Introduction to Preaching the Gospel
The time of the end (our carnal age) is now at hand as the recent events have opened our eyes to greater vision and understanding of the Word of God. The Lord grows us in His grace and knowledge through the fiery trials He is sending. The Scriptures are truly being opened before our eyes as the Lord sifts His people and brings the remnant onward to maturity.
Dan 12:4 “But you, Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book until the time of the end; many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall increase.”
2Pe 3:18 but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory both now and forever. Amen.
It is a miracle that this little flock of saints was all quickened to the same truth as we were awakened to the power of the resurrection of Jesus Christ within us. From this point forward, great grace will be upon us as we die to death (the Second Death) on the cross with Christ. This is our new way of life and the only way one can partake of the blessed and holy First Resurrection. We have all witnessed already a renewed vigor and zeal to do righteousness and to serve our brothers and sisters, there being no head of the church except the Lord Jesus Christ.
Act 4:32 And the multitude of them that believed were of one heart and of one soul: neither said any of them that ought of the things which he possessed was his own; but they had all things common.
We have entered into a new covenant with the Lord via the law of faith that is being worked in us by the fiery trials that are bringing about death to death within us which is the second death.
Heb 8:10 For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord; I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts: and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people:
Heb 8:11 And they shall not teach every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for all shall know me, from the least to the greatest.
This is the gospel that will henceforth be preached unto all the inward nations and cities as well as the outward when the Lord brings us people who hear His words. The preaching of the gospel divides the city. Christ comes to bring division and we have seen this outwardly fulfilled by recent events.
Luk 12:49 I am come to send fire on the earth; and what will I, if it be already kindled?
Luk 12:50 But I have a baptism to be baptized with (lake of fire/cross) and how am I straitened till it be accomplished!
Luk 12:51 Suppose ye that I am come to give peace on earth? I tell you, Nay; but rather division:
Luk 12:52 For from henceforth there shall be five in one house divided, three against two, and two against three.
Luk 12:53 The father shall be divided against the son, and the son against the father; the mother against the daughter, and the daughter against the mother; the mother in law against her daughter in law, and the daughter in law against her mother in law.
The gospel and our preaching it separates us from brethren who can only walk so far with us
Rom 1:1 Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated unto the gospel of God
Being told we have to eat his flesh and drink His blood by dying on a cross with the Lord is not desirable to the flesh and hence many will not walk any further with Christ.
Joh 6:66 From that time many of his disciples went back, and walked no more with him
Carrying our cross requires that we leave spiritual brethren and family that we walked far with in order to follow Him. We have already endured the natural of these Scriptures, but now we endure and live out the spiritual application. The greatest blessing imaginable awaits us if we endure and die the Second Death now in this age in the Lake of Fire.
Luk 18:25 For it is easier for a camel to go through a needle’s eye, than for a [spiritually] rich man [with knowledge] to enter into the kingdom of God.
Luk 18:26 And they that heard it said, Who then can be saved?
Luk 18:27 And he said, The things which are impossible with men are possible with God.
Luk 18:28 Then Peter said, Lo, we have left all, and followed thee.
Luk 18:29 And he said unto them, Verily I say unto you, There is no man that hath left [spiritual] house, or [spiritual] parents, or brethren, or wife, or children, for the kingdom of God’s sake,
Luk 18:30 Who shall not receive manifold more in this present time, and in the world to come life everlasting.
The way to live with Christ is to die with Him. Hence, we walk willingly into the fiery furnace knowing it is saving us now in this age.
2Ti 2:11 It is a faithful saying: For if we be dead with him [death to death Heb 2:14], we shall also live with him:
We hope these words and what we have witnessed will be received with joy because of the great blessing we have been given that comes to far fewer than we ever previously believed.
Mat 13:16 But blessed are your eyes, for they see: and your ears, for they hear.
Mat 13:17 For verily I say unto you, That many prophets and righteous men have desired to see those things which ye see, and have not seen them; and to hear those things which ye hear, and have not heard them.
Our former brethren strived to be righteous but were not given to see what we see. Many still have sorrow in their hearts for those brethren who have been cut off for our sake. We grieve yet that should turn to rejoicing as we take hold the promise of age-abiding life that has been given to us.
Rom 9:2 That I have great heaviness and continual sorrow in my heart.
Rom 9:3 For I could wish that myself were accursed from Christ for my brethren, my kinsmen according to the flesh:
Rom 9:4 Who are Israelites; to whom pertaineth the adoption, and the glory, and the covenants, and the giving of the law, and the service of God, and the promises;
Rom 9:5 Whose are the fathers, and of whom as concerning the flesh Christ came, who is over all, God blessed for ever. Amen.
Rom 9:6 Not as though the word of God hath taken none effect. For they are not all Israel, which are of Israel:
Rom 9:8 That is, They which are the children of the flesh, these are not the children of God: but the children of the promise are counted for the seed.
Those we have contended over the truths of the gospel are now enemies of the cross saying we don’t have to live the Second Death which is the Lake of Fire. They know not what they do or say and have been sacrificed for our sakes. They will be saved in their appointed time as will all men and our role as priests of God will be to minister to them and forgive them their trespass against us.
Rom 11:28 As concerning the gospel, they are enemies for your sakes: but as touching the election, they are beloved for the fathers’ sakes.
Rom 11:29 For the gifts and calling of God are without repentance.
Rom 11:30 For as ye in times past have not believed God, yet have now obtained mercy through their unbelief:
Rom 11:31 Even so have these also now not believed, that through your mercy they also may obtain mercy.
Rev 3:9 Behold, I will make them of the synagogue of Satan, which say they are Jews, and are not, but do lie; behold, I will make them to come and worship before thy feet, and to know that I have loved thee.
Go and Preach the Gospel
We have been saved from the lie of the devil (Gen 3:4) that had us believing we need not partake of the Second Death in order to be saved. Knowing now what the Second Death really means and that the new man, Christ in us is the result of going through the Lake of Fire brings great clarity to what the Lord and the Apostles meant when they said go and preach the gospel.
Mar 16:15 And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.
Mar 16:16 He that believeth and is baptized (with the fire in LOF) shall be saved; but he that believeth not (no LOF for me) shall be damned.
We are coming out of the baptism of John where we were given the water of the Word that washes us and caused to seek repentance of our hearts and minds. But like Paul and all disciples, we are now being sent to preach the gospel and are no longer to be baptizing with water.
1Co 1:17 For Christ sent me not to baptize, but to preach the gospel: not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of none effect.
1Co 1:18 For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God.
1Co 2:2 For I determined not to know anything among you, save Jesus Christ, and him [His Body] crucified.
We all received the baptism of John in our time in the church in the wilderness which gives birth to the man-child in us. But one greater than John, the Lord from heaven has now come and quickened our spirits and opened up the revelation of His Word.
Rev 12:5 And she brought forth a man child, who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron: and her child was caught up unto God, and to his throne.
The one coming after John has come and has brought the lake of fire to us which is the very event that will henceforth save us and raise us with Christ.
Mat 3:11 I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance: but he that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire:
Mat 3:12 Whose fan is in his hand, and he will throughly purge his floor, and gather his wheat into the garner; but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.
The coming of Christ the second time to open our eyes to see clearly brings the fire that is, was and will be saving us.
1Co 1:23 But we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumblingblock, and unto the Greeks foolishness;
The Gospel is a Good News
The gospel is the Word of God living and operating within us. It follows our baptism with the water which is the baptism of repentance. The gospel is the fire of God living and operating within you. It is Christ in you the hope of glory performing His Work in us. Such is how our mind is renewed and we put on the mind of Christ. Good news for our new man is very bad news for the old man and the beast and false prophet that dwell within us.
Luk 2:10 And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.
Nah 1:15 Behold upon the mountains the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that publisheth peace! O Judah, keep thy solemn feasts, perform thy vows: for the wicked shall no more pass through thee; he is utterly cut off.
The preaching of the cross is the preaching of the gospel. If we believe in the Lord and die with Him we will be raised in His likeness.
Rom 6:3 Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death?
Rom 6:4 Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.
Rom 6:5 For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his [second] death, we shall be also in the likeness of his [First] resurrection:
It is the cross and our abiding in the lake of fire that I the judgment necessary to destroy the man of sin within us and raise up Christ in his stead.
The Angels of God Preach the Everlasting Gospel
It is the very Elect given who are not deceived by false doctrine that denies the Second Death and perverts the reward from the Lord along with the doctrines of the resurrections; who will faithfully be given to preach the gospel. Life through the Second Death (the cross) is the heart of the good news that is the result of judgment in the lake of fire. These angels pull people out of the strange fire that is Spiritual Babylon preaching life through the second death message which torments and ultimately kills the old man and carnal mind.
Rev 14:6 And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people,
Rev 14:7 Saying with a loud voice, Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is come: and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters.
Rev 14:8 And there followed another angel, saying, Babylon is fallen, is fallen, that great city, because she made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication. (No lake of fire, no second death for me)
We are blessed indeed when we hear His voice from heaven and follow Him to death on the cross which is the Second Death.
Rev 14:13 And I heard a voice from heaven saying unto me, Write, Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth: Yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labours; and their works do follow them.
We are certainly drinking of the wrath of God and die to death. That is the everlasting gospel which is very good news to those given to receive it. Now hearing this gospel of life through death, we must hunker down knowing what is already come upon our earth as we abide in the Lake of Fire in this age.
1Pe 4:1 Forasmuch then as Christ hath suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves likewise with the same mind: for he that hath suffered in the flesh hath ceased from sin;
1Pe 4:2 That he no longer should live the rest of his time in the flesh to the lusts of men, but to the will of God…..
1Pe 4:5 Who shall give account to him that is ready to judge the quick and the dead.
1Pe 4:6 For for this cause was the gospel preached also to them that are (spiritually) dead, that they might be judged according to men in the flesh (and die the Second Death), but live according to God in the spirit.
1Pe 4:7 But the end of all things is at hand: be ye therefore sober, and watch unto prayer.
It is a lonely road and few there be shall find the way. The Gospel we preach is the same unchangeable gospel that always brings much contention from carnal men and the outwardly religious. That setting has not and will not change.
1Th 2:1 For yourselves, brethren, know our entrance in unto you, that it was not in vain:
1Th 2:2 But even after that we had suffered before, and were shamefully entreated, as ye know, at Philippi, we were bold in our God to speak unto you the gospel of God with much contention.
1Th 2:3 For our exhortation was not of deceit, nor of uncleanness, nor in guile:
1Th 2:4 But as we were allowed of God to be put in trust with the gospel, even so we speak; not as pleasing men, but God, which trieth our hearts.
1Th 2:5 For neither at any time used we flattering words, as ye know, nor a cloke of covetousness; God is witness:
1Th 2:6 Nor of men sought we glory, neither of you, nor yet of others, when we might have been burdensome, as the apostles of Christ.
Our authority to preach the gospel is always challenged and rejected by the chief priests of Jerusalem who reject those that speak the truth in love and in turn persecute those that bring the gospel.
Luk 20:1 And it came to pass, that on one of those days, as he taught the people in the temple, and preached the gospel, the chief priests and the scribes came upon him with the elders,
Like the Lord, we will be rejected by our own brethren, the very people we have grown up together in the faith learning the oracles of God.
Mar 10:33 Saying, Behold, we go up to Jerusalem; and the Son of man shall be delivered unto the chief priests, and unto the scribes; and they shall condemn him to death, and shall deliver him to the Gentiles:
Mar 10:34 And they shall mock him, and shall scourge him, and shall spit upon him, and shall kill him: and the third day he shall rise again.
We will see and rejoice with our fallen brethren in due time. But for now, they were given to reject truth and reject Christ that has been preached to them.
Mat 23:37 O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!
Mat 23:38 Behold, your house is left unto you desolate.
Mat 23:39 For I say unto you, Ye shall not see me henceforth, till ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord.
But our life is no longer about the flesh and knowing any man that way (2Co 5:21). We are about doing the Lord’s work and obeying His commands to preach this gospel of life through death to our inward nations and all those who hear us.
2Co 4:3 But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost:
2Co 4:4 In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.
2Co 4:5 For we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord; and ourselves your servants for Jesus’ sake.
We should take heed the words of Paul about deceivers who come to us preaching another gospel that is nothing but a perversion and another jesus.
Gal 1:6 I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel:
Gal 1:7 Which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ.
Gal 1:8 But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed.
I pray these words will strengthen all with ears to hear and help us grasp the blessing and high calling that has befallen us as preachers of the gospel.
Mar 16:20 And they went forth, and preached everywhere, the Lord working with them, and confirming the word with signs following. Amen.