Gen. 2:16-17 π Gen. 3:22 π Dt. 30:15-20 π Jdgs. 21:25 π Mt. 7:13-14 π Mt. 7:21 π Mt. 7:23; 2nd π Mt. 13:22 π Mt. 22:12-13 π Mt. 24:12 π Mt. 25:14-15 π Mt. 25:29 π Mt. 25:40 π Mt. 25:45 π Lk. 6:46 π Lk. 14:27 π Jn. 1:12 π Jn. 3:5-7 π Jn. 4:18 π Jn. 5:14 π Jn. 6:66-67 π Jn. 7:38 π Jn. 8:11 π Jn. 8:44 π Jn. 10:1-2 π Jn. 10:10 π Jn. 10:28-29 π Rom. 8:9 π Rom. 8:38-39 π 2 Cor. 3:6 π Gal. 5:19-21 π Gal. 5:22-23 π Eph. 5:5 π Col. 1:13 π Col. 2:14 π 2 Ths. 2:10-12 π 2 Ths. 2:11 π Heb. 5:9 π Heb. 12:6 π Heb. 12:14; 2nd π Heb. 12:16-17 π Rev. 22:11
Lawlessness, “Iniquity” (KJV) – anomia – [458] π Lead Away – apago – [520]
Jesus clearly warned that “lawlessness” would abound in the last days before His return. ( Mt. 24:12 ) Lawlessness in the New Testament is no light, trivial, laughing matter for it is the cause for which many will be dismissed by Christ from His eternal kingdom. ( Mt. 7:23 ) Lawlessness, in the Greek, is anomia [ 458 ] and literally means “without law” or “no law.” When this word is understood in the context of New Testament teachings regarding a believer’s deliverance from the law ( Col. 2:14 , etc.), the better understanding is that of “no outside source by which to order one’s life and actions.” “Lawlessness” is succinctly captured in the phrase “doing what is right in one’s own eyes.” (see Jdgs. 21:25; top )
Lawlessness could not be a prominent characteristic in any age unless somehow Jesus Himself were redefined into something that would tolerate and even encourage beliefs and behaviors that the real Jesus could never condone or even represent. The jacked (warped, twisted) “Jesus” of lawlessness, for example, would never reprove the woman at the well for living with a man who was not her husband ( Jn. 4:18 ) and would never say to a sinner caught in their sin, “Go and sin no more.” ( Jn. 5:14 , 8:11 , etc.) No, the “Jesus” of the lawless might bless such a one’s business, give one a feeling of inner peace when this “seeker” actually reads the Bible, whisper “lessons” to that one in his sleep and he will overlook all sorts of fleshly sins and even demonic bondages in their life – but to demand holiness ( Heb. 12:14 ) or obedience ( Lk. 6:46; top ) would be foreign to this very unBiblical, jacked “Jesus.”
The followers of this “Jesus” will have children who die of drug overdoses or who are enslaved to all manner of sin, but this is never seen as any kind of reflection on the “Jesus” these lawless rebels follow. Such rebels against God’s truth and ways will lament the deplorable condition our country is in, for example, but will never be able to realize that they themselves are as much to blame for the deplorable condition as anyone else – perhaps even more so because these people have many of the words of truth but live in little or nothing of His Spirit of truth. In reality, the “Jesus” these people follow could simply be renamed Me since the only person who must be satisfied is themselves. So long as Self is made to feel better about itself, this “Jesus” is just oh-so-pleased to have any crumbs of attention thrown to him. Overlooked is that any spiritual blessing or experiences that are attributable to this false “Jesus” can only be demonic in their origins. Is it any wonder that the children kill themselves or destroy their relationships when their mother or father submit to a false “Jesus” and have done so all their lives?
The followers of this “Jesus” are often victims of the deceptiveness of wealth ( Mt. 13:22; top ), failing to see that possessing more of this world’s goods is a test of one’s character and not necessarily a blessing from God. Even those who give things away to “the poor” will often attach strings of control to what they give or they will begrudge the small, usually temporary, pleasure such gifts bring as the poor person remains trapped in whatever circumstances are keeping him from financial freedom. These will be willing, for example, to loan them a vehicle (especially to do something that benefits the owner in some way) but would find it “wrong” to give them any money, even a pittance, for gas to run it. Or they will offer them work but never see that the extremely low pay involved really makes it nothing more than slave labor. It simply would not be right to such as these to actually help someone out of their predicaments when these can just give a mere pittance and feel smugly superior.
Such things as these were in times past most often confined to extreme “churches” led by weirdo “pastors” who went aberrant in their “theology” or “faith” or religious practices and these were fairly obvious to those who knew just about anything of the real Christ. But with the massive exodus from the organized and institutional “churches” (most of which have themselves also abandoned the real Jesus and replaced Him with their own “Jesus”), lawless “Christians” abound. These false “believers,” often attended by their neuroses (much of which is of demonic origin), hold positions of power and wealth and consider themselves to be better and superior to others – failing to recognize that the real Jesus still judges men on the basis of what they have done or not done to the least or poorest of His true brothers. ( Mt. 25:40 , 45; top )
One of the judgments of the Lord upon a land is to deliver its people over to sicknesses of the heart, mind and spirit, sicknesses that are described in terms of departure from reality and healthy interactions with others. In the end days, those who do not love the truth will be delivered over to “strong delusion” so that they will no longer be halfway between truth and deception – those who refuse to repent and be transformed into children of light will take their rightful place among those who are perishing. ( 2 Ths. 2:10-12; top ) One such delusion will be that the jacked “Jesus” is the real one. In the end, this “Jesus” will save no one and will prove to be only a haunting memory as one spends their eternity in Hell with the memories of all the times they allowed this jacked “Jesus” to be a substitute for learning to walk in truth, righteousness, holiness and genuine divine love for God and their fellow man.
In many, perhaps all such cases, these rebels are victims of one of Satan’s most effective deceptions – the two-step “gospel.” What is perhaps the devil’s most pernicious deception comes ultimately from the doctrines of eternal salvation. One can easily observe the fruit of this false gospel – it is most readily seen in those who preach or espouse the doctrine of eternal salvation but have nothing of the Spirit or life of Christ within them. If you disagree with anything these people say, especially their false doctrine and “gospel,” they respond with snide, sarcastic or even rude retorts designed to display your stupidness for ever disagreeing with them and to shame you into silence and submission. The source of this strange dichotomy of angry, rude and bitter people preaching “eternal life” is found in the two-step “gospel.”
Jesus said, “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life.” ( Mt. 7:13-14; top )
There are so many errors and misconceptions floating around about salvation that one cannot hope to address them all. But let us consider this saying of Jesus in the light of other Scriptures that touch on the same issue:
- There are two gates, two ways, two destinations. Adam faced this same choice in the garden of Eden (two trees – Gen. 2:16-17 , 3:22 ), Moses presented the Israelites with this same choice (life or death – Dt. 30:15-20 ) and Jesus pressed this choice upon His disciples. (go or stay – Jn. 6:66-67; top )
- The broad gate opens to the broad road that ends in destruction. The many works of the flesh ( Gal. 5:19-21 ) are the characteristics of those who have gone this way and those who do these things are excluded from the kingdom of God (especially note those works that are the mainstays of modern churchianity; also see Eph. 5:5; top )
- The narrow gate is small and opens to the narrow road that leads to life. The singular fruit of the life lived on this road, made possible only by and through the power of the Spirit of God, is “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.” ( Gal. 5:22-23 ) Why is this many-itemed list the singular fruit of God’s Spirit? Because they are the only valid expression of the life and Spirit of Christ coming out from within. They are the living water that flows forth from the depths of one’s innermost being. ( Jn. 7:38; top )
- To enter the gate is to be born anew from above. ( Jn. 3:5-7 ) This transaction ( Jn. 1:12 ) or translation ( Col. 1:13 ) places us upon the road that leads away to eternal life (see apago [ 520 ]). Christ’s life has been given to us but we must choose what we will do with that life. “Everyone who has will be given more, and he will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken from him.” ( Mt. 25:29 ) In this parable, the life of Christ is the large sums of money given to the three servants and we do well not to mistakenly assign any other interpretation to that parable. ( Mt. 25:14-15; top and following)
- Eternal life is found at the end of the narrow road. We have abundant life now ( Jn. 10:10 ) and “theologians” like to assure us that, no matter what we do or say or how we live, we have that eternal life now and no one can take that eternal life away from us. But this is not entirely accurate. We who have the Spirit of Christ do have His life within us ( Rom. 8:9 ) and for we who are His sheep, no one can snatch us out of the Father’s hand ( Jn. 10:28-29 ) nor can anything separate us from the love of God that is in Christ. ( Rom. 8:38-39 ) But the one who refuses to pursue holiness will not see the Lord ( Heb. 12:14 ) and those who are godless and immoral will, like Esau, forfeit their inheritance. ( Heb. 12:16-17 ) Anyone who shows up for the wedding feast of God’s Son who is not appropriately and obediently attired in a wedding garment as was provided for him will be removed and cast out into the darkness. ( Mt. 22:12-13; top )
- The narrow path that leads to eternal life is the will of God. Jesus said, “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven.” ( Mt. 7:21 ) He also said, “Anyone who does not carry his cross and follow Me cannot be My disciple.” ( Lk. 14:27 ) Jesus Christ is the author or source of eternal salvation for all who obey Him ( Heb. 5:9; top ), not for those who disobey Him.
It is here that we can see the deceptiveness of the “two-step gospel.” It is taught or practiced in different ways but the result is that the people are compelled to enter the gate but not to walk the path. In many cases, one cannot even be certain they’ve even come in through the right gate ( Jn. 10:1-2 ) but it is very evident that the path they take has nothing to do with crosses, sufferings or the life and Spirit of Christ. Yet these are the very ones who are most likely to know the words of the Bible verbatim and hold positions of leadership, giving yet more evidence that the letter, even of the New Covenant, kills, whereas the Spirit of God gives life. ( 2 Cor. 3:6; top ) Indeed, the two-step “gospel,” designed to ensnare the lawless followers of the jacked “Jesus,” is surely one of Satan’s most lethal killing machines and many people today cling to it as if it were, in truth, their eternal safety and security.
For some it will seem irreverent to speak of a “jacked Jesus” but this is precisely what these lawless rebels have created – a “Jesus” who condones, encourages and enables their neurotic, carnal, sinful and wicked lifestyles, those ways of living that make both individuals and people groups ripe for strong judgment. These lawless rebels may never do a grossly “wrong” or overtly “wicked” thing and indeed many may seem on the surface to be a good and kind person – but in reality, they are as wicked and abominable to God as any other sinner. Perhaps more so because these know so much about Christ but live so little of Him.
It is thus not irreverent or improper to speak of the “jacked Jesus” these people have concocted from their own imaginations and preferences. It is simply the reality – a reality that will certainly bring on God’s reprimands and reproof if these people are going to remain or become God’s children ( Heb. 12:6 ), a reality that may bring about God’s judgments of giving them over to the will and power of the demonic ( “strong delusion” is the native language of the devil and the demonic – 2 Ths. 2:11 , Jn. 8:44 ) and, if left uncorrected and unchanged, this course of life will result in God’s eternal judgment. ( Mt. 7:23 ) The closing admonition of the Bible stands paramount for all those who live during the so-called “church” age, especially in its closing moments: “He who is unjust, let him be unjust still; he who is filthy, let him be filthy still; he who is righteous, let him be righteous still; he who is holy, let him be holy still.” ( Rev. 22:11 ; top ) If what you’re doing works for you and your jacked “Jesus,” keep it up, I guess. But you must also know that it doesn’t work for the real Jesus and you must know that how you’re living your life makes you the enemy of the real Jesus. This is a most undesirable and untenable position indeed and you will not be able to say you weren’t warned.
The cure for following this false “Jesus” is the same one for all who find themselves in any sinful or wicked lifestyle – repent, be changed, take up your cross and follow Christ wherever He leads. This is the only true way of salvation – all else are mere frauds and counterfeits no matter how popular (or unpopular) the “pastor” is nor how large and ornate (or small and poor) his or her lecture hall may be. Anything that keeps us from personally interacting with and obeying Christ is simply a false “gospel” that puts us at the mercy of warped and contorted “theology” or philosophy and that, in the end, will place us back under the judgments of God. For anyone who has his or her hands on the Bible and who is seeking or experiencing any kind of truth to remain willing to fall so far short of reaching the real Jesus is simply jacked.
Let he who has ears hear.
- Lawlessness That Abounds Bible Bullet: Matthew 24:12 - Neil Girrard The simple mistranslation of one Greek word may be responsible for much misunderstanding of our responsibilities before God.
- A Different Jesus - Neil Girrard - ( in Adobe/pdf format ) Every sect (denomination) and religious social club (“church”) has its own “Jesus.” How can this be?
- The Deceitfulness of Wealth Bible Bullet: Matthew 13:22 - Neil Girrard God has always demanded that those who would be His must bear fruit, that is, bring forth things of benefit and supply for the kingdom of God.
- Many Deceptions and The Lie - Neil Girrard - ( in Adobe/pdf format ) How do we reconcile the difference between the many New Testament prophecies that speak of a plurality, even a multiplicity, of deceptions with Paul’s reference to a single lie that carries severe, eternal consequences for those who come under its power?
- The Two Step Gospel - Neil Girrard - ( in Adobe/pdf format ) Jesus’ picture of the wide and narrow gates and paths provides us with insight into what is perhaps the devil’s most pernicious deception, a deception which comes directly from the doctrines of eternal salvation.
- Surrender - Neil Girrard - ( in Adobe/pdf format ) Some object to the use of the word “surrender” in our relationship with God. Why would they do that?
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