The Scattered Sheep
		Behold, the Lord GOD will come. He shall feed his flock like a shepherd . Isaiah 40:10-11
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And what I say unto you, I say unto all, Watch. Mr 13:37
The pastor has the responsibility of guarding the souls of those who are in his care as this Scripture makes very clear. This is a frightening responsibility to take on, and yet most pastors will not even consider that this is their responsibility. They will argue that it is the individual’s responsibility for their salvation and they will teach and believe in the eternal security of the soul. Consequently they don’t take on the responsibility in such a way as our Lord did: “While I was with them in the world, I kept them in thy name: those that thou gavest me I have kept, and none of them is lost, but the son of perdition; that the scripture might be fulfilled.” (Joh 17:12 AV) We have every right to expect our elders and pastors to look after us and to lead and guide us through the difficult times which are ahead. Unfortunately however it is unlikely that we will find such a man to nurture and care for us. When the tide of deception sweeps across the earth and absorbs entire congregations of Christians it will not be acceptable to stand before the judgement seat of Christ and say to him that “I was deceived, My pastor didn’t tell me about such and such”. We won’t be able to blame our pastor as Adam blamed Eve. We will all have to take the judgement of our Lord and account for how we have conducted our lives. We all have eyes don’t we? We can read can we not? We have minds which can think. God expects us to use the faculties with which he has equipped us. If we have a niggling question in our mind, what do we do with it? Do we ignore the issue and shove it under the carpet and hope that it will go away, or do we study, enquire and prayerfully search out the answer. When we find the answer do we act on it or do we sail on through life ignoring the problem and burying our heads in the sand. When the pastor says something that doesn’t sound quite right, confront him about it and ask for scriptural evidence for what has been said. Research on the internet to look for the issues discussed. You will find that the pages which use stacks of scriptures will generally be reliable. The pages which are brief and have very few scriptures presented in a short snack style manner with sound byte passages from the Message or NLT should be read with great suspicion and concern. I’m assuming in this page that I am writing to converted Christians who have been delivered from the captivity of the world and brought into the liberty of the gospel. “Blessed are your eyes, for they see: and your ears, for they hear.” (Mt 13:16 AV). Without the Holy Spirit to enlighten the individuals mind all the words of the Scripture will seem to be foolish so that only those who believe will be saved “For it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe.” (1Co 1:21 AV). Enlightened Christians who recognise the wisdom of God can fall into complacency however. They come to believe that they have everything they need to get them to heaven. They underestimate the power of Satan to deceive. They put their confidence in men such as their pastors. They don’t believe that they are in any danger. They don’t feel any urgency. They neglect their bible study and the other weapons of spiritual warfare. They drift through life dealing with all the problems of this life in all the same ways that they have always dealt with the problems of life. They spare little or no thought for the next life. Their eternal salvation lies neglected in some out of the way corner of their life somewhere between getting the kids to school and doing the laundry. They agonise over decisions such as which house to buy or which job to take and yet spare virtually no thought when choosing what to believe on a whole raft of doctrines and belief systems which are vital to their eternal life. They swallow lies as readily as the truth without discernment. A lie causes them no consternation in fact they don’t even recognise it as a lie. The truth is not something to be striven for, a pearl of great price because they believe that they already have the truth. Their truth which has got them this far will see them through to the kingdom. “We have the truth. We are free. The truth has made us free” is their anthem. In short they are asleep and are become children of the night: “¶ Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober. 7 For they that sleep, sleep in the night; and they that be drunken are drunken in the night. 8 But let us, who are of the day, be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love; and for an helmet, the hope of salvation. 9 For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ,” (1Th 5:6-9 AV) Wake up Christians get out of bed, get clothed in the whole armour of God and prepare for the battle ahead. We are children of the day. This is really serious stuff that we are involved in. The enemy brings a spirit of slumber to us by sending comforting words of peace, security and freedom. But there is no time for sleeping for those who are in the day. They are readying there minds and hearts for conflict with dark forces, seeking out wisdom and knowledge to combat deception, and watching for the signs of our Lord Jesus Christ’s coming. The scripture verses below teach valuable and neglected principles for a Christians walk with the Lord. We are constantly taught from the pulpit the need to give to the poor, tithe and evangelise the lost; and the same old handful of scriptures which deal with these subjects get trotted out. Meanwhile the scores of scriptures which deal with watching and preparing are left in mothballs and are neglected. I implore Christians everywhere that we devote ourselves to daily personal prayer, bible study and occasional fasting and prepare for the days of struggle which are ahead of us. “But the end of all things is at hand: be ye therefore sober, and watch unto prayer.” (1Pe 4:7 AV) If we make ourselves ready and washed with the blood of the lamb then we will be received by the bridegroom himself at his return at the end of the age. “And I heard as it were the voice of a great multitude, and as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of mighty thunderings, saying, Alleluia: for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth. Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready. And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints.” (Re 19:6-8 AV) Additional Scriptures Keyword search on your computer for the words endure, prepare and watch; plus antonyms sleep slumber. I use the Online bible http://www.OnlineBible.net which beautifully formats the verses with scripture references to copy into this page . Watch: “And he said, Abba, Father, all things are possible unto thee; take away this cup from me: nevertheless not what I will, but what thou wilt. And he cometh, and findeth them sleeping, and saith unto Peter, Simon, sleepest thou? couldest not thou watch one hour? Watch ye and pray, lest ye enter into temptation. The spirit truly is ready, but the flesh is weak. And again he went away, and prayed, and spake the same words. And when he returned, he found them asleep again, (for their eyes were heavy,)neither wist they what to answer him. And he cometh the third time, and saith unto them, Sleep on now, and take your rest: it is enough, the hour is come; behold, the Son of man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. Rise up, let us go; lo, he that betrayeth me is at hand.” (Mr 14:36-42 AV) There are some striking similarities between the conditions immediately prior Christ’s departure from the earth and those immediately prior his return. Notice the tendency of the people of God to sleep before big events. “While the bridegroom tarried, they all slumbered and slept. And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold, the bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him.” (Mt 25:5-6 AV) All of Mt 24, 25 describe end time events at the end of the age and the return of Christ. Just as Judas who was one of the twelve betrayed Christ, the betrayal of Christian brothers also occurs at this time “And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another.” (Mt 24:10 AV). The work of the Spirit is always moving us towards readiness, but the flesh is constantly dragging us into sleep. Therefore if we are living in the Spirit as we are instructed “For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live.” (Ro 8:13 AV); then a mark of this will be that we are readying ourselves. We will be preparing for betrayal by our beloved Christians brothers and we will be praying in the Spirit to avoid falling asleep. “32 ¶ Now learn a parable of the fig tree; When his branch is yet tender, and putteth forth leaves, ye know that summer is nigh: 33 So likewise ye, when ye shall see all these things, know that it is near, even at the doors. 34 Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled. 35 Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away. 36 But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only. 37 But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. 38 For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark, 39 And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. 40 Then shall two be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left. 41 Two women shall be grinding at the mill; the one shall be taken, and the other left. 42 Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come. 43 But know this, that if the goodman of the house had known in what watch the thief would come, he would have watched, and would not have suffered his house to be broken up. 44 Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh. 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? 46 Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall find so doing. 47 Verily I say unto you, That he shall make him ruler over all his goods. 48 But and if that evil servant shall say in his heart, My lord delayeth his coming; 49 And shall begin to smite his fellowservants, and to eat and drink with the drunken; 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, 51 And shall cut him asunder, and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” (Mt 24:32-51 AV) This striking passage contains a terribly misused passage of scriptures 42 Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come. This scripture, taken out of context causes people to believe that it is pointless trying to figure out when our Lord will return. No matter what we do we are told that Christ’s return will be imminent and without warning. This notion completely loses the point of this passage of scripture. The point of which is as follows: 1. Because nobody knows when the Son of Man returns we must look for the signs of his coming just as we look for the signs of the coming of spring. 2. As Noah prepared for the flood by building an ark we must prepare for the coming of the son of man. 3. The coming of the rains to the world was an utter shock to the people of the world who mocked Noah, so shall it be an utter shock to the people of the world when the Son of man returns. 4. Noah didn’t know exactly when the flood would come upon the world when he started building the ark but as the preparation neared completion and the animals were stowed it was no surprise to him when the rains came, and he was ready. 5. We know that the house of God is going to be broken into and torn apart so we need to keep watch and guard over the house. Because we don’t know the exact hour that the thief will come we must strive to understand when the approximate time or the watch (period of 3 or 4 hours in the night) in which he will come. It is clear that the goodman of the house does not watch, which is why the house of God will be broken into. The implication is that if he had watched then the thief would not have broken in. The fact that the goodman is going to fail in his responsibilities further emphasises the need for people of the house to watch for the sake of their own salvation. By contrast the wise servant pastor who cares for his flock by preparing them for the hour of disaster and gives to them the knowledge they will require to face the day of trouble will be richly rewarded at Christ’s return. But for those brutish pastors who make no preparation for the return of Christ and continue without care to abuse the flock without concern for the day of the Lord, will meet a terrible fate. Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten virgins, which took their lamps, and went forth to meet the bridegroom. 2 And five of them were wise, and five were foolish. 3 They that were foolish took their lamps, and took no oil with them: 4 But the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps. 5 While the bridegroom tarried, they all slumbered and slept. 6 And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold, the bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him. 7 Then all those virgins arose, and trimmed their lamps. 8 And the foolish said unto the wise, Give us of your oil; for our lamps are gone out. 9 But the wise answered, saying, Not so; lest there be not enough for us and you: but go ye rather to them that sell, and buy for yourselves. 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. 11 Afterward came also the other virgins, saying, Lord, Lord, open to us. 12 But he answered and said, Verily I say unto you, I know you not. 13 Watch therefore, for ye know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of man cometh.” (Mt 25:1-13 AV) Clearly the virgins are the church waiting for the bridegroom Christ to arrive. Some had prepared for his return by storing up supplies to take them through the night. This is a spiritual preparedness where we strengthen our resolve through the Holy Spirit. Some argue that there is a practical instruction here to make a physical preparedness as well, to take us through the dark night of the great tribulation. Each one of us needs to consider carefully what we believe the laying up of oil in preparation means. Again the instruction to resolve this awful issue is that we must watch. “Verily I say unto you, that this generation shall not pass, till all these things be done. 31 Heaven and earth shall pass away: but my words shall not pass away. 32 But of that day and that hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels which are in heaven, neither the Son, but the Father. 33 Take ye heed, watch and pray: for ye know not when the time is. 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. 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: 36 Lest coming suddenly he find you sleeping. 37 And what I say unto you I say unto all, Watch.” (Mr 13:30-37 AV) “For as a snare shall it come on all them that dwell on the face of the whole earth. 36 Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man.” (Lu 21:35-36 AV) If we are going to watch diligently, pray continually, and strive to be worthy then it is because we believe that our lives, our very salvation is in danger. If we believe that we need to escape then it is because we recognise that there is something terribly dangerous that we need to escape from. If there is nothing dangerous to escape from, if there is nothing to watch for, then these scriptures are all pointless. If we need to be worthy in order to escape then we need to address the issue or what we need to do in order to be worthy to escape. In this way we prepare ourselves to meet our groom when he appears. “Watch ye, stand fast in the faith, quit you like men, be strong.” (1Co 16:13 AV) An hour of such sore travail is coming upon the church. As Joshua was urged to “Be strong and of a good courage: for unto this people shalt thou divide for an inheritance the land, which I sware unto their fathers to give them.” (Jos 1:6 AV) , so must we be courageous as we undertake to enter into the kingdom of God. “4 But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief. 5 Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness. 6 ¶ Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober. 7 For they that sleep, sleep in the night; and they that be drunken are drunken in the night. 8 But let us, who are of the day, be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love; and for an helmet, the hope of salvation.” (1Th 5:4-8 AV) This scripture talks about the return of Christ. Paul makes it very clear that brethren who are in the light will NOT be surprised and unprepared by the event. The familiar warnings to watch and stay awake are there but an additional one is included, to be sober. This is a great warning for all of us who are so busy having fun in this world. Holidays, movies, parties, dinner engagements, marrying, giving in marriage, sports is Life as we are told. The watching saint will find little interest in these things. He will be sober and realise the seriousness of the situation. He will not have time to play with the heathen. He will be to busy preparing for battle with all the weapons of spiritual warfare. “¶ But the end of all things is at hand: be ye therefore sober, and watch unto prayer. 8 And above all things have fervent charity among yourselves: for charity shall cover the multitude of sins. 9 Use hospitality one to another without grudging. 10 As every man hath received the gift, even so minister the same one to another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.” (1Pe 4:7-10 AV) I’ve included this scripture in this place in order to balance the message of the previous one. The same terminology is used to be sober and prayerful in preparing for the end times. However preparing is not just being sombre locked up in our home in isolation praying and studying. Our preparation must include charity and good deeds to the brethren, serving one another and looking after the others needs. Hospitality towards the brethren is essential. Everybody needs to feel loved and wanted. We should concentrate in particular on the elderly and unpopular who are unlikely to be in a position to return the favour. In this way we renounce the things of this world which are position and material wealth and see them as only tools to use to serve others. Therefore when the day comes upon us when we must lose our position in society and in the church, or lose our incomes or houses or wealth for the sake of the Lord’s name, we will be able to do it. In addition we will have saved up treasure in heaven with which our Lord will reward us at his return. “Remember therefore how thou hast received and heard, and hold fast, and repent. If therefore thou shalt not watch, I will come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee.” (Re 3:3 AV) For those of you who have persisted to this point, here is a gem for you. If 1 + 2 = 3 then 2 + 1 must also equal 3. Inversing the sense of the scripture is a valuable technique that I use all the time. If we inverse the scripture we read. If therefore thou shalt watch, I will not come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt know what hour I will come upon thee. If we cannot agree with the inverted sense of the scripture then the scripture loses it’s power and efficacy. You might argue that this inverted scripture contradicts Watch therefore, for ye know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of man cometh.” (Mt 25: 13 AV), however there is no contradiction. If I said to you “You don’t know the way to go, therefore read the map” you would understand clearly that the purpose of reading the map is so that you would know the way to go. In the same way it is because we do not know the day or the hour that we must watch. If we watch, then we will know the day or the hour. Besides which God promises to reveal his intentions to his servants. “And the LORD said, Shall I hide from Abraham that thing which I do;” (Ge 18:17 AV) “Surely the Lord GOD will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets.” (Am 3:7 AV). If Christ is concerned that we will not know the hour and so therefore we must watch, and then we obey his command and watch and still don’t know the hour, then the commandment to obey has been in vain, and our obedience to that command has been futile. Apparently the first coming of the king “Blessed be the kingdom of our father David, that cometh in the name of the Lord: Hosanna in the highest. 11 And Jesus entered into Jerusalem, and into the temple” (Mr 11:10-11 AV) could be calculated to the day from the scriptures. This is why the priests were so furious with Christ. They expected a messiah to come in power to destroy the might of Rome and deliver Israel and instead they got a blasphemous carpenter coming in on a donkey ridiculing their eschatological beliefs. If the first coming of the king was known then will not the second coming of the king be equally known. There are very many specific calculations of days in Daniel “And from the time that the daily sacrifice shall be taken away, and the abomination that maketh desolate set up, there shall be a thousand two hundred and ninety days. 12 Blessed is he that waiteth, and cometh to the thousand three hundred and five and thirty days. 13 But go thou thy way till the end be: for thou shalt rest, and stand in thy lot at the end of the days.” (Da 12:11-13 AV). These will make complete sense to those who are watching these events as the Holy Spirit reveals to them the meaning of the scriptures at the end of days.