Is God using Donald Trump?

I believe the Lord has placed every President in office within His sovereignty for His own purposes. Romans 13.  George Bush, Bill Clinton, Obama, and now Donald Trump.
Although Trump has a past of immorality, can be brash, and often times rubs people the wrong way.....God is using him for His purpose! Did God not use evil rulers and nations in the Old Testament to bring about His purposes? Does God not use fallen, imperfect men to fulfill His will? ( I do not believe Trump is a true Christian, yet! Pray for him)
What’s unique about Trump, I believe, is that he set out to “drain the swamp” in Washington. And what do we see? Career politicians forming a Lynch mob to attack and get rid of him! The main stream media funded by George Soros (a globalist) is relentlessly creating a narrative that Trump is bad and dumb! Unfounded accusations to impeach Him! Blaming him for the current crisis!
It’s because Trump is exposing agendas and policies that are not in America’s best interest that he is being attacked! He is not afraid to call people out, expose the darkness, and fight for the American people. He is not a career politician!
He supports Israel our ally in the Middle East, supports pro-life, national sovereignty, prayer, and religious freedom to all!
God has used America to create freedom to spread the gospel to the nations! To send missionaries, build churches, use prosperity to fund missions, etc.
The globalists/leftest want the opposite! They want to do away with borders, national sovereignty, America’s uniqueness, and create a global system (one world). They want global citizens.
Because Trump is trying to keep America’s uniqueness and power intact, the globalists, leftest, Democrats, elitists, will pull out whatever it takes to stop Him! Even if that means crashing our economy, allowing a virus to spread, smearing Trumps reputation, all at the expense of peoples lives in order to move their one world agenda forward!
And so I believe, just as God has a leash on Satan and only gives him enough slack to accomplish His will, God is using Trump to curb and fight against globalism and what would ultimately destroy America in the end!
Does God absolutely need Trump to accomplish his will? Can he not use others? Of course, but it’s Trumps uniqueness that allows him to be the perfect man in place for the times we are living in. To call Trump (Gods man) I believe is correct, just as Obama, the Bushes, and Clinton were in power for a season to bring about Gods will.
Former presidents in my opinion were more globalists than nationalist, and so Trump maybe that last president to stand for America!
Prophetically as the Bible predicts, there will be a global system In place. America doesn’t appear in Bible prophecy and so it seems like it will be absorbed into this one world system. However, for the time being..I believe God has placed Trump in power to extend America’s influence upon the world, give freedom to speak the truth, spread the gospel, equip missionaries, until that appointed time when prophecy should be fulfilled.
I know some of my fellow Christians would disagree with me about Trump. And that’s okay, our unity is in Christ alone. It’s okay to disagree! Display true tolerance! However, I felt led to share my opinion and my research.
God is long suffering not willing that any perish but all come to repentance! The time, is seems is short and the stage is being set for Christ’s return!

Passion 4 Him: "I never knew you!"

Passion 4 Him: "I never knew you!": “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom  of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is i...

"I never knew you!"

“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom
 of heaven, but only the one who
does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’ Matthew 7:21-23

Spurgeon writes that…

"they used the name, which is dear to the disciples of Christ, but they did not possess the nature of disciples. They used Christ’s name, for they said to Him, “Have we not prophesied in Thy name? and in Thy name have cast out devils? and in Thy name done many wonderful works?” They knew Christ’s name, but they had not His nature. They quoted His name, but they never copied His example. They had never come to Him, and trusted and loved Him. They knew His name, but they did not know Him; and He knew their names, but He did not know them. There was no communion -- no intimate intercourse between them."

The fact that Jesus never knew the false professors is not only taught in this passage but is seen in a number of Scriptures which illustrates how close to spiritual reality one may come and yet fail to be genuinely saved. One of the most bizarre OT examples is the prophet Balaam and in the NT we see the tragic saga of Judas Iscariot.

You might not think it, but our world is very heavenly minded. That is a strange statement considering just how wretched and wicked our world is, but in a recent CNN poll, it was discovered that 81% of the people asked believed in a literal heaven where people lived with God after death. 81%! 61% of those polled said that they believed they would go to Heaven immediately when they died. Another 88% believed that they would see departed family and friends when they arrived in Heaven.

I find these numbers astonishing in light of the wickedness that fills our society, don't you? Of course, there is another side to this story. Of all those polled, 6% believed Heaven could be reached by doing good works. Another 57% believed that Heaven was available to all who place their faith in God and did good works and 34% believed that Heaven was for those who had faith in God alone. Now, here is where a problem begins to be seen. A full 63% of those who responded believed they were going to Heaven, but they cited the wrong reason for getting there. The other 34%, who believed that Heaven came to those who placed their faith in God. 

There are different levels of belief, and different objects of belief, and not all that’s called “belief” is actually saving faith. James 2:19 says, “You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that—and shudder.” So, if a person simply believes that there is a God in heaven—and that’s the extent of his faith—then he has exactly the same faith as the demons of hell. That’s not saving faith, even though it involves a measure of belief. Therefore, yes, a person can “believe” in some sense but not be saved.

Simon the sorcerer in Samaria is said to have “believed and was baptized” at the preaching of Philip (Acts 8:13). But later, when Simon offers the apostles money to have their ability to impart the Holy Spirit (verses 18–19), he is rebuked sternly by Peter: “May your money perish with you. . . . You have no part or share in this ministry, because your heart is not right before God” (verses 20–21).

It is quite possible for a person to have an initial positive response to the gospel without being saved. He may feel his heart stirred at the stories about Jesus. He may even identify with Christ through baptism and church membership and get involved in ministry—all the while not being born again. We see instances of this in Scripture (Matthew 7:21–23; 13:24–30) and in everyday life.

We can illustrate the disconnect between some kinds of “belief” and saving faith this way:

Many Americans are overweight, and at the same time there are thousands of weight-loss products available. People will see an infomercial about the latest home exercise equipment, and they say, “That’s just what I need!” and they buy the equipment. They receive their purchase and eagerly use it—for a couple of weeks. Six months later it’s back in the box packed away somewhere. What happened? They believed in a product, but it wasn’t the type of belief that led to lower body weight. Nothing really changed in their lives. They had an initial positive response, but rather than possessing genuine “faith,” so to speak, they were merely indulging a passing fancy. People do this with Christ as well (see Matthew 13:5–7).

In Matthew 7:21–23 Jesus says, “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’”

Notice here that the people Jesus condemns were actively involved in ministry, but they were not genuine believers. They had faith of a sort—they acknowledged who Jesus is—but they had no relationship with Him. Jesus does not say that at one time He knew them, but then He later rejected them. He says, “I never knew you.” They were never saved to begin with.

Another passage that shows people “believing” without being saved is Jesus’ first parable. The parable of the sower in Matthew 13 highlights the various responses that people have to the gospel (the “seed”). In verses 5–7 we see that “some [seed] fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow. But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root. Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants.” Here two of the “soils” had an initial positive response—the seed sprouted but never matured. The picture here is not that these people were saved and then lost salvation but that their initial response, as joyful as it may have been, was not genuine.

The book of Hebrews and the warnings contained therein can be also understood this way. The recipients of the epistle were Jews who had come out of the synagogue and joined themselves to the Christian community. They “believed” a lot of things about Jesus, but at least some of them were not saved. Their mental acknowledgement of Jesus had not resulted in commitment to Him. When the persecution of the church began, the “fence-sitters” were tempted to abandon Christ and go back to the old Jewish sacrificial system. The writer of Hebrews compares them to the generation that came out of Egypt but refused to enter the Promised Land. Although they started on the trip with Moses (an initial positive response) they refused to enter because of unbelief (Hebrews 3:19). Hebrews chapters 6 and 10 issue warnings against so-called belief without salvation.

In John 6, after Jesus feeds the 5,000, many people turn away from Jesus and no longer follow Him (John 6:66). Jesus then asks the Twelve if they will abandon Him as well. Peter answers that they could never leave their Lord (verse 68). Then Jesus says, “Have I not chosen you, the Twelve? Yet one of you is a devil!” (verse 70). The “devil” here is Judas Iscariot, who would later betray Jesus. What’s interesting is that we see Peter and Judas side by side. Both expressed faith in Christ. Both “believed” in the sense that they knew Jesus personally, they saw the miracles, and they had committed years of their lives to Him. But the level of their “belief” was different. Peter would later deny Christ, but after the denial Peter repented and became a pillar of the church (Galatians 2:9). Judas, on the other hand, betrayed Jesus and never repented, although he realized that he had made a mistake and was sorry (Matthew 27:5). Judas is never presented as a disciple who lost his salvation; rather, he is one who had never truly believed unto salvation (see John 6:64).

Peter denied Christ, but only for a short span of time in his life of faith. Judas affirmed Christ, but only for a short span of time in his life of unbelief. Neither Peter’s denial nor Judas’s profession was indicative of the underlying condition of their hearts—a condition that was eventually made evident (see Matthew 7:16). We see similar professions in the church sometimes. Some people seem to be on fire for God for a short time, only to later repudiate what they believed and abandon themselves to a blatant violation of biblical principles. They did not lose salvation; they never had it—they were simply going through a “Christianity phase” that eventually passed. See 1 John 2:19.

God knows our hearts. We, however, cannot see the hearts of other people and may often be deceived about our own hearts as well. That’s why Paul writes, “Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you—unless, of course, you fail the test?” (2 Corinthians 13:5). If we want confidence about our spiritual situation, we need to do more than look back to some words we said in the past when we “accepted Christ”; we need to also examine our current condition to see if there is evidence of God’s work in our lives today—changing us from within, convicting us of sin, and drawing us to repentance.

Sources: preceptaustin.com; gotquestions.org;

Why Resurrection Matters

Christianity hinges upon the promise of personal resurrection from the dead to those who place their faith and trust in Christ!

“Now if Christ is preached, that He has been raised from the dead, how do some among you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? But if there is no resurrection of the dead, not even Christ has been raised; and if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is vain, your faith also is vain. Moreover we are even found to be false witnesses of God, because we testified against God that He raised Christ, whom He did not raise, if in fact the dead are not raised. For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised; and if Christ has not been raised, your faith is worthless; you are still in your sins. Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. If we have hoped in Christ in this life only, we are of all men most to be pitied.” 1 Cor. 15:12-18

Resurrection is the reason why Death doesn't have to have the last say!! We don't simply cease to existence or become worm food!  On the contrary, our physical bodies will be raised to join our souls to live for eternity in a new heaven and new earth in new bodies that are not subject to sin or the curse of death. 

The resurrection has the ability to take away the fear of death so that we are free to live our lives in the hope of eternal life and freedom from the bondage this present life hold upon us! 

Personal resurrection has saved my life! I was once dead in my sins, separated from the Life of God, blind to how lost I was and headed to an eternity without God to pay for my sins! But JESUS! 

But Jesus stepped in during the darkest time of life! He delivered me from the bondage of guilt and shame. He spiritually resurrected me and allowed me to be born again. 

 "He has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you,  who by God's power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time." 1 Peter 1:4-5

A word to my friends

OUR LORD'S RETURN - "'Surely I am coming quickly.' Amen, Even so, come, Lord Jesus?"

--Revelation 22:20

Nearly 2,000 years ago Jesus said, "I am coming quickly." Since then, some have wrongly tried to predict when He will return. Others have scoffed. Was Jesus wrong? Did something happen that He didn't foresee?

Of course not! We view time from the perspective of our own brief life span. But to the eternal God, "One day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day" (2 Pet. 3:8).

Jesus told His disciples that God had not given them specific information about "times or seasons" (Acts 1:7). He wanted them -- as He wants us -- to live in an attitude of expectation. Paul echoed this when he spoke of Christ's return as "the blessed hope" (Titus 2:13).

But how do we live expectantly? Jesus instructed the disciples to be witnesses to all the world (Acts 1:8). Paul said, "Watch and be sober" (1Th 5:6) and love other believers (1Th 5:12, 13, 14, 15). John urged us to walk in close fellowship with Jesus (1Jn. 2:28, 3:1, 2, 3) and to purify ourselves so that we will "not be ashamed before Him at His coming" (1Jn 2:28).

The Lord's any-moment return is no cause for date-setting but for watchful expectation. Let's serve Him in every aspect of our lives, and one day we'll hear Him say, "Well done, good and faithful servant" (Mt. 25:21)