DISCIPLE

Separation From Evangelicals      Let me go out on a limb a little bit and prophesy. I see the time coming when all the holy men whose eyes have been opened by the Holy Spirit will desert worldly evangelicalism, one by one. The house will be left desolate and there will not be a man of God, a man in whom the Holy Spirit dwells, left among them. The curse of worldliness     I hear Jesus saying, “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!” (Matt. 23:37). As the Church stands now, the man who sees this condition of worldly evangelicalism is written off as being somewhat fanatical. But the day is coming when the house will be left desolate and there will not be a man of God left among them.     I would like to live long enough to watch this develop and see how things turn out. I would like to live to see t

by H. A. Ironside WHAT IS OUR BLESSED HOPE?     As we thoughtfully read the words of our Lord Jesus recorded in the early verses of John 14 and as we consider the teaching given in the pauline epistles in regard to the hope of the church, it becomes increasingly evident that there is not the least hint that believers of this dispensation were to look forward to a long series of events preceding the return of the Lord Jesus to raise the dead in Christ and change the living and take them to Himself in the Father's house. This blessed hope is always presented as imminent, which it could not be if one had to suppose that the destruction and revival of the Roman empire, the rise of the antichrist, and the great tribulation, must precede that glorious event. Yet there are other scriptures that distinctly show, as we have seen, that there will be saints on the earth when these conditions prevail. But I trust it has already been made clear that they will not belong to the church, t

by H. A. Ironside WHICH SAINTS WILL BE IN THE GREAT TRIBULATION?     It is evident from the Word of God that certain saints will be found on earth in the days of the great tribulation. Many of these will be called on to suffer martyrdom while others will be preserved through this entire period and will enter into the kingdom to be set up on earth. Because of this, it has naturally been concluded that these are necessarily members of the church, the body of Christ.     Many think of the church as a surname by which the entire family of faith from Adam to the end of the millennium is designated. If one thinks of the church in this manner there can be only one answer to the question. "Will the church or any part of it go through the great tribulation?" Certainly many members of the household of faith will have to endure great suffering during that time of trouble. But if one has learned to distinguish clearly from scripture between new birth, common to all children of

by H.A. Ironside      Turn now to 2 Thessalonians 2. As we read it carefully, let us bear in mind what has already been before us. In order to see the viewpoint both of the apostle himself and of those to whom he was writing at that particular time, it will be well to consider certain facts that may be clearly deduced from a careful study of the entire letter. It is evident that the coming of the Lord had a large place in the hearts and minds of these particular saints. Some among them had become unbalanced on the subject, and were teaching that they were already entering into the time of great tribulation. They believed that the day of the Lord was practically upon them. They were endeavoring to substantiate this teaching by the use of a forged letter purporting to come from the apostle Paul, and the advocates of this system declared that the Spirit had revealed these things to them. Therefore the saints were becoming unsettled, losing the blessedness of the hope of the Lor

by H. A. Ironside     Now let us turn to the New Testament and see if we can get any further light on this day of grief and desperate sorrow. Look first at Matthew 24. In this portion of the kingdom gospel, our Lord portrayed the conditions that will prevail on earth right up to his second coming. He did not, however, speak definitely of the church, which is His body, or of any testimony such as we now know. This great prophecy was given before the revelation of the mystery and it is in keeping with the older predictions. Our Lord revealed to us the conditions that will prevail in the land [of Israel] where there will be a remnant who cleave to him and love His name immediately preceding His second coming. In verse 15 He indicated the beginning of a time of special trial "when ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place." This carries us back to Daniel 12, and is clearly the starting point of the gre

by H. A. Ironside Now let us turn to the prophet Jeremiah:   "And these are the words that the Lord spake concerning Israel and concerning Judah. For thus saith the Lord: We have heard a voice of trembling, of fear, and not of peace. Ask ye now, and see whether a man doth travail with child? wherefore do I see every man with his hands on his loins, as a woman in travail, and all faces are turned into paleness? Alas! for that day is great, so that none is like it;it is even the time of JACOB'S TROUBLE: but he shall be saved out of it. For it shall come to pass in that day, saith the Lord of hosts, that I will break his yoke from off thy neck, and will burst thy bonds, and strangers shall no more serve themselves of him: But they shall serve the Lord their God, and David their king, whom I will raise up unto them" (30:4-9).      Reading this chapter carefully and the one that follows will give us many more particulars in regard to the subject that is before us.

Note: In these days there is much confusion on the matter of the rapture and the tribulation. There are teachers in assemblies and even commended missionaries who teach that the church will go through part or all of the tribulation. Nothing could be further from the truth, and though they don't like it, we insist that there is NO liberty to teach such doctrines. H.A. Ironside gave a clear answer and we reproduce it here and in following installments. Not Wrath, but Rapture   by H.A. Ironside What Is Meant by the Term "The Great Tribulation"?        The careful student of the prophetic scriptures cannot fail to observe that in both the Old and New Testaments the Spirit of God speaks of a trial involving the pouring out of divine wrath on men. This is known as... .... "the great tribulation," .... "the time of Jacob's trouble," .... "the coming hour of temptation," .... "the day of the Lord," and other terms.      Thi

All the creeds of Christendom, including the Roman Catholic, declare the personal, second coming of Christ to earth; but those who profess to believe in Christ's second advent are divided into two major schools of thought - the Pre-millennial and the Post-millennial. "Pre" means "before" and "post" means "after": hence the Pre-millennialists believe Christ will come before the golden age called the Millennium; while the Post-millennialists believe Christ will come after the establishment of the kingdom of righteousness on earth.      Post-millennialists hold that Christ will not return until He comes to the final judgment, at some  far-off time. They believe the final triumph of His kingdom on earth is only a natter of time, and that through the preaching of the Gospel, the world will be eventually won to righteousness.  Hence, the kingdom is to come in through human efforts.      Pre-millennialists do not look for universal p

The objection is often raised even by some sound in the faith, regarding the exposure of error as being entirely negative and of no real edification. Of late, the hue and cry has been against any and all negative teaching. But the brethren who assume this attitude forget that a large part of the New Testament, both of the teaching of our blessed Lord Himself and the writings of the apostles, is made up of this very character of ministry - namely, showing the Satanic origin and, therefore, the unsettling results of the propagation of erroneous systems which Peter, in his second epistle, so definitely refers to as "damnable heresies." Our Lord prophesied, "Many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many." Within our own day, how many false prophets have risen; and oh, how many are the deceived! Paul predicted, "I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock. Also of your own selves shall men ari