Hi Jeff,
I think we all have been in church, that's where we are introduced to God, not in a spiritual sense, but we were taught what the Bible literally says, that Jesus was born of a virgin, came into the world as God. They teach how He was the Messiah, the sacrifice for our sin and died on the cross and raised back to life and went up to the throne of God in heaven. They do teach these basic truths, and I remember coming to a comprehension that this was true, believing there was a God and praying to Him. These are the called, and that is our "first love."
But the traditions and doctrines of man soon take over and then we begin our 'human attempt' at saving our self, making a 'free will' choice of course. This is our spiritual house built on the sand. Or some people don't stay in church and just go back to living in the world. This is how we 'fall away' from our first love, are building our house on sand, either by getting bogged down in serving the church or just go back into the world.
Mat 7:26 And everyone who hears these sayings of Mine and does not do them shall be compared to a foolish man who built his house on the sand.
v. 27 And the rain came down, and the floods came, and the wind blew and beat on that house. And it fell, and great was its fall.
Now if we are called AND CHOSEN, at some point we begin to questions all the lies and all the contradictions the church teaches... God is getting us ready and when He decides it's time, He calls us out of her.
Rev 18:4 And I heard another voice from Heaven, saying, Come out of her, My people, that you may not be partakers of her sins, and that you may not receive of her plagues.
Not a literal voice, but we become so disillusioned by what we realize about the church that we cannot remain there. This is when our house built upon the shifting sand comes crashing down, "it fell" and we are left standing there and then we see what we really are, the beast within.
We are at our lowest point totally confused, dejected by what we see we really are, and actually see that we know nothing about truth, a very rude awakening. But this is what God desires, that we see that 'our' attempt, in the church, to save our self accomplished absolutely nothing good, our eyes are opened. Now He gives us His Holy Spirit, and the process of salvation really begins. We have to shed all the false doctrines, contradictions and all the misconceptions we learned in the church and begin learning His truth, this process goes on for the rest of our lives.
Mat 7:24 Therefore whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock.
v. 25 And the rain came down, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house. And it did not fall, for it was founded on the rock.
Here is another article where Ray speaks on this.
http://bible-truths.com/lake13.html ---------------------
Whenever someone is called of God and he repents, is baptized, confirmed, initiated, or whatever, it is into a church. And sooner or later that particular church will bring you to the point where you will leave your first love for God and turn to the church and its religion as the idol of your heart. God calls His people OUT of the Babylonish System of Religion which has a strangle hold on ‘The Church.’
v
I showed numerous times that all: leave their first love, forsake Jesus, look back, blaspheme, build a spiritual house upon the sand, etc.
It is when John is standing on the sand of the sea that he first sees the wild beast come up out of the sea. Now the questions become: "WHEN did John stand upon the sand in HIS life? WHEN do we stand upon the sand in OUR lives?
Answer: When the spiritual house that we all build falls down with a ‘GREAT FALL.’ When (notice I did not say, ‘IF’)…when our spiritual house built upon the spiritual sand falls, WE ARE LEFT STANDING ON THE SAND OF THE SEA. We are only INCHES above the very sea itself—the masses and multitudes of humanity who do not have any knowledge of God AT ALL. It doesn’t mean that we have no knowledge of God at all at this quandary in our spiritual lives; it just means that we are no closer to God than all the humanity in the sea. Hence, we are not IN the sea, but rather standing on the SAND of the sea where out spiritual house just FELL!
And since God is not only calling some of us but choosing us also, God begins to teach us anew. And the first thing He begins to show us is the WILD BEAST coming up out of the sea that is the CAUSE of our being overcome and the CAUSE of our spiritual house falling! This wild beast will be reckoned with by all humanity sooner or later.
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We will ALL FALL! But afterwards, God "raises us UP AGAIN," and "makes us STAND." And from that time onward we have this sure promise of which we read before, but I want to read again:
"Now unto Him that is able to KEEP YOU FROM FALLING, and to present you FAULTLESS before the presence of His glory with EXCEEDING JOY, To the Only Wise God Our Saviour, be glory and majesty, and dominion and power, both now and ever. Amen" (Jude 124-25)!
When John’s spiritual house built upon the sand fell down, he was left, standing on the sand of the sea by himself alone with God, and it is then and only then, that he is able to see the wild beast that came up out of the sea.
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II Thes. 2:3: "Let no man [‘let not any person,’ RSV, ‘Let no ONE…’] deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a FALLING AWAY first, and that man of sin [Gk: the lawless one] be revealed, the son of perdition [Gk: the one destined for destruction]. Who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God [a god], or that is worshipped; so that he as God sits in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God"
Whenever man builds his spiritual house upon the spiritual sand, his spiritual house will fall. And it is then that God reveals to him the wild beast that comes out of the sea. What does Paul tell us happens when there comes a ‘FALLING AWAY’ first? What follows? When our house on sand falls, what is then revealed? Why "the LAWLESS one" is "REVEALED." When the falling away occurs, then the man of sin, ‘the lawless one’ ‘the one destined for destruction’ is REVEALED.
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The "beast" is you!
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mercy, peace and love
Kat