Christ is the Mystery no 126

Christian Life no 7

Crucifying the Doctrine

Oct 16, 2013

Brian Kocourek

 

In Christ is the Mystery of God Revealed, paragraph 193 brother Branham said,   193   And they're going to bring a persecution on pretty soon and shut up all the churches. You see that. And churches like this who's not in denominations, they'll use them for storehouses then. And if any man goes and offer a prayer for anybody else that don't belong to the ecumenical movement will be shot on the spot. It's already. That Lutheran minister, the head of it, said so. It's right here. You can read it right here in your magazines. It's right. Don't make any difference what they say; that Church will stand true in this Light. She's already proved it back yonder, and She'll do it again in the face of everything. It's the Word of God. And let all ecumenical movements and everything else will be gone. She's going to be there without spot or wrinkle. Right. She'll stand there.

 

And we have the foreigner in the white house who is there illegally, but he's there according to Deuteronomy 28 because this nation is under a curse, and he has enough devil in him to shut down the churches because he's already proved it by shutting down  last week all the chapels around the world that are on military bases, just to make a political point. And you can bet his brown shirts will use some of those 2 billion bullets they bought to keep the chapels closed if he has too. At least I would not put it past him. He's already used guns in the faces of senior citizens traveling in Yellowstone National park preventing them from getting off their bus to take pictures, and then holding them prisoners and not letting them leave the hotel they had contracted to stay in.

 

So we are now in the place where the scene is ready for this as well.

 

In Who Is This Melchisedec 65-0221E 163 Brother Branham is praying in closing and he says, "And how many times down through the age when You sent things, people failed to get it. Man is constantly praising God for what He did, and saying what great things He's going to do, but ignoring what's He's doing. So has it been through the age. Why did the Roman church fail to see Saint Patrick as God's prophet? Why did they kill Joan of Ark when she was a prophetess, burnt her as a witch? Father, it's always past. You hide it from the eyes of the wise and prudent. No wonder You said to them priests, "You garnish the tombs of the prophets, and you're the one that put them in there." After they're gone they see their mistake. They always persecute You, Lord, in whatever form You come in.

 

Notice he speaks of Jesus' rebuke to the religious people of his day, specifically the Pharisees who were the most advanced and dedicated Jews of His time. And He said, you guys are always talking about what God did in the past and you're always talking about what God is going to do in the future, and yet when God comes in your day, and presents himself,  you are the first ones to reject His presentation.

 

Let’s just turn to the scriptures for a moment, and let’s read for ourselves what he is referring to here in this statement.

 

In Matthew 23:29 we find the scene is Jesus talking to the Scribes and Pharisees. These were the best of the best when it came to knowing the Old Testament Scriptures. They were scholars and devoted men, and yet look at the rebuke Jesus gives them.   

 

Notice He says, “Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees,(now this word woe is an exclamation of grief, it is a word that is used to express sorrow or dismay, in other words, He’s saying “what a pity, or “of what a pitiful bunch you guys are” then he calls them…) hypocrites! (because a hypocrite is someone who knows better but will not do so because of some personal gain that can be made by not doing, or acknowledging the Truth.. The dictionary defines hypocrisy as "The practice of professing beliefs, feelings, or virtues that one does not hold or possess; falseness.") And then Jesus tells them why they are Hypocrites.

 

He says,  because ye build the tombs of the prophets, and garnish the sepulchres of the righteous, 30 And say, (Now this is the key to why he is calling them hypocrites, He says it is what you say…There is nothing wrong with building the tombs of the prophets, but to do so and say…) If we had been in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partakers with them in the blood of the prophets. 31 Wherefore ye be witnesses unto yourselves, that ye are the children of them which killed the prophets. 32 Fill ye up then the measure of your fathers. 33 Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers, (and notice, not just you lineage of serpents, but you lineage of vipers.

 

That’s deadly serpents whose venom kills.) how can ye escape the damnation of hell? (How can you? You can’t, because it was made for this kind of people, religious, yet dead wrong, and with words will kill the influence of the Truth.)

 

34 ¶ Wherefore, behold, I send unto you prophets, (Notice I send you, this is in the future, I will send to you Prophets… A prophet is a revealer of the Word.) and wise men, (These are teachers, and not just someone who claims to be a teacher, but there is a special trait about these men, they are thoughtful, and sagacious which means  they show a  keen sense of discernment  and possess sound judgment, far-sightedness and are discreet (implying a cautious character.)

 

and scribes: (Men, with a gift to write) and some of them ye shall kill and crucify; and some of them shall ye scourge in your synagogues, and persecute them from city to city: 35 That upon you may come all the righteous blood shed upon the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel unto the blood of Zacharias son of Barachias, whom ye slew between the temple and the altar. 36 Verily I say unto you, All these things shall come upon this generation. 37 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! 38 Behold, your house is left unto you desolate. 39 For I say unto you, Ye shall not see me henceforth, till ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord.

 

Now the killing does not only mean in a physical way, because I have a letter from brother Branham at home that was written to my father in law, and in it brother Branham said "there are more ways to kill a man than with a gun or a knife." He said, "you can kill a man’s influence and you might as well have shot him with a bullet."

 

From Testimony of a True Witness brother Branham said, "You can kill a man more ways than just sticking him with a knife; speak against his character, many ways you can do it."

 

Hebrews Chapter 7part 2 pp 55, 57-0922  "And you people with these saw-blade tempers, that's always spouting off in the mouth at somebody, can't put up, and things like that. Be careful. You're guilty if you speak a word against your brother that's not right, not just. Go around and tear down... You don't have to stick a knife in a man's back to kill him; you can break his character and kill him, kill his influence. Speak against your pastor here, say something bad about him, you just might as well have shot him; told something that wasn't right about him, well, it'll kill his influence with the people and things like that, and you're guilty of it."

 

You see, God promised to send us men, Prophets, Teachers, Scribes and those opposed to them would crucify the Word afresh by killing the influence of these men of God and  maligning their character, and all sorts of things like that.

 

Matthew 5:11 Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. 12 Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.

 

Luke 11:47 Woe unto you! for ye build the sepulchres of the prophets, and your fathers killed them. 48 Truly ye bear witness that ye allow the deeds of your fathers: for they indeed killed them, and ye build their sepulchres. 49 Therefore also said the wisdom of God, I will send them prophets and apostles, and [some] of them they shall slay and persecute: 50 That the blood of all the prophets, which was shed from the foundation of the world, may be required of this generation; 51 From the blood of Abel unto the blood of Zacharias, which perished between the altar and the temple: verily I say unto you, It shall be required of this generation. 52 Woe unto you, lawyers! for ye have taken away the key of knowledge: ye entered not in yourselves, and them that were entering in ye hindered. 53 And as he said these things unto them, the scribes and the Pharisees began to urge [him] vehemently, and to provoke him to speak of many things: 54 Laying wait for him, and seeking to catch something out of his mouth, that they might accuse him.

 

From his sermon, Souls in Prison Now  63-1110M  39-3 Brother Branham said,  "He predicted He would send them prophets with the Word of the Lord, and what would they do? The same thing their fathers did because that's what you are. See? Spirits don't die. Men that's possessed of them die, but spirits don't die. He said, "You're the children; you're the ones." Just notice how these things are.  39-4 How that St. Paul stood there (You believe he was a prophet?) and condemned women that bob their hair, condemned their organizations, announced that every man that wasn't baptized in the Name of Jesus Christ must come and be baptized over again. That's right. And today they compromise and sweeten it around. They don't know no different though. It's pitiful. If the hour is over... I might say this: See? They were blind, predestinated to be blind. God, be merciful. They couldn't see it. Jesus said, "You're blind. You blind scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites. When you read the same Word that all of them has read, and here you come and condemn Me, and I'm exactly what the Word said that it would be in this day. I was to be the Messenger of this day. I'm the Messiah," He said in so many words; "I'm the Messiah, and have I failed to prove it? If I haven't done what was written of Me, then condemn Me. And you blind Pharisees, lead your people right off into a thing like that and send the whole bunch..." Said, "Well, the blind leads the blind." 40-2 You said, "Oh, if we would've lived back in the time of St. Paul, yeah, I'd have took sides with St. Paul." You hypocrites, why don't you take the side with his doctrine? You'd have done the same thing then you done now, for you're the children of your fathers, your organizational fathers, Pharisees, Sadducees, and self-righteous... That's--that's it. I tell you in that hour that we live; I wonder if this could be the Third Pull. Just a minute now. Jesus said, "This kind receives greater damnation." See?

 

notice…he said you claim that if you had live in the days of Paul you would have sided with him, then he said, you are hypocrites, because if you would have sided with him back then you would be siding with him on his doctrine now. And so there we have it. If you have not the right doctrine, it shows that you have not the right spirit. 

 

Now, I know that men will quote brother Branham from his message Godhead Explained 61-0425B  15-1  and they will say, brother Branham said, I would rather have the right spirit and the wrong doctrine than have the right doctrine and have a wrong spirit, but that is not what he said. Brother Branham did not say you could have a wrong spirit and have the right doctrine. He was talking about the condition of your heart. He said, I would rather be wrong in my doctrine and right in my heart, than to be right in my doctrine and wrong in my heart." See? I said, "After all, it's your heart's condition."

 

Therefore, if the heart is right it will not turn down the right doctrine. How can your heart be right and fight the doctrine of Christ? And the Apostle John said in 2 John 1:9 if you do not have the right doctrine of Christ you don’t even have God. So how can you have a right spirit which is God’s Spirit, and have the wrong doctrine. Jesus said in Matthew 7 a good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit and a Vindicated Prophet of God said that the fruit is the teaching of the season.

 

So how can you have the right spirit and have the wrong doctrine? You can’t. But brother Branham was not speaking of the spirit, he was speaking of the heart. He was talking about a hardened heart, versus a soft and supple heart. If you have a right heart with God you will receive the doctrine of God. That is what Malachi 4 is all about, returning the heart back to the Doctrine of the Apostles.

 

Sir We Would See Jesus  63-1112 220    Now, we know that He is the same. Now, if we come tonight, we find out if... Jesus cannot fail, because He was God. He is the Word. The Word and Christ is the same. Then if the Word promises (the Word) that this is to happen in the last days, the Spirit of Elijah is even to return in the last day (That's right.) upon the peoples, and He's to turn the hearts of the children back to the fathers, the doctrine, the principles of the Bible.

 

It’s always been the doctrine. That’s what the message is, it is the doctrine, the teaching. The word doctrine means teaching, and that is what they reject, and that is the reason they crucify the Word.  It’s not the part of the Word that says, "bless and curse not." It’s not the part of the Word which deals with relationships. It not the Thou Shalt’s or Thou Shalt not part of the Word they crucify. It’s not the part of the Word that speaks of forgiveness and love, and the sermon on the mount and those things that they crucify. It’s the Doctrine they kill and try to destroy.

 

Recognizing Your Day  64-0726M 140 Down in your heart you feel the Holy Spirit dropping tears. "Jerusalem, oh, Jerusalem, how oft would I have hovered you. But what did you do? You killed the prophets that I sent to you. You murdered them." And the Messages has been sent to the church today has been murdered by their denominational dogmas. The Scripture has been murdered by their dogmas..

 

Way of a True Prophet 62-0513M 29-4  another one with him, stood at a certain place not long ago, said, "Brother Branham is a prophet; he can discern things and things like"; but said, "now, don't listen to his doctrine, 'cause he's not right."

 

Now, how much sense does that make when the word of the Lord comes to the Prophet. Yes they call him a prophet but deny what he taught. And they are still doing that right in this message. Claiming to be following the prophet and denying his teaching.

 

Rev. Chptr 4 Pt 3 Throne of Mercy  61-0108  245    Stephen stood there, said, "I know what I'm talking about." Said, "You stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears; you always resist the Holy Ghost. Like your fathers did, so do you." Said, "Which one of your fathers hasn't killed the prophets and then build their tombs to them?" You denominations, which one of you hasn't done the same thing? See? Build big white-walled castles, and morgues, and things around here, and then talk about God. You're the very one that put Him in the morgue; you're the very one put Him in the tomb. That's the very thing that put Him in the tomb back there, was a big white-castled church, the denominations, Pharisees and Sadducees that put Him in there, and then try to build a memorial to it.

 

Acts 7:51  Ye stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears, ye do always resist the Holy Ghost: as your fathers did, so do ye. (and how do they resist the Holy Ghost? The Holy Ghost is Christ,  and the word Christ means Anointer, Anointed, or Anointing. So the crucifixion does not crucify theology. It crucifies the Word when it becomes anointed.)

 

52 Which of the prophets have not your fathers persecuted? (which one of God's anointed ones did not your fathers persecute.) and they have slain them which shewed before of the coming of the Just One; of whom ye have been now the betrayers and murderers: 53 Who have received the law by the disposition of angels, and have not kept it. 54   When they heard these things, they were cut to the heart, and they gnashed on him with their teeth. 55 But he, being full of the Holy Ghost, looked up steadfastly into heaven, and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing on the right hand of God, 56 And said, Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of man standing on the right hand of God. 57 Then they cried out with a loud voice, and stopped their ears, and ran upon him with one accord, 58   And cast him out of the city, and stoned him:

 

What was He saying? He said, I see there is one God and He has a Son and that Son is standing at the right hand of the One True God, and because Stephen delivered the doctrine of Christ as it really is, they killed him too.

 

Matthew 7:15 ¶ Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves. 16 Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles? 17 Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit. 18 A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit. 19 Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire. 20 Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them.

 

And from brother Branham’s sermon, Anointed Ones at the end-Tine pp 42 Notice. But it's what they produce that tells you the difference. "By their fruit," Jesus said, "you shall know them." Man does not gather grapes off of a thistle even though the thistle be right in the grapevine. That could be possible, but the fruit will tell it. What is the fruit? The Word fruit for the season; that's what it is, their teaching. The teaching of what? The teaching of the season, what time it is, man's doctrine, denominational doctrine, or God's Word for the season.

 

Acts 13:40 Beware therefore, lest that come upon you, which is spoken of in the prophets;   41    Behold, ye despisers, and wonder, and perish: for I work a work in your days, a work which ye shall in no wise believe, though a man declare it unto you. (God said He would come and do a work in our day, but He said the people won’t believe it, although He will send a man to declare it to them.)

 

42 ¶ And when the Jews were gone out of the synagogue, the Gentiles besought that these words might be preached to them the next sabbath. 43 Now when the congregation was broken up, many of the Jews and religious proselytes followed Paul and Barnabas: who, speaking to them, persuaded them to continue in the grace of God. 44 And the next sabbath day came almost the whole city together to hear the word of God. 45 But when the Jews saw the multitudes, they were filled with envy, and spake against those things which were spoken by Paul, contradicting and blaspheming.

 

(Notice that envy and jealousy was their motive. They saw Paul’s ministry and the effect it was having on the people and they were jealous.)

 

46 Then Paul and Barnabas waxed bold, and said, It was necessary that the word of God should first have been spoken to you: but seeing ye put it from you, and judge yourselves unworthy of everlasting life, lo, we turn to the Gentiles. 47 For so hath the Lord commanded us, [saying], I have set thee to be a light of the Gentiles, that thou shouldest be for salvation unto the ends of the earth. 48 And when the Gentiles heard this, they were glad, and glorified the word of the Lord: and as many as were ordained to eternal life believed. 49 And the word of the Lord was published throughout all the region. 50 But the Jews stirred up the devout and honorable women, and the chief men of the city, and raised persecution against Paul and Barnabas, and expelled them out of their coasts.

 

Just the same as today. Men might change but spirit don't. And we can see that same spirit in the world today.

 

Evening Messenger 63-0116 155 All these things we see happening then, and the nation... Science says it's--four or five years ago, "It's three minutes till midnight." Israel's in her homeland. The church is in the Laodicea. Oh, my. What are we looking for? What's the matter? We're looking for the evening Light. Oh, I wonder, if It would come, if we'd recognize It? Or would It skip over the top of our heads like it has back in other ages? They never know it till it's done too far gone. You remember, those religious people was the one who killed the prophets that was sent to them. Jesus said so. He said, "You hypocrites," said, "you garnish the tombs of the prophets, and your fathers put them in there and then build their tomb."

  158    Look at the Roman Catholic church, garnished the tomb of Saint Patrick, garnishing the tomb of Joan of Arc. They killed that woman, and burnt her as a witch, because she was spiritual, because she seen visions. They burnt her at the stake, as a witch. Two hundred years later they dug up the priests' body and threw them in the river to do penance, knowing that she was a servant of Christ. But in the day they didn't know who she was, while the church was passing through. And It'll go right over the top of people and they'll never recognize It. Jesus, they didn't know He was the Son of God till He was dead and buried and rose again. Didn't Peter indict them on the day of Pentecost? "You men with wicked hands have taken the Prince of Life, and slayed Him."

 

And how do they crucify the Word afresh? They make excuses to reject it. Is Your Life worthy 63-0630E  38    They made excuses in the days of Moses. They made excuses in the days of Elijah. They made excuses in the days of Christ, and they make excuses today. Now, Him speaking directly to Israel, the ones that was called to the feast, that I would also apply today to men, the church, who has been bidden to come to the feast and won't do it, the spiritual feast of the Lord... And they won't do it; they don't want to do it. They've got other things to do. They find excuses. Now, if Israel two thousand years ago would accepted the invitation that they were given, they wouldn't be as they are today. Two thousand years ago Israel turned down the invitation to come to the wedding supper. And they turned it down and went into judgment. But as Jesus said, they stoned and killed the prophets that was sent to them by making excuses.

  41Now, the excuses they made in each day... We find in the days of Jesus that He didn't affiliate with any of them. They said, "When did this man get this learning? What school is he from? Is not this the carpenter's son? Isn't his mother called Mary? Isn't his brothers Jonas and James, so forth? And isn't his sisters with us? Then where did this man get this authority to do this?" See? In other words, He didn't affiliate with them. So they said, "He's Beelzebub; he's a Samaritan. He's got a devil, and he's mad. He's  a man that's got a evil spirit on the line of religion and has drove him crazy. And that's what, he's out there like a wild man. Don't pay any attention to him." And we know what happened to Israel. And they screamed out. They was so sure that that Man was wrong until on... When they condemned Him, He said... "Let His Blood be upon us and upon our children," and it's been there ever since.

 

42 Jesus was trying to tell them that their excuses was what killed the prophets and what killed the righteous that come. They accepted their creeds that man had given them instead of taking the Word of God, and by doing so, had made the Word of God of no effect.

 

Now, brother Branham is making a very good point here. He says they use all kinds of excuses to hold back on the Word,  and they accept creeds which are man made doctrines, but in doing so they deny the Word of God and the Word will not come into effect. So what does that mean? It means that mere words will never do, but the Word itself is supposed to produce something. The Doctrine of Christ if you teach it right, it will produce the same anointing that was upon Jesus. In other words, it will create the right atmosphere for that same Christ, that same Anointing that was on the First born son to be upon you. The same anointing by the same atmosphere produces the same Life, the same actions, the same words etc.

 

Brother Branham continued in Is Your Life worthy 63-0630E  38  "Now, you've either got to say in this, that this is God's will and God's desire, or either something else that you can crop up that's better than what this is. Now, you have to take one or the other. You can't serve God and mammon. And you've got to say, "This is the Truth," or, "That's part of the Truth," or, "It isn't all the Truth," or, "It isn't put together right," or "It isn't interpreted right," And the Bible said that the Word of God is no private interpretation. No one else is supposed to put an interpretation to It; It's written just the way God wants It interpreted. Just what It says, that's what It's supposed to be. Just take It the way it's said, way It's wrote down here. Now, they accept their creeds. They make God's promises of no effect to them. They bypass that, just skip away from it.

 

Notice by accepting their own creeds which is their own beliefs, they make the word of God of no effect to themselves. Notice brother Branham is saying,  saying what killed Jesus, is all the excuses they made in order to keep their own creeds, their own beliefs while rejecting His. And I tell you, they are crucifying the Word afresh still by rejecting the fullness of the doctrine of Christ right in this Message, because they have a form of godliness but they are denying the power thereof.

 

Souls In Prison Now 63-1110M  38-3 Now, watch here. Matthew 23 and begin at the 27th verse: Woe unto you, scribes... (Now, remember this is holy men He's talking to.)... Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchres... (that's dead people, see?)... whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men's bones, and of all uncleanness. (Hypocrisies and envies and strife on the inside of them; outside, "I'm Dr. so and so." See?) Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men,... (Look at the Ecumenical Council and the Pentecostals setting there.)... but within you are full of hypocrisy and iniquity. (What is iniquity? Something you actually know is right and you won't do it. Jesus... Now, watch what generation He puts this on then.) Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! because you build the tombs of the prophets, and garnish the sepulchres of the righteous. (See? All of the prophets...) And say, If we had been in them days of our fathers, we would not have been partakers with them in the blood of the prophets. ("We would've believed the Word of the Lord if we'd lived back there." Watch.) Wherefore ye be witnesses unto yourselves, that ye are the children of them which killed the prophets. Fill ye up then the measure of your fathers. (That's just what's taking place. Now, watch what He says here.) Ye serpents, and... generation of vipers, how can you escape the damnation of hell? (How can you do it?) Now, he's talking to ministers (See? That's right), holy men. How can you stand and know the Bible predicts and tells them people not to do that, and you can stand and compromise for a few lousy stinking dollars? Or some popularity and somebody pat you on the back and call you a "Doctor." How can you say you love those people? I'm preaching on tapes too...?... See? How can you say you love those people and let a thing like that take place? You Pharisees, you blind, you serpents, you generation of vipers, how are you going to escape the damnation of hell when you...? How can a man today that knows that these things are wrong, and stand there to hold his congregation, to make his denomination grow and fail to tell women and men? How are you going to escape the wrath of hell when it was made for you? How are you going to do it? See? Listen, listen here. What is it going to be? Therefore,... (34th verse)... behold, I will send unto you prophets,... ("I will" in the future. There's your Pharisees coming back again. See?)... wise men,... scribes: and some of them you shall kill and crucify; and some of them shall ye scourge in your synagogues, and persecute them from city to city:

 

 Pergamean Church Age 60-1207 230 That's the same thing that taken place here, the Nicene Council; Nicolaitanes, formal Christianity. And the Holy Spirit comes back and said, "You've got the doctrine of Balaam among you. (See?) And you... I hate them deeds of the Nicolaitanes, them doctrines that they got, because it's the doctrine of Balaam who taught the children of Israel to stumble." How did he do it?

 

You know that is a good question. How did his doctrine affect the people? It got them to focus on being together is more important than living right. Balaamism was when Baal got all the people to let down the bars and come together for the sake of unity. They got believers to gather with unbelievers, that’s Balaamism!  He got Believers to mix with make-believers, that’s Balaamism. And God hated that sin. God hates Balaamism, and he hates that Nicolaitian controlling spirit. And what happened? The young men of Israel got together with the young girls of Moab, Balaamism! Marry a girl or boy outside of Christ? that's Balaamism!

 

Now, let me read several scriptures to you that speak of this doctrine of Balaam.

 

II PETER 2:12 But these, as natural brute beasts, made to be taken and destroyed, speak evil of the things that they understand not; and shall utterly perish in their own corruption; 13 And shall receive the reward of unrighteousness, as they that count it pleasure to riot in the day time. Spots [they are] and blemishes, sporting themselves with their own deceivings while they feast with you; 14 Having eyes full of adultery, and that cannot cease from sin; beguiling unstable souls:

 

The word "beguiling" here is a Greek word which means to lure with bait. They put something out there to attract unstable souls. That’s your big churches full of unstable souls. Lured in by preaching psychology, by focusing on the family instead of focusing on the Word for the Hour. He said the people are being baited. And why do they do that? Peter gives us the answer when he says they are covetous. it's all about the Money.

 

Peter says, "an heart they have exercised with covetous practices; cursed children: 15 Which have forsaken the right way, and are gone astray, following the way of Balaam [the son] of Bosor, who loved the wages of un-right-wise-ness; 16 But was rebuked for his iniquity: the dumb ass speaking with man's voice forbad the madness of the prophet. 17 These are wells without water, clouds that are carried with a tempest;

 

In Jude we read, “Clouds without water”, that means these are witnesses with “no rain”, “no doctrine”.

 

 "to whom the mist of darkness is reserved for ever. 18 For when they speak great swelling words of vanity, they allure through the lusts of the flesh, through much wantonness, those that were clean escaped from them who live in error. 19 While they promise them liberty, they themselves are the servants of corruption: for of whom a man is overcome, of the same is he brought in bondage. 20 For if after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled therein, and overcome, the latter end is worse with them than the beginning. 21For it had been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than, after they have known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered unto them. 22 But it is happened unto them according to the true proverb, The dog [is] turned to his own vomit again; and the sow that was washed to her wallowing in the mire.

 

Jude 1:10 But these speak evil of those things which they know not: but what they know naturally, as brute beasts, in those things they corrupt themselves. 11 Woe unto them! for they have gone in the way of Cain, and ran greedily after the error of Balaam for reward, and perished in the gainsaying of Core. 12 These are spots in your feasts of charity, when they feast with you, feeding themselves without fear: clouds [they are] without water, carried about of winds; trees whose fruit withereth, without fruit, twice dead, plucked up by the roots; 13Raging waves of the sea, foaming out their own shame; wandering stars, to whom is reserved the blackness of darkness for ever.

 

Revelation 2:12   And to the angel of the church in Pergamos write; These things saith he which hath the sharp sword with two edges; 13 I know thy works, and where thou dwellest, even where Satan's seat is: and thou holdest fast my name, and hast not denied my faith, even in those days wherein Antipas was my faithful martyr, who was slain among you, where Satan dwelleth. 14 But I have a few things against thee, because thou hast there them that hold the doctrine of Balaam, who taught Balac to cast a stumblingblock before the children of Israel, to eat things sacrificed unto idols, and to commit fornication. 15 So hast thou also them that hold the doctrine of the Nicolaitans, which thing I hate.

 

Thyatirean Church Age 60-1208 50 Nicolaitanism and paganism wedded together and formed and gave birth to the first church, organized church. And God said that the deeds of the Nicolaitanes (which was in the Ephesians), over in the little church of Pergamos became a doctrine, and said it was a doctrine of Balaam. And Balaam was the one who taught Israel to go over there and commit fornications, or they committed fornications with Moab, which was a lukewarm church member, or the common church, the great organization. And we find out that God said that Nicolaitane doctrine which put all the power up in a church and set it aside and make it an organization, He said, "You hate it, and I hate it too." He just keeps saying, "Hate it. Hate it. Hate it." And it's come into full swing here. See how the church squeezed out, right up here till just a little bitty thing, and that's the church we're on now.

 

And today that doctrine of Balaam opposes the doctrine of Christ because the doctrine of Christ establishes a true relationship between God and His Seed, but the doctrine of Balaam opens it’s doors to every seed so long as they pay their tithing. Notice once again, we see it is the doctrine, always the doctrine. The Doctrine of Christ which hates organization, or the doctrine of Balaam which loves organization. And they hate God’s Doctrine, and God hates theirs. Which one will you stand with this evening? That is the real Question we must ask ourselves. Let’s just bow our heads and our hearts in prayer as we Go to the Author and finisher of our Faith and answer that question.