“Let no one deceive you”

Friday, February 9, 2018

The world is prepared for the “the man of sin…the son of perdition” (2 Thess. 2:3). When he arrives it will be “according to the working of Satan, with all power, signs, and lying wonders, and with all unrighteous deception among those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth, that they might be saved” (2 Thess. 2:9–10). End-time deceptions increase.

The union of Christianity and Roman Catholicism is one of those deceptions, and the union of Christianity with portions of Judaism’s law is yet another. But the false pretribulation rapture tradition taught by the church itself is the chief deception to lead “the falling away” (2 Thess. 2:3), and will be a cause of great offense, hatred and betrayal one of another, see Matt. 24:10.

The late George Eldon Ladd (1911–1982), “professor of New Testament exegesis and theology at Fuller Theological Seminary, Pasadena, California”, in his book “The Blessed Hope”, has set forth the truth of the posttribulation rapture taught by Christ and His apostles. Yet, Ladd said he “knows of a good number of outstanding Christian leaders who hold this same expectation, but they do not wish to be quoted and they have not publically expressed themselves.” Really!

How can this be! How can “Christian leaders” believe Christ and His apostle’s posttribulation rapture truth but remain silent! Is that love for God? Is that love for people? Is Christ honored and His Church protected? Absolutely not! Godly love is never, ever silent about deceptions!

Ladd challenges: “can we afford to be silent on this question? In light of the fact that the Word of God nowhere expressly asserts a pretribulation rapture, and since there is no plain affirmation that the Church will be taken out of the world before Antichrist appears, let us suppose that we are in fact in the very last days, and within a matter of months or a few years at most, God moves upon the events of world history so that suddenly a new Caesar or Mussolini or Hitler or Stalin appears who is unquestionably the Antichrist. Suppose that such a person, the incarnation of satanic power, actually gains domination of the entire world as neither Mussolini or Hitler or Stalin were able to do. Suppose that he uses this power to demand a worship of himself and his state upon penalty of death. Suppose that martyrs begin to fall by the hundreds of thousands, not only of Jews but particularly of Christians who will not worship the Beast or receive his mark. Suppose that suddenly the people of God find themselves engulfed in a horrible persecution at the hands of the Antichrist when they had been assured repeatedly on the authority of the Word of God that this experience would never befall them. What will be the result? We leave it to the reader’s imagination. Certainly we dare not propagate a teaching of safety about which the Word of God in not indisputably clear, nor should we accept the responsibility of filling the hearts of God’s people with what may be a false hope and thus leave them utterly unprepared for terrible days of persecution when and if they fall. If there is the possibility that the Church is to suffer tribulation at the hands of Antichrist, do not those who believe it have a God-given responsibility to do what they can to prepare the Church for what may be ahead, even though it is a very unwelcome message? Our responsibility is to God, not to man.”

Well said, George Eldon Ladd, “Our responsibility is to God, not to man”! But the problem is, many love the praise of man who is seen rather than of God who is unseen. Many also love the wealth that comes from teaching the pretribulation rapture lie entrenched in the Church.

But the day is coming when “we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad. Knowing, therefore, the terror of the Lord, we persuade men…” (2 Cor. 5:10–11).

When Moses led ancient Israel out of Egypt to Canaan, most of the people disbelieved God about their promised inheritance when they heard of terrifying giants in Canaan, and as a result suffered offense and exclusion of their intended inheritance. As fear of the giants turned Israel to disbelieve God, so too, Antichrist and the tribulation are today’s counterpart. Accordingly, many Christians disbelieve the plain Word of God for the end-times and will fall away in offense.

Though God plainly said that Christ “must remain in heaven until the time comes for God to restore everything” (Acts 3:21 NIV), while knowing that the restoration of everything does not occur until the last day of this present age, lest there’d be no tribulation, false teachers yet assert that Christ “will descend from heaven” (1 Thess. 4:16) for the rapture seven years before the restoration of everything! Such false teachers woefully blind themselves and their followers.

Though the Son of God plainly taught that He gathers His elect saints “Immediately after the tribulation” (Matt. 24:29–31), false teachers have persuaded the large majority of Christians through their academic jargon and flesh-pleasing nonsense that Christ gathers His elect saints before the tribulation and the revelation of Antichrist. They teach conjecture, assumptions, wishful thinking and falsehood! But the question is, are you discerning of their deceptions?

Though the Spirit of God plainly said “concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together to Him…Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day will not come unless the falling away comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition, who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God or that is worshiped, so that he sits as God in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God” (2 Thess. 2:1–4), false teachers persuade the ignorant that “our gathering to Him” occurs before the man of sin is revealed!

Though Jesus Christ Himself said, while teaching on the resurrection of the righteous dead, that everyone who “believes in Him may have everlasting life; and I will raise him up at the last day” (John 6:40, 44, 54), false teachers say Christ raises the righteous dead seven years before the last day in a pretribulation rapture. They do grave violence to the authority and testimony of Christ.

One unrepentant lie begets another, and one undiscerned deception begets another, then another. The pretribulation rapture lie and deception now protected by the Church for over 150 years has emboldened the creation of a false god, as many in the Church believe according to their will. Don’t let that be true of you. You have the ability to believe the truth and prepare accordingly.

Marlin J. Yoder

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About the author

I'm a non-denominational ordained minister, and have written TheFridayLetter.com for many years and teach the truths of Jesus Christ with an emphasis on the end-times. This on-line and in-person ministry to which God called me helps many people to know the truths of Christ rather than traditions of men which make "the word of God of no effect" (Mark 7:13).

Comments

  1. Marlin, I read an article yesterday that was written in 2004 by a very concerned bible teacher. He wrote of the widespread unrighteous deception mentioned in your “Let No One Deceive You” article dated 2/9/18. He stated that he thought most religious leaders within Christianity are not teaching the truth as it pertains to the truth of the Word of God. I must agree with him from what I have heard over the last few decades in person and across the air waves as well as on the internet. I felt as though I was reading one of your articles.

    He also went on to declare, as did Jesus and other New Testament writers, and as you do on a regular basis, that these end time deceivers will grow worse. We must continue to sound the alarm as did Jesus, “Take heed, that no one deceives you.” The apostle Paul, after reminding all true believers in Jesus that all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution, Paul proclaimed in 2 Timothy 3.13, “But evil men and imposters will grow worse and worse, deceiving [the general biblically uneducated] and being deceived [themselves].”

    But Paul instructs all who have ears to hear that we must continue in the biblical things which we have learned and have been assured of. That is what Jesus also taught in John 8.31-32, “If you abide [continue] in My Word, you are My disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” If men are not preaching or teaching the truth of the Word of God they are deceiving themselves and others. There can be no other end result!

    Marlin, you asked the question, “How can Christian leaders believe Christ and His apostle’s post tribulation rapture truth, but remain silent?” As you already know, they are deceived! They are deceived into wrongly thinking their silence will be overlooked by Jesus in the end. But quite the contrary their silence will condemn them. They are deceived into grossly misunderstanding the end time offense their silence is creating among the so-called misinformed carnal Christians when end time events begin to take place and these millions of deceived followers of their itching ear false teachers realize they too have been deceived.

    As you Marlin have so well said, these same pretending end time religious but not spiritual leaders are more concerned with appeasing their flesh and physical existence than they are in revealing the truth they know to be true. How sad! The true gospel message we live for and must be willing to die for, as taught by Jesus as an enduring to the end gospel message, may not now fill churches to overflowing as does the compromising message of deception does; and it does not fill the financial coffers as does the message of deception. But when things such as the abomination of desolation takes place and is globally broadcasted by ABC, CBS, NBC, and CNN and other Antichrist honoring establishments, those deceived will awake to their own decision to either continue the lie of a lifestyle of deception or to finally continue in the Word of God in order to be set free by the truth.

    And at that moment of time, millions upon millions will realize their need for the confession of their sins and lawlessness, or they will seal their fate by remaining deceived in exchange for feeding their families and escaping the threat of death ordered by the Antichrist and carried out by those who have chosen to remain deceived. Redemption offered by our heavenly Father through Jesus Christ is still available to those who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus, but it will cost them everything. Make the choice to pursue truth, we will spend all of eternity glad we did. Keep up the end time warning Marlin! In Him Always, Brother Mike…

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