Perplexity
Luke 21:25 “And there will be signs in the sun, in the moon, and in the stars; and on the earth distress of nations, with perplexity, the sea and the waves roaring;
The return of Jesus is perplexing in the natural. The nations are distressed, along with all the other events, but Jesus promised it would all be with "perplexity." It isn't clear why the nations are doing what they are doing. It isn't clear how God's people should respond. It actually requires studying the end time events to see clearly.
Main Entry: per·plex
Pronunciation: \pər-ˈpleks\
Function: verb
1 : to make unable to grasp something clearly or to think logically and decisively about something <her attitude perplexes me> <a perplexing problem> 2 : to make intricate or involved :
This is promised to be a significant part of the end times in NUMEROUS places in the Bible:
Isaiah 22:5, 11-14 For it is a day of trouble and treading down and perplexity By the Lord God of hosts In the Valley of Vision— Breaking down the walls And of crying to the mountain. ...
Later on this this same end time passage, Isaiah reveals what comes out of the confusion: trusting in physical strength and logic instead of doing the simple thing, which is agreeing with God about what HE is doing, which is calling the earth to himself by ALLOWING the trouble to drive people to make HIM the solution.
...You also made a reservoir between the two walls For the water of the old pool. But you did not look to its Maker, Nor did you have respect for Him who fashioned it long ago. And in that day the Lord God of hosts Called for weeping and for mourning, For baldness and for girding with sackcloth. But instead, joy and gladness, Slaying oxen and killing sheep, Eating meat and drinking wine: “Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die!” Then it was revealed in my hearing by the Lord of hosts, “Surely for this iniquity there will be no atonement for you, Even to your death,” says the Lord God of hosts.
In the hour that perplexity flourishes, people will begin dividing, even in families. In this next prophecy from Micah, the Lord says "you need to fix your gaze on me to make it through." God says the "watchmen"...those leaders everyone has gotten used to trusting...will be perplexed...they won't see clearly. This is describing false prophets misleading (because they are perplexed) the people to trust in man rather than fix their gaze on God.
Not knowing what Jesus is doing because your favorite teacher doesn't know is not a valid excuse. God warns of this end time dynamic over and over. The one thing you need right now is an abiding, ongoing, conversation with Jesus. If you don't hear Him, priority number one should be learning to do that.
God says "don't even trust your closest family to tell you what to think, come near to Me...learn to hear from Me":
Micah 7:2-7 The faithful man has perished from the earth, And there is no one upright among men. They all lie in wait for blood; Every man hunts his brother with a net. That they may successfully do evil with both hands— The prince asks for gifts, The judge seeks a bribe, And the great man utters his evil desire; So they scheme together. The best of them is like a brier; The most upright is sharper than a thorn hedge; The day of your watchman and your punishment comes; Now shall be their perplexity. Do not trust in a friend; Do not put your confidence in a companion; Guard the doors of your mouth From her who lies in your bosom. For son dishonors father, Daughter rises against her mother, Daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law; A man’s enemies are the men of his own household. Therefore I will look to the Lord ; I will wait for the God of my salvation; My God will hear me.
Jesus warned about this same dynamic. He said as tribulation unfolded that many believers, because they didn't understand the plans of Jesus would become offended with each other, they would betray each other, and the love of many would grow cold. This is the "falling away" that MUST happen:
Matthew 24:9-14 “Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations for My name’s sake. And then many will be offended, will betray one another, and will hate one another. Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many. And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold. But he who endures to the end shall be saved. And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come.
This must happen, because Jesus is allowing the trouble to see who picks Him as the solution to the trouble of the day. The 7-years of tribulation is designed by God to TEST all people:
Revelation 3:10 Because you have kept My command to persevere, I also will keep you from the hour of trial which shall come upon the whole world, to test those who dwell on the earth. (this is a very specific promise to the people who use the key of David to protect their geographic location)
The testing has already begun. God is allowing evil men to get their way more and more. This is creating the conditions that require all people to choose their solution. Many Christian leaders are saying either "God will remove you, don't worry" or "we need this group empowered to protect us". These are both concepts that disagree with the main and plain truth of the end times.
Perplexity is increasing. It will only get harder to choose correctly. Many watchmen that the church has gotten used to relying on are failing...they are perplexed and reverting to human logic rather than the truth of God's Word.
One of the reasons the hour is perplexing is that Jesus is sifting...shaking...the earth. this is a harvest analogy. Sifting, or threshing, is the act of throwing the whole lump up in the air and letting just the right wind blow everything that doesn't belong out of the pile. Heaven is coming to earth. Jesus isn't surrendering the earth to satan, He is bundling up the wheat and tares so the tares will get burned up and the wheat will inhabit the earth! (Matthew 13). This will result in great harvest, but also a great falling away. The falling away MUST happen:
II Thessalonians 2:1-3 Now, brethren, concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together to Him, we ask you, not to be soon shaken in mind or troubled, either by spirit or by word or by letter, as if from us, as though the day of Christ had come. Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day will not come unless the falling away comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition,
The falling away must come because Jesus is going to get a pure and spotless Bride. There will be no other kind of Bride. Holiness matters, not to save you, but to give you the right foundation to endure the storm being used to sift the earth:
Matthew 7:24-27 “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: and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it did not fall, for it was founded on the rock. “But everyone who hears these sayings of Mine, and does not do them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand: and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it fell. And great was its fall.”
This urgency to respond to the hour of human history that we live in with holiness, understanding, faith, and pressing in to agree with God about the very specific events of Revelation...it divides couples, families, churches, and cities...but this division is called "sanctification." Sanctification means "set apart in holiness."
Sanctification is the answer to the trouble of the day. Jesus laid out the whole plan to His disciples at the last supper:
1. Those loyal to the truth of the Word would be hated by all nations.
2. Those hated ones would be protected by allowing themselves to be set apart together (unity by division)
3. They would go into the world and save any who wanted truth.
4. The more they stuck to the truth together, the more they would be one with the first disciples, the faithful through history, and God.
5. The more they all became "one" the more heaven would open over them and they would live glorified...the world would see God's power on them
6. So that anyone who called on the name of the Lord would be saved
John 17:14-23 I have given them Your word; and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. I do not pray that You should take them out of the world, but that You should keep them from the evil one. They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth. As You sent Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world. And for their sakes I sanctify Myself, that they also may be sanctified by the truth. “I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in Me through their word; that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me. And the glory which You gave Me I have given them, that they may be one just as We are one: I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me.
In this hour we need to have understanding. To have understanding you need to first have knowledge. This is the hour that it is unacceptable to say "these are the last days" but then do nearly nothing to find out what that means. Understanding is the antidote to perplexity.
False teachers are out in force giving man-based solutions, physical solutions to very spiritual problems allowed by God to test hearts. You have to know for yourself what God is doing, why He is doing it, and what YOU can do to agree with Him and make your family, church, and city safe in the storm that is already releasing wind and waves. Knowing the Word is the first step in adding weight to yourself so you won't be blown off by the threshing wind.
Luke 12:51-56 Do you suppose that I came to give peace on earth? I tell you, not at all, but rather division. For from now on five in one house will be divided: three against two, and two against three. Father will be divided against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law.” Then He also said to the multitudes, “Whenever you see a cloud rising out of the west, immediately you say, ‘A shower is coming’; and so it is. And when you see the south wind blow, you say, ‘There will be hot weather’; and there is. Hypocrites! You can discern the face of the sky and of the earth, but how is it you do not discern this time?
The return of Jesus is perplexing in the natural. The nations are distressed, along with all the other events, but Jesus promised it would all be with "perplexity." It isn't clear why the nations are doing what they are doing. It isn't clear how God's people should respond. It actually requires studying the end time events to see clearly.
Main Entry: per·plex
Pronunciation: \pər-ˈpleks\
Function: verb
1 : to make unable to grasp something clearly or to think logically and decisively about something <her attitude perplexes me> <a perplexing problem> 2 : to make intricate or involved :
This is promised to be a significant part of the end times in NUMEROUS places in the Bible:
Isaiah 22:5, 11-14 For it is a day of trouble and treading down and perplexity By the Lord God of hosts In the Valley of Vision— Breaking down the walls And of crying to the mountain. ...
Later on this this same end time passage, Isaiah reveals what comes out of the confusion: trusting in physical strength and logic instead of doing the simple thing, which is agreeing with God about what HE is doing, which is calling the earth to himself by ALLOWING the trouble to drive people to make HIM the solution.
...You also made a reservoir between the two walls For the water of the old pool. But you did not look to its Maker, Nor did you have respect for Him who fashioned it long ago. And in that day the Lord God of hosts Called for weeping and for mourning, For baldness and for girding with sackcloth. But instead, joy and gladness, Slaying oxen and killing sheep, Eating meat and drinking wine: “Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die!” Then it was revealed in my hearing by the Lord of hosts, “Surely for this iniquity there will be no atonement for you, Even to your death,” says the Lord God of hosts.
In the hour that perplexity flourishes, people will begin dividing, even in families. In this next prophecy from Micah, the Lord says "you need to fix your gaze on me to make it through." God says the "watchmen"...those leaders everyone has gotten used to trusting...will be perplexed...they won't see clearly. This is describing false prophets misleading (because they are perplexed) the people to trust in man rather than fix their gaze on God.
Not knowing what Jesus is doing because your favorite teacher doesn't know is not a valid excuse. God warns of this end time dynamic over and over. The one thing you need right now is an abiding, ongoing, conversation with Jesus. If you don't hear Him, priority number one should be learning to do that.
God says "don't even trust your closest family to tell you what to think, come near to Me...learn to hear from Me":
Micah 7:2-7 The faithful man has perished from the earth, And there is no one upright among men. They all lie in wait for blood; Every man hunts his brother with a net. That they may successfully do evil with both hands— The prince asks for gifts, The judge seeks a bribe, And the great man utters his evil desire; So they scheme together. The best of them is like a brier; The most upright is sharper than a thorn hedge; The day of your watchman and your punishment comes; Now shall be their perplexity. Do not trust in a friend; Do not put your confidence in a companion; Guard the doors of your mouth From her who lies in your bosom. For son dishonors father, Daughter rises against her mother, Daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law; A man’s enemies are the men of his own household. Therefore I will look to the Lord ; I will wait for the God of my salvation; My God will hear me.
Jesus warned about this same dynamic. He said as tribulation unfolded that many believers, because they didn't understand the plans of Jesus would become offended with each other, they would betray each other, and the love of many would grow cold. This is the "falling away" that MUST happen:
Matthew 24:9-14 “Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations for My name’s sake. And then many will be offended, will betray one another, and will hate one another. Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many. And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold. But he who endures to the end shall be saved. And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come.
This must happen, because Jesus is allowing the trouble to see who picks Him as the solution to the trouble of the day. The 7-years of tribulation is designed by God to TEST all people:
Revelation 3:10 Because you have kept My command to persevere, I also will keep you from the hour of trial which shall come upon the whole world, to test those who dwell on the earth. (this is a very specific promise to the people who use the key of David to protect their geographic location)
The testing has already begun. God is allowing evil men to get their way more and more. This is creating the conditions that require all people to choose their solution. Many Christian leaders are saying either "God will remove you, don't worry" or "we need this group empowered to protect us". These are both concepts that disagree with the main and plain truth of the end times.
Perplexity is increasing. It will only get harder to choose correctly. Many watchmen that the church has gotten used to relying on are failing...they are perplexed and reverting to human logic rather than the truth of God's Word.
One of the reasons the hour is perplexing is that Jesus is sifting...shaking...the earth. this is a harvest analogy. Sifting, or threshing, is the act of throwing the whole lump up in the air and letting just the right wind blow everything that doesn't belong out of the pile. Heaven is coming to earth. Jesus isn't surrendering the earth to satan, He is bundling up the wheat and tares so the tares will get burned up and the wheat will inhabit the earth! (Matthew 13). This will result in great harvest, but also a great falling away. The falling away MUST happen:
II Thessalonians 2:1-3 Now, brethren, concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together to Him, we ask you, not to be soon shaken in mind or troubled, either by spirit or by word or by letter, as if from us, as though the day of Christ had come. Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day will not come unless the falling away comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition,
The falling away must come because Jesus is going to get a pure and spotless Bride. There will be no other kind of Bride. Holiness matters, not to save you, but to give you the right foundation to endure the storm being used to sift the earth:
Matthew 7:24-27 “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: and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it did not fall, for it was founded on the rock. “But everyone who hears these sayings of Mine, and does not do them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand: and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it fell. And great was its fall.”
This urgency to respond to the hour of human history that we live in with holiness, understanding, faith, and pressing in to agree with God about the very specific events of Revelation...it divides couples, families, churches, and cities...but this division is called "sanctification." Sanctification means "set apart in holiness."
Sanctification is the answer to the trouble of the day. Jesus laid out the whole plan to His disciples at the last supper:
1. Those loyal to the truth of the Word would be hated by all nations.
2. Those hated ones would be protected by allowing themselves to be set apart together (unity by division)
3. They would go into the world and save any who wanted truth.
4. The more they stuck to the truth together, the more they would be one with the first disciples, the faithful through history, and God.
5. The more they all became "one" the more heaven would open over them and they would live glorified...the world would see God's power on them
6. So that anyone who called on the name of the Lord would be saved
John 17:14-23 I have given them Your word; and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. I do not pray that You should take them out of the world, but that You should keep them from the evil one. They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth. As You sent Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world. And for their sakes I sanctify Myself, that they also may be sanctified by the truth. “I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in Me through their word; that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me. And the glory which You gave Me I have given them, that they may be one just as We are one: I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me.
In this hour we need to have understanding. To have understanding you need to first have knowledge. This is the hour that it is unacceptable to say "these are the last days" but then do nearly nothing to find out what that means. Understanding is the antidote to perplexity.
False teachers are out in force giving man-based solutions, physical solutions to very spiritual problems allowed by God to test hearts. You have to know for yourself what God is doing, why He is doing it, and what YOU can do to agree with Him and make your family, church, and city safe in the storm that is already releasing wind and waves. Knowing the Word is the first step in adding weight to yourself so you won't be blown off by the threshing wind.
Luke 12:51-56 Do you suppose that I came to give peace on earth? I tell you, not at all, but rather division. For from now on five in one house will be divided: three against two, and two against three. Father will be divided against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law.” Then He also said to the multitudes, “Whenever you see a cloud rising out of the west, immediately you say, ‘A shower is coming’; and so it is. And when you see the south wind blow, you say, ‘There will be hot weather’; and there is. Hypocrites! You can discern the face of the sky and of the earth, but how is it you do not discern this time?
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