January 3, 2009

Noah was a just man, perfect in his generations. ‘Noah walked with God.’ Then the LORD said to Noah, “Go into the ark, you and your household, for I have seen that YOU ARE RIGHTEOUS BEFORE ME in this generation” (Genesis 6:9; 7:1).

“Walking with God”

Dear Brethren,

As we observe the ongoing and progressive evils in this society, and the world at large today, it becomes easy to equate the closing of this age to that of the End of the Antediluvian World in which mankind and all land living creatures died by a worldwide Flood!

This covered a span of time calculated to be 1656 years from the creation of mankind to its death. The number of people who perished in it has been estimated to be from about 2 to 12 billions of people, men, women, and children.

Mr. Herbert W. Armstrong wrote about Noah’s generation in the Mystery of the Ages, Mystery of Civilization, pages 146-147.

“Notice to what extent humanity had been turned by Satan to evil. In Genesis 6:5, “God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.”

The earth was filled with violence. Man’s thoughts, contemplations and plans were continually on self-centered, lustful and evil objectives.

This violence had become so universal that God determined to spare humanity from suffering longer in mounting misery and anguish.

God took away their miserable lives, by the earth wide Flood to be resurrected in the next second of their consciousness in the “Great White Throne” resurrection (Revelation 20:11-12). They will be brought back to life in a time when Christ is ruling the earth in righteousness, peace and happiness. Satan will be gone. Their minds will be opened to God’s TRUTH, and eternal salvation will be opened to them.

But God intended to preserve human life—to give humanity a new and fresh start.

God found only one man, of all the millions, who were walking with God.

Exceeding wickedness had developed through those generations, by Noah’s generation reaching a climatic crisis that ended that world.

What was this universal evil and corruption? Jesus described that universal, corrupt evil as ‘eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage (Matthew 24:38). Eating food and drinking is not evil. Marrying is not evil in itself. There had to be wrong and excess in eating, drinking and marrying—the evil was in the manner, and in the extent of eating and drinking and marrying.

It could only be eating improper food, drinking excessively of alcoholic drinks, revelings (Galatians 5:21), rioting, violence.

Marrying, to be evil, had to be as in Genesis 6:2, when men “took to them wives of all which they chose.” There was rampant and universal interracial marriage – so exceedingly universal that Noah, only, was unblemished or perfect in his generations—his ancestry [Genesis 6:9]. He was of the original white strain. . . .”

Same Sex Marriages

Mr. Armstrong has been dead for 23 years. He did not live long enough to see how far-reaching marriages would come to be accepted by this culture by license and applause.

Realizing the Scriptural fact that God knew the end from the beginning (Isaiah 46:9-13), Jesus Christ would have had these kinds of marriages in mind as well as the interracial marriages when He spoke about marriage.

When the LORD spoke about the evil of that world that He would destroy by a Flood, Scripture says, “. . . the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually . . .” (Genesis 6:5), He also knew this great sin would be taking place today.

These kinds of marriages are just an extension of what the apostle Paul wrote about to the Church in Rome:

“For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and all unrighteousness of men, who SUPPRESS THE TRUTH in unrighteousness . . . professing to be wise, they became fools. . . . Therefore God also gave them up to uncleanness, in the LUSTS of their hearts, to DISHONOR their bodies among themselves who EXCHANGED the TRUTH of God for a lie . . . For this reason God gave them up to VILE PASSIONS. For even their women EXCHANGED the natural use for what is against nature. Likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, BURNED IN THEIR LUST FOR ONE ANOTHER, MEN WITH MEN committing what is shameful, and receiving in themselves the penalty of their error which was due. And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a DEBASED MIND to do those things which are not fitting; being FILLED with all unrighteousness, sexual immorality, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness, full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, evil-mindedness, they are whisperers, backbiters, haters of God [His holy and righteous laws], violent, proud, boasters, inventers of evil things, disobedient to parents, undiscerning, untrustworthy, unloving, unforgiving, unmerciful; who knowing the righteous judgment of God [Hollywood, leaders, and all, recognize and use the word: ARMAGEDDON], that those who PRACTICE such things ARE DESERVING OF DEATH, not only do the same but also APPROVE of those who practice them (Romans 1:18-32).

No Difference Now – Than Then

When we compare the Scriptures found in Genesis 6 and what the apostle Paul wrote in the above Scriptures and observing the culture of today’s world it becomes very easy to see that the same problems exist today as they did at that time.

And when we read the Scriptures that “Jesus Christ is the same today as He was yesterday and will be forever” (Hebrews 13:8), and that “the LORD changes not” (Malachi 3:6), we can also know, as many of the prophecies reveal, the end of Israel as nations, and the world, is rapidly drawing to a deadly end.

Noah’s Ark

Before the end came for that pre-Flood world, God told Noah to build an ark by which he and his families’ lives would be spared from the drowning death that all others would experience at that time.

Those who are members of the Church of God are in a very real sense to be building their own individual ark just as did Noah build an ark to save their lives from the greatest time of trouble to ever come on humanity or ever will again (Matthew 24: 21).

Soon it will be too late just as it was for everyone that side of the Flood. There will be no safety anywhere other than the place Jesus Christ will provide just as there was no safe place for those people then.

Walking with God

Noah was spared because he WALKED WITH GOD! To walk with Him is to live His way of life, while having a real knowing relationship with our Father and Jesus Christ. And to have that kind of a relationship we must also be living by His teachings and laws.

This will set us apart from the world of Babylon that we must no longer be a part of as we have been in the past. Speaking of this system that is termed Babylon by God, we are exhorted by Him to flee from it:

And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, “Come out of her My people, LEST YOU SHARE IN HER SINS, AND LEST YOU RECEIVE OF HER PLAGUES” (Revelation 18:4).

It should be realized one can only be spared by his or her own righteousness –meaning having a walk with God and Jesus Christ; and Scripture makes this very clear:

“. . . Even if these three men, Noah, Daniel, and Job, were in it, they would but deliver their own lives (Ezekiel 14:12-14).

In the meantime, realizing we are on the very brink of the prophesied end-time we are now entering, it behooves each of us to realize we are in the time of final exams as Mr. Armstrong has emphasized to us.

Examining Ourselves

In this context the apostle Paul tells us that we should be examining ourselves to try and see whether we have a real relationship with God.

“Examine yourselves as to whether you are in the faith. Prove yourselves. Do you not know yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless you are disqualified” (Margin: Do not stand the test – completely gone astray, II Corinthians 13:5).

It should also be realized the all important MARK is even now being put on the true and faithful members who are walking with God. They and they only will escape the horrors just ahead of us to come on all of the other Church members in the Great Tribulation. Not much longer will the door be open (Ezekiel (9:4-6; Matthew 25:10-13)

The Time to Flee is Now Very Near

Seeing the prophesied events now coming to pass very rapidly we can know the time to flee from the House of Joseph and other areas of this world to the place Jesus Christ will have prepared for His people can not be all that far away.

There are other lessons to be learned from Lot and his family who dwelt in Sodom and Gomorrah that can be thought of when it comes time to flee from our homes when the LORD sent two angels to aid Lot and his family to flee those cities before they destroyed them.

The urgency was so great the angels had to take Lot and his family by their hands and set them outside the city – So it came to pass, when they had brought them outside, that he said (angel), “Escape for your life! DO NOT LOOK BEHIND YOU NOR STAY ANYWHERE IN THE PLAIN. ESCAPE TO THE MOUNTAINS, LEST YOU BE DESTROYED” (Genesis 19:15-17).

Consider this in view of the time God’s people are to flee from wherever we may live, especially to those living in the House of Joseph, America and Britain.

To not flee when the word comes is to possibly be destroyed with all those not accounted worthy when the nuclear bombs begin falling on our cities.

Scripture makes known this will take place very quickly:

“They have blown the trumpet (Sounding the WARNING OF WAR), and make everyone ready. But no one goes to battle (blitzkrieg warfare): for My wrath is on all of their multitude. The sword is outside, and the pestilence and famine within. . . .” (Ezekiel 7:14).

Righteous Men

Both Noah and Lot were counted worthy to escape from the destruction that came during their time because they were righteous:

“For if God did not spare the angels who sinned . . . and did not spare the ancient world, but saved Noah . . . bringing in the Flood on the world of the ungodly; and turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah into ashes, condemned them to destruction, making them an example to those who afterward would live ungodly; and delivered righteous Lot, who was oppressed with the filthy conduct of the wicked (for that righteous, dwelling among them, tormented his righteous soul from day to day by seeing and hearing their lawless deeds)—then the LORD knows how to deliver the godly out of temptations and to reserve the unjust under punishment for the day of judgment” (II Peter 4-9).

Think of this in context with what the angels were told to MARK those who sigh and cry for the abominations being committed in our time and in our part of the world! And they are wherever we may live (Ezekiel 9:4-6).

Time is Running Out

With all of this in mind, we would do well to heed the admonition given by the apostle Paul:

“And do this, knowing the time, that now it is high time TO AWAKEW OUT OF SLEEP, for NOW our salvation is nearer than when we first believed. The NIGHT IS FAR SPENT, THE DAY IS AT HAND. Therefore let us CAST OFF the works of darkness, and let us PUT ON the armor of light (truth). Let us walk properly, as in the day, not in revelry and drunkenness, not in licentiousness and lewdness, not in strife and envy. But PUT ON the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts” (Romans 13:11-14).

Walk with God

In the context of all of the end-time prophecies Jesus Christ had enumerated in Luke 21, He cautioned each one of His people to be WATCHING WORLD EVENTS IN LIGHT OF BIBLE PROPHECY and to be PRAYING ALWAYS that we might be counted worthy TO ESCAPE (as did Noah and Lot) all of these things that shall come to pass and to STAND before Jesus Christ at His coming back to this earth (Luke 21:36.

WE MUST BE WALKING WITH OUR FATHER AND HIS BELOVED SON JESUS CHRIST. There is no real time to spare! Nothing else is worthwhile!

Your caring friend and servant in Christ Jesus our Lord and Savior,

Don Billingsley

http://bodyofchristonline.us/     http://cog-ff.com     http://www.ezekielwatchman.org/

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