Mark 08  Servants take Gospel to the Gentiles

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Christ previews His work amongst the Gentile church

Mark deals with Christ as the great Servant. Thus, Mark teaches us much about how we can serve God.

This Chapter actually describes how Jesus will work amongst the Gentiles in the future seven church ages.

Although Jesus is moving amongst Jews in this Chapter, his actions are making a preview of what He intends to do later amongst the Gentiles during the 2000 years of church history.

MARK 8:1   In those days the multitude being very great, and having nothing to eat, Jesus called his disciples unto him, and saith unto them,

The Gentiles were pagans and thus had no true doctrines to feed their souls with in order to get saved.

But there are many Gentiles that need to hear the Gospel as they are spread around the world and have been spread over 2000 years in time.

Jesus called His disciples unto Himself. He is the Word of God. So by coming to Jesus, the disciples were indicating the need to be Scriptural as they had to lay down the doctrines for the future church. All doctrine had to point to Jesus as the Word of God. As soon as we point to some other man, things go wrong. All focus must be on the Word of God.

Hear ye Him, Jesus Christ.

MARK 8:2    I have compassion on the multitude, because they have now been with me three days, and have nothing to eat:

Three days is significant. Three church ages saw the truth of the first church age being lost. Thus the fourth church age was the awful Dark Age.

Then three church ages restored the truth.

The Gentile church had the truth at the beginning, thanks to the apostles. Then the church lost the truth over the next three church ages until they ended up in the disastrous Dark Age of the fourth church age.

Then God was going to feed the church for the last three church ages so that it could be restored back to the truth of the first church age.

Martin Luther, in the fifth age, restored getting saved by faith alone. Then the King James Bible was translated and checked for over 160 years until finally published in 1769.

John Wesley, in the sixth church age, restored holiness and outreach. That laid the foundation for the great missionary age that spread the King James Bible around the world.

Pentecost restored the gifts of the Spirit, and William Branham restored the deep mysteries of Scripture in the seventh church age, which must restore us back to the beliefs of the first church age.

So, the important ages are the last three where the truth gets restored. Especially the last age when the full truth was restored for the first time since the first church age.

MARK 8:3   And if I send them away fasting to their own houses, they will faint by the way: for divers of them came from far.

These natural Jews came from too far away and must not rely on getting their own food from their own homes. The spiritual Jews, the church, were lost far away in pagan customs and could not rely on their own homes (or churches) to find the truth as the churches had moved far away from Scripture. Especially in the seventh church age when Jesus actually stands outside the church. Man-made errors and pagan customs like Christmas, Good Friday, and Trinity are rampant within the church.

MARK 8:4   And his disciples answered him, From whence can a man satisfy these men with bread here in the wilderness?

The wilderness. Today we have 45000 different types of denominations and non-denominational churches and over 100 different versions of the English Bible. One can drift around forever amongst all these differences without any hope of finding or recognizing the truth. A real spiritual wilderness.

“Can a man satisfy these men with bread”. No one man could do it all.

Luther made an improvement and got people to study the Bible.

Wesley revealed more truth about holiness and outreach.

Pentecost added the gifts but denominated in 1917 and lost direction.

Brother Branham restored the truth, but his followers placed his quotes above Scripture by calling him the Son of man and the Voice of God. By misinterpreting his quotes, they have produced over 100 different variations of his message. So, the spiritual wilderness spreads amongst the message-people and their self-exalted pastors. The New Testament never asked us to put a pastor in charge of a church.

There is only one Man, Jesus the Word, Who can give direction. So, we have to take brother Branham’s quotes back to Scripture and prove our beliefs just by using the King James Version of the Bible. Only by quoting the Bible can we find direction as the Scripture inspires us to return to the beliefs of the first church age. They established the New Testament Scriptures.

MARK 8:5   And he asked them, How many loaves have ye? And they said, Seven.

Bread is a symbol of doctrine. There are seven loaves for the Gentiles. One loaf for each of the seven church ages.

Each church age had the fresh manna for that age, under the guidance of the messenger to that age. The Greek word “angelos”, which we translate as angel means a messenger.

MARK 8:6   And he commanded the people to sit down on the ground: and he took the seven loaves, and gave thanks, and brake, and gave to his disciples to set before them; and they did set them before the people.

Sit where you are. Bloom where you are planted. Gentiles had to serve God in whichever church age they were planted in. They had to serve God in whatever circumstances, good or bad that they found themselves in. Each church age had to move in a certain direction. Our last church age has to believe that the King James Bible is totally infallible and that we must return to the beliefs of the New Testament church.

Jesus did not give any bread to the people.

He broke the bread, which means He imparted an understanding of the Scriptures so that it could be eaten and digested and understood. He gave it to the disciples. The disciples put it before the people. Truth went from Jesus to the disciples and then to the people.

Jesus spoke to the disciples. Later, Paul, Mark, Luke, and Jude also became disciples. These disciples explained the New Testament doctrines and the people had to listen to these disciples. The Word was often written in a clever code that depended on you knowing the meaning of the symbols and the patterns. People needed a messenger to their age to reveal those deeper mysteries.

The disciples laid the New Testament before the people as the written Word.

But the people have to believe that what they wrote is the perfect and infallible truth because they got it from Jesus.

And there are no mistakes in Jesus. And if Jesus is the Word, then there are no mistakes in the Word.

The people had to make this crucial decision. Is the King James Bible the Absolute or not?

In this last age church-goers do not believe in a perfect Bible as they just change words to suit their theories.

Changing Scripture crucifies Christ.

MARK 8:7   And they had a few small fishes: and he blessed, and commanded to set them also before them.

Fishes swim out of sight under the water. A symbol of a persecuted church. Especially when tens of millions were killed in the Dark Ages.

Small fishes. True believers have often been in small groups. Staying unnoticed, rejected and out of sight spares them from the character assassination and accusations employed by the well-known churches.

MARK 8:8   So they did eat, and were filled: and they took up of the broken meat that was left seven baskets.

Now we get to the interesting part. Meat and bread represent doctrine. The Jews ate and then rejected or threw away seven baskets full of rejected scraps. This symbolized the Jews rejecting the Gospel that the disciples were offering them.

These rejected scraps were collected into 7 baskets by the disciples. This symbolizes the Gospel being rejected by the Jews, but this rejected Gospel was collected by the disciples who wrote it as the New Testament and packaged it for the seven church ages. The Jews rejected the New Testament but the New Testament saved the church during the seven church ages.

The Jews also went through 7 ages just like the church

MARK 8:9   And they that had eaten were about four thousand: and he sent them away.

What does the four thousand mean?

The Law is an outline or shadow of Grace.

The outline of the 7 church ages can be traced through 7 major Hebrew men. The seven Jewish ages, like the 7 church ages, also covered about 2000 years.

The first age was Abraham leaving his wife Sarah to produce Ishmael with Hagar. That produced the Arabs and the Muslim faith which is still a major enemy to the Jews.

REVELATION 2:4   Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast

left thy first love.

The second age saw Joseph being thrown into prison.

REVELATION 2:10   Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer: behold, the devil shall cast some of you into prison, that ye may be tried;

In the third age, Moses was the messenger and he was opposed by Balaam.

REVELATION 2:14   But I have a few things against thee, because thou hast there them that hold the doctrine of Balaam,

The fourth age saw Elijah as the messenger, and he had to combat the dominating woman Jezebel (Thyatira means a dominating woman).

REVELATION 2:20   Notwithstanding I have a few things against thee, because thou sufferest that woman Jezebel, which calleth herself a prophetess, to teach…

Israel finally ended up in captivity to Babylon.

That completed the original Word getting lost over the first four Jewish ages.

Fifth age.  Ezra restored the treasure to the Temple.

Martin Luther restored the treasure of the Bible, salvation by grace through faith.

Sixth age. Nehemiah built a strong wall to protect Jerusalem and the Temple.

John Wesley restored holiness and outreach, which opened up the Door of missionary work. This was the strength of Christianity.

Age seven. John the Baptist introduced Jesus as a Man walking amongst men.

William Branham introduced Jesus as the revealed Word of God, walking through the pages of the Word.

The outline of the 7 church ages in the lives of the Hebrews in the Old Testament took about 2000 years.

Then the fulfillment of the seven church ages in the lives of the Bride, based on the Old Testament outline, took another 2000 years.

Then the 7 Thunders teach the Bride how to receive their new bodies. Once the Bride are in their glorified bodies, then the seven church ages are over.

2000 + 2000 = 4000 years

The fact that 4000 ate links this miracle to the 4000 years that pertained to the true church, the Bride.

The Bride eats the rejected scraps of the New Testament Gospel that the Jews threw away.

In the end, the Bride eats the revealed Word that most of the message-churches threw away because they built their beliefs on interpreting quotes. These message-churches rejected the opportunity of using the quotes to reveal the deeper mysteries of Scripture.

MARK 8:9   And they that had eaten were about four thousand: and he sent them away.

The Jews ate, then rejected seven baskets of scraps, and were sent away.

“Sent away”. Symbolizing God sending the Jews away for rejecting the Gospel. The Jews rejected Jesus as a Man at Calvary.

“Sent away” into great Tribulation will apply to the Gentile churches at the end for rejecting the revelation of the deep mysteries of the Word of God. Thus, all the churches, including the message-churches, become more and more Bible-illiterate as they cannot prove their beliefs just from Scripture.

Jesus travels north and south of Galilee to Gentiles

Jesus was very active.

He had traveled up to the region of Tyre and Sidon as that was Gentile territory. This was a preview of His move to the Gentiles during the seven church ages.

MARK 7:31   And again, departing from the coasts of Tyre and Sidon, he came unto the sea of Galilee, through the midst of the coasts of Decapolis.

Then Jesus moved south of the  Sea of Galilee and came up to the southern coast of the Sea of Galilee through the territory of the ten cities, the Decapolis, which was Gentile territory to the south of the Sea of Galilee. Decapolis lay mainly on the right-hand side (Eastern side) of the Jordan River.

It was somewhere on the south coast of the Sea of Galilee that He fed the 4000.

From Gentile Tyre to Gentile Decapolis, Jesus stayed in Gentile territory. A preview of the future church ages.

MARK 8:10   And straightway he entered into a ship with his disciples, and came into the parts of Dalmanutha.

“Straightway”. This defines Jesus as a Servant. Unable to waste time. Always moving on in His ministry.

Dalmanutha means a Branch in Hebrew.

The position of Dalmanutha is uncertain. We just know that it is a region in the vicinity of the town of Magdala.

Matthew describes this as follows.

MATTHEW 15:39   And he sent away the multitude, and took ship, and came into the coasts of Magdala.

Using the word Dalmanutha, a branch, Mark puts the emphasis on the branched candlestick of the seven church ages.

Each of the Gentile church ages refers to a branch of the candlestick in the Tabernacle.

This picture shows the first church age that had the truth.

The territory of Dalmanutha is a little uncertain, and equally, the true Gentile church has usually been rather uncertain as far as the world is concerned. The world keeps looking at the official churches and the megachurches. These are decoys. They help to keep the true believers unnoticed.

Matthew refers to this region as the coast of Magdala. Mary Magdalene came from this area.

Mary Magdalene is a strong type of the Bride during the seven church ages.

As a woman, she represents the church. She had 7 devils cast out of her. That symbolizes the 7 church ages where God had to cast out the pagan demons from each church age.

Mary Magdalene. MM. Her first initial and her last initial are the same. Symbolizing the last church age getting back to the first church age. Thus Jesus, having fed the 4000, now puts a strong emphasis again on the 7 church ages. More importantly, the initials MM focus attention on the last church age re-discovering the hidden truths of the first church age. The first and last church ages must believe exactly the same.

The eagle of Revelation Chapter 4 represents the seventh church age. The eagle restores us to the first church age of the lion.

MATTHEW 15:39   And he sent away the multitude, and took ship, and came into the coasts of Magdala.

Magdala, the home of Mary Magdalene. She is a symbol of the church in the seven church ages.

Big crowds are difficult to work with.

Jesus sent them away. Jesus prefers to deal with the Gentiles as individuals.

Church leaders want to correct the Bible

MARK 8:11   And the Pharisees came forth, and began to question with him, seeking of him a sign from heaven, tempting him.

The real enemy of the truth, in the end, is the one-man-church-heads.

Pharisees were the church leaders of those days. But there was no Scripture for Pharisees in the Old Testament. There is no Scripture for a priest or reverend or pastor as the head of a New Testament church.

The Pharisees represent the dismal state of the church leaders at the end-time who are just as keen as the Pharisees to criticize and condemn the Word in order to maintain their unscriptural headship of the churches.

They were not really seeking a sign. They were tempting Jesus to do something so that they could accuse Him. Thus, they were very insincere. They wanted to get rid of Jesus because He was a threat to their unscriptural position. Modern preachers get away from Scripture because their bright ideas do not fit into the Scripture. So they ignore or change the Scripture.

The aim of these religious leaders was to correct Jesus. Modern preachers endlessly seek to correct the King James Version of the Bible. They have mediocre intellects but enormous pretensions.

MARK 8:12   And he sighed deeply in his spirit, and saith, Why doth this generation seek after a sign? verily I say unto you, There shall no sign be given unto this generation.

These leaders had seen the miracles of Jesus. Yet they had hardened their hearts and could not believe that He was the Messiah. Their unbelief made Him groan inwardly.

The only sign would be His death and resurrection. But the Pharisees demanded His death and thus would refuse to believe in His resurrection. They preferred to believe that the disciples had stolen His body. Thus they would totally miss the supernatural sign. As such, their generation would not see a sign.

MARK 8:13   And he left them, and entering into the ship again departed to the other side. 

Jesus left Bethsaida and fed the 5000 at the beginning of His journey. Now he was leaving Magdala as He prepared to sail back to Bethsaida. Thus He would finish His journey where He started. This symbolized the Gentile church ages, where the end church age of the Laodiceans must be restored back to the first church age of Ephesus, where the church started.

Those who build their faith on some sign have made a big mistake.

These Pharisees wanted a sign for their day, and Jesus, the Word, left them. Looking for a sign to build up some doctrine on is very wrong.

Many message-people claimed that the 1963 supernatural Cloud was the coming down of the Angel of Revelation Chapter 10.

But the Angel has to perform the resurrection of the New Testament saints.

They forgot that the 1963 Cloud stayed at the height of about 26 miles for the 28 minutes that it was visible just after sunset. It never came down.

Thus error corrupts the truth when people mistake a sign.

64-0119  SHALOM

When that Angel, of Revelation the 10th chapter, puts one foot on land and one on the sea, and a rainbow over His head, He swore, "time shall be no more." When that time comes, you'll rise up from among the dead. While the rest of them lay there, you'll go in.

Bread represents doctrine

MARK 8:14   Now the disciples had forgotten to take bread, neither had they in the ship with them more than one loaf.

The disciples could only see the natural bread. They did not realize that it represented doctrine.

MARK 8:15   And he charged them, saying, Take heed, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, and of the leaven of Herod.

Leaven refers to the future corrupting influences of false unscriptural doctrines in the church. The Pharisees were the unscriptural heads of the synagogues (the Jewish churches). Pharisees are not mentioned in the Old Testament.

MARK 8:16   And they reasoned among themselves, saying, It is because we have no bread.

The disciples kept thinking of natural bread.

If we are to understand Scripture, then we must open our minds to the deeper spiritual beliefs.

MARK 8:17   And when Jesus knew it, he saith unto them, Why reason ye, because ye have no bread? perceive ye not yet, neither understand? have ye your heart yet hardened?

They had just seen two great miracles concerning bread. Feeding 5000 then 4000.

MARK 8:18   Having eyes, see ye not? and having ears, hear ye not? and do ye not remember?

We see with our natural eyes, but we cannot see the deeper spiritual truth of an event.

MARK 8:19   When I brake the five loaves among five thousand, how many baskets full of fragments took ye up? They say unto him, Twelve.

MARK 8:20   And when the seven among four thousand, how many baskets full of fragments took ye up? And they said, Seven.

MARK 8:21   And he said unto them, How is it that ye do not understand?

The Jews rejected the New Testament Gospel, because the Pharisees, the religious leaders, told the Jews to reject Jesus.

The twelve baskets of rejected scraps referred to the rejected Gospel going back to the 12 tribes of Israel during great Tribulation.

The seven baskets of rejected scraps refer to the Gentiles believing the rejected New Testament during the seven church ages.

But that was all part of God’s Plan. The Jews rejecting the Gospel enabled the rejected Gospel to go to the Gentiles and redeem a Bride for Jesus. Then the church would reject the revealed mysteries and these mysteries would return to the 12 tribes of Israel during great Tribulation.

These 144000 Jews will be the protectors of the Bride.

A blind man symbolizes the Gentiles

MARK 8:22   And he cometh to Bethsaida; and they bring a blind man unto him, and besought him to touch him.

Bethsaida was where the journey started. Then Jesus fed the 5000. He went to Tyre and the south coast of the Sea of Galilee to feed the 4000. Then he sailed to Magdala and then back to Bethsaida.

The journey ended where it began, in Bethsaida. The beginning and the ending are the same. The last church age returns to the first church age.

The Gentile church is blind in the last church age, at the end, because Jesus Christ is the Light, and He stands outside the church door knocking.

REVELATION 3:14   And unto the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write;

:17   ... and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind,

:20    Behold, I stand at the door, and knock:

MARK 8:23   And he took the blind man by the hand, and led him out of the town; and when he had spit on his eyes, and put his hands upon him, he asked him if he saw ought.

The town symbolized the group or church where the blind man was living.

Jesus had to take him out of the town. If we want to see the Word, we have to get out of the church because Jesus, the Word, stands outside the church.

Spit came from the mouth of God. A connection between the eyes of a man and the mouth of God.

Our spiritual eyes must only see what is spoken by the mouth of God, which is His Word, the King James Bible.

Today, we believers have to learn to put our faith in what the Bible says, not what the church or the pastor says. We have to get away from church influences and family influences. We have to become Bible-influenced. We have to see things for ourselves from Scripture. We must be able to prove our beliefs just from Scripture. We must not just think that we have to follow the church's beliefs because each church is different. So which one is right? Any of them? No. That is why Jesus took the man out of the town.

MARK 8:24   And he looked up, and said, I see men as trees, walking.

A tree represents the spirit of man.

PSALM 1:1   Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful.

:2     But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night.

:3     And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water,

that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.

The blind man had been given his spiritual eyesight. Anything not connected to the rivers of water of the Word would appear as a dead tree. An unsaved spirit.

The blind man had been given a great gift of discernment. The spirit of an unsaved man would look to him like a dead and dried-up tree.

William Branham as the messenger to the seventh church age was given a tremendous gift of discernment. He could discern the thoughts of the people during the last church age.

He was also able to discern the deeper revelations that are hidden behind the symbols and patterns of the Bible. These deeper revelations must restore the Bride back to the beliefs of the first church age of the apostles.

MARK 8:25   After that he put his hands again upon his eyes, and made him look up: and he was restored, and saw every man clearly.

Then Jesus touched him again and his natural vision was restored to him.

Jesus can restore both natural eyesight and a deep spiritual insight.

MARK 8:26   And he sent him away to his house, saying, Neither go into the town, nor tell it to any in the town.

Jesus sent him to his true home (a home church like the first church age had), which was not in the town (a symbol of a group that builds a separate church building in order to have a bigger church group. Historians cannot find a separate church building before the year AD 220.)

The first church age never had separate church buildings. Only those Christians who were in Jerusalem could use the Temple, but that was destroyed in AD 70.

You have to get out of the church to get your true insight into the Scripture, and then do not return to the church because they will not be able to understand what you are talking about. Each church is utterly convinced that they have the full truth, and they cannot tolerate anybody who disagrees with them.

Every church rejects any person who tries to correct them.

Jesus only works with individuals

MARK 8:27   And Jesus went out, and his disciples, into the towns of Caesarea Philippi: and by the way he asked his disciples, saying unto them, Whom do men say that I am?

Caesar was the great Dictator of Rome. Philip was the great king of the Greeks who was the father of Alexander the Great, the greatest conqueror of the Western world.

This described the history of the Roman Catholic church. It would rise to conquer the churches of Europe and then of the world. They established the dictatorship of a priest over each church. This organizational blueprint moved on to the Protestants, where a reverend or a pastor became the dominating head of each church. The Pope then became the only dictator in Europe. Eventually, the Pope will rule the world churches as that man of sin.

Then he will be the cruel world Dictator as the son of perdition, the son from Hell.

II THESSALONIANS 2:3   Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;

So, Jesus went to the region that was named after the greatest Gentile Roman, Julius Caesar, who had become Pontiff of the Babylonian mystery priesthood in 63 BC. The present Pope in Rome is still the Pontiff.

Then Jesus asked what these men in Caesarea Philippi said about him.

MARK 8:28   And they answered, John the Baptist: but some say, Elias; and others, One of the prophets.

The disciples immediately gave all sorts of answers. Human opinions are always varied. This man says this, and that man says that. That is why there are 45000 different kinds of denominations and non-denominational churches today because the leaders of each church have different opinions. Yet each claims that he alone is right and all the others are wrong. A complete swamp. Message pastors also have many different opinions and thus have produced over 100 different kinds of message beliefs. Again, each message pastor claims that he is right and all the others are wrong. The spiritual swamp spreads.

The disciples were happy to say what other people thought.

But Jesus wanted to know what they, as individuals, thought.

MARK 8:29   And he saith unto them, But whom say ye that I am? And Peter answereth and saith unto him, Thou art the Christ.

Suddenly the disciples were silent, except for Peter. Peter had discerned the truth about Jesus, that He was the Christ, the Messiah.

MARK 8:30   And he charged them that they should tell no man of him.

Jesus knew that when the Jewish leaders realized that He was the Messiah, they would do their best to kill Him.

Jesus, as the true Word, had to be rejected and killed by the Jewish leaders. But He would resurrect after three days.

He would die on Thursday and be buried. He would stay buried on Friday and Saturday. After those three days, He would rise on Sunday.

MARK 8:31   And he began to teach them, that the Son of man must suffer many things, and be rejected of the elders, and of the chief priests, and scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again.

This happened again to Jesus as the Word of God. The Nicene Council of AD 325 killed the love of Bible truth. Scriptural accuracy was buried in the dirt and unbelief of the Dark Ages. By then Trinity, Good Friday, Christmas, 25 December, Lent, one man is the head of a church, and the belief that there is no perfect Bible had taken over people's minds. Then after 3 days (or the 3 church ages of Luther, Wesley, and Pentecost), the original truth of the first church age was restored by William Branham. This was the resurrection of the revealed Bible truths out of the deadly unbelief and errors of the Dark Ages.

But when Jesus mentioned his death, Peter rebuked Jesus.

MARK 8:32   And he spake that saying openly. And Peter took him, and began to rebuke him.

The mistake that we humans make is that we think we can change the Word in certain places.

Peter grabbed the Word (Jesus) and put his interpretation on what the Word said. Peter basically disagreed with the Word by disagreeing with Jesus.

Jesus was looking at Peter until Peter began to disagree with Him. Then Jesus turned about.

If you disagree with any verse in the King James Bible (which tells us the thoughts of Jesus), then Jesus turns His back on you and leaves you.

MARK 8:33   But when he had turned about and looked on his disciples, he rebuked Peter, saying, Get thee behind me, Satan: for thou savourest not the things that be of God, but the things that be of men.

Jesus called Peter the Devil. Jesus is the Word. If you disagree with Scripture, then you are a devil.

Men like to disagree with Scripture. Thus you become very popular with people when you contradict Scripture.

Peter had just declared that Jesus was the Christ or Messiah.  Then Peter messed up Big Time. Getting something right makes us arrogant, and then we easily fail.

Only the Devil will contradict or change the Word of God.

This is an important lesson that all servants of God need to learn.

Men love changing the Bible to suit their opinions, but we must never dare to do that.

If we love the things of God, then we will stay Scriptural.

Basic rules for Christian servants

MARK 8:34   And when he had called the people unto him with his disciples also, he said unto them, Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.

Take up your cross. Life will have many hardships. You were put in those circumstances for a reason. Overcome.

Deny yourself. Your own opinion is worthless. Be Scriptural.

Follow after Christ. Follow whatever the King James Bible says.

MARK 8:35   For whosoever will save his life shall lose it; but whosoever shall lose his life for my sake and the gospel's, the same shall save it.

If you compromise or deny truth to save your job or your relationship with someone, you will end up losing your place in the Bride.

But if you are prepared to lose your popularity and your life for what the Holy Spirit reveals to you, then the same Holy Spirit will grant you eternal life on the other side.

You must focus on the end goal, which is Heaven.

Do not be distracted by short-term material or selfish gains.

MARK 8:36   For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?

The final Pope, the man of sin, will eventually rule the whole world during the 3.5 years of great Tribulation. Then he will be sent to Hell and the Lake of Fire.

So, was his brief chance of ruling the whole world really worth it?

MARK 8:37   Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?

Your soul is your most valuable possession. That is the part of you that can believe. That is the part of you that places you above the animals.

The Word of God is a seed that grows in the garden of the soul when it is watered by the Holy Spirit.

LUKE 8:11   Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God.

JEREMIAH 31:13   ... and their soul shall be as a watered garden; and they shall not sorrow any more at all.

JOHN 7:38   He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water.

:39   (But this spake he of the Spirit, which they that believe on him should receive:

The seed Word can only grow in the faith of a believing soul.

Our bodies will only please God when they are controlled by the Word of God.

I CORINTHIANS 15:38    But God giveth it a body as it hath pleased him,

and to every seed his own body.

Controlled by the Word, our bodies become part of the Temple of God, part of the Body of Christ. Part of the true Church.

HEBREWS 10:39But we are not of them who draw back unto perdition;

but of them that believe to the saving of the soul.

MARK 8:38   Whosoever therefore shall be ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation; of him also shall the Son of man be ashamed, when he cometh in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.

We have to stand up for every word that is written in the Bible. Otherwise, we are not fit to preach the Scriptures.

If men oppose what is written in Scripture, then we must defend, "It is written."

We must believe and love whatever is written in the King James Bible.

We must be flexible and move on as truth is revealed.

Prayer and Bible study never cease.

MATTHEW 7:7   Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you:

Spiritual success is not owned, it is leased, and you pay the rent every day.