Jesus is Coming Soon!

 Jesus is Coming Soon! - We are living on borrowed time! - By Dr. David R. Reagan - https://christinprophecy.org/articles/jesus-is-coming-soon/ Many people believe there is nothing that can be known about the timing of the Lord’s return because Jesus said He would return like a “thief in the night” (Matthew 24:42-44). But Paul makes it clear in 1 Thessalonians 5:1-6 that Jesus’ statement does not apply to believers: “But you, brethren, are not in darkness, that the day should overtake youlike a thief…” He then proceeds to explain why: “for you are all sons of light and sons of day. We are not of night nor of darkness; so then let us not sleep as others do, but let us be alert and sober.” Paul is referring, of course, to the light of the HolySpirit who indwells all true believers and who can enlighten us through our study of Scripture to know the season of the Lord’s return (1 John 2:27). God’s Attitude As a matter of fact, God is obligated by His character to warn the world of the imminent return of His Son. The reason is that Jesus is returning in great wrath to “judgeand wage war” (Revelation 19:11), and God never pours out His wrath without warning. God does not wish that any should perish, but that all should be brought to repentance (2 Peter 3:9). Therefore, God always warns before He executes His wrath. He warned theworld through Noah for 120 years. He warned Sodom and Gomorrah through Abraham. He sent Jonah to warn the pagan city of Nineveh, and He sent Nahum to the same city 150 years later. Likewise, God is warning the world today that His Son is about to return. He is calling the world to repentance. The message of the hour to unbelievers can be summed up inthese words: “Flee from the wrath that is to come by fleeing into the loving arms of Jesus now.” Jesus came the first time as an expression of God’s love; He came to die for the sins of Mankind. But when He returns, He will come in vengeance to pour out thewrath of God on those who have rejected God’s love and grace. The soon return of Jesus also carries with it a message for believers. Lukewarm Christians and carnal Christians are being called to commit their lives to holiness: “The nightis almost gone, and the day is at hand. Let us therefore lay aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light. Let us behave properly as in the day, not in carousing and drunkenness, not in sexual promiscuity and sensuality, not in strife and jealousy.But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh in regard to its lusts” (Romans 13:12-14). God’s Method of Warning God is alerting believers of the soon return of His Son through what are called “signs of the times.” These are prophecies concerning world events that we are told to watchfor, prophecies that will identify the season of the Lord’s return. The Bible is full of these signs. There are about 500 prophecies in the Old Testament that relate to the Second Coming of the Messiah. In the New Testament, one out of every25 verses is concerned with the return of Jesus. In fact, there are so many signs that it is difficult to grasp all of them. The best way I have found to do this is to put them in categories: 1) The Signs of Nature — We are told to watch for earthquakes,famine, pestilence, and signs in the heavens (see Matthew 24:7 and Luke 21:11). This is the least respected category of signs for several reasons. For one thing, many people simply shrug their shoulders and say, “There have always been natural calamities,so what else is new?” Note that Jesus says these signs will be like “birth pangs” (Matthew 24:8) — that is, they will increase in frequency and intensity as the time draws near for His return. In other words, there will be more intense earthquakes and morefrequent ones. That is exactly what is happening today. Another reason these signs are given little respect is because most Christians are so rationalistic that they do not really believe in the supernatural, and they thereforefind it difficult to believe that God speaks to the world through signs of nature. Yet, the Bible teaches this principle from start to finish. God dealt with the world’s sin through a great flood in the days of Noah (Genesis 6). He called the nation of Judah to repentance through a terrible locust invasion (Joel1). In like manner, He called for the nation of Israel to repent by sending drought, wind storms, mildew, locusts, famine and pestilence (Amos 4:6-10). The prophet Haggai pointed to a drought as evidence that God was calling the people to get their prioritiesin order (Haggai 1:10-11). The New Testament begins with a special light in the heavens marking the birth of the Messiah (Matthew 2:2). On the day that Jesus was crucified, there was three hours ofdarkness and an earthquake (Matthew 27:45-51). And when Jesus returns, the earth will experience the greatest earthquake in its history as every mountain is lowered, every valley is raised, and every island is moved (Revelation 16:17-21). God has always spoken through signs of nature, and He continues to do so today. We had better pay close attention to them. 2) The Signs of Society — Jesus said that society will becomeincreasingly lawless and immoral as the time approaches for His return. In fact, He said it would become as evil as it was in the days of Noah (Matthew 24:12,37-39). Paul paints a chilling picture of end time society in 2 Timothy 3:1-5. He says it will be characterized by three loves — the love of self (Humanism), the love of money (Materialism),and the love of pleasure (Hedonism). He then points out that the payoff of this carnal lifestyle will be what the philosophers call Nihilism — that is, a society wallowing in despair. Men’s minds will become depraved (Romans 1:28), and people will call evilgood and good evil (Isaiah 5:20). We are seeing these prophecies fulfilled before our eyes today as we watch our society reject its Christian heritage and descend into a hellish pit of lawlessness, immorality,and despair. Even worse, we are exporting our nihilism around the world through our immoral and violent movies and television programs. 3) The Spiritual Signs — There are both positive and negativespiritual signs that we are to watch for. The negative ones include the appearance of false christs and their cults (Matthew 24:5,11,24), the apostasy of the professing church (2 Thessalonians 2:3), an outbreak of Satanism (1 Timothy 4:1), and the persecutionof faithful Christians (Matthew 24:9). These negative spiritual signs began to appear in the mid-19th Century when Christian cults started forming. First came the Mormons, then the Jehovah’s Witnesses, and thena great variety of spiritualist groups like the Church of Christ Scientists and the Unity Church. The apostasy of the mainline Christian denominations began in the 1920’s when the German school of higher criticism invaded American seminaries and undermined the authorityof the Scriptures, teaching that the Bible is Man’s search for God rather than God’s revelation to Man. During the 1960’s Satanism exploded on the American scene and has since been exported worldwide through American movies, books, and television programs. Dabbling in the occulthas become commonplace in the form of astrology, numerology, crystal gazing, transcendental meditation, and channeling. The whole trend has consummated in the appearance of the New Age Movement with its teaching that Man is God. As society has secularized, true Christianity has come under increasing attack. Judeo-Christian values, once the foundation of Western Civilization, are now openly mocked,and those who still adhere to them are castigated as “intolerant fundamentalists” by the media. The positive spiritual signs include the proclamation of the Gospel to the whole world (Matthew 24:14), a great outpouring of the Holy Spirit (Joel 2:28-32), and spiritualillumination to understand prophecies that have been “sealed up” until the end times (Daniel 12:4,9). As with the negative signs, we are seeing these positive signs fulfilled in our day and time. Through the use of modern technology, the Gospel has been proclaimed throughoutthe world in this Century, and the Bible has been translated into all major languages. The great end time pouring out of the Holy Spirit that was prophesied by the prophet Joel has also begun. Joel called it “the latter rain” (Joel 2:23), and he said it wouldoccur after the Jews had returned to their land. The state of Israel was re-established in 1948. In 1949 God anointed two ministries that would have a worldwide impact — the ministries of Billy Graham and Oral Roberts. Then, in the 60’s, came the CharismaticMovement which prompted renewal in worship and gave emphasis to the continuing validity of the gifts of the Spirit. The acceleration in the understanding of Bible prophecy began in 1970 with the publication of Hal Lindsey’s book, The Late Great Planet Earth. It seemed to open up to popularunderstanding many prophecies that had been “sealed up” until the end times (Daniel 12:4, 9). Remarkably, it became the number one best seller in the world — with the sole exception of the Bible — for the next ten years! 4) The Signs of Technology — The book of Daniel says that therewill be an explosion of knowledge in the end times and that people will move about quickly (Daniel 12:4). There are many Bible prophecies that cannot be understood apart from modern technology. For example, how can the whole world look upon two bodies lyingin the streets of Jerusalem (Revelation 11:8-9)? Modern television satellite technology makes it easy. How can the False Prophet build an image of the Anti-Christ that appears to be alive (Revelation 13:15)? The answer, of course, is the science of robotics.How can the False Prophet require all people on earth to take the mark of the Anti-Christ in order to buy and sell (Revelation 13:16-17)? It would not be possible apart from computers and lasers. Jesus said that the Tribulation will be so terrible that all life on earth would cease to exist if He did not cut the period short (Matthew 24:21-22). How could all life bethreatened prior to the advent of nuclear weapons? Another reference to nuclear power is likely contained in Luke’s statement that men in the end times will “faint from fear” because “the powers of the heavens will be shaken” (Luke 21:26). That certainly soundslike a reference to the splitting of the atom. 5) The Signs of World Politics — The Bible prophesies that therewill be a certain pattern of world politics that will characterize the end time geopolitical map. The focus will be the re-established state of Israel (Zechariah 12:2-3). It will be besieged by a menacing nation from the “remote parts of the north,” the nation of “Rosh”— or modern day Russia (Ezekiel 38:2,6). There will also be a threatening nation to the East that will be capable of sending an army of 200 million — namely, China (Revelation 9:13-16 and Revelation 16:12-13). A third source of danger to Israel will be theArab nations that immediately surround it. They will covet the land and will try to take it from the Jews (Ezekiel 35:10 and 36:2). Another key player on the world political scene in the end times will be a coalition of European nations that will form a confederation centered in the area of the old Romanempire (Daniel 2:41-44, Daniel 7:7,23-24, and Revelation 17:12-13). This confederation will serve as the political base for the rise of the Anti-Christ and the creation of his worldwide kingdom (Daniel 7:8). Other international political signs include wars and rumors of wars (Matthew 24:6), civil wars (Matthew 24:7), and general international terrorism and lawlessness (Matthew24:12). 6) The Signs of Israel — The signs related to the state of Israelare prolific and very important. The most frequently repeated prophecy in the Old Testament is the prediction that the Jewish people will be regathered from the “four corners of the earth” in the end times(Isaiah 11:10-12). The Bible states that a consequence of this regathering will be the re-establishment of the state of Israel (Isaiah 66:7-8). The Scriptures say that once the Jews are back in their land, the land itself will experience a miracle of reclamation(Isaiah 35). The desert will bloom and people will exclaim, “This desolate land has become like the garden of Eden” (Ezekiel 36:35). Another end time miracle will be the revival of the Hebrew language (Zephaniah 3:9). Most people are not aware of the fact that when the Jews were dispersed from their landin 70 A.D., they ceased to speak the Hebrew language. The Jews who settled in Europe developed a new language called Yiddish — a combination of German and Hebrew. The Jews who migrated to the Mediterranean basin created a language called Ladino — a combinationof Hebrew and Spanish. Other significant signs of Israel that we are told to watch for in the end times include the re-occupation of Jerusalem (Luke 21:24), the resurgence of Israeli military strength(Zechariah 12:6), and the re-focusing of world politics on Israel (Zechariah 12:3). All these signs have been fulfilled in this century. The nation has been re-established, the land has been reclaimed, the ancient language has been revived, the Jews are backin Jerusalem, and Israel is the focal point of world politics. Jesus says in Luke 21:28 that when these signs begin to happen, we should “straighten up and lift up our heads” because “our redemption is drawing near.” The Key Signs The most important signs are the ones that relate to Israel because God uses the Jews throughout the Scriptures as His prophetic time clock. By this I mean that very oftenwhen the Lord is revealing an important event that will take place in the future, He will point to the Jewish people and state that when a certain thing happens to them, the important event will also occur. A good example of this principle can be found in Daniel 9 in the famous “Seventy Weeks of Years” prophecy. The prophet tells us to watch for a decree to be issued that willauthorize the rebuilding of Jerusalem. He then says that the Messiah will come sixty-nine weeks of years (483 years) after that decree is issued to the Jewish people. There are two key prophecies which relate the return of Jesus to events that have occurred in Jewish history since 1948. These two events clearly established the period inwhich we are now living as the season of the Lord’s return. The State of Israel The first is the re-establishment of the state of Israel which occurred on May 14, 1948. Jesus singled out this event as the one that would signal His soon return. His prophecy is contained in the fig tree parable (Matthew 24:32-35) which He presented in His Olivet Discourse. The day before He delivered this speech, He had put a curseon a barren fig tree, causing it to wither (Matthew 21:18-19). This was a symbolic prophecy that God would soon pour out His wrath upon the Jewish people because of their spiritual barrenness in rejecting His Son. The next day Jesus reminded His disciples of the fig tree. He said to watch for it to bloom again. In other words, He said watch for the rebirth of Israel. He indicated thatwhen the fig tree blooms again, He would be at the gates of Heaven, ready to return (Matthew 24:33). Equally significant, He added an interesting observation: “Truly I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things take place” (Matthew 24:34). Whatgeneration? The generation that sees the fig tree blossom. We are that generation. The fig tree has blossomed. Jesus is at the gates. The City of Jerusalem The second key event was prophesied by Jesus in the same speech, as recorded by Luke: “[The Jews] will fall by the edge of the sword, and will be led captive into all thenations; and Jerusalem will be trampled under foot by the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled” (Luke 21:24). The first half of this prophecy was fulfilled in 70 A.D., forty years after Jesus spoke the words. In that year the Romans under Titus conquered Jerusalem and dispersed theJews among the nations. Jerusalem remained under Gentile occupation for 1,897 years — until June 7, 1967, when Israel won the city back during the Six Day War. The Jewish re-occupation of the city of Jerusalem is proof positive that we are living in the season of the Lord’s return. Jesus said it would mark the end of the GentileAge. A Call to Action There is no way to escape the conclusion that we are living on borrowed time. The signs of the times are upon us, and they are shouting for our attention. Are you ready? If Jesus were to return today, would He be your “Blessed Hope” (Titus 2:11-14) or would He be your “Holy Terror” (Revelation 6:12-17)? If you have never receivedHim as your Lord and Savior, now is the time to act. Repent of your sins, and call upon the name of the Lord that you might be saved (Acts 2:14-39). And if you are a Christian, are you living as if Jesus might return any minute? Have you committed your life to holiness? Are you praying for the lost and witnessing for theLord when you have an opportunity? Are you yearning for the Lord’s return? Can you say with Paul that you are a candidate for a “crown of righteousness” because you have lived your life “in the love of Hisappearing” (2 Timothy 4:7-8)?

Why Do We Believe?

 Why Do We Believe? Unlike the Rock of our salvation, foundations across our society are shaky at best. Whether it be a lack of information, too much emotion, or just pure hubris, we can find people holding opinions and taking stances with no logical reason fordoing so. Sometimes, the opinions are so wild and outlandish that we can only think, "Why?" My job has me creating visual aids, usually a collection of various graphs that comprise a dashboard to aid individuals or groups in understanding their data. Believe it or not, going line by line in a million-plus-row spreadsheet is not thebest way to determine the trends of one's business! Creating these graphs is a complex process, which I always try to begin with a "define phase." Whether it takes getting on a call, sending instant messages, or emailing back and forth, the goal is to define the project's or report's requirements as clearly as possible. The big question that drives the entire process is, "Why?" Why isthis metric important? Why does it matter to the bottom line? A boss told me early on that if I was not asking "Why?" at least five times, I was not drilling down to that individual's or business' true needs. I work with a great team, one with, typically, a lot of common sense, and we have healthy conversations to move projects forward efficiently. We have a team chat where we can alert the group about any number of things and have more general discussions.Some people use it to state their thoughts or pose philosophical questions. One coworker likes to do the latter, posting poems or musings on life that some might claim to be profound. I usually avoid these threads, but recently, one sparked my attention. It started with a question on information, asking if, thanks to the Internet, we could be entering an age of radically decreasing corruption. That anyone, especially someone who claims to believe in God, could think this to be true seemed silly to me. We all know corruption exists in abundance and will continue to do so. As sources of corruption are exposed, along with it comes plenty of incorrect and misleading information. Another coworker commentedon what others of us were thinking: that a person can craft his own reality by the media he consumes. This coworker brought up politics as a prime example. At this point, the Bible entered the conversation. My coworker wrote: "The question is do you trust the aggregate of human judgement? I do, I mean, look at the Bible. It's basically the ultimate example of distributed cognition seeking somethingbetter over time." This is where a red flag popped up for me. I replied that the Bible is not a newsletter containing raw human thinking but rather God inspiring those He chose to work through, pointing him to II Timothy 3:14-17: But you must continue in the things which you have learned and been assured of, knowing from whom you have learned them, and that from childhood you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work. I considered this passage straightforward, but my coworker's response, referring to verse 16, indicates it was not to him: "What does inspired by God mean? Did Abraham [sic] just come up with 'in the beginning was the word' one dayor was it brewing in the collective minds of men for centuries? I tend to believe the latter." His response was a target-rich environment, but I decided to focus on the meaning of the phrase "is given by inspiration of God," which is theopneustos (Strong's #2315), meaning "divinely breathed in." He responded, "My bible starts with 'in the beginning was ChatGPT.'" Needless to say, the conversation stopped there. My biggest takeaway from this exchange was not that he did not truly believe in God's power. I have had too many conversations with people who claimed to believe in God but eventually spoke falsely about Him to be genuinely shocked at this point.For instance, someone once asked me about the Sabbath and completely ignored most of my reply, later telling me he "sabbathed" well on Sunday! What truly stuck with me was the unasked question. My coworker did not put up a fight, but in similar circumstances, most curious people would ask, "Why do you believe that?" How do we respond? My coworker invited me into the conversation. I answered and walked away. But what about responding to a close friend? A family member? A church member? When debating beliefs, how often do we diffuse the situation by simplyasking, "Why?" Of course, we should not ask, "Why?" purely to get people to stop talking. Plenty of ideas and questions blossom in a conversation or healthy debate, and we should want to improve our mutual understanding. Nevertheless, we can diffuse illogicalor frankly stupid ideas with a simple "Why?" "Why do you do this or that?" "Why do you think it is acceptable to do such a thing on the Sabbath?" The response is often something like, "Uh, I don't know." "Why?" is usually enough to make the individual questionwhy they do what they do. While combating falsehoods with truth is vital, we cannot use the Sword of Truth properly without conviction! Why do we believe? What were our reasons for accepting our calling? I am a third-generation Christian. God called my grandfather first in our family, and despite passing away years ago, he still has an impact on how I live my life and try to serve God. The blessings of his example, being raised in the faith,having many believing family members, and being immersed in the church are wonderful, just a small portion of God's endless blessings. But I grew up knowing about and keeping the Sabbath, holy days, food laws, and so on. I was certain I was following the true God. After all, that is what my parents taught me. (Proverbs22:6: "Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it.") However, each individual is responsible for his or her own faith. Each person must understand why he or she believes. This principle was on my mind in mydiscussion with my coworker. Being multi-generational comes with a difficulty that is probably not considered often enough, and which is not exclusive to multi-generational Christians: becoming complacent about our beliefs. We must remind ourselves that if we cannot maintainour convictions about our calling now, how can we carry them to the end? We cannot afford to let down and stop believing. So, we must occasionally—even frequently—ask ourselves, "Why?" to avoid unbelief. We must remember our responsibility to work to remain convicted and be careful not to be lazy. We need to heed God's warning to the Israelites against forgetfulnessin Deuteronomy 6:10-12: So it shall be, when the LORD your God brings you into the land of which He swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, to give you large and beautiful cities which you did not build, houses full of all good things, which you did not fill, hewn-out wells which you did not dig, vineyards and olive trees which you did not plant—when you have eaten and arefull—then beware, lest you forget the LORD who brought you out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage. Notice Hebrews 3:16-19: For who, having heard, rebelled? Indeed, was it not all who came out of Egypt, led by Moses? Now with whom was He angry forty years? Was it not with those who sinned, whose corpses fell in the wilderness? And to whom did He swear that they would not enter His rest, but to those who did not obey? So we see that they could not enter in becauseof unbelief. Now Hebrews 3:12-14: Beware, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief in departing from the living God; but exhort one another daily, while it is called "Today," lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin. For we have become partakers of Christ if we hold the beginning of our confidence steadfast to the end. (Emphasis ours.) The question of why we believe, why we accepted our calling, is foundational to the actions we take on our spiritual journey. Everyone has a "why": a story of a lightbulb moment when everything suddenly made sense or an event or series of eventsthat could only be the result of God orchestrating our lives. The story may not be from before our calling but could be recent, a new reason to believe. God works in our lives every day. Most of us know why we are in God's church, and we believe the Word of God. We believe He inspired Scripture for teaching, reproof, correction, and training in righteousness. Even so, no matter how experienced or well-versed we are in our faith,we must remember that Satan and his demons are constantly working to undermine us. So, we must continue to ask ourselves, "Why?" Why do we believe? Why do we do what we do? As the apostle writes in II Peter 2:10, we must be diligent in ensuring our calling so that we may continue to grow in truth and righteousness, not stumbling—so that upon Christ's return, He will say to each of us, "Well done, good and faithful servant." - Hunter D. Swanson

Biblical Prophecy Is a Sure Sign Of The Bible’s Divine Origin

 Biblical Prophecy Is a Sure Sign Of The Bible’s Divine Origin… And No Other Book Measures Up – Ray Comfort – https://harbingersdaily.com/biblical-prophecy-is-a-sure-sign-of-the-bibles-divine-origin-and-no-other-book-measures-up/ I once believed Nostradamus was able to somewhat predict the future. However, after careful study I found that he stole many of his “prophecies” from the Bible (which he readin secret), revised them, and claimed them as his own. For example, like the Bible, he made continual references to wars, earthquakes, famines, pestilences, and plagues; he speaks of the King of kings, “a kingdom divided,” and “the blood of innocents.” Hispredictions contain phrases such as “milk and honey,” “tribulation,” “God loosed Satan,” “anti-Christ,” “latter days,” “Gog and Magog,” “the sea shall be red,” etc. Today, as in his day, anyone who is ignorant of the Bible’s prophecies will be impressed withthe writings of Nostradamus. His “predictions,” though, are incredibly generic (just as horoscopes and tarot cards are), and people can read into them any meaning they desire. That is not the case with biblical prophecies, which are extremely detailed and precise. Unlike other religious books, the Bible offers a multitude of specific predictions—somethousands of years in advance—that either have been literally fulfilled or point to a definite future time when they will come true. No other religion has specific, repeated, and unfailing fulfillment of predictions many years in advance of events over whichthe predictor had no control. The writings of Buddhism, Islam, Confucius, etc., are all missing the element of proven prophecy. These kinds of predictions are unique to the Bible. Only one who is omniscient can accurately predict details of events thousands of years in the future. Limited human beings know the future only if it is told to them by anomniscient Being. God provided this evidence for us so we would know that the Scriptures have a divine Author: “For I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like Me, declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times things thatare not yet done” (Isa. 46:9,10). In addition, the Bible declares that prophets must be 100 percent accurate—no exceptions. If anyone claimed to be speaking for God and the prophesied event didn’t come topass, he was proven to be a liar. The writings of Mormons and Jehovah’s Witnesses are littered with false prophecies, so we can know whether they are written by men or by God. The Bible’s sixty-six books, written between 1400 B.C. and A.D. 90, contain approximately 3,856 verses concerned with prophecy. Even more important are the many propheciesof a coming Messiah. God said He would send someone to redeem mankind from sin, and He wanted there to be no mistake about who that Person would be. In all, there are over three hundred prophecies that tell of the ancestry, birth, life, ministry, death, resurrection,and ascension of Jesus of Nazareth. All have been literally fulfilled to the smallest detail. A fact often overlooked by critics is that, even if most biblical predictions could be explained naturally, the existence of just one real case of fulfilled prophecy is sufficientto establish the Bible’s supernatural origin. Over 25 percent of the entire Bible contains specific predictive prophecies that have been literally fulfilled. This is true of no other book in the world. And it is a sure sign of its divine origin.

About Enduring unto the End

 About Enduring unto the End – Terry James - https://terryjamesprophecyline.com/2024/05/26/about-enduring-unto-the-end/ I’ve been thinking yet again on my heartbeat flat-lining on Good Friday April 22, 2011, and going somewhere on the periphery of Heaven. Again, reflecting on the many hospital pages that documented my heart stopping (I clinically died three times and was brought back with the defibrillation paddles) was a reminder,in large part, about two things. One, it affirmed that the pre-Trib Rapture is the true biblical view and Jesus is on the very cusp of calling His people–the Church—into Glory. Two, it emphasized how important it is for all believers in Christ to finish therace set before us. What I saw was just what we read in Hebrews chapter 12: the cloud of witnesses were accompanying me as we ran toward the very throne of God. It was a victory lap, and we were headed toward Heaven’s finish line! (That’s the title of a bookI hope to write soon.) Obviously I haven’t finished that race, because here I sit telling you about my experience yet again. I know in the deepest reaches of my soul that what I saw on that dayin 2011 was meant to encourage me to “keep on keeping on” in the assignment I’ve been given. We believers must all “endure unto the end.” “Fatigue makes cowards of us all,” said Vince Lombardi, the famous Green Bay Packer coach of the 1960s known for his draconian training regimen in preparing his players. Heput his observation into practice against his opponents by making sure it was the opponents, not his team members, who became fatigued. Each Packer player was totally spent at the end of each practice session, having left all he had on the field. When strength was returned and fully pumped up on game day, there was more than enough to overpower those not as intensively conditioned. The result was a championship teamthat continues to be memorialized in sports lore all these years later. No team could match Lombardi’s when the exhaustion set in during the later stages of the games they played during the height of their power. There were teams that could match their naturalathletic abilities, but none could match their endurance. The game was won by the intense time of preparation as much as it was won on the actual field of play. This sports analogy isn’t far-fetched. Paul, the great champion for taking the Gospel of Christ forth, used just such a comparison to describe his life, death, and gloriousfuture in God’s kingdom: For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand. I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith: Henceforth there islaid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing. (2 Timothy. 4:4–8) Paul was obviously a sports fan. In his writings, he used imagery like running a race, beating the air, finishing the course, and others that indicate he at least took interestin the society of his day. That culture was filled with sports activities that were a natural subject matter for the great teacher to interject as he presented the Gospel and biblical matters. The games of the day included Olympic-type events, with the races in particular turning on the fans’ cheers. Judges placed crowns of laurels (formed from leaves) upon thevictors’ heads. Paul linked the races of his time to the bema judgment (the judgment seat of Christ), where children of God will receive crowns of victory based upon how they ran the racefor Christ’s cause during their lifetimes. The very nature of such a race indicates the necessity of enduring–persevering—through the long, sometimes uphill miles of living righteously. Most often, Paul used such analogies to indicate, as in the verses above, the fact that Christians should be willing to endure. In many places, the apostle taught us how tobuild our spiritual stamina. That preparation most often was wrapped around prayer, Scripture study, and practical action–witnessing and teaching truth to others. God’s Word telling us to endure is one topic that has caused anxiety-ridden questions among some. It seems to some that the command to “endure,” according to the languageused, is a requirement for achieving salvation. One must “endure unto the end” to be saved—to win in the game of life, thus secure one’s place in Heaven for eternity. Endurance is one thing God requires of His children. As a matter of fact, He demands it. But, what does the term “endurance” used in the Scriptures, causing anxieties amongsome believers, mean, exactly? A close examination of the key verses involved is necessary to understand the term in God’s prophetic lexicon. One such reference is found in Paul’s words about a departurefrom Bible doctrine at the end of the Church Age: For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables. But watch thou in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, make fullproof of thy ministry. (2 Timothy 4:3–5) Paul was prophesying a time–indeed, I am convinced we are in that time—when many within the very heart of the Christian Church will move away from preaching and teaching thatpeople are lost and need the Savior, Jesus Christ, alone (John 14:6). This failure to endure the sound doctrine taught by Jesus, Paul, and the other apostles would, Paul indicated, be a fatigue that would make cowards of many, causing them and those they teachto turn to lies. We see today this very thing. The Gospel message that declares humankind is lost in sin, thus must turn to the shed blood of Jesus Christ for remission of that deadly sin,has been changed to give the feel-good message that God is love and would never condemn those He knows to be less than perfect. The fable makers teach the do-good message that we must go along with the world of philanthropists who preach a social gospel tofeed, clothe, and, in general, show the have-nots that humanism is their savior. Much of the Church today, thus, has failed to “endure until the end.” Jesus pronounced, in strong language, the role “endurance” will play in the days leading up to His second advent: And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many. And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold. But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved. (Matthew 24:11–13) Jesus even asks in one instance whether He will find any faith on earth when He returns. And, this is where the anxiety comes in for some. Is Jesus saying that those who donot hold to absolute Bible truth until the very end won’t be “saved”? Must we—and those of the Tribulation era—never slip up and sin, departing from truth, or else suffer the eternal damnation of Hell fire? The answer is found within the character of the One who issued the solemn statement. Jesus, who said, “It is finished,” when He completed the redemption plan of God on thecross at Calvary, also said: My Father, which gave [them] me, is greater than all; and no [man] is able to pluck [them] out of my Father’s hand. (John 10:29) Saints “endure” through Christ. We don’t have the ability to resist this fallen world apart from the strength found only in our Savior. The supernatural endurance requiredto “endure unto the end” is not in us, but in Jesus, who paid the full price for our eternal souls: For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast. (Ephesians 2:8–9) When we are “in” Christ, we will “endure,” because Christ “endures.” He is the same yesterday, today, and forever! Now, this doesn’t excuse the Christian from remaining faithful to God. In that sense, “endurance” is our responsibility. It is our responsibility to the very end of our livesor until the Rapture of Christ’s Body, the Church. We are to strengthen ourselves for spiritual battle in order to not become fatigued through prayer, Bible study, and telling others about Christ. We put on the whole armor of God as we are directed to do inEphesians 6. God equips us. He doesn’t demand such a hard thing without providing the ability–even the absolute guarantee—of that sort of “endurance” that takes His child “unto the end.” Those who fail to exercise their witness, in whatever way God directs, become flabby, ineffective ambassadors in Christ’s royal service. There is always a heavy price to payfor such sloth—not through the loss of salvation for those who are truly in Christ’s grip, but through a loss of position within the kingdom of God. Those who fail to endure in the center of God’s will suffer loss of rewards when they kneel before their Savior at the judgment seat of Christ. That is one primary reason we at Rapture Ready exhort Christians to join in our efforts in these closing days of the Age of Grace–the Church Age. There are many, many opportunitiesto labor, to “endure,” during the trying times presented by this dynamic website effort to reach the lost world for Christ. Many are writing articles, many are writing encouraging emails, and some are giving in other ways to God’s work on raptureready.com. One area we very much need help with is finances. Donations have dwindled, yet the ministry-associated needs of Christ have never been more pronounced. Enduring to the endalso means supporting Christ-centered ministries with our monetary offerings. If hundreds of millions of dollars can be contributed to myriad worldly causes, many of which actively support anti-God activities, why don’t those who hold to Bible truth supportfaithful ministries with greatly abundant offerings? Jesus said: “For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also” (Matthew 6:21). Let us run the race until we reach Heaven’s finish line. You and I will then hear the Lord who died for us say: Well done, good and faithful servant; thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord. (Matthew 25:23)

Fear Of What Is Coming Next

 Negotiations For The Global Pandemic Treaty Have Broken Down, But Fear Of What Is Coming Next May Revive Them- by Michael Snyder - https://endoftheamericandream.com/negotiations-for-the-global-pandemic-treaty-have-broken-down-but-fear-of-what-is-coming-next-may-revive-them/ The World Health Organization was hoping that there would be a vote on the global pandemic treaty at the World Health Assembly at the end of this month, but now that is notgoing to happen. Negotiations that were supposed to result in a final draft of the treaty have completely broken down, and that is great news because the treaty would have transferred a tremendous amount of authority to the World Health Organization. But ifdengue fever continues to rip across the globe like it has been, or if H5N1 mutates into a form that can spread easily from person to person, fear of what is coming next could potentially revive the negotiations. On Friday, the WHO publicly admitted that negotiations had ended without producing a final draft of the treaty. The following comes from ABC News… On Friday, Roland Driece, co-chair of WHO’s negotiating board for the agreement, acknowledged that countries were unable to come up with a draft. WHO had hoped a final drafttreaty could be agreed on at its yearly meeting of health ministers starting Monday in Geneva. “We are not where we hoped we would be when we started this process,” he said, adding that finalizing an international agreement on how to respond to a pandemic was critical “for the sake of humanity.” Driece said the World Health Assembly next week would take up lessons from its work and plot the way forward, urging participants to make “the right decisions to take thisprocess forward” to one day reach a pandemic agreement “because we need it.” At one time, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus had such high hopes for the treaty, and he still insists that “anything is possible”… Addressing a sullen final day of negotiations, the WHO chief insisted, “This is not a failure.” “We will try everything — believing that anything is possible — and make this happen because the world still needs a pandemic treaty,” he said. Since the treaty is dead for now, this means that the WHO will not be running the show when the next global pandemic arrives. And we should be very thankful for that. But it is just a matter of time before there are renewed calls for a treaty, because we are already seeing some very chilling things happen all over the globe. In areas that have tropical climates, dengue fever is spreading at an unprecedented rate. This disease is also known as “bone crusher fever”, and there have already been millions of confirmed cases in 2024… Australian travellers are being warned of a sharp increase in a potentially deadly virus, commonly known as the ‘bone crusher fever’ — with more than five million people nowcontracting the condition – and cases almost doubling in 2024 alone. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO) and 1Cover Travel Insurance, dengue fever — a potentially fatal acute infectious disease caused by a virus and transmittedby the bite of an infected mosquito — has seen a rise likely due to increased post-Covid travel and the El Niño climate cycle. Earlier this week, the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) reported that dengue fever outbreaks are happening globally, with a “higher-than-usual number of cases” being witnessed in Africa, Asia, Central and South America and The Pacific. We have never seen an outbreak of dengue fever on this scale before. And it is here in the United States too. In fact, Miami has become the “epicenter” for the spread of dengue fever in this country… Miami’s role as the gateway to Latin America has also made it the US epicenter of dengue fever. Cases of the mosquito-borne illness in Florida have more than doubled this year compared with the same period in 2023, as unsuspecting travelers have carried the virus backfrom the Caribbean and Southern Hemisphere. Now, authorities are working to keep the disease from infecting the local mosquito population before this summer’s heavy rains turbocharge the risks. Malaria is another disease that is spread by mosquitos that is causing major problems all over the world this year. Could it be possible that researchers that have been purposely breeding tens of millions of mosquitos have made a huge mistake? The bird flu is also making lots of headlines right now. At the end of last week, officials at the CDC warned that they are bracing themselves for the “possibility of increased risk to human health”… The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said in a summary on Friday that it is preparing for the “possibility of increased risk to human health” from bird flu followingan outbreak among dairy cows and two confirmed human cases. H5N1 has already resulted in the deaths of hundreds of millions of birds over the past couple of years, but as long as it wasn’t affecting humans most people weren’t too concerned. Well, now it has been infecting cows all over the country, and 19 of 23 wastewater sites in Texas recently tested positive for the virus… In Texas, for example, 19 out of 23 wastewater sites were found to contain traces of the virus between early March and the end of April, according to Texas Wastewater EnvironmentalBiomonitoring. Meanwhile, the state has some 400 dairy farms, and just 14 herds have tested positive for bird flu to date, according to the US Department of Agriculture. The bird flu has also been showing up in grocery store milk from coast to coast, but experts insist that we should not be concerned because the virus is killed by the pasteurizationprocess. But officials are warning us not to drink raw milk because they believe that it could “make you very sick”… As the avian influenza virus, type A H5N1, continues to spread to an unknown number of dairy cows, health experts are informing the public milk and other dairy products arestill safe to consume – with one major exception. When a cow is infected with bird flu, high amounts of the virus can be detected in its milk. However, the pasteurization process kills off or inactivates the virus, the Foodand Drug Administration says. Raw milk, on the other hand, is not pasteurized. “Raw milk can be contaminated with harmful germs that can make you very sick,” the CDC says on its website. Many scientists are worried that it could be just a matter of time before the bird flu mutates into a form that can spread very easily among humans. Let us hope that is not true, because more than 50 percent of the humans that have tested positive for H5N1 since 2003 have ended up dead. We live at a time when it has become so easy for just about anyone to monkey around with a deadly disease and release it into the public. Personally, I am entirely convinced that deadly diseases will play a major role in reshaping society during the apocalyptic era that is ahead of us. Our ability to create deadly diseases now far surpasses our ability to control them, and the fear that global outbreaks create will be used by those that wish to accumulatepower for themselves.

Earth’s Fatal Santayana Moment

 Earth’s Fatal Santayana Moment – Terry James - https://terryjamesprophecyline.com/2024/05/27/earths-fatal-santayana-moment/ Sometime when someone has been wronged by another, the one doing the wrong eventually suffers a devastating wrong himself or herself. It is often said in these twists of reversedcircumstances, “What goes around comes around.” In other words, an intentionally bad thing induced by the wrongdoer circles throughout the ether of human interaction and finally comes back to inflict similar tribulation on the one who initiated the trouble. Right or wrong, we often experience schadenfreude—enjoyment of other’s misfortune—when that happens. I must confess that, for example, a broad smile of pleasure is one ofmy failings when I see the political tables turn on those who strive to fundamentally change America and have their efforts fail—and even rebound dramatically to their detriment. Demonically inspired Eastern religionists and occultists call this situational turn of events “karma.” God’s Word frames this as the results of wrongdoing: “Be sure, yoursins will find you out” (Numbers 32:23). In this sense, we might say the Bible is warning that what goes around does, in fact, come around. God’s book on wisdom addresses, in part, the following in this matter: The thing that hath been, it is that which shall be; and that which is done is that which shall be done: and there is no new thing under the sun. Is there any thing whereofit may be said, See, this is new? it hath been already of old time, which was before us. There is no remembrance of former things; neither shall there be any remembrance of things that are to come with those that shall come after. (Ecclesiastes 1:9–11) The Spanish-American philosopher George Santayana is given credit for phrasing the warning wrapped up in both the scriptural and the philosophical alerts that say “what goesaround comes around”: “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” This is an explanation I found in researching Santayana. Santayana is said to have first used the phrase in his book The Life of Reason: Reason in Common Sense, Volume 1 as a warning against repeating past mistakes. The quote isone of academia’s most cited and paraphrased lines, and explains why it’s important to study history. The quote means that if you don’t learn from other people’s mistakes, you are likely to make those same mistakes yourself. For example, in politics, lawmakers’ mistakes can result in [detrimental effects on] tens of thousands of lives, or more. During this wrap-up of the Age of Grace (Church Age), we’re seeing Santayana’s alert coming to fruition. We are on the cusp of the entire world of God-deniers and anti-Godforces coming to suffer the consequences of sin. The people who reject Jesus Christ for salvation are about to experience “earth’s fatal Santayana moment” in that “those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeatit.” The first earth-dwellers to experience cataclysm because they rejected God’s salvation message were, of course, the antediluvians. They felt God’s holy, righteous judgmentand wrath begin with the first drops of rain that became a deluge from above and water erupting from the earth below. The next such catastrophe fell upon the people of the time of the Tower of Babel, when God destroyed their attempt to establish a world totally apart from Heaven’s governance. The next and final such worldwide calamity because of the rejection of God and His Son will begin its final phase with the event that will be, for believers in Christ, themost glorious adventure imaginable. The Rapture will snatch millions of Christians into the clouds of Glory while leaving billions of unbelievers behind on a planet about to suffer the worst time of human history.The Rapture will, for these left behind, be “earth’s fatal Santayana moment.” You don’t have to be one of the billions who will endure this horrific period of human history. Here’s how to be with Christ and the safety of Heaven with God the Father foreternity: That if you will confess with your mouth the lord Jesus, and will believe in your heart that God has raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart man believesunto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. (Romans 10:9–10)

Are You Running in The Wrong Direction with Bible Prophecy?

 Are You Running in The Wrong Direction with Bible Prophecy? – By Jonathan Brentner - https://harbingersdaily.com/are-you-running-in-the-wrong-direction-with-bible-prophecy/ On October 25, 1964, Minnesota Vikings’ star defensive end Jim Marshall recovered a fumbled football, but then ran sixty-six yards the wrong way ending up in his own end zone.Thinking he had scored a touchdown, he spiked the ball, which sailed out of bounds resulting in a safety and two points for the opposing team. Despite Marshall’s error, the Vikings defeated the San Francisco Forty-Niners that day, 27-22. This same type of disorientation affects many teachers of Bible prophecy, too. They become disorientated and confuse the comings and goings of Scripture. They end up runningthe wrong way. For example, adherents of Replacement Theology claim that God rejected Israel after Jesus’ crucifixion. As a result, they teach that Ezekiel 36:22-38 refers to the churchrather than the Jewish people. They regard the references to cleansing from sin, a new heart, and the indwelling of the Holy Spirit as proof positive that these verses refer to New Testament saints. With the use of symbolism, they allegorize the other specifics of this passage in order to make them fit with their predisposed understanding of the text. What does this have to do with sound biblical sense of direction? Notice the words of verse 24: “I will take you from the nations and gather you from all the countries andbring you into your own land.” (emphasis added) In Ezekiel 36, along with several other passages regarding the regathering of Israel back to their Land, the Lord promises to bring His people back from the ends of the earthto the Land He promised to the Patriarchs. Jesus, on the other hand, commissioned His followers to go out to the nations of the world (Matthew 25:19-20; Acts 1:8). How can a passage that’s based on the Lord bringing His people back to the Land fit the church and that of Jesus’ sending His followers from Israel out to nations? It cannot.It’s like attempting to fit a round peg in a square hole. Although many additional reasons exist as to why Ezekiel 36:22-38 can’t possibly refer to the church, a key argument for rejecting the Replacement Theology interpretationis that it confuses the comings and goings of God’s people. With Israel, God brings His people back to the land of Israel from the ends of the earth. Jesus, however, sends His church out to the ends of the earth. Jesus Will Receive the Kingdom at His Return To Earth The current confusion regarding the comings and goings of Bible prophecy reminded me of a sermon I once heard in which the pastor, who adhered to a variant form of ReplacementTheology, also sprinted the wrong way with his understanding of Scripture. While preaching on Acts 1:6-11, he said that Jesus received His rule over the nations of the earth at His ascension, at His going. He based his conclusion on Daniel 7:13-14and 26-27, which he said reached fulfillment when Jesus left the earth amid the clouds as His disciples watched Him disappear. He compounded his serious misunderstanding of Scripture by reading from Revelation 5, which he then said referred to Jesus’ arrivalin Heaven after His ascension. Hmmm. Notice, however, what the Lord Himself said about the fulfillment of these verses from Daniel 7: “Jesus said to him, ‘You have said so. But I tell you, from now on you willsee the Son of Man seated at the right hand of Power and coming on the clouds of heaven.'” (emphasis added) Do you see it? It’s a common mistake among those who teach thatGod has rejected Israel. Jesus placed His reception of the earthly kingdom, the fulfillment of Daniel 7:13-14 and 26-27, at His coming rather than at His going. Before the Sanhedrin and high priestof the day, Jesus boldly claimed that He was the “Son of man” about whom Daniel wrote about in chapter 7 and placed the fulfillment of this prophecy at His return to the earth, at His “coming on the clouds of heaven.” Those who claim that Jesus fulfilled the words of Daniel 7:13-14 at Jesus’ ascension into the clouds err in no small way. They contradict what Jesus said about these versesas they dash in the wrong direction. The Comings and Goings Of The Rapture Versus The Second Coming Many of those who teach that there’s no Tribulation period and thousand-year reign of Jesus also say there’s no such thing as the Rapture. Some in this crowd, however, stillbelieve that we will meet Jesus in the air in the future. But they equate this event with the Second Coming. Such an interpretation of our “blessed hope” is impossible for a great many reasons. For one, the resurrection of the “dead in Christ” happens first, immediately, at Jesus’ appearing for His Church (1 Thessalonians 4:16) whereas at His Second Coming, the Lord raises the tribulation saints last in a sequence of several other events; it might not even occur until many days after His return to the earth (Revelation 19:11-20:4). But there’s also the matter of the comings and goings. With the Rapture, we go up to meet Jesus in the air after which He takes us to His Father’s house in Heaven (1 Thessalonians 4:17; John 14:2-3). Colossians 3:4 says that whenJesus appears, we “also will appear with him in glory.” Our destination at the time of the Rapture is “glory,” which is most definitely not a place on the earth. An early church bishop named Cyprian (AD 200-258) wrote about the event we now refer to as the Rapture. In his book, Treatises of Cyprian, he referred to “an early departure” of the church by which believers would be “taken away” before a time of “shipwrecks and disasters” on the earth. He continued with these words: “Let us greet the day which assigns each of us to his own home, which snatches us hence, and sets us free from thesnares of the world and restores us to paradise and the kingdom.” Cyprian viewed the Lord’s return for His church as a “departure,” at which time He “snatches us” away from the earth and takes us to “paradise” before a time of trouble onthe earth. Jesus made it clear that at His appearing, we go to where He is, to His “Father’s house” (John 14:2-3). We go from the earth to Heaven. However, at His Second Coming, we return with our Lord back to the earth (Revelation 19:11-20:4). The direction is from Heaven to Earth. It’s an important distinction that along with many other considerations, make it impossible to equate the Rapture with the Second Coming. Those that adhere to a form of Replacement Theology mistakenly claim that: 1.God’s promise of regathering the people of Israel from the ends of the earth actually refers to the church and thus also to Jesus’ sending His followers out from the Landto the ends of the earth to preach the Gospel. 2.Jesus received His earthly kingdom when He ascended to Heaven despite the Lord’s claim that this will happen when He comes back to the earth. 3.The Rapture is really the Second Coming when believers stay on the earth rather than when we meet Jesus in the air and He then takes us to His “Father’s house” in Heaven. Back in the day, I recall seeing video clips of Jim Marshall running the wrong way after picking up a fumbled football. Today, I watch as those who reject a future restorationof a kingdom to Israel spike the football believing they have scored a great victory. Sadly, they don’t realize they have raced against the flow of God’s Word and their celebrations will be short-lived. With Bible prophecy, it’s necessary to distinguish between the comings and goings if one is to qualify, in the words of 2 Timothy 2:15, as “rightly dividing the word of truth.” Words matter if we are to avoid running the wrong way when it comes to Bible prophecy (see Proverbs 30:5).

Fruit-Bearing Faith

 Fruit-Bearing Faith - Nathele Graham - twotug@embarqmail.com Fruit trees are beautiful. They look very dreary until Spring comes and they burst with leaves and flowers. That’s only the start. As the year progresses, fruit begins toform and each tree will bring forth delicious, nourishing fruit. Before we come to faith in Jesus, life can be pretty dreary. Each day is just like the previous day, with no true joy. You might have had good things in your life, but no true joy. The reasonfor this is your life was as dreary as a fruit tree in winter. You were following the ways of the world, where there is nothing to look forward to except a dreary lifestyle. Jesus Christ and the promise of Heaven is joyful and, like a fruit tree in Spring,life becomes beautiful. Life has a purpose when Christ is on the throne of your life. “Be ye therefore followers of God, as dear children; and walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God fora sweetsmelling savour.” Ephesians 5:1-2. The Apostle Paul knew what he was talking about. He was a very smart man and a member of the Sanhedrin. His father was a Pharisee, and so was he. The Pharisees were a Jewishreligious sect that knew the Law of God, but not the grace and love of God. When Jewish people began to follow the teachings of Christ, Paul’s hatred burned. He was feared among the Christians because of his anger. Then, he met Jesus and his life was changedforever. Paul had been on his way to Damascus to arrest Christians who had fled there to escape persecution, but God intervened. In a miraculous turn of events, Paul met the risen Saviour and he was given a new outlook on life. It took many years, but eventually,he was called to missionary work. Unlike many modern day “missionaries”, Paul spread the Gospel and established congregations. He taught God’s truth. His life suddenly had a deeper meaning and a purpose; his anger and hatred were gone. Not everybody has sucha dramatic call to faith as Paul, but everyone has a calling which is important to use for God. Paul urges us to follow God and walk in the love of God. In the letter to the Ephesians, Paul addresses spiritual warfare, and how to be ready for battle. You cannot be ready to battle the enemy if you are walking hand in hand withhis evil. “But fornication, and all uncleanness, or covetousness, let it not be once named among you, as becometh saints; neither filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor jesting, which are not convenient: but rather giving of thanks.” Ephesians 5:3-4. Sadly, many churches don’t disciple new Christians in their new-found faith, and preachers don’t want to upset the pew-sitters by addressing sin. That should not stop youfrom opening your Bible and letting the Holy Spirit guide you in living a Christian life. “For this ye know, that no whoremonger, nor unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, hath any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God. Let no mandeceive you with vain words: for because of these things cometh the wrath of God upon the children of disobedience. Be not ye therefore partakers with them.” Ephesians 5:5-7. This is very important for every Christian to understand. Don’t let yourself be deceived by anyone. There are leaders in the mega-church movement, as well as in small country congregations who don’t preach Biblically sound truths, but try to say that God knows hearts, soit’s not up to us to judge. That’s not what Scripture says. Sin is clearly listed in Scripture. There is a fine line between being legalistic and living in the light of God. Jesus was harshly judged by the religious leaders for healing a man on the Sabbath.He pointed out that they knew the letter of the Law but not the heart. “If a man on the sabbath day receive circumcision, that the law of Moses should not be broken; are ye angry at me, because I have made a man every whit whole on the sabbath day? Judge notaccording to the appearance, but judge righteous judgment.” John 7:23-24. Even though circumcision would be “working on the sabbath” it was required by law, so deemed as permissible on the sabbath. Jesus healed a man and was criticized for His compassion.The Pharisees deemed this as works. Judging by appearance is never right, but using Scripture to judge righteously, is important. Sin is not acceptable within congregations, so yes, it must be judged with a righteous judgment. To live a fruitful life in Christ, the fruit we bear is our faithful service to Jesus, and hopefully soul-winning. If we say we accepted Christ but remain unchanged by ourfaith, then we will never make a difference to the Kingdom, and will remain as dreary as a fruit tree in winter. “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold all things are become new.” 2 Corinthians 5:17. If you say you are a Christian, do you know what that means? We all are subject to our sin nature, passed down through the ages by Adam’s sin. We are separated from God. Jesusentered His creation to give us the only way to be reconciled to God. To be forgiven of our sins, we must turn to Jesus and repent. We cannot say “I was baptized as a baby so I’m saved”. You have to make the decision and choose to follow Christ. “That if thoushalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shall believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.” Romans 10:9. Do you know any baby that can do that? A baby can’t, but you can. Confessing to a priest will do you no good. You must confess to Jesus and ask Him to forgive your sin. Thenit’s time to start living a new life in Christ. Put off the old way of living. If you are in any sexual relationship other than a one man/one woman marriage, end that relationship immediately. If you are associating with drug users, gang members, or anyonewho embraces sin, end those ties immediately. I don’t know many pastors who disciple new Christians, and that’s sad. You have a Bible, study it. There are many, many good Bible teachers to be found. There are also many poor teachers to be avoided, such asanybody who teaches New Age beliefs, or that it’s ok to hold onto your sin as long as you know Christ. If you truly know Christ you will repent of sin and turn away from it. Read Scripture and memorize it. Then, live to honor God. How do we have a fruit-bearing faith? First, stop living a worldly life. Repent of your sin and pray for God’s help in overcoming the sin you’ve embraced. Ask a Christianfriend to help you. All of us have sinned, so every Christian should be understanding about what you’re going through. “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God, being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus:” Romans 3:23-24. Thank God for His grace. There are quite a few “lists” in Scripture that describe living in a worldly way. “Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these: Adultery,fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like; of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past,that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.” Galatians 5:19-21. If there are words you aren’t familiar with, look them up or look in a good modern translation. For instance, the word “witchcraft” comes from the Greek “pharmakeia” whichis drugs. These are things that the world accepts as normal, but are considered sin by God. When you repent of your sin you will find new joy in life, and you will begin to show fruit of the Spirit. “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering,gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.” Galatians 5:22-23. Notice that the worldly things are plural, “…works of the flesh”, but the “…fruit of the Spirit” is singular. All of the fruit of the Spirit is available to you at once, butyou can’t have fruit-bearing faith if you are holding tightly to the works of the flesh. Isn’t it time for you to begin to bear fruit? Rather than being like a dying fruit tree that is stuck in the cold, dreary winter, start living a fruit-bearing life throughfaith in Jesus Christ. God bless you all, Nathele Graham twotug@embarqmail.com Recommended prophecy sites: www.raptureready.com www.prophecyupdate.com www.raptureforums.com All original scripture is “theopneustos” God breathed. If you would like to be on my mailing list to receive the commentaries just drop me an email and let me know. “Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: they shall prosper that love thee.” Psalm 122:6.

The Warning Left Unheeded By Ebrahim Raisi: Don’t Mess with Israel

 The Warning Left Unheeded By Ebrahim Raisi: Don’t Mess with Israel – By Jonathan Brentner - https://harbingersdaily.com/the-warning-left-unheeded-by-ebrahim-raisi-dont-mess-with-israel/ On Sunday, May 19, the helicopter carrying Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and other top government officials crashed and burned. All on board perished. The Iranian president was a key factor in the October 7, 2023, Hamas’ barbaric slaughter of Israelis as well as those from other nations, including the U.S. According to manysources, such as a recent article on Harbinger’s Daily, he planned and funded the gruesome attack that resulted in the murder of over 1,200 people and the kidnapping of over 250 hostages, many of whom their captors later tortured and killed. Was the May 19th helicopter crash the Lord’s response to the man responsible for so much bloodshed and great suffering in Israel? I’m certain that what appeared to most asan accident was, in reality, God’s response as well as a warning of what lies ahead for those who now seek to divide and destroy Israel and its people (see Joel 3:1-3). The words of Ecclesiastes 8:11-12 reveal that because God’s “sentence against an evil deed is not executed speedily, the heart of the children of man is fully set to do evil.” In the end, the best result is for those who trust God or, as Solomon put it, “I know that it will be well with those who fear God, because they fear before him.” We know that all those involved in the October 7, 2023, attack, barring repentance through Jesus Christ, will face the severity of God’s wrath after they die, if not alsobeforehand. Regardless of their fate in this life, the Lord’s judgment for their vile acts will be an eternal fate worse than we can imagine. The wicked misinterpret God’s patience and continue in their wicked ways. Raisi, thinking he was above reproach for his monstrous actions, continued to breathe out threatsto destroy Israel, never imagining that the Lord would so soon hold him accountable for his great wickedness. At times, the Lord punishes sin as a warning for all to see and take heed. The destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah was just such a time when He displayed His displeasure withall those who would defile His purposes for a man, woman, and marriage. Though recorded for all to read in Genesis 19, most today ignore the warning with some mistakenly thinking that God approves of such behavior. The Warning: Don’t Mess with Israel Last December, Hasan Bitmez, age 54, suffered a heart attack on the floor of the Turkish parliament immediately after declaring that Israel “will suffer the wrath of Allah.” The New York Post reported his death two days later. Perhaps Raisi regarded this heart attack as just a coincidence, but not anymore. Former policeman and analyst Marty Breeden stated that Bitmez and Raisi were two “of the most vile and vicious leaders AGAINST Israel and the Jews…. They BOTH called for theannihilation of the Jewish State and the people, and God dealt with them accordingly!” I agree; these deaths constitute this warning for all those who would dare to mess with Israel: Don’t do it. The Lord doesn’t always respond so decisively or quickly to evil.However, when He does, it’s dramatic and unmistakable for those paying attention. Breeden also wrote, “One would THINK this should strike great fear in those who oppose Israel… but these are hard-hearted evil men, and it will likely not.” Will Anyone Heed God’s Warning? The world’s response to the death of the Iranian president tells us God’s warning here will go unheeded by the world’s leaders. Members of the UN, including the Deputy U.S.Ambassador to the UN, stood for a moment of silence to honor Raisi. In response, Israeli Ambassador to the UN Gilad Erdan quipped, “What’s next, a moment of silence for Hitler?” President Biden showed his respect for Raisi with a message of condolences toIran on the death of its leader. How dare this administration honor a man who not only has much American blood on his hands but is responsible for the senseless slaughter of many of his own countrymen, aswell as the barbaric and brutal atrocities of October 7, 2023? The key motto of his administration was “Death to America.” Why is the U.S. paying tribute to one who sought our annihilation as well as that of Israel? Sadly, far too many Christians and church leaders will also regard the deaths of Raisi and Bitmez as having nothing to do with Bible prophecy or God’s promises to Israel.Blind to the many other signs of the last days, they will continue to teach that He has rejected Israel and replaced the nation with the church. The Bible tells us a much different story. Although there’s much suffering ahead for the Jewish people during the latter half of the upcoming Tribulation, the Lord will mostassuredly restore a glorious kingdom to Israel. In the end, God will fight for His people. The deaths of these two men are just warning shots across the bow for all those who continue to oppose Israel and seek to harm the Jewish people. In the end, they willpay a great price, just as will the coming antichrist. The words of Psalm 92:6-9 speak to the fate of those who oppose the Lord, which, of course, includes His people: “A brutish man knoweth not; neither doth a fool understandthis. When the wicked spring as the grass, and when all the workers of iniquity do flourish; it is that they shall be destroyed for ever: But thou, Lord, art most high for evermore. For, lo, thine enemies, O Lord, for, lo, thine enemies shall perish; all theworkers of iniquity shall be scattered.” God’s Word is sure, and though He most often shows restraint, He acts often enough to warn the wicked of their fate. We expect those apart from Christ to miss God’s warnings and the signs of the imminent Day of the Lord, but what about those who foolishly teach that the church has replacedIsrael? Will they pause for a moment to consider the Lord’s defense of His people, or will it go unheeded with them as well?

What is your Shemittah?

 What is your Shemittah? - Bill Wilson – www.dailyot.com There has been a lot written in recent times about the shemittah. In Hebrew, the shemittah, means “to let go,” or “to withdraw.” It has been tied to judgment, and some haveerroneously used it to falsely prophesy about financial disaster and other God-instilled accountability measures associated with America turning away from God. The scriptures, however, point to a much more profound meaning that was for Israel, true rest, aboundingfaith, and ultimate redemption of mankind. In a greater and deeper study of the shemittah, we can find our true shemittah, a greater understanding of God’s redemption plan and what it means for us as believers in Christ. In Leviticus 25:2, The LORD told Moses, “Tell the people of Israel, When you enter the land I am giving you, the land itself is to observe a Shabbat rest for ADONAI.” Everyseventh year the fields were to remain fallow for a year. The people could still eat what grew naturally without payment. Everything that grew during that year belonged to the LORD, so it was to be shared by all—even the animals! Observing the shemittah wasa true test of faith, because the people had to have complete trust in the LORD’s provision. Another aspect of the shemittah was the right of redemption. After seven shemittahs, there is a Yovel, or Jubilee year, in which the land was restored to the originalowner, the indentured would be freed, beginning with a blast of a shofar. Leviticus 25:9,10 says, “You are to count seven times seven years. Then, on the tenth day of the seventh month on Yom Kippur, you are to sound a blast from the shofar; youare to sound the shofar all through your land; and you are to consecrate the fiftieth year, proclaiming freedom throughout the land to all its inhabitants. It will be a yovel for you; you will return everyone to the land he owns, and everyone is to returnto his family.” The people and the land are inextricably connected through God’s covenant. Our country has identified with Israel and Israel’s God from its birth. Part of this passage is engraved on the Liberty Bell in Philadelphia. The Israelites were redeemed from slavery in Egypt. Goel, in Hebrew means “to buy back.” In redeeming the Israelites, God became their goel, or Kinsman Redeemer, and in legalterms, their true owner. Scripture tells us that the Messiah will return to liberate His people, and restore them to the land as the true Redeemer. As Messianic believers, we know from 1 Thessalonians 4:16,17, “For the Lord Himself shall descend from heavenwith a shout, with voice of the archangel, and with God’s shofar; and the dead in Christ rise first; then we who are left still alive will be caught up with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air; and thus we will always be with the Lord.” This proclamationis, in essence, a year of Jubilee. Jesus is the embodiment of the shemittah, our true rest and redemption.

Celebrating evil

 Celebrating evil - Bill Wilson – www.dailyjot.com Imagine if during World War II, news of Adolf Hitler’s death circulated around the world and each country sent their ambassadors to his funeral or provided public statementsof sympathy to Germany. This would have been unheard of because back then an enemy was an enemy and a ruthless murderer was sought out and destroyed. Fast forward to today when Iran’s “president” (interpreted “Butcher of Tehran”) has a hard landing in a helicopterand meets his demise. Countries around the world sent their condolences even though they knew what kind of ruthless oppression this man suffered upon his own people and the terror he brought upon others, especially Israel. America was among the first in line. That’s right. Joe Biden’s National Security Communications Advisor John Kirby told reporters on May 20, “President Raisi was responsiblefor atrocious human rights in his own country–the arrest and the physical violence against hundreds of protesters, for instance. And, of course, he’s responsible for the support that Iran provides–or he was responsible for the support that Iran provided terroristnetworks throughout the region, which obviously led to–the support that he’d given Hamas–led to the slaughter of 1,200 innocent Israeli people on the 7th of October. No question this was a man who had a lot of blood on his hands. That said, as we would inany other case, we certainly regret in general the loss of life, and offered official condolences as appropriate.” Why, Mr. Kirby, why? The United Nations, formed to try to keep peace around the world by bringing countries together—think about how well that worked–also jumped at the chance to honor the Butcherof Tehran. A release on the UN website documented the sentiments. The opening statement said, “UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, alongside members of the Security Council, has extended sincere condolences to the people and Government of Iran followingthe death of President Seyyed Ebrahim Raisi in a helicopter accident on Sunday.” Even the head of the UN International Atomic Energy Agency, which has been playing cat and mouse games for 25 years trying to prevent Iran from having nuclear weapons, held amoment of silence ahead of its meeting in Vienna. Seems like the people of Iran are celebrating not wanting “condolences.” Even the Pope sent condolences and “assurances of spiritual closeness to the nation at this difficult time.” What? While Israel offered no official statement, Avigdor Liberman,a member of the Knesset, told The Times of Israel, “there was no doubt that the president was a brutal man. We won’t shed a tear.” Isaiah 5:20 says, “Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; thatput bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!” Offering condolences, holding moments of silence, and saying you are spiritually close to a brutal butcher is tantamount to saying that evil is good. The world has gone crazy with its appeasement of evil. Call itlike it is: Raisi was evil and many suffered because of him. God has seen it fit to cut short his days. It should be a warning to all like him. The rest is, say it with me…Stupidocrisy.

Is The Stage Being Set for The Global Food Crisis Prophecy of Revelation 6:6?

 Is The Stage Being Set for The Global Food Crisis Prophecy of Revelation 6:6? – Michael - https://theeconomiccollapseblog.com/is-the-stage-being-set-for-the-global-food-crisis-prophecy-of-revelation-66/ Will we soon see a major prophecy in the Book of Revelation be fulfilled? Global food prices have been skyrocketing and hunger has been spreading like wildfire all over theworld. We desperately need 2024 to be a year of good harvests, but unfortunately weather patterns are not cooperating at all and bad news about harvest forecasts just continues to pour in from many of the planet’s most important agricultural regions. Globalfood supplies just keep getting tighter and tighter, and the agricultural price spikes that we are witnessing right now are definitely quite ominous. Could it be possible that the stage is now being set for the global food crisis prophecy of Revelation 6:6? Inthat verse, we are warned of a time when food prices will soar to absolutely frightening levels… Then I heard a voice in the midst of the four living creatures saying, “A quart of wheat for a day’s wages, and three quarts of barley for a day’s wages, and do not harm theoil and the wine.” We certainly haven’t reached that point yet. But are we on the way there? In this article, I would like to share what has been going on with a number of our most important agricultural commodities recently. For example, poor harvests in Brazil have caused the price of orange juice to approximately double over the past 12 months… Prices of the breakfast staple have been climbing rapidly in recent years, partly driven by declining output in Florida — the main producer of orange juice in the U.S. — andclimate-fueled extreme weather in the main orange producing areas of Brazil. The South American agricultural powerhouse is the world’s largest producer and exporter of orange juice, which means it plays a hugely influential role in shaping the globalindustry. The benchmark frozen concentrated orange juice futures, traded on the Intercontinental Exchange in New York, closed at $4.77 per pound on Wednesday. That’s nearly double theprice registered a year ago. Prices have gone so “bananas” that some orange juice producers are actually “considering turning to alternative fruits”… Orange juice makers are considering turning to alternative fruits such as mandarins as wholesale prices have “gone bananas” amid fears of poor harvests in Brazil. Prices of orange juice concentrate reached a new high of $4.95 (£3.88) a lb on futures markets this week after growers in the main orange producing areas of Brazil said theywere expecting the harvest to be 24% down on last year at 232m 40.8kg boxes – worse than the 15% fall previously predicted. The price of coffee is also going haywire. So if you love coffee, I would stock up now while you still can. Thanks to extremely dry conditions in Brazil and Vietnam, coffee prices were up “sharply” this week… Coffee prices Tuesday rallied sharply, with arabica jumping to a 1-month high. Coffee prices soared Tuesday on concern that excessive dryness in Brazil and Vietnam will damagecoffee crops and curb global production. Somar Meteorologia reported Monday that Brazil’s Minas Gerais region received 5.3 mm of rain or 69% of the historical average in the past week. Minas Gerais accounts for about 30% of Brazil’s arabica crop. Last Wednesday, coffee trader Volcafe said Vietnam’s 2024/25 robusta coffee crop may only be 24 million bags, the lowest in 13 years, as poor rainfall in Vietnam has caused “irreversible damage” to coffee blossoms. Volcafe also projects a global robusta deficit of 4.6 million bags in 2024/25, a smaller deficit than the 9-million-bag deficit seen in 2023/24 but the fourth consecutive year of robusta bean deficits. Wheat is specifically mentioned in Revelation 6:6, and Bloomberg is reporting that a confluence of factors has pushed the price of wheat to the highest level in 10 months… Wheat briefly touched the highest in 10 months, as cold and dry weather in major producers and the ongoing war in Ukraine deepen supply concerns. Futures climbed as much as 3.3% in Chicago, before paring some of the gain. Analysts have been cutting production estimates for top exporter Russia in recent weeks, whileUkraine is headed for its driest May on record. Historically low rainfall in Western Australia is also adding to nervousness. Unfortunately, this is just the beginning. I am entirely convinced that the price of wheat will soon go far higher than it is right now. So if you think that the price of bread is high now, just wait until you see what is coming next. Meanwhile, the price of beef just surged to another brand new all-time record high… Beef prices skyrocketed to a new record high this Memorial Day weekend as industry experts warn costs could continue to rise even higher if current regulatory and economicconditions remain unchanged. Recently released data shows that “all fresh beef retail value,” a composite value based on choice beef, other beef, and hamburger retail prices, shot up to $794.90 in April,according to the Economic Research Council, the highest price on record. The size of the U.S. cattle herd is the smallest that it has been in decades, and one rancher named Shad Sullivan recently warned that beef will soon be a luxury that onlythe wealthy will be able to afford on a regular basis… “We are seeing prices at an all-time high, and it is getting close to that point when the consumer is going to say, I can’t do this anymore; it’s just too costly,” said Mr.Sullivan. “They (officials and regulators) are trying to push these high prices as a new norm where meat is only a treat for the wealthy. That is where they are pushing us, and thatis where we are going.” You may be thinking that if beef gets too expensive you will just eat more chicken and turkey. Sadly, chicken and turkey prices are poised to go a lot higher thanks to H5N1. A fresh wave of the bird flu is sweeping across the nation, and Iowa Republican Governor Kim Reynolds just declared a state of emergency in one county in her state due toan outbreak there… Iowa Republican Governor Kim Reynolds signed a disaster proclamation on Tuesday for one of her state’s counties as public health officials prepare to euthanize more than 4million chickens exposed to a highly contagious bird flu. The order comes after a case of avian influenza was confirmed among a large flock of egg-laying chickens in Sioux County on Tuesday by state and local agriculture officials,according to a report from CBS News. As a result, the animals will be destroyed and their remains will be isolated in an attempt to prevent the further spread of the contagion. In total, some 4.2 million chickens will be put down. Just think about that last sentence for a moment. What do you think that losing 4.2 million chickens will do to egg prices? Everywhere you look, there are signs of trouble. Unfortunately, this is all happening at a time when foreigners have more control over our food supply than ever before. Foreigners now control more than 43 million acres of U.S. farmland, and this should deeply alarm all of us… A recent map has revealed the alarming trend of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) acquiring vast swaths of American farmland, raising serious national security concerns. Foreign ownership of U.S. agricultural land expanded to approximately 43.4 million acres in 2022, according to data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). According to the USDA, Chinese investors’ ownership of U.S. agricultural land has skyrocketed from merely 13,720 acres in 2010 to an astounding 346,915 acres by 2022 out ofthe 43 million acres. Chinese entities hold ownership of farmland across 29 of the 50 U.S. states. I have been warning for many years that global food supplies would get tighter and tighter. Now it is happening right in front of our eyes, and hundreds of millions of people are going to bed hungry every single night. I wish that I could tell you that things will soon get better, but I can’t. We really are living in the end times, and the things that are written in the Book of Revelation really will take place.

The prophetic warning to Iran, Biden and the Church

 The prophetic warning to Iran, Biden and the Church - Bill Wilson – www.dailyjot.com On Sunday, May 19, reports came out of Iran that Iran’s dictator president Ebrahim Raisi, Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, and a host of other Iranian officialsand bodyguards had experienced a “hard landing” when their helicopter went down. Turns out that the hard landing actually was a crash that killed all on board. Iranian news agencies reported that Raisi and others had been “martyred” because they were killedin service to their people. Known as the “Butcher of Tehran” for his brutality to dissidents and women, Raisi also was an outspoken enemy of Israel and the United States. In fact, Iran is funding Hamas, Hezbollah and other terrorists in the war against Israel.In his death, there may be prophetic lessons. With that as the background, this untimely end to Iran’s extreme and radical leader should be a warning sign not only to the extremists in terrorist-led Iran, but also toJoe Biden, the United States and the church. In Genesis 12:3, the LORD said of Israel, “And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curses thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.” Raisi and his minions may well have sufferedat the hand of God because of what they are doing and have done to Israel. Most certainly, there is historic documentation when leaders in the US go against Israel, there is usually a natural, political, or economic disaster that follows. Americans, braceyourselves because Biden has been part and parcel to Iran’s and Hamas’ funding for “humanitarian purposes” that has allowed these terrorists to war against Israel. There are “replacement” theologists which many mainline churches follow that contend that Christianity replaced the Jews as God’s chosen people. They assert that Israel oftoday is not the Israel of the Bible, not God’s covenant land. They further claim that modern Israel is so sinful and against the precepts of God, that it is disqualified from being the Israel of the Bible. This is a very false and dangerous theology—one heldat the risk of divine retribution, an example we have seen with Raisi and the US is experiencing as a nation in crisis. Throughout the Bible, we see that God uses the nations to chastise Israel for its turning away. But because of the harshness of those nationsagainst Israel, they too, are judged and chastised. Examples are found in Zechariah 12, 14; Ezekiel 38, 39; Joel 3; Jude 1; Jeremiah 25; Revelation, and many more. In the prophetic end times, the Holy Scriptures are very clear that Christ returns to restore Israel and the Jews are once again and forevermore His people and He will betheir God. In Ezekiel 39:28-29, the LORD says, “Then shall they know that I am the LORD their God, which caused them to be led into captivity among the heathen: but I have gathered them unto their own land, and have left none of them any more there. Neitherwill I hide my face any more from them: for I have poured out my spirit upon the house of Israel, says the LORD God.” Many will say that Raisi got what he deserved and they rejoice at his death for his life was evil. But will there be the same rejoicing amongthose chastised for their replacement doctrine and for their leaders that say they support Israel, but are actively working against her? Something to ponder.

Do You Love Israel?

 Do You Love Israel? The Answer Determines The Fate Of Nations – By Robert Gottselig - https://harbingersdaily.com/do-you-love-israel-the-answer-determines-the-fate-of-nations/ Last week, I asked a very simple question: Are you with Israel or not? While I had a lot of positive responses, there were also plenty of negative reactions to that question,such as, “Nope, you’re on your own” or “shush with that nonsense,” some said “never ever” would they stand with Israel, and others posted laughing emojis. Predictably, these responses were mixed with a lot of free Palestine rhetoric. Well, this week, I’m asking you another question: Do you love Israel? Of course, the answer is you should. But why do I say that? Very simply, because the God of this universeloves Israel! For all the Israel-haters out there, do you know what the Bible has to say about Israel and the Jewish people? Well, let me tell you. True to what the Hebrew prophets wrote in the Old Testament Scriptures, God warned that if His chosen people did not obey Him and His commandments, He would scatter them tothe four corners of the earth, where a whole list of curses would follow them, and they would find no rest among those nations. Did that happen? Absolutely. We can see it with our own eyes. However, God also said in Leviticus 26:44-45, “Yet for all that, when they are in the land of their enemies, I will not cast them away, nor shall I abhor them, to utterlydestroy them and break My covenant with them; for I am the Lord their God. But for their sake I will remember the covenant of their ancestors, whom I brought out of the land of Egypt in the sight of the nations, that I might be their God: I am the Lord.'” God gives promises that go all the way back to Abraham, a promise of protection, land, seed, and blessing. God, faithful to His Word, has preserved His people as a nationalidentity forever for the whole world to witness. Think about it, friends: the Jewish people had every right to intermarry and to lose their identity when they came under severe persecution. Look at the horrors they facedin the Holocaust! Yet God preserved them and is gathering them back again before our very eyes in our day. They have been coming back to their ancestral homeland since 1948, and also prior to that time. He’s gathering his chosen people back because he saidHe would— not to so-called “Palestine,” but to Israel, to their ancestral homeland. The world should know that. In Ezekiel 36:23-24 we read, “‘And I will sanctify My great name, which has been profaned among the nations, which you have profaned in their midst; and the nations shallknow that I am the Lord,’ says the Lord God, ‘when I am hallowed in you before their eyes. For I will take you from among the nations, gather you out of all countries, and bring you into your own land.'” God has a purpose in bringing them into their own land. The following verses explain that one day, God will regenerate the nation—Israel as a whole—when He pours His spiritinside them. The Jewish people were scattered to the four corners of the earth—and many are still dispersed today throughout the nations. But God has brought and is bringing His Chosenpeople back to the land of Israel. What we’re reading tells me the Bible is about real people, real places, and real events. God alone is the author of prophecy. He alone is the one that can predict the future.No other religious writings dare to predict the future, except for the Bible—and with 100% accuracy. Those that hate Israel: Do you know you are picking a fight with the God of this universe, and you are setting yourself up for severe, eternal judgment? Psalm 129:5 says, “Let all those who hate Zion be put to shame and turned back.” Zion is the place where God has placed His name forever. We read in Psalm 132:13-14, “For the Lord has chosen Zion; He has desired it for His dwelling place: ‘This is My restingplace forever; Here I will dwell, for I have desired it.'” You would think that everyone who has the ability to think would see that God has His hand on His chosen people and His covenant land. All those that have come against themhave vanished from this world scene. Shouldn’t the world have learned its lesson by now? Where are all those ancient kingdoms? Think of the ancient Egyptians, the Assyrians, the Babylonians, the Medes, the Persians, the Greeks, the Romans, and the Third Reich.The list goes on. Where are all those kingdoms that came against God’s chosen people? They’re all gone. But where are the Jewish people? Right back there in the land He swore to the physical descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob to have an everlasting possession. Open your eyes, haters of Israel! Do you not fear God? What group of people have been scattered from their ancestral homeland for 2,000 years only to return and rebuild theirwaste cities, restore their ancient language, and make the desert blossom as a rose? There are no other people groups on this planet that have ever done that, only one, and that is Israel and the Jewish people. Why? Because that’s what God said He would do. Interestingly, by fighting against God, individuals are only adding further legitimacy to His Word. Zechariah chapter 14 prophesied 2,500 years ago that the Lord Jesus, Israel’sMessiah, will one day go forth and fight against those nations that come against Israel. Doesn’t it show how much Yeshua loves the Jewish people that he is going to fight on their behalf? If you want to bring prosperity to your country… love Israel. Psalm 122:6-7 says, “Pray for the peace of Jerusalem,” which is a command, “May they prosper who love you. Peacebe within your walls, Prosperity within your palaces.'” [emphasis added] Friends, if you want to bring prosperity to your country, stand with, love, and pray for Israel. I’m amazed at how easy it is to see that God and His Word are real, trustworthy, and true— and one of the greatest signs to show that is Israel and the Jewish people. Unfortunately, Satan has blinded the eyes of people today to hate, not love, Israel and the Jewish people. However, there is a day coming where the Jewish people will no longerbe a doormat for the Gentiles to walk all over. Zachariah 8, one of my favorite chapters in the Bible, concludes this way, “Thus says the Lord of hosts: ‘In those days ten men from every language of the nations shall graspthe sleeve of a Jewish man, saying, ‘Let us go with you, for we have heard that God is with you.'” That is the future of Israel. When Yeshua, Israel’s Messiah, comes again, He will save them physically and spiritually. When Jesus begins His millennial reign from Jerusalem,the preeminence will shift from the Gentiles to the Jewish people. So let me ask you again: Do you love Israel? I hope your answer is yes, I do. -----