7-27-21 Hold Fast

Hold Fast - Nathele Graham - twotug@embarqmail.com We are in a time of great turmoil. Everywhere we look, there are wars and plagues. It’s always been somewhat of a joke about crooked politicians, but it’s not a joke any more. It’s impossible to know truth by listening to the news media. It’s important to study all sides of a news item to decide for yourself what’s the truth. Even the foundations of our faith are being attacked, as we are forced to accept sin and lies as “normal”. The only way to know truth is to study Scripture. Unfortunately, a very different Gospel is being preached from the pulpits today. Pastors are more afraid of offending liberal politicians than offending God. Jesus spoke to His disciples about following the Master. If we follow Christ then we need to respect Him. If we say we are Christians but bow to other masters, then we need to rethink our faith. “It is enough for the disciple that he be as his master, and the servant as his lord. If they have called the master of the house Beelzebub, how much more shall they call them of his household...What I tell you in darkness, that speak ye in light: and what ye hear in the ear, that preach ye upon the housetops. And fear not them which kill the body, but ae not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.” Matthew 10:25 & 27-28. If you respect and fear any master other than Jesus, then you have misplaced your loyalty. There are many messages of deception found in the liberal news today, and from liberal pulpits. Deception was the first warning Jesus gave to His disciples when they asked for signs to look for signaling the end of the age. “And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you.” Matthew 24:4. We are living at this final time of history and if we don’t hold fast to our faith in God Almighty, we will be deceived by Satan instead of standing firm on God’s truth. We live in a time when fear is strong. We need to be sure we run all things through Scripture. Jesus told us these things would come to pass, so why do we fear Satanic devices, rather than holding fast to our faith and Biblical truth? There are many Scriptures that tell us to hold fast, and we need to pay attention. Paul wrote to the young pastor, Timothy, telling him that he needed to be true to the Lord, Jesus Christ. “Be not thou therefore ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me his prisoner: but be thou partaker of the afflictions of the gospel according to the power of God; who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began, but is now made manifest by the appearing of our Saviour Jesus Christ, who hath abolished death, and hath brought life and immortality to light through the gospel: whereunto I am appointed a preacher, and an apostle, and a teacher of the Gentiles.” 2 Timothy 1:8-11. Young pastors and older ones take heed. If you are tempted to water down God’s word in order to appease liberal lies, or to protect your tax-exempt status, then you are doing a huge disservice to the One you call Lord. Preach the Gospel as it is taught in Scripture. Teach line upon line through the Bible in order to not miss any important teachings of God. “Hold fast the form of sound words, which thou hast heard of me, in faith and love which is in Christ Jesus.” 2 Timothy 1:13. Paul, who once persecuted Christians, renounced his evil ways and became the strongest evangelist we’ve ever known. His letters are a guide to living for Christ. He never compromised his faith, but spread the Gospel by speaking God’s truth. He held fast to the end. If we hold fast to the truth of God, we won’t open ourselves to the wiles of the devil. If we don’t study Scripture, we can easily be deceived. “Prove all things; hold fast that which is good.” 1 Thessalonians 5:21. How do we “prove all things”? By prayerfully testing it by God’s word. “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: that the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works.” 2 Timothy 3:16-17. If man’s laws contradict God’s truth, then hold fast to God’s truth. If you use Scripture as your guide, you know that “In the beginning, God created the heaven and the earth.” Genesis 1:1, and you won’t allow the lie of evolution to confuse you and draw you away from God’s truth. By holding fast to God’s truth, you will understand that there’s no “gender choice”, only male and female and you are one or the other and no amount of lying, hormone tampering, or surgery will make you what you aren’t. “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.” Genesis 1:27. You may be confused, but God isn’t. You’re special because you’ve been created in the image of God. Prove all things by Scripture, and hold fast to God’s truth. We are living in the end times. How do I know that? Scripture gives many prophecies that make it obvious that time as we know it is coming to an end. There are many things that make this life worthwhile, but I long for the Rapture. It will happen soon. Will it happen this year? Many Bible scholars think it may, but others believe it will happen a few years from now. Whether this year, next year, or a hundred years from now, don’t waiver in your faith but trust in Jesus. Jesus Christ was God incarnate and loves you enough to have given His life for you. If you profess to be a Christian, hold fast to God’s truth and don’t allow Satan’s deception to confuse you into compromising your faith. “Remember therefore how thou hast received and heard, and hold fast, and repent. If therefore thou shalt not watch, I will come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee.” Revelation 3:3. This verse comes from a letter to the believers in Sardis. Jesus had dictated it to the Apostle John. It’s one of seven letters that summarize the history of the ecclesia (the congregation of believers throughout history). This was in the letter to Sardis, and it contained warnings because they were slipping away from Truth. They weren’t paying attention to prophecy and were living life apart from God. “Be watchful and strengthen the things which remain, that are ready to die: for I have not found thy works perfect before God.” Revelation 3:2. Not all the people in that congregation had turned from God’s truth, and we need to heed Christ’s warning to them. They were compromising their faith, and God wasn’t pleased. There’s more than a bit of Sardis in the world today, which is shameful. The Jewish priesthood was just a foreshadowing of the eternal priesthood of Jesus Christ. It was the priests who made the sacrifices according to God’s Law. There were qualifications for the priesthood regarding age and Tribal restrictions, but Jesus Christ fulfilled the Law and He is our eternal High Priest, after the order of Melchizedek, who was a priest long before the Law was given and is without restriction. “Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession.” Hebrews 4:14. Jesus is the Creator of everything, yet He is aware of you. He loved you enough to enter His creation, knowing full well that He would be rejected, beaten, and mocked. He knew He would be crucified, but He gave His life so that whosoever believes in Him will have eternal life through His righteousness. Do you believe? “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.” Romans 10:9. If you’ve made that profession of faith, then you need to understand what it means. Your life should change. The old lifestyle of sin needs to change as you hold fast to your new life in Christ. “That ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts; and be renewed in the spirit of your mind; and that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness.” Ephesians 4:22-24. In this verse, the word “conversation” doesn’t just mean the way you talk, but it means the way you live. Paul is saying to live for Christ, not for sin. Before confessing Christ for salvation, the world approved of you raging in anger, gossiping, following sexual promiscuity, and many other sinful actions. Your new life in Christ should reflect forgiveness instead of anger, not talking about people, and understanding that God made people male and female, and a one man/one woman marriage is the only place for sexual relations. “Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised;)” Hebrews 10:23. Jesus paid a huge price to redeem you, you’ve confessed Him as your Saviour and expect Him to give you eternal life, now hold fast to Scriptural truth, and live for Him. It can be easy to slip away from Scriptural living when we make friendships outside of the Christian faith. We have to be around lost people in order to witness to them and share the Gospel, but we need to assemble with Christian friends in order to keep each other grounded in Scripture. “And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works: not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.” Hebrews 10:24-25. See what day approach? The Rapture. The signs of the times are screaming that Christ will call us Home soon, but many Christians don’t care. Our children are sent to public schools, where a witch’s brew of lies is fed to them daily, and the Scriptural foundation of Biblical truth is broken. Most Moms and Dads are busy building their fortune with worldly treasures, and those treasures don’t include assembling together with fellow Christians, or caring about their children’s salvation. It’s the world and its allure that matters to most people. It isn’t too late to turn away from the world and turn back to Christ. It isn’t too late to hold fast to Scriptural truth. This world and all that’s in it will soon pass away, but Christians need to hold fast to eternal things that will never pass away. Don’t turn away from Christ. Look to Scripture and see that the signs of the times are here. Understand that events of the Great Tribulation are falling into place today. Unless you hold fast to Jesus and His truth, you will fall for the lies of Satan. Don’t let any man deceive you, but hold fast to God’s truth. God bless you all, Nathele Graham twotug@embarqmail.com ron@straitandnarrowministry.com All original scripture is “theopneustos” God breathed. If you’d like to be on my mailing list to receive the commentaries just drop me an email and let me know.