Guard Your Hearts and Minds
Scripture: 2 Thessalonians 2:7Devotional Series: The Good Shepherd
Teaching: The Good Shepherd pt. 2 (SUN_PM 2021-03-07) by Pastor Star R Scott
The true church is preparing herself for that soon coming of the Lord. The bride is making herself ready. He’s coming for a church that is without spot or wrinkle or any such thing. This chaste virgin, undefiled, pure as it pertains to the world. How are we doing in this preparation? We’re living in the midst of this rise of this great whore, the apostate religious system. A church that preaches another gospel, a church that is on the broad path, and all of its propaganda that’s going out. Beloved, we don’t like to admit this, but you and I are vexed by it every day. And the more you listen to “Christian” radio and television, the more vexed you become. I hardly listen to any of it anymore. Take heed what you hear, amen? For those of us who are overseers in the church, we are admonished to take heed of how we build upon this foundation that’s been laid—what gospel we bring, the responsibility of seeing that the church is kept pure and chaste in this hour. You have an individual responsibility, and we, as overseers, have a corporate responsibility.
So, we are seeing false teachers arising, as men are no longer wanting to stay in the common faith—no longer, the Scripture says, enduring sound doctrine, so they’re raising teachers to themselves. People are filling auditoriums all over this nation with teachers that they’ve raised up, that they’ve made powerful and famous—men of influence, men of renown. And tragically, many of them are going to hear those words, “I never approved of you. Depart from me, all ye workers of iniquity.” There is a great responsibility on all shepherds. “Take heed to yourself,” Paul said to Timothy, “and your doctrine.”
So, we want to talk about the role of the shepherd in light of these last days and how that ministry gift that God has given to the church is going to become one of the greatest gifts from God to you to preserve you in this hour so that you can stand. And yet, it’s an hour when ministry gifts, spiritual or church authority, are being diminished at a greater rate than ever in the history of the church. And part of it is due to what is presented in 2 Thessalonians 2:7, “For the mystery of iniquity,” or the secret power of lawlessness, “doth already work: only he who now letteth”—that word just talks about restraining. So, let’s read it this way: only he who now restrains will continue to restrain, “until he be taken out of the way.” Now, the restraining power, the thing that’s holding antichrist at bay today is the Holy Spirit alive in His church, amen? The church empowered by the Holy Ghost is what’s holding back the powers of darkness. Now, one of the things that Satan is using is this demonic force, this spirit, this power of lawlessness. We saw lawlessness introduced, as it pertains to man, in the garden when Satan came to Eve. Eve spoke to him and said that the Lord has given us direction, has commanded us not to eat of this fruit; for the moment we do, God said, “You will surely die.” Satan’s response to that was: “You shall not surely die.” The attack on the authority of the Word of God.
So, we are seeing false teachers arising, as men are no longer wanting to stay in the common faith—no longer, the Scripture says, enduring sound doctrine, so they’re raising teachers to themselves. People are filling auditoriums all over this nation with teachers that they’ve raised up, that they’ve made powerful and famous—men of influence, men of renown. And tragically, many of them are going to hear those words, “I never approved of you. Depart from me, all ye workers of iniquity.” There is a great responsibility on all shepherds. “Take heed to yourself,” Paul said to Timothy, “and your doctrine.”
So, we want to talk about the role of the shepherd in light of these last days and how that ministry gift that God has given to the church is going to become one of the greatest gifts from God to you to preserve you in this hour so that you can stand. And yet, it’s an hour when ministry gifts, spiritual or church authority, are being diminished at a greater rate than ever in the history of the church. And part of it is due to what is presented in 2 Thessalonians 2:7, “For the mystery of iniquity,” or the secret power of lawlessness, “doth already work: only he who now letteth”—that word just talks about restraining. So, let’s read it this way: only he who now restrains will continue to restrain, “until he be taken out of the way.” Now, the restraining power, the thing that’s holding antichrist at bay today is the Holy Spirit alive in His church, amen? The church empowered by the Holy Ghost is what’s holding back the powers of darkness. Now, one of the things that Satan is using is this demonic force, this spirit, this power of lawlessness. We saw lawlessness introduced, as it pertains to man, in the garden when Satan came to Eve. Eve spoke to him and said that the Lord has given us direction, has commanded us not to eat of this fruit; for the moment we do, God said, “You will surely die.” Satan’s response to that was: “You shall not surely die.” The attack on the authority of the Word of God.