Bible Doctrine

Satan cannot really thwart or prevent the will of God from being accomplished. He can only go as far as God allows and work his deceptions only for as long as God allows, and God has a great plan and purpose and reason for allowing Satan to even exist and perform His evil work in this present age. Satan didn’t sneak in the back gate in the Garden of Eden. God left the gate open for a good and wise purpose. God permitted Satan to tempt mother Eve. God can seal off any portion of earth, heaven or the universe against Satan the devil. God could pronounce sentence and have Satan reduced to a bit of dust at His feet in a millisecond. God has great purpose in allowing Satan to exist and continue his work among men. God is actually using Satan to accomplish His purpose and will for mankind.

Look at it this way, three things are absolutely necessary for building a strong, healthy body: 1) proper nourishment, 2) time, and 3) a force pulling against one’s muscles in order to increase their size and strength. And that is exactly what God needed in order to build His own spiritual character in human beings. He needed the proper nourishment supplied by God’s Word. He needed time. And He needed a force pulling against the will of man so that through process of time with the proper nourishment His sons and daughters would begin to consistently make the right choice and pull away from the influences and temptations put forth by Satan the devil.

The entirety of scripture is given to us by God to enable us to formulate true doctrines, teachings and beliefs. Paul clearly stated in the Roman letter that whatever was written previously by the prophets was written to instruct new covenant believers! (See Romans 15:2-4). Peter stated clearly in his first epistle that the Old Testament prophets wrote what they wrote primarily for OUR learning and instruction. (See I Peter 1:10-12). “ALL SCRIPTURE is given by the inspiration of God AND IS PROFITABLE FOR DOCTRINE!” (See 2 Timothy 3:16). Those who use only the Greek scriptures (the New Testament) to discern the will of God will never be able to do so. Few realize that it was many years after the founding of God’s church on the Feast day of Pentecost in 31 A.D. (some say 33 A.D.) before the first apostolic letter was written. For several years the early church had only the Hebrew scriptures and remembrance of Jesus’ words to guide them in establishing their doctrines and practices. God help you to understand.

Christ’s Faithful Servant (Galatians 1:10-12),

Donald Wiley

“You have sinned against the Lord, and be sure your sin will find you out.” (Numbers 32:23).  It was to the children of Israel, God’s chosen people, Moses spoke those words.  The people of this world sin continuously in a thousand different ways often no one the wiser as to what evil they have done, although they will reap what they sow.  That is a universal law as valid as any law of physics, but the people of God have ever been held to a higher standard.  To them, God sounds forth the warning, “Be sure YOUR sin will find you out!”  But God doesn’t stop there.  He adds, “If you are left without discipline, then you are illegitimate children and not sons” (Hebrews 12:8 – English Standard Version). 

God has an obligation to His children of all ages, “For if the word spoken by angels (God’s human messengers, i.e., Moses Joshua, the prophets) was steadfast (reliable), and EVERY transgression and disobedience received a just recompence of reward, how shall we (New Covenant believers) escape (God’s punishment) if we neglect so great salvation (sufficient to keep and deliver us from all sin” (see Hebrews 2:2-3).

The word “angels” in the above text is aggelos (pronounced ANG’-el-os), meaning simply “messenger” and is speaking of God’s human messengers, not spirit beings.

God’s obligation to His redeemed sons and daughters includes disciplining us when we stray or begin practicing some manner of sin.  When we sin God gives us a window of time to confess and forsake such sin.  If we fail to do so, He will then discipline or punish us to wake us up to our peril and bring us back to the walk of righteousness.  And the Lord has ten thousand ways to get our attention and bring us to our knees in sincere repentance.  The Father’s appreciation for His Son’s sacrifice is so great He moves swiftly against those who demean that sacrifice by knowingly continuing to sin.  That is WHY the Lord told His followers from the first, “Go, and sin no more!” (John 8:11).  Why?  Because “Whosoever commits (continues to) sin is the slave of sin!” (See John 8:34).  God help us to understand.

Christ’s Faithful Servant (Galatians 1:10-12),

Donald Wiley

In writing to the Corinthian assembly, the apostle Paul makes a statement that to many modern day believers might sound absurd, even blasphemous.  This is what he wrote: “For though there be (many) that are called gods, whether in heaven or in earth, as there be gods many, and lords many, but to us (Christians) THERE IS BUT ONE GOD, THE FATHER, of whom are all things, and we in Him, and one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we by Him.  Howbeit there is not  in every man that knowledge…” (See I Corinthians 8:5-7).

Even today, in the 21st Century, there is not the knowledge among many professing Christians, that there is but one supreme being,, and that is God the Father.  Even Jesus conceded, “the Father is greater than I.”  (See John 14:29).

The term “Godhead” is found only three times in the scriptures, and it is only the apostle Paul who uses that term.  In Acts 17:29 he tells a crowd in Athens, Greece assembled on Mar’s Hill, “Forasmuch then as we are the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the Godhead is like unto gold, or silver, or stone, graven by art and man’s device.”  Now notice that he is speaking of God the Father with that statement as he speaks of our being His offspring, not His brethren!

The next time Paul uses the term “Godhead” is in Romans 1:20, “For the invisible things of Him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse.”  Here Paul explains that the Jews were without excuse for rejecting the invisible Supreme Being for a golden calf and later other deities as this invisible God had made the sun they were later driven to worship.  (See Ezekiel 8:15-16).

The third and final time we find the term “Godhead” in the scriptures is in Colossians 2:9.  Starting with verse 8, we read: “Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ.  For in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily.”  All the fullness of God the Father was revealed in and through the life and character of Jesus Christ.  Many have been mistaught that the term “Godhead” refers to the trinity – God the Father, Jesus the Son, and the Holy Spirit, when the term always means the Father alone.

In Ephesians 4:4-6, we read these words: “There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling, one Lord (Jesus Christ), one faith, one baptism, ONE GOD AND FATHER OF ALL WHO IS ABOVE ALL (including the Son), and through all, and in you all.”

Peter writes, “Jesus Christ..is gone into heaven, and is on the right hand of God, angels and authorities and powers being made subject unto Him (by none other than God the Father, the Head of all, the Most High!)”  (See I Peter 3:21-22).

Christ’s Aged Servant (Galatians 1:10-12),

Donald Wiley

It is tragic in the extreme that there are believers members of the body of Christ, brethren of great age, in their seventies, eighties and nineties, who have never once experienced a divine healing in their entire lives, nor are they personally acquainted with anyone else who has experienced what one would have to agree was an evident “miracle” cure of some injury or disease.  But why is such an occurrence so rare in the various Christian assemblies today?  Why are such healings the exception rather than the rule, for in reading the scriptures one would think miraculous, divine healings should be the rule, not the exception, in an assembly of followers of Jesus Christ?!  After all, we do read in James, chapter 5, these simple, easy-to-understand words: “Is any sick among you?  Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord.  And the prayer of faith SHALL SAVE THE SICK, AND THE LORD SHALL RAISE HIM UP, and if he has committed sins, they shall be forgiven him” (verses 14 and 15).  Did James write under divine inspiration, or didn’t he?    Can we believe what he wrote, or are we to reject his counsel?  Notice, James writes, “Is ANY sick among you?”  He does not say, “Is any of you experiencing a minor illness?”  He words himself in such a way as to include all who are ill, even if that sickness has been diagnosed as terminal or incurable!!  Not all illness is minor in nature, you know.

Then again, we must ask “Are these words penned by James a mere suggestion?”  And let’s say that is the case.  James was only making a suggestion as to what those believers who experienced some manner of illness could do.  But what about the rest of what he said.  What if one followed his “suggestion” and DID call for the elders of the church?  What if those elders DID anoint him with oil and pray over him in the name of the Lord?  Would the Lord heal him and raise him up from his sick bed as well as forgiving any sins he had committed should the illness have been disciplinary in nature?  If he wasn’t so healed, would it be obvious that this was merely a suggestion and not a very good one at that?    Or would it indicate something far more disturbing?  If the sick person wasn’t healed, wouldn’t it indicate that God wasn’t hearing the intercessory prayers of those elders?  And if God wasn’t hearing the prayers of those elders, wouldn’t it also indicate that those elders might not be in fellowship with God at all, but merely be “religious” men, or, at best, truly converted men whose sinful lifestyle prohibited God from answering their prayers??!!

I discovered a long time ago that most believers do not think very deeply at all.  I suffered from that human weakness for many decades.  Most seem to assume that if a church calls itself a “Christian” church then that is what it must be regardless of what other label such a “church” might use to identify itself, such as Mennonite, Baptist, Episcopalian, Lutheran, Pentecostal, Mormon, Brethren, etc.  And such groups must be in fellowship with God regardless of what doctrines they might teach!  At least many seem to think so.  And there are so many denominations and factions in what is called the “Christian” world that I could fill up an entire page with their names.  I ask with Paul, “Is Christ divided?”  Is it possible that many, if not most, who call themselves “Christian” really are not true followers of Jesus Christ after all?  They might be basically “good” people, people who are kind, helpful, good citizens, but that does not mean they have and possess God’s Holy Spirit.  There are millions of Buddhists who are gentle, kind, harmless, helpful, good citizens, etc.  But they are not in fellowship with the Most High.  They are not being led of God in their daily existence.  Can this also be true of many who call themselves “Christian?”  Is it possible that Satan is able to deceive “decent folk” into embracing profound error?  Can people be deluded into thinking they have received the Holy Spirit when they actually have not but are merely religious?

Jesus said, “Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth is come, he will GUIDE YOU into ALL truth..” (See John 16:13).  What if you have a congregation that has not been guided into following the counsel of James?  What would that indicate?  And what if they had not been guided into following the counsel, or should we say COMMANDS, of Jesus Christ, who shortly before His betrayal and crucifixion told a young man, “If you will enter into life, KEEP THE COMMANDMENTS” (See Matthew 19:17).  Was that good advice?  Was it more than good advice, more than a mere suggestion?  Was it divine truth?  After His resurrection – a week later, look at the context – did Jesus have to track down that young man and say, “You know that counsel I gave you last week about keeping the commandments if you desired to enter into eternal life.  Well, forget it.  I just abolished all of that with my sacrificial death.  You are no longer obligated to keep the commandments.  You’re not under the law any more.  You can now steal, kill, commit adultery – whatever.”

Folks, you can find a “Christian” denomination that is tailor made to fit any belief system you can imagine.  Some baptize.  Some do not.  Some have women pastors.  Some do not.  Some teach we must keep God’s commandments.  Some scorn and deride any such suggestion, crowing we are not under the law anymore.  Some say keep nine, but forget the fourth.  (If you don’t know, the fourth commandment is the commandment to remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy).  Some worship on Sunday.  Some worship on the Sabbath – that time between the hours of sunset on Friday and sunset on Saturday.  One can pick and choose as though attending some kind of religious yard sale.

My counsel to you, friend, think and think deeply and as you do so study ALL of God’s Word, Genesis to Revelation, and, finally, prove all things of a spiritual or religious nature.

“If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, you shall ask WHAT YOU WILL, and it shall be done unto you” (John 15:7).  Jesus Christ was in the form of human flesh when He spoke those words.  He had been in human form for over thirty years when He made that PROMISE!  And He was speaking to fellow human beings when He said that.  Common sense says He would have had to have known that such a promise made to frail, prone to sickness human beings would certainly mean that one of the most repeated petitions offered in prayer would have been a plea for the healing of some sickness or injury.  Yet still He boldly declared, “ask what you will, and it shall be done unto you.”  (Remember, throughout His public ministry Jesus Christ was approached time and again by the sick, the diseased, the infirm, who petitioned to be touched by His healing hand – and He healed them ALL!)

Then why are so few healed today?  Isn’t it obvious?  The promise is made to those who are abiding in Christ.  Those who have the words of Christ abiding in them, guiding them in how they think, what they say, and what they do.  The promise is not made to those who pay mere lip service to Jesus Christ, who say they are Christians and yet live primarily as they please.  The promise is made to faithful, obedient sons and daughters of the Most High who do as Christ dictated and “live by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God.” (See Matthew 4:4).  No, that doesn’t mean they are perfect.  From time to time they may fall into an occasion of sin, giving in to the downward pulls of the flesh, but they are the type who once recognizing they have drifted off course come quickly back to the walk of true faith and righteousness, confessing and forsaking any such sin or sins.

There is a promise given in the 103rd Psalm that is astounding in its implications: “Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits: Who forgives all your sins, who heals ALL your diseases” (verses 2 and 3).  But notice to whom this mighty promise is made: “To such as keep His covenant, and to those that remember His commandments to do them” (verse 18).  Some might argue, “But that is a promise made to those living under the OLD covenant.  Believers today are under the New Covenant!”  Yes, and it is “a BETTER covenant, which was established upon better promises” (See Hebrews 8:6).  The New Covenant promises forgiveness of all our sins AND eternal life, not just an extended disease free life.  We enjoy the benefits of the Old Covenant AND MORE!

Christ’s Servant (Galatians 1:10-12),

Donald Wiley

MORE THAN ONCE I HAVE SPOKEN OF HOW TRUE BELIEVERS OF EVERY ERA ARE RECKONED BY GOD AS BEING CHILDREN OF ABRAHAM AND, THUS, SHARE IN THE PROMISES GOD MADE TO ABRAHAM’S DESCENDANTS, INCLUDING DIVINE HEALING OF SOME PHYSICAL MALADY OR ILLNESS. THE WRITER OF HEBREWS EXPLAINS HOW SUCH HEALING IS NOT USUALLY IMMEDIATE. IT IS AFTER WE PATIENTLY ENDURE WE INHERIT THE PROMISES. (SEE HEBREWS 6:10-20).

There are quotations from the Book of Psalms over one hundred times in the New Testament.  Jesus, Paul, John and Peter all quote various Psalms again and again.  The apostle Paul said, “ALL scripture is given by inspiration of God and is profitable for doctrine.  (See 2 Timothy 3:16-17).  That is why I am astounded to find so many pastors and Christians ignoring, or flatly disbelieving, the plain and clear statements made by David in the 103rd Psalm.  He begins the Psalm by praising God with every atom of his being, saying, “Bless the Lord, O my soul, AND ALL THAT IS WITHIN ME, bless His holy name” (verse 1).  He then says, “Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not ALL HIS BENEFITS” (verse 2).  There are great, almost mind-boggling benefits that accrue to someone who has a valid, on-going relationship with their Creator.  And it is the 3rd verse of this Psalm that spells out clearly and concisely what these benefits are: “who forgives ALL your iniquities, who heals ALL your diseases!” 

Ask any pastor, or any Christian, “Does God forgive all your sins?”  Without hesitation you will usually be told  immediately, “Yes, indeed!”  Then ask that same pastor or believer, “Does God heal ALL your diseases?”  Wait for it.  Wait for it.  Yes, you will have to wait for it as there will usually be a long pause and a stumbling, fumbling, qualified answer, or even the answer “No, of course not!”  And, of course, they are telling the truth as there are multitudes of pastors and believers who have never had an illness of disease that they are one hundred percent certain was healed by Almighty God.

To have one’s sins forgiven, there are conditions that must be met.  Every novice Christian knows that.  One must repent of their sins and there must be an acceptance of and firm belief in the atoning sacrifice that Jesus made for our sins on the cross.  Likewise, there are conditions that must be met in order to have God divinely heal one’s diseases or illnesses.  It is in the 17th and 18th verses of Psalm 103 that we learn the conditions God lays down for the healing of our diseases.  Here are those two verses: “But the mercy of the Lord (in forgiving one’s sins and healing one’s diseases) is from everlasting to everlasting (from the beginning of time throughout eternity) upon them that fear Him (honoring and obeying Him) and His righteousness (His honoring His promises) unto children’s children (generation after generation) TO SUCH AS KEEP HIS COVENANT, AND TO THEM THAT REMEMBER HIS COMMANDMENTS TO DO THEM.”

Followers of the Lord prior to the cross were obligated to honor the Old Covenant.  Followers of the Lord on this side of the cross are obligated to honor the New Covenant.  ALL FOLLOWERS OF THE LORD BOTH BEFORE AND AFTER THE CROSS ARE OBLIGATED TO KEEP GOD’S COMMANDMENTS – ALL OF THEM!  That is why Jesus told the rich young ruler who asked Him what one must do to inherit eternal life, “Keep the commandments!”  (See Matthew 19:16-30).  Most present day believers cannot cite one instance of having God divinely heal them of some illness due to the fact that they do not keep His commandments – the most universally ignored commandment being the fourth commandment that says, “REMEMBER the Sabbath day to keep it holy!”

Satan’s master stroke of spirit mind genius of all time was to deceive believers long ago that God’s holy Sabbath had been abolished and replaced with Sunday observance.  There are only two highly ambiguous scriptures that even seem to imply that Sunday was some kind of special day to early Christians.  (See Acts 20:7 and 1 Corinthians 16:2).  But when the context of these two passages is examined closely one realizes that they do NOT set aside God’s eternal holy Sabbath day and they do NOT sanctify Sunday as a new holy day!  That conclusion is totally absurd when one looks at all the scriptures that deal with the Sabbath issue.

Christ’s Aged Servant (Galatians 1:10-12),

Donald Wiley

Must leave for work in minutes.  The Spirit of the Lord brought a verse from Isaiah 25 to my mind.  The first verse of that chapter ends with the words “Thy (God’s) counsels of old are faithfulness and truth.”  Keep those words in mind and read once again Psalm 103.  It is in this Psalm that God counsels us with the truth that “(He) forgives ALL thine iniquities, who heals ALL thy diseases, who redeems thy life from destruction” that is from even fatal illness!  (See Psalm 103:1-3.  “But the mercy of the Lord (His merciful healings) are from everlasting to everlasting (they are available throughout all the centuries – even the 21st Century) upon them that fear Him, and His righteousness (is extended) unto children’s children (to the faithful child of God’s offspring), to such as keep His covenant, and to those that remember His commandments (ALL of them) to do them (to keep and observe them all the days of their lives once enlightenment is given)” (See Psalm 103:17-18).

And, remember, Jonah warns, “They that observe lying vanities forsake their own mercy” (Jonah 2:8).  Jonah saw his predicament  of being swallowed alive by a great fish as nothing but a lying vanity.  Oh, it was a real fish.  He was inside it’s belly.   But He realized He was still alive and knew God was still on His throne.  Oh, the biopsy might be carefully studied.  The cells observed under the microscope might well be cancerous.  But God is still on His throne and still says to His faithful ones  yet today in the 21st Century, “Call unto me and I will grant you the desires of your heart.”

Christ’s Aged Servant (Galatians 1:10-12).

Donald Wiley

America leads the world militarily…..We lead the world in space exploration…..We lead the world in communications systems…..We lead the world in transportation…..We lead the world in affluence….We lead the world in production of consumer goods….America possesses more than half of the automobiles in the world….And I could go on and on…….I think I will:

America leads the world in abortions (the murder of the unborn)…..America leads the world in homicides, rapes and many other violent crimes….America leads the world in number of illegitimate births….America leads the world in production of pornography (magazines, movies, videos)….America leads the world in number of divorces…..America leads the world in drug abuse…..America leads the world in numbers of gambling casinos…..America leads the world in organized crime…..And I could go on and on…..but I don’t think I need to.

I ask again, “Should God continue to bless America?”  You answer the question.

Sometime back in one of my mini-articles I spoke of how scripture prophesied of how Islam would spread to be the one world religion.  I figured, since this had not been accomplished through centuries of Islamic growth, the world’s population would have to be decimated in order to bring it to pass within a mere century or two.  I saw nuclear war erupting and shrinking the population globally.  I also mused that natural disasters would assist in this gargantuan feat.  It never occurred to me that Muslim immigration would also help in bringing to pass the inevitable – Islam’s worldwide acceptance.  Now with tens of thousands of Muslim immigrants pouring into various countries, including America, I see that Islam’s influence will spread ever more rapidly.  I spoke of how eastern Europe would fall under the Islamic umbrella before it spread to the West – the Americas, Australia, New Zealand, etc.  “Political correctness” is another tool of Satan that will help foster the spread and acceptance of Islam. 

If more Christians would read the Book of Revelation, actually believing and accepting what they read there, they would cease believing the “rapture” error and that the return of Jesus Christ is near at hand.  I repeat what I have said many times before, I doubt that there is an infant alive on earth at this moment who can possibly live long enough to witness the return of Jesus Christ.  There ARE millions of infants alive right now who WILL live long enough to see Islam the dominant religion in their land, but even they will be old men and women before that occurs. 

Pope Francis will not be the last pope, nor will he be the most radical pope produced by the Roman Catholic Church.  There may well be several more popes before the return of Jesus Christ, and one or more of them will be far more radical than Pope Francis.  I am not a prophet.  I just believe scripture prophecy. 

If the apostle Paul was resurrected and began preaching in the average “Christian” church today, he would be shouted down as a heretic and ushered quickly to the door of the church and told, “Goodbye.”  Of course, few realize that this was exactly what happened to him during his earthly ministry nearly two thousand years ago.  In his second and final letter to Timothy, Paul lamented, “This you know that all those (professing Christians) in Asia HAVE TURNED AWAY FROM ME!” (See 2 Timothy 1:15).  He then wrote, “Preach the word!  Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and teaching, for the time will come when they (professing Christians) will not endure sound doctrine (flatly refusing to believe the truth due to so much false teaching), but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears (always desiring to hear something new and different), they will heap up for themselves teachers (preachers and theologians of every stripe and color from the past), and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned to fables” (See 2 Timothy 4:2-4). 

The Koran is a fable.  God’s word is the truth.  Professing Christians will eventually reject the Bible for the Koran.  This will not happen tomorrow.  It will not even begin to occur in our lifetime, but it WILL occur.  The timeline of man’s ignorance and rebellion will run out for quite some time yet – many, many decades – even a century or more.  Christians who read and believe God’s word realize this as well as I do, but such are in the extreme minority. 

Yes, I am back.  And the Spirit shouts anew, “Write, Don, write, write, write, write, write…..”  The healing hand of the Master has ministered to me once more and convinced me anew that I have many years to go before I sleep.

Christ’s Faithful Servant (Galatians 1:10-12),

Donald Wiley