I have been told quite often that I tend to complicate things and reach conclusions that may not be intended for certain texts. I can handle the criticism! In that regard, In prayer yesterday I asked God to speak to me from His word; because His word is truth.
In times of uncertainty, distress or confusion, reading is one of the most relaxing and rewarding things I can do. In the Book of Zephaniah, Chapter 3, there is a concept that I can identify with. I am sure many Believers my age will understand my thoughts. For those that are younger without an extensive church background, I hope and pray I explain my thoughts correctly.
God promises to gather those who are sorrowful for a solemn assembly, those who suffer reproach, are burdened and afflicted in this regard. I remember as a child attending church meetings with my Grandparents at a small, rural Pentecostal Holiness church in WV. I distinctly remember the presence of the Holy Spirit in those meetings. It was a manifest presence that could not be denied.
I have been in meetings as a child where people went to the altar before the service was over (churches still had altars then!). I remember people raising their hands during song service and weeping and praising God out loud, without permission to do so. I remember people under conviction turning away and walking out of the doors.
As a child, our vacation in the summer was going to Church Camp and washing dishes for our keep and going to morning Bible Study at the tabernacle, afternoon service to hear missionaries, and evangelist meeting at night. The Spirit of God would manifest Himself in very distinct ways. There was no question as to who was in charge of the meetings.
Now, I am in my mid 50's. I look back on these days of solemn assemblies and yearn and ache for them. In our community there is a church on every street corner but very little evidence of the Holy Spirit. It is as if He does not even exist. In conversations over the past 20 years I have brought up the seeming lack of a serious move of God and people, even ministers look as if I am from another planet. Those that do understand seem to say by their actions, words or lack of words that God does not work that way anymore. " God cannot be that serious, can He? "
Where this verse in Zephaniah spoke to me is God's promise that He will undo all that afflict those who are serious about Him. The word " undo " here as used means that He will be busy on our behalf, He will have charge and commit Himself and provide, fulfill and furnish what we need.
He promises to save those that halteth (those that limp, fall or are in adversity). He says He will get them praise and fame in every land where we have been put to shame. He will bring us again and turn back our captivity, not in some distant future event, but even now, right before our eyes!
I know a man whose love of God is unquestionable. He is 89 years old and has been rejected by the very people he ministered to for years. He takes the gospel "too seriously..." Church people think, perhaps not out loud but by their actions that "God cannot be that serious, can He..."
This dear saint is sorrowful, suffers reproach and burdened for a solemn assembly. It seems for local churches it is a thing of the past. If the assemblies on every street corner are not solemn, serious and inhabited by the manifest presence of the Holy Spirit, what spirit do they represent? Why are those who are serious cast out so readily?
God has been faithful to me. I experience His presence right at my dining room table as I read, pray and meditate upon His word. Those who are serious about His ways will be brought again and the name and praise that God gives these are not material, worldly or financial, but the name and praise upon them will be that they know God!
He is bringing back the captivity for those who have a sincere heart for Him. This is our duty, our job, our destiny. To shine as men and women have never shined before in the history of the church. He will have a Bride that is spotless and washed in the blood of the Lamb.
I want to be resting in His love when He returns. I want Him to be in my midst and joy over me with singing. I can handle the reproach because I know in whom I have believed; and I am fully persuaded that He is able to do all that He has promised.
It is time to get serious about God!
And you shall seek Me, and find Me, when ye shall search for Me with all of your heart! (Jeremiah 29:13) The LORD is good to those that wait for Him; to the soul that seeks Him. (Lamentations 3:25)
Sunday, January 31, 2010
Saturday, January 30, 2010
Even Now
The remnant of the LORD shall not do iniquity nor speak lies. A deceitful tongue shall not be found in their mouth. They, even now, lie down and none make them afraid.
Sing, O daughter of Zion; shout, O Israel; be glad and rejoice O daughter of Jerusalem!
The LORD has even now taken away our judgments and is casting out our enemy; the King of Israel, even the LORD, is in our midst; we shall not see evil in our lives anymore as we stay in Him.
The LORD our God in our midst is mighty; He saves and will rejoice over us with singing. He will rest in His love and joy over us. He will make us a name and a praise in all of the earth because He, and only He, has turned back our captivity before our eyes.
Fear not! Do not let your hands be slack! The LORD in our midst is mighty to save.
Sing, O daughter of Zion; shout, O Israel; be glad and rejoice O daughter of Jerusalem!
The LORD has even now taken away our judgments and is casting out our enemy; the King of Israel, even the LORD, is in our midst; we shall not see evil in our lives anymore as we stay in Him.
The LORD our God in our midst is mighty; He saves and will rejoice over us with singing. He will rest in His love and joy over us. He will make us a name and a praise in all of the earth because He, and only He, has turned back our captivity before our eyes.
Fear not! Do not let your hands be slack! The LORD in our midst is mighty to save.
Friday, January 29, 2010
The LORD
His judgments are sure.
His law is perfect; it converts the soul.
It makes wise the simple (those who do not understand)
His testimonies are sure and His statues are right.
His commandments are pure and enlighten our eyes.
His judgments are true and altogether righteous. They are to be more desired than gold, yea, much fine gold.
His judgments are sweeter than honey and even the honeycomb.
By His judgments we are warned; when we keep them there is great reward. (Psalm 19:7-11)
LET THERE BE LIGHT!
We were sometimes in darkness, but now we are light in the LORD;
walk as children of light. (Ephesians 5:8)
But if we walk in the light, as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another,
and the blood of Jesus Christ cleanses us from all sin. (1John 1:7)
And God said, "LET THERE BE LIGHT, AND THERE WAS LIGHT!"
We walk in His law, His testimony, His statues, His commandments and in His fear. These are true, sure, steadfast and pure. They are, each one, equally righteous and they will endure forever.
He has placed us as lights shining in great darkness.
The LORD is the light of eternal life.
LET THERE BE LIGHT!
His law is perfect; it converts the soul.
It makes wise the simple (those who do not understand)
His testimonies are sure and His statues are right.
His commandments are pure and enlighten our eyes.
His judgments are true and altogether righteous. They are to be more desired than gold, yea, much fine gold.
His judgments are sweeter than honey and even the honeycomb.
By His judgments we are warned; when we keep them there is great reward. (Psalm 19:7-11)
LET THERE BE LIGHT!
We were sometimes in darkness, but now we are light in the LORD;
walk as children of light. (Ephesians 5:8)
But if we walk in the light, as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another,
and the blood of Jesus Christ cleanses us from all sin. (1John 1:7)
And God said, "LET THERE BE LIGHT, AND THERE WAS LIGHT!"
We walk in His law, His testimony, His statues, His commandments and in His fear. These are true, sure, steadfast and pure. They are, each one, equally righteous and they will endure forever.
He has placed us as lights shining in great darkness.
The LORD is the light of eternal life.
LET THERE BE LIGHT!
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
Hold The Fort!
Ho, my comrades!
see the signal,
Waving in the sky!
Reinforcements now appearing, Victory is nigh.
Chorus~
"Hold the fort, for I am coming"
Jesus signals still;
Wave the answer back to Heaven,
"By Thy grace we will."
See the mighty host advancing,
Satan leading on;
Mighty men around us falling,
Courage almost gone!
Chorus~
" Hold the fort,
for I am coming,"
Jesus signals still;
Wave the answer back to Heaven,
"By Thy grace we will."
See the glorious banner waving!
Hear the trumpet blow!
In our Leader's Name we'll triumph
Over every foe.
Chorus~
"Hold the fort,
for I am coming,"
Jesus signals still"
Wave the answer back to Heaven,
"By Thy grace we will."
Fierce and long the battle rages,
But our help is near;
Onward comes our Great Commander,
Cheer, my comrades, cheer.
Chorus~
"HOLD THE FORT,
FOR I AM COMING,"
JESUS SIGNALS STILL;
WAVE THE ANSWER BACK TO HEAVEN,
"BY THY GRACE WE WILL."
Song and words - Philip P. Bliss 1838-1876
see the signal,
Waving in the sky!
Reinforcements now appearing, Victory is nigh.
Chorus~
"Hold the fort, for I am coming"
Jesus signals still;
Wave the answer back to Heaven,
"By Thy grace we will."
See the mighty host advancing,
Satan leading on;
Mighty men around us falling,
Courage almost gone!
Chorus~
" Hold the fort,
for I am coming,"
Jesus signals still;
Wave the answer back to Heaven,
"By Thy grace we will."
See the glorious banner waving!
Hear the trumpet blow!
In our Leader's Name we'll triumph
Over every foe.
Chorus~
"Hold the fort,
for I am coming,"
Jesus signals still"
Wave the answer back to Heaven,
"By Thy grace we will."
Fierce and long the battle rages,
But our help is near;
Onward comes our Great Commander,
Cheer, my comrades, cheer.
Chorus~
"HOLD THE FORT,
FOR I AM COMING,"
JESUS SIGNALS STILL;
WAVE THE ANSWER BACK TO HEAVEN,
"BY THY GRACE WE WILL."
Song and words - Philip P. Bliss 1838-1876
Thursday, January 21, 2010
HE SHALL!
All who are familiar with the prophecies of the last of days hear of Ezekiel chapters 38 and 39. These chapters are quite often spoken of during conferences and meetings regarding events that could happen any day in the Mideast region. Russia, Iran and others will invade Israel and there God will once again remind all nations, Israel included, that He is in control of all events on the earth.
A point in this who scenario that is overlooked is the fact that He said He causes the invasion. He gathers the enemies of Israel into a great army that looks invincible. He makes the world shutter at the might and strength of these forces arrayed against His nation. He is behind it all!
Why? So He can do His mighty work against His enemies. Is this also not His ways in our daily lives? Is it possible that He allows our enemies to show their power, their teeth and their rage and threats so that He can prove to us once again that we have no strength but through Him? How often does He need to do this in our lives? I would say that He will do it as often as needed! I like to remind Him of just how hard my head is! If He has promised to give Israel a new heart and a new mind, can He not give me a head that is a little softer to realize that I have no power in myself?
I can quote the scriptures saying the life that I now live, I live by the faith of the Son of God; but do I apply this fact in every situation? I have not in the past but I am working toward this goal.
In Ezekiel 37, prior to the massive invasion of Israel, a picture is given of a people being set up for a massive invasion. God is behind it all! As hopeless as the situation looks, He has prepared deliverance that can only come from the heavens; which is where our citizenship is, after all. Let us not forget this fact.
His workings in Ezekiel 37 give a picture of His deliverance for us, every day of the week, no matter the circumstance or hopelessness of our situation. Notice how many times in the following verses He says I SHALL! I WILL! THEN THEY WILL KNOW!
We can claim this concept of how He works, even today. No matter our past sins, mistakes, missteps, lack of faith, inaction or actions taken in error, He says, and I am putting the passages into my own words as I see them for this article ~
Thus saith the LORD, I will take the children of Israel from among the heathen where they have gone and I will gather them on every side, and bring them into their own land. I will make them one nation in the land upon the mountains of Israel. One king shall be over them all; and they shall no more be two nations. You and I will no longer be torn between the two spiritual spheres; it is one on the Other!
One king shall be over them (King Jesus). We will not be divided between two choices; our heart is steadfast on Him. We will no longer defile ourselves with the idols of the day and we will set aside the detestable things that surround us. He will save us out of our dwelling places and we will have only One Shepherd that shall be King unto us.
We will walk in His judgments and observe His statues for living Godly in Christ Jesus through the power of the Holy Spirit working in us. We will dwell in peace as our spiritual fathers did years ago. There is still a peace available to the children of God. We can claim this for ourselves, our children and our grandchildren! He will and has even now made a covenant of peace with us. It shall be an everlasting covenant.
He will place us, He will multiply us (spiritual children and growth in Him), His sanctuary is even now in the midst of us (the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, our body is His temple), and His tabernacle shall be in the midst of us forevermore!
Then, the heathen shall know that it is the LORD our God who sanctifies us; when they realize through our daily actions, prayers and life that truly, God is with us.
In this context, with these promises, the enemy will rage, threaten and attack; Ezekiel 38 and 39 occur. Do not think it strange when this happens. We can stand, and having done all, stand and see the salvation of the LORD; before, during and after every attack.
This is either true or false. I claim that it is true right down to the letter. The protection is here, the attack will come, and the deliverance from God is as sure as the sun coming up today!
Fear not, for He is with us;
be not dismayed for He is our God!
He will deliver us,
He will shelter us,
He will magnify His mighty name in the midst of the nations
so that all will know that He rules in the affairs of men!
A point in this who scenario that is overlooked is the fact that He said He causes the invasion. He gathers the enemies of Israel into a great army that looks invincible. He makes the world shutter at the might and strength of these forces arrayed against His nation. He is behind it all!
Why? So He can do His mighty work against His enemies. Is this also not His ways in our daily lives? Is it possible that He allows our enemies to show their power, their teeth and their rage and threats so that He can prove to us once again that we have no strength but through Him? How often does He need to do this in our lives? I would say that He will do it as often as needed! I like to remind Him of just how hard my head is! If He has promised to give Israel a new heart and a new mind, can He not give me a head that is a little softer to realize that I have no power in myself?
I can quote the scriptures saying the life that I now live, I live by the faith of the Son of God; but do I apply this fact in every situation? I have not in the past but I am working toward this goal.
In Ezekiel 37, prior to the massive invasion of Israel, a picture is given of a people being set up for a massive invasion. God is behind it all! As hopeless as the situation looks, He has prepared deliverance that can only come from the heavens; which is where our citizenship is, after all. Let us not forget this fact.
His workings in Ezekiel 37 give a picture of His deliverance for us, every day of the week, no matter the circumstance or hopelessness of our situation. Notice how many times in the following verses He says I SHALL! I WILL! THEN THEY WILL KNOW!
We can claim this concept of how He works, even today. No matter our past sins, mistakes, missteps, lack of faith, inaction or actions taken in error, He says, and I am putting the passages into my own words as I see them for this article ~
Thus saith the LORD, I will take the children of Israel from among the heathen where they have gone and I will gather them on every side, and bring them into their own land. I will make them one nation in the land upon the mountains of Israel. One king shall be over them all; and they shall no more be two nations. You and I will no longer be torn between the two spiritual spheres; it is one on the Other!
One king shall be over them (King Jesus). We will not be divided between two choices; our heart is steadfast on Him. We will no longer defile ourselves with the idols of the day and we will set aside the detestable things that surround us. He will save us out of our dwelling places and we will have only One Shepherd that shall be King unto us.
We will walk in His judgments and observe His statues for living Godly in Christ Jesus through the power of the Holy Spirit working in us. We will dwell in peace as our spiritual fathers did years ago. There is still a peace available to the children of God. We can claim this for ourselves, our children and our grandchildren! He will and has even now made a covenant of peace with us. It shall be an everlasting covenant.
He will place us, He will multiply us (spiritual children and growth in Him), His sanctuary is even now in the midst of us (the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, our body is His temple), and His tabernacle shall be in the midst of us forevermore!
Then, the heathen shall know that it is the LORD our God who sanctifies us; when they realize through our daily actions, prayers and life that truly, God is with us.
In this context, with these promises, the enemy will rage, threaten and attack; Ezekiel 38 and 39 occur. Do not think it strange when this happens. We can stand, and having done all, stand and see the salvation of the LORD; before, during and after every attack.
This is either true or false. I claim that it is true right down to the letter. The protection is here, the attack will come, and the deliverance from God is as sure as the sun coming up today!
Fear not, for He is with us;
be not dismayed for He is our God!
He will deliver us,
He will shelter us,
He will magnify His mighty name in the midst of the nations
so that all will know that He rules in the affairs of men!
Saturday, January 16, 2010
Why A Blessing?
God, be merciful to us and bless us!
Cause Your face to shine upon us.
This verse, this request of Psalm 67 has an end purpose. We do not request this blessing only for ourselves, but that His ways may be known upon the earth, in our families, neighborhoods and among friends and acquaintances. The prayer gives the ultimate end purpose for mercy and blessing and that His face shine upon us ~
" That Thy way may be known upon the earth, Thy saving health among the nations."
The goal of His blessing on our lives is that the nations will see this and become glad and sing for joy! They will see that there is an end result to living for God, a reward for praising and depending upon God for our need.
" Let the nations (our neighbors, family and friends) be glad and sing for joy! For He judges (makes correct decisions ) and governs the nations of the earth. Selah (Think on this).
Let the people praise Him, let ALL the people praise Him. For only He is worthy of all praise. Then (after this) the earth shall yield her increase, and God, even our own God, shall bless us.
The Hebrew word for praise means to extend the hands, to revere and worship. Or to bemoan by the wringing of the hands; this we do when in times of distress or peril.
King David said, " My soul wait Thou only upon God, for my expectation is from Him."
Do not look to the world for any lasting comfort. There are many what I call "numbing agents" to give temporary relief. Alcohol, drugs, television, radio and general noise that dulls the senses and crowds out God's voice in our lives. Run from these; we cannot wonder why God does not speak if we spend most of our time with these numbing agents.
King David points us in the right direction. Speaking through the inspiration of the Spirit of God he says that only God is his rock, his salvation and his defense. In God is our salvation and our glory (boasting). He is the rock of our strength and our refuge is in Him.
Trust in Him at all times. Pour out your heart before Him. He is a Refuge for us. Think on this!
We live in troubled times. King David did also. He was appointed king as a young man. He sat in King Saul's court for a season and Saul tried to murder him on numerous occasions. David was surrounded by a band of men that were running from the law, men of questionable character and generally troublemakers. David was honest with God; in a prayer in Psalm 71 he says, " Thou, which hast shown me great and sore troubles, shalt quicken me again, and shalt bring me up again from the depths of the earth.
God shall quicken us! The Hebrew word quicken means to revive, to nourish up, to preserve, repair and recover. If we were not in dire straights sometimes how would we know of His ability to save and restore? He puts us in this position to test and strengthen our faith, hope and dependence on Him. These trials show us that we cannot do anything on our own and bring it to a successful end. He is in charge!
After each trial we are increased, strengthened and given insight of His all encompassing ability and desire to revive, restore and quicken us. We learn this on a first hand basis. How else are we to know? How else does it sink in? We have a great hope.
There is a New Testament concept of this with the Greek word for quicken used. Romans 8:11 says ~
" If the Spirit of Him (God) that raised up Christ from the dead dwells in you - He that raised Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by His Spirit that dwells in you."
Notice what it does not say. It does not say the Spirit may quicken you, or could possibly quicken you, but that IT WILL QUICKEN YOU!
Reach deep into the things of God. Pay attention to His working in our life. What seems to be great and sore troubles serve eternal purposes. He will bring us up again from the depths. He has promised to do so, and He cannot lie. It is not that He will not lie, HE CANNOT LIE!
Have a wonderful Sabbath thinking upon Him. Pray the the quickening Spirit of God be with us daily! Praise Him. Extend your hands and revere, worship and honor our Great King! One day, very very soon, the whole of creation will praise, acknowledge and worship our Father. Let's get an early start.
Cause Your face to shine upon us.
This verse, this request of Psalm 67 has an end purpose. We do not request this blessing only for ourselves, but that His ways may be known upon the earth, in our families, neighborhoods and among friends and acquaintances. The prayer gives the ultimate end purpose for mercy and blessing and that His face shine upon us ~
" That Thy way may be known upon the earth, Thy saving health among the nations."
The goal of His blessing on our lives is that the nations will see this and become glad and sing for joy! They will see that there is an end result to living for God, a reward for praising and depending upon God for our need.
" Let the nations (our neighbors, family and friends) be glad and sing for joy! For He judges (makes correct decisions ) and governs the nations of the earth. Selah (Think on this).
Let the people praise Him, let ALL the people praise Him. For only He is worthy of all praise. Then (after this) the earth shall yield her increase, and God, even our own God, shall bless us.
The Hebrew word for praise means to extend the hands, to revere and worship. Or to bemoan by the wringing of the hands; this we do when in times of distress or peril.
King David said, " My soul wait Thou only upon God, for my expectation is from Him."
Do not look to the world for any lasting comfort. There are many what I call "numbing agents" to give temporary relief. Alcohol, drugs, television, radio and general noise that dulls the senses and crowds out God's voice in our lives. Run from these; we cannot wonder why God does not speak if we spend most of our time with these numbing agents.
King David points us in the right direction. Speaking through the inspiration of the Spirit of God he says that only God is his rock, his salvation and his defense. In God is our salvation and our glory (boasting). He is the rock of our strength and our refuge is in Him.
Trust in Him at all times. Pour out your heart before Him. He is a Refuge for us. Think on this!
We live in troubled times. King David did also. He was appointed king as a young man. He sat in King Saul's court for a season and Saul tried to murder him on numerous occasions. David was surrounded by a band of men that were running from the law, men of questionable character and generally troublemakers. David was honest with God; in a prayer in Psalm 71 he says, " Thou, which hast shown me great and sore troubles, shalt quicken me again, and shalt bring me up again from the depths of the earth.
God shall quicken us! The Hebrew word quicken means to revive, to nourish up, to preserve, repair and recover. If we were not in dire straights sometimes how would we know of His ability to save and restore? He puts us in this position to test and strengthen our faith, hope and dependence on Him. These trials show us that we cannot do anything on our own and bring it to a successful end. He is in charge!
After each trial we are increased, strengthened and given insight of His all encompassing ability and desire to revive, restore and quicken us. We learn this on a first hand basis. How else are we to know? How else does it sink in? We have a great hope.
There is a New Testament concept of this with the Greek word for quicken used. Romans 8:11 says ~
" If the Spirit of Him (God) that raised up Christ from the dead dwells in you - He that raised Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by His Spirit that dwells in you."
Notice what it does not say. It does not say the Spirit may quicken you, or could possibly quicken you, but that IT WILL QUICKEN YOU!
Reach deep into the things of God. Pay attention to His working in our life. What seems to be great and sore troubles serve eternal purposes. He will bring us up again from the depths. He has promised to do so, and He cannot lie. It is not that He will not lie, HE CANNOT LIE!
Have a wonderful Sabbath thinking upon Him. Pray the the quickening Spirit of God be with us daily! Praise Him. Extend your hands and revere, worship and honor our Great King! One day, very very soon, the whole of creation will praise, acknowledge and worship our Father. Let's get an early start.
Friday, January 15, 2010
What Spirit?
While reading this morning I came across a passage of Scripture that raised questions about my walk with God; my everyday walk. At work, at home, in the market place or at church, what spirit has ascendancy in my life?
II Timothy 1:7 says, " I (God) has not given us a spirit of fear; but of power, love and a sound mind."
There are four spirits mentioned in this small verse. There is a spirit of fear, which I feel is the more prevalent considering the job market, the economy, the earthquake in Haiti and the possible bombing of Iran by the United States or Israel. Which spirit do we operate under? Which spirit do we yield to? It is, after all our personal decision.
The spirit of fear paralyzes; we cannot function or think properly when under its influence. We must make a conscience decision to rebuke this strong entity out of our lives. There is a Spirit of power to do this made available by our Father. We must claim this Spirit. There is a Spirit of love. The same love that Christ showed for a lost and dying world, living in sin and rebellion. Yet He came.
There is a Spirit of having and operating on a daily basis; a Spirit of a sound mind. While the entire globe searches and gropes in great darkness we are to be just the opposite. A sound mind is confident in the faithfulness of our Father in Heaven to keep every promise He has made to His own.
Underline His promises in Scripture. Memorize them; quote them in prayer. This builds our confidence that He who has promised is faithful and true. As He told Moses in Deuteronomy 5:31 ~ " But as for YOU, stand here by Me and I will speak unto thee." He will show us the way to go, what to say, when and where to act and what to do.
He who has promised is Faithful and True!
What He has promised, He will do!
II Timothy 1:7 says, " I (God) has not given us a spirit of fear; but of power, love and a sound mind."
There are four spirits mentioned in this small verse. There is a spirit of fear, which I feel is the more prevalent considering the job market, the economy, the earthquake in Haiti and the possible bombing of Iran by the United States or Israel. Which spirit do we operate under? Which spirit do we yield to? It is, after all our personal decision.
The spirit of fear paralyzes; we cannot function or think properly when under its influence. We must make a conscience decision to rebuke this strong entity out of our lives. There is a Spirit of power to do this made available by our Father. We must claim this Spirit. There is a Spirit of love. The same love that Christ showed for a lost and dying world, living in sin and rebellion. Yet He came.
There is a Spirit of having and operating on a daily basis; a Spirit of a sound mind. While the entire globe searches and gropes in great darkness we are to be just the opposite. A sound mind is confident in the faithfulness of our Father in Heaven to keep every promise He has made to His own.
Underline His promises in Scripture. Memorize them; quote them in prayer. This builds our confidence that He who has promised is faithful and true. As He told Moses in Deuteronomy 5:31 ~ " But as for YOU, stand here by Me and I will speak unto thee." He will show us the way to go, what to say, when and where to act and what to do.
He who has promised is Faithful and True!
What He has promised, He will do!
Thursday, January 14, 2010
We hope everyone is doing well. I have been in hibernation since the cold snap two weeks ago; I do not like cold weather! For me it is like drinking an extra large ice drink straight down and suffering the brain freeze that comes immediately thereafter!
Here is an interesting article from Asher Instrater. He lives in Israel. He founded a Messianic Congregation in our local area and I value his Hebraic perspective of Scripture.
Enjoy and stay warm!
Three Elijahs ©January 10, 2010 Asher Intrater
Yeshua (Jesus) spoke of three different Elijahs.
Matthew 17:11, 13 – Elijah will truly come and restore all things. But I say to you that Elijah has already come and they did not recognize him… His disciples understood that He spoke to them of John the Baptizer.
The first Elijah was the great prophet who confronted Ahab and Jezebel in the 8th century before Yeshua.
The second Elijah was John the Baptizer, whose ministry of repentance introduced to the world the coming of Yeshua as Messiah. He was NOT Elijah, nor an incarnation of Elijah. He came "in the spirit and the power of Elijah" – Luke 1:17. John had a similar calling and anointing as Elijah, but he was a totally different person.
The "third" Elijah has not yet come. He will come before the Second Coming with a ministry not only of repentance but of restoration.
Malachi 4:5-6 – I will send you the prophet Elijah before the coming of the great and terrible day of the Lord. He will restore the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the hearts of the children to the fathers.
Like John, this end time prophet will come in the spirit and power of Elijah, but will not be Elijah himself. This three fold ministry is true not only of Elijah, John and the end-time prophet, it is also a pattern for many other prophecies.
There is a first fulfillment in the time of the ancient Israelite prophets and patriarchs. There is a second fulfillment in the time of Yeshua and His disciples. Then there is a final fulfillment in the end times.
We could call this three fold fulfillment of prophecy: 1. Old Testament, 2. New Testament, 3. End Times. Or we could call it: 1. Hebrew Prophets, 2. Gospels, 3. Apocalypse.
The three fold fulfillment could also be connected to the Temple:
First Temple (Solomon's)
Second Temple (Herod's)
Third Temple (Tribulation).
Many of the prophecies in the Hebrew Scriptures have a 3-fold fulfillment. They are spoken within an historical context. They find another fulfillment in the time of Yeshua's first coming. Then they will find a final fulfillment at the time of the Second Coming. Knowing this pattern established by Yeshua will keep us from getting confused, and help us to understand how New Covenant prophecy is connected to the Hebrew prophets.
Back to Articles 2010Please PRAY for our ongoing ministry in Israel of indigenous evangelism, planting Messianic congregations, the discipleship training center, prophetic praise and prayer watches in Hebrew, and financial aid for the needy.
Here is an interesting article from Asher Instrater. He lives in Israel. He founded a Messianic Congregation in our local area and I value his Hebraic perspective of Scripture.
Enjoy and stay warm!
Three Elijahs ©January 10, 2010 Asher Intrater
Yeshua (Jesus) spoke of three different Elijahs.
Matthew 17:11, 13 – Elijah will truly come and restore all things. But I say to you that Elijah has already come and they did not recognize him… His disciples understood that He spoke to them of John the Baptizer.
The first Elijah was the great prophet who confronted Ahab and Jezebel in the 8th century before Yeshua.
The second Elijah was John the Baptizer, whose ministry of repentance introduced to the world the coming of Yeshua as Messiah. He was NOT Elijah, nor an incarnation of Elijah. He came "in the spirit and the power of Elijah" – Luke 1:17. John had a similar calling and anointing as Elijah, but he was a totally different person.
The "third" Elijah has not yet come. He will come before the Second Coming with a ministry not only of repentance but of restoration.
Malachi 4:5-6 – I will send you the prophet Elijah before the coming of the great and terrible day of the Lord. He will restore the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the hearts of the children to the fathers.
Like John, this end time prophet will come in the spirit and power of Elijah, but will not be Elijah himself. This three fold ministry is true not only of Elijah, John and the end-time prophet, it is also a pattern for many other prophecies.
There is a first fulfillment in the time of the ancient Israelite prophets and patriarchs. There is a second fulfillment in the time of Yeshua and His disciples. Then there is a final fulfillment in the end times.
We could call this three fold fulfillment of prophecy: 1. Old Testament, 2. New Testament, 3. End Times. Or we could call it: 1. Hebrew Prophets, 2. Gospels, 3. Apocalypse.
The three fold fulfillment could also be connected to the Temple:
First Temple (Solomon's)
Second Temple (Herod's)
Third Temple (Tribulation).
Many of the prophecies in the Hebrew Scriptures have a 3-fold fulfillment. They are spoken within an historical context. They find another fulfillment in the time of Yeshua's first coming. Then they will find a final fulfillment at the time of the Second Coming. Knowing this pattern established by Yeshua will keep us from getting confused, and help us to understand how New Covenant prophecy is connected to the Hebrew prophets.
Back to Articles 2010Please PRAY for our ongoing ministry in Israel of indigenous evangelism, planting Messianic congregations, the discipleship training center, prophetic praise and prayer watches in Hebrew, and financial aid for the needy.
Sunday, January 3, 2010
JUST THE FACTS-ISRAEL
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Judgment Day Approaching - Dave Hunt -THE BEREAN CALL - June 1, 2005
Israel is the major topic of the Bible. The word “Israel” occurs 2,565 times in 2,293 verses. More than enough prophecies have already been fulfilled in Israel’s unique history to prove that “the God of Israel” (203 times) is the true God. In Zechariah 12:2-3, He declares:
Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of trembling unto all the people round about, when they shall be in the siege both against Judah and against Jerusalem. And in that day will I make Jerusalem a burdensome stone for all people: all that burden themselves with it shall be cut in pieces, though all the people of the earth be gathered together against it.
This is an amazing prophecy not only that Jerusalem, which was then in ruins, would become a burden to the whole world, but that all of Israel’s neighbors would be united against her. They have fought one another in the past. Yet today, for the first time in history, “all the people round about” are united by Islam to destroy Israel.
For more than 50 years, Israel’s neighbors have launched surprise attacks against her and she has proved too strong militarily, even though they outnumber her forty to one. God said, “I [will] make...Judah like an hearth of fire among the wood…and they shall devour all the people round about…” (Zech 12:6). Soundly defeated every time, her Muslim neighbors feign a desire for peace, hoping to deceive and ultimately destroy her—a strategy established by Muhammad.
The real battle is not between Arabs and Jews, but between Allah and Yahweh. There is no question of the outcome, but it will be costly for both sides: Israel will be severely punished for rebellion, and her enemies will be destroyed.
Exactly as foretold, Jerusalem is a burden to all people of the world. More than 60,000 individual votes have been cast in the UN against Israel. This tiny nation with one 1,000th of the world’s population has occupied one-third of the United Nations’ time—a burden indeed!
Skeptics accuse Christians of trying to fit current events to the Bible, claiming that no one recognized such prophecies until Israel was formed in 1948. On the contrary, for centuries most evangelical Christians have preached from the Bible the return of the Jews to their own land. Even John Owen, a leading Calvinist, wrote in the 17th century: “The Jews shall be gathered...into their homeland.” 1 This was also the opinion of the poet John Milton, of John Bunyan, Roger Williams, Oliver Cromwell, and many others.
Martin Luther wrote: “If the Jews are Abraham’s descendants…[they should be] back in their own land [with] a state of their own. But…[they are] scattered and despised.” 2 He therefore wrote off the Jews as God’s chosen people and persecuted them. But today the Jews are back in their own land after 2,500 years of being scattered worldwide, speaking Hebrew just as King David did 3,000 years ago. No other people have returned to reestablish their own nation and language after being cast out of their land for such a period of time.
Some prophecies applicable only to our day are frightening, foretelling God’s judgment. The language is often graphic:
If I whet my glittering sword, and mine hand take hold on judgment; I will render vengeance to mine enemies...my sword shall devour flesh… (Deut 32:41-42). For, behold, the LORD will come…to render his anger with fury...by his sword...(Isa 66:15,16). And the slain of the LORD shall be at that day from one end of the earth even unto the other…they shall not be lamented, neither gathered, nor buried.... (Jer 25:33)
The question is often asked as to whether the United States (or Canada, Australia, et al.) is in Bible prophecy. Of course! Scripture declares that every nation in the world will join together to invade Israel in the last days and be destroyed in the battle of Armageddon: “I will gather all nations [surely all includes America] against Jerusalem to battle; and the city shall be taken….Then shall the LORD go forth, and fight against those nations…” (Zech 12:9; 14:2-4).
But wouldn’t the United States be spared for being Israel’s friend? In fact, the U.S. State Department has often been against Israel. This was true in the Yom Kippur War. In a sneak attack (October 1973), 80,000 Egyptians overwhelmed 500 Israeli defenders along the Suez and 1,400 Syrian tanks swept down the Golan with only one Israeli tank in service to oppose them. Israel was taken by surprise. Most of her armed forces were on holiday. The initial success of the attackers so electrified the Arab world that nine other Arab states rushed to get in on the slaughter.
Historian David A. Rausch writes: “Jordan’s King Hussein sent two of his best armored brigades to Syria. Saudi Arabia and Kuwait financially underwrote the huge cost while sending thousands of troops to fight the Israelis. Kuwait lent her British-made Lightning jets to Egypt. Libya’s Muammar Qaddafi turned over forty French-made Mirage III fighters and 100 tanks. Iraqi MiG fighter jets as well as tank and infantry divisions fought on the Golan Heights, while a squadron of Iraqi Hunter jets were utilized by Egypt. Arabs predicted the extermination of the Jewish state and the ‘liberation’ of Palestine....” 3
The Soviet Union blocked any UN attempt at a cease-fire and refortified the Arab forces with armaments and supplies by sea and air. It was the closest Israel ever came to being defeated. But when the war ended, the Israeli tank columns were on the outskirts of Damascus and Cairo and could have taken those cities had they not turned back. Tragically, Israel suffered about 3,000 dead—which would be comparable to the U.S. losing 150,000. Except for a series of miracles from God, Israel would not have survived.
Where was her friend, the United States? Dozens of notices were sent to the Nixon White House by America’s National Security Administration (NSA) that an Arab Pearl Harbor was about to be launched against Israel. Nixon sat on them. Kissinger hid at the Waldorf Astoria hotel in New York the day of the attack and waited another three days before convening the UN Security Council. Declining to rush desperately needed military supplies to Israel, the White House said it had to be careful not to upset the Arabs and cause an oil crisis.
Six years earlier, on June 8, 1967, the fourth morning of the “Six-day War,” the USS Liberty, an electronics eavesdropping vessel, arrived off the Sinai coast and began to suck in every Israeli military communication, relaying it all to the British Secret Service’s giant computer installation on Cyprus. From there, complete maps of every Israeli military move were transmitted in advance to the Arab armed forces. With that help, the Arabs might have been able to use their overwhelming numerical superiority to turn the tide of the war. Israel had no choice except to sink the Liberty. Of course the media screamed about this “cold-blooded attack.” No one believed Israel’s public excuse that the Liberty had been mistaken for a hostile Egyptian ship—and neither the U.S. nor Israel has publicly told the truth.
Yes, the United States, too, will attack Israel and will be punished at Armageddon. God declares plainly that He will bring all nations against Israel to destroy them:
In the latter days...I will bring thee against my land…my fury shall come up in my face…there shall be a great shaking in the land of Israel…the fishes of the sea, and the fowls of the heaven, and the beasts of the field, and all creeping things [on] the earth, and all the men [on] the face of the earth, shall shake at my presence…[all nations] shall know that I am the Lord. (Eze 38:16-23)
This is terrifying language! What causes this “great shaking” of the entire planet and every living creature upon it? God is personally coming to earth as He did at Mount Sinai when He gave the Law—and He is going to take vengeance upon the enemies of Israel!
There are two specific reasons for God’s judgment: “I will also gather all nations ...into the valley of Jehoshaphat [between Jerusalem and the Mount of Olives, where God miraculously destroyed invading nations without Israel lifting a finger (2 Chr 21:10-25)], and will plead with [punish] them there for my people and for my heritage Israel, whom they have [1] scattered among the nations, and [2] parted my land” (Joel 3:2).
Of course, all nations have participated in persecuting and scattering the Jews from country to country for 2,500 years. The second reason for God’s judgment falling on all nations, however, is something that has only occurred within our generation: “they have…parted [divided] my land.”
Israel has been overrun by invaders many times—but never did any conqueror divide the land. The victor does not share its spoils with others. Since World War I, however, all nations have joined to divide the land of Israel.
The 1917 Balfour Declaration, the 1919 Paris Peace Conference, and the 1922 Declaration of Principles by the League of Nations all recognized that the land that had become known as “Palestine” (since the Romans renamed Israel in A.D. 135) belonged to the Jews. It was set aside to become the national homeland of the Jewish people “internationally guaranteed, and…formally recognized to rest upon ancient historic connection.” Of course, history ties Israel to all of “Palestine.”
Britain was given the mandate to see that the Jews were safely settled there. The discovery of huge reservoirs of oil under Arab lands caused Britain to keep Jewish immigrants out and let in tens of thousands of Arabs. Just when millions of Jews desperately needed a haven to which they could flee from Nazi Germany, Britain’s 1939 White Paper limited Jewish immigrants to 10,000 per year for a maximum of five years, plus an additional 25,000 “refugees” during that period—then the door to Palestine would be shut entirely to the Jews. Since the Nazis had marked for extinction 11 million Jews in Europe, the quota of 25,000 defied God and conscience.
A year earlier, President Roosevelt had gathered delegates from 32 countries in Evian, France, to discuss the worsening plight of the Jews. Roosevelt made it clear that the United States would do nothing. Britain said there was no room in Palestine and it was not to be discussed. Professing their great sympathy for Europe’s Jews that everyone knew were to be exterminated, the nations offered various excuses why they could do nothing to intervene.
Hitler shrewdly declared, “We...are ready to put all these criminals at the disposal of these countries...even on luxury ships.” When the conference ended with the Jews completely abandoned, Hitler mocked the participants: “It was recently regarded as wholly incomprehensible why Germany did not wish to preserve in its population...the Jews…[yet these] countries seem in no way anxious to [receive them] now that the opportunity offers.” The entire world was Hitler’s partner in destroying the Jews!
In 1944, Hitler offered to sell to the allies 500,000 Hungarian Jews for $2 each—and no one would take them! England said there was “no room” in Palestine for them! In 1943, Britain and America had agreed to say and do nothing about the Holocaust, fearful that if pressed, Hitler would dump the Jews on his critics. The Allies steadfastly refused the repeated urgent appeals from Jewish organizations to bomb the rail lines going in and out of the extermination camps. God will judge all nations!
After the war, a trickle of emaciated survivors of Hitler’s death machines sought to reach “Palestine” in half-sinking ships. Some who got within sight of the land God had given to them as an everlasting inheritance (1 Chr 16:15-18) were driven back by the British navy and put into internment camps on Cyprus. Many who did manage to find shelter within what would become the new Jewish State of Israel were rounded up by the British and removed to those camps. Britain created Jordan out of most of the Promised Land. The demise of the British Empire, upon which “the sun never sank,” can be counted from the time Britain betrayed the Jews—one more fulfillment of the prophecy, “I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee…” (Gen 12:3).
When the UN finally voted to partition Palestine on November 29, 1947 (UN Res. 181), God’s “chosen people” received about 13 percent of the land that had once belonged to them! Thus Joel’s prophecy was fulfilled that all nations would join to divide Israel. The only part of that prophecy remaining to be fulfilled is the judgment on the nations for having “parted” God’s land: “The land shall not be sold [partitioned] for ever; for the land is mine” (Lev 25:23).
God’s anger is growing hotter against the nations of this world for robbing Israel of what He gave to her. Yet in continued defiance of God, every peace proposal that the West has imposed upon Israel has involved further dividing of God's land. President Bush, a professing Christian, originated the so-called “road map to peace,” which calls for a further dividing of the land of Israel. He ought to tremble and repent, as should President Putin, the EU, and the UN, who have joined Bush to make up the “quartet” sponsoring this plan.
On her part, Israel has been willing to give away more and more land in exchange for promises of “peace” from the PLO in spite of the fact that its charter calls for the destruction of Israel and that its maps and those of the entire Arab world do not even acknowledge Israel’s existence. The fact that Israel has been forced to do so by the West is no excuse. For this she will be punished severely in what is called “the time of Jacob’s trouble” (Jer 30:7). Yes, God will deliver her, but only after two-thirds of all Jews on earth have been killed (Zec 13:8,9).
There is no more appropriate place and way to destroy the nations that have abused Israel than when they, in the spirit of Satan, come to effect once and for all what Hitler called the “final solution to the Jewish problem.” Believers are to meet together to encourage and exhort one another from Scripture, “so much the more, as ye see the day [of judgment] approaching” (Heb 10:25). Fulfilled prophecies are heralding that day as never before. TBC
Endnotes
1. Cited in Bridges for Peace website, May 21, 2004.
2. J. Randall Price, paper delivered at the Pre-Trib Study Group Conference, December 6, 2004.
3. David A. Rausch, The Middle East Maze: Israel and Her Neighbors (Chicago: Moody Press, 1991), 57.
Audio version of this newsletter is here.
Judgment Day Approaching - Dave Hunt -THE BEREAN CALL - June 1, 2005
Israel is the major topic of the Bible. The word “Israel” occurs 2,565 times in 2,293 verses. More than enough prophecies have already been fulfilled in Israel’s unique history to prove that “the God of Israel” (203 times) is the true God. In Zechariah 12:2-3, He declares:
Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of trembling unto all the people round about, when they shall be in the siege both against Judah and against Jerusalem. And in that day will I make Jerusalem a burdensome stone for all people: all that burden themselves with it shall be cut in pieces, though all the people of the earth be gathered together against it.
This is an amazing prophecy not only that Jerusalem, which was then in ruins, would become a burden to the whole world, but that all of Israel’s neighbors would be united against her. They have fought one another in the past. Yet today, for the first time in history, “all the people round about” are united by Islam to destroy Israel.
For more than 50 years, Israel’s neighbors have launched surprise attacks against her and she has proved too strong militarily, even though they outnumber her forty to one. God said, “I [will] make...Judah like an hearth of fire among the wood…and they shall devour all the people round about…” (Zech 12:6). Soundly defeated every time, her Muslim neighbors feign a desire for peace, hoping to deceive and ultimately destroy her—a strategy established by Muhammad.
The real battle is not between Arabs and Jews, but between Allah and Yahweh. There is no question of the outcome, but it will be costly for both sides: Israel will be severely punished for rebellion, and her enemies will be destroyed.
Exactly as foretold, Jerusalem is a burden to all people of the world. More than 60,000 individual votes have been cast in the UN against Israel. This tiny nation with one 1,000th of the world’s population has occupied one-third of the United Nations’ time—a burden indeed!
Skeptics accuse Christians of trying to fit current events to the Bible, claiming that no one recognized such prophecies until Israel was formed in 1948. On the contrary, for centuries most evangelical Christians have preached from the Bible the return of the Jews to their own land. Even John Owen, a leading Calvinist, wrote in the 17th century: “The Jews shall be gathered...into their homeland.” 1 This was also the opinion of the poet John Milton, of John Bunyan, Roger Williams, Oliver Cromwell, and many others.
Martin Luther wrote: “If the Jews are Abraham’s descendants…[they should be] back in their own land [with] a state of their own. But…[they are] scattered and despised.” 2 He therefore wrote off the Jews as God’s chosen people and persecuted them. But today the Jews are back in their own land after 2,500 years of being scattered worldwide, speaking Hebrew just as King David did 3,000 years ago. No other people have returned to reestablish their own nation and language after being cast out of their land for such a period of time.
Some prophecies applicable only to our day are frightening, foretelling God’s judgment. The language is often graphic:
If I whet my glittering sword, and mine hand take hold on judgment; I will render vengeance to mine enemies...my sword shall devour flesh… (Deut 32:41-42). For, behold, the LORD will come…to render his anger with fury...by his sword...(Isa 66:15,16). And the slain of the LORD shall be at that day from one end of the earth even unto the other…they shall not be lamented, neither gathered, nor buried.... (Jer 25:33)
The question is often asked as to whether the United States (or Canada, Australia, et al.) is in Bible prophecy. Of course! Scripture declares that every nation in the world will join together to invade Israel in the last days and be destroyed in the battle of Armageddon: “I will gather all nations [surely all includes America] against Jerusalem to battle; and the city shall be taken….Then shall the LORD go forth, and fight against those nations…” (Zech 12:9; 14:2-4).
But wouldn’t the United States be spared for being Israel’s friend? In fact, the U.S. State Department has often been against Israel. This was true in the Yom Kippur War. In a sneak attack (October 1973), 80,000 Egyptians overwhelmed 500 Israeli defenders along the Suez and 1,400 Syrian tanks swept down the Golan with only one Israeli tank in service to oppose them. Israel was taken by surprise. Most of her armed forces were on holiday. The initial success of the attackers so electrified the Arab world that nine other Arab states rushed to get in on the slaughter.
Historian David A. Rausch writes: “Jordan’s King Hussein sent two of his best armored brigades to Syria. Saudi Arabia and Kuwait financially underwrote the huge cost while sending thousands of troops to fight the Israelis. Kuwait lent her British-made Lightning jets to Egypt. Libya’s Muammar Qaddafi turned over forty French-made Mirage III fighters and 100 tanks. Iraqi MiG fighter jets as well as tank and infantry divisions fought on the Golan Heights, while a squadron of Iraqi Hunter jets were utilized by Egypt. Arabs predicted the extermination of the Jewish state and the ‘liberation’ of Palestine....” 3
The Soviet Union blocked any UN attempt at a cease-fire and refortified the Arab forces with armaments and supplies by sea and air. It was the closest Israel ever came to being defeated. But when the war ended, the Israeli tank columns were on the outskirts of Damascus and Cairo and could have taken those cities had they not turned back. Tragically, Israel suffered about 3,000 dead—which would be comparable to the U.S. losing 150,000. Except for a series of miracles from God, Israel would not have survived.
Where was her friend, the United States? Dozens of notices were sent to the Nixon White House by America’s National Security Administration (NSA) that an Arab Pearl Harbor was about to be launched against Israel. Nixon sat on them. Kissinger hid at the Waldorf Astoria hotel in New York the day of the attack and waited another three days before convening the UN Security Council. Declining to rush desperately needed military supplies to Israel, the White House said it had to be careful not to upset the Arabs and cause an oil crisis.
Six years earlier, on June 8, 1967, the fourth morning of the “Six-day War,” the USS Liberty, an electronics eavesdropping vessel, arrived off the Sinai coast and began to suck in every Israeli military communication, relaying it all to the British Secret Service’s giant computer installation on Cyprus. From there, complete maps of every Israeli military move were transmitted in advance to the Arab armed forces. With that help, the Arabs might have been able to use their overwhelming numerical superiority to turn the tide of the war. Israel had no choice except to sink the Liberty. Of course the media screamed about this “cold-blooded attack.” No one believed Israel’s public excuse that the Liberty had been mistaken for a hostile Egyptian ship—and neither the U.S. nor Israel has publicly told the truth.
Yes, the United States, too, will attack Israel and will be punished at Armageddon. God declares plainly that He will bring all nations against Israel to destroy them:
In the latter days...I will bring thee against my land…my fury shall come up in my face…there shall be a great shaking in the land of Israel…the fishes of the sea, and the fowls of the heaven, and the beasts of the field, and all creeping things [on] the earth, and all the men [on] the face of the earth, shall shake at my presence…[all nations] shall know that I am the Lord. (Eze 38:16-23)
This is terrifying language! What causes this “great shaking” of the entire planet and every living creature upon it? God is personally coming to earth as He did at Mount Sinai when He gave the Law—and He is going to take vengeance upon the enemies of Israel!
There are two specific reasons for God’s judgment: “I will also gather all nations ...into the valley of Jehoshaphat [between Jerusalem and the Mount of Olives, where God miraculously destroyed invading nations without Israel lifting a finger (2 Chr 21:10-25)], and will plead with [punish] them there for my people and for my heritage Israel, whom they have [1] scattered among the nations, and [2] parted my land” (Joel 3:2).
Of course, all nations have participated in persecuting and scattering the Jews from country to country for 2,500 years. The second reason for God’s judgment falling on all nations, however, is something that has only occurred within our generation: “they have…parted [divided] my land.”
Israel has been overrun by invaders many times—but never did any conqueror divide the land. The victor does not share its spoils with others. Since World War I, however, all nations have joined to divide the land of Israel.
The 1917 Balfour Declaration, the 1919 Paris Peace Conference, and the 1922 Declaration of Principles by the League of Nations all recognized that the land that had become known as “Palestine” (since the Romans renamed Israel in A.D. 135) belonged to the Jews. It was set aside to become the national homeland of the Jewish people “internationally guaranteed, and…formally recognized to rest upon ancient historic connection.” Of course, history ties Israel to all of “Palestine.”
Britain was given the mandate to see that the Jews were safely settled there. The discovery of huge reservoirs of oil under Arab lands caused Britain to keep Jewish immigrants out and let in tens of thousands of Arabs. Just when millions of Jews desperately needed a haven to which they could flee from Nazi Germany, Britain’s 1939 White Paper limited Jewish immigrants to 10,000 per year for a maximum of five years, plus an additional 25,000 “refugees” during that period—then the door to Palestine would be shut entirely to the Jews. Since the Nazis had marked for extinction 11 million Jews in Europe, the quota of 25,000 defied God and conscience.
A year earlier, President Roosevelt had gathered delegates from 32 countries in Evian, France, to discuss the worsening plight of the Jews. Roosevelt made it clear that the United States would do nothing. Britain said there was no room in Palestine and it was not to be discussed. Professing their great sympathy for Europe’s Jews that everyone knew were to be exterminated, the nations offered various excuses why they could do nothing to intervene.
Hitler shrewdly declared, “We...are ready to put all these criminals at the disposal of these countries...even on luxury ships.” When the conference ended with the Jews completely abandoned, Hitler mocked the participants: “It was recently regarded as wholly incomprehensible why Germany did not wish to preserve in its population...the Jews…[yet these] countries seem in no way anxious to [receive them] now that the opportunity offers.” The entire world was Hitler’s partner in destroying the Jews!
In 1944, Hitler offered to sell to the allies 500,000 Hungarian Jews for $2 each—and no one would take them! England said there was “no room” in Palestine for them! In 1943, Britain and America had agreed to say and do nothing about the Holocaust, fearful that if pressed, Hitler would dump the Jews on his critics. The Allies steadfastly refused the repeated urgent appeals from Jewish organizations to bomb the rail lines going in and out of the extermination camps. God will judge all nations!
After the war, a trickle of emaciated survivors of Hitler’s death machines sought to reach “Palestine” in half-sinking ships. Some who got within sight of the land God had given to them as an everlasting inheritance (1 Chr 16:15-18) were driven back by the British navy and put into internment camps on Cyprus. Many who did manage to find shelter within what would become the new Jewish State of Israel were rounded up by the British and removed to those camps. Britain created Jordan out of most of the Promised Land. The demise of the British Empire, upon which “the sun never sank,” can be counted from the time Britain betrayed the Jews—one more fulfillment of the prophecy, “I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee…” (Gen 12:3).
When the UN finally voted to partition Palestine on November 29, 1947 (UN Res. 181), God’s “chosen people” received about 13 percent of the land that had once belonged to them! Thus Joel’s prophecy was fulfilled that all nations would join to divide Israel. The only part of that prophecy remaining to be fulfilled is the judgment on the nations for having “parted” God’s land: “The land shall not be sold [partitioned] for ever; for the land is mine” (Lev 25:23).
God’s anger is growing hotter against the nations of this world for robbing Israel of what He gave to her. Yet in continued defiance of God, every peace proposal that the West has imposed upon Israel has involved further dividing of God's land. President Bush, a professing Christian, originated the so-called “road map to peace,” which calls for a further dividing of the land of Israel. He ought to tremble and repent, as should President Putin, the EU, and the UN, who have joined Bush to make up the “quartet” sponsoring this plan.
On her part, Israel has been willing to give away more and more land in exchange for promises of “peace” from the PLO in spite of the fact that its charter calls for the destruction of Israel and that its maps and those of the entire Arab world do not even acknowledge Israel’s existence. The fact that Israel has been forced to do so by the West is no excuse. For this she will be punished severely in what is called “the time of Jacob’s trouble” (Jer 30:7). Yes, God will deliver her, but only after two-thirds of all Jews on earth have been killed (Zec 13:8,9).
There is no more appropriate place and way to destroy the nations that have abused Israel than when they, in the spirit of Satan, come to effect once and for all what Hitler called the “final solution to the Jewish problem.” Believers are to meet together to encourage and exhort one another from Scripture, “so much the more, as ye see the day [of judgment] approaching” (Heb 10:25). Fulfilled prophecies are heralding that day as never before. TBC
Endnotes
1. Cited in Bridges for Peace website, May 21, 2004.
2. J. Randall Price, paper delivered at the Pre-Trib Study Group Conference, December 6, 2004.
3. David A. Rausch, The Middle East Maze: Israel and Her Neighbors (Chicago: Moody Press, 1991), 57.
Audio version of this newsletter is here.
Saturday, January 2, 2010
Rest In Hope
There is a secret to total peace in God. David gives a beautiful picture of this in Psalm 16. Here is the secret. Set the LORD always before us. Because He is always at our right hand, we shall not be moved.
If we stay in this position, and it is a position we take by faith, our heart can be nothing but glad. Our glory, our joy rejoices and we can confidently rest in hope. This message of David is so powerful that the Apostle Paul quoted this scripture on the day of Pentecost. His mini sermon resulted in the salvation of 3,000 souls. In Acts 2:26, in his sermon to the masses gathered in Jerusalem, Peter cried, " Therefore did my heart rejoice, and my tongue was glad; moreover also my flesh shall rest in hope..."
At times we feel rest and hope in our spirit; but then the fleshly side shows itself; doubts, fear, lack of faith or sorrow. But it is quoted in Scripture that our flesh can also rest in hope! We must do this by faith. Hebrews 11 says that faith is a substance, it is something that we can grab hold of by the power of the Holy Spirit working in us. Faith is a substance of things hoped for! There is great hope available to those who are children of God. We must run after this, appropriate it, and exercise it like a muscle.
When battles come across our path, and they surely will this year, as we exercise this hope and learn to live in this place of rest and assurance of our standing with Christ in heavenly places, we can boldly claim that, as Psalm 110:5 declares, " The LORD at our right hand shall strike through kings in the day of His wrath..." Even the kings of the earth, the most powerful obstacles we could face, have to bow and yield before the presence of God. Yes, the presence of God operating in us on a daily basis.
Kings and rulers were at a loss in their dealings with Abraham, Joseph, Jacob, Paul, Jesus and others. The Prophets of old ruled the day as they yielded to the Spirit working in them. This same Spirit, the Spirit that raised up Christ from the dead has promised to quicken our mortal body!
Grab hold of this hope! Grab onto this promise! Appropriate it to every situation we may face in this new year!
REST IN THIS HOPE! If God is for us; who can be against us?
If we stay in this position, and it is a position we take by faith, our heart can be nothing but glad. Our glory, our joy rejoices and we can confidently rest in hope. This message of David is so powerful that the Apostle Paul quoted this scripture on the day of Pentecost. His mini sermon resulted in the salvation of 3,000 souls. In Acts 2:26, in his sermon to the masses gathered in Jerusalem, Peter cried, " Therefore did my heart rejoice, and my tongue was glad; moreover also my flesh shall rest in hope..."
At times we feel rest and hope in our spirit; but then the fleshly side shows itself; doubts, fear, lack of faith or sorrow. But it is quoted in Scripture that our flesh can also rest in hope! We must do this by faith. Hebrews 11 says that faith is a substance, it is something that we can grab hold of by the power of the Holy Spirit working in us. Faith is a substance of things hoped for! There is great hope available to those who are children of God. We must run after this, appropriate it, and exercise it like a muscle.
When battles come across our path, and they surely will this year, as we exercise this hope and learn to live in this place of rest and assurance of our standing with Christ in heavenly places, we can boldly claim that, as Psalm 110:5 declares, " The LORD at our right hand shall strike through kings in the day of His wrath..." Even the kings of the earth, the most powerful obstacles we could face, have to bow and yield before the presence of God. Yes, the presence of God operating in us on a daily basis.
Kings and rulers were at a loss in their dealings with Abraham, Joseph, Jacob, Paul, Jesus and others. The Prophets of old ruled the day as they yielded to the Spirit working in them. This same Spirit, the Spirit that raised up Christ from the dead has promised to quicken our mortal body!
Grab hold of this hope! Grab onto this promise! Appropriate it to every situation we may face in this new year!
ISAIAH 50:7-9 says ~
For the LORD God will help us;
therefore, I will not be confounded;
therfore have I set my face like flint,
and I know that I shall not be ashamed.
He is near that justifieth me;
who will contend with me?
let us stand together; who is mine adversary?
let him come near to me. Behold, the LORD will help me;
who is he that shall condemn me? lo, they shall all wax old as a garment;
the moth shall eat them up."
REST IN THIS HOPE! If God is for us; who can be against us?
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