Preparing for The End of the World Writings from the Apostle Paul to the Thessalonians Regarding the End Times Copyright 2016 Russell M. Stendal Colombia para Cristo video introduction Watch the La Montaña trailer, a film based on a true Stendal event Contents Looking Forward to the Future Ch. 1: Why a Clean Heart is Crucial Ch. 2: Our Need to Be Led by the Holy Spirit Ch. 3: Occupying until Christ Returns Ch. 4: The “Secret Rapture” Error Ch. 5: Staying Awake Ch. 6: Prevailing through Persecution Ch. 7: Beware of the Tares Ch. 8: The Lord Wins in the End About the Author Connect with Russell’s Ministry Introduction Looking Forward to the Future I wrote this book after sailing our boat, the Dawn Treader, into the Hemingway Marina in Cuba, as I soon found myself struck by the many parallels I saw between the Thessalonica of Paul’s time and the Havana of the present day, where the Lord has also established quite a beachhead. In Havana, we visited with people from all walks of life as we interacted with those on all sides of the Colombian peace process that has been taking place in the city over the past three years; but mostly, I spent my time writing in the quiet solitude of the sea. Quite a number of sport fishing boats are based at this marina, and I always found it interesting to watch anglers fish for the blue marlin that the area is famous for. It seems that many regard marlin fishing as the pinnacle of offshore sport fishing, due to the size, power, and elusiveness of the species. But believe me, it’s not nearly as exciting as fishing for men! Jesus promised to make us fishers of men if we would follow him, and for us the results have been above and beyond our wildest dreams. We’re living in very exciting times, when many Bible prophecies are being (or are about to be) fulfilled. Are we approaching the end of the world? And if we are, how can we prepare for it? Fortunately, we don’t need to know all of the intricate details, but one thing is of paramount importance as we enter the prophesied day of the Lord: Our hearts must be clean and pure. This book deals first with the individual prior to getting into more specific end times detail. As we eagerly await the return of our Lord, we can trust in his promise that the pure in heart shall see God, and we know that every passing day brings us closer to this wonderful reality. Russell Stendal December 30, 2015 Chapter 1 Why a Clean Heart is Crucial 1 Thessalonians ...as ye know how we exhorted and comforted and charged every one of you, as a father with his children, that ye would walk worthy of God, who has called you unto his kingdom and glory (1 Thessalonians 2:11,12). As we know, the Thessalonians lived in the city of Thessalonica, a word meaning “the victory of that which is false.” When Paul traveled there with Silas (Silvanus) and Timothy, they certainly had reason to believe that this was an appropriate name, inasmuch as false gods had apparently been victorious in taking over the city. Far from being welcomed, Paul received considerable opposition from people whom Scripture describes as disobedient Jews, moved with envy (Acts 17:5), who followed him to Berea and stirred up trouble there as well. Thessalonica was definitely an Enemy stronghold, filled with dark spiritual forces that did everything possible to choke the spread of the gospel. Sadly, there are still many places like this all around the world – places where it seems very difficult if not impossible to make missionary journeys. But those are only the most visible strongholds of the gospel’s enemies. There are also congregations and churches all over the world that appear to be benign until someone challenges their false doctrines with the truth. Challenging false doctrines was Paul’s strong suit, so the situation in Thessalonica failed to daunt him. He knew that he could rely on his Lord, and indeed, the Lord opened the door so that some of the Jews and a great multitude of the Greeks believed in Jesus and consorted with Paul and Silas (Acts 17:4). Later, after receiving a good report of them, Paul wrote these believers the letter we know as 1 Thessalonians. (1:1) Paul, and Silvanus, and Timothy, unto the congregation of the Thessalonians congregated in God the Father and in the Lord Jesus Christ: Grace be unto you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. The word translated here as “congregation” is translated in many Bibles as “church,” and originally it had a very different meaning from the one we now generally associate with this word. The Greek word is ekklesia, which means “called-out ones,” and in the Jubilee Bible the word is translated as “congregation” and footnoted. Ekklesia doesn’t mean an institution or a religious fortress. It’s not a magnificent stone building with stained-glass windows nor a humble construction of wood or brick. It simply describes those who were called out from among the Jews or from among the pagans to join the Lord Jesus. The word ekklesia describes the people or local congregation in a given place who left what they were doing in order to follow Jesus Christ. In this sense, we are the church if we have left the world or a contaminated religious institution so that we can follow Jesus. There are many congregations or churches of called-out ones described in the New Testament, but there is only one universal body of Christ (Ephesians 4:4). (1:2) We give thanks to God always for you all, making mention of you in our prayers. The body of Christ has only one head, which is the Lord Jesus Christ, but it has many members. If we’re members of the body, we will each be linked directly to the head and also to our brothers and sisters who are all around us. This body is not a formal organization but a living organism. If we are part of the body, then we sense and feel and think in accord with the head and the rest of the body. Even if we become separated by time and distance, we’ll continue to feel the link from our hearts to one another. Later, when we have another opportunity to encounter these fellow members of the body again, even if years have gone by, it may seem as if we only saw them yesterday, because our bond with them by the Spirit remains intact. For instance, I recently encountered some friends who had helped send my parents to the mission field in the early sixties. Even though I hadn’t seen them for over fifty years, the bond in the Spirit was still there between us, and they had been faithfully praying for us all this time. (1:2) making mention of you in our prayers, (1:3) remembering without ceasing the work of your faith and labour and charity and of waiting with the hope of our Lord Jesus Christ in the sight of our God and Father, (1:4) being certain, beloved brethren, that you are chosen of God. In many places and in many groups, I feel that the emphasis is on the idea that we must be the ones doing the choosing; we need to accept the Lord with a formal prayer (and if someone doesn’t know how to pray, there will be a standard formula for him or her to repeat). And yes, it is undeniably important that we choose to follow God. But which is more important? That we choose God? Or that God chooses us? Both things are important; we must never lose sight of this. But there are many people who go on superficially choosing and choosing and choosing God, and in some cases, there is little or no evidence that God has chosen them. It is true that we’re given wonderful promises such as the one that says that God will not despise those with a broken and contrite heart (Psalm 51:17). However, Scripture also clearly states that although many are called, few are chosen (Matthew 20:16). Consider the following scene from the book of Esther. Remember that after the king gave Haman his ring, which Haman then used to seal a law that he wrote in the king’s name, authorizing the killing of all the Jews, the king and Haman sat down to drink; but the city of Shushan was perplexed (Esther 3:15). Haman hadn’t told the king that the people he wanted to wipe out were Jews, and the king didn’t know that Queen Esther was Jewish. When Esther risked her life to petition the king and invited him to a banquet, the king began to come to his senses. He even acceded to Esther’s request that Haman attend the banquet (Esther understood that we are to feed even our enemies and overcome evil with good). During the banquet, the time came when Esther had the full attention of the king, who was by now very intrigued, and he said to her, And what is thy request? It shall be given thee, even to the half of the kingdom (Esther 5:3). It was a generous offer, but Esther knew that an invitation to partner with the king in his pagan kingdom wouldn’t rescue the Jews. In the same way, there are some who say to the Lord, “Let’s be partners, half and half.” They wish to make the Lord a partner in their business. They wish to