Fortunately, Sheila and I both have a good relationship with our parent’s-in-law. I know we are certainly blessed in this regard, because for whatever reason this is not the case for every married couple. Usually one or both tend to have “issues with the in-laws.” Oddly enough, after dealing with some of the usual nonsense on social media, this concept has caused me to wonder if Christians are suffering from their own variety of Father-in-law syndrome.

For those who do not yet know their identity in Yeshua (as clearly described by the Apostle Paul in Romans 7 – 11 and Ephesians 2), many of them tend to remain in the Dispensation Theology camp, wherein there is this belief that “the Church” is the “Bride of Christ” and the “Jews” are the “Bride of God.” This sets up an interesting dynamic, wherein, according to this understanding, if we are married to the Son, then effectively YHWH has become our “Father-in-law.” Could this be the reason for the absolute hostility toward any notion of obeying Him?

I can’t tell you how many times I have been accused of “spitting on the sacrifice of Christ” by anything I post regarding the slightest hint of {gasp} actually obeying the Law of YHWH. Not only is that false, it is patently absurd! Every single Prophetic and Apostolic author of Scripture (including Paul) warned against disobeying YHWH and firmly taught against sin (defined by Scripture as “transgression of the Law” in 1 John 3:4). Yet, today, we have the “Bride of Christ” thinking and teaching that to strive to obey the Father (out of love – not FOR salvation) is akin to falling for the “doctrine of devils.”

Could this be a carry-over from our own difficulties in marriage? Are Christians today engaged in our own version of Father-in-Law syndrome, wherein we love our Spouse but despise any notion of obeying His Father? It certainly would seem so. Perhaps this was what Paul warned us about:

2 Thessalonians 2:
1 Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him,2 That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand.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;4 Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.5 Remember ye not, that, when I was yet with you, I told you these things?

The first thing we need to note here is Paul said we won’t be “gathering together unto Him” (as in the Rapture), until two things happen: There comes a “falling away” first and then the “man of sin” is revealed. Oddly enough, some in the pre-Trib Rapture camp actually claim that this “departure” means the Rapture, which makes no sense whatsoever for at least three reasons:

  1. You would have Paul basically saying “Now I beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him (in the Rapture), that ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled… because we should not be deceived. For that day (of the Rapture) shall not come except the “departure” Rapture must come first (a Rapture before the Rapture?) then the man of sin will be revealed.”
  2. The Rapture is a going UP event, not a FALLING AWAY event!
  3. Advocates of this theory state that older translations of the English Bible have the word “departure” instead of “falling away.” But either way, the word/phrase has nothing to do with the Rapture. It comes from the Greek word, “apostasia” which means…
    Apostasy

 

We’re talking about revolt here – an outward rebellion – a defection – a falling away from the things of YHWH. This is closely linked with the revealing of Antichrist.

 

The second thing to note is the Antichrist is referred to as the “man of sin” – or in other words, as he is also known as “the lawLESS one.” That should be our first clue as to where the hostility against any notion of obeying YHWH comes from: It is the “spirit of anti-Christ” (meaning against Christ, who always walked in obedience to His Father – see 1 John 2:1-7).

 

Clearly, we are in the days immediately preceding the revealing of the “man of sin” as we are already (quite obviously) completely immersed in an age of apostasy – a falling away from the things of YHWH, wherein the very notion of suggesting that obedience to Him (out of love – not FOR salvation) is met with such hostility by Christians.

 

Can you imagine a Groom being happy about coming for a Bride that despises His Father? Can you imagine a Holy Savior coming for a Bride that hates to obey Him and views the very idea of doing so akin to following the “doctrine of devils”? How extraordinarily horrifying the thought! But welcome to mainstream Christianity and the falling away.

 

Circling back around to what I was saying at the start of this blog, I personally no longer believe there are two Brides and two Husbands. I believe in one God (YHWH), Who has one plan to redeem one Bride (Israel – as clearly defined by the entire book of Hosea and confirmed by both Peter and Paul in the New Testament) back to Himself, which was accomplished through the one sacrifice of His only begotten Son, who was the Word made flesh, that was in the beginning with God and Who was/is God (John 1: 1-14). But if this is a foreign concept to you and if you are one of those still suffering from Father-in-Law Syndrome, I suggest you go back to the Beginning (Genesis) and read through the first three-quarters of the Book, so that you may have a clearer understanding of what is being said in the last quarter.

Matthew 5:
17 Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil.
18 For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.
19 Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.

1 John 2:
1 My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous:
2 And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.
3 And hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments.
4 He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him.
5 But whoso keepeth his word, in him verily is the love of God perfected: hereby know we that we are in him.
6 He that saith he abideth in him ought himself also so to walk, even as he walked.
7 Brethren, I write no new commandment unto you, but an old commandment which ye had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word which ye have heard from the beginning.

Ephesians 5:
21 Submitting yourselves one to another in the fear of God.
22 Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as unto the Lord.
23 For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church: and he is the saviour of the body.
24 Therefore as the church is subject unto Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in every thing.
25 Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it;
26 That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word,
27 That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish.
1 John 5:
2 By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God, and keep his commandments.
3 For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous.
Shalom!
– Rob Skiba