LAST DAY SCOFFERS

LAST DAY SCOFFERS

By William Chalfant

Text: 2 Peter 3.3 “Knowing this first,

that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts”.

Mark 13.28 “Now learn a parable of the fig tree; When he branch is yet tender, and putteth forth leaves, ye know that summer is near”.

WARNING ABOUT SCOFFERS IN THE LAST DAYS

The apostle Peter tells us in 2 Peter 3.1 that he is writing his second epistle to the church to “stir up” our pure minds by “way of remembrance”.

There are some things that we can never forget.

We are warned to be “mindful of the words which were spoken before by the (1) holy prophets, and (2) the apostles of the Lord.

Then Peter in 2 Peter 3.3 tells us, who are living in the last days, that “there shall come...scoffers, walking after their own lusts”.

It is apparent that these “scoffers” are among us, since all sinners walk after their own lusts anyhow, but Peter warns us of those among us who are “scoffers”.

THE STUDY OF PROPHECY HAS COME UNDER ATTACK IN THESE LAST DAYS BY “SCOFFERS”.

One of the greatest promises of the Lord, next to the baptism of the Holy Ghost, is the “promise of His coming”.

Jesus said, “In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also” (John 14.2,3).

But Peter warned us that in the last days “scoffers” would come who would question the prophecies, and ask, “Where is the promise of his coming? for since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation” (2 Peter 3.4).

NOT ONLY ARE LAST DAY SCOFFERS ATTACKING THE STUDY OF PROPHECY, BUT THEY ARE QUESTIONING THE PROMISE OF HIS COMING.

There is a very dangerous attitude developing in the church today, as I see it. In some churches you are no longer welcome to preach the rapture of the church, nor are you allowed to get excited about the rapture. It is out of style. It is not “politically correct”.

But the apostle Paul said, “For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep. For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. Wherefore comfort one another with these words” (1 Thess. 4.15-18).

And he wrote in 1 Corinthians 15.51,52 about the same exciting event: “Behold, I show you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed”. That is the mystery of the rapture-not the Armageddon return!

Hallelujah! I remember how I used to (and I still do when I hear it preached!) sit on the edge of my seat when I heard the glorious rapture preached. Right after I received the baptism of the Holy Ghost, I was in a service when the most anointed preaching concerning the rapture came forth, and we began to sing. I closed my eyes, I felt like I was literally rising in the air. Could this be the rapture? It was on my mind much of the time.

BUT THE ATTITUDE DEVELOPING IN SOME AREAS OF THE CHURCH TODAY IS THAT WE NO LONGER EXCITEDLY LOOK FOR THE SUDDEN APPEARING OF THE LORD TODAY. LAST DAY SCOFFERS HAVE INTIMIDATED MANY FROM PREACHING THE SOON COMING (RAPTURE) OF OUR LORD.

I get thrilled when new saints come to me and excitedly talk to me about the rapture. I have had them try to call me, and couldn’t get me on the line. Then they couldn’t get several other saints either. They got concerned that the rapture had taken place! My wife and I would be walking down the aisles of a grocery store together, and all of sudden I would look up, and she had disappeared. Did the rapture take place? It was on my mind. Have we saints of God lost that rapture feeling? Is it because of intimidation from “last day scoffers”, who question “the promise of His coming”?

Instead we are told to prepare for the coming of anti-christ. Fear is promoted. The wrong side of prophecy is promoted!

2 Timothy 1.7 states, “For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind”. It is alright to talk about the prophecies on anti-christ, but we shouldn’t be told we will have to run from him! Resist the devil and he will flee from you!

FEAR DESTROYS FAITH. All of this talk of the coming of anti-christ at the expense of the coming of Jesus Christ is not good. It promotes fear. God has not given us the spirit of fear.

My old pastor, who is gone to be with the Lord, used to say, “I’m not looking for a hole in the ground. I am looking for a hole in the sky”. He had his eyes on Jesus-not on the anti-christ. He was looking for the great tribulation, he was looking for His redemption, which he believed was drawing nigh.

WE HAVE LOST THE ATTITUDE OF EXPECTANCY. THOSE WHO HAVE BEGUN TO PREACH THE COMING OF ANTI-CHRIST HAVE DESTROYED THE “IMMINENCY” OF THE COMING OF THE LORD.

What do I mean by that? I mean the reason why I believe that many in the church have lost their sense of excitement, their sense of urgency, their sense of destiny, is simply because there are many in the church who no longer believe that Jesus could return AT ANY MOMENT.

I know that one of the reasons why “Zion is at ease” is because of our great material blessings in this country and in this day and age.

Rev. 3.15 “I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wast cold or hot.”

3.16 “So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spew thee out of my mouth.”

3.17 “Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked”.

Ezek. 16.49 “Behold, this was the iniquity of thy sister Sodom, pride, fullness of bread, and abundance of idleness was in her and in her daughters, neither did she strengthen the hand of the poor and needy”.

There are many reasons, then, why Zion is at ease today and why saints are no longer looking for the coming of the Lord like they used to. You would think that today there would be even more of an awareness of His coming than ever before! But it is just the opposite. John and Ezekiel itemized the problems we see today:

(1) lukewarm saints

(2) material blessings

(3) pride

(4) fullness of bread

(5) abundance of idleness (too much free time)

(6) lack of compassion for the poor and needy

THESE PROBLEMS ARE BAD ENOUGH, BUT THE MOST DANGEROUS RESULT OF THESE PROBLEMS IS THE LAST DAY SCOFFER WHO WOULD STEAL OUR EXPECTANCY OF THE RAPTURE, THE AT-ANY-MOMENT COMING OF THE LORD FOR HIS CHURCH.

THE SPIRIT OF WATCHFULNESS HAS BEEN DESTROYED BY THE LAST DAY SCOFFERS AND THOSE WHO HERALD THE COMING OF ANTI-CHRIST UNWITTINGLY.

Jesus commanded all of us to WATCH. It is not an option that we have.

Mark 13.28 “Now learn a parable of the fig tree; When her branch is yet tender, and putteth forth her leaves, ye know that summer is near”.

We can look at the fig tree, and when we see her putting forth her leaves, we can know that the summer is near.

Mark 13.29 “So ye in like manner, when ye shall see these things come to pass, know that it is nigh, even at the doors”.

HE WAS TEACHING US TO BE OBSERVANT. TO KEEP OUR HEADS UP AND TO LOOK FOR HIM.

Mark 13.34 “For the Son of man is as a man taking a far journey, who left his house, and gave authority to his servants, and to every man his work, and commanded the porter to watch.”

OF COURSE WE KNOW THAT THE “FAR JOURNEY” IS IN PROGRESS RIGHT NOW. HE HAS LEFT HIS HOUSE AND GIVEN AUTHORITY (exousia) TO HIS SERVANTS. WOULDN’T IT BE WONDERFUL IF HIS SERVANTS ONLY REALIZED HOW MUCH AUTHORITY HAD BEEN GIVEN TO THEM?

Luke 10.19 “Behold, I give you power (exousia, “authority”) to tread on serpents and scorpions, AND OVER ALL THE POWER OF THE ENEMY: and nothing shall by any means hurt you”. And Jesus adds, “the spirits are subject unto you” (Luke 10.20). This was even before the disciples had received the baptism of the Holy Ghost.

THE CHURCH HAS POWER OVER SATAN! THE CHURCH IS THE BODY OF CHRIST ON EARTH!

Matthew 5.13 “Ye are the salt of the earth”. Matthew 5.14 “Ye are the light of the world”. The church is the salt of the earth and the light of the world. But we are letting these LAST DAY SCOFFERS convince us that we might as well get ready for the great tribulation. Never mind that the church has suffered persecution and tribulation for nearly 2000 years! Never mind that the church has been through the fire and been through the flood! Never mind that we were told to look for the Lord’s coming!

Get your mind off of Jesus and get it on the anti-christ! Because the LAST DAY SCOFFERS say He is not coming just right now! They destroy the doctrine of the immanency of His coming!

JESUS COMMANDED US TO WATCH FOR HIM!

Jesus said in Mark 13.34 that (HE) COMMANDED THE PORTER TO WATCH!

Do you know who the PORTER is? The PORTER is the pastor of the flock! The pastor is commanded to WATCH FOR THE RETURN OF THE LORD AT ANY TIME! Not after 1260 days begin!

Mark 13.35 “Watch ye therefore: for ye know not when the master of the house cometh, at even, or at midnight, or at the cockcrowing, or in the morning:

13.36 “Lest coming suddenly he find you sleeping.”

13.37 “And what I say unto you I say unto all, Watch”.

BUT THE LAST DAY SCOFFERS CANNOT WATCH FOR HIM TO COME AT ANY TIME. THEY ARE TRYING TO TELL US, IN EFFECT, “WHERE IS THE PROMISE OF HIS COMING”? THE RAPTURE CANNOT TAKE PLACE NOW THEY SAY. WE MUST GO THROUGH THE TRIBULATION FIRST! HE CANNOT COME AT ANY MOMENT! THAT IS WHAT THE LAST DAY SCOFFERS ARE, IN EFFECT, SAYING!

THE DANGER OF BELIEVING THE DOCTRINE OF “MY LORD DELAYETH HIS COMING”.

Matthew 24.45 “Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his lord hath made ruler over his household, to give them meat in due season?

24.46 “Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall find so doing.”

24.47 “Verily I say unto you, That he shall make him ruler over all his goods”.

24.48 “But and if that evil servant shall say in his heart, MY LORD DELAYETH HIS COMING;”

24.49 “And shall begin to smite his fellow servants, and to eat and drink with the drunken;”

24.50 “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,”

24.51 “And shall cut him asunder, and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth”.

That thought “MY LORD DELAYETH HIS COMING” is extremely dangerous. When the Lord speaks of “faithful and wise servants”, who are “made ruler over his household”, and who “give them meat in due season”, that is usually thought of as referring again to a pastor. Just as the porter was to continually WATCH for the coming of the Lord, so is the ruler over the household (the faithful and wise servant) never to get the idea in his heart that MY LORD DELAYETH HIS COMING.

BUT THE LAST DAY SCOFFERS HAVE MANAGED TO ASSAULT THE STUDY OF PROPHECY, THEY HAVE MANAGED TO TAKE AWAY THE PREACHING OF THE IMMANENCY OF THE RETURN OF THE LORD. IT IS NO LONGER “POLITICALLY CORRECT” TO PREACH THE RAPTURE. YOU CAN GET BLANK STARES, AND YOU ARE NOT SURE WHAT KIND OF A STAND A BROTHER HAS ON THE RAPTURE!

WHERE IS THE EXCITEMENT IN THE CHURCH? WHAT’S THAT SOUND I HEAR? IT’S THE SOUND OF A TRUMPET!

THE LORD SHALL DESCEND FROM HEAVEN WITH A SHOUT! WITH THE VOICE OF THE ARCHANGEL! WITH THE TRUMP OF GOD!

IN A MOMENT! IN THE TWINKLING OF AN EYE! WE SHALL BE CHANGED! WE SHALL BE CAUGHT UP TOGETHER IN THE CLOUDS TO MEET THE LORD IN THE AIR!

Matthew 25.10 “And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came; AND THEY THAT WERE READY went in with him to the marriage: and the door was shut”.

COULD THE LORD COME AT ANY MOMENT? SURE HE COULD? SHOULD YOU BE WATCHING? SHOULD YOU BE READY FOR THAT MEETING IN THE AIR AT ANY MOMENT? WATCHING AND WAITING FOR THE LORD TO COME!

One glad morning we shall see Jesus in the air, coming after you and me-joy is ours to share!

-Bro Chalfant