Author: petebeck3

Pete Beck III ministered as a pastor and Bible teacher in Burlington for over 34 years. He is married to Martha, with whom he has four children, ten beautiful grandchildren, and four amazing great grandchildren. He ministers in his local church as a Bible teacher and counselor. He has published two books - Seeing God's Smile and Promise of the Father - as well as a wide variety of Bible-related articles which he has compiled into books in PDF form.

Consider Yourself Warned!

Paul concluded his gospel presentation at Antioch of Pisidia with these words.

Be careful! Don’t let the prophets’ words apply to you. For they said, 41  ‘Look, you mockers, be amazed and die! For I am doing something in your own day, something you wouldn’t believe even if someone told you about it.’” Acts 13:40-41 (NLT)

No Jew would have ever imagined that Israel would be cut off from Abraham’s promises! Their rejection of the Messiah brought judgment upon that nation in 70 AD when Titus and the Roman army destroyed Jerusalem.  Gentiles will encounter a similar judgment on the Last Day, if we reject the gospel. Those who reject the message doom themselves to a continuation of their present condition as spiritual orphans in the universe – an eternity away from God’s loving presence.

And God will provide rest for you who are being persecuted and also for us when the Lord Jesus appears from heaven. He will come with his mighty angels, 8  in flaming fire, bringing judgment on those who don’t know God and on those who refuse to obey the Good News of our Lord Jesus. 9 They will be punished with eternal destruction, forever separated from the Lord and from his glorious power. 10  When he comes on that day, he will receive glory from his holy people—praise from all who believe. And this includes you, for you believed what we told you about him. 2 Thessalonians 1:7-10 (NLT)

The presentation of the gospel puts us in a place of decision: will we receive Jesus as Lord and Savior or reject God’s amazing offer? 

With how we spend our eternity on the line, the loving thing to do is warn our hearers about the enormous consequences connected to our response to the gospel.

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Whose Fool Am I?

Evidently being considered or called a fool is one of life’s greatest fears. Society exerts pressure on all of us to fall in line with accepted beliefs and norms. People who refuse to comply are ostracized in some fashion, either by criticism, shunning, or outright persecution.

Bible-believing Christians hold some beliefs that the world considers to be downright crazy. We believe in an invisible, all-powerful Creator and Sustainer of the universe to whom we are accountable. We believe this God created the earth and heavens in six days, flooded the entire earth during Noah’s day, parted the Red Sea for Moses, and stopped the sun and moon to assist Joshua in battle. We believe that Jesus was born of a virgin, lived a sinless life, did astounding miracles, rose again from the dead, ascended into heaven, and will one day return in glory to judge the living and the dead. All this is found in the Bible, which most Christians believe is inspired by God and infallibly true.

The “scientific” age began during what is called the Enlightenment. One goal of so-called science has been to set us free from the confines of the Bible. Copernicus, to whom history gives credit for the heliocentric theory, wrote the following to illustrate my point.

Martin Luther, as did John Calvin, considered Copernicus to be a fool.

Over the years since the introduction of the heliocentric theory, the development of the theory of evolution, and advent of the Big Bang theory, so-called science has attacked the Scripture with barrage after barrage. In an effort to retain the appearance of wisdom in the face of such attacks, some Christians have developed “ingenious” ways to interpret the Bible to twist it into some imagined harmony with what is called science. For example, rather than accept the biblical account of creation in six days, some expositors of scripture have elongated that short time frame in all sorts of ways to attempt to conform it to the eons of time required by the false theory of evolution.

Some of us would rather change what the Bible says than risk looking foolish in the eyes of the world, but looking foolish in God’s eyes is far more serious.

The Bible says that those who do not believe in God are fools. (Psalm 14:1)  Jesus rebuked his own disciples for their foolishness in not believing the Bible. (Luke 24:25) We need to realize that much of what is called scientific “fact” is in fact a mere theory, often propped up by other theories that have become regarded as facts over time.

Adam and Eve believed a lie because the devil made them feel foolish for believing God. 

Science, falsely so-called, is doing the same thing today. Many Christians are made to feel foolish for believing that the Genesis account regarding the nature of the heavens and earth is literally true. Many others choose to side with “science,” inventing all sorts of devious ways to twist the scriptures to accommodate error. It is a sad commentary on the state of the church.

O Timothy, guard what has been entrusted to you, avoiding worldly and empty chatter and the opposing arguments of what is falsely called “knowledge”— 21 which some have professed and thus gone astray from the faith. Grace be with you. 1 Timothy 6:20–21 (NASB95)

Eventually we all have to make a decision. Whose fool am I? God’s or the world’s?

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The Gospel Offers Forgiveness and Reconciliation to God

Paul delivered the extraordinary good news that through the risen Jesus, the Messiah King who was rejected and crucified, God offers forgiveness and reconciliation to all who believe and declare allegiance to him.

“Brothers, listen! We are here to proclaim that through this man Jesus there is forgiveness for your sins. 39  Everyone who believes in him is declared right with God—something the law of Moses could never do. Acts 13:38-39 (NLT)

God does not hold our rebellion against his rule and our rejection of his person against us, if we repent, believe the good news, and receive Jesus as Lord and Savior. This good news includes giving us a personal relationship with Father God and making us a part of his eternal family through the new birth!

This means we are able to reconnect with the Source of Life and all that is good and true! We will be spiritually reconnected to the Creator and Sustainer of the Universe through our Redeemer and Lord, Jesus!

Only a fool or a hardened rebel would pass up such an offer; yet, without the Holy Spirit’s help, that is exactly what people do. We can ask the Spirit of God to open our sin-blinded eyes, unstop our deaf ears, soften our hardened hearts, and bring us back to God.

Prayer

I have been a rebel long enough! Today I turn away from the path I have been following that leads to judgment and death. Holy Spirit, come into my life and help me. Change me on the inside. Jesus, I acknowledge that you are the Lord that I have spurned these many years. I give you my life and receive your forgiveness. Father God,  I have heard about you but never known you. Thank you for sending your Son to die for my sins. I want to know, love, and serve you from this day forward. Amen.

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The Old Testament Points to Jesus

It is important for us to include in our gospel presentation how Jesus fulfilled promises made in the Old Testament.

And now we are here to bring you this Good News. The promise was made to our ancestors, 33  and God has now fulfilled it for us, their descendants, by raising Jesus. This is what the second psalm says about Jesus: ‘You are my Son. Today I have become your Father.’ 34  For God had promised to raise him from the dead, not leaving him to rot in the grave. He said, ‘I will give you the sacred blessings I promised to David.’ 35  Another psalm explains it more fully: ‘You will not allow your Holy One to rot in the grave.’ 36  This is not a reference to David, for after David had done the will of God in his own generation, he died and was buried with his ancestors, and his body decayed. 37  No, it was a reference to someone else—someone whom God raised and whose body did not decay. Acts 13:32-37 (NLT)

The Old Testament points to Jesus and can only be properly understood in reference to him.

The birth, life, death, resurrection, ascension, and Second Coming of Jesus the Messiah is the goal of God’s interactions and promises made in the Old Testament. Jesus’ resurrection caused verses that seemed mysterious or unclear to come into sudden bold relief, such as the ones quoted by Paul above.

So a time was set, and on that day a large number of people came to Paul’s lodging. He explained and testified about the Kingdom of God and tried to persuade them about Jesus from the Scriptures. Using the law of Moses and the books of the prophets, he spoke to them from morning until evening. Acts 28:23 (NLT)

Once Paul’s eyes were open to Jesus’ true identity, the entire Bible came to life for him. Jesus is the focus and goal of the entire Bible. Eventually all things will be summed up in him.

For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things have been created through Him and for Him. 17 He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together. 18 He is also head of the body, the church; and He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that He Himself will come to have first place in everything. Colossians 1:16–18 (NASB95)
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How Have I Responded to the Gospel?

Paul summarized the gospel message in a paragraph.

“Brothers—you sons of Abraham, and also you God-fearing Gentiles—this message of salvation has been sent to us! 27  The people in Jerusalem and their leaders did not recognize Jesus as the one the prophets had spoken about. Instead, they condemned him, and in doing this they fulfilled the prophets’ words that are read every Sabbath. 28  They found no legal reason to execute him, but they asked Pilate to have him killed anyway. 29  “When they had done all that the prophecies said about him, they took him down from the cross and placed him in a tomb. 30  But God raised him from the dead! 31  And over a period of many days he appeared to those who had gone with him from Galilee to Jerusalem. They are now his witnesses to the people of Israel. Acts 13:26-31 (NLT)

Paul told his listeners and us that Jesus is the one promised by God in the Old Testament, who was rejected by the Jewish leaders, put to death, buried, rose again from the dead, and appeared to many. All that remains is to explain what this means to those who believe and receive it: forgiveness of our sins and being restored to a right relationship with God.

The gospel is a spoken or read message that requires a response.

We can hear it and believe. We can hear and reject it, or we can simply ignore it. Only one of these responses results in salvation. How have you responded?

Prayer

Jesus, I finally “get” it. You died for my sins and rose again. I receive you as my Savior and my Lord. I receive your forgiveness and give my life to you. Holy Spirit, come live in and through me. Thank you for eternal life. Help me to tell others about this amazing gift. Amen.

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God Promised Israel a Messiah Who Would Save the World

On his first missionary journey, Paul the apostle preached the gospel to Jews living in Antioch of Pisidia. He correctly assumed that they were familiar with the promises God earlier made to King David, that one of his descendants would sit upon the throne of Israel forever. (2 Samuel 7:12-13)

“And it is one of King David’s descendants, Jesus, who is God’s promised Savior of Israel! 24  Before he came, John the Baptist preached that all the people of Israel needed to repent of their sins and turn to God and be baptized. 25  As John was finishing his ministry he asked, ‘Do you think I am the Messiah? No, I am not! But he is coming soon—and I’m not even worthy to be his slave and untie the sandals on his feet.’ Acts 13:23-25 (NLT)

When we share the gospel with those who are not as familiar with the Bible, we have an opportunity to explain how Jesus came in fulfillment of promises made to Israel long ago.

The gospel only makes sense when we understand its historical context. God promised that one day a Savior would defeat Satan and deliver us from his dominion. This began in the Garden of Eden, continued with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, was reiterated to Moses, amplified with King David, and prophesied by Isaiah and others.

What was not understood until God revealed it to Paul was that the Messiah was sent to save the entire world, not just Israel.

He says, “It is too small a thing that You should be My Servant To raise up the tribes of Jacob and to restore the preserved ones of Israel; I will also make You a light of the nations So that My salvation may reach to the end of the earth.” Isaiah 49:6 (NASB95)
For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. John 3:16 (NASB95)

By referring to this, when you read you can understand my insight into the mystery of Christ, 5 which in other generations was not made known to the sons of men, as it has now been revealed to His holy apostles and prophets in the Spirit; 6 to be specific, that the Gentiles are fellow heirs and fellow members of the body, and fellow partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel, Ephesians 3:4–6 (NASB95)

One day in the not so distant future, the very real historical person named Jesus, the glorious resurrected Son of Man prophesied by Daniel, will return in the clouds with great power to judge all mankind.

At that point in time, all the earth will come to realize that the gospel is a wonderful announcement of mercy to those who believe it which is based on the historical facts relating to Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection. It is also a narrative of the historical fulfillment of God’s promises to Israel.

Therefore, it is important for gospel preachers to familiarize themselves with the the Old Testament and how it points to Jesus and the glorious gospel that is offered to every person in the world, regardless of ethnicity, gender, age, or socioeconomic status. That is how the early church presented Christ, and so should we!

If you are inclined to learn better how to do this, I suggest Scot McKnight's masterpiece, The King Jesus Gospel. I wrote a summary, which you can access by clicking here.
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Water Baptism and the Baptism in the Spirit Are Distinct

Peter arrived at an obvious conclusion: God accepted the Gentile Cornelius in exactly the same way he had the Jewish apostles!

The Jewish believers who came with Peter were amazed that the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out on the Gentiles, too. 46  For they heard them speaking in tongues and praising God. Then Peter asked, 47  “Can anyone object to their being baptized, now that they have received the Holy Spirit just as we did?” 48  So he gave orders for them to be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ... Acts 10:45-48 (NLT)

The Bible promises that Jesus will baptize his followers in the Spirit. (Luke 3:16) The evidence of this outpouring or baptism is speaking in tongues, as first experienced by the Jewish believers on Pentecost. In Acts 10 it happened again with Gentiles, which astounded the ethnocentric Jews, who imagined that they alone were eligible.

The giving of the Spirit is a proof of our acceptance into God’s heavenly family.

Only born-again children of God are given this amazing evidence of God’s love. (Luke 11:13)

When we share the gospel, we should inform our hearers that the Holy Spirit will be given to those who put their faith in Christ, both as the indwelling source of life and identity and as an outpoured source of power and boldness.

These two experiences with God’s Spirit are distinct: the first is a result of being born again, and the second from being baptized in the Spirit. Believers are to submit to water baptism as a public testimony of allegiance to our Savior and Lord and then receive the baptism in the Spirit.

Promise of the Father

To learn more about the baptism in the Spirit, click here. I have also written a book on this important subject, which is available on Amazon.

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Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star

Twinkle, twinkle, little star,
How I wonder what you are!
Up above the world so high,
Like a diamond in the sky.

Stars should cause wonderment, just like the rest of creation. All of it was designed by God to reveal his glory and power to us. King David wrote the following song of praise long ago.

The heavens declare the glory of God; And the firmament shows His handiwork. 2 Day unto day utters speech, And night unto night reveals knowledge. 3 There is no speech nor language Where their voice is not heard. 4 Their line has gone out through all the earth, And their words to the end of the world. In them He has set a tabernacle for the sun, Psalm 19:1–4 (NKJV)

The apostle Paul echoed these words in his letter to the church in Rome.

For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse. Romans 1:20 (NASB95)

Shhh! Don’t tell anyone, or they will think you are crazy, but Paul was right. There is a conspiracy to hide God’s glory from everyone who lives on the earth. Knowing that a true knowledge of creation will lead people to God, powerful people have conspired to obscure that knowledge in order to bring God’s wrath on humanity.

For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, 19 because that which is known about God is evident within them; for God made it evident to them. Romans 1:18–19 (NASB95)

Governments, scientists, educators, and even religious powers decided long ago that they would embrace an anti-biblical explanation of creation in order to hide God’s glory. This is rooted in a web of deceit derived from the false doctrine called evolution. What began as an explanation of how living things came to be has “evolved” and spread into almost every “scientific” discipline. Now we have evolutionary sociology, astrophysics (otherwise known as the Big Bang), politics (the Constitution is a living, evolving thing), philosophy (existentialism), and morality. Once God is hidden from our sight by a false interpretation or explanation of creation, anything goes.

People don’t wonder what stars are anymore. Now we “know” they are gigantic balls of gas at incalculable distances from us. But are they? Not if we believe the Bible and actual photographs.

The Bible says that stars are not so far away at all and are not suns, but “lights” in the dome of the firmament.

Then God made two great lights: the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night. He made the stars also. 17 God set them in the firmament of the heavens to give light on the earth, 18 and to rule over the day and over the night, and to divide the light from the darkness. And God saw that it was good. 19 So the evening and the morning were the fourth day. Genesis 1:16–19 (NKJV)

Anyone who believes the above words understands that they destroy any definition of stars proposed by modern astronomers. These amazing creations only came into existence after God had already created the earth and light itself. Actual photographs of stars and planets (“wandering stars”) look like lights shining through water, which is exactly what God says exists above and below the solid dome of the firmament.

The inverse square law of light is a physics law that states that light diminishes in intensity as a square of the distance we are from the source. If stars were as far away as modern astrophysicists say, we could not see them unless they were indescribably huge and bright.

However, Jesus said that the stars will fall to the earth.

But in those days, after that tribulation, THE SUN WILL BE DARKENED AND THE MOON WILL NOT GIVE ITS LIGHT, 25 AND THE STARS WILL BE FALLING from heaven, and the powers that are in the heavens will be shaken. 26 “Then they will see THE SON OF MAN COMING IN CLOUDS with great power and glory. Mark 13:24–26 (NASB95)

Either NASA is wrong or the Bible is. Such huge things could not fall to the earth. You choose for yourself, but I am siding with Jesus. He created it all.

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Expect the Holy Spirit to Draw People to Christ

Suddenly something unanticipated and wonderful occurred while Peter was sharing the gospel with the Roman Centurion and Gentile named Cornelius and the people gathered in his home.

Even as Peter was saying these things, the Holy Spirit fell upon all who were listening to the message. Acts 10:44 (NLT)

When we share the gospel with people, most of our listeners probably will not erupt in spontaneous tongues as did Cornelius, but we should expect to see some evidence of the Holy Spirit’s operation.

The preaching of the gospel relies upon the hidden work of God’s Spirit inside our listeners if we are to see results.

Jesus spoke about this.

At that time Jesus prayed this prayer: “O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, thank you for hiding these things from those who think themselves wise and clever, and for revealing them to the childlike. 26  Yes, Father, it pleased you to do it this way! Matthew 11:25-26 (NLT)

Paul taught us that God uses the “foolishness of preaching” (1 Corinthians 1:21-24) to bring people to Christ. Preaching works because there is power in the words of the gospel and because of the hidden operation of God’s Spirit in those who hear. If we do our part, we can depend on God to do his by drawing people to Christ and opening their hearts to the message.

Jesus said:

For no one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws them to me, and at the last day I will raise them up. 45  As it is written in the Scriptures, ‘They will all be taught by God.’ Everyone who listens to the Father and learns from him comes to me. John 6:44-45 (NLT)
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It’s Greek to Me

Sometimes I tell a joke that goes like this.

Me: I can say at least one phrase in every known language, except for Greek.

Other Person: Okay, say something in Swahili?

Me: It’s Greek to me.

When my kids were small, sometimes we would play cops and robbers. They pretended to shoot me, but no matter how close they were, I would move my eyes as if following their bullet right around me. They could never hit me. That may be humorous in such situations, but when we do the same thing as adults when confronted by unwelcome truth, it is not funny at all.

In my previous article, I introduced the idea of a “black swan,” which represents contradictory evidence to a stated truth. But what if a person with whom I am talking says every time that the black swan is not really black. It’s just covered with oil. No matter how many black swans I may present, each time I am rebutted with the same argument. They are all covered with oil. Even if I closely examine the black swan to show that it has no oil on it, my friend may say, “Well, it was covered with oil, which dyed its feathers black. There are no black swans.” One would soon realize that there is no point discussing the matter any further.

This has been my experience when I share flat earth evidence. No matter how convincing my proof, it is always dismissed as being “doctored” video or, in the case of seeing farther than the globe model would allow, refraction or lensing. The refraction argument has been used ad infinitum to try to explain away everything from seeing the Chicago skyline from 65 miles away to selenelion eclipses.

Refraction is a real thing, but it does not explain away flat earth evidence, as so often claimed. Below is an excellent video on the subject by Ben at Taboo Conspiracy.

When we dismiss clear evidence that refutes a previously believed position, it shows that we are brainwashed.

Part of the reason we have such difficulty accepting that the earth is not a globe is because we cannot believe that institutions and people we trust could be actively deceiving us, especially on such a grand scale. We think that surely the truth would have been “outed” by now. Let me assure you that deception on a grand scale exists everywhere, but the whistleblowers are either eliminated, isolated, ridiculed, or dismissed.

Most people are more comfortable believing a lie that confronting one.

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