That a Man Be Found Faithful
HEBREWS 2:1
1 ¶ Therefore we ought to give the more earnest heed to the things which we have heard, lest at any time we should let them slip. (This is our theme scripture in our study of “lest at any time we should let the things that we have heard slip away from us”)
*We have surely heard wonderful things in this age by the ministry of this end time message and by the opening of the seven seals – and as true believers of this hour we certainly do not want to let these things slip, and so that requires a dedication and a faithfulness to what God has given us in this hour.
I CORINTHIANS 4:1-2
1 ¶ Let a man so account of us, as of the ministers of Christ, and stewards of the mysteries of God. (We are living in the days when all the mysteries of God that were sealed up throughout the entire bible have been made known to us and are continually being made known to us in this hour – so the responsibility of what applied in the Ephesian age after the mysteries had been made known to the people of that age though the ministry of Paul, we are also under this same responsibility to be stewards of the mysteries that have come to us in this hour)
2 Moreover it is required in stewards, that a man be found faithful.
That a Man Be Found Faithful
Series - Lest We Should Let Them Slip Pt.3
In the bible, God often places faithfulness even before wisdom.
We know that wisdom is the principle thing, but wisdom without faithfulness cannot really achieve its purpose – they both need to go together in order to succeed, and that is why they are put together especially at critical times.
**Mathew 24 begins with the opening of the seven seals and then goes on to the revelation of the second coming of the Lord which is the unfolding of the seventh seal.
MATTHEW 24:45
45 Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his lord hath made ruler over his household, to give them meat in due season?
There are many scriptures and parables that speak about faithfulness.
We know that the foolish virgins in Mathew 25 were not faithful in their preparation; they were dilatory when it came to being prepaired.
Mathew 25 goes on to talk about faithful servants to what the Lord had delivered unto them – notice that these events are taking place after Mathew 24 which is the opening of the seven seals and the mystery of the second coming of the Lord.
MATTHEW 25:14-28
14 ¶ For the kingdom of heaven is as a man travelling into a far country, who called his own servants, and delivered unto them his goods. (They have become stewards of something of great value)
15 And unto one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one; to every man according to his several ability; and straightway took his journey.
16 Then he that had received the five talents went and traded with the same, and made them other five talents.
17 And likewise he that had received two, he also gained other two.
18 But he that had received one went and digged in the earth, and hid his lord's money.
19 After a long time the lord of those servants cometh, and reckoneth with them (Notice again that this is connected to his coming – in other words, he was going to judge them on how they were occupying their time with what they had been intrusted with while he was delayed in his return).
20 And so he that had received five talents came and brought other five talents, saying, Lord, thou deliveredst unto me five talents: behold, I have gained beside them five talents more.
21 His lord said unto him, Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord. (Notice - Well done thou good and “Faithful” not good and happy or good and wealthy or strong or popular servant, not even thou good and successful in the eyes of man servant, but thou good and faithful to what I had given you to be a steward over.)
22 He also that had received two talents came and said, Lord, thou deliveredst unto me two talents: behold, I have gained two other talents beside them.
23 His lord said unto him, Well done, good and faithful servant; thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord.
24 Then he which had received the one talent came and said, Lord, I knew thee that thou art an hard man, reaping where thou hast not sown, and gathering where thou hast not strawed:
25 And I was afraid, and went and hid thy talent in the earth: lo, there thou hast that is thine.
26 His lord answered and said unto him, Thou wicked and slothful servant, thou knewest that I reap where I sowed not, and gather where I have not strawed:
27 Thou oughtest therefore to have put my money to the exchangers, and then at my coming I should have received mine own with usury.
28 Take therefore the talent from him, and give it unto him which hath ten talents.
29 For unto every one that hath shall be given, and he shall have abundance: but from him that hath not shall be taken away even that which he hath.
30 And cast ye the unprofitable servant into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. (That is the tribulation period)
**Faithfulness to the word of God for the age that you live in is highly esteemed in the eyes of God, but unbelief in the revealed word is the most horrible thing of anything in the world.
GOD'S.EYE_ CHATTANOOGA.TN TUESDAY_ 58-0225
E-25 Be real reverent, please, if you will. Unbelief is one of the most horrible things there is. Let me go any way, but don't let me be a religious unbeliever. Unbelief is the only sin that there is. Smoking, drinking, committing adultery, cursing, swearing, that's not sin. That's the attributes of unbelief. "He that believeth not is condemned already."
And people who claim to be religious, go to church, pious, and still rank unbelievers, sinners, Jesus said, "You're of your father, the devil." And yet they were just as pious and religious as they could be. The worst demon there is to deal with is a religious demon. They are five times more horribler than any other evil spirit.
There are also two types of ministerial servants within the ranks of the message of the hour that are prophesied to be at the time of the second coming of the Lord – there is the faithful servant that feeds the people the word in due season, and then there is the servant that fights the faithful servants and steward of the mysteries.
LUKE 12:42-48
42 And the Lord said, Who then is that faithful and wise steward, whom his lord shall make ruler over his household, to give them their portion of meat in due season? (In other words, the fivefold ministry is to be found giving out the spiritual food and nourishment of the word and revelation of this hour)
43 Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall find so doing. (Doing what? ***Being a faithful steward of the mysteries that they have received by the messenger for the age and feeding them out to the elect for the age)
44 Of a truth I say unto you, that he will make him ruler over all that he hath.
45 But and if that servant say in his heart, My lord delayeth his coming; (In this hour these are people that are acquainted with the mystery of the second coming of the Lord, these are not people of the denominations, these are people under the banner of this end time message that because of the delay and the time that has gone on they began to let these things slip away from them and they became unfruitful in the revelation of the hour, and then as time goes on, in their hearts they begin to have doubts relating to the message and the coming of the Lord and then they begin to oppose the real believers) and shall begin to beat the menservants and maidens, and to eat and drink, and to be drunken; (they begin to eat and drink denominational food and then beat up on the real believers of the mysteries of this hour)
46 The lord of that servant will come in a day when he looketh not for him, and at an hour when he is not aware, and will cut him in sunder, and will appoint him his portion with the unbelievers.
47 And that servant, which knew his lord's will (the message of the hour), and prepared not himself, neither did according to his will, shall be beaten with many stripes.
48 But he that knew not, and did commit things worthy of stripes, shall be beaten with few stripes. For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required: and to whom men have committed much, of him they will ask the more.
So there is a great responsibility that we have been given in this hour to be faithful stewards of the things that God has revealed to us both the ministry and the laity – this is the true wealth and talents that God has given into our trust and we must not let these things slip from us as they did in the Ephesian church age.
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So we know that the seven church ages was God changing his mask from the flesh manifestation of Jesus Christ into the bride manifestation of the elect of seven church ages.
***From last week we learnt that the seven golden candle sticks (the Menorah) was made out of one lump of gold, and gold represents deity which we know is God himself, so the seven golden candle sticks was showing us that God was going to reveal himself in another form of a many membered bride body (called the bride of Jesus Christ) from one lump of deity now changing its form and spreading itself out into many member body of seven church ages, each person to come forth in their age to make up their part of the body of Christ under their messenger.
***All that was poured into Christ was now being poured into the church over a seven church ages period until right at the end time there would be a bride age and Christ and his bride would be united in marriage as one flesh as in a natural marriage.
EPHESIANS 5:31-32
31 For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and shall be joined unto his wife, and they two shall be one flesh.
32 This is a great mystery: but I speak concerning Christ and the church.
It is the great mystery of the seven church ages in which the bride of Christ was formed and then in the last age when she is complete she is married to Christ by an end time people that become one with the end time message and revelation of the word – they are the ones that join the complete body of the elect of the seven church ages to the headship of the word.
*Down through the seven church ages, God committed the message of each age to faithful men.
II TIMOTHY 2:1-2
1 ¶ Thou therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus.
2 And the things that thou hast heard of me among many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful men, who shall be able to teach others also.
The Elijah spirit was chosen again for this age because it was proven to be a faithful spirit in its service.
THE.FIFTH.SEAL_ JEFF.IN FRIDAY_ 63-0322 (Brother Branham is speaking of the five Elijah’s that God had sent and would send. The first one was the original Elijah, and then Elisha, and then John the Baptist, and then Brother Branham, and then the Elijah that will come to the Jews during the tribulation period)
373-6 {326} Notice, these men are kept alive by God from their original ministry for future service; they served it so well. See? Just think, that spirit of Elijah ministers five times: Moses, two. Watch, keep alive for further service...
God takes his man but not the spirit that he gave to those men, Satin does the same thing, that is why you will always see wicked people and wicked leaders rise up, because these ancient spirits of the devil that possessed some other tyrant down through history are released upon them.
As Satan’s servants are faithful to his bidding of deception and destruction, each bride member is also called to be faithful to the revelation of the word and to remain a virgin to the word that they have received though the messenger that God has sent to them.
171-2 PERGAMEAN.CHURCH.AGE - CHURCH.AGE.BOOK CPT.5
From a little group of the true seed of the Word, God will present Christ with a beloved bride. She is a virgin of His Word. She is a virgin because she knows no man-made creeds or dogmas. By and through the members of the bride will be fulfilled all that was promised of God to be made manifest in the virgin.
***Look at the character of faithfulness and service that Rebekah gave to Eliezer at the well by watering all of his camels; she watered the power that would eventually take her to her unseen bridegroom Isaac.
REVELATION 2:1-5
1 ¶ Unto the angel of the church of Ephesus write; These things saith he that holdeth the seven stars in his right hand, who walketh in the midst of the seven golden candlesticks;
2 I know thy works, and thy labour, and thy patience, and how thou canst not bear them which are evil: and thou hast tried them which say they are apostles, and are not, and hast found them liars:
3 And hast borne, and hast patience, and for my name's sake hast laboured, and hast not fainted.
4 Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love. (their love and faithfulness to the word had begun to wain)
5 Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent.
God will accept repentance from a true heart…
90-2 EPHESIAN.CHURCH.AGE - CHURCH.AGE.BOOK CPT.3
God tells them to REMEMBER. Evidently something had left their minds. They had forgotten something. He told them to turn back in their minds to their point of origin. The origin of the first age was Pentecost. They had fallen from it. They had forgotten the glory and wonder of it. It was time to go back in mind and then in reality (your mind represents your revelation; and so you must be taught and receive the true revelation of the word into your mind first before you can go back to the real faith in your heart).
***People can actually learn the message teachings and terminologies, they can be persuaded into it, but we need it to be made alive to us on the inside of our souls by the new birth, and that take the revelation of the word by the Holy Spirit – how do you know when it’s on the inside? Because you can’t be reasoned out of it, if it is just in your spirit realm because you learnt it, then you could unlearn it by being reasoned out of it by the craftiness and persuasiveness of clever men)
77-1 EPHESIAN.CHURCH.AGE - CHURCH.AGE.BOOK CPT.3
The very name, Ephesus, has a strange compound meaning, "Aimed at", and "Relaxed". The high aspirations of this age that had begun with the fullness of the Spirit, "the depth of God", whereby they were aiming at the high calling of God, began to give way to a less watchful attitude.
366-5 A.RESUME.OF.THE.AGES - CHURCH.AGE.BOOK CPT.10
With these principles in mind we start to trace the church through the various seven ages.
The birth of the church was at Pentecost. As the first Adam was given a bride fresh from the hand of God and was undefiled for a brief span, so was Christ, the last Adam, given a bride pure and fresh at Pentecost; and she remained separate and undefiled for some time.
"And of the rest durst no man join himself to them" (Acts 5:13) and "The Lord added daily such as should be saved." Acts 2:47.
How long this continued we do not know, but one day even as Eve was tempted and seduced by Satan, so the church was contaminated by the entrance of an antichrist spirit.
"And this is that spirit of antichrist whereof ye have heard that it should come and even now already is it in the world." 1 John 4:3.
And Jesus said concerning His bride in that first age, "I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love. Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen and repent." Revelation 2:4-5.
The church was in that first age already a 'fallen woman.' As Satan had gotten to Eve before Adam, even now had Satan seduced the church, the bride of Christ, before the 'marriage supper of the Lamb.' And what specifically was in her midst that caused the fall? What but Revelation 2:6, "THE DEEDS OF THE NICOLAITANES." Already that first age had turned from following the pure Word of God. They turned from God's demand of a church absolutely dependent upon Him (depending entirely upon God to fulfill His Word from start to finish apart from human government) to Nicolaitanism, which is organizing a human government within the church which as all governments do, legislate for the people. They did exactly what Israel did. They took the expediency of human government instead of the Word and the Spirit.
Death had entered. How do we know? Do we not hear the voice of the Spirit raised in that first age for all who will hear, as He is calling. "To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the Tree of Life in the paradise of God." The church had already imbibed too deeply of the tree of death (or the denominational false vine) whose end is the lake of fire. But there are no cherubim with flaming swords to guard the Tree of Life now. God does not now depart from the midst of the church as He departed from Eden. Oh, no, He will ever be in the midst of His church until the final age. And until that time He calls to all to come.
Now please let us be careful here. This message to the angel of the church which is at Ephesus is not a message to the actual local Ephesian church. It is a message to the AGE. And that age had in it the seed of truth and the seed of error exactly as set forth according to the parable of the wheat and the tares. The church ages is the field, and in it are wheat and tares. The false church organized, humanized the government and the Word, and fought the true Christian.
MATTHEW 7:15 (Jesus Speaking)
15 ¶ Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves.
ACTS 20:29-30 (Paul Speaking)
29 For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock.
30 Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them.
**The purpose of the restoration of the word that came at the end of the Old Testament by John the Baptist and the ministry of Jesus was because all the religious groups such as the Pharisees, Sadducees, and Essenes had drifted so far away from the truth by continually adding their own interpretations to the word of God of the Old Testament teachings of Moses and the Prophets, and so the same thing has repeated again and has climaxed in this last age by the many denominations that have also interpreted the word of God of the New Testament by their own ideas and opinions and imaginations, so God has sent a message at this time also for a restoration of the word at the end of the 7 church ages at the end of the New Testament because of man’s false interpretation taking them so far away from the truth.
MATTHEW 17:10-13
10 And his disciples asked him, saying, Why then say the scribes that Elias must first come?
11 And Jesus answered and said unto them, Elias truly shall first come, and restore all things (William Branham).
12 But I say unto you, That Elias is come already (John the Baptist), and they knew him not, but have done unto him whatsoever they listed. Likewise shall also the Son of man suffer of them.
13 Then the disciples understood that he spake unto them of John the Baptist.
THE.THIRD.SEAL_ JEFF.IN WEDNESDAY_ 63-0320
252-1 {176} Now, notice, now, and here we are at the end time. And spiritual Eve, just as nat--as Hebrew Eve was promised... The Hebrew bride was promised the Word to return, and the spiritual bride from Pentecost, when she fell at Nicaea, then she's promised in the last days that the Word will come again.
CHRIST.IS.THE.MYSTERY.OF.GOD.REVEALED_ JEFF.IN V-3 N-7 SUNDAY_ 63-0728
184 "Predestinated!" There's the mystery. He, before Christ or anything else was ever on earth, you see His great mystery, that He chose the Bride. Knowing Eve would fall, from disbelieving the Word, knowing that she would fall; but He would choose a Bride that would not fall, that would hold to that Word regardless of what all the rest of the world had to say about It (Faithful stewards of the Mysteries). They would hold to that Word! They are predestinated to stand there, "the adoption of children by Jesus Christ," predestinated the Church to that great, glorious stand!