purpose of faith for the believers is not to perform miracles, heal the sick, raise the dead, cast out demons, or to do great things for God but to appropriate the power of God in our spiritual momentum toward spiritual maturity. The faith we utilize to grow and advance in the spiritual life is non-meritorious and has no power to energize, accelerate or promote us from immaturity to maturity, or to remove us from carnality and transfer us to spirituality. Faith apart from Bible doctrine is pure presumptuous faith. Faith as a subordinate virtue cannot function by itself. Faith is not founded on what we can believe or our sincere conviction that are inspired by old sin nature. True faith is founded by what is believed that is, Bible doctrine. An average person with good ability to concentrate can receive not more 50% doctrine communicated by his pastor (the first discussion of a certain doctrine). If he has a high positive volition, he can retain not more than 20% of what is converted as EPIGNOSIS. When required to apply the doctrine in his KARDIA, he will do well with not more than 1%. Out of the total doctrine taught: 50% he missed and flew away. 50% he perceived as gnosis. 20 % of the gnosis becomes EPIGNOSIS. 1% of the EPIGNOSIS becomes available for immediate recall and application. This explained why the believer must be faithful in listening; studying and re-studying the Bible doctrine until he fully absorb the whole doctrine. A noble Christian is one who is willing to keep learning until he has mastered the doctrine [Acts 17:11]. OUR objective is saturation of Truth but there is no way to accelerate the process other than its gradual gathering and storing in the right lobe. The positive volition believer develops a frame of reference for receiving and retaining more doctrine necessary to build up the Truth. Because truth builds upon truth, we must persist in learning precept upon precept, line upon line (Isaiah 28:10). The Jesus Christ is the Author (ARCHEGOS-archegos), meaning; He is the Cause and Source of all things refers to Christ as the ONE who brings something to completion (of our faith –what we believed). Hebrews 12:2a refers to the work of God in providing, nurturing and bringing into completion His plan for our lives. But God cannot do anything without the cooperation of our free will (volition) to grow. The believer must have the DESIRE (positive volition) to grow and advance to maturity. He must enforce his desire with DECISION to reach his goal or objective. His decisions must show DETERMINATION in the midst of trials, testing and suffering. To his growing determination, he must attach military DISCIPLINE not to allow anything or anybody to hinder his spiritual growth and momentum. The most extra-ordinary faith is not one that raises dead people from the grave but one that is willing to learn Bible doctrine regardless of situation and conditions. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine ministries
096 - FAITH & THE WORK OF GOD ONCE a person believes in Christ, his salvation in Christ is permanent, secured and cannot be canceled by anything he thinks, does or says. Salvation is the non-reversible work of God. No human sin, human decision, human ridiculousness can destroy the believer’s eternal security-not even his renunciation of faith [2 Timothy 2:11-13]. At the point of salvation God imputes His absolute righteousness to every believer and declares him righteous or justified [Romans 3:21-28]. If God will exclude any one from eternal salvation who possessed his imputed righteousness, He would have to deny His own righteousness and justice, because He contradict His own pronouncement of justification. Our salvation is strong as the essence of God. Between the point of salvation and reaching spiritual maturity, every believer is the beneficiary of logistical blessings unconditionally provided regardless of spiritual standing before God, and without the necessity of faith or anything from man. At the point of spiritual maturity, the believer continue to receive logistical blessings plus the blessing in time –all because the believer received the imputed righteousness form the justice of God. It is the only basis for all subsequent blessings. The real issue is our adjustment to the justice of God not our faith. Our vital contact point with God is our spiritual adjustment to His justice- not our non-meritorious faith. In some cases, the faith of the so-called men of faith is not only non-meritorious but also notorious. GOD BLESSES US ONLY BECAUSE CHRIST WHO INDWELLS US MEETS HIS PERFECT STANDARDS AND BECAUSE HIS RIGHTEOUSNESS IS IN US. GOD WILL NEVER BLESS US FOR WHAT WE DO OR WHAT WE DO NOT DO, NO FOR WHO AND WHAT WE ARE, BUT FOR WHO AND WHAT GOD IS. God is blessing you not because of your brilliant personality, not because of your enthusiasm in the work the church, not because of your marvelous abilities, talents and spiritual gifts. God is blessing you because you possess the principle of His integrity- divine righteousness. The justice of God is free to bless only divine righteousness wherever it maybe found [Romans 8:31, 5:16-17]. If the basis for salvation is human faith then, nobody is going to heaven. If the basis for blessing mankind is our faith, then nobody will ever receive anything from God –because our faith is always wavering, unstable, imperfect, and blemish with old sin nature, which God cannot accept by any means. God cannot throw away his absolute integrity (His perfect righteousness and justice) and lower Himself to the level of imperfect man by accepting our imperfect faith. FAITHFUL IS THE WORD: FOR IF WE DIED WITH HIM, WE SHALL ALSO LIVE WITH HIM. IF WE PERSEVERE (living in the will, plan and purpose of God) WE WILL RULE WITH HIM (as recipient of eternal blessing) IF WE DENY HIM (reject divine will to mature) HE WILL DENY US (withhold eternal rewards because we are loser). IF WE ARE FAITHLESS (living in carnality) HE REMAINS FAITHFUL (divine essence) FOR HE CANNOT DENY HIMSELF (His perfect immutability and veracity [2 Timothy 2:11-13]. So, this is not about GREAT FAITH but about GREAT GOD. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine ministries 097 - HOW TO INCREASE YOUR FAITHTHE humanity of Christ encountered two persons with “great faith”. The first was a woman [Matthew 15:28], and a centurion [Luke 7:9]. In several occasions scolded His disciples for their little faith or lack of faith [Matthew 14:31, 16:8, 17:20, 21:21 and Luke 12:28]. GREAT FAITH is not an excellent measure of faith but the capacity to believe the Truth they heard. Believer, like Stephen who was described as a man FULL OF FAITH refers to Bible doctrine stored in his soul available for utilization at any situations may require. Great faith is not mystical and exclusive to few (like the TV preachers around us) who claimed to have special anointing from God. LITTLE FAITH refers to gnosis that failed conversion and transfer into EPIGNOSIS in the right lobe of the soul. It is academic faiths that will soon fade away lacking capacity for recall and application. Christians with weak faith are doctrinally ignorant and unable to resist temptation and open to any compromise [Romans 4:19]. TO GROW STRONG IN FAITH requires the positive volition to leave behind the weak faith of carnality and concentrate in studying Bible doctrine diligently, systematically, and progressively avoiding every intermission and barrier that diverts the focus of the soul from Christ. That decision to grow strong begins with an act of volition [Romans 4:20]. TO INCREASE OUR FAITH is to grow in the grace and knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ by means of continuous and progressive learning of Bible doctrine. No amount of prayer and fasting can increase our faith [2 Peter 3:18]. Like the lowly mustard seed, our faith must germinate, grow it roots down –ward before it can bear fruits upward [Luke 17:5-6]. No amount of prayer and fasting, miracles, healing, tongues, and exorcism can add a millimeter to our faith. The people surrounding the life of Christ and the apostles had enough miracles and yet remained unconverted. THE RIGHTEOUS SHALL LIVE BY FAITH is a statement that describes the normal lifestyle of the Christians inside the plan, purpose and will of God. The Word of God possesses such believers and whose principles and viewpoint are dominantly biblically accurate [Romans 1:17, Galatians 3:11]. RIGHTEOUS MEN became strong in their faith gradually –being energize by the Holy Spirit as they move slowly toward spiritual maturity by the grace of God. They utilizes the power of the divine sphere not their own power. They refused to leave the divine sphere and not heeding Satan’s enticement to leave even for a while [Ephesians 3:16, 19]. THE RIGHTEOUS ARE CONCERNED ABOUT HAVING THE FULLNESS OF GOD WHICH COMES BY KNOWING GOD NOT BY WORKING FOR GOD. We come to know God by living within the system in which Jesus Christ lived while on earth. That system is the divine sphere of blessedness [John 1:16]. Only inside the divine sphere we can think His thoughts and develop the same mental attitude that govern His life [1 Corinthians 2:16, Philippians 2:5] His inner dynamics becomes our inner dynamic. His virtues become our virtues. His capacity for life becomes our capacity for life. His happiness becomes our happiness. His integrity becomes our integrity [John 15:11, 16:13-15]. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine ministries
099 - FAITH IN CONFLICT FAITH does not believe without proof of God’s essence. To believe God is to know Him, His purpose, His plan, operation and systems. Faith that is ignorant of God’s essence is presumptuous faith. Faith is not trusting a creature or putting your confidence on man. True confidence is based on God’s essence. A misdirected faith is not faith but human compromise with evil schemes. Faith is not claiming biblical promise and urging God to fulfill it, without knowing His plan and purpose. It is easy to say, “I believe that God will do it” without the confidence on God. Faith is not human capacity coated with our selfishness and arrogance in demanding His intervention for something entirely impossible to settle or resolved. Faith is the divine action of His righteousness and justice. It is not demanding something for our needs and problems. Faith is not what you make to believe or what you like to believe but what is believed [Hebrews 12:2c]. The justice of God provided all Church Age believers with equal privileges and equal opportunity to reach spiritual maturity. The measure of faith is the results of individualized volition to use or not to use divine resources. Only faith (doctrine) can established the spiritual life of the believer individually and collectively (Acts 16:5). No amount of ‘spiritual messages” or spiritual music, tongues, and others can make you grow and move toward spiritual maturity. Your faith can grow exceedingly or remain stagnant - depending on your study of the Word [2 Thessalonians 1:3, James 2:18-17]. THE GOOD FIGHT OF FAITH [1 Timothy 6:12] refers to the battle the Church Age believers have to face while advancing toward spiritual maturity. The battle is about volitional responsibility to study or not to study Bible doctrine –not fighting demons. Our faith is powerless against Satan and his demons. TO DEPART FROM FAITH [1 Timothy 4:1b] is to reject Bible doctrine and to accept the doctrines of demons. To ere from the faith or to wander from the faith is to fill your mind with human viewpoint or satanic viewpoint [1 Timothy 6:10b]. THE SPIRITUAL BATTLEFIELD where each one of us is assigned to fight is the soul, not the planet earth that is why, our soul must be possessed with EPIGNOSIS Bible doctrine. The spiritual warfare that we have to win is right here in our soul- not in some ghostly houses or temple of demons. There is no command for the believers to expel demons from this planet. WE cannot bully Satan with gnosis doctrine in our NOUS. Memorized Scriptural text has no effect on Satan-he has memorized it better than the believers. The truth we learned will establish real convictions and belief. The principles we gained will guide our conduct in the world. The truth will set us free. EPIGNOSIS are permanently stored in the soul, preserved for eternity. If however, remain unused- the Holy Spirit will ask for refresher course that may include preventive suffering. There is no spiritual maturity without the application of EPIGNOSIS to life. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine ministries
100 - FAITH-REST FAITH REST relies on the infinite power, energy and resources of God. It is God’s gracious, matchless, endless provision for believers in time. It is a moment-by-moment Sabbath. Without rest, there is no spiritual power, strength and spiritual capacity to serve God. There is absolutely nothing in the spiritual life with this moment-by-moment rest. It will be a spiritual life without the wonderful shower of blessings. The faith-rest life is characterized by continuous, perpetual faith that believes the promises of God [Hebrews 4:10]. It is signify by diligence in seeking life that is not operating by the energy of the flesh [Hebrews 4:11]. The faith-rest life is characterized by knowing the Word of God, the will of God for man. The believer who is applying faith–rest is allowing the Word of God to inspect his mind, heart and soul. He is willing to take constant examination (testing) by giving the Word of God freedom to judge his thought and life [Hebrews 4:12-13]. The faith-rest life is characterized by being a witness to the world regarding the wonderful grace of God. It is becoming a showcase of divine grace in the world of chasm and chaos [Hebrews 4:12]. It is characterized by series of testing of undeserved suffering, which demands continual trust or confidence in the Lord Jesus Christ. It is life that is learning to depend on God in every area of his life. It is a life that trusts on nobody except God. A life that is totally independent from men and totally dependent on God alone [Hebrews 4:15-16]. FAITH-REST is something we do not earn, we do not deserve, and we do not have the right but because of God’s grace, it is possible. Faith-rest is not an exercise we do in times of crisis or problem, but moment-by-moment exercise. Faith-rest is like a water reservoir that you fill during the rainy days and use during the dry seasons. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine ministries
101 - THREE STAGES OF FAITH REST: STAGE 1: Claim a Biblical promise. The believer stands on the veracity of God’s Word, giving life to the Bible doctrine stored and resident in the soul [Romans 8:28]. STAGE 2: Apply a doctrinal rationale. The believer recalls doctrinal truths to form logical premises, on the basis of God’s essence and character [Romans 8:29-30]. Foreknowledge: God thought about you in the eternity past. Predestination: God designed a plan for you in the eternity past. Election: God chose you for the privileged part of His plan. Justification: God can bless you because you possess His righteousness Glorification: God can bless you forever in heaven. STAGE 3: Reach a doctrinal conclusion and take control of the situation [Romans 8:32-32]. IF GOD IS FOR US, WHO CAN BE AGAINST US IF GOD GAVE US HIS SON, HE WILL ALSO GIVE US ALL THINGS THE Christian key to faith-rest is the appropriation of God’s grace by faith and the utilization of divine problem-solving devices. WAITING UPON THE LORD is synonym with faith-rest. To wait is to continue trusting God until He restores your human strength with divine strength. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine ministries
102 - FAITH VS. WORKS? THE subject of faith is one of the most misinterpreted term in the Bible and the most abuse among the religious. It has different meaning from religion to religion. The main elements in FAITH (PISTIS-pistis) in its relation to the invisible God as distinct from human faith are especially brought out in the use of this Greek noun and corresponding and verb PISTEUO (pisteo) are:
All this stands in contrast to belief in its purely natural exercise, which consists of an opinion held without necessary reference to its proof. The object of Abraham’s faith was not on God’s promise (that was the occasion of its reference) but rested on God Who made the promise [Romans 4:17-21]. Faith is non-meritorious and has no power of its own. The power is on God the object of our faith. Faith for example does not rest on the wooden cross-used by Christ, not on the dead person but on the Living Person [Romans 3:25]. LITTLE FAITH, literally “little of faith” (OLIGOPISTOS-oligopistos) is used only by the Lord as a tender rebuke for anxiety of those who refused to accept and believe Him. GENUINE FAITH has 4 elements:
A DEAD FAITH is purely academic knowledge of God, religious not biblical in context and without reality. Dead faith is futile and handicap to bring the reality of salvation [James 2:14]. Dead faith is not faith at all. A MAN IS JUSTIFIED BY WORKS, AND NOT BY FAITH ALONE refers to several doctrinal truths [James 2:24]. Paul in his epistle to Romans had in mind Abraham’s attitude toward God-his acceptance of God’s Word. Paul used the event in Abraham’s life recorded in Genesis 15, James that in Genesis 22. Paul focus on BELIEVED [Genesis 15:6] and James on OBEYED [Genesis 22:18]. Paul was dealing with genuine faith while James was talking about dead faith [James 2:14, 17, 20], that kind of faith that cannot save. For Paul faith is the acceptance of God’s Word (the whole doctrine), with James it is the acceptance of the truth (certain statements about God), which may fail to affect one’s conduct. With Paul results in acceptance with God, that is justification. With Paul, works are dead works (human good works). With James they are life works (divine good works). With regards to justification, Paul is occupied with right relationship with God, James with right conduct. Paul testifies that the ungodly can be justified by faith; James testifies that only the doer of God’s Word is justified. To dispute that salvation is by faith plus works and use the words of James is very appropriate for some cults because they already warranted their condemnation to hell. The “faith” of James cannot save anyone unless it shows it works. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine ministries 101 - THE DIVINE DECREE The decrees of God are His eternal, unchangeable, holy, wise, and sovereign purpose, comprehending at once all things that ever were or will be in their causes, conditions, successions, and relations, and determining their certain futurity. The several contents of this one eternal purpose, because of the limitation of our faculties, necessarily conceived of by us in partial aspects, and in logical relations, and are therefore called Decrees. The decree being the act of an infinite, absolute, eternal, unchangeable, and sovereign Person, comprehending a plan including all His works of all kinds, great and small, from the beginning of creation to an unending eternity; ends as well as means, causes as well as effects, conditions and instrumentalities as well as the events which depend upon them, must be incomprehensible by the finite intellect of man. The decrees are eternal (Acts 15: 18; Ephesians 1:4; 2 Thessalonians 2:13), unchangeable (Psalms 33:11; Isaiah 46:9), and comprehend all things that come to pass (Ephesians 1:11; Matthew 10:29, 30; Ephesians 2:10; Acts 2:23; 4:27, 28; Psalm 17:13, 14). The decrees of God are: Efficacious, as they respect those events He has determined to bring about by His own immediate agency; or Permissive, as they respect those events He has determined that free agents shall be permitted by Him to effect. This doctrine ought to produce in our minds "humility, in view of the infinite greatness and sovereignty of God, and of the dependence of man; confidence and implicit reliance upon wisdom, righteousness, goodness, and immutability of God's purpose. God's decree is a theological term for the comprehensive plan for the world and its history, which the sovereignty of God established in eternity. Paul refers to "the plan of Him who works out everything in conformity with His will (Ephesians 1:11). The decrees of God are His eternal purpose, according to the counsel of His will, whereby, for His own glory, He hath foreordained whatsoever comes to pass. The decree of God is His eternal and immutable will related to the future existence of events, which will happen in time and regarding the precise order and manner of their occurrence. Under the divine decree, the will of God refers to God’s decision, which He has made in the eternity past from His attribute of sovereignty, which established that certain things would actually come into being while other things would not. This is His sovereign choice as to what will take place in time. Nothing can exist apart from His decision to make it exist. Many things that occur are results of angelic or human free will acting contrary to God’s desires. God nevertheless decided or willed that these things would take place. Thus He makes our volition truly free. Divine decree has rendered all things as certain to occur, He decided that they would exist. Because God decreed that we would have free will, He also decreed that all of our decisions-whatever they might be, would certainly take place even those contrary to His desires. The divine decrees are the eternal plan of God by which God has rendered certain all of the events of the universe both human and angelic history. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries
102 - THE PURPOSE OF THE DIVINE DECREE God knows everything that is knowable and there is nothing that He needs to know- He knew ahead of time precisely what would exist but He also decreed the exact manner, consistent with His integrity, in which He would handle our decisions. God knew exactly every decisions we are to make during our entire lifespan-He knew every error and bad decisions but He will never intervene with our decisions whether bad or good. The divine decree is the chosen and adopted plan of all God’s works it is God’s eternal purpose, according to the counsels of His own will, whereby for His own glory He has foreordained whatever comes to pass. There are no points of similarity between God's decree and the decrees of human rulers, but there are important differences that are distinct. We have to distinguish God's will of decree from the will of precept; a closer parallel exists between God's will of precept and human decrees. THE WILL OF PRECEPTS refers to the commands and laws that God sets for his creatures, commands which call for obedience but which are often transgressed. THE WILL OF DECREE, on the other hand, refers to the eternal, perfect, all-comprehensive, unchangeable, and efficacious plan of God, which is carried out in history. The decree of God is the sovereign choice of the divine will (God’s sovereignty) and mentality (God’s omniscience) by which all things are brought into being and controlled-made subject to His pleasure and producing His glorification (Isaiah 46:10). The Trinity pre-existed everything and every creature. No one is above God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. No one originated God for God has no origin. HUMAN DECREES (like those of Darius's order to worship the image (Daniel 6:7-12), Cyprus's command to rebuild the temple (Ezra 5:13), and Caesar's decree for a census (Luke 2:1; Acts 17:7) are not similar to divine decrees. "Decree" (dogma) is also used for the decisions of the Jerusalem Council (Acts 16:4) as well as for various Jewish legal regulations, ordinances, or rules (Ephesians 2:15; Colossians 2:14-15). Similar terms are used for God's decree against the king of Babylon (Daniel 4:24), for His decree concerning rain and the sea (Job 28:26; Proverbs 8:29), and for His laws governing human life (Psalms 119:5, 8, 12). There are also instances where God's decree refers to His regulations issued in history (Exodus 15:25; Romans 1:32). Sometimes it is difficult to distinguish a decree that is the historical revelation, which is part of God's eternal plan from a regulation or order of God's in history that does not specifically refer to the eternal decree (see Psalm 2:7). The discussion of God's decree is generally restricted to the eternal plan established before the creation of the world. In contrast to every human ruler, God has always existed. He existed before He created the world, and His decree or eternal plan was established before the creation. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries
103 - THE DIVINE DECREE AND NEGATIVE VOLITION The elect were chosen "before the creation of the world" (Ephesians 1:4; Hebrews 4:3; I Peter 1:20; 2 Timothy 1:9; I Corinthians 2:7; Ephesians 3:11). We are not chosen based on our righteousness because God chose us before we were born. The relation of eternity and time, of divine sovereignty and human responsibility, makes human understanding of God's eternal decree very difficult. Several important distinctions are helpful. The decree is not eternal in exactly the same sense that God is eternal. God created and designed the divine decree in relationship to angels and human beings. The decree results from the free, sovereign will of God; it must be distinguished therefore from the necessary acts of God within the divine Trinity. The decree of God must also be distinguished from its execution in history. The decree to create is not the actual creation of the world "in the beginning" (Genesis 1:1). The decree to send Jesus Christ is not carried out until Jesus was born of Mary in the days of Caesar Augustus (Luke 2:1-7). When human agents are used in carrying out God's decree. Some decreed events occur by God's direct agency, as creation, regeneration, and the first and second comings of Jesus Christ. Other decreed events are carried out in history through human agency; sometimes they occur through obedient human agents who live according to God's law, the will of precept. Sometimes the decree is fulfilled through sinful, disobedient human action, as in the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. The complex issues involved in the relation of divine sovereignty and human responsibility or irresponsibility in carrying out the eternal decree becomes clearer when one examines scriptural references to the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. The eternal, divine decree clearly lies behind the cross of Christ. Before His death Jesus indicated that "the Son of man will go as it has been decreed" (Luke 22:22), and Peter told his Pentecost audience that Jesus of Nazareth "was handed over to you by God's set purpose and foreknowledge (Acts 2:23). The crucifixion was the most heinous crime of human history; the crucifiers transgressed God's commandments, his will of precept [Acts 4:27-28]. The above-mentioned text also refers to the sin of those taking part in the crucifixion: Judas, Herod, Pilate, the Gentiles, and Israel. The crucifixion was part of God's eternal decree, and sinful human action was involved; but the guilt of such action is not minimized even when it functions as means to effectuate God's decree. Reflection on this crucial event of redemptive history is helpful since so many of the complex issues involved in understanding the relations of God's decree and human history are involved. Scriptural references to God's decree are generally set forth in concrete relation to historical situations for the purpose of promoting comfort, security, assurance, and trust. The Lord foils the plans of the nations and thwarts the purposes of the peoples; but the plans of the Lord stands firm forever. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries
104 - THE DIVINE DECREE IS NOT A SECRET The purpose of God’s heart through all generations is clearly revealed (Psalms 33:10-11). Many are the plans in a man's heart, but it is the Lord's purpose that prevails (Proverbs 19:21). The decree of God is largely secret and unrevealed but only to the unbelievers and ignorant believers they have no awareness of God's decree. Biblical prophecy reveals key features of God's eternal plan. The first such prophesy was the promise of a Deliverer from the seed of the woman (Genesis 3:15), which runs throughout the entire Scripture. Isaiah frequently refers to God's decree and contrasts Yahweh with the idols; He makes "known the end from the beginning, from ancient times, what is still to come," and His "purpose will stand" (Isaiah 14: 24-27) Some portion of God's decree, have not yet carried out in history but only revealed by prophecy, yet provides the basis for the Christian's hope for the second coming of Jesus Christ in glory, for the consummation of God's kingdom, and for life everlasting in the new heaven and the new earth. The divine decree is not inconsistent with human freedom and significant human history every individual is totally responsible for his own life because he alone creates his own history. Divine decree is not limited to foreknowledge of future events and God cannot compromise with human initiative and cooperation. The perfect foreknowledge of God is related and limited only to believers. Traditional objections to divine decree are:It is inconsistent with human free will or volition
The illustration of Christ’s crucifixion provides an answer to such objections. Failure to distinguish the will of decree and the complex ways of its execution, may lead to fatalistic or deterministic concepts of God's decree. Then humans are considered robots and history is viewed as a programmed computer. The importance of history is promoted, at least in part, by the secret, unrevealed nature of God's decree and His demand that our lives be governed by such revealed commands. Adam's fall and Christ's crucifixion were included in God's decree He did not force the outcome. Humans acted freely but irresponsibly; they did precisely what God commanded them not to do. The divine decree or God’s will for the believers are all written in the pages of the Scripture but the blind cannot find them. The teaching of the Bible is secret only for those without spiritual eyes (that provides spiritual capacity to see Christ in the pages of Scripture using the eyes of their souls) [Ephesians 1:17-18]. This is called spiritual perception it is more than illumination. Under the divine decree, the doctrine of illumination relates to that ministry of the Holy Spirit that helps the believer understand the truth of Scripture. In relation to the Bible, the divine revelation relates to the unveiling of truth from the Scriptures. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries
105 - DIVINE ELECTION Divine inspiration concerns the method by which the Holy Spirit superintended the writing of Scripture; and illumination refers to the ministry of the Spirit by which the meaning of Scripture is made clear to the believer. The unregenerate man cannot experience this illuminating ministry, for he is blinded to the truth of God (I Corinthians 2:14). The Lord promised His followers that when the Spirit came on the day of Pentecost He would lead them into the truth (John 16:13-16), and this includes understanding the deep things of God (I Corinthians 2:9-10). However, such understanding is not without conditions. The believer must himself be maturing and in fellowship with the Lord to experience this full perception of truth, for carnality in his life will hinder the ministry of the Spirit (I Corinthians 3:1-3). He also would expect to benefit from the Spirit ministering through others who have the gift of teaching (Romans 12:6-7), and such ministry can be experienced orally or through the printed page or various other media of Bible doctrine. But ultimately it is the Spirit who is the direct connection between the mind of God as revealed in the Scriptures and the mind of the believer seeking to understand the Scriptures. The Scripture speaks of election of grace which refers to: The election of individuals to office or to honor and privilege like, Abraham, Jacob, Saul, David, Solomon, were all chosen by God for the positions they held; so also were the apostles. There is also an election of nations to special privileges, that is, the Hebrews or Israel [Deuteronomy 7:6, Romans9:4). The election of individuals to eternal life (2 Thessalonians 2:13; Ephesians 1:4; 1 Peter 1:2; John 13:18) the ground of this election to salvation is the good pleasure of God (Ephesians 1:5, 11; Matthew 11:25, 26; John 15:16, 19) not the good works of the individual. God claims the right to do so (Romans 9:16, 21). It is not conditioned on faith or repentance, but is of sovereign grace (Romans 11:4-6; Ephesians 1:3-6). All that pertain to salvation, the means (Ephesians 2:8) as well as the end, are of God (Acts 5:31; 2 Timothy 2:25; 1 Corinthians 1:30; Ephesians 2:5, 10). Faith and repentance and all other graces are the exercises of a regenerated soul; and regeneration is God's work, a "new creature." Men are elected "to salvation," "to the adoption of sons," "to be holy and without blame before Him in love" (2 Thessalonians 2:13; Galatians 4:4, 5; Ephesians 1:4). The ultimate end of election is the praise of God's grace (Ephesians 1:6, 12). The Scripture employs a very rich vocabulary to express several aspects of election. Five types of election call for distinction. First: The elections of angels (1 Timothy 5:21; 1 Corinthians 6:3; 2 Peter 2:4; Jude 6) as elect servants of the Lord. Election to service is evident in God's sovereign choice of David as Israel's king (1 Samuel 16:7-12) and in Jesus' choosing of the disciples and apostles (Luke 6:13; John 6:70; 15:16; Acts 9:15; 15:7). The election of Abraham's descendants to form the theocratic nation of Israel (Deuteronomy 4:37; 7:6-7; 10:15; 1 Kings 3:8; Isaiah 44:1-2; 45:4; 65:9, 15, 22; Amos 3:2; Acts 13:17; Romans 9:1-5) J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries
106 - THE DIVINE DECREE AND DIVINE ELECTION The election of Israel originated in God's sovereign choice, expressed His covenantal love, and served the goal of redemptive history culminating in Jesus Christ. The election of the Messiah is a fourth type of election. Isaiah referred to the servant of the Lord as "my chosen one" (42:1 Matthew 12:18). Of the Synoptic only Luke refers to Jesus as the Chosen One (9:35; 23:35). Peter echoes another Isaiah reference (28:16) in 1 Peter 1:20 and 2:4, 6. These references indicate the unique mediator-ship office of Christ and the Father's pleasure in Him. The election to salvation, with which the rest of this article is concerned, the most common NT reference to election is God's eternal election of certain persons to salvation in Jesus Christ. The subject is dealt with comprehensively in Ephesians 1:3-11 and Romans 8:28-11:36. The whole doctrine of election is summarized in Ephesians chapter one. Election unto salvation is then defined as the unchangeable purpose of God before the foundation of the world, out of the whole human race, which had fallen by its own fault out of its original integrity into sin and ruin. God has, according to the good pleasure of His will, out of mere grace, chosen in Christ to salvation a certain number of specific men, neither better nor more worthy than other, but with them involved in a common misery (1.7). God out of His most free, most just, blameless, and unchangeable good pleasure has decreed to leave in the common misery into which they have by their own fault plunged themselves, and not to give them saving faith and the grace of conversion and "finally to condemn and punish them eternally" NOT for their sins (1.15) but for rejecting His plan of grace. Predestination thus includes election and reprobation, and reprobation involves both a sovereign passing by (preterit ion) and a just condemnation. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries
107 - PRINCIPLES OF ELECTION Election is a sovereign, eternal decree of God. The elect have been predestined according to the plan of Him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of His will (Ephesians 1:11). God chose us in Christ "before the creation of the world" (Ephesians 1:4). God's sovereign decree is not arbitrary; "in love He predestined us... in accordance with His pleasure and will (Ephesians 1:5; Romans 8:29). The presupposition of God's eternal decree of election is that the human race is fallen; election involves God's gracious rescue plan. It is not based on human works or God's foreknowledge of works (Romans 9:11). The elect are chosen to be holy and blameless in His sight"; they are adopted as His sons through Jesus Christ" (Ephesians 1:4-7). Hence election leads to "redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins. The same perspective is evident in Romans, for those whom "God foreknew He also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of His Son" (8:29). The presupposition is that they are fallen, and hence God's predestination includes calling, justification, and glorification. This presupposition, that the fallen race is the object of predestination. Election is "election in Christ"; election involves rescue from sin and guilt and receiving the gracious gifts of salvation. Election in Christ is evident in the words already quoted from Ephesians 1:4-5, 11, and Romans 8:29. Christ is not merely a subsequent means to effectuate a decree of election; election is in Christ and through Christ. God the Father decreed to give to Christ those who were to be saved, and effectually to call and draw them into His fellowship through His word and Spirit" (I.7). Thus God's election is in Christ, and Christ is both the foundation of election and the foundation of salvation. Election involves both the elect's salvation and the means to that end. This is already evident in the repeated references to election in Christ, but it is made even more specific. God chose the elect to be holy and blameless in His sight to be adopted as His sons. “Just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before Him. In love He predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the kind intention of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, which He freely bestowed on us in the Beloved. In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace, which He lavished upon us. In all wisdom and insight He made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His kind intention which He purposed in Him.” [Ephesians 1:4-9] For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the first-born among many brethren; and whom He predestined, these He also called; and whom He called, these He also justified; and whom He justified, these He also glorified [Romans 8:29-39]. God chose the elect "to be saved through the sanctifying work of the Spirit and through belief in the truth" (2 Thessalonians 2:13). Hence the preaching of the Gospel is indispensable in effecting God's election (Romans 10:14-17; Acts 18:9-11). The salvation of the elect has its decretive origin before time, is realized through means in history, and culminates in eternal glorification. God decreed to give them true faith in Him, to justify them, to sanctify them, and, after having powerfully kept them in the fellowship of His Son, finally to glorify them, for the demonstration of His mercy and the praise of the riches of His glorious grace" (I.7). This feature of election negates the objection that if one is elect, one will be saved regardless of whether or not one believes. It also excludes the objection that election leads to a libertine spirit; unbelief and careless living are inconsistent with the scriptural doctrine of election. Election is individual, personal, specific, and particular. Ephesians refers repeatedly to "us" and "we" in connection with election (1:4-5, 12). In Romans, Paul refers to "those" whom God foreknew, predestined, called, justified, and glorified (8:29-30). Romans 9 indicate that personal election unto salvation was operative within the election of Israel. Paul states that "not all who are descended from Israel are Israel" (9:6, 8) and he shows that "God's purpose in election" distinguished between Isaac and Ishmael, between Jacob and Esau (9:7, 11-13). This is also the implication of the expressions in John 6:37-40; 10:14-16, 26-29; 17:2, 6, 9, and 24. Particularly, personal election leads to the believer's comfort and does not promote carelessness or false confidence. The ultimate goal of election is the glory and praise of God. Election to salvation involves personal privilege, blessing, security, and comfort for the elect. But Scripture makes clear that it is "to the praise of His glorious grace" that everything leads (Ephesians 1:6). The elect have been chosen and predestined "in order that we ... might be for the praise of His glory" (Ephesians 1:12). God's goal is "to bring all things in heaven and on earth together under one head, even Christ" (Ephesians 1:10; I Peter 1:1; 2:9; Matthew 13:27-30; 24:31). J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries
108 - THE SOVEREIGNTY OF GOD The sovereignty of God refers to His absolute right to do all things according to His own good pleasure (Daniel 4:25, 35; Romans 9:15-23; 1 Timothy 6:15; Revelation 4:11). The sovereignty of God is the biblical teaching that God is King, supreme ruler, and lawgiver of the entire universe. God "has established His throne in heaven, and His kingdom rules over all" (Psalm 103:19). As the "Most High," God is "sovereign over the kingdoms of men and gives them to anyone He wishes" (Daniel 4:17, 25, 34; 5:21; 7:14). Israel's King David acknowledges "the greatness and the power and the glory and the majesty and the splendor" of God "for everything in heaven and earth" is His (I Chronicles 29:11). This prayerful acknowledgment of God's sovereignty is echoed in the conclusion of the disciples’ prayer: "for yours is the kingdom, and the power and the glory forever" (Matthew 6:13). God is indeed the "only Ruler, the King of Kings and Lord of lords" (I Timothy 6:15; and Revelation 19:16). The sovereignty of God thus expresses the very nature of God as all-powerful and omnipotent, able to accomplish His good pleasure, carry out His decreed will, and keep His promises. Several divine names express God's sovereignty. He is called "God Most High" (Genesis 14:18-20), "God almighty" (17:1; Exodus 6:2), "Sovereign Lord" (Gen. 15:2), and "Lord God Almighty" (Revelation 1:8). "Sovereign Lord" or "Master" in Luke 2:29; Acts 4:24; 2 Peter 2:1; Jude 4; and Revelation 6:10. God's sovereignty is expressed in the comprehensive plan or decree for human history; He "works out everything in conformity with the purpose of His will" (Ephesians 1:11). His sovereignty is exercised and displayed in history in the work of creation, providence, and redemption. The "Sovereign Lord" has "made the heavens and the earth" and "nothing is too hard" for Him (Jeremiah 32:17-23), indeed, "all things are possible with God" (Mark 10:27; 14:35; Luke 1:37). The sovereignty God upholds and governs the created world in His providence. He rules the destiny of men and nations (Acts 14:15-17; 17:24-28). Adam's fall occurred within the context of His arrangement (Genesis 2:16-17) as did Christ's crucifixion (Acts 2:23; 4:27-28) and all other events- His providential rule is all-comprehensive- "I form the light and create darkness, I bring prosperity and create disaster; I, the Lord, do all these things (Isaiah 45:7; Ephesians 1:11). The gracious work of redemption also manifests God's sovereignty. He promises, covenants, and works redemptive history. The Messiah is Himself "Mighty God" (Isaiah 9:6-7), "the Son of the Most High" whose "kingdom will never end" (Luke 1:33). J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries
109 - DIVINE DECREE AND THE SOVEREIGNTY OF GOD From the beginning of His public ministry to its end Jesus Christ's message concerns "the kingdom of God" (Mark 1:15; Acts 1:3). After the resurrection Christ claims "all authority in heaven and earth" (Matthew 28:18), and the ascended Christ is exalted "far above all rule and authority, power, and dominion" (Ephesians 1:19-21; Philippians 2:9-11; I Corinthians 15:24-28; Revelation 5:9-14). Hence the earliest Christian confession was simply: "Jesus is Lord" (Romans 10:9). The gospel itself displays God's sovereignty; it is "the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes" (Romans 1:16), and "to those whom God has called" Christ is "the power of God" (I Corinthians 1:24; Ephesians 1:18-22). The authority of Scripture is also an expression of the sovereignty of God since all Scripture is "God-breathed" (2 Timothy 3:16). That is why "the Scripture cannot be broken" (John 10:35) and the very reason everything in it will be fulfilled and accomplished (Matthew 5:18; Luke 24:44). The "sovereignty" of God is one of the transmissible attributes; "sovereignty" expresses an inherent characteristic of God, and a distinction is sometimes made between "sovereign will" and "sovereign power." God's sovereign will and power are not arbitrary, despotic, or deterministic; His sovereignty is characterized by His justice and holiness as well as by His other attributes. Divine sovereignty and human responsibility are paradoxical and beyond human comprehension. Divine sovereignty and human sovereignty are certainly contradictory, but divine sovereignty and human responsibility are not. God uses human means in history to accomplish His purposes, yet such means do not involve coercion. God effectuates His will even through sinful, disobedient human actions (Genesis 45:5, 7-8; 50:19-20). The crucifixion of Jesus Christ, certainly the most heinous crime in history, occurred within the boundaries of "the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God," for the crucifiers did what God's "power and will” had decided beforehand what should happen (John 19:11). The Christian who is being renewed in the image of God and progressing in sanctification should again exercise dominion over creation as God's vicegerent in promoting the kingdom of God in human history to the glory of the Sovereign Lord (Genesis 1:28). Volitional responsibility is the relation to a free moral agent has to a decision or act for which the agent is answerable, accountable, or personally responsible. The counterpart to responsibility is negative volition, which is the decision, or act is chargeable, attributable, or imputable to the agent. Assumed here in both cases are a law imposing an obligation and a sanction enforcing the obligation. A sanction is a promise of reward and the threat of punishment. The lawbreaker deserves the punishment, and the law keeper is entitled to the reward because of merit, or the right of payment. Responsibility and culpability, are particularly concerned with the extent to which a decision or act owes its origin to an agent's will guided by reason. Responsibility for a bad act is called guilt. There is no corresponding designation of responsibility for a good act. This is probably accounted for by the fact that responsibility is more often associated with acts of wrongdoing than right doing. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries
110 - VOLITIONAL RESPONSIBILITY A related concept is justice, the measure of merit. Justice stems from the idea of equality between two persons having some agreement, understanding, or contract between them. If one party fails to keep the agreement, then he or she upsets the equality, thereby owing compensation to the other party. The person keeping the agreement has something due him or her. Justice is served when the offending party pays the offended party whatever is deserved or merited, that is, whatever is considered to reestablish the state of equality. From the standpoint of the offended party the compensation merited is regarded as a reward. From the standpoint of the offending party the compensation that is owed is seen as a punishment. Moving beyond the limits of the simple contract situation into the broader context of moral responsibility in general, we find that punishment has several functions, since more than an individual is usually offended by an act of wrongdoing. That act may be a crime against the group or the state. It may also be a sin against God. Retributive punishment serves the offended person by getting back at the offender and restoring the balance which justice demands. Corrective or rehabilitative punishment serves the offender by bringing him or her back to the place of equality with the rest of the group or society. Preventive or deterrent punishment serves the group or society by forestalling future wrongdoing of the type committed. Vindictive punishment serves the law and the lawgiver, both human and divine, by putting down one who has flouted the very ideas of law, equality, and justice. By so doing, that person has offended the holiness and justice of God Himself. Although responsibility is being treated here as a moral phenomenon, we have reflected the biblical approach by looking at it from the standpoint of some of the concerns of legal responsibility. A study of legal responsibility as such would lead into such topics as an offender's intentions, strict liability, and criminal insanity. Instead we shall focus on a concept, which is central to moral responsibility as such, namely, the concept of freedom. Some does not hold responsible for a decision or act claiming that man’s will is not free; hence for them there is no such thing as moral responsibility but man possesses free will. They blame such factors as the person’s heredity, social background, mental history, character and environment. Another condition necessary for moral responsibility is knowledge of what is expected of one. A person who is ignorant of a rule or law is either not held responsible or is thought to have a reduced degree of responsibility, as long as he or she did not willfully bring about that ignorance. However, ignorance of the law and regulations excuses no one. Certainly in Scripture, but also in general usage, responsibility extends to the family, to larger groupings up to a nation, to groups of nations, and to even the entire human race. But the primary focus of responsibility is a person who can be held accountable, an agent who has the power or ability to make decisions and act on them intentionally. One act intentionally when one does something for a reason, that is, because of one's beliefs and desires. This is why God is said to judge "the thoughts and intents of the heart." Specific biblical teachings relative to human volition and responsibility will be discussed separately in this book. Because God holds every human being responsible for the sin of the first human being (Romans 5:12), He gave us, free will volition. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries
111 - HUMAN VOLITION God's giving of the law through Moses created a much greater sense of responsibility in Israel (Romans 7:7). The rest of the human race is NOT less responsible, however, for "when they do by nature the things contained in the law... [they] show the work of the law written in their hearts" (Romans 2:14-15). Volition is the free will decision of the soul (not of the brain) toward God and His Bible doctrine. Positive volition is a good decision toward God and His Bible doctrine. It is decision inside the spiritual life from position of strength (spirituality). It operates in knowledge or cognizance of Bible doctrine and acceptance of God’s plan of grace. Negative volition is the bad decision against God or against His Bible doctrine from position of weakness. It operates in ignorance or rejection of God’s plan of grace and the Person of Jesus Christ. Whether or not a person knew a particular thought, or act as wrong, he did it because he wanted to do it [James 1:13-15]. It is foolishness to remain passive and naïve to the correlation between our decision and misery in life. The human free will is always the cause of miseries. Nobody is exempted from making bad decisions. No matter how smart and genius we are-someone can always deceive us. Despite our human wisdom and experience we will remain unprotected from our own bad decision because we have subjectivity and sentimentality that can distort and divert our thinking. Both human intelligence and our subjectivity cannot guarantee our soul from making bad decisions. Even the previous experiences both in the world and in the Christian life afford very little help. No great adviser with his good advices can keep us from making bad decisions and doing the foolish things that we set our minds on doing. We hate to suffer and of-course we do not like suffering the miseries that we brought upon ourselves through bad decisions that we made. And nobody wants to admit that his bad decisions brought his own calamities. We use our negative volition to make bad decisions that triggers self-induced miseries or divine discipline. Seldom has the believer suffered alone from his bad decisions- in most cases, the immediate victims are the family members. One bad decision could bring suffering to many – take the example of the first Adam. If not by one’s own volition, suffering results from someone else’s negative volition. We seldom suffer alone from our negative volition. Suffering for negative volition and suffering for personal sins are not the same thing. The believer is disciplined for his own personal sins and in many cases suffers alone. A bad decision from negative volition does not only results to personal self-made miseries but extends to the whole family, community or even to the entire nation. In the world, the innocent suffer with the guilty (the person who made the bad decisions). Innocent or guilty, each believer must apply the divine solutions available in the divine sphere through his good decision from position of strength. The believers are not excused from making bad decisions and never excuse for failure in using the divine solutions in solving human problems. We have no immunity to fail but we have no immunity not to overcome our failure. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries
112 - NEGATIVE VOLITION AND MISERIES IN THE WORLD Bad decisions limit future options. Believers and unbelievers do stupid things that divorce then from reality and blame others for the effects of their negative volition. God is rational and He reveals Himself to the teachable, humble, willing to obey and with positive volition believers. Under arrogance complex, the negative volition people ignore God through preoccupation with self (old sinful nature). Under hatred complex, the negative volition people attack God, His plan of grace, and Bible doctrine. An unbeliever who adheres to the divine establishment but then reacts with negative volition will begin to oppose the very truth they formerly believed. That is why, people who rejected the Gospel of Christ also rejected the correct principles of divine establishments- their last spiritual state is worse than the former volition [2 Peter 2:20]. Each rejection of truth by believer or unbeliever intensifies negative volition until the individual has locked himself into extreme antagonism toward God [Exodus 9:34-35]. Each rejection of truth from negative volition adds miseries that affect the lives of the individual concerned and the life of the people surrounding him. Every individual manufactures self-made miseries through negative volition expresses by bad decisions that are contrary to the will, plan and purpose of God. Human negative volition is the cause of human miseries and tragedies. We create our own miseries and problems that divert us away from God. When by your negative volition, you embrace satanic ideas or viewpoint, You become your own enemy. You accept demonic doctrines because your volition operates without truth of the Bible (Bible doctrine)- your soul is empty of God’s Word. This condition is called “vacuum in the soul” and will results to hardening of the soul. When negative volition succeeds in creating vacuum in the soul, the rejection of God’s Word becomes automatic and morally accepted for the person involved. When you reject Bible doctrine, you open yourself to receive satanic doctrine willfully and progressively. Satanic doctrine is the destructive substitute for doctrine. When human negative volition presents any opportunity, Satan seizes the initiative for evil viewpoint (human and satanic doctrine) to infiltrate the soul until he can no longer make good decisions. Very severe darkness from spiritual blindness will black out his soul until he develops hardening of the heart [2 Corinthians 4:3-4, Exodus 7:22, 9:34]. Negative volition can be a subtle detour from the truth of the Bible – a major distraction to spiritual growth and maturity. Because, unknowingly or deliberately, you fall victim to satanic influence by your own volition, you choose to submit to the spirit working among the children of disobedience (those with negative volition) Eph 2:2) Through our active or passive consent, you create an opening for demonic doctrines to enter your soul. Bible doctrine is objective reality –not just subjective. Arrogance distorts all truth. If a person indulges in arrogance, he loses all objectivity and distorts God’s Word. God is logical not illogical therefore, knowledge of the truth (Bible doctrine) is the only environment of genuine thought. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries
113 - THE DANGERS OF NEGATIVE VOLITION This doctrine explains how and why, a carnal and reversionistic believer refuses to give his precious time and concentrate on Bible doctrine - but instead focus on himself. The reversionistic people always over think about himself – exalting himself above the others this is called illusions or daydreaming. Negative volition is a condition of the soul, unseen by human eyes but discernable by the power of the Holy Spirit. Some may not openly reject the truth but are negative because they think only in terms of self –that is, their old sinful nature. Satan can lure the growing believer into arrogance or hatred complexes so that they can attain cosmic strength instead of spiritual strength. Cosmic strength cannot sustain anybody for it has nothing except pseudo strength. The believer will become entangled in self-righteousness-bounded in hatred thrown into the pit of rebellion. The believer will become hypersensitive to suffering, subjectivity, vacillating, and demanding time or attention from others, always seeking sympathy and approbation. You alone can convert negative volition into positive volition, in the same way; you alone can convert negative volition into temptation and temptation into sin. No amount of counseling can help, no amount of advise will avail, no amount of encouragement can change the situation. Only your volition has the key to change the course of history. As a believer, you sustain your spiritual advancement through daily decisions to learn and apply Bible doctrine. You manifest the Bible doctrine resident in your soul through spiritual growth and advancement toward maturity. In opposition to God’s plan, Satan uses and administers his own power system (the cosmic system) to prevent, divert, impede or reverse our spiritual growth and momentum. Of course, God allows Satan intervention because He saw our respond toward satanic viewpoint before the creation the world. What happened and what is happening is included in the divine decree. The foreknowledge of God determined what is going to occur based on human free will or volition. Each believer must decide to exercise his positive volition in applying Bible doctrine. We use our volition to get out of the divine sphere and we us our volition to stay for good. Since volition is the guardian of the soul, we must decide not to allow the inside double agent (the OSN) to take control of the soul. As an essential part of giving mankind free will, God allows human volition enough free leashes to be genuinely free. At any time, a generation can respond with positive volition to the Gospel and Bible doctrine heading off national catastrophe. The only factor that stands between the Philippines (or any nation) and maximum divine discipline is the positive volition of genuine believers. God will bless any nation only if there is strong pivot of mature believers to be recipients of His super- grace blessing in time. Blessing is more difficult for God to bestow when the believer’s volition is involved, but that is exactly what God has achieved by creating the divine protocol plan. The believer with positive volition gains strength by using Bible doctrine and by exercising his own soul by inculcating the very thinking pattern of Christ’s humanity in the midst of underserved sufferings and using God’s resources in solving human problems [1 Corinthians 2:16]. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries
114 - POSITIVE VOLITION Genuine spiritual exercise does not involve the performing or observing supernatural events like miracles. The positive volition is not human good works, not a system of human good or human powers but a mental attitude that freed God to freely bless the mature believer in time. Rational thinking is the essential human activity that distinguishes man from animals. Man was created with a soul capable of rational thought. For that reason, the mentality of the soul is the battlefield of the angelic conflict. Man uses his free will to decide the state of his mentality. When the believer thinks evil, he is evil who resides in Satan’s cosmic system and must use his positive volition to get out and go back to spirituality. Spiritual advancement is manifested basically by the believer’s ability to rebound immediately after falling into sin and to continue moving toward his goal of spiritual maturity no matter how complicated his life maybe. The free will decisions of the believer to rebound and his positive volition must take its form in aggressive action and persistent accumulation of Bible doctrine and the utilization of the divine resources or problem solving- devices. This steadiness of purpose is vital in reaching spiritual maturity. Positive volition is the only key that unlocks multiple blessings. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries
INEQUALITY AND POSITIVE VOLITION Man was never designed to be equal we are born unequal and human free will assures further inequality. The more decisions people makes the more unequal they become. Freedom and equality can never co-exist. God’s protection of freedom guarantees that inequality will be a perpetual historical trend. Never in the history of mankind can equality be achieved. Equality in human history is impossible because of two reasons: First-because God has designated human volition to be the key issue in the angelic conflict. Second –because Satan, the god of this world gives preferential treatment to his servants, the unbelievers. Both God’s perfect justice and Satan’s injustice assure human inequality in all dispensations. We are born unequal and the very fact God perpetuates our lives after birth means that we are also born with opportunities. Our great opportunity lies in the fact that we are possessors of eternal life and the perfect righteousness of God. Each individual is given the chance to succeed or fail, but even in success or failure inequality truly exists. No two people succeed to the same degree and no two people equally fail in the same degree. Inequality is not detrimental in itself. Inequality is distorted into a problem by the arrogance of resenting inequality, by self pity or refusal to face reality and our very own inability to explore the opportunities of one’s own capacity in a particular realm. No two persons are alike and the same. Man is designed and designated to shape by his own volition. The proper use and application of human volition makes freedom and genuine happiness a reality. The careless and unwise use of volition enslaves a person to details of life. Despite any limitations in circumstances, talent, mentality, health, appearance or any other outward factors and because man has soul- therefore, the realization of his life’s potentialities comes from human free will or volition not from fate or luck. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries
116 - VOLITION AND THE HERITAGE OF FREEDOM Freedom is the most valuable possession of human beings. Human freedom is the heritage of human birth the extension of the volition of the soul as the UNCAUSED CAUSE of man’s thought and action. Freedom is self-determination, the function of the free will, never forced by threat, violence, not determined by environment, society or genetics manipulation. In the sphere of freedom, the Lord Jesus Christ freed us to receive salvation and to advance in the divine sphere [Galatians 3:13, 5:1]. Freedom is the hope of the new birth (regeneration), which provides access to the believer to the love complex the realm of spiritual freedom [2 Corinthians 3:17]. Bible doctrine is called the LAW OF FREEDOM, which defines the believer’s freedom to glorify God [James 1:25, 2:12]. Positive volition toward the Word of God is the basis of spiritual freedom [psalm 119:45]. No one can prevent you from freedom to think of Bible doctrines; no one can stop you from your daily intake of Bible doctrines except yourself. No extenuation (partial justification or excuses) can relieve you of your personal responsibility to redeem the time inside the divine sphere. Freedom as our human heritage and spiritual heritage also has become our very own national heritage. The existence and perpetuation of national liberty demands respects for legitimately established authority that depends on the cumulative personal integrity of all citizens. The only factor that limits the life of every individual is his volition. The only factor that limits the spiritual status of the believer is his volition. The justice of God releases blessings upon the believer depending on his adjustment to the justice of God. No adjustments means no spiritual blessings. There are three spiritual adjustments to the justice of God all of which requires positive volition toward God and toward His Word. Salvation is the non-meritorious decision of the soul outside the divine sphere, outside the plan of God. Salvation is one time decision-valid once and for all. It is one time response to the grace of God. Rebound is the non-meritorious decision to re-enter the divine sphere from state of carnality. Rebound is the adjustment to the justice of God that restores, cleanses, forgives, and positions the believer for blessing based on the work of Christ. Spiritual maturity requires a series of positive volition decisions from position of strength that opens more doors of opportunities in the future. Spiritual mature believers make a wise decision that creates options for greater decisions resulting to more blessings from the justice of God. Carnal and immature believers make wrong decisions that close future options for greater decisions. We all enter the Christian life with some handicap from our lives as unbelievers and from exposure to satanic doctrines. Every handicap and difficulty is nullified by God’s system of grace. Only your own negative volition prevents you from living the normal Christian way of life and advance toward spiritual maturity. There is only one issue: How will your volition function, negatively or positively? Volition can be used to succeed or fail in the Christian life but the grace of God provides only for success! Two strongholds hinder the proper function of volition: the arrogance and hatred complexes. Both paralyze the soul, distort the Word and follow the path of Satan. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries
117 - THE OBJECTIVE OF THE DIVINE DECREE The center of the divine decree is the glory and personal pleasure of God. The center of human history is Christ, which is the center of the universe. Anything the Members of the Trinity decide to originate is decided with two concepts in mind: IT IS FOR THEIR PLEASURE. Our concept of pleasure is different from pleasure of God. His perfect happiness is part of His infinite character; therefore His pleasure is not impulsive, emotional or frivolous. For their own pleasure, the Trinity created the angelic hosts with perfect knowledge that some angels would revolt. For His own pleasure, God created man with free will and would share His happiness. God designed that man would become the demonstration of the fullness of God’s essence to those angels who had impugned God’s character. After the fall of Adam, God’s pleasure is human adjustment to the justice of God through salvation, For Christians; God’s pleasure is adjustment to the justice of God through rebound and advancement toward spiritual maturity. Salvation, spirituality and spiritual maturity provide capacity for the blessings of God it opens the windows of heaven for believers to receive what God had prepared in grace. IT IS FOR THEIR GLORY. Everything the Trinity had decided in the eternity past and everything the Trinity decides is for their glory. God has always existed in perfect glory. Anything He does reflects His glory and results in His glorification. God does not depend on us for His pleasure or for His glory. God enjoyed His perfect glory in the eternity past when no one else existed. He is expressing them in us and toward us- we are here as part of God’s pleasure and glory. It is the pleasure of God to permit creatures to exercise free volition. We should have no illusions about ourselves. We are here not to glorify ourselves not to impress God but to synchronize or to harmonize ourselves with His pleasure and glory. The purpose of our existence is to glorify God NOT to claim glory and honor for ourselves. When God created Adam in His image, he was in full capacity to glorify God being without old sinful nature and personal sin. But when Adam fell into sin, he removed his capacity to glorify God. Apart from the imputed eternal life and righteousness, man has no capacity and is not in position to glorify God. Unbelievers have no power or capacity to glorify God for several reasons: First: no amount of human good works can bring honor and praise to God. Second: the perfection of God can accept only something that satisfied His own perfection (that is His imputed righteousness in the believer). Third: the believers adjust to the justice of God through provision of grace (salvation, spirituality and spiritual maturity) and not through human dead good works. Fourth: man by nature is totally depraved before God. Therefore, our redemption and justification is through the merits of the Lord Jesus Christ. There is nothing we can do to destroy or to insult the glory of God because His glory is not dependent on human action, character, morality or decision. His glory is intact with His perfect character and is never affected by human morality or character. The most devious actions of the combined forces of all demons and wicked men cannot destroy the glory of God. The only way to glorify God is to adjust to His perfect justice through His perfect system of grace. He provided a perfect method and a perfect means to satisfy His perfect demands from imperfect men. We cannot devise our own method of glorifying God. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries
118 - THE OMNISCIENCE OF GOD The key for understanding the divine decree is the knowledge of God’s omniscience. God has three kinds of knowledge: Self-knowledge: God knows Himself; He has never had to learn anything about Himself. His self-knowledge has always been perfect, total and complete. He is aware of His own essence and the infinite capabilities of each Members of the Trinity. Omniscience. God knows at the same time all things outside Himself. God knows all things about every person in the universe. God knows everything both the actual and the possible. The actual are those that He foreordained, decreed and programmed to happen, while the possible are those things that could have happened but did not happen and will never happen. The possible includes the decisions that will not materialize because God knows that you will not make such decision and therefore, God did not decree it to happen. Foreknowledge. This subcategory of God’s cognizance acknowledges only what is decreed, but foreknowledge does not make the decree certain. Foreknowledge is the printout of the actual facts (not the possibilities) related to the volition of the believer. The Scripture to unbelievers never applies foreknowledge. God knows perfectly, eternally, infinitely and simultaneously all that is knowable, both the actual and the possible. God always knew about everything. Because He is eternal-His knowledge is eternal. Because God is sovereign –His knowledge is in control of all creation. Because God is superior His knowledge is superior to our inferior knowledge of Bible doctrines. His superior knowledge is far greater than human knowledge or intellect. The only link between our inferior knowledge and God’s superior knowledge is the Bible doctrine. The minutest details of both the angelic and human history is perfectly and completely in the mind of God at all times. he perfect omniscience of God perceives the free as free, the necessary as necessary, together with their causes, conditions, effects and relations as one individual system of things, every link of which is essential to the integrity of the whole. God perfectly knows every relation between each cause and effect. Every cause and effect is related to another cause and effect. God is never puzzled or confused by any twist of circumstances or events. Since human volition is the uncaused cause of the human function so that the course of history depends on the will of men. The course of human history is simply as man thinks, wills it or does it. That is why, man has no reason for complaining, for falling apart, for failing in a crisis, left out or for feeling sorry for himself because God has already provided everything we need related to spiritual growth and existence in the world. The infinite knowledge of God is not limited by time and time does not limit God’s knowledge because for Him, the future is as perspicuous as the past. God created time and time is in God but God is not in time. The perfect omniscience of God knows the valid alternative to human history the possible and the actual. God knows what would have been involved in every case where a man’s decision might have been different from what it was. Even though God knew which way you would choose to go and decreed only the very things that would become reality –and He knows exactly all the repercussions of each alternative. GOD is all knowing or omniscience (which comes from the Latin OMNI, which means all, and SCIENTIA meaning knowledge. God is perfectly wise His wisdom is perfect. He knows perfectly and eternally all that is knowable, whether actual or merely possible. God knows everything that has been known or ever will be known. Never was there a time when God did not know everything that is knowable –He never learns anything because He has always known everything [Proverbs 15:3, Isaiah 36:9-10, 1 John 3:20]. The omniscience of God is both eternal and infinite –He has always known everything and there is nothing that He does not know [Acts 15:18]. The omniscience of God has complete and absolute knowledge of everything that is knowable and unknown to us. Everything is totally comprehensible to the infinite God. The Bible reveals only a small fraction of God’s perfect knowledge for us to known and understands Romans 11:33]. The omniscience of God is perfectly wise and has absolute knowledge of everything since maximum knowledge belongs to the Omniscience of God [Ephesians 3:10]. Every detail of all creation and history is in God’s mind at all times and always has been from the eternity past. This is God’s mentality connected with His infinity. The future is as clear as the past. God foreknows the future since all events take place according to His counsel (or what we called divine decree). God foreknows, but His foreknowledge is not predetermined. God knows every step you will take, but He never interferes with human volition. He foreknows the function of every free will. He knows what every being will choose and He knows which way each person will decide in the function of his free will in every situation of life. Although God never interferes with free will, God is gracious and all wise, so, He may determine, which choice is made through His gracious influence through:
God’s perfect knowledge (omniscience) is not subject to development, reasoning, regretting, foreboding and revising, because His omniscience is always total and perfect, therefore it cannot be develop beyond what is already is. God knows all the conclusions as well as the premises; hence, even though He is totally reasonable and rational in all things, He never needs to reason out. We can never second-guess God. There is no way we can improve on His system. We can simply go along with His perfectly wise policy (which He designed for our best interest) or reject it, in such case, His perfect plan goes right along without us. Although His omniscience transcends time and eternity, His perfect knowledge of all events before they occur does not violate or interfere with human volition. By divine design human beings are free agents who can choose to partake of God’s grace or reject Him. Making every person personally accountable to God for every decision and action that has been made. Under the omniscience of God, there is no such thing as FATE OR BAD LUCK because all events take place according to His counsel (the divine decree) and our present is the result of our previous decisions that we have made. God knows what would have been involved in every case where a man’s decision might have been different from what it was. Divine omniscience knows every thought, decisions, and action in human history, how they all relate to each other and how they relate to all the possible alternatives. The foreknowledge of God makes nothing certain but merely acknowledges what is certain. It knows what is already in the decrees regarding believers only. In the foreknowledge nothing can be certain until it is first decreed- only then can what will happen be foreknown. God knows all actual events as certainly the future because He has decreed them to be certainly futurity. God decrees relate equally to all future events of every kind:
The divine decrees alone establish certainly. For believers-foreordination, predestination, elections are synonymous with the decrees. Foreknowledge is an act of the infinite and perfect wisdom of God in determining the certain futurities of events in the life of the believer. In the eternity past, the omniscience of God fed into the decree all the facts of reality (not the possible) simultaneously, not in stages. The decrees have become the complete and consummated right of the sovereignty of God determining the certain futurities of all things in human history. No decree can become complete without the sovereignty of God. Because He knows the end from the beginning –God wills certain things to happen. Many areas of the decrees have been fulfilled historically, up to and including this present moment, but all were future when decreed, including those events that have been fulfilled. No event is directly caused by the decree. The decree merely establishes what will be caused, but the decree is the not the cause. The fact that a thought or action on your part is in the decree does not mean that the decree caused you to think or do it. The cause is your free will your volition. Your thoughts are in the decree because in the eternity past. God had the perfect wisdom to know what you would think and to not omit from His planning the fact that you would think it. Because of the free will of act of man, the decree provides the following: The agent shall be a free agent. Since God provided man with free will, the decree establishes volition never coercing anyone’s decision-creating everyone accountable for his own decisions and actions. All the antecedents of the act in question shall be what they are. Whenever a decision is made it shall be the result of decisions previously made. Once something happens, that is It is part of the system of cause and effect it becomes part of the basis for other things happening and down the line. All present conditions of the act shall be what they are. God is not going to make reality suddenly vanish or become different or reverse itself. God enables us to orient ourselves to reality and to face the facts. What God decreed shall come to pass without changing its course. The act shall be perfectly spontaneous and free on the part of the agent without coercion and compulsion. The act shall be certainly futuristic. That is, it will definitely take place, as certain, after the decree is given. Wishful thinking cannot change what has already occurred. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries
119 - ELECTION AND THE OMNISCIENT OF GOD The divine decree is a basic category of biblical theology a very important doctrine in which the majority of believers are basically ignorant. The divine decree vested solely with the will of God what His creation should be. God alone decided in eternity past what human beings would be like we would be rational beings with free will volition. Because God cannot contradict His own nature (the essence and attributes of God) necessitated His willingness to provide the highest and the best for mankind. When God created man (Adam), He created the highest and the best compatible with His perfect plan. Adam was created perfect in body, soul and spirit and put him in a perfect environment. The best and perfect that man has received in creation has been lost through the fall and because of that, the perfect God who created mankind now condemns us. Nevertheless, God still wills the highest and the best for mankind. With our free will, we may miss some or all of these great and best things. The best things can come only from God and our consolation is that it is still available. We have to understand the difference between the omniscience and the perfect foreknowledge of God. Foreknowledge is more limited in scope than omniscience but omniscience knows both the actual and the possible. Foreknowledge includes the actual only and is related to the redeemed only. The omniscience of God knows all that would have been involved had He adopted any one of an infinite number of plans of action. He also knows all the consequences had man chosen a different course of action within the realm of his own volition. Foreknowledge refers only to things, which God did decree or adopt as the plan of God but things related only to the children of God. Only the decree of God establishes the certainty or reality. Only reality can be foreknown nothing can be foreknown until first decreed. Events cannot occur without being decreed by God to occur. God’s decrees never originate from His foreknowledge. Although the omniscience, the decree and the foreknowledge of God exist simultaneously in the mind of God, they must be separated into a logical sequence for us to understand them. First come omniscience, then the decree, then and the foreknowledge. The divine decree is based on omniscience; foreknowledge is based on the decree. Election is the exclusive plan of God for believers. All the elect are believers. All the Church Age believers are elect members of the royal family of God. Election is God’s complete agreement with His own foreknowledge. God simply agrees with Himself (foreknowledge) and puts a stamp of approval (election) upon what He decreed [1 Peter 1:2]. God elected or chose believers where He alone knows ahead of time (before it occur) that if given free will, they would freely choose to believe in Christ. Therefore, God decreed that such an act of faith would actually occur and that God agreed not only that their positive volition to the Gospel and Bible doctrines would occur at a certain point in time- and that all the blessing of salvation would be their eternal possessions [Ephesians 1:4, 2 Thessalonians 2:13]. Election is declared through God’s perfect foreknowledge and election is the function of predestination. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries
120 - ELECTION AND HUMAN HISTORY Predestination permanently and eternally relates to the Church Age believers to the plan of grace [2 Tim. 1:9]. Predestination means that the believer is in union with the Lord Jesus Christ through retroactive and current positional truth, in which the saints shares the destiny of Christ [Ephesians 1:5]. The believers also share the election of Christ, which occurred in eternity past [1 Peter 2:4-6]. God gracious and unconditional covenants to Israel can be fulfilled only to the elect. God cannot just pour out His perfect blessings to anybody outside election. In the Old Testament, Israel refers to those Jews who were also spiritual Jews through faith in Christ. The genuine Jew is not merely the physical seed of Abraham but His spiritual seed as well. Unless the racial Jews follow the pattern of Abraham in salvation, he is not elected because not all-racial Israelite is genuine spiritual Israelite. The unconditional covenants to Israel are promises for the elect Jews for those who have believed in Christ who possess God’s imputed righteousness and eternal life. The covenants of God to Israel are eternal, so therefore, the recipients and beneficiaries must have eternal life. The divine decrees include all the facts of human history. These are the facts, which were fed into the decree by the omniscience of God. The entire lives of all members of the human race are on the divine decree. Beginning with the first breath until the time of physical death all is recorded based on the divine decree. You do not know what the future holds for you but God does. He recorded it in the eternity pass. Only the events and things recorded will come to past. For God, there is nothing that could surprise Him. This divine will and purpose originated entirely within Himself before He created our universe. The will of God (the divine decree) is in His mind at all times. He alone designed it for His own pleasure, perfectly compatible with His essence and related to His glory. Therefore, it pleases God to run the compact disk of our recorded life (the divine decree) to the end. He knows what is on it, and He is running it for each one of us. Space and time are the venue of the battle –the overall setting in which we live and use our volition for or against the will of God. These broad concepts are all in the divine decrees and also the details, which reach down to the minutia of life. The most minor details of every event and happening in the world are included in the decree [Luke 12:6-7]. Nothing escapes the perfect knowledge of God. The Godhead functions under the divine decree in relation to human beings, not under the pressure of time and infinity but in relation to man as supreme Creator. The Members of the Godhead function in a way that is immanence, intrinsic, and subjective. Subjectivity is perfect when God is dealing with Himself. How the Godhead maintains and supports the believer is transient (the divine decree keeps running), extrinsic (because such actions occurs outside the Godhead), and objective (because our only point of contact with the perfect God is the perfect justice of God revealed in the Scripture. The divine decrees are efficacious (the direct work of God); because His work always succeeds in having intended effect, the decrees actually determine all that ever was or will be. The divine decrees guarantee certainty. The foreknowledge of God makes nothing certain; it merely perceives what is certain. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries
121 - OMNISCIENCE AND TIME The divine decrees are all comprehensive. No slightest confusion could exist as to one of even the smallest events without confusion to all events. All events in human history are interwoven and interdependent. The decrees do not eliminate the need for prayer because God looked down at the corridor of time to see what believers would ask in prayer. Effective prayer makes requests, which God answers. These answers the things we ask in time are incorporated into the decrees in eternity past [Isaiah 65:24]. God has answered our prayer even before we ask. Prayer is a powerful weapon in the angelic conflict when wielded by the mature believer who knows what he is doing [Philippians 4:6, Colossians 4:2]. Because the decrees are eternal, it also means that God never gains in knowledge. What God has known at any time He has always known even before He created the universe. Since all the decrees were all decreed simultaneously in eternity past, God is never surprised by anything we do or fail to do. He knew everything simultaneously. He built divine provisions around the free choices we would make, included the whole life span of all human beings in the entire human history. The divine decrees existed before the existence of the universe, before angels and before man and before everything. The decrees of God are unchangeable and certain. Nothing will ever arise to necessitate a change in the decree. It is unchangeable because it deals only with reality and rejected the wishful thinking. It is certain because omniscience always knew that these things would occur under the circumstances of their exact and particular moment in history. The changelessness of the divine decree is a great blessing of logistical grace because if there is erasure, correction or changes then we are never secure. But because there are no erasures, corrections, deletions, no last minute changes there is no possibility of becoming lost in the shuffle. All the provisions for our needs are absolutely secure. Our protection in the hand of God is absolute and certain. The decree is the free choice of divine sovereignty and God is not bound to follow a necessary pattern or course but His perfect faithfulness and truth He will incorruptly complete what He has begun. God will run your decree up to the end. Once God decreed you to exist-that become the perfect plan the future events in your life will occur tomorrow and the next day. You will never suddenly cease to exist. Your exit is under the perfect time appointed for your departure. No departure from this life is too early or one second delay [Hebrews 9:27]. Our entry on earth is in perfect timing and likewise our exit is in perfect timing. God has decreed ends as well as means, causes as well as effects, conditions and all instrumentalities as well as the events, which depend upon them. God is never surprised by your reaction, action or lack or response because He knew perfectly everything about every individual and nothing is unknown to Him. There is no sudden death or sudden changes from human volition because He knew all that will occur. God’s omniscience knew all about the historical events. There is no sudden or accident in history of man. There is no development or collapse of a nation that is unknown to God. Before they occurred God knew the exact causes, conditions, successions of history because He sustains and controls history. He knew every ebb and flow. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries
122 - DIVINE ACTIONS Some things God decreed to do Himself. We call these immediate things. Creation is immediate. God created space, matter and also time. Salvation is immediate creation because it was a direct action of the divine sovereignty and no secondary agency was involved. The control of history is dependent on the omnipotent power of God, in which He takes a direct hand in the matter rather than relegate (reduce in importance) the task to secondary causes. Other things He decreed that some agency would perform (such as the free will of man) would perform this we call mediate things. God accomplishes some things through the action of secondary causes acting the law of necessity. Other things God has decreed to promote or permit free agents to do in the exercise of their own free will and self-determination. On one hand, human volition is responsible for sin, human good, and evil from old sin nature. On the one hand, man is free to believe in Christ through non-meritorious positive volition resulting in eternal salvation. Some events are rendered by the decree of God to be just as certainly future, however, all events are equally certain to occur whether caused directly by the sovereignty of God or caused by the free will of man. Primary, secondary, tertiary, every cause for every event is equally in the decree and will occur. The sovereignty of God and the free will of man coexist in human history as an extension of the angelic conflict. There is one all-inclusive will or purpose of God concerning all that ever was or will be from the beginning of human history until its termination on the last of the Millennium. God has known every thought, decision, and action that has ever occurred or will occur because all events come into being through one decree. God’s will in this aspect refer to God’s sovereign decisions to what would come into existence or in short, the divine decree and not to divine guidance. This will and purpose of God originated within Himself long before any creature of any kind existed. His will is always consistent with His perfect essence. The will and purpose of God (the divine decree) was objectively designed for His own glory, pleasure and satisfaction. All creatures have been placed in time and space and all events related time and space were instantaneously and simultaneously decreed. The fact that all events were decreed results in divine action. All divine action related to creation is the work of grace. The work of grace is the policy of His integrity in blessing the believers. Divine actions falls under two classifications: Divine actions within the Godhead are immanent, intrinsic, and subjective. Divine actions related to creation are transient, extrinsic, and objective. God did not decree Himself to be God. God existed prior to and outside of the decree, so that the divine decree do not act upon God, He act upon the decrees. Since the divine decrees are efficacious having the power to produce the indented effect they determine all that ever was or will be. They include God’s directive will, permissive will and overruling will. These three categories of divine will describe the manner in which God’s sovereignty controls history they are subcategories of divine action as related to His creation. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries
123 - THE WILL OF GOD The directive will of God, the permissive will of God and the overruling will of God show how the sovereignty of God deals with human volition. The will of God as to what would exist (that is the divine decree) calls for God’s will (His perfect attributes of sovereignty) to function toward us in certain ways:
All things depend on God’s will (the divine decree) and nothing certain from God’s will. The divine decrees originate from His own omniscience, and in the eternity past the divine decree separated the facts from fiction. Again, we have to make a distinction between God’s omniscience and His foreknowledge. God’s decree does not originate from His foreknowledge. God’s foreknowledge makes nothing certain; it merely perceives what the decrees have made certain. Prophecy never determines history. Nothing can be foreknown until it is decreed. The divine foreknowledge is God’s cognizance of what He has decreed regarding believers. We must make distinction between the desires of God and the decrees of God. The decree of God merely establishes the facts of history many things are included which God does not desire. They are in the decree because the omniscience of God knew that, given free will, His creatures would reject the plan and purpose of their Creator. All sins are act of negative human volition and although God never approves of sin, He puts them in the decrees because He knew we would commit them. The decree deals with reality with certainty with what actually happens. Just because God decrees a particular event to take place does not mean He approves of it. Sin, human good, and evil are not the desire of God, but they are in the decrees because people do these things from their own volition. God desires His perfect will, but angels and men use their god-given freedom to violate the desires of God. The very fact that sin and evil are in the decree is proof that our volition is truly free. The decree is the all-exclusive will of God; they contain all the facts of history both the decisions, which pleases God and those, which displeases Him. God does not desire to cast His creatures into the Lake of Fire, but it is decreed as certain for all men who reject Christ as Savior [2 Peter 3:9]. God’s desire is for all unbelievers to come to a change of mind toward Christ but for those with negative volition at the point of God’s consciousness or Gospel-hearing, the Lake of Fire is decreed and become a divine retribution. God does not desire to discipline believers, but it is decreed as certain for all carnal or immature God desires to express His perfect justice toward you but if you do not permit His justice to bless you His justice will not hesitate to discipline you. We are created as free agents responsible for our own decisions. Either we adjust to the justice of God or the justice of God will adjust to us. God will never cause us any kind of misery or pains we manufacture our own miseries. The desire of God is always contrary to the will or system of men. There is nothing we can do against the will of God except to reject or refuse it. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries
124 - INEQUALITY IN THE DECREE We must distinguish the decrees of God in eternity past from the action of God in time. The action of God in time is the execution of the decree. The execution is not the decree but logically follows the decree. We must make distinction between God’s decrees and God’s laws. The laws of divine establishment regulate human conduct they are set up for human volition to obey. They are for all men believers or unbelievers alike. By protecting and perpetuating the human race, these laws give each of us a chance to be evangelized and after believing in Christ, we have the opportunity to grow and reach spiritual maturity without interference or coercion. The laws of the divine establishment can be broken by human volition, but the divine decrees cannot. We cannot violate the divine decree because any decision we make was known in eternity past and was included in the decree. The divine decrees are the all-comprehensive will of God and are only partially revealed in Scripture, the laws of God regulate man’s conduct in time and space are completely revealed. The omniscience of God in taking cognizance of the fall of man graciously provided a plan for blessing man based on divine imputations from the justice of God. This plan of grace involves the omniscience of God providing into the divine decree seven imputations, which provides maximum blessings for mankind in time and in eternity. The decree of God contains the historical reality regarding every human being’s levels of attainment inside the plan of grace. True freedom means that some people attain all these imputations while other do not. Genuine freedom insures inequality. There is no equality in this world and there is no equality in eternity. The road to equality is the road to slavery not genuine freedom. True freedom and equality do not mix. Non-meritorious human volition can fall short of any potential in God’s plan. God knew the extent to which each individual advances in this plan in eternity past. God knew that some would remain unbelievers that others would believe but remain spiritually immature, that few would advance to spiritual maturity. Those who reach maturity receive blessings in time and greater blessings in eternity they would glorify God and bring Him pleasure. In obvious cases, the potential exceeds the reality. The potential is totally known to God’s omniscience; only the reality is in the divine decree. Since God is perfectly righteous and just, our attainment of divine blessings is through imputation by which we also glorify God and do His pleasure. The glory of God is related to believer’s advance to spiritual maturity and the resultant imputation of divine blessings. God is glorified not only in what He is but also in what He has decreed. To the finite mind, the decrees are many, but to God, they are all one plan embracing cause and effect, means and ends. The decree includes every detail in the experience of every creature, including the minutest aspects as the number of hair in your head. In the event of national disaster, the spiritually matured believer will be isolated and alone, yet able to do his job and live his life unto the Lord, knowing that God has not forgotten him. The decree of God is the sovereign purpose of God, which efficaciously accomplished by God alone, apart from all creature talents, ability, mentality, counsel or cooperation. Therefore, human volition creates obvious inequality inside the plan of God, but God did not create this inequality but our human volition. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries
125 - THE ORIGIN AND SUBJECT OF THE DIVINE DECREE The divine decrees unite in one all-inclusive and final objective the glory of God {Romans 11:36, Hebrews 2:10]. Since God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit are infinite the members of the Godhead are worthy of all glory. God’s glory is what He is and receiving glory is not new to the Trinity. All three Persons have always had it and always will. In eternity past, the Godhead did not need to add anything to what “They” already had God has never suffered any kind of deficiency. Since God is the Origin and Subject and not the object of the divine decree, the Members of the Godhead, God will inevitably be glorified by every thought, every decision and by every action in human history. The good and evil are included; sin, evil and everything will add up to the glorification of God [Psalm 76:10]. The perfect plan of God began with His glory and will end up with glory. It is never hindered, it never stops, it moves on with you or without you no matter what you do. If a person remains unbeliever and go to hell, the glory of God will remain untarnished and un-compromised. Nothing from human reaction can tarnish the glory of God. God is glorified not only in what He is but also in what He has decreed. The things that God causes directly and the things that permit indirectly are all in the divine decree. Since God created man with free-will volition in the soul He therefore permits the free will to function with self-determination. Otherwise man would never have fallen. God permitted the fall it was not His directive will but His permissive will is as much a part of the decrees as is directive will. This is true because the decrees are human history in the eyes of God recorded in the eternity past. The sovereignty of God and the free will of man co-exist in human history. The divine decrees do not oppose human freedom. Man is free to glorify and serve God but the manner and of glorification and service is prescribed by God and not left to human free will or imagination. Since the divine decree is the sum total of God’s plan and purpose in eternity past, it centers on the Person of the Lord Jesus Christ. God accomplishes the work of salvation while man gains the benefits apart from human merit or ability. Without violating human volition, God has designed a plan so perfect that it includes direction, provision, preservation, function, cause, and effect for all believers. The perfect plan of God is consistent with human freedom. God is never unfair; He does not coerce or limit human freedom. He graciously provides guidance as to how we should use our volition. God revealed His plan in the Bible. The highest priority of the believer is the cognition, retention, and application of Bible doctrine. God permits some things to happen. other things He causes, but all things work for His perfect plan. Some things please Him, others do not but God always recognizes reality. This is a very important aspect of our relationship with God. Everything, which is decreed, is reality and like God, we must face the facts. Because God deals with reality, His plan must deal with things as they are. His perfect solutions start with “what is”, and never with “what is not”. There is no wishful thinking in God. He never rationalizes anything. He never blesses us because of our schemes, plans, character, ideas or self-righteousness. He blesses us on the basis of His character.
126 - THE CREATION OF ANGELS The angelic conflict started long before the creation of the universe –long before the existent of man. In the eternity past, God created the angelic beings From the Greek term aggelos we got the English word "angel". It may denote either a human or a heavenly "messenger." Yet in the NT, except in Luke 7:24; 9:52; and perhaps Rev. 1:20, it is used only for heavenly beings. The term chosen by Scripture to denote angels gives us the clue to the function by which they are primarily to be known and understood. They are God's messengers or ambassadors. They belong to His heavenly court and service. Their mission in heaven is to praise God (Rev. 4:5). They devote themselves to doing God’s perfect will (Psalm 103:20) and in this activity they behold His face (Matthew 18:10). They accompany God in His work of creation (Job 38:7), though they themselves are also creatures (Psalm 148:2, 5). They also assist in God's providential ordering of human historical affairs (Daniel 12:1). Above all they are active in the divine work of reconciliation (from Genesis 19:1-2 onward). In fulfillment of their mission they declare God's will or decree (Luke 1:26-27) and do His work (Matthew 28:2). There seems to be some ordering in their ranks; some are referred to as archangels, as over against those who are referred to as simply angels (1 Thessalonians 4:16; Jude 9). The function of angels may be seen clearly from their part in the saving mission of Jesus Christ. They are naturally present when this both begins with the nativity (Matthew 1; Luke 1-3) and ends with the resurrection (Matthew 28:2) and ascension (Acts 1:10). They also assist the church in its early ministry (Acts 5:19; 10:3). They will play an important part in the events of the end time (Rev. 7:1-). Finally they will come with Christ when He returns in glory (Matthew 24:31) and separate the righteous and the wicked. They do not do the real work of reconciliation, which is Christ's prerogative. But they accompany and declare this work, praising the God of grace and glory and summoning men and women to participate in their worship (Luke 1:46). Interestingly, there seem to be only two angelic recorded appearances between Christ's birth and resurrection: at the beginning of His way to the cross in the temptation and then before the crucifixion itself in Gethsemane. This is perhaps because Jesus had to tread His way of atoning self-giving alone, and in His humiliation He is made a little lower than the angels (Hebrews 2:9), though exalted far above them by nature (Hebrews 1). Yet angels did not withdraw from the scene, for they rejoice at sinners repenting (Luke 15:10) and will hear the Son of man confess those who confess Him (Luke 12:8). The Bible offers only a few hints about the nature of angels. Belonging to the heavenly sphere, they cannot be properly conceived of in earthly terms. They are mostly described in relation to God, as God’s angels (Psalm 104:4). The two angelic names, Michael and Gabriel, emphasize this relationship with the “el” suffix attached to Hebrew name of God. It is as God's angels, perhaps, that they are called "elect" in 1 Timothy 5:21. Hebrews 1:14 described them as "ministering spirits" in a conflation of the two parts of Psalm 104:4. They figure as the "heavenly ones" (Psalm 29:1) or the "holy ones" (Job 5:1) who are set apart for God's service; both these terms occur in Psalm 89:6-7, though "sons of God" is here another rendering of "heavenly ones" (Psalm 29:1). The "gods" of Psalm 82:1, in whose midst God holds judgment, are often thought to be angels too. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries
127 - THE NATURE OF ANGELS Like Christians, angels are also called “children of God” but we need not infer from this usage, because angels are lesser deities. Indeed, the Bible clearly warns us not to worship them (Colossians 2:18; Revelations 19:10). Among the heavenly beings mentioned is made of the seraphim (Isaiah 6:2) and, more frequently, the cherubim. Cherubim guarded Eden after the expulsion of Adam and Eve (Genesis 3:24). They form God's chariot at His descent (Psalm 18:10). Figures of cherubim adorned the Ark (Exodus 25:17) and Solomon's temple (I Kings 6:23), so that Yahweh is enthroned above the cherubim (I Samuel 4:4; Psalm 80:1). Ezekiel offers an elaborate visionary description (Ezek. 1:10; 9:3; 10:15-22) in which their form is human (1:5) but symbolical traits stress their glory and spiritual excellence Of the angels named, Michael is called "the great prince" (Daniel 12:1) and the other angels seem to be led by Him (Revelation 12:7), though God Himself, of course, is the Lord of hosts and Prince of the host (Daniel 8:11). The man who appeared to Joshua in Joshua chapter 5 usually taken to be an angel, says that he has come as commander of the army of the Lord, Gabriel, the other angel named in canonical Scripture, is the angel of the annunciation (Luke 1:26). Distinctions seem to be indicated in Revelation 4-5 with the references to the beasts and the elders, but the exact significance of these terms is disputed. The apocryphal archangels (Raphael, Uriel, Jemeil Tob) are all fictitious. From the various statements about the nature of angels, and Paul's use of the terms "principalities," "powers," "thrones," "dominions," and "forces," early and medieval theology evolved a complex speculative account of the angelic world. The error in so much angelology was to deal with angels apart from the biblical witness. Even regarding their function there was a tendency to rationalize or to focus interest on the idea of the guardian angel (Matt. 18:10). Though they come in human form, the angels are essentially non-corporeal. Even they were present at the time of creation, they are still creatures (Psalm 148:2, 5). They form an ordered unity, yet their plurality entails the existence of individuals within the totality, with a possible gradation in function. As compared with humans they have the advantage of being in God's immediate presence and serving as His direct messengers. They also guard the proprieties, if that is the meaning of I Corinthians 11:10, and seem to play some role in or over the nations (Daniel 10). But when men and women respond to God's saving work in Christ they are raised above them, enjoy their ministry (Hebrews I:14), and will finally judge them (I Corinthians 6:3), for even angels are not faultless in God's eyes (Job 4:18; 15:15). In Judges 13:2-3 this seems to be identical with God. Many have thought, then, that in the OT at least the reference is to the pre-incarnate Logos. Liberals have explained it as a softening of theophany to angephany but without showing why this does not always apply. Another questionable interpretation is that God speaks so fully through the angel that He himself is virtually speaking. Certainly the "angel of the Lord" of Luke 2:9 is not Christ, but this does not in itself rule out such an equation in the OT. Has there been a fall (expelled fro heaven) of angels? The Bible speaks of the dragon and his angels (Revelation 12:7) and also of powers of evil (Ephesians 6:12), so that while we cannot be too dogmatic on the subject, we have to assume that there is a real kingdom of evil in grotesque caricature of the angelic kingdom. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries
128 - THE ANGELIC BEINGS Angels (aggelos in Greek and malakh in Hebrews. Both terms means messenger, an order of created beings, superior to man, belonging to heaven and engaged in service of God. Angels are spiritual (spirit), supernatural, eternal, and celestial being with no material bodies but can assume the human form when necessary [Hebrews 1:14, Luke 24:4, Acts 10:3]. Angels of God are majestic and glorious beings [Psalm 148:2-5, Colossians 1:16]. Created before the creation of the universe and before the creation of man [Job 38:7]. They are superior in power and strength than men [2 Peter 2:11]. Although they are endowed with superior intellect and wisdom [2 Samuel 14:17, 20], they are not omnipotent [Psalm 103:20] and not omniscient [1 Peter 1:21]. Like human beings, they were created with volition –freedom and capacity for making free will decision [Jude 6, Genesis 1:31]. The men are equal to them after resurrection to eternal life [Luke 20:34-]. They are to be judged by mature believers of the Church Age [1 Corinthians 6:3]. The elect angels of God in no way will speak or act contrary to God’s will, purpose and God’s Word [Galatians 1:8]. Angels are not sexual beings- therefore they do not marry. Angels appeared in human form but never appeared in sub-human form or in the form of animal [Acts 10:3, 30]. They always appeared as men, never as women or as children, never as infant and they have no wings [Genesis 18:2, 19:1, Hebrews 13:2, Joshua 5:13, Judges 6:21-22]. They appeared fully clothed and never half-naked. There is no recorded appearance of angels in the Bible to unbelievers [Matthew 24:37-39]. In some occasion, they appeared with awesome appearance in clothing or countenance [Judges 13:6, Luke 24:4, Daniel 10:5-6, 18]. OTHER TERMS FOR ANGELS: SONS OF GOD [Job 38:7] – a phrase prior to angelic rebellion was applied generally to all angels of lower rank, but became exclusively designated for demons after the angelic revolt [Genesis 6:2-4, Job 1:6]. Angels of God are also called HEAVENLY BEINGS –referring to all ranks [Psalm 29:1, 89:61] or HOLY ONES [Psalm 89:5-7] or HEAVENLY HOSTS [Luke 2:13] or HOSTS OF ARMIES [1 Samuel 1:11] and HOLY MYRIADS [Jude 14]. They are called HOLY ANGELS or ANGELS OF GOD [Luke 9:26, 12:8] or GOD’S ANGELS [Hebrews 1:6, Psalm 103:20] and others. DISTRIBUTION OF WORK: Some angels announced beforehand the birth of some of God’s select servants [Genesis 18:9-, Judges 13:2-24, Luke 1:13 and 2:8-15]. Certain angels on some occasions forewarned the righteous of imminent danger or threatening disaster, destruction or calamity [Genesis 18:16-19, Matthew 2:13, Daniel 8:1. Certain angels guided and instructed some righteous believers when the Canon of the Scripture was completed [Acts 7:38, 8:26, Galatians 3:19]. Certain angels’ interpreted dreams and visions for some select servants of God [Zechariah 1:9, Daniel 7:16, Revelation 17:7]. Angels destroyed the enemies of God’s people and in some occasion defended them [Exodus 12:23, 29]. Angels are sentry guards over believers, client nation and local spiritual churches [Psalm 34:7, 91:11, Matthew 18:10]. They are watchers over the universal Church of Christ [Revelation 1:20]. They are the ministering Spirits to the Church Age believers under the undeserved sufferings. They assists in the divine judgment of unbelievers and divine discipline of the carnal and reversionistic believers [Rev. 18; 1, Mark 13:27]. They praise God continually in the past, present, and future [Revelation 19:1-3]. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries
129 - THE RESULT OF ANGELIC CONFLICT In the eternity past –outside time reference of human history-before the creation of our very own planet earth, the angelic host revolted against God. This rebellion was lead by Lucifer –one of the archangels assigned to protect the throne of God. This great warfare began when Lucifer challenged divine authority and persuaded 1/3 of the angels to revolt against God [Isaiah 14:13-14, Ezekiel 28:12-15]. Human history is both the extension and resolution of the angelic conflict. Humanity was created to duplicate the conditions of the prehistoric revolt of the angels. Like the angelic beings, human beings are endowed with free will volition, and that free will would be tested to see whether man would choose for or against God. Satan himself instigated the events that led to man’s fall. Adam followed the same pattern of arrogance, which initiated the angelic rebellion. Satan was present when God announced Genesis 3:15: “And I (God) will put enmity between you (Satan) and the woman and between your seed (unsaved humanity) and her seed (the virgin born Messiah), He (the Seed-Jesus Christ) shall bruise you on the head (Satan’s final doom) and you (Satan) shall bruise Him (Jesus Christ) on the heel (His spiritual death on the cross).” The arrival of the Savior would settle the angelic conflict in God’s favor. To prevent God’s plan for unfolding, Satan designed a series of counter strategy beginning from murder of Abel ending with the God revolution at the end of the millennial kingdom. Angelic convocations are held periodically in heaven to consider historical trends [Job 1:6-12, 2:1-7, Zechariah 3:1-7]. Man is the subject for close scrutiny by both elect and fallen angels on earth and in heaven [1 Corinthians 4:5]. There are two major players that greatly influence human history: The Lord Jesus Christ as the One who controls human history and the One having the sovereign power to over-rule the machinations of Satan [Psalm 33:10-19, 135:5-6] and the preservation of mankind. Satan interferes and intervenes with Christ who controls human history. As the author of evil in the cosmos diabolicus, Satan is ever trying to eradicate the Jews in the most devious manner. Never has one race been the target of such animosity and terrible persecutions. Nevertheless, the Jews have survived their evil tormentors. Every Jew is a reminder of God’s faithfulness. Satan is the assumed ruler and god of this world who can accomplish only what God may permit, therefore any attack against God or His people can never fully succeed apart from God’s permission. Man is the witness against Satan. Man is not the subject of conflict between God and Satan but the evidence of God’s sovereignty and plan of grace. There is no power struggle between God and Satan because God is omnipotent and Satan is not. God is sovereign Satan is not. Power struggle is between opposing party with equal strength not between an inferior and superior rivals. Man is not in the crossfire between two rival forces but God’s exhibit number one –an evidence of God’s perfect righteousness and perfect justice against Satan’s evil, corrupted and imperfect nature. We are part of the human history inside the God’s decree for the human race as God’s evidence of perfect plan of grace. God is proving Satan’s imperfection there is no need to prove His perfection. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries
130 - CHRERUBIM & SEPRAPHIM Cherubim and seraphim are angelic ranks superior to angels, may be similar to that of chief angels or archangels but greater when it comes to function. The meaning of the Hebrew term cherubim and seraphim are not only questionable but also uncertain. Our limited and problematic Biblical information are from two sources: First, in the artistic representation or interpretation of Hebrew artists in the Tabernacle and later in the Temple Second, in the visions of Ezekiel (for cherubs) and the visions of Isaiah for the seraphs Angels appeared to men in human forms, but no one had actually seen a cherubim or a seraph personally except in visions or dreams. We cannot rely on the artists’ concepts and not in the visions of Ezekiel and Isaiah because their descriptions are more of figurative rather than literal. Angels appeared to men without wings, while in visions both the cherubim and seraphim appeared with wings. The Bible used the term angels for angels and the term cherubim for cherubim and the term seraphim for seraphim. Generally the appearance of the cherubs was like that of man [Ezekiel 1:5], they have two faces [41:18] or four faces [1:6,10, 10:14, 21-22], four or two wings [1:6,11, 1 Kings 6:24], under their wings they had human hands [1:8, 10:8,21], their legs were straight not capable of bending. Their feet were like the sole of calf’s foot [1:7], as for the form of their faces, each had the face of a man, all four had the face of a lion, on the right the face of a bull, on the left, all the four heads had the face of an eagle [1:11]. Such descriptions are not literal and physical but figuratively. The cherubs have three revealed important functions: First, they served and are serving as guardians or sentry guards in God’s vital and important installations like the Garden of Eden [Genesis 3:24]. Second, some of their work are related and are associated with fire. From flaming sword [Genesis 3:24] to stone of fire (which symbolized the presence of God) [Ezekiel 28:14-16], to special wing of lighting bolts (Ezekiel 1:4, 13, 27-28) and burning coal [Ezekiel 10:2, 6-7]. Third, they were bearers of God’s throne-chariot. God was characterized as one who sits between two cherubs [2 Kings 19:15, 1 Chronicles 13:6, Psalm 99:1, Isaiah 37:16, Exodus 25:22]. God was represented by the cloud of glory upon two cherubs of the Ark of Covenant. God sat on the outstretched wings of the cherubs called the chariot. The wings power of the cherubs made the throne-chariot “airborne” and moved in any direction without turning [Ezekiel 1:16-17, 21, 10:11-17]. The cherubs driven throne-chariot was seen as the storm cloud [Ezekiel 1:4]. God was pictured as riding on flying cherubs [2 Samuel 22:11, Psalm 18:10]. In the Ark of Covenant, cherubs are the ideal representatives of the redeemed animate creation. Their presence in the Ark of Covenant signifies that the prospect of the redeemed and glorified creatures was bound up with the sacrifice of Christ. Cherubs represented redeemed human beings in permanent union with Christ. This union was figurative, proceeding out of the mercy seat. This union is the manifestation of our eternal, and permanent union with the Lord Jesus. The faces of the cherubs were set toward the mercy seat –suggesting a consciousness of the means whereby union with Christ has been produced. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries
132 - THE HUMAN HISTORY IN THE ANGELIC CONFLICT There are two types of angels: the elect they are forever servants of God and the fallen the forever enemies of God. There are two kinds of history: angelic and human history. Long before the human history Satan revolted against God and was able to allured one third of the angelic host [Isaiah 14:13-14]. Satan and his demons were brought to trial, charged, convicted and were sentenced to the Lake of Fire [Ezekiel 28:16-18, Matthew 25:41]. However, his execution was postponed until the end of human history [Revelation 20:10]. Satan objected to God’s verdict just as he continues to contend against God during the human history. Satan a term that means “adversary” implies one who contends against authority, one who appeals, an attorney who continually objects to perfect divine judgment and God’s perfect character. Because of God’s perfect justice, God convened an appeal trial in which He would demonstrate His perfect disposition [Psalm 145:21, Zechariah 3:1-10, Luke 2:14, Romans 9:23, 11:25-36], while allowing Satan every opportunity to prove his own case [Job 1:12, 2:6, Matthew 4:1-11]. The existence of man on the face of the earth is divine evidence of God’s perfect plan of grace. God magnificently answers every aspect of Satan’s objection in the pre-historic trial for the benefits of man and elect angels. While at the same time, Satan is attempting to prove he is equal with God but his arrogance, incompetence, and evil will confirm his guilt. Human history is the appeal trial of the angelic conflict where the numerous and diverse aspect of God’s perfect wisdom were revealed through the Church, to the rulers and through the authorities (fallen angels in the heavenly places [Ephesians 3:10, 6:12]. The angelic conflict began from the moment of the satanic rebellion in the eternity past and will terminate at the end of human history and (at the end of millennial kingdom) and execution of the verdict against Satan. During the course of the angelic conflict, Satan applies the “good and evil” scheming. His works are good in the eyes of men and demons but evil in the eyes of God. Satan is a professional deceiver, destroyer, accuser and murderer who work from a solid motivation of arrogance complex. He is working hard in an attempt to justify himself before God, while at the same time trying to put himself equal with God. The entire human history is God’s evidence of His perfection and sovereignty, but Satan is using it as an evidence of his arrogance and greed. The human history is human wisdom in action, which is contrary to acceptance and perception of God’s Word. The evil of Satan is mixed-up convictions –opposing each other in every direction and perspective. Man is creating his own story this we call history. There are two types of human history: First, those that oppose and reject God and His plan of grace for man but accepts human viewpoint for solving human problems. Second, those that accept divine viewpoint and God’s plan of grace. Human history is therefore the action and decision of the human volition. Human volition is running ahead of God, walking away from God, walking without God or walking with God –doing His purpose and desires. Human history includes what God causes directly to happen and what God allows to happen coming from human volition. God is protecting man from self-destruction by not allowing every human desire to materialize inside the cosmic system. Christ is the center of human history not man. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries
133 - CHRIST IS THE CENTER OF HUMAN HISTORY The center of human history (geographically speaking) is the nation of Israel because the Jews are the apples of the eye of God. However, Christ is the center of human history. Remove Jesus Christ and nothing is left to man. With a view to an administration suitable to the fullness of the times, that is the summing up of all things in Christ, things in heavens and things upon the earth. In Him also we have obtained an inheritance having predestined according to His purpose that works all things after the counsel of His will [Ephesians 1:10-11]. The material things of the world are not the concern of God. He created the earth and all the things in it for the benefit of man. God is not the benefactor of the creation. The phrase ALL THINGS IN CHRIST refers to exclusive members of the human race that is, the believers in time and in eternity. The material creation is not important to God as much as the souls of men. God send His Son to die for men not for material things of the world. And He put all things subjection under His feet, and gave Him as head over all things to the Church, which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all [Ephesians 1:22]. All the souls of all men (whether you like it or not) are under the absolute sovereignty of God. God must be the object of worship because He is the Creator of all things and all creatures. He provided salvation whether you believe or reject Him as Savior of your soul. He is the only Savior. The meaning of life is Jesus Christ not the success in the world. The real success is doing the purpose and will of God not material prosperity or riches gained by human genius. Therefore, there is no real success without Christ in your life. Because Christ is the Creator and He created all things, both in the heavens and on earth [Colossians 1:16], therefore, there is only one reason for the existence of all things- no other than Christ Himself. In the same manner, no seat of power, dominion or any type of rulership, visible or invisible, which is not created through Him and unto Him? Christ is the Head of the visible body of the regenerated people in time called the Church and He is the Head of the spiritual kingdom of God. He alone has the preeminence among the entire human race able not to sin and not able to sin. God created only “One” genuine Church but men created too many churches that lead nobody to heaven. It can lead only to self-destruction. The universality of the Church does not automatically include the membership of the entire human race [Colossians 1:17-18]. There is no means of reconciliation other than the finished work of Christ on the cross of Calvary [Colossians 1:20]. What you think of Christ is not important and it does not affect in any way the reality of perfect work of God. The perfect plan of salvation is not dependent on human perception or opinion. Everything that comes into being and everything that occurs are decreed by God to happen. No events ever occurred apart from the sovereign will of God. Some things happen because God allows it to happen based on human volition. Some things God directly cause apart from human freewill or contribution. But nothing will ever happen apart from the perfect will of God. During the Great Tribulation, God will lift His restraining power over mankind. Man will experience the worst kind of destruction that results from human volition that went out of control. Human free will that is left to do its desire without restrain will result to chaos and destruction. Human history left to its own is dangerous and fatal. To reject God and His plan of grace is self-destruction. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries
134 - THE OBSERVERS OF HUMAN HISTORY The apostle Paul appears to have taken the expression “powers and principalities” from late Jewish apocalyptic thought, where it was applied to intermediate beings lower than God and higher than man. Apart from passages where the reference is unmistakably to human authorities (Rom. 13:1-3; Titus 3:1), principalities archai and authorities (exousiai) or powers (dynameis refer to cosmic intelligences, occasionally angelic, but usually demonic (Rom. 8:38; 1 Cor. 15:24; Eph. 1:21; 3:10; 6:12; Col. 1:1). Other similar spirit powers are dominions (kyriotetes Eph. 1:21; Col. 1:16), thrones (thronoi Col. 1:16), and the rulers archontes) of this age (1 Cor. 2:6). It is not possible on the basis of NT evidence to rank these spirit powers or to attribute distinctive meanings to each. Six acts in the drama of the principalities and powers may be delineated: CREATION: In the creation plan these powers were designed as good spirits. They were created by Christ and subjected to His lordship (Colossians 1:16). THE FALL OF ANGELS: For reasons undisclosed in the NT some spirit powers separated from Christ (Jude 6) in a rupture of cosmic proportions (II Pet. 2:4), necessitating atonement (Col. 1:20). DEFEATED BY CHRIST: In His ministry Jesus resisted satanic temptation (Luke 4:1-13) and conquered evil spirits (Luke 4:35), delegating this power to His disciples (Mark 3:15). In His death he disarmed the forces of evil (Col. 2:14-15). In His resurrection and exaltation He subjected them to his lordship (Eph. 1:20-22; 4:8; 1 Pet. 3:22). Christians are enthroned with Christ and share this victory and ought to live accordingly (Col. 2:20-3:4). LEARNING: The spirit powers, who are not omniscient, learn the manifold wisdom of God, by witnessing the historic experience of the Church (Eph. 3:10). CONTINUING WARFARE: Although defeated and under instruction, the spirit powers have not yet surrendered. The vestiges of their power continue to corrupt the disobedient (Eph. 2:2). The Christian's most powerful and deceitful enemies are still demonic (Eph. 6:12), but God's power is stronger (Eph. 6:10-11) and no evil power will separate the Christian from the love of God (Rom. 8:38-39). TOTAL DEFEAT: The days of this warfare are numbered and the outcome certain. With the consummation of the kingdom of God the evil powers will be robbed of all malignant efficacy (1 Cor. 15:24). On His 33 years on earth and up to the cross Jesus Christ, who in His life was not the slave of any power, law, custom, community, institution, value, or theory, destroyed the powers' pretensions to sovereignty, thus making authentic living possible. Principalities and powers are eternal and supernatural beings, because they are confronted by Christ "in the heavenly places" (Eph. 1:20; 3:10; 6:12) and also because the Christian's warfare is specially said to be "not with flesh and blood but with principalities and powers" (Eph. 6:12). To identify the principalities and powers with human or abstract, impersonal forces is probably the result of cultural presuppositions determining exegesis It is possible, however, that Paul intended his reference to thrones, dominions, principalities, and authorities in Col. 1:16 to embrace earthly as well as heavenly powers. The matter invites further research. But for the present time, while allowing that all human systems are wide open to corruption from demonic forces, it is safest to avoid identifying principalities and powers with sociopolitical structures. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries
135 - THE DISPENSATIONS OF HUMAN HISTORY A dispensation is a period of human history defined in terms of divine revelation. The Bible describes it as:
The doctrine of dispensations is the vehicle by which believers living at a specific time can orient to God’s will, plan, and purpose for their lives. God never changes there is no variation or shifting shadow in God [James 1:17]. Change is an integral characteristic of His plan for the entire creation. But God is never impulsive or arbitrary –the changes He incorporates into His plan are designed to attain His unchanging purpose [Hebrews 6: 17]. The doctrine of dispensations recognizes the different mechanics and procedure as well as the continuities that run from one period to the next. The doctrine is essential for understanding the believer’s post salvation experience. Knowledge of dispensations enables the believer to handle the Word of truth accurately. The Greek words for dispensation used about twenty times in the NT, mean "to manage, regulate, administer, and plan the affairs of a household." This concept of human stewardship is illustrated in Luke 16:1-2, where the ideas of responsibility, accountability, and the possibility of change are detailed. In other occurrences (Ephesians1: 10; 3:2, 9; Colossians 1:25) the idea of divine stewardship is prominent an administration or plan being accomplished by God in this world. Dispensations refer to God’s administration of or plan for the world, it describes the unfolding of that program in various dispensations, or stewardship arrangements, throughout the history of the world. The world is seen as a household administered by God in connection with several stages of revelation that mark off the different economies in the outworking of his total program. Thus from God's viewpoint a dispensation is an economy; from man's it is a responsibility to the particular revelation given at a particular time. In relation to progressive revelation, a dispensation is a stage within it. Thus a dispensation may be defined as "a distinguishable economy in the outworking of God's program." God did not reveal all truth at one time but through various periods and stages of revelation. This principle of progressive revelation is evident in the Scriptures themselves. Paul told his audience on Mars Hill that in a former time God overlook their ignorance, but now commands all men everywhere to repent (Acts 17:30). The majestic opening of the book of Hebrews outlines the various means of progressive revelation (Hebrews 1:1-2). One of the most striking verses that show different ways of God's dealing with mankind is John 1:17. The concept of progressive revelation does not negate the unity of the Bible but recognizes the diversity of God's unfolding revelation as essential to the unity of His completed revelation. Any study of the Bible must deal with the distinction between the era of Israel and the Church –this is the starting point in the doctrine of the dispensations. Jesus Christ is the key to the divine interpretation of history. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries
136 - THE REASON FOR DISPENSATIONS Since Jesus Christ is the center of human history He is also the key for understanding human history [Ephesians 3:10-11, Rev. 1:8]. The doctrine of the dispensations spotlights Him He is the center of the six human dispensations. The knowledge of the doctrine of dispensations prevents the horrid mistake of twisting biblical truth and it provides basis for correct interpretation of the Word of God. Many principles, policies and procedures that God established remain constant throughout history. The believer cannot overlook certain changes that distinguish one era of biblical history from another. The very reason for the change of divine policies and operation for human history must be defined since God reveal His unchanging glory, wisdom, and power under different conditions. From God’s eternal perspective the ultimate in this long and varied demonstration of His character is the relationship between Christ and the Church, in which the believer is in eternal union with Christ [Ephesians 1:17-23 3:10, 21]. The only explanation for this multifaceted divine revelation that unfolds throughout human history lies in the angelic revolt. Satan and the host of angels who joined his rebellion were brought to trial and convicted and were sentenced to the Lake of Fire. The sentence of the fallen angels to eternal Lake of Fire was pronounced long before mankind existed but the execution was postponed until the end of human history [Matthew 25:41, Revelation 20:10]. The reason for the postponement of execution of the sentence was because Satan objected to God’s perfect verdict. Satan appealed for re-trial, just as he continues to contend against God. Any objection to perfect divine judgment slanders the character of God. God convened an appeal trial in which He would demonstrate His perfect character and perfect verdict against Satan. The divine reason for the creation of mankind is to resolve the angelic conflict. God will answer every aspect of Satan’s objection in the pre-historic trial. Simultaneously, Satan is attempting to prove himself equal with God (Isaiah 14:14), but the devil displays only arrogance, incompetence, and evil, which confirms his guilt. Human history is the appeal trial of the angelic conflict. The numerous and diverse aspects of God’s wisdom are revealed through mankind, and most dramatically through the Church to the rulers and the authorities (fallen angels) in the heavenly places [Ephesians 3:10, 6:12]. In every segment of the appeal trial of Satan, the grace of God and the perfect justice of God are proven again and again. God introduces changes into His administration of human history in order to present His perfect plan of grace, disprove Satan’s case, and deliver a decisive closing argument. These changes produce the dispensations. God created only one doctrine of dispensation while various cultic religions fabricated their own versions of dispensations based on human viewpoint and not based on biblical truth. In this book, we refer only to one doctrine of dispensation and that is the biblical doctrine of dispensations. Dispensation is God’s perfect design for human history a stage where He manifests time after time His gracious acts for the benefits of man. The primary purpose and design of dispensation is for God to reveal progressively His gracious plan for man, while men are getting worst but God remains perfect and just. Dispensation is a reality and there is no way to get rid of it. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries
137 - TIMES AND EPOCHS The Greek word translated “times” is “chronos”while for epochs the word is “kairos”.Chronos regards time as succession of events –one following after the other in chronological order. In some occasion, the bible used “chronos” for a segment of time with a dispensational connotation [Romans 16:25, 1 Peter 1:20]. In contrast, “kairos”denotes an era, a system or order of chronology, a period of time characterized by a distinctive development. This noun is always for the organization of historical events in their dispensational categories. In various passages kairos refers to Church Age [Romans 8:18], the Jewish age or Israel [Ephesians 2:1-12] or times of the Gentiles, which is not a single dispensation but a broader period that includes the Church Age and Tribulation [Luke 21:24]. The Lord Jesus Christ told His disciples about “the times and epochs” and had taught them at length concerning dispensations. They were not ignorant of dispensational doctrines as others may presume based on the disciples question in Acts 1:6-7. They were familiar with dispensation [Matthew 23:27-25:46, John chapter 14 up to 17]. It was our Lord’s extensive dispensational teaching that prompted their questions [Acts 1:6-7, Matthew 5:17, 24:3]. The disciples did not doubt the existence and reality of dispensation, but their idea of the kingdom of God was distorted by two religious sentiments. First was the anti-Romans and secondly, the popular Jewish distorted belief. The primary barrier and the number one anti-biblical dispensation truth are the religious doctrines. If the biblical dispensation is truth, then, all the religious doctrines must be heretical lies. The doctrine of dispensations explains why the disciples were perplexed.“ And so when they had come together, they were asking Him, saying, “Lord, is it at this time you are restoring the kingdom to Israel”. He said to them, “It is not for you to know times and epochs which the Father has fixed by His own authority.” [Acts 1:6-7] The disciples were living in a period of earth-shattering events and they failed to notice the end of Christ’s ministry to Israel and the beginning of His ministry to the approaching Church. Like some Church Age believers, they confused different period of time (dispensations) with their own time. They failed to understand God’s purpose for their lives in the current age [Colossians 2:16-3:3]. The arrival of the Church Age enabled the Disciples of Christ to understand the times and epochs [Acts 1:8]. The Church Age believer has a more complete perspective than Christ’s disciples had while He lived in their presence. The Lord ascended into heaven and left His disciples confused with the doctrine of dispensations. The apostle Paul became the chief advocate of the dispensational teaching although he was still an unbeliever at the time of Christ’s ascension [Galatians 2:1-, 2 Peter 3:1-16]. Twenty-one years after Christ’s ascension Paul gave orientation to believers in Thessalonica concerning dispensational doctrines: “Now as to the times and the epochs, brethren, you have no need of anything to be written to you. For you yourself know full well that the day of the Lord (His second advent) will come just like a thief in the night...But you, brethren, are not in darkness, that the day should overtake you like a thief [1 Thessalonians 5:4]. Ignorance of this doctrine makes the believer confused about God’s plan and purpose. To know this doctrine makes the believer alert and attentive to the plan and purpose of God for his life. J. R. Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries
138 - AGES AND ADMINISTRATION Two more Greek words for dispensations: the noun aion and oikonomia in addition to chronos and kairos. The noun aion usually translated “age” refers to dispensations as categories of human history [Romans 16:17, Ephesians 3:9]. Oikonomia had come to mean the management of a household; it implies order not chaos, a plan rather than confusion, an arrangement rather than disarray. Oikonomia does not denote time but described a divine administration during a distinct historical era [[1 Corinthians 9:17, Ephesians 1:8-10, 3:2-3, 8-9, 1 Timothy 1:3-4]. Oikonomia identifies the Church Age, during which God administers a set of divine policies and provisions unique only to the Church Age. Administration becomes an important issue in distinguishing the dispensations from one another. At decisive junctures in His overall plan for mankind- God institutes changes in delegated authority, responsibility, procedure, and available assets. These changes in the divine administration of human history involved first one group of people, then another, and another. The categorization for the dispensation is derived from the people at the focus of divine revelation in a specific period of time. In the course of human history, this focus passes from several benefactors:
Each administration involves new divine mandates accompanied by new divine resources for fulfilling those mandates. As a result, the post-salvation way of life of believers is significantly different in various eras of human history. Scripture reveals the believer’s way of life most comprehensively in the dispensations of Israel and the Church the details of which disclosed and confirmed the principle of change against a background of continuity. The doctrine of dispensations is not biased and arbitrary classification superimposed by man on the Bible. They are an integral part of divine revelation. The Greek vocabulary establishes that the subject of dispensations is presented in the Scripture. The Lord Jesus Christ is the number one exponent of the doctrine of dispensations He affirmed the existence of distinct times and epochs which God the Father has fixed by His own authority. To reject the doctrine of the dispensations is to reject the perfection of Christ who taught it but widely misunderstood by His disciples. His disciples missed the beauty of the doctrine because of their racial prejudice and religious sentiments. In the same way, some Christians of the Church Age are missing the truth of the doctrine because of their ignorance and faithfulness to |