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The Sword of Division:
"And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God." (Revelation 19:15) The book of Daniel relates what part of the mission of the Messiah was to be: "...And when he shall have accomplished to scatter the power of the holy people, all these things shall be finished." (Daniel 12:7) The book of Revelation tells us that people at the end will be singing the Song of Moses, of Deuternomy chapter 32. The Song of Moses reiterates God's intention to divide the "holy people": "For the LORD shall judge his people, and repent himself for his servants, when he seeth that their power is gone, and there is none shut up, or left." (Deuteronomy 32:36) Jesus knew the divisive effect that His Word would have on people over these last nearly 2,000 years. It is God's will that we be divided, so that in the end we can see our failings for ourselves. "Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword." (Matthew 10:34 KJV) "I am come to send fire on the earth; and what will I, if it be already kindled? But I have a baptism to be baptized with; and how am I straitened till it be accomplished! Suppose ye that I am come to give peace on earth? I tell you, Nay; but rather division..." (Luke 12:49-51 KJV) Over the centuries since Jesus was crucified, Christians filled with the Holy Spirit have founded many Christian denominations and groups because of the truths they have been led to by the Words of Jesus. Why? "...If a house be divided against itself, that house cannot stand. And if Satan rise up against himself, and be divided, he cannot stand, but hath an end." (Mark 3:25-26 KJV) ...So that we could learn for ourselves that we need God in our midst in order to live in peace. Imagine that you are a new born-again Christian and, after being inspired to study Jesus' teachings, you have found 'new light' - a new understanding of His meaning. You grow unsatisfied with your own church when they refuse to consider what you have found - which nearly all churches will do in order to protect their own doctrines. Your only option, then, is to start a new church - a church based on your new light from Jesus. Some Examples: Here are some examples of Jesus' words that have served as a basis for the doctrine of specific Christian denominations: "I tell you, in that night there shall be two men in one bed; the one shall be taken, and the other shall be left. Two women shall be grinding together; the one shall be taken, and the other left. Two men shall be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left." (Luke 17:34-37 KJV) With the above verse, one could create a church based upon the 'Rapture'. Or... "And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham's bosom: the rich man also died, and was buried; And in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame." (Luke 16:22-24 KJV) ...Create a church where people are tormented in an eternal fiery hell, or marooned in a lonely purgatory from which they could not escape of themselves. Or... "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? Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall find so doing. Of a truth I say unto you, that he will make him ruler over all that he hath." (Luke 12:42-44 KJV) Here one could create a church where only certain 'faithful' people are allowed to direct how your entire church studies the Bible . Churches founded on all of the above doctrines exist today. Finding a new basis for doctrine in Jesus' Gospel is not difficult... He gave us many of His Words specifically for that purpose, so that the Gospel could be spread without any "super-religion" controlling the interpretation of the Word of God ever again. That has been exactly the result, especially since the printing press has made His Word available to all. Over 33,000 different Christian groups exist today! (David Barrett et al, World Christian Encyclopedia). Yet, nearly every one of these groups also carries the Gospel in its purity, as Jesus Himself preached it: That is His Gospel truth, and men have preached it - although along with a lot of their own doctrinal leaven searched out and patched together through self-exaltation - known as religion. For the Plan of Salvation, with belief in Jesus at its core, God told us: "Wherefore the Lord said, Forasmuch as this people draw near me with their mouth, and with their lips do honour me, but have removed their heart far from me, and their fear toward me is taught by the precept of men: Therefore, behold, I will proceed to do a marvellous work among this people, even a marvellous work and a wonder: for the wisdom of their wise men shall perish, and the understanding of their prudent men shall be hid." (Isaiah 29:13-14 KJV) Paul put it best: "For it is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and will bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent. Where is the wise? where is the scribe? where is the disputer of this world? hath not God made foolish the wisdom of this world? "For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe." (1 Corinthians 1:19-21 KJV) In other words, God, this time (since Jesus crucifixion), is going to use those who wish to preach. He will use this method in order to get His real truth through to those who will listen, regardless of what else is preached at the same time. The important thing is that all Christian preachers build on the correct foundation, which is Jesus Christ. What has this meant? Unlike in Old Testament times when Israel could not keep from going astray, and thus could not be the light of the world they were intended to be, since the period of the New Testament many have participated in spreading the Gospel in part for their own vanity's sake. And so the Gospel spread far and wide by people committing the original sin of Satan himself: self-exaltation! James helped them along with a promise that... "Let him know, that he which converteth the sinner from the error of his way shall save a soul from death, and shall hide a multitude of sins." (James 5:20 KJV) Combined with Jesus' use of parables, similes, and prophetic metaphor, there was much for these vain preachers to bite into in order to create new doctrine when they were so moved. Eventually all of this preaching, and doctrines of vanity, created a complex metaphoric vine rooted in the BRANCH of Salvation. Paul, again, explains what will happen to these preachers, actually meaning all who preach their own version of the Gospel: "For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ. Now if any man build upon this foundation gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble; Every man's work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man's work of what sort it is. If any man's work abide which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward. If any man's work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire." (1 Corinthians 3:11-15 KJV) Those who have preached literal hellfire to their congregations will suffer loss too. The twoedged sword is the God of Jesus speaking His Word to us as we read it. "But with righteousness shall he judge the poor, and reprove with equity for the meek of the earth: and he shall smite the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips shall he slay the wicked." (Isaiah 11:4) The impact of His teachings on the world that he created has been awesome. No earthly king has been able to hold us down, for our Heavenly King gave even the least of us a strength of self-worth with the preaching of His awesome Love. The twoedged sword has also affected His people in a different way...
It is 2004 and in the comfort of your home you read the following verse from the Book of Psalms:
Let the high
praises of God be in their mouth, An inspiring verse! Today we are aware of the meaning of the above. When what Ellen White called the 'Church Militant' is to switch over to acting as the 'Church Triumphant', we shall march out as Jesus' Legions to prepare the Lord of Armies' Harvest for Him, using the Sword of His Word to execute Truth upon the lies of Satan that are now exposed. Now imagine again! The year is 1096, and you are a brave Knight of France. The recent speech of Pope Urban II speaks to your bravery and valor: "The noble race of Franks must come to the aid their fellow Christians in the East...", he says, "God Wills It!". CRUSADE! In patriotic fervor, you recruit your army, and you are off to Constantinople. You take along a verse from Psalms. You are hoping it will inspire your men during the long march:
Let the high
praises of God be in their mouth, You see the difference... It's the same Psalm, but representing a different sword in different hands, and in a different historical context. Welcome to the Plan of Salvation. Our Commander is the King Of Kings and Lord Of Lords... "Behold, I have given him for a witness to the people, a leader and commander to the people." (Isaiah 55:4 KJV) Our earth's Shepherd who wields the Rod of Iron... and Staff that comforts us... Our friend Jesus.
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is how the Bible describes the Word of Jesus' teachings to us: