Böcker av Michael E B Maher

This book is written to explain what the bible teaches about the anti-Christ and his government. The apostle John is the one who specifically named this individual the "anti-Christ". Nevertheless the anti-Christ also has various other titles ascribed to him, i.e. the apostle John also refers to him as the beast and the apostle Paul refers to him as the man of sin, the son of perdition and the lawless one. So who is the anti-Christ? The bible reveals to us a very different person to most narratives about him that are in the public domain. In the book of Revelation John reveals to us that the number of the beast is 666, which he tell us is the number of a man. And so we know that the anti-Christ is a man. However although the anti-Christ is a man, we see in this book that he is no ordinary man. This book explains where the anti-Christ originated from, where he is currently located and when the world can expect to see him appear. This book also discusses the key issue of the popular support that the anti-Christ will receive when he does appear and the reason for his popularity. And then finally this book explains the type and extent of government that the anti-Christ will set up in the earth, and how that government will impact the various people groups in the earth.

Acts 2:17 "And it shall come to pass in the last days, says God, that I will pour out of My Spirit on all flesh."There can be no doubt that as we draw closer to the end of the age, that there has been a dramatic increase in the outpouring of God's Spirit in the earth. The evidence is clear, for whereas Spirit filled believers throughout the earth at the start of the twentieth century, could be numbered in their thousands, Spirit filled believers in the earth at the start of the twenty first century, can now be numbered in their millions. This book is written to provide a biblical framework for believers regarding our encounters with the Holy Spirit. The reason we teach on this subject, is because if saints are ignorant about what the word of God teaches about these encounters, our adversary the devil can use that ignorance to lead them into error. To have an encounter with the Holy Spirit is to have an encounter with the supernatural. And so, because most believers have never been exposed to the supernatural before they come into the kingdom of God, if they are not taught correctly, they can be vulnerable to having encounters with the wrong spirit and can thus be misled.

Scripture teaches us that there are a number of key events which must take place before the second coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. This book is written to elaborate on one of those key events as revealed in the book of Daniel. Daniel was given a vision of the four kingdoms that will be present on the earth when the Lord Jesus returns, and what will happen to each one. And so the subject of this book is to examine what scripture reveals to us about the first three kingdoms, and what will transpire in each one as we draw to the close of the age. Because of its uniqueness, the subject of the fourth kingdom is dealt with in a separate book. Nevertheless this book endeavours to reconcile that which is revealed in scripture about the first three kingdoms, to contemporary events, both past and present, and certain plausible future events as well. Consequently, as we examine what scripture has to say regarding these three kingdoms, it becomes increasingly clear that Daniel's vision is being fulfilled in our lifetime. God always warns His saints when judgement is about to fall, and He does that so that the saints can take appropriate measures to avoid being caught up in the world's judgement. Some of the events revealed in this book reveal the impending judgement of God which will impact the lives of millions of people. It is therefore prudent for believers to take note of that which is about to occur in the earth and prepare themselves accordingly.

Colossians 1:19-20 "For it pleased the Father that in Him all the fullness should dwell, (20) and by Him to reconcile all things to Himself, by Him, whether things on earth or things in heaven, having made peace through the blood of His cross."The work of salvation that God the Father accomplished through the sacrifice of His Son Christ Jesus is far more extensive than that which is commonly taught or understood in the church. This book is written to explain just one aspect of the work of the cross, i.e. the cleansing power of the blood of Christ that cleanses mankind from all their sin. In the above passage of scripture, the apostle Paul teaches us that God the Father has reconciled us to Himself through the blood of Christ that was shed for us on the cross. Sadly, many ministers of the gospel do not have a clear understanding of the work of salvation that Jesus Christ accomplished on the cross. They also do not have a clear understanding as to why Jesus is the only one in all of God's creation that was uniquely qualified to reconcile mankind to God. And so, because of their limited understanding of the biblical truth of salvation through Jesus Christ, these same ministers preach a watered down gospel message. Sadly when an incomplete gospel of salvation is preached, it impacts negatively on the Lord's saints because it makes them vulnerable to deceivers in the church who proclaim certain false doctrines regarding salvation, thus leading many astray.

Revelation 8:1-2 "When He opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about half an hour. (2) And I saw the seven angels who stand before God, and to them were given seven trumpets."It is when our Lord Jesus opens the seventh seal of the scroll, that the wrath of God will begin to be poured out on the earth. Just prior to this event, the rapture of the church will have taken place. When the event of the rapture takes place, the inhabitants of the earth will be continuing with their daily lives completely unaware of the devastation that it about to come upon them. This book describes what will take place in the earth during this time.

James 5:15 "And the prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven."In this passage of scripture, the Holy Spirit speaks about the prayer of faith. And He speaks about the certainty of the outcome of this type of prayer. For in this passage, the Holy Spirit tells us categorically, that the prayer of faith will (not might) heal the sick (the word translated "save" more correctly means "heal") and even if sin in the life of the believer was the cause of their sickness, God would forgive their sin. And so, we see from this passage of scripture, that the prayer of faith, when applied correctly, will always produce the desired outcome.

1 Timothy 2:1-4 "Therefore I exhort first of all that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks be made for all men, (2) for kings and all who are in authority, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and reverence. (3) For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, (4) who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth."In the above quoted passage of scripture the Holy Spirit exhorts the church to pray for heads of state and all those who are in authority. One of the main roles that the church is required to fulfil with the regards to the governments of the nations is to pray for them, for we must not forget that they are God's ministers. And so the answer to the question as to who to vote for lies in the above quoted passage of scripture which teaches us what to pray for regarding a nation's government, for the qualities that we pray for in a government are the same qualities that we should look for in prospective candidates. This passage teaches us that there are two main qualities that the church should always look for in the candidates and political parties that they vote for. Firstly, the church should vote for candidates that stand for honest government and law and order thus allowing the citizens of that nation to live quiet and peaceable lives, for as we have already seen, one of the primary reasons that God raises up those in authority is to act as His ministers in rewarding good and punishing evil (Romans 13:3-4). Secondly, the church should vote for candidates that support freedom of religion thus allowing the church to serve the Lord in all godliness and reverence without any constraints being placed upon the preaching of the gospel.

In past generations the topic of creation was theologically not very important, and ministers of the gospel could simply gloss over it by teaching the saints that God created everything over six days, six thousand years ago. The reason bible teachers could do that, was because knowledge in the earth was limited and there was no real scientific evidence available to challenge that point of view. Today things have changed however, and every day more and more scientific evidence is discovered that completely refutes that view of scripture, thus highlighting the error of that teaching. And so, bible teachers that continue to teach such error by not rightly dividing the word of truth about this subject, do a disservice to the church and young people in particular, because they are the ones confronted with "scientific facts" and theories, that ridicule a literal six day creation account that occurred six thousand years ago. Not all scientific theories and "facts" are correct however, and many are demonstrably false, but even though a lot that is presented as "scientific fact" is in actual fact error, because the church has not been taught correctly what God's word says on the subject, many Christians become confused and some begin to question their faith in God. And so, this book is written to reconcile legitimate scientific facts and theories with what scripture actually teaches about the subjects of the universe, the earth and the origin/history of life.

Psalms 45:9 "Kings' daughters are among Your honorable women; At Your right hand stands the queen in gold from Ophir."Once the marriage of the Lamb has taken place, the church will no longer be one who is betrothed to the Lord, for she will then become the queen of heaven. The above passage of scripture describes the bride of Christ, after she has been joined to the Lord in eternal marriage. And so, we see that when our Lord Jesus finally returns to the earth to reign for one thousand years, that He will return with His bride, the church. This book reveals what the bible teaches us about the millennial reign of Christ.

Ephesians 1:11 "In Him also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will."This book essentially deals with the doctrine of predestination, or to put it more accurately, it explains how God governs His creation. But because of our very limited understanding in this present age, we only discuss one aspect of predestination in this book, which is the aspect of salvation, for obviously as far as men are concerned, that is by far the most important aspect that we need to understand. And so, in this book we discuss the principles as revealed in scripture, that God uses, in order to predestine our lives for salvation. These same principles however, are also true for every aspect of our lives, and indeed how God predestines every aspect of His creation. Clearly there are very strong opposing opinions in the church about this subject, and the point of this book is not to support or refute any of those opinions, but rather to look at what the New Testament teaches us about this particular doctrine.

There is a category of gifts, called ministry gifts. The reason that they are called ministry gifts is because those who receive them, are called by God to the ministry, i.e. they are called to serve the church in the ministry of the gospel. God is the one who gives these gifts, and they are appointed by Him. In total, there are ten ministry gifts listed in the scriptures. There are five main gifts, which are the apostle, prophet, evangelist, pastor and teacher. The other five listed in scripture, are working of miracles, gifts of healings, helps, administrations and varieties of tongues. This book looks at the operation of the five main ministry gifts.

There are six foundational doctrines to the Christian faith. Because they are foundational, every believer should have a clear understanding of each one of these doctrines, and live by them. Those who have a clear understanding of these doctrines and who also live by them, will have a sure foundation. And they will not be deceived by any false teachings, that they may come across in their Christian walk. Of the six foundational doctrines, the two that were most commonly taught to the church by the apostle Paul, were repentance from dead works and faith towards God. The reason for that was because these are the two doctrines that most influence the lives of believers. This book examines the doctrine of repentance from dead works.

One of the fundamental differences between the saints of the old covenant and the saints of the new covenant, is that we have the Holy Spirit residing on the inside of us, whereas the saints under the old covenant did not. Because of this fact, God leads His children under the new covenant, completely differently to the way that He led His servants under the old. The primary way that the Lord led the saints under the old covenant was through the office of the prophet. The reason that the saints went to the prophet for guidance, was because none of them had any access to the Holy Spirit. Under the new covenant this is no longer the case, for every saint has direct access to the Holy Spirit who resides within each one of us. And so, under the new covenant there is also one primary way that the Lord leads His saints, and that is through the guidance of the Holy Spirit. This book teaches how to be led by Him.

Jesus was referring to the physical temple in Jerusalem, when He quoted the prophet Isaiah, 'My house shall be called a house of prayer for all nations'. As our Lord predicted, that physical temple in Jerusalem was destroyed in the year seventy AD. When Jesus was crucified on the cross, the veil in that temple was torn in two, and God no longer dwells in a temple made with human hands. Under the new covenant, all believers in Christ have now become the temple of the living God. In the current church age, the temple of God on earth has changed, but the purpose of that temple has not. All believers are now the house of God, and as such, we are called by God to be His house of prayer for all nations. This book looks at how we are to fulfil our call to prayer.

The nine gifts of the Spirit can be consolidated into three different categories. The reason that they can be consolidated into these categories, is because each of the gifts categorized, do something similar. The second of the three categories, are what we call the power gifts. The reason we call them the power gifts, is because each one of these gifts, do something. The gifts that fall into this category are; the gift of special faith, gifts of healings, and the working of miracles. This book looks at how each of these gifts operate.

The nine gifts of the Spirit can be consolidated into three different categories. The reason that they can be consolidated into these categories, is because each of the gifts categorized, do something similar. The first of the three categories, are what we call the revelation gifts. The reason we call them the revelation gifts, is because each one of these gifts, reveal something. The gifts that fall into this category are; the word of wisdom, the word of knowledge, and the discerning of spirits. This book looks at how each of these gifts operate.

Scripture teaches us that there are two distinct types of sin that Christians can commit. They can commit sin not to death, and they can commit sin to death. Although all sin without exception, eventually leads to spiritual death, there is a sin that believers can commit, that will kill their spirits. Scripture differentiates this sin from every other sin, by telling us that all other sins do not kill the born-again human spirit. This book looks at the difference between the two types of sin, and specifically what is the sin to death, and how believers can be led to commit this sin.

The bible clearly teaches us that our bodies are not our own, but that they in fact belong to God. One way that we can understand this concept, is to view our body as a house that we are renting. God is the owner of the house, and we are His tenants. As tenants, our land lord expects us to look after His property, and He will hold us to account if we damage it in any way. This book teaches us what God expects us to do with our bodies.

All through our lives up until the time we are born-again, our minds have been trained to think in a certain way. The bible calls it carnal thinking. That thinking is in direct opposition to God's laws. Once we are born-again God expects us to discard our carnal thinking, and begin to set our minds on the things of the spirit. This book explains how to renew your mind.

Jesus was referring to the physical temple in Jerusalem, when He quoted the prophet Isaiah, 'My house shall be called a house of prayer for all nations'. As our Lord predicted, that physical temple in Jerusalem was destroyed in the year seventy AD. When Jesus was crucified on the cross, the veil in that temple was torn in two, and God no longer dwells in a temple made with human hands. Under the new covenant, all believers in Christ have now become the temple of the living God. In the current church age, the temple of God on earth has changed, but the purpose of that temple has not. All believers are now the house of God, and as such, we are called by God to be His house of prayer for all nations. This book looks at how we are to fulfil our call to prayer.