A Body of Divinity

A Body of Divinity

by

Thomas Watson

Table of Contents

About This Book. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. ii

A Body of Divinity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 1

Contents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 2

Brief Memoir Of Thomas Watson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 4

1. A Preliminary Discourse To Catechising . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 9

2. Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 13

1. Man’s Chief End . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 13

2. The Scriptures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 26

3. God and his creation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 35

1. The Being Of God . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 35

2. The Knowledge Of God . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 45

3. The Eternity Of God . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 49

4. The Unchangeableness Of God . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 53

5. The Wisdom Of God . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 57

6. The Power Of God . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 61

7. The Holiness Of God . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 64

8. The Justice Of God . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 68

9. The Mercy Of God . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 72

10. The Truth Of God . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 76

11. The Unity Of God . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 79

12. The Trinity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 82

13. The Creation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 85

14. The Providence Of God . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 89

4. The fall . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 96

1. The Covenant Of Works . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 96

2. Adam’s Sin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 102

3. Original Sin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 105

4. Man's Misery By The Fall . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 110

5. The covenant of grace and its mediator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 114

1. The Covenant Of Grace . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 114

2. Christ The Mediator Of The Covenant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 119

3. Christ's Prophetic Office . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 122

4. Christ's Priestly Office . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 126

5. Christ's Kingly Office . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 136

6. Christ’s Humiliation In His Incarnation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 140

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7. Christ’s Exaltation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 148

8. Christ The Redeemer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 152

6. The application of redemption . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 156

1. Faith . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 156

2. Effectual Calling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 159

3. Justification . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 163

4. Adoption . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 167

5. Sanctification . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 173

6. Assurance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 180

7. Peace . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 187

8. Joy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 192

9. Growth In Grace . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 196

10. Perseverance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 200

7. Death and the last day . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 208

1. The Death Of The Righteous . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 208

2. A Believer’s Privilege At Death . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 211

3. The Resurrection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 218

Indexes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 227

Index of Scripture References. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 227

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A Body of Divinity

Contained In Sermons Upon The Westminster Assembly’s Catechism

By Thomas Watson

A Body of Divinity Thomas Watson

Contents

•1. Brief Memoir Of Thomas Watson

•2. A Preliminary Discourse To Catechising

•3. Introduction

•3.1. Man’s Chief End

•3.2. The Scriptures

•4. God and his creation

•4.1. The Being Of God

•4.2. The Knowledge Of God

•4.3. The Eternity Of God

•4.4. The Unchangeableness Of God

•4.5. The Wisdom Of God

•4.6. The Power Of God

•4.7. The Holiness Of God

•4.8. The Justice Of God

•4.9. The Mercy Of God

•4.10. The Truth Of God

•4.11. The Unity Of God

•4.12. The Trinity

•4.13. The Creation

•4.14. The Providence Of God

•5. The fall

•5.1. The Covenant Of Works

•5.2. Adam’s Sin

•5.3. Original Sin

•5.4. Man’s Misery By The Fall

•6. The covenant of grace and its mediator

•6.1. The Covenant Of Grace

•6.2. Christ The Mediator Of The Covenant

•6.3. Christ’s Prophetic Office

•6.4. Christ’s Priestly Office

•6.5. Christ’s Kingly Office

•6.6. Christ’s Humiliation In His Incarnation

•6.7. Christ’s Exaltation

•6.8. Christ The Redeemer

•7. The application of redemption

•7.1. Faith

•7.2. Effectual Calling

•7.3. Justification

•7.4. Adoption

•7.5. Sanctification

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A Body of Divinity Thomas Watson

•7.6. Assurance

•7.7. Peace

•7.8. Joy

•7.9. Growth In Grace

•7.10. Perseverance

•8. Death and the last day

•8.1. The Death Of The Righteous

•8.2. A Believer’s Privilege At Death

•8.3. The Resurrection

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A Body of Divinity Thomas Watson

Brief Memoir Of Thomas Watson

Compiled by C. H. Spurgeon

Thomas Watson’s Body of Practical Divinity is one of the most precious of the peerless works

of the Puritans; and those best acquainted with it prize it most. Watson was one of the most concise,

racy, illustrative, and suggestive of those eminent divines who made the Puritan age the Augustan

period of evangelical literature. There is a happy union of sound doctrine, heart-searching experience

and practical wisdom throughout all his works, and his Body of Divinity is, beyond all the rest,

useful to the student and the minister. Although Thomas Watson issued several most valuable

books, comparatively little is known of him - even the dates of his birth and death are unknown.

His writings are his best memorial; perhaps he needed no other, and therefore providence forbade

the superfluity. We shall not attempt to discover his pedigree, and, after the manner of antiquarians,

derive his family from a certain famous Wat, whose son distinguished himself in the Crusades, or

in some other insane enterprise; whether blue blood was in his veins or no is of small consequence,

since we know that he was the seed-royal of the redeemed of the Lord. Some men are their own

ancestors, and, for ought we know, Thomas Watson’s genealogy reflected no fame upon him, but

derived all its lustre from his achievements. He had the happiness to be educated at Emmanuel

College, Cambridge, which in those days deserved to be called the School of Saints, the nursing

mother of gigantic evangelical divines. In Kennet’s ‘Register and Chronicle,’ is a list of eighty-seven

names of Puritan ministers, including many well-known and loved as preachers and commentators;

such as Anth. Burgess, W. Jenkyn, Ralph Venning, Thomas Brooks, T. White, Samuel Slater,

Thomas Watson, John Rowe, Dr. W. Bates, Stephen Charnock, Samuel Clarke, Nathaniel Vincent,

Dr John Collings, William Bridge, Samuel Hildersam, Adoniram Bifield, followed by this remark,

‘These are most of them mentioned in the list of sufferers for Nonconformity, and appear upon the

registers to have been all of Emmanuel College, beside great numbers, no doubt of the same society,

who were forward preachers up of the unhappy changes of 1641,’ etc. In the margin of the book is

the following observation on the foregoing: ‘It may not be improper to observe how much young

students, in both Universities, fell in with the prejudices of their governors and tutors. This was the

reason that this single College of Emmanuel, in Cambridge, bred more of the Puritans and

Nonconformists than perhaps any seven of the other Colleges or Halls in either University.” Such

a fact as this should attract the prayers of all believers to our seminaries for the sons of the prophets,

since upon the manner in which these institutions are conducted will depend under God the future

well-being of our churches. The Pastors, College, for the use of whose students this work is

published, earnestly petitions for a place in the intercessions of the saints.

We are not at all surprised to learn that Thomas Watson enjoyed the repute, while at Cambridge,

of being a most laborious student; the great Puritanic authors must have been most industrious

workers at the university, or they never would have become such pre-eminent masters in Israel.

The conscientious student is the most likely man to become a successful preacher. After completing

his course with honour, Watson became rector of St Stephen’s, Walbrook, where in the very heart

of London he executed for nearly sixteen years the office of a faithful pastor with great diligence

and assiduity. Happy were the citizens who regularly attended so instructive and spiritual a ministry.

The church was constantly filled, for the fame and popularity of the preacher were deservedly great.

Going in and out among his flock, fired with holy zeal for their eternal welfare, his years rolled on

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pleasantly enough amid the growing respect of all who knew him. Calamy, in his Nonconformist

Memorial, says of him: - ‘He was so well known in the city for his piety and usefulness, that though

he was singled out by the Friendly Debate, he yet carried a general respect from all sober persons

along with him to his grave. He was a man of considerable reaming, a popular, but judicious preacher

(if one may judge from his writings), and eminent in the gift of prayer. Of this, the following

anecdote is a sufficient proof. Once on a lecture day, before the Bartholomew Act took place, the

learned Bishop Richardson came to hear him at St Stephen’s, who was much pleased with his

sermon, but especially with his prayer after it, so that he followed him home to give him thanks,

and earnestly desired a copy of his prayer. “Alas!” (said Mr Watson) “that is what I cannot give,

for I do not use to pen my prayers; it was no studied thing, but uttered, pro re nata, as God enabled

me, from the abundance of my heart and affections.” Upon which the good Bishop went away

wondering that any man could pray in that manner extempore.

But the hand which of old had oppressed the church was again stretched forth to vex certain of

the saints. The most learned, holy, and zealous of the clergy of the Church of England found that

the Act of Uniformity would not allow them to preserve a clean conscience and retain their livings,

and therefore they submitted to the loss of all things for Christ’s sake. Thomas Watson did not

hesitate as to the course he should pursue. He was not a factious hater of royalty, a red republican,

or fifth monarchy-man; in fact, he had in Cromwell’s day been all too loyal to the house of Stuart;

he had protested against the execution of the King, and had joined in Love’s plot for the bringing

in of Charles II; yet all this availed nothing, he was a Puritan, and therefore must not be tolerated

by the bitter spirits then dominant in the Establishment. What seeds of discord were sown on that

black Bartholomew history has not had space to record; yet the ultimate results have been fraught

with results scarcely then imaginable. Comprehension might have hindered truth; the crown rights

of King Jesus might have lacked advocates had monarchs and priests been more tolerant; as it was

good men were forced into a truer position than they would otherwise have occupied, and the

beginning of a real reformation was inaugurated. From that commencement in suffering what

progress has been made! Every day the cause of the ejected gathers force and pushes on its adversary

towards the brink of the precipice, a down which all establishments must fall.

With many tears and lamentations the congregation of St Stephen’s saw their shepherd about

to be removed from his flock, and with aching hearts they listened to his parting words. He himself

speaking as one bereaved of his dearest delight, and yet suffering joyfully the loss of all things,

bade them adieu, and went forth ‘not knowing whither he went.’

In the collection of Farewell Sermons there are three by Mr Watson, viz.: two delivered August

17th, and the third on the Tuesday following. The first, preached in the forenoon, is on John 13:34.

‘A new commandment I give unto you, that ye love one another.’ It discovers much of the spirit

of the gospel, particularly in recommending love to enemies and persecutors. The second, preached

in the afternoon, is on 2 Corinthians 7:7. ‘Having therefore these promises, dearly beloved, let us

cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.’

In the former part of it, he insists largely on ‘the ardent affections of a right gospel minister towards

his people.’ This head he closes thus: ‘I have now exercised my ministry among you for almost

sixteen years; and I rejoice and bless God that I cannot say, the more I love you, the less I am loved:

I have received many signal demonstrations of love from you. Though other parishes have exceeded

you in number of houses, yet, I think, none for strength of affection. I have with much comfort

observed your reverent attention to the word preached; you rejoice in this light, not for a season,

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but to this day. I have observed your zeal against error in a critical time, your unity and amity. This

is your honour. If there should be any interruption in my ministry among you, though I should not

be permitted to preach to you again, yet I shall not cease to love you, and to pray for you. But why

should there be any interruption made? Where is the crime? Some, indeed, say that we are disloyal

and seditious. Beloved, what my actions and sufferings for his Majesty have been is known to not

a few of you. However, we must go to heaven through good report and bad report; and it is well if

we can get to glory, though we press through the pikes. I shall endeavour that I may still approve

the sincerity of my love to you. I will not promise that I shall still preach among you, nor will I say

that I shall not. I desire to be guided by the silver thread of God’s word and providence. My heart

is towards you. There is, you know, an expression in the late Act, “that we shall now shortly be as

if we were naturally dead;’’ and if I must die, let me leave some legacy with you. Then follow

twenty admirable directions, well worthy the fervent perusal of every Christian. He closes them

thus: ‘I beseech you treasure them up as so many jewels in the cabinet of your breasts. Did you

carry them about you, they would be an antidote to keep you from sin, and a means to preserve the

zeal of piety flaming upon the altar of your hearts. I have many things yet to say to you, but I know

not whether God will give another opportunity. My strength is now almost gone. I beseech you,

let these things make deep impressions on all your souls. Consider what has been said, and the Lord

give you understanding in all things.’

The last discourse, August 19th, is on Isaiah 3:30, 11. ‘Say ye t0 the righteous, that it shall be

well with him: for they shall eat the fruit of their doings. Woe unto the wicked! it shall be ill with

him, for the reward of his hands shall be given him.’

After his ejectment, Watson preached occasionally whenever he could do so with safety. Fines

and imprisonments were insufficient to close the mouths of the witnesses of Jesus. In barns, kitchens,

outhouses, or dells and woods, the faithful few gathered to hear the message of eternal life. Those

little secret assemblies were doubtless charming occasions for devout minds: the word of the Lord

was precious in those days. Bread eaten in secret is proverbially sweet, and the word of God in

persecution is peculiarly delightful. Little can we realise the joyful anticipation which preceded the

appointed meetings, or the lingering memories which clung to them long after they were over. After

the great fire in 1666, when the churches were burned, Mr Watson and several other Nonconformists

fitted up large rooms for those who had an inclination to attend. Upon the Indulgence, in 1672, he

licensed the great hall in Crosby House, on the east side of Bishopsgatestreet, then belonging to

Sir John Langham (a Nonconformist). It was a happy circumstance that the worthy baronet favoured

the cause of Nonconformity, and that so noble a chamber was at his disposal. Here Watson preached

for several years. Rev Stephen Charnock, B.D.’ became joint pastor with him at Crosby Hall in

1675, and continued so till his death in 1680. What two shepherds for the flock! Men of such most

extraordinary gifts and graces were seldom if ever united in one pastorate. They both attempted a

Body of Divinity, and the goodly volume on the Divine Attributes was Charnock’s first stone of a

colossal structure which he was not spared to complete. Our author was more modest in his attempt

and the present volume shows how he succeeded.

Mr Watson at length returned to Essex, where he died suddenly, in his closet at prayer, as is

supposed, about 1689 or 1690. The time either of his birth or death is nowhere mentioned.

In the life of Colonel James Gardiner, there is this remarkable account: ‘In July, 1719, he had

spent the evening, which was the Sabbath, in some gay company, and had an unhappy assignation

with a married lady, whom he was to attend exactly at twelve. The company broke up about eleven,

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and he went into his chamber to kill the tedious hour. It happened that he took up a religious book,

which his good mother or aunt had, without his knowledge, slipped into his portmanteau, called,

“The Christian Soldier,” written by Mr Watson. Guessing by the title that he should find some

phrases of his own profession spiritualised in a manner which might afford him some diversion,

he resolved to dip into it: while this book was in his hand, an impression was made upon his mind,

which drew after it a train of the most important consequences. Suddenly he thought he saw an

unusual blaze of light fall on the book while he was reading, and lifting up his eyes, he apprehended,

to his extreme amazement, that there was before him, as it were suspended in the air, a visible

representation of the Lord Jesus Christ upon the cross, surrounded with a glory, and was impressed

as if a voice had come to him, to this effect: “O sinner, did I suffer this for thee, and are these thy

returns?” He sunk down in his chair, and continued for some time insensible. He then arose in a

tumult of passions, and walked to and fro in his chamber, till he was ready to drop, in unutterable

astonishment and agony of heart, which continued until the October following, when his terrors

were turned into unutterable joy.’

Mr Watson published a variety of books upon practical subjects, and of a useful nature, for the

titles of which, see foot-note.* But his principal work was a body of divinity, in one hundred and

seventy-six sermons, upon the Assembly’s Catechism, which did not appear till after his death. It

was published in one volume folio, in 1692, and accompanied with a portrait of the author, by Sturt;

together with a recommendatory preface by the Rev William Lorimer, and the attestation of

twenty-five other ministers of principal note in that day. For many a year this volume continued to

train the common people in theology, and it may still tee found very commonly in the cottages of

the Scottish peasantry. Rev George Rogers, Principal of the Pastors, College, has carefully

superintended the issue of this present edition, and in a note to us he writes: ‘I know of no work

with so much sermon matter within the same compass. In Howe, and Charnock, and Owen, we

must often read much before we are tempted to close the book and think out a whole sermon, but

Watson teaches us to make short work of it. The whole may be utilised. On this account it would

be, I think, of great value to all our students who have pastorates. It is for their benefit, I suppose,

you wished the reprint. As several select sermons, which are usually bound up with this work, will

appear with his whole works, after a time, in Nichol’s series, they are not included here. This is a

distinct work by itself and complete. All editions extant which we have seen, abound in errors and

imperfections. These have been rectified, not entirely we fear, but in a degree as nearly approaching

to accuracy as in revision of another’s composition could be expected. No alteration of sentiment

has been made, but every shade of the author’s meaning has been scrupulously retained. The style

has been modernised, so far as could be done without detracting from its own peculiar characteristics.

Long sentences have been divided into two or three, where it could be done without injury to the

clearness or force of the signification. Modern words have been substituted for such as had become

obsolete; Latin quotations restored to their correct form, as far as their sources could be ascertained;

and divisions of subjects more perspicuously arranged. The whole, in fact, has been rendered more

readable, and consequently more attractive and intelligible, which in our estimation far outweighs

all the supposed advantages that could arise from perpetuating the crudities and vulgarities, as they

now appear to us, of former times. By popularising ancient works, their readers are multiplied and

their meaning may often be more readily apprehended’.

* The following are the tides of the principal works of Thomas Watson: viz. Three treatises: 1.

‘The Christian’s Charter.’ 2. ‘The Art of Divine Contentment.’ 3. ‘A Discourse of Meditation,’ to

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which is added several sermons, 1660. This volume contains, besides the three treatises, the

following, viz.: ‘God’s Anatomy upon Man’s Heart,’ ‘The Saint’s Delight,’ ‘A Christian on Earth

still in Heaven,’ ‘Christ’s Loveliness,’ ‘The Upright Man’s Character and Crown,’ ‘The One Thing

Necessary,’ ‘The Holy Longing; or, the Saint’s Desire to be with Christ,’ ‘Beatitudes; or, a Discourse

upon part of Christ’s Famous Sermon upon the Mount,’ 1660, ‘A Body of Practical Divinity,’ etc.’

with a supplement of some sermons, ‘A Divine Cordial,” The Holy Eucharist,’ ‘Heaven taken by

Storm,’ etc.’ etc.

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1. A Preliminary Discourse To Catechising

’If ye continue in the faith grounded and settled.’ - Col 1:13.

Intending next Lord’s day to enter upon the work of catechising, it will not be amiss to give

you a preliminary discourse, to show you how needful it is for Christians to be well instructed in

the grounds of religion. ‘If ye continue in the faith grounded and settled.’

I. It is the duty of Christians to be settled in the doctrine of faith.

II. The best way for Christians to be settled is to be well grounded.

I. It is the duty of Christians to be settled in the doctrine of faith. It is the apostle’s prayer, I Pet

5:50, ’The God of all grace stablish, strengthen, settle you.’ That is, that they might not be meteors

in the air, but fixed stars. The apostle Jude speaks of ‘wandering stars, in verse 13. They are called

wandering stars, because, as Aristotle says, ‘They do leap up and down, and wander into several

parts of the heaven; and being but dry exhalations, not made of that pure celestial matter as the

fixed stars are, they often fall to the earth.’ Now, such as are not settled in religion, will, at one

time or other, prove wandering stars; they will lose their former steadfastness, and wander from

one opinion to another. Such as are unsettled are of the tribe of Reuben, ‘unstable as water,’ Gen

49:9; like a ship without ballast, overturned with every wind of doctrine. Beza writes of one

Belfectius, that his religion changed as the moon. The Arians had every year a new faith. These

are not pillars in the temple of God, but reeds shaken every way. The apostle calls them ‘damnable

heresies.’ 2 Pet 2:2. A man may go to hell as well for heresy as adultery. To be unsettled in religion,

argues want of judgement. If their heads were not giddy, men would not reel so fast from one

opinion to another. It argues lightness. As feathers will be blown every way, so will feathery

Christians. Triticum non rapit ventus inanes palae jactantur. Cyprian. Therefore such are compared

to children. Eph 4:44. ‘That we be no more children, tossed to and fro.’ Children are fickle sometimes

of one mind sometimes of another, nothing pleases them long; so unsettled Christians are childish;

the truths they embrace at one time, they reject at another; sometimes they like the Protestant

religion, and soon after they have a good mind to turn Papists.

[I] It is the great end of the word preached, to bring us to a settlement in religion. Eph 4:41, 12,

14. ‘And he gave some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; for the edifying of the body

of Christ; that we henceforth be no more children.’ The word is called a hammer. Jer 23:39. Every

blow of the hammer is to fasten the nails of the building; so the preacher’s words are to fasten you

the more to Christ; they weaken themselves to strengthen and settle you. This is the grand design

of preaching, not only for the enlightening, but for the establishing of souls; not only to guide them

in the right way, but to keep them in it. Now, if you be not settled, you do not answer God’s end

in giving you the ministry.

[2] To be settled in religion is both a Christian’s excellence and honour. It is his excellence.

When the milk is settled it turns to cream; now he will be zealous for the truth, and walk in close

communion with God. And his honour. Prov 16:61. ‘The hoary head is a crown of glory, if it be

found in the way of righteousness.’ It is one of the best sights to see an old disciple; to see silver

hairs adorned with golden virtues.

[3] Such as are not settled in the faith can never suffer for it. Sceptics in religion hardly ever

prove martyrs. They that are not settled hang in suspense; when they think of the joys of heaven

they will espouse the gospel, but when they think of persecution they desert it. Unsettled Christians

9

A Body of Divinity Thomas Watson

do not consult what is best, but what is safest. ‘The apostate (says Tertullian) seems to put God and

Satan in balance, and having weighed both their services, prefers the devil’s service, and proclaims

him to be the best master: and, in this sense, may be said to put Christ to open shame.’ Heb 6:6.

He will never suffer for the truth, but be as a soldier that leaves his colours, and runs over to the

enemy’s side; he will fight on the devil’s side for pay.

[4] Not to be settled in the faith is provoking to God. To espouse the truth, and then to fall away,

brings an ill report upon the gospel, which will not go unpunished. Psa 78:87, 59. ‘They turned

back, and dealt unfaithfully. When God heard this, he was wroth, and greatly abhorred Israel.’ The

apostate drops as a wind-fall into the devil’s mouth.

[5] If ye are not settled in religion, you will never grow. We are commanded ‘to grow up into

the head, even Christ.’ Eph 4:15. But if we are unsettled there is no growing: ‘the plant which is

continually removing never thrives.’ He can no more grow in godliness, who is unsettled, than a

bone can grow in the body that is out of joint.

[6] There is great need to be settled, because there are so many things to unsettle us. Seducers

are abroad, whose work is to draw away people from the principles of religion. I John 2:26. ‘These

things have I written unto you concerning them that seduce you.’ Seducers are the devil’s factors;

they are of all others the greatest felons that would rob you of the truth. Seducers have silver tongues,

that can put off bad wares; they have a sleight to deceive. Eph 4:14. The Greek word there is taken

from those that can throw dice, and cast them for the best advantage. So seducers are impostors,

they can throw a dice; they can so dissemble and sophisticate the truth, that they can deceive others.

Seducers deceive by wisdom of words. Rom 16:68. ‘By good words and fair speeches they deceive

the hearts of the simple.’ They have fine elegant phrases, flattering language, whereby they work

on the weaker sort. Another sleight is a pretence of extraordinary piety, that so people may admire

them, and suck in their doctrine. They seem to be men of zeal and sanctity, and to be divinely

inspired, and pretend to new revelations. A third cheat of seducers is, labouring to vilify and nullify

sound orthodox teachers. They would eclipse those that bring the truth, like black vapours that

darken the light of heaven; they would defame others, that they themselves may be more admired.

Thus the false teachers cried down Paul, that they might be received, Gal 4:17. The fourth cheat

of seducers is, to preach the doctrine of liberty; as though men are freed from the moral law, the

rule as well as the curse, and Christ has done all for them, and they need to do nothing. Thus they

make the doctrine of free grace a key to open the door to all licentiousness. Another means is, to

unsettle Christians by persecution. 2 Tim 3:12. The gospel is a rose that cannot be plucked without

prickles. The legacy Christ has bequeathed is the CROSS. While there is a devil and a wicked man

in the world, never expect a charter of exemption from trouble. How many fall away in an hour of

persecution! Rev 12:2. ‘There appeared a great red dragon, having seven heads and ten horns; and

his tail drew the third part of the stars of heaven.’ The red dragon, by his power and subtilty, drew

away stars, or eminent professors, that seemed to shine as stars in the firmament of the church.

To be unsettled in good is the sin of the devils. Jude 6. They are called, ‘morning stars,’ Job

38:8, but ‘falling stars;’ they were holy, but mutable. As the vessel is overturned with the sail, so

their sails being swelled with pride, they were overturned. I Tim 3:3. By unsettledness, men imitate

lapsed angels. The devil was the first apostate. The sons of Sion should be like mount Sion, which

cannot be removed.

II. The second proposition is, that the way for Christians to be settled is to be well grounded.

‘If ye continue grounded and settled.’ The Greek word for grounded is a metaphor which alludes

10

Jesus disse

Jesus disse em alta voz às multidões: "Se vocês creem em mim, 

não creem apenas em mim, 

mas também naquele que me enviou.

Pois, quando veem a mim, veem aquele que me enviou.
Eu vim como luz para brilhar neste mundo, 

a fim de que todo aquele que crê em mim não 

permaneça na escuridão.

Não julgarei aqueles que me ouvem mas não me obedecem, 

pois vim para salvar o mundo, e não para julgá-lo.
Mas todos que me rejeitam e desprezam minha mensagem 

serão julgados no dia do julgamento pela verdade que tenho falado.
Não falo com minha própria autoridade. O Pai, que me enviou, 

me ordenou o que dizer. E eu sei que o 

mandamento dele conduz à vida eterna; 

por isso digo tudo que o Pai me mandou dizer".

João 12:44-49

Ceia do Senhor sobre Ataque. Lord's Supper on Attack.

Satan will Continue to Attack the Lord’s Supper by Jeremy James Several years ago, not long after I was saved, I heard a comment  by Vernon McGee in his ‘Through the Bible’ series which struck me as especially important. 

The truth of his observation became more evident as the years passed. No sermon is  ever  complete, he said, if it fails to refer to Resurrection Sunday. This is the glorious truth of Christianity, a truth so great and immeasurably broad that we will never fully grasp it, no matter how we try. 

We must hold it before us continually if we are to understand all the doctrines and precious promises that flow from it. The great task and privilege of every preacher is to remind their listeners of this remarkable moment, this day of days, when Jesus rose from the dead and set in motion a process which, when it runs to completion, will see the perfect restoration of the whole of creation. 

This is the day the LORD has made The Psalmist referred to this day as follows: “This is the day which the LORD hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.” (Psalm 118:24 It is exalted above all days, a tiny slice of time in the course of history when everything – absolutely everything – changed forever. The contrast between the millennia that passed before it and those that were yet to come could not have been greater. 

The reality of everything that Jesus had accomplished on Calvary would now become manifest to a fallen world.  When Satan ordered the closure of our churches in 2020 as part of his ‘Covid’ mandate, he wanted men and women all over the earth to stop commemorating this wonderful day. Professing Christians were permitted to play ‘church’ online via Zoom, but they could do nothing in cyber space to counterfeit the Lord’s Supper. 

The scriptural basis for the Lord’s Supper We are all familiar with the scriptural basis for the Lord’s Supper, but it helps from time to time to reflect on why our Lord asked us to celebrate it. When he shared the bread and wine at the last supper Jesus said: “...this do in remembrance of me” - “And he took bread, and gave thanks, and brake it, and gave unto them, saying, This is my body which is given for you: this do in remembrance of me. 

Likewise also the cup after supper, saying, This cup is the new testament in my blood, which is shed for you.” (Luke 22:19-20) Through our celebration of the Lord’s Supper we are remembering what Jesus achieved for us through his death and resurrection. Our thoughts turn with delight to “the day which the LORD hath made.” And, as the Psalmist foretold, “we will rejoice and be glad in it.” 

The Eleven Apostles listening to Jesus at the Last Supper. Detail of a painting by Duccio di Buoninsegna, 14th century 3 We set out in Appendix A a number of edifying extracts from the writings of H A Ironside which reveal the essential nature and purpose of the Lord’s Supper. He points to several truths which, I suspect, many professing Christians today have largely forgotten or never fully understood. The main facts to note about the Lord’s Supper is that, along with Baptism, it is a defining ordinance of Christianity and is to be celebrated regularly by all believers. 

The scriptures on which it is based emphasize its deep spiritual significance. It was instituted by Jesus at the last supper as a memorial meal to mark both the death and resurrection of Christ and to bear witness to these events until he returns to call forth his Church. It celebrates the fundamental truths of Christianity and enables believers to express their innermost gratitude for the gift of salvation in the spiritual presence of Jesus. It is a time of deep reflection and silent appreciation whereby believers commune with the Savior through the physical meal of bread and wine and dwell humbly on the unimaginable price that had to be paid to set us free.

 As Dr Ironside said: “It is intended to deepen in the heart of those already saved, the realization of the preciousness of Christ. We come together to remember Him and, as He fills the vision of our souls, we feast in spirit upon all that He is and all that He has done.” “It is the Lord’s desire,” he noted, “that His people often show His death in this way, calling to mind frequently His love and sacrifice for them... We come together to meet the Lord Himself, to be solely occupied with Him, to offer Him the worship of our hearts, and to remember what He passed through for us.... It must be remembered that when we come together for the Lord’s Supper, Christ is as truly present in our midst as He was among the first disciples two thousand years ago.” 

The revelation given to the Apostle Paul The Apostle Paul was not present at the last supper but received an account of this God-given ordinance through direct revelation. According to Dr Ironside, this special revelation, which was given by Jesus after he left the earth, is further evidence of the exceptional spiritual importance of this ordinance and its frequent observance.  “Paul never knew the Lord here on earth, he was not with the Twelve in the upper room when Jesus instituted this ordinance; therefore, he must have received this as a direct revelation from heaven. That is very significant, for there must be something extremely precious to our risen Savior about the frequent observance of the Lord’s Supper if He, the glorified One, gave to His apostle a special declaration from the glory regarding it.” 

It should be clear to even the dullest observer that frequent celebration of the Lord’s Supper is of paramount importance to Christians everywhere. An attempt to curtail or limit the observation of this ordinance, in any manner whatever, is quite obviously a direct attack on the Gospel and on all who believe in Jesus. The Marxists, Freemasons and Babylonian deceivers who control our governments did just that in 2020. Worse still, the organized body of grievous wolves within the institutional church did nothing to oppose them! The Apostle Paul, ceiling mosaic, Ravenna, Italy. 

The vast majority of professing Christians did as Satan commanded in 2020, not what Jesus asked of them. His ordinance was forgotten. They didn’t even grieve over the offense that their disobedience would cause. Three years later we are still waiting for an admission by our preachers, pastors and elders that, through their repeated failure, nay refusal, to rejoice and be glad in the day which the LORD had made, they were willing participants in a terrible act of defiance and hypocrisy. 

Since we have already addressed the immense harm caused by the unconfessed sin of church leaders during this time – see our paper #331 – we will confine our examination to what the Enemy achieved by prohibiting the celebration of the Lord’s Supper. Historical suppression of the Lord’s Supper For nearly two thousand years the visible church assembled and drew great strength, hope and encouragement from its regular observance of a practice instituted by the Lord himself. Even when they were prohibited from doing so by the Roman Emperors, they continued to meet in secret – in contravention of civil law – to celebrate this precious ordinance. 

It is impossible to think of the church over the course of history of failing at any time, for any reason, to honor this ordinance or to accord it the highest respect. All of that changed in 2020. One of the great achievements of the Reformation was the restoration to the laity of the right to receive both the bread and the wine of communion. For many years the church of Rome had restricted the laity to the bread of communion only, while the priests could receive it in both species, bread and wine. It is difficult to establish exactly when this restriction was introduced but it was fairly widespread by the 13th century. 

For instance, the Council of Lambeth (1281) directed that the wine was to be received by the priest only. Luther and other reformers objected to this unscriptural practise and it became a matter of such contention that the Jesuits formally forbade the laity to receive the wine of communion under the draconian regime promulgated by the Council of Trent (1545- 1563). Access to the “chalice” became a rare privilege which the Papacy alone could grant, with special exception being made, for example, for the kings of France at their coronation. 

‘Transubstantiation’ Rome has long used its doctrine of ‘transubstantiation’ – the mystical transformation of the bread and wine of communion into the actual body and blood of Christ – as a powerful means of social control. The liturgical ceremony through which this supposedly miraculous transubstantiation takes place became known as the ‘sacrifice of the Mass’, an event which purports to repeat the sacrifice of Calvary through the supernatural agency of a priest. By this means the church of Rome appropriates to herself the power to add to the work that Jesus performed on Calvary. To engrave this dramatic act in the imagination of parishioners, Rome has turned the bread and wine into objects of adoration. They no longer commemorate the work of Christ on Calvary but constitute divine objects in their own right, produced or made manifest by the miraculous power with which the Catholic priest is allegedly endowed. 

The Jesuits required all Catholics to adore, worship and venerate the ‘consecrated’ bread and wine of communion through the inclusion of the following Canon at the Council of Trent: CANON VI.-If any one saith, that, in the holy sacrament of the Eucharist, Christ, the only-begotten Son of God, is not to be adored with the worship, even external of latria; and is, consequently, neither to be venerated with a special festive solemnity, nor to be solemnly borne about in processions, according to the laudable and universal rite and custom of holy church; or, is not to be proposed publicly to the people to be adored, and that the adorers thereof are idolators; let him be anathema. [Canon VI of the 13th Session] We will not dwell on the sheer madness in all of this. 

We only wish to point out that the Enemy despises the Lord’s Supper and, historically, has done everything he can to pervert its true meaning. Anathema “In councils held at Meaux in 845 and both at Paris and at Epernay the year following, anathema was defined as “condemnation to eternal death.” Thus defined, anathema was too terrible for a bishop to decide upon alone. Only with the consent of his archbishop or his fellow bishops could he impose anathema... 

This unrelenting definition of anathema from the 840s entered into the principal canon law collections: the Decretum compiled by Burchard of Worms at the start of the eleventh century, the Panormia and the Decretum assembled later in the century by Ivo of Chartres, and the Decretum of Gratian in about 1140.” – Lester Little, Cornell University Press, 1993  The Apostolic Church For the first two and half centuries of its existence, the church celebrated the commemorative ordinance known as the Lord’s Supper. 

In doing so, believers reflected on the death and resurrection of Christ, on the awesome magnitude of what his selfless sacrifice had accomplished. They were not only looking back, but forward, to the glorious hour of his imminent return – Maranatha! There was no mystical transformation of any kind, no supernatural activity sponsored by a priest, or anything of that nature. 

The change, such as it was, came only in the hearts of believers as they apprehended anew, in grateful silence, the unspeakable gift of salvation. This is the true apostolic meaning of communion. Fresco in a catacomb in Rome, early second century, showing believers celebrating the Lord’s Supper. 

A carefully planned attack on the apostolic Church Satan hates this ceremony! He knows how deeply it refreshes the souls of all believers! To distract from this awesome truth, he pours in magic and mystery, and beguiles the imagination of his audience with a theological drama. This drama in turn is made possible only through the agency of a priestly hierophant initiated by ‘Mother Church’. Salvation comes through the sanctifying power which he allegedly summons with his sacred words and his ability to effectually reenact the sacrifice of Calvary. 

The carefully planned attack on the church via Covid was nothing less than an outright ban on the Lord’s Supper. It troubles the Enemy that there are still true believers on earth who come together frequently in humble assembly to celebrate the resurrection and imminent return of Christ in accordance with Scripture. 

These people are not deceived by the magic and mystery of transubstantiation or ensnared by the charismatic allure of a sacred object. They only want to do what Jesus asked of them. Impatient to advance toward a ‘new world order’, Satan and his earthly servants issued their anti-Christian prohibition: “Stop! That’s enough!” Nevertheless, they must have been surprised by the success of their brazen scheme. 

There was no need to use force or issue baleful threats. Church leaders raced en mass to lock their doors and play Zoom. As Jesus foretold, these so-called men of God turned out to be hirelings and not shepherds: 8 “But he that is an hireling, and not the shepherd, whose own the sheep are not, seeth the wolf coming, and leaveth the sheep, and fleeth: and the wolf catcheth them, and scattereth the sheep. The hireling fleeth, because he is an hireling, and careth not for the sheep.” (John 10:12-13) As a result of all this, the evangelical church in 2023 is very different from that of 2019. 

The gross hypocrisy of its leaders is plain for all to see, but no-one wants to talk about it. We now know it is led mainly by men who have little or no respect for the Lord’s Supper. There are exceptions of course – praise the LORD! – but the great majority are hireling deceivers. A sweet savour There is a passage of scripture which sheds considerable light on the spiritual significance of the Lord’s Supper, as seen from our Heavenly Father’s perspective: “For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh damnation to himself, not discerning the Lord's body. 

For this cause many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep.” (1 Corinthians 11:29-30) The Apostle Paul is referring to the unseemly way the Lord’s Supper was celebrated in Corinth and the stern penalty that resulted. In many cases the participants fell ill and continued to suffer the effects for some time, while others died! The Holy Spirit punished these people for their sinful behavior. This is the only place in the New Testament where believers are struck down in this way! The closest parallel is that of Ananias and Sapphira, whose lives were instantly terminated when they lied to the Holy Spirit. The Death of Ananias by Masaccio, 15th century 9 The severity of the punishment reflects the gravity of the sin. 

We cannot say how this principle might apply to leaders and elders who showed little respect for the Lord’s Supper during ‘Covid’, but we have no doubt that it does apply! The Word of God makes this quite plain. We can see this spiritual truth even more clearly in the Old Testament sacrifices. On numerous occasions they are referred to as “a sweet savour unto the LORD”. 

The Hebrew word translated as “savour” in English is rêah meaning a scent or fragrance. When our Heavenly Father accepted a properly constituted offering He was savoring, not the sacrifice itself, but what it represented, namely the sacrifice that Jesus would one day make on Calvary. The love of His Son was deeply pleasing to Him, like a fragrant perfume. 

“Be ye therefore followers of God, as dear children; And walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweetsmelling savour.” – Ephesians 5:1-2 We are saved, not by our own righteousness – for in our fallen condition we stink – but by the sweet, fragrant righteousness of Christ – “For we are unto God a sweet savour of Christ...” (2 Corinthians 2:15). 

Every time we celebrate the Lord’s Supper we are reflecting on the vast gulf between our own wretchedness, our pre-saved sindamaged condition, and the “unsearchable riches of Christ” (Ephesians 3:8) which, in his infinite mercy, he has bestowed upon each of us. How is it possible for any Christian to ignore this ordinance? 

How is it possible for ANY Christian to ignore this ordinance? How? The modern pastors are like the Hebrew priests: “Ye have said, It is vain to serve God: and what profit is it that we have kept his ordinance...” (Malachi 3:14) How is it possible to listen to Marxists and Freemasons – patent agents of Satan – and adopt their wicked reinterpretation of God’s Word? 

How is it possible to submit to their perverted reinvention of standard medical practice and abandon the joy and reverence found in this ordinance? Oh, people will drop dead in the street, they warned! Really? The only thing to fall in the street was truth itself: “And judgment is turned away backward, and justice standeth afar off: for truth is fallen in the street, and equity cannot enter.” (Isaiah 59:14) All who had a hand in this should be greatly ashamed. Satan sent his filthy liars to tell their filthy lies and church leaders bowed down before them as though an oracle had spoken. 

They could have taken their flock to a park or a field outside of town to celebrate the Lord’s Supper, but that’s not something hypocrites like to do. Some went instead to the liquor store, where deadly pathogens were miraculously absent. By failing to come together in a humble assembly during ‘Covid’, submitting instead to the dark interdict of a scheming Masonic government, the professing church decided that worldly obedience – however shallow or twisted its rationale – must sometimes take precedence over our faithful expression of joy and gratitude for what Jesus did for us on Calvary. Have no doubt, this was Satan’s work from the start. 

His earthly servants despise Christianity and will continue to do whatever it takes to destroy it. Meanwhile, the church itself, as an institution, has been heavily infiltrated by ‘pastors’ and ‘leaders’ who, with bright smiles and soft words, take pleasure in disobedience, deception, and blasphemy. I truly wish all believers would think deeply about this because it is horrifying. 

Will the great falling away (2 Thessalonians 2:3), when it occurs, be any more reprehensible or loathsome in the eyes of our Heavenly Father than this sinful universal refusal to honor His Son? *** “A son honoureth his father, and a servant his master: if then I be a father, where is mine honour? and if I be a master, where is my fear? saith the LORD of hosts unto you, O priests, that despise my name.

 And ye say, Wherein have we despised thy name? Ye offer polluted bread upon mine altar; and ye say, Wherein have we polluted thee? In that ye say, The table of the LORD is contemptible [This pertains to all the pastors and elders who refused to celebrate the Lord’s Supper during ‘Covid’]. 

And if ye offer the blind for sacrifice, is it not evil? and if ye offer the lame and sick, is it not evil? Offer it now unto thy governor; will he be pleased with thee, or accept thy person? [Is this how you would treat a respected national figure or dignitary?] saith the LORD of hosts.” (Malachi 1:6-8) 11 “Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his lord hath made ruler over his household [Who is Jesus referring to? The pastors, of course!], to give them meat in due season [To feed the flock]?

 Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall find so doing. Verily I say unto you, that he shall make him ruler over all his goods. But and if that evil servant shall say in his heart, My lord delayeth his coming; and shall begin to smite his fellowservants [By doing whatever the Masons and Marxists demand], and to eat and drink with the drunken [To take the Covid payments and incentives given by the state]; The lord of that servant shall come in a day when he looketh not for him, and in an hour that he is not aware of, and shall cut him asunder, and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” (Matthew 24:45-51) *** “Therefore, brethren, stand fast, and hold the traditions which ye have been taught, whether by word, or our epistle.” – 2 Thessalonians 2:15 __________________ Jeremy James Ireland January 14, 2023 12 APPENDIX A Comments on The Lord’s Supper by H A Ironside [Note: The sequence in which the following comments are presented differs slightly from the originals. 

We have also added titles. To consult the full text of the originals, see the links below.] The means by which needy sinners avail themselves of an interest in the finished work of Christ is very simple. The sinner has to take his place before God as a lost, guilty man, owning his iniquity and putting his trust in the Man who died on the cross; for "By Him all that believe are justified from all things, from which ye could not be justified by Moses' law." (Acts 13:39) [1] 

Jesus asked that we thus remember him The Lord’s Supper (1 Corinthians 11:20) is a feast of remembrance, which is intended to carry our minds back to the death of our Saviour and also to cause us to look on to His coming again (1 Corinthians 11:26) ... Because of this, and of the expressed desire of Jesus Christ that we should thus remember Him, it has been the joy of Christian hearts down through the centuries to come together around the table of the Lord to think of His sufferings, to meditate upon His love, and to enjoy communion with Him. [5] 

In this New Testament economy Christ is the only sacrificing priest. He is the one all-sufficient victim. Christ, having made atonement for sins, rose from the dead and God has manifested His righteous satisfaction in the work of the cross by seating Him in heaven at His own right hand... [1] Communing with Christ In the celebration of the Lord’s Supper we are to be occupied with Christ Himself, with the memories of His love and grace, recalling His sorrows, sufferings, and death, and bearing in mind His promise to come again and receive us unto Himself. 

It is a mistake to think of this blessed ordinance as a means of grace, in the sense of having to do with the salvation of the soul. It is intended to deepen in the heart of those already saved, the realization of the preciousness of Christ. We come together to remember Him and, as He fills the vision of our souls, we feast in spirit upon all that He is and all that He has done. [5] The Lord's Supper is a memorial feast. 

Christians, members of the body of Christ, come together to remember the One who died for them and who put away their sins, and do this because their sins have been put away. No instructed Christian would approach the Lord's Table to get forgiveness. 

I come because my sins have been forever put away by the atoning blood of the Lord Jesus and I desire gratefully to remember the One who offered that mighty sacrifice and so fitted me for the presence of a holy God. [1]  The Lord’ Supper links the two great facts of Christianity “For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do show the Lord's death till He come." (1 Corinthians 11:26) Observe how this feast links together the two great facts of Christianity, the death of Christ and His second coming. 

The Lord's Supper is taken in remembrance of One who died, but as we take it we look forward and wait for His coming again... [1] Christ is present in Spirit with his own [We] do not believe that the bread and wine undergo any mystic change, but [we] do believe that as you eat and drink in remembrance of Christ, Christ is present in His sweet and wonderful way, manifesting Himself to the hearts of His beloved people so that by faith they are enabled to feed upon Him. We feed upon Him in remembrance. 

We look back and think of the sorrows He bore. We contemplate His cross and bitter passion, and as we do, we eat of His flesh and drink of His blood... [1] Frequency “Why observe this feast so frequently when, in many places, it is only at rare intervals that what is commonly called ‘the communion’ is celebrated?” In answer we reply that we have, in Scripture, no distinct commandment as regarding the particular times it is to be celebrated. 

The Passover was celebrated once per year, but, when the Lord instituted the Supper, He implied much more frequent observance when He said, “As often as you do this, do it in remembrance of Me.” It is the Lord’s desire that His people often show His death in this way, calling to mind frequently His love and sacrifice for them. In the earliest days of the Church’s history, the Christians broke bread daily; but, when the first days of transition passed, and the new dispensation was fully established, we get the Scriptural example in Acts 20:7, “Upon the first day of the week the disciples came together to break bread and Paul preached unto them.” In Apostolic days, it is well known that this was the recognized custom. 

Now this is not a commandment, but it is a word from the Lord, and He has said, “If a man love Me, he will keep My words.” (John 14:23) A devoted heart does not ask “How seldom can I do this and yet have the Lord’s approval?”, but “What does His Word tell us about the established order in the early days?” The Book answers, “On the first day of the week,” and, therefore, upon that day, we delight to come together to remember Him... [2] 14 We come together to meet the Lord himself It is important to understand that we do not come together to pray, nor yet to preach, nor to sing or listen to teaching, nor to enjoy Christian fellowship. 

We come together to meet the Lord Himself, to be solely occupied with Him, to offer Him the worship of our hearts, and to remember what He passed through for us.... It must be remembered that when we come together for the Lord’s Supper, Christ is as truly present in our midst as He was among the first disciples two thousand years ago. 

Yes, there will be room for praise and for the reading of a portion from the Word of God, which might bring out more vividly the sufferings of Christ. But any brother would be decidedly out of place who sought to give a lengthy exposition of Scripture or an exhortation to the believers. The sense of awe which comes over the soul who recognizes he is in the Lord’s presence will curb the flesh. [2] ...we do believe in the real presence in Spirit of our blessed Lord, for He has said, “Where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them” (Matthew 18:20). 

And there is no time when Christ’s presence is so definitely realized and so distinctly felt as when remembering Him in the breaking of bread. He said, “Take, eat: this is my body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of me.” 

The Lord’s Supper is a continual reminder of the vicarious character of His death, and that is one reason why our blessed Lord is so desirous that it should be celebrated frequently... [4] A celebration of thanksgiving and expectation In 1 Corinthians 11, verses 23-26, we learn that Paul had received a special revelation regarding the supper, yet fully agreeing with the accounts given by the three evangelists – Matthew, Mark and Luke – only that the thought of the Lord’s return is added to the remembrance of Him in His death: “For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do show the Lord’s death till He come” (verse 26). 

Thus are the cross and the glory linked together for faith, and ever kept before the soul in this observance of the Lord’s Supper. The word rendered “show” is often translated “preach” in the New Testament. Every celebration of the eucharist (as the early Christians loved to call this feast – a word meaning thanksgiving) is in itself a sermon. It is a proclaiming of the Lord’s death... [3] Never become so occupied with the form that you neglect the spirit of the Lord’s Supper. It is a place for the heart’s affections to flow out. 

Do not make it a ritualistic observance, but let it ever be an occasion where Christ Himself is before the soul, who has said, “This do in remembrance of Me.” [3] Christ, from heaven, emphasized the Lord’s Supper [1 Corinthians 11] Having reproved them for their misbehavior at the Table, Paul lays down clearly the revelation that the risen Christ gave him from heaven concerning the proper observance of this service. 

First, “For I have received of the Lord that which also I delivered unto you.” Paul never knew the Lord here on earth, he was not with the Twelve in the upper room when Jesus instituted this ordinance; therefore, he must have received this as a direct revelation from heaven. 

That is very significant, for there must be something extremely precious to our risen Savior about the frequent observance of the Lord’s Supper if He, the glorified One, gave to His apostle a special declaration from the glory regarding it. 

And this is what He told him: “That the Lord Jesus the same night in which he was betrayed took bread.” Why does the apostle slip in the expression, “In which he was betrayed,” if not for us to realize that the Lord’s Supper was meant to appeal to the hearts of His people and so to remind them that in that very night when our blessed Savior was to know to the fullest the untrustworthiness, the wickedness, the treachery, the perfidy of the human heart, He gave this feast in order that His people might have before them the continual expression of His loving heart in giving Himself for them. ... 

Judas went out, and in his absence the Savior gave this memorial feast to His own. That is very suggestive, for it is only for those who have been redeemed by His precious blood that the Lord’s Supper is given. It is not for the unsaved, it is not for those who are hoping to be saved; it is for those who are in the joy of accomplished redemption, who know Christ as Savior. To them the Lord spake when He took that bread and gave thanks and said, “Take, eat: this is my body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of me.”

Zephaniah

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Vulcão Ativo: O desespero da Condenação

Vulcão Ativo: O desespero da Condenação:

La Fée Electricité and His Kami Hoard

 by Jeremy James 

For the last hundred years we have had a church which has largely ignored the terrible threat posed to mankind in general, and to Christians in particular, by Satan and his demons. 

Believers today who try to alert the church to this threat are either marginalized or dismissed as cranks. Many are accused of ‘dwelling on the negative’ or spending too much time reading the wrong kind of books. Meanwhile, pastors preach the good life and urge their parishioners to adopt a more positive attitude. This leaves little or no room for a serious evaluation of the many ways Satan is undermining the church and preparing a path for the Antichrist. 

Discerning the work of the Enemy 

The work of the Enemy can be discerned if we take the time to measure events in the world around us against the peerless standard of God’s Word. If we attend carefully we are sure to detect the presence of his earthly servants: 

“Arise, O God, plead thine own cause: remember how the foolish man reproacheth thee daily. Forget not the voice of thine enemies: the tumult of those that rise up against thee increaseth continually.” (Psalm 74:22-23) 2 

The noise of those who reject the will of God is growing louder every day. This has become especially evident over the past ten years, where no abomination is too vile for those who reject the Word of God. 

The Age of Electricity 

We are now in the age that Satan has long anticipated – the age of electricity. It is probably no accident that the advent of this age coincided with the birth of the Laodicean church. 

As the prince of the power of the air, Satan is a master of electricity and the manifold ways that electricity can be used to influence human behavior. 

The painting above is part of a massive work called La Fée Electricité, which is usually rendered into English as The Electricity Fairy or The Spirit of Electricity. The work is housed in its own purpose-built hall at The City of Paris Museum of Modern Art and, at 10m x 60m, is one of the largest in the world. 

The figure in the painting which towers above all the rest is the Fée himself, the Fairy of Electricity, depicted here in the form of Mercury (Hermes) with his magic-making caduceus. He also holds, in his left hand, the famous cornucopia or ‘Horn of Plenty’ which, according to the Greek mythology, was formed by, and seemingly fed, the infant Zeus:

The Fée is intended to represent Satan, an allusion which the artist reinforces in dramatic fashion by locating a starburst of thunderbolts next to the god – see the image below. 

Gigantic homage to Satan 

Grand Orient Freemasonry would certainly have played a lead role in commissioning this gigantic homage to Satan, the god of lightning, thunderbolts and electricity – “the power of the air” (Ephesians 2:2). The entire painting celebrates the way this power will be used by Lucifer, the so-called Light-Bearer, “the prince of the power of the air”, to control mankind and determine its destiny. 

Jesus himself associated Lucifer with the lightning bolt when he said, “I beheld Satan as lightning fall from heaven” (Luke 10:18). 

We are also told in two places, relating to events many years apart, that he has the ability to produce lightning or “fire...from heaven” (Job 1:16 and Revelation 13:13). 

Universal reliance on electrical devices 

Electricity can potentially power an infinite number of devices. However, as recently as 150 years ago, no commercial or essential devices of any kind were powered by electricity. Not one. In 1914 the level of technological progress in even the most advanced economies was such that most of the transports and supply lines in World War One depended on horses, not motorised vehicles. Incredibly, eight million horses, donkeys and mules died in that terrible war.

 Today there are billions of electrical devices, as well as billions of other devices and goods which could not be manufactured without electrical machinery. Society would quickly collapse if electricity suddenly became unavailable. Even a sharp reduction in the availability of electricity – known as rolling blackouts – would severely reduce a nation’s standard of living and leave it vulnerable to invasion or rapid social decay. 

For over four thousand years of recorded history electricity played no role whatsoever in our lives. Yet, in a little over a century it has come to dominate the full spectrum of human activity across the entire earth. Strangely, this dependency – along with the many risks associated with it! – is seldom given the recognition it deserves. Without a constant and reliable supply of electricity, our civilization would collapse. 

Not since the Flood of Noah has mankind faced such an existential threat. 

Electricity greatly increases the scope for mind control 

The advent of electricity opened up astounding new opportunities to implement mind control over the population. The universal presence of radio, television, cinema and popular music has enabled the industries concerned – and specifically the elite families who own and control them – to shape public perception in ways that are several orders of magnitude greater than anything that existed previously. 

The Enemy hit the jackpot when electricity arrived. The scope for devising new forms of enticement was now limited only by Satan’s imagination and man’s technical ingenuity. His earthly servants were determined to avoid the huge mistake they made in the 15th century when they allowed the printing press to pass into the hands of people who loved liberty. As a result of this oversight, the Bible spread across Europe and transformed the political landscape. 

After this setback, they were determined to ensure that henceforth any new inventions, including those based on the use of electricity, would be wholly owned and controlled by them. 

An enticing new device that caused a musical revolution 

One of the most destructive of these new inventions was a simple electrical device which enabled Satan to subvert the minds and emotions of young people in a completely new way. This was introduced with such cunning that, even today, a great many Christians have little understanding of the harm it has done. The rock music revolution would not have occurred without this strange new ‘musical’ instrument and the small electrical component which made it possible. 

Superficially, it looked like a new type of guitar, but that was an illusion. In reality it could have had a multitude of different shapes and designs, even that of another musical instrument or a block of wood with steel strings. The public believed the sound produced by this new ‘musical’ instrument emanated from its strings, just like a conventional guitar, but that was not the case. The sound came into existence only when the amplifier sent the electrical signal to the speakers. The signal itself was generated by the vibration of the metallic string above the ‘pickup’, a small transducer which converts mechanical motion into electrical current. 

When a demon takes over the performance, usually at the invitation of the musician, he is able to generate sounds and complex chords that no human until recently has ever heard. These are the bizarre sounds that appeal to rock fans, inflaming their emotions and producing strong sensual sensations. A possessed musician could try to create the same effect on a regular musical instrument but he would fail because the demon is restricted to the range of sounds that the instrument can produce. The sounds we hear from traditional instruments, too, are natural, produced exclusively by percussive forces, human breath, and harmonic string vibrations. These restrictions disappear, however, on an electric guitar. None of the sounds that it produces are natural and the range of acoustic phenomena that it can generate is, for all practical purposes, limitless. 

Rock ‘music’ is associated with drugs because the ‘music’ itself is a drug. The strange sounds produced by an electric guitar, especially when the performer allows the ‘genie’ to enter his body, cause chemical changes in the listener’s brain and induce an altered state of consciousness. This promotes, among other things, a rebellious attitude in the listener and increased sensual desire. 

“...God hath made man upright; but they have sought out many inventions.” - Ecclesiastes 7:29 

Christians who listen to rock music are harming themselves spiritually. Those who do so “only occasionally,” having acquired the habit before they were saved, are advised to drop it completely and discard their secret cache of rock CDs. For more detail on the destructive effects of rock ‘music’ and the role of the electric guitar see our earlier papers (starting with #215). 

Pokemon Go 

Electricity has given Satan the opportunity to develop many other devices that he can use to subvert humanity and draw more victims into his web of deception. New ones are coming on stream all the time. Consider Pokemon Go. This is a virtual reality game in which players walk around town looking for little anime figures called Pokemon. These are only visible in their smartphone screen and players must ‘capture’ them as soon as they appear. 

Each Pokemon figure is assigned to a specific geographic location, so other Pokemon chasers who want to ‘capture’ a particular Pokemon must go to that location. Most of them are found randomly by walking around town and pointing one’s smartphone camera at a new location. The software in the smartphone then records the ‘capture’ and adds the Pokemon to one’s collection. 

On the surface this may seem like a fairly harmless activity. Millions of young people all over the world are playing the game. The Pokemon figures in each country are assigned by a central computer – which is located at Niantic headquarters in San Francisco – and certain characters, which are much sought after, are assigned to only a limited number of locations. Avid fans, keen to complete their collection, can spend weeks or months trying to find them. 

According to reports the game is addictive. It is also pointless. No skills are required to play it and none are learned. Instead the minds of young people are being conditioned to spend hours looking for something in their locality which doesn’t exist. And when they ‘find’ it, they collect it in the same way that a child might collect a shell on the seashore. 

The game involves a strange interaction between virtual reality and the physical world. It’s as though the two intersect for a moment when a new Pokemon is discovered. A virtual (non-existent) entity becomes associated in the child’s mind with a real physical location. Through constant repetition, along with the emotional reinforcement which comes with ‘capturing’ a new Pokemon, young players are being trained to respond in a positive way to virtual stimuli in a real environment. 

In time this cognitive pathway will become an established habit, making it much easier for computer-based systems in the future to influence their behavior. 

“One step closer” 

A game like this is also certain to weaken a player’s ability to make a sharp distinction between the physical and the virtual, the real and the unreal. At present, if a spirit entity reveals itself to a child, the child knows immediately that it is not of this world and should be avoided. However, a child whose mind has been conditioned to welcome a chance intersection between the real and the virtual will be much more receptive to an approach of this kind and much less likely to reject it. 

As one online commentator said, those who play Pokemon Go “are one step closer to inviting demons into their physical space.”

 It is probably no accident that the Pokemon franchise originated in Japan. The Pokemon entities are really no different from the multitude of kami or nature spirits which populate the world of Shinto practitioners. We will return to this theme later when we discuss the role of demonic influences in the conduct of Japanese soldiers during World War Two. 

Artificial intelligence and ChatGPT 

The really big leap forward in the plan to strangle and asphyxiate mankind with advanced technology came with the computer, the Internet, and more recently, Artificial Intelligence. With each step forward more control is concentrated in the hands of fewer and fewer people. Most businesses today use software developed by and, more importantly, updated by just a handful of mega corporations. The scope this offers for abuse, surveillance, undue influence, and sabotage is astronomical. 

Millions of users have already tried ChatGPT, an artificial intelligence chatbot which was developed by a company called OpenAI in collaboration with Microsoft. It can compile well drafted, detailed essays on subjects requested by the user, generate sophisticated images, compose music, write computer programs, and answer a series of related or thematic questions in conversational mode. It is no exaggeration to say that this new system is a revolutionary milestone in advanced technology. 

In our earlier paper on this subject – How Artificial Intelligence can Act as a Portal for the Supernatural (#305) – we warned that AI may one day offer the Enemy a way to communicate with humanity. If powerful demons can direct electricity to the earth then there is every reason to believe they also have the ability to influence the electronic pulses or data output by a computer. 

Note the ‘666’ logo. 

 With the arrival of ChatGPT we are hearing many reports of users whose interaction with the system was very unsettling, including that of a father whose son was drawn into a sinister discussion about the supernatural. The father, a Christian, could discern a demonic drift to the conversation and advised his son to ask no more questions. 

Not all children will go to their fathers if this starts to happen to them. And not all fathers will sense the danger. A child who has already been conditioned by Pokemon Go to seek out entities in a virtual reality will very likely be attracted by the autonomous ‘personality’ speaking to him via an AI system. If approached in this way he will feel flattered by the attention and excited by the possibility of obtaining forbidden knowledge. 

This may seem farfetched but ChatGPT is actually capable of profiling individual users and framing replies which lure them into long, personalised conversations. We need to bear in mind that Satan will use every means at his disposal to harm mankind and clear a path for the Antichrist. He wants to open as many people as possible to demonic influence, and electronic technology has greatly expanded his ability to do this. 

Some Catholic exorcists have reported instances where they received a text message from a demon, warning them to abandon their attempts to free a victim of demonic possession. Once they gain a grip on a person, demons hate to let go and will resist attempts to expel them by every means possible. We should not be surprised, therefore, if they avail of modern technology to do this – one witness saw his phone typing out a text message when no-one was touching the keys. 

As an exorcist in the Philippines said, “The devil has power over anything electrical. If this place is infested, for example, and they want their presence known, usually the lights would flicker. If I give a talk and use a certain gadget, the devil would easily shut it down because he is an expert in anything electrical.” 

Shinto 

The more a nation or a society accepts the presence of demons, the more easily these entities can affect their behavior. Shamanism is common among primitive societies because their members can sense their malignant presence and feel a need to appease them. The shaman acts as an intercessor between the tribe and the local demons, showing the members what they must do to avoid bad fortune or make their petitions. 

We do not expect to find this kind of behavior in a modern western economy, but it is actually widespread in Japan. Between 1861 and 1945 the official state religion was Shinto. The rulers wanted to enforce its observance because they knew it did nothing to impede the inculcation of militarism and extreme nationalism among the general population. Shinto had no written moral code or even a formal scripture. In practice it is little more than a tradition centered around the veneration of local gods known as kami. These ‘gods’ are equated with nature spirits dwelling in the forests and mountains, rivers and lakes, and even in the community itself.

All seasonal festivals in Japan are concerned with only one thing, namely, placating and honoring the kami. Shinto has no concept of a supreme being. Even those who mix Shinto with Buddhism and look to the Void are, in effect, filling it with demons. The kami can also include the souls of departed relatives, all living in their assigned localities close to the earth. The Japanese believe their lives will run more smoothly and harmoniously if they do nothing to disturb the gods or show disrespect. Much of the formalism in Japanese social behavior can be traced back to their belief in the capricious nature of the kami and the need to both venerate and appease them. 

In a society whose main religious activity is the supplication of demons and honoring their existence, we would expect the supernatural influence of the kami to impinge on their behavior in some way. In a rigidly formalised society, we might not notice the hold that the kami exercise over the lives of ordinary people. The real impact may only become apparent when the practitioners are moved to a new environment and allowed en masse to engage in a new form of behavior. We were given a horrifying glimpse of this during the Second World War when the Japanese overran China and most of east Asia, committing acts of barbarism and cruelty which defied belief. 

The appalling savagery of Japanese soldiers in WW2 

The Japanese behaved with great brutality during the Second World War. We don’t have space here to detail the frequency and magnitude of their cold-blooded crimes and rampant sadism. Their lust to kill and shed blood was common to all ranks and all branches of the military. They often devised ‘entertaining’ ways to torture and slaughter their victims, and even held ‘competitions’ to see who could kill the most victims in a given time. 

When they captured the city of Nanking in 1937 the Japanese went on a killing spree. At least 300,000 Chinese civilians were murdered in cold blood. The Japanese soldiers were not deterred in the least by the fact that Western observers could see what they were doing in the streets of the city, roving back and forth in plain view, slaughtering and raping as they went. The vile spectacle took place over several weeks and many gruesome incidents in the streets below were photographed by Westerners living in Nanking. 

14 

In her best-selling account of this frightful massacre, Iris Change wrote: 

“So sickening was the spectacle that even the Nazis in the city were horrified, one proclaiming the massacre to be the work of bestial machinery.” - The Rape Of Nanking: The Forgotten Holocaust Of World War II 

Their treatment of prisoners of war was sadistic in the extreme and those who survived took many years to recover from the trauma. This may explain why the books quoted below were written several decades after the events they describe: 

"We lived in a world of death, of starvation and disease. It was a living hell." - William J. Sebald, Prisoner of the Japanese: The Story of an American POW (1994) 

"The Japanese treated us like animals, not like human beings." - Robert J. Lapham, The War in the Pacific: From Pearl Harbor to Tokyo Bay (2003) 

"We were beaten with rifle butts, kicked, and struck with the flat of swords." - John C. Vollertsen, The History of the Japanese Internment Camps in the Philippines (2005) 

"We were treated as vermin, barely allowed to survive." - Richard Sakakida, Japanese POW Camps in World War II (2008) 

"The Japanese soldiers went about their business with a ferocity and brutality I had never before seen." - Edward D. Marks, The Bataan Death March: A Survivor's Account (2011) 

"The harshness of the treatment was inhuman and unbearable." - Rey Oropeza, Memoirs of a Japanese Prisoner of War (2012) 

"I still have nightmares about the brutality of some of the Japanese officers." - John Balzar, The Bataan Death March (2014) 

"We were treated like animals, with no regard for our humanity." - James A. McKeown, A Japanese POW's Story (2015) 

"The Japanese wanted us to die, and they did everything in their power to hasten our death." - Robert L. Batchelder, A Japanese Prisoner of War in America (2017) 

"The Japanese treated us with a complete lack of humanity." - Arthur W. Aldrich, My Odyssey as a Japanese POW (2018) 

Overall the Japanese murdered six million civilians in cold blood. How are we to explain this? The ten authors we just cited each point to what we believe was the real underlying cause: 

"It seemed as if the Japanese were possessed by demons." - William J. Sebald "I could almost sense an evil presence in the camp." - Robert J. Lapham 

"The Japanese soldiers acted like they were possessed by a dark force." - John C. Vollertsen 

"The Japanese carried out their orders with an inhuman ferocity." - Richard Sakakida 16 

"The cruelty of the Japanese soldiers was like something out of a horror movie." - Edward D. Marks 

"The Japanese seemed to be under some kind of demonic spell." - Rey Oropeza 

"The Japanese seemed to be driven by some kind of evil power." - John Balzar 

"The Japanese acted as if they were controlled by an unseen force." - James A. McKeown 

"The Japanese treated us with a cruelty that seemed almost supernatural." - Robert L. Batchelder 

 "The brutality of the Japanese was unlike anything I had ever seen before." - Arthur W. Aldrich 

We are not suggesting that the Japanese soldiers were necessarily possessed by demons, but that a powerful demonic entity or force was working through them. A nation that had spent decades worshipping the kami was unable to restrain itself when the demons themselves were crying for blood. 

The kami in a new form 

The kami continue to press forward in other ways. One of the most prominent of these is the Japanese art form known as anime. These are elaborate comic books in which all kinds of strange fantasies, criminality, extreme violence and sexual perversions are acted out. Many anime series, which are drawn to a very high standard, included transgenderism and lesbianism long before they went mainstream in the West. 

The most successful anime series are sometimes transferred to television. One of the most popular is a series directed at children called Dragonball Z. This franchise is especially significant since it won a very large following in the US in the 1990s and has greatly influenced an entire generation by filling their minds with kami-related images, concepts and storylines. The series is filled with pagan and New Age ideas, spirit possession, witchcraft, reincarnation, resurrection, energy transference, occult symbolism, inter-dimensional travel, dystopian moral values, and a profoundly gnostic worldview which conflicts with Christianity. 

The great hero figure in Dragonball Z is Goku, whose character and ambitions match closely those of Lucifer. In the image above he is shown filling himself with cosmic energy – “the power of the air” – before engaging his greatest enemy in battle. 

CONCLUSION 

Jesus of Nazareth went to Calvary to liberate us from the power of Satan. He suffered and died in our place to set us free. This is true salvation, the vicarious or substitutionary atonement which destroyed the hold that sin has over us. We appropriate this astounding gift solely through faith in his death and resurrection. Thereafter, upon leaving this earth, we will live with him in eternity. 

All attempts to save ourselves by other means are futile. Our good works won’t save us, and neither will the much vaunted ‘powers’ of Satan and his army of demons. The path of the kami, regardless of the name we use to describe them or the way they are venerated, is the path of death and spiritual destruction. 

The shintai of the Japanese households are no different from the idols and amulets that the Israelites secretly brought with them out of Egypt. By holding on to them they hoped to retain a connection with the gods of Egypt. These so-called ‘gods’ were highlevel demons, the powers and principalities which served Satan. The amulets were believed to contain a lesser god or demon, much like the shintai in the household shrine.  

Joshua warned them to put away their “gods” or idols and amulets which he knew they had hidden in their tents or on their person: 

“Now therefore fear the LORD, and serve him in sincerity and in truth: and put away the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the flood, and in Egypt; and serve ye the LORD.” (Joshua 24:14) 

The demons of ancient Egypt are as active today as they were then. The culture of rock music was designed to open doors to these entities. The New Age movement, with its many cults and sects, is merely another method that Satan is using to lure his victims into a dependency on demons or ‘spirit guides’. So too is the “contemplative prayer” that has become so popular among Evangelicals. The space age hoax, with its constant emphasis on alien intelligence, is yet another manifestation of this unending drive to lure mankind into the demonic realm. The rise of virtual reality using advanced technology is yet another means of promoting an interest in alternative dimensions or ‘states of consciousness’. 

The enticements will continue. One only has to look at the television listings to find dozens and dozens of shows with occult, magical and death-related themes. The number dealing with sadistic murder (“true crime”) seems to grow and grow, as do those dealing with ancient aliens, outer space, haunted houses, and so forth. All are intended by the Enemy to focus attention on the afterlife and the supernatural, to fill the minds of viewers with images that lead them into a state where they are more receptive to demonic influence. 

These entities have the ability to appear benign for many years, even decades. They take care not to expose their true nature or their true purpose lest those who are under their influence stop worshipping them or, worse, take steps to evict them. They are ALL evil and serve the prince of this world. Anyone who imagines for a moment that he can share any part of his life with them is greatly deceived. 

 

Every Christian knows – or should know! – how important it is to put on daily the Armor of God. We strongly recommend that readers consult our earlier paper on this vitally important subject – The LORD Is a Man of War, #216. Even though we are protected by the Holy Spirit we are living in a war zone. What is more we are living at a time when the variety of weapons or “darts” being used against us by the Enemy continues to increase, as does the variety of ways they are being deployed. 

“Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.” – Ephesians 6:11 

“The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light.” – Romans 13:12 

Only by doing this will we “be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.” (Ephesians 6:16) 

It is not our job to improve the world or to undo the harm caused by the Enemy and his minions. Our task is to share the gospel with those who are lost and, through prayer and other ways, to strengthen and encourage one another. Our heavenly Father has given the task of dealing with Satan to His Son, Jesus Christ. When he returns to the earth he will change EVERYTHING! The wicked will be annihilated. Every vestige of their former rule will be smashed to pieces, and Satan and his demon hoard will no longer have any role or influence on this earth: 

“Let them give glory unto the LORD, and declare his praise in the islands. The LORD shall go forth as a mighty man [i.e. Jesus Christ], he shall stir up jealousy like a man of war: he shall cry, yea, roar; he shall prevail against his enemies. I have long time held my peace; I have been still, and refrained myself: now will I cry like a travailing woman; I will destroy and devour at once ...they shall be greatly ashamed, that trust in graven images, that say to the molten images, Ye are our gods.” - Isaiah 42: 12-14, 17 

Praise the LORD! Praise His holy name! Maranatha! 

Jeremy James Ireland March 9, 2023

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