Eternal Judgment (Your Soul Is Immortal)

Revelation 20:11-15

"Then I saw a great white throne and Him who sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away. And there was found no place for them. And I saw the dead, small and great, standing before God, and books were opened. And another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to their works, by the things which were written in the books. The sea gave up the dead who were in it, and Death and Hades delivered up the dead who were in them. And they were judged, each one according to his works. Then Death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. And anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire."

These words are faithful and true, make no mistake, we will ALL stand before the judgment seat of God. We are going to be judged by what we DO while living in these earthly bodies, those who do good will inherit eternal life, and those who do wicked will be eternally punished.

John 5:28-29

"Do not marvel at this; for the hour is coming in which all who are in the graves will hear His voice and come forth—those who have done good, to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil, to the resurrection of condemnation."

There are many who believe that God will not punish His creation for eternity, that He is not a God who would do that, but yet we have a multitude of scriptures that tell us exactly what He is going to do with those who do not know Him and have not obeyed the gospel of Jesus Christ.

2nd Thessalonians 1:6-10

"since it is a righteous thing with God to repay with tribulation those who trouble you, and to give you who are troubled rest with us when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with His mighty angels, in flaming fire taking vengeance on those who do not know God, and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. These shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power, when He comes, in that Day, to be glorified in His saints and to be admired among all those who believe, because our testimony among you was believed."

Jesus told those who He separated at His Second Coming to depart from Him into the fire prepared for the devil and his angels.

Matthew 25:31-33,41-46

“When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory. All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate them one from another, as a  shepherd divides his sheep from the goats. And He will set the sheep on His right hand, but the goats on the left."

“Then He will also say to those on the left hand, ‘Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels:  for I was hungry and you gave Me no food; I was thirsty and you gave Me no drink; I was a stranger and you did not take Me in, naked and you did not clothe Me, sick and in prison and you did not visit Me.’ “Then they also will answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to You?’ Then He will answer them, saying, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to Me.’ And these will go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”

The people who will take the mark of the beast, and worship him or his image will also be thrown into the lake of fire.

Revelation 14:9-11

"Then a third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, “If anyone worships the beast and his image, and receives his mark on his forehead or on his hand, he himself shall also drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out full strength into the cup of His indignation. He shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb. And the smoke of their torment ascends forever and ever; and they have no rest day or night, who worship the beast and his image, and whoever receives the mark of his name.”

Some believe that you will be destroyed in this fire but these scriptures make it very clear, your soul is immortal, and if you worship the beast and his image, or take his mark in your forehead or hand you will be tormented with fire and brimstone forever.

The beast and the false prophet will be thrown into the lake of fire alive and will be tormented forever.

Revelation 19:20

"Then the beast was captured, and with him the false prophet who worked signs in his presence, by which he deceived those who received the mark of the beast and those who worshiped his image. These two were cast alive into the lake of fire burning with brimstone."

Satan will be thrown into the lake of fire after the one thousand year reign of Christ on the earth, and guess who will be there waiting for him?

Revelation 20:7-10

"Now when the thousand years have expired, Satan will be released from his prison and will go out to deceive the nations which are in the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle, whose number is as the sand of the sea. They went up on the breadth of the earth and surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city. And fire came down from God out of heaven and devoured them.  The devil, who deceived them, was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone where the beast and the false prophet are. And they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.

If you thought that the beast and the false prophet or the spirits who are thrown into the lake of fire will be completely destroyed these scriptures prove that the soul and spirit is immortal. The beast and false prophet are still in the lake of fire being tormented one thousand years later when Satan himself will also be thrown in. Jesus said the lake of fire was prepared for the devil and his angels, He doesn't want any of us to go there, and God sent His only Son to pay the penalty for our sins so that we wouldn't have to go there. We all have free will and a choice to make, either eternal life, or eternal separation from God in the lake of fire.

Paul said in 2nd Corinthians 4:16-18

^"Therefore we do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day. For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory, while we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal.

We have a soul and spirit inside these mortal bodies, we cannot see them, but they are there, and they are immortal. I pray that you will accept the free gift of salvation so that your immortal soul may spend eternity with the Eternal God.

In His Light,
Tyrone

Dream: A Coming Riot?

By: Tyrone Palmer

This dream was short but I saw about ten or so European American males shooting all kinds of weaponry at an African American male, he was running away and they all threw some hand grenades at him, he dodged and flipped and managed to escape being blown up. -End-

I don't know what this dream means but I have read two other dreams that agree about a coming race riot here in America. I asked myself what could cause a riot like this, and I thought about the dreams and prophecies I have read recently about a coming economic crash, which will definitely cause absolute chaos when people lose all their money, 401k's, savings etc... no food, no electricity, no water, it would be a horrible situation.

Here are two links to dreams about a coming race riot.

http://janmeador.wordpress.com/prophetic-2/12102006-race-war-in-america/

http://www.shoutsofjoyministries.com/prophecies/prophecy-america/

I encourage you to pray for confirmation of these things and hear from the Lord yourselves about this riot. Whatever is coming upon us, we need to be ready for it, pray and fast about it, at the least you will have drawn closer to the Lord. And remember the Lord has promised to protect those who put their trust in Him!

May God Bless And Keep You In These Last Days,
Tyrone

Sir, What Must I DO To Be Saved?

Mark 16:14-18

"Later He appeared to the eleven as they sat at the table; and He rebuked their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they did not believe those who had seen Him after He had risen. And He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned. And these signs will follow those who believe: In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues; they will take up serpents; and if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.”

These words of Jesus Christ to His apostles should be enough to end this message right here, but unfortunately in these last days of deception and strong delusion these scriptures have been glossed over as if they didn't exist by those who claim salvation is by faith alone, 'you don't have to DO anything', they say, 'Jesus did it all for you on the cross'. No baptism, no Holy Spirit, no righteous works, no obedience, no repentance, no fasting, no ceasing from sin, no holiness, no suffering, no self-denial, no conformation into the image of Christ. Yet this is exactly what many believe inspite of the teachings of Jesus and the word of God that clearly explains to us all what we MUST DO in order to be saved.

Jesus COMMANDS His apostles to GO and preach the good news to every creature, he who believes AND IS BAPTIZED will be SAVED. Very clear right? God in the flesh giving a command right? Did the apostles OBEY this command? We have the clear evidence of their obedience recorded in the book of Acts. The only book that records clear examples of converts to Christ and what they DID after they believed  the gospel that the apostles preached.

The same Jesus who said, "He who believes and is baptized will be saved", is the same Jesus who said in:

Luke 6:46

“But why do you call Me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do the things which I say?

Is Jesus preaching salvation by works? Of course not!

What Jesus is preaching is what we must DO in order to be saved! God is the author of salvation for our soul, not us! Who are we to change what He spoke? And who is man that decides how his own soul will be saved?

Let's break down what Jesus said in Mark 16:16

He who believes and is baptized will be saved

Jesus told His apostles to go into the world and preach the gospel (good news) to every creature. The man or woman who believes the good news and is baptized will be saved.

First the good news needs to be preached by those whom the Lord sends into the world, the person who hears this gospel must believe what they have heard. So what does it mean to believe? The Greek word for believe is Pisteuo.

4100. pisteuo pist-yoo'-o from 4102; to have faith (in, upon, or with respect to, a person or thing), i.e. credit; by implication, to entrust (especially one's spiritual well-being to Christ):--believe(-r), commit (to trust), put in trust with. (Strong's Greek Lexicon)

What does the word faith mean?

4102. pistis pis'-tis from 3982; persuasion, i.e. credence; moral conviction (of religious truth, or the truthfulness of God or a religious teacher), especially reliance upon Christ for salvation; abstractly, constancy in such profession; by extension, the system of religious (Gospel) truth itself:--assurance, belief, believe, faith, fidelity.

Second, the person who believes needs to be baptized.

What does the word baptized mean?

907. baptizo bap-tid'-zo from a derivative of 911; to immerse, submerge; to make whelmed (i.e. fully wet); used only (in the New Testament) of ceremonial ablution, especially (technically) of the ordinance of Christian baptism:--Baptist, baptize, wash.

What does the word saved mean?

4982. sozo sode'-zo from a primary sos (contraction for obsolete saos, "safe"); to save, i.e. deliver or protect (literally or figuratively):--heal, preserve, save (self), do well, be (make) whole.

Jesus said to His apostles, go into the world and preach the good news, he who has faith in me or is persuaded by your message and is immersed in water will be saved.

What did the the people ask when they heard the gospel preached by Peter on the day of Pentecost?

Acts 2:36-37

“Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ.” Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Men and brethren, what shall we do?”

What did Peter tell them when they asked him and the other apostles present, "what shall we DO?", did Peter and the other apostles tell them, "just believe!, that's it, that's all you have to do!", NO THEY DID NOT!. Peter being obedient to the command of Jesus Christ, and in agreement with the rest of the apostles and disciples said to them in:

Acts 2:38-39

"Then Peter said to them,“Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is to you and to your children, and to all who are afar off, as many as the Lord our God will call.”

Was Peter preaching salvation by works?

What happened when Philip the Evangelist preached the gospel to the Samarians?

Acts 8:12

"But when they believed Philip as he preached the things concerning the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, both men and women were baptized."

What happened when Philip preached the gospel to the Ethiopian Eunuch?

Acts 8:34-38

"So the eunuch answered Philip and said, “I ask you, of whom does the prophet say this, of himself or of some other man?” Then Philip opened his mouth, and beginning at this Scripture, preached Jesus to him.  Now as they went down the road, they came to some water. And the eunuch said, “See, here is water. What hinders me from being baptized?” Then Philip said, “If you believe with all your heart, you may.”
And he answered and said, “I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.” So he commanded the chariot to stand still. And both Philip and the eunuch went down into the water, and he baptized him.

Was Philip preaching salvation by works?

It is very clear in these scriptures as Philip preached Jesus to the Ethiopian Eunuch, that he explained to him what he must DO in order to obtain salvation for his soul, because the eunuch said, "see here is water, what hinders me from being baptized?" Philip was taught correctly by the apostles, he was filled with the Holy Spirit, and he knew what must be done by the one who believes the gospel. None of the apostles or evangelists in the first century told any convert to Christ that all they had to do was believe, so why do preachers today say this? And why do people believe this inspite of the clear teachings of Jesus and the clear examples of true conversion recorded in the book of Acts?

Paul's conversion:

Acts 9:17-18

"And Ananias went his way and entered the house; and laying his hands on him he said, “Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you came, has sent me that you may receive your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.” Immediately there fell from his eyes something like scales, and he received his sight at once; and he arose and was baptized."

The conversion of the gentile Cornelius and his household:

Acts 10:42-48

"And He commanded us to preach to the people, and to testify that it is He who was ordained by God to be Judge of the living and the dead. To Him all the prophets witness that, through His name, whoever believes in Him will receive remission of sins.” While Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit fell upon all those who heard the word. And those of the circumcision who believed were astonished, as many as came with Peter, because the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out on the Gentiles also. For they heard them speak with tongues and magnify God. Then Peter answered, “Can anyone forbid water, that these should not be baptized who have received the Holy Spirit just as we have?” And he commanded them to be baptized in the name of the Lord. Then they asked him to stay a few days."

Again we clearly see Peter being obedient to the commands and teachings of Jesus Christ, what kind of minister would Peter have been if he were disobedient? He probably wouldn't have been the Lord's apostle very long!

The conversion of Lydia in Philippi:

Acts 16:13-15

"And on the Sabbath day we went out of the city to the riverside, where prayer was customarily made; and we sat down and spoke to the women who met there. Now a certain woman named Lydia heard us. She was a seller of purple from the city of Thyatira, who worshiped God. The Lord opened her heart to heed the things spoken by Paul. And when she and her household were baptized, she begged us, saying, “If you have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come to my house and stay.” So she persuaded us."

The conversion of the Philippian jailer:

Acts 16:29-34

"Then he called for a light, ran in, and fell down trembling before Paul and Silas. And he brought them out and said, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” So they said, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and your household.” Then they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all who were in his house. And he took them the same hour of the night and washed their stripes. And immediately he and all his family were baptized. Now when he had brought them into his house, he set food before them; and he rejoiced, having believed in God with all his household."

Some use this scrpture as proof text of just believe and you are saved, but how could the jailer believe on the Lord Jesus Christ without first hearing the gospel preached? This is why the scripture goes right on to say, "then they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all who were in his house". Then we see the jailer and his family respond after they heard the word and believed it, they were immediately baptized.

Did the jailer receive salvation by works? Or was he and his family being obedient to the words of Paul and Silas?

Paul said to the Roman saints about the Israelites in:

Romans 10:14-15

"How then shall they call on Him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher? And how shall they preach unless they are sent? As it is written: “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the gospel of peace, Who bring glad tidings of good things!”

In conclusion:

Jesus Himself taught His disciples the plan of God for the salvation of the soul, He appointed them, commanded them, and empowered them to go out into the world and preach the gospel to all nations. Those who believed this gospel were to be baptized, and because of their belief in the gospel, and the Lord Jesus Christ, the actions that followed their belief would lead to the salvation of their soul.

Abiding In His Love,
Tyrone

Can a dead person rise again?

Hello to all,

I received an email from a friend today with the link below and I would like to share some words with all of you regarding this video and subject:

Read John 11:1-44 (Jesus ressurected Lazarus from the dead)
Read Luke 7:11-14 (Jesus ressurected the only son of the widow of Nain)
Read Mark 5: 22-43 (Jesus ressurected the daughter of Jairus from the dead)

Watch this video:

http://www.cbn.com/media/player/index.aspx?s=/vod/SAF13v5_WS

God is able to raise any dead person from the dead with His Almighty power for His own glory, but the greatest ressurection that must take place for eternal life is not of the physical body, but in the soul !!!! Jesus said in :

John 11:25-26 : I am the ressurection and the Life, the one believing in Me, though he die, he shall live.And everyone living and believing into Me in no way shall die for ever!!!

So, I do believe that Jesus Christ raised this man from the video from the dead in order for him to have the chance to believe in Him and receive eternal life, for he himself said that he was in great darkness when he saw the light.

We are the same: Without Jesus our soul is in great darkness and it is separated from God and we all need Jesus in order to receive life, His Spirit, sanctification, purification of our souls and to be obedient to have eternal life! Do not despise His wonderful grace today!

Hope this iluminates your understanding and help to see how wonderful God is,

Much love in Christ,

Cynthia R. Palmer

The Wages Of Sin Is Death (Original Sin?)

Romans 6:20-23

"For when you were slaves of sin, you were free in regard to righteousness. What fruit did you have then in the things of which you are now ashamed? For the end of those things is death. But now having been set free from sin, and having become slaves of God, you have your fruit to holiness, and the end, everlasting life. For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord."

I have been struggling for months to understand what really happened in the garden of Eden and what actually passed to us because of the sin of Adam and Eve. My problem was with the doctrine of "Original Sin", stating that the SIN of Adam and Eve passed to us and all mankind is BORN IN SIN, meaning every baby that's born into this world is utterly depraved, sinful, and wicked.

There is no scripture that tells us this and I asked myself if this is true then the millions of babies that are aborted, still born, or die after a few months of life ect.... should go to Hell and be eternally separated from God, children who die should go to Hell as well according to the original sin doctrine. But don't we see Jesus saying, "suffer not the children to come unto me, for theirs IS the kingdom?" There has to be an explanation for the state we are born in, so what is it according to scripture?

I have begun to understand that because of Adam and Eve's sin, each soul that enters the body of a fetus inside the mothers womb is spiritually dead, because this is what happened to Adam and Eve AFTER the fall, their spirits were separated from God. Even though they were still physically alive, their souls were cut off from the Holy Spirit and life of God, and they died spiritually. When Adam and Eve gave birth to Cain and Abel this spiritual death and separation of the soul from God was passed on to them, but NOT the sin Adam and Eve committed themselves. Cain committed his own sin when he killed his brother Abel, and the curse of death spread to him because of his sin.

Ezekiel 18:20

"The soul who sins shall die. The son shall not bear the guilt of the father, nor the father bear the guilt of the son. The righteousness of the righteous shall be upon himself, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon himself."

We can understand from these scriptures that we did not inherit the original sin of Adam and Eve,  but we suffer the consequences of their sin.

Romans 5:12-14

"Therefore, just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned—  (For until the law sin was in the world, but sin is not imputed when there is no law. Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over those who had not sinned according to the likeness of the transgression of Adam, who is a type of Him who was to come."

What is sin? 1st John 3:4

"Everyone practicing sin also practices lawlessness, and sin is lawlessness."

Sin is something that you practice, commit, or do according to the scriptures, and this means that an infant cannot sin because it's an action not an inherited substance. If we were born in sin, then we could not commit, or practice sin, because we would already be sinners and would have no choice to obey the laws of God.

I can understand that even though an infant has not committed any sin, done good or evil, their soul is still spiritually dead and born under the law of sin and death. At some point this infant will grow up and commit a sin, then the curse of death will spread to them. If they die in their sins without being born again or receiving the free gift of salvation, their soul will be sent to Hell where they will await the judgement of the Lord and if their name is not found written in the Lamb's Book of Life they will be cast into the lake of fire and eternally separated from God, (the second death).

1st Corinthians 15:20-22

"But now Christ is risen from the dead, and has become the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. For since by man came death, by Man also came the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ all shall be made alive."

 If we remain in Adam our souls will die, but if we are baptized into Christ our souls will be made alive through the regenerative work of the Holy Spirit as He comes to indwell our bodies.

Romans 8:11

"But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you."

Romans 5:18-19

"Therefore, as through one man’s offense judgment came to all men, resulting in condemnation, even so through one Man’s righteous act the free gift came to all men, resulting in justification of life. For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so also by one Man’s obedience many will be made righteous."

I have learned that every soul born on the face of this earth needs Jesus, must be born again, and needs to be regenerated by the Holy Spirit. The only way we can be reconciled back to God is to accept His free gift of salvation, and understand that God sent His Son Jesus to set us free from the law of sin and death that came into this world through Adam and Eve.

I welcome any additions, revelations, questions, or insights to this message because I am still learning, praying, and fasting about this very deep spiritual subject, which has been hard to understand.

Abiding In His Love,
Tyrone

A Message to Fornicators

Today in the morning I was praying with my baby daughter and I heard this question:

"Are you making more sex than a prostitute that you cannot stop it?"

And then I said Lord, what is this message for and for who? And then I heard the title of this message: "A Message to Fornicators" And then I received this below:

If a prostitute that earns money to make sex can stop sinning and serve Jesus Christ in purity, why can't you? If she had faith to go to Jesus, why don't you? Do you believe He can take you out of the situation you are in today? Do you believe He can help you decide in marrying or not with the person you are just living with? Don't you believe that Jesus can help you stop being a fornicator? Don't you believe that He can make you stop sinning and give you the person who will love you until the end of your days in this earth?

If you believe today, right now, your faith can make you start obeying what Jesus says in His word: Repent, confess your sins ,be baptized in the waters and receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. If you do this, you will be born again and be sanctified and purified and be called a child of God and be treated like one as well and receive Eternal Life.

You can also watch these links related to this message to encourage you to choose Jesus Christ today. Today is your day, today God is talking to you:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VgLehjvgyOQ&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6CiEEmIaAWw

You must believe the Word of God today. I am inviting you today to be in the banquet of God for your life:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wSEKBmPRwKk

Why you must repent and turn away from fornication (and of course other sins if you do have them as well) and obey God?

1 Corinthians 6:9-10

9 Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor sodomites, 10 nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God.

1 Corinthians 6:18-20

18 Flee sexual immorality. Every sin that a man does is outside the body, but he who commits sexual immorality sins against his own body. 19 Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? 20 For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s.

1 Corinthians 7:1-2

It is good for a man not to touch a woman. 2 Nevertheless, because of sexual immorality, let each man have his own wife, and let each woman have her own husband.

I pray that this word convicted you and that you will repent and live for God not to your flesh anymore.

God bless you,
Cynthia R. Palmer

The Tithe?

This Law of Moses that was given to the Israelite nation by God has been used for centuries to collect money from believers to fund the buildings of man and the salaries of clergy. The misuse of the tithe has led to divisions in many families and marriages, causing a multitude of Christians over the years to go without food, pay their bills, put gas in the car, buy clothes, and many other necessities of life. It has also caused many believers to feel manipulated, guilty, and afraid that God will curse them if they don’t tithe or can't give due to their financial situation.

The scriptures used to validate the tithe in the New Testament church comes from:

Malachi 3:6-12

“For I am the LORD, I do not change; Therefore you are not consumed, O sons of Jacob. Yet from the days of your fathers You have gone away from My ordinances And have not kept them. Return to Me, and I will return to you,” Says the LORD of hosts. “But you said, ‘In what way shall we return?’ Will a man rob God? Yet you have robbed Me! But you say, ‘In what way have we robbed You?’ In tithes and offerings. You are cursed with a curse, For you have robbed Me, Even this whole nation. Bring all the tithes into the storehouse, That there may be food in My house, And try Me now in this,” Says the LORD of hosts, “If I will not open for you the windows of heaven And pour out for you such blessing That there will not be room enough to receive it. “And I will rebuke the devourer for your sakes, So that he will not destroy the fruit of your ground, Nor shall the vine fail to bear fruit for you in the field,” Says the LORD of hosts; And all nations will call you blessed, For you will be a delightful land,” Says the LORD of hosts.”

The first question we need to ask is: Who was Malachi prophesying to?

Malachi 2:6 “To you priests who despise My name.”

The main recipients of this prophetic word were the levitical priests of Israel who offered defiled food, lame, sick, and blind animals on the altar of God. They were the ones who went away from the ordinances of the Lord and were doing evil in His sight. It was the priests in the temple who asked the Lord ‘in what way shall we return?’ ‘Will a man rob God?’

The nation of Israel was robbing God of His tithes that were commanded by the Law of Moses to be given for the priests to live on in the temple. The priests withheld the pure and unblemished offerings that were required by the law to be sacrificed to God. This is why God said bring all the tithes and offerings into the storehouse, that there may be FOOD in My house, not money! The Israelites tithed on their food and livestock so that the priest’s and those who needed it would be fed. If they did this THEN God would open the windows of heaven and pour out a blessing on the nation of Israel and their land, NOT on Christians today!

When we read ALL of Malachi in context we can clearly understand that God was not talking to those under the New Covenant of Jesus Christ. In truth He was talking to the levitical priests and the nation of Israel who were under the Old Covenant.

Malachi 2:1

“And now, O priests, this commandment is for you. If you will not hear, And if you will not take it to heart, To give glory to My name,” Says the LORD of hosts, “I will send a curse upon you, And I will curse your blessings. Yes, I have cursed them already, Because you do not take it to heart.”

The Lord makes it very clear who He was talking to through the prophet Malachi!

Malachi 3:9

“You are cursed with a curse, For you have robbed Me, Even this whole nation.”

What nation? The nation of ISRAEL!

When man takes scripture out of context and uses it for his own gain the consequences always fall upon the sheep who listen to them and trust them. Many ministers are afraid to speak the truth for fear of losing the sheep and their salaries, but every shepherd must realize that the sheep are the Lord’s and we are just tending the flock until the Great Shepherd returns!

Now take a look at how the New Testament church began under the New Covenant of Jesus Christ, the Covenant of grace, truth, and faith by the law of the Spirit.

Acts 2:44-46

“Now all who believed were together, and had all things in common, and sold their possessions and goods, and divided them among all, as anyone had need. So continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved.”

The saints in the New Testament church were exhorted by Paul to excel at the grace of giving, and to give from the heart, not grudgingly or under compulsion. There are no scriptures that command the Christians to tithe ten percent of ALL their income every week to the church.

2nd Corinthians 9:7

“So let each one give as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity; for God loves a cheerful giver.”

2nd Corinthians 8:1-4

“Moreover, brethren, we make known to you the grace of God bestowed on the churches of Macedonia: that in a great trial of affliction the abundance of their joy and their deep poverty abounded in the riches of their liberality. For I bear witness that according to their ability, yes, and beyond their ability, they were freely willing, imploring us with much urgency that we would receive the gift and the fellowship of the ministering to the saints.”

The first century churches were concerned about taking care of one another and providing for the needs of the poor, their offerings were free will offerings. The apostles didn’t have to tell them to give, they gave joyfully even under affliction and poverty. They wanted to minister to the needs of the saints. If the believers today were like this, there wouldn’t be any need that couldn't be met!

2nd Corinthians 8:12-15

“For if there is first a willing mind, it is accepted according to what one has, and not according to what he does not have. For I do not mean that others should be eased and you burdened; but by an equality, that now at this time your abundance may supply their lack, that their abundance also may supply your lack—that there may be equality. As it is written, “He who gathered much had nothing left over, and he who gathered little had no lack.”

Giving in the first century was all about equality and sharing the blessings of God, but today we see guilt giving, reluctant giving, and giving to get something back from God. Is there anywhere in the scriptures that tell Christians to do what we hear coming from the mouths of ministers and televangelists today? Paul told the saints to give according to what they had, not what they didn’t have, so there would be equality in the church.

1st Corinthians 16:1

“Now concerning the collection for the saints, as I have given orders to the churches of Galatia, so you must do also: On the first day of the week let each one of you lay something aside, storing up as he may prosper, that there be no collections when I come. And when I come, whomever you approve by your letters I will send to bear your gift to Jerusalem. But if it is fitting that I go also, they will go with me.”

Again we see a collection being made for the SAINTS and NOT for the clergy or a building, but to provide for the other churches. The church in Jerusalem was in need so Paul told the Corinthian church and the churches of Galatia to set something aside as they have prospered so a collection could be made for the Jerusalem church; NOTHING about the prophecy of Malachi in these scriptures. In truth you will not find any of the apostles quoting the prophet in order to get money from the saints, and Paul knew the Old Testament scriptures well and quoted them often, why didn’t he quote the prophet Malachi?

In truth, you will not find one scripture in the New Testament that commands a Christian convert in the first century church to tithe, and tithing is NOT a New Covenant obligation for the saints today. If the apostles in the first century church didn’t command it, why is it being commanded and taught today?

If you have more questions and would like to go even deeper into the truth about the tithe, here is a link to a very detailed and in-depth study: http://www.bible-truths.com/tithing.html

In His Service,
Tyrone