We Shall See Jesus!

 We Shall See Jesus! - By Dennis Huebshman - https://www.raptureready.com/2024/10/09/we-shall-see-jesus-by-dennis-huebshman/ Luke 21:25-28; “And there will be signs in the sun and moon and stars, and on the earth distress of nations in perplexity because of the roaring of the sea and the waves; people fainting withfear and with foreboding of what is coming on the world. For the powers of the heavens will be shaken. And then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with great power and great glory. Now when these things begin to take place, straighten up and raiseyour heads, because your redemption is drawing near” (ESV – all emphasis is mine). Revelation 1:7; “Behold, He is coming with the clouds, and every eye shall see Him, even those who pierced Him, and all tribes of the earth will wail on account of Him. Even so, Amen.” Then, 1 John 3:2; “Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when He appears, we shall be like Him because we shall see Him as He is.” These are just a couple verses referencing two different times. The Luke and Revelation verses are obviously about Jesus returning to the earth at the end of the tribulation. The John verseis a reference to our being taken up to meet the Savior in the air to be kept from the wrath of God. This is found in 1 Thessalonians 1:10, 1 Thessalonians 5:9-10 and Revelation 3:10. When the Rapture takes place (1 Thessalonians 4:13-17 and 1 Corinthians 15:51-53), only those who were in God’s will prior to the crucifixion of our Savior, and all who will have receivedand accepted Jesus from Calvary to that moment will be taken up to meet Our Savior in the air. Even though a significant number of people from around the world will disappear, it will be over before those who have not received Jesus could even blink an eye. In 1 Corinthians 15:52, “ina moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the Trumpet will sound and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed.” Should anyone try to say the trumpet is part of the Trumpet Judgments of Revelation, 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17 states, “For the Lord Himself will descend from Heaven with a cry of command, withthe voice of an archangel and with the sound of the Trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we shall always be withthe Lord.” Before there is any misunderstanding about the number of those who will be raptured, Jesus stated in Matthew 7:13-14, “Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy thatleads to destruction. For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few.” From the very beginning, the “easy” part for humans has been to accept the ways of this world. The hard part is to sincerely believe that: Admitting we all are sinners; Believing Jesus istruly a part of the Holy Trinity who is referred to as God’s Son and who came to this earth as a human to provide the only sinless blood sacrifice for our sins that the Father could ever accept; and finally all who Call on the name of the Lord will be saved.That’s found in Romans 10:9-13. Those who are truly a part of the Shepherd’s flock right now are definitely looking forward to seeing loved ones who have gone on ahead. However, my greatest wish is to see My Jesus for thefirst time and to bow down to Him and kiss the feet that walked this earth for my benefit. He could have just as easily decided we weren’t worth His efforts and could have left us to fend for ourselves. If that had happened, no one would be able to enter Heaven. However, John 10:18 states, “No one takes it from Me, but I lay it down of My own accord. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This charge I have receivedfrom My Father.” Is it any wonder that all who have received and accepted Jesus are totally looking forward to the day we’re taken off this sin-filled planet? A song written in 1983 by Dianne Wilkinson (1944-2021) was performed regularly by the Southern Gospel Group, The Cathedrals. It is titled “We Shall See Jesus.” 1.) Once on a hillside, people were gathered, hoping to see Him as thousands were fed. He touched the blind eyes, healed broken spirits; He moved with compassion while He raised up the dead. 2.) Once on a hillside, people were gathered, watching as Jesus was crucified. No one showed mercy to the One who had healed them. Yet Jesus loved them as He suffered and died. 3.) Once on a hillside, people were gathered; for Jesus had risen and soon would ascend. Then as He blessed them, He rose to the heavens, and gave them His promise to come back again. 4.) We shall see Jesus, just as they saw Him; there’s no greater promise than this. When He returns in power and glory, we shall see Jesus; we shall see Jesus, just as He is. Our Savior’s sacrifice was for all humans, not just the Jews. John 10:16; “And I have other sheep that are not of this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to My voice. So therewill be one flock, one Shepherd.” Please note, God’s chosen people, the Jews, do not get a free ride into Heaven. They have the same obligation to receive and accept Yeshua as their true Messiah as everyone else. Those that have already done so are known as “Messianic Jews.” In today’s overall Jewish population worldwide, it’s estimated that only about 2% to 3% are Messianic. At the Rapture, those Messianic Jews will be taken up to be with Jesus along with allother believers from around the world. All of us will receive new immortal and imperishable bodies along with a mindset like our Savior’s. For all non-believing Jews, they will become special people to be persecuted by the ultimate antichrist. In Zechariah 13:8-9, their final outcome is stated as, “In the whole land, declaresthe Lord, two-thirds shall be cut off and perish, and one-third shall be left alive. And I will put this third into the fire, and refine them as one refines silver and test them as gold is tested They will call upon My name, and I will answer them. I willsay, ‘They are My people, and they will say the Lord is My God.'” No one can earn their way into Heaven by doing works, nor can anyone buy their way to get there. Ephesians 2:8-9 is very specific with: “For by grace you have been saved through faith, andthis is not your own doing, it is the gift of God, not a result of works so that no one may boast.” One thing that is absolutely certain is that our God will not lie (Titus 1:2). What He has given to us in His Love Letter (Bible) is His promise of where we will spend eternity based on thedecisions we make. He will force no one to accept His Son, but will accept all who truly do. Looking at all the “end-of-this-age signs” that are given to us in the Bible, it is obvious that the last major sign to be completed – The Rapture – is almost at hand. The ultimate antichristcannot appear until the Holy Spirit is removed, as given in 2 Thessalonians 2, and by removing the Holy Spirit, all who are indwelt by Him must be taken up as well. That will be the Rapture, which will open the door on Earth for the appearance of the finalantichrist. All who are left behind will go through the absolute worst seven-year period of time this earth has ever experienced. That’s why we try so hard to follow our Savior’s Great Commission to getHis word out worldwide about gaining Salvation. We are not guaranteed tomorrow, as the Rapture could occur at any moment. Please, if you haven’t done so yet, consider asking Jesus to forgive you and come into your heart and be your eternalSavior. The only other option is to take your last breath without Him and spend eternity in the lake of fire with Satan and all his demons. Definitely hope to see you at the feet of our Savior when, not if, the time is here. Shalom! (Peace) Maranatha! (Come, Lord Jesus!) huebshman46@gmail.com

‘We Are Living In Biblical Times’ Has Become A Common Phrase In Israel

 After Witnessing Massive Miracles, ‘We Are Living In Biblical Times’ Has Become A Common Phrase In Israel – By Amir Tsarfati - https://harbingersdaily.com/after-witnessing-massive-miracles-we-are-living-in-biblical-times-has-become-a-common-phrase-in-israel/ Shalom from the mountains of the tribe of Judah! I’m here with my family enjoying some time together away from our home near Galilee where our lives are constantly being interrupted by sirenstelling us to hide in our bomb shelters. Truly, it can get wearying sometimes. But it is Rosh Hashanah, the beginning of a new year, and we are very ready to begin what we anticipate being a much better tour around the sun. Last week, I remember thinking, “Surely next week will be a little calmer.” That’s what I get for forgetting that I’m living in the Middle East. The ground battle had already started lastThursday and the IDF was getting ready to cross the border into Lebanon. Hassan Nasrallah and his minions at Hezbollah were firing off rockets like they were on a clearance sale and making all sorts of threats. Then came Friday, and everything quite literally blew up! The United Nations was meeting in New York, and Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu decided to go to America to address thataugust body. Why waste time flying halfway across the world to talk to a bunch of sanctimonious politicians who will likely just walk out as soon as you start speaking? Keep reading; it’s quite possible that his departure was actually a coordinated distraction. With Netanyahu gone, Hassan Nasrallah, the secretary-general of Hezbollah, held a meeting in his secret bunker located under a residential building in the Dahieh suburub of Beirut. Includedin this gathering were many of Hezbollah’s leaders, as well as an Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) general. What was this its purpose? It was to hear via the Iranian general a special message from Iran’s supreme leader warning Nasrallah thatIsrael was preparing to kill him. The only hope the Hezbollah leader had was to hide in Iran. Whether or not the IRGC general had a chance to deliver this accurate warning, we’ll never know. Not long after Netanyahu stepped down from the podium at the UN,Israeli Air Force (IAF) F-15I fighter jets were racing into the skies above Beirut. When the planes reached Nasrallah’s hideout, they dropped their cargo – more than 80 bombs, including at least 15 one-ton bunker busters. It was a fitting end for Nasrallah, a man with the blood of many Israelis and Americans on his hands. The secretary-general of Hezbollah wasn’t the only one to die. All of his commanders thathe had brought in died with him. One major loss was Ali Karaki, the commander of Hezbollah’s Southern Front, who was killed in the operation. Also eliminated was the IRGC general with the Supreme Leader’s message, Abbas Nilforoushan, deputy commander of Iran’sIslamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and commander of Quds Force in Lebanon. In one incredible airstrike, the head of the monster was destroyed, along with its neck, shoulders, and upper torso. On Saturday, Hashem Safieddine, a cousin of Nasrallah, wasnamed the new secretary-general of the battered terrorist organization. I’m guessing that’s what they call a “temp job”. Even with Nasrallah gone, there is still enough left of Hezbollah to put up a fight. Rockets continue to fly over the border. Most are intercepted, but some reach the ground. So far in themost recent fighting, no human Israeli has been killed by a Hezbollah rocket. Some chickens, cows, and a horse haven’t been so lucky. Because the terrorists refuse to lay down their arms, Israel’s Operation Northern Arrows continues. Fighter jets are decimatingweapons caches in Lebanon and Syria. Ground forces are tracking down and blowing up southern Lebanon’s tunnel system. Even before the IDF moved across the border and into the towns, they revealed evidence they had found of just how heinous the original plan to attack Israel had been. As I’ve said many timesbefore, this was supposed to be a simultaneous attack involving all of Iran’s proxies – Hezbollah, Hamas, the Houthis, and the other Syrian and Iraqi proxy militias. Of these attack forces, none was stronger or better trained than Hezbollah. For years, theyhad prepared their Radwan force for an invasion into Israel. They were fully ready to invade, brutalize, rape, torture, and murder like Hamas did, but they would do it with an organized plan and much better weapons. They had maps for Jewish towns, layoutsfor military sites, and strategies all prepared. But then Yahya Sinwar of Hamas couldn’t wait any longer, and he launched early, which was truly a miraculous intervention by God. Now, instead of Hezbollah carrying out their well-planned invasion of Israelfrom Lebanon, Israel is invading Lebanon to track down and eliminate Hezbollah. While the fighting intensified on the northern border of Israel, the Islamic regime in Iran was fuming and stewing. They were already embarrassed after the failure of Operation True Promiseback in April 2024, when they fired 170 killer drones, 30-plus cruise missiles, and more than 120 ballistic missiles at Israel, resulting in the critical injury of a single Israeli-Bedouin. In the ensuing six months, not only had Israel killed Hamas leaderIsmail Haniyeh in the heart of Tehran, but now they had the audacity to wipe out Iran’s faithful toady Hassan Nasrallah and their own IRGC deputy commander Abbas Nilforoushan in one shot. Iran had egg all over its face. Israel had to pay. Thus, on Tuesday night, Israel received a warning – oddly enough, from the U.S. – that Iran was about to ballistic missile the heck out of them. Sure enough, 190 gigantic ballistic missilesleft launchers in Iran bound for Israel in Operation True Promise 2, a name that feels like it desperately needs a subtitle, like “Back from the Dead” or “This Time its Personal”. The attack didn’t begin well. There were a number of missiles that went up andcame right back down. Five Iranian soldiers lost their lives this way. But the rest soared toward Israel in the largest ballistic missile strike the world has ever seen. In Israel, we scrambled for our bomb shelters where we prayed for God’s intervention. When we started hearing the booms, it was obvious that something incredible was taking place. Quite a few of us went back outside to video what was taking place in the skies. In Israel, wehave three layers of missile protection. We have the Iron Dome for short-range rockets, David’s Sling for mid-range, and Arrow that targets ballistic missiles that can fly outside the earth’s atmosphere. What we saw in the skies, and what you can see in someof my Telegram videos, was absolutely miraculous. All three systems were working together, simultaneously bringing down rockets at different altitudes. The odds of all three functioning as they did in absolute unison is beyond computation. But the miracles didn’t end there. Some of the missiles got through and hit the ground. But when they did, they completely missed every place people were hiding. If just one of those ballisticmissiles hit an apartment building or a mall or a military base, hundreds would have died. However, it simply didn’t happen. God’s hand was over His people. A few buildings were struck, and some minor infrastructure was damaged, but not a single live rocketlanded on anyone. It’s true that there was one Arab in Jericho who had the husk of a destroyed missile fall on him when was out walking instead of hunkering down in a shelter like he was supposed to, but that’s it for the deaths. Social media is filled withstories of Israelis reporting rockets falling all around them, but not one person was hurt. Most of the rockets that made it through the curtain of protection landed in open areas – in sand, in water, in empty spaces. Most people don’t get the magnitude of what we witnessed Tuesday night. One of my news sources, Hillel Fuld, expressed it perfectly. He wrote, “What we witnessed last night was the equivalentof God splitting the sea right before our eyes.” That is not an exaggeration, despite the attempts of the media to downplay what occurred. Again, as Hillel put it, “Last night was an incredible display of the collaboration between two of the powers that protectthe Jewish people: The IDF and Hashem.” Hashem in English means “the Name”. It is God Himself. A common phrase we are beginning to hear around Israel is that we are living in biblical times. Even the most secular Israelis and agnostics are saying it. There is no other way to describewhat has taken place. We can see in Ukraine and Russia the effects of ballistic missiles. It’s devastating. But neither of those sides ever faced 190 fired at the same time. And not only did we face them, but we came out smelling like a rose. God is truly amazing. It is one hundred percent true that most of the population of Israel still has a veil over their hearts when it comes to the Messiah. But God promised that He would neverabandon His people, even when they turned their backs on Him. He laid out a plan in the Bible that would eventually have them turning their hearts toward Him, and it fits exactly into what we are seeing taking place in Israel today. After this attack, Israel now has the perfect excuse to launch an unprecedented strike on Iran’s gas and oil infrastructure, as well as its military bases. We’ll likely hold off on the nuclearsites until the time will hopefully come when the American political scene will be a bit more favorable to the necessary actions. But Iran is about to get shaken, possibly even before this article is published. That is when they will realize that they’ve wastedtheir money on all their proxies and will turn to a coalition made up of Russia and Turkey that already has its eyes on Israel. Once again, this all fits perfectly into Ezekiel 38 and 39. Israel’s battle is far from over. First, there is the international fight against the countries and collective national bodies that continue to criticize and condemn Israel for fighting againstthose who have not only sworn to destroy our country but have acted upon it. Yesterday, Israel’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Israel Katz took a bold step against the United Nations, declaring its secretary-general, Antonio Guterres, to be persona non gratain Israel and banning him from entering the country. He wrote on X, “Anyone who cannot unequivocally condemn Iran’s heinous attack on Israel, as almost every country in the world has done, does not deserve to step foot on Israeli soil.” Katz went on to condemnGuterres for refusing to denounce Hamas’s atrocities of October 7, saying that he will be “remembered as a stain on the history of the UN.” But our fighting isn’t just in the political arena. Israel is still facing active fronts in Yemen, Iran, Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, and Gaza. Most dangerous of all right now, however, are the terroristattacks spilling out of the West Bank. Tuesday saw two Palestinians open fire on a light rail train, killing seven and injuring many more. They were both neutralized. One of those killed was a 33-year-old mother who was shielding her 9-month-old baby son.In that one brief moment, those two deranged terrorists killed more people with a gun and a knife than Iran could with 190 ballistic missiles. Tonight, as I write this, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is meeting with his defense minister, the head of the Mossad, the head of Shin Bet, and his chief of staff. They already have theauthorization to move forward as they best see fit. When I wake up tomorrow, it could be to a different Middle East or even a different world. But that is nothing new. It seems that waking up to a new world is becoming common place around these parts.

Vengeance Belongs to God Almighty

 Vengeance Belongs to God Almighty - By Rick Segoine - https://www.raptureready.com/2024/09/14/vengeance-belongs-to-god-almighty-by-rick-segoine/ “‘Repay no evil for evil. Have regard for good things in the sight of all men. If it is possible, as much as depends on you, live peaceably with all men. Beloved, do not avenge yourselves,but rather give place to God’s wrath, for it is written, Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,’ says the Lord.” (Romans 12:17-19). The Holy Spirit brings this particular scripture verse into mind in large bold print whenever I find my thoughts drifting into fantasy land and visualizing punishments that might match thecrimes of extremely evil people. Referring here to demonically possessed evil persons in positions of tremendous power, who are doing horribly evil things to cause great harm to multitudes of decent folks who have done nothing to deserve such malevolent treatment. Evil people doing evil things such as mandating vaccinations with now proven to be unsafe, ineffective, highly poisonous mRNA jabs and clot shots complete with crippling side effects includingdeath, and then threatening and, in many cases, imposing the loss of livelihood for non-compliance. To this day, they are still using insidious deceit to convince naïve people that the vaccines are safe and effective. There are recent television commercialswith catchy songs and happy dancing people joyfully informing us that Pfizer is our best friend and has our backs. Or, child sex trafficking, where the traffickers are getting exceedingly rich, and the pedophiles get to continue to indulge in the sickest of behaviors at the expense of untold thousandsof innocent children. The evil mentioned above, in fact, goes hand in hand with the imposing of open borders here in America and in many European nations as well. Our streets and formerly safe neighborhoods are being filled with criminals and illegal immigrants of every sort, including rapists, fentanyl distributors, home invaders, sex traffickers,thieves, ruthless gangs, and heartless murderers. Not to mention terrorists, mostly of the Islamic jihadist sort, and thousands of military-aged single men from China. This is all by design and being carried out at the behest of the evil globalists and their bought-and-paid-for traitors and betrayers of nations, aka politicians. Politicians of both the Donkeykind and the Rino kind. Yes, the super-wealthy evil globalist elitists and their godless cohorts at the WEF and the UN, with their plans to bring all of humanity to their knees both economically and medically, andto depopulate the world with bio-weapons called vaccines, and induced warfare of all kinds, including civil wars. They are aiming for a more manageable one-half billion people, which they believe will more easily allow them to exert full control over everyone who is left to serve them, according to theirAgenda 2030. Or any number of other evil things that godless, evil, power-hungry people dream up, such as Transhumanism. Transhumanism and the mergence with artificial intelligence, whereas God createdhuman DNA becomes defiled and altered in ways that cause humans to no longer resemble the beings that God created in His own image. Instead, with Transhumanism, humans would become distorted “Frankenstein”-type monsters born out of the sick imagination of Lucifer and his Mengele-idolizing minions. Possibly the topper of them all, as to the evil things imagined by the deceived followers of Lucifer, is attempting to actually replace the wonderful, beautiful Creator of Life itself witha most hideous cadre of imposters. Themselves, soon to be led by the antichrist and his false prophet. These are just some of the evil things that are being done by evil people. Evil things inspire the dreaming up of ways to make them stop and to make them pay for their evil crimes againstGod Himself and against humanity, which God has created in His own image. However, vengeance is not mine, and it is not yours, and it belongs to nobody except God Almighty. Sometimes, because of my extreme dislike for wickedness and how much I seem to despise God-hating evil people for the merciless cruelty that they inflict on others, I am sometimes guilty ofdaydreaming about punishments that fit these vile crimes. When this happens, my Lord and Savior always leads my wayward yet highly creative mind back to a hill called Calvary and a cross with my Lord and Savior nailed to it (Matthew 27). As my Lord and Savior hung on that cross, He accomplished things that changed the world forever. Mainly, He took upon Himself the punishment for all of the sins of fallen mankind past, present, and future. That is all sins, including yours and mine. He did this when He first came to savethe world. He came not to condemn the world but to save it (John 3:17). He also set the bar for extending mercy. He set it very high that day upon the cross. He set the bar as high as it could go. Just as Jesus said in John 15:13, “Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.” As He was doing this very thing, He also demonstrated that no greater mercy has anyone than to forgive the ones who just tortured you and then murdered you. As for the men who beat Him nearly to death and nailed Him to that cross, and to all of those jealous religious hypocrites who instigated His crucifixion with phony charges of blasphemy, Hisonly thoughts were to forgive them. His thoughts were not about ways to punish them but rather thoughts of how to bless them with mercy. “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do” (Luke 23:34). 2 Timothy 3:16 reveals that: “All scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness.” Ecclesiastes 3:1 reveals that there is “a time to every purpose under heaven.” A time for God Almighty to bestow the greatest of mercies and also a time when He delivers the vengeance that evildoers so richly deserve and even seem to beg for. The vengeance that belongsto Him (Romans 12 17:19). In Psalm 139, verses 19 through 24, David says these words: “Surely, thou will slay the wicked oh God: depart from me therefore, ye bloody men. For they speak against thee wickedly, and thineenemies take thy name in vain. Do not I hate them, oh Lord, that hate thee? And am I not grieved with those that rise up against thee? I hate them with perfect hatred: I count them as my enemies. Search me, oh God, and know my heart: try me and know my thoughts:And see if there is any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.” David said those words many centuries before Jesus set the bar of mercy so very high as He hung upon the cross. And yet still, even with all of that being said, Jesus is able to transform our hearts into hearts capable of experiencing His remarkable mercy and truly understanding the will of God, asHe desires for none to perish while at the very same time despising evil. Although it is not God’s will that any should perish, God has revealed through the prophets and to John directly in the Book of Revelation His plans to eliminate evil and Christ-rejectingevil people from the face of the earth entirely and forever, but all in His own time and in His own way. In past history, God sometimes allowed an army or individuals to exact judgment upon something or someone evil. David was a mighty warrior who slew the giant blaspheming Philistine bully known as Goliath with one smooth stone. David also wrote, along with prophetic psalms, some of the most tender psalms and songs and love letters to God and to his fellow earthly sojourners that the world has ever known. Jesus, who set the bar of mercy and forgiveness so very high in His last moments upon that cross, was and still is also not only a mighty warrior but, to be sure, the mightiest of all warriors.The mightiest by far, with no one else even a close second. Yet Jesus had and still has the most love and the most mercy of anyone who ever walked upon the face of the earth. In His first advent, Jesus, as the Lamb of God, took upon Himself all of our sins and taught us how to love one another as well. When He returns, it will be as the Lion of the tribe of Judah.The mightiest of all warriors with supernatural powers that cannot even be challenged. Jesus gave the world a glimpse of the warrior part of His nature in His first advent when He overturned the tables of the money changers in the temple in Jerusalem. Like a whirlwind, He drove everyone out who had been buying and selling there and flipped over all of the tables and the merchandise that was on those tables. He said to them, “My house willbe called a house of prayer, but you are making it a den of thieves” (Matthew 21:12-13). The anger Jesus showed that day in the temple in Jerusalem was a righteous anger and revealed just a little bit of what God’s wrath is like when He decides to take vengeance. When God takesvengeance, His anger is always righteous, and no one can stop it or even fight against it. Jesus, being God as the second person of the triune Godhead, and upon returning as the Lion of the tribe of Judah, shall be wielding the sword of God’s righteous wrath with the full powerof God Almighty upon the unrepentant evil doers on planet Earth during and at the end of the seven-year Tribulation, “the time of Jacob’s Trouble,” “the 70th week of Daniel.” The vengeance that belongs to God Almighty is outlined in great detail and forecast in advance in the Book of Revelation in regard to what is about to befall Lucifer and his entire networkof evil here on planet Earth, as the Tribulation races toward us. What Jesus did in righteous anger to the money-changers in the temple two thousand years ago in Jerusalem will soon be manifested on a world scale when all who have embraced evil will be crushedby the power of His Word. His Word, which is likened to a two-edged sword that comes forth out of His mouth (Revelation 19:15). Even some of the very same evil ones, perhaps the very same super wealthy abusers and misusers of free will, the very individuals all of us watchers are observing right now on Earth who arebringing so much misery and torment to so many here in these last days. The last of days in the age of grace and God’s unfathomable mercy. No names are being mentioned in this article because it would take up too much space, as there are at least several hundred bad actors playing major roles in the nightmare horror show thatthey, under the direction of their vile master, are inflicting on the inhabitants of planet Earth. Anyone paying attention knows who most of them are. These sinister, delusional, power-hungry lovers of evil and purveyors of wickedness are not going to get away with it much longer. The signs are everywhere (Luke 21:28-33). I have to honestly admit that although my first prayer really is for a miracle that all should repent and that none should perish, at the same time, I am longing for the day when AlmightyGod cleanses the world and eventually all of creation of those who have rejected salvation in favor of embracing the cruelty of wickedness. I just need to trust Him to justly decide when and which punishments fit the various crimes. To pray for both of these seemingly opposite concepts in the same breath is a mystery that is made understandable by the revelation of the Holy Spirit. There is a time to every purpose under heaven, and He who created and sustains the universe, in His great wisdom, great mercy, and with perfect justice, will have the final say. Thy Kingdom Come; Thy Will Be Done.

During Netanyahu’s UN Address, I Saw Bible Prophecy Being Fulfilled Before My Very Eyes

 During Netanyahu’s UN Address, I Saw Bible Prophecy Being Fulfilled Before My Very Eyes – By David Reagan - https://harbingersdaily.com/during-netanyahus-un-address-i-saw-bible-prophecy-being-fulfilled-before-my-very-eyes/ On Friday morning, September 27, I saw Bible prophecy being fulfilled before my very eyes as I watched Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on television address the General Assemblyof the United Nations. It happened as he approached the podium to deliver his address. As he walked forward, two-thirds of the delegates got up from their seats and walked out. Netanyahu was left with an almost empty auditorium to speak to. The specific Bible prophecy this event reminded me of was written by the Hebrew prophet Zechariah 2,500 years ago. Speaking of the end times, he prophesied that God will “make Jerusalem aheavy stone for all the peoples; all who lift it will be severely injured. And all the nations of the earth will be gathered against it.” (Zechariah 12: 3, emphasis added) Although the United States delegation to the UN was one of the few that remained in their seats, it has become obvious that America’s support of Israel is severely waning. For example, whenNetanyahu spoke to Congress in March of 2015, 58 Democrats boycotted the session. When he returned to speak to Congress in July of this year, 128 Democrats refused to attend (100 House members and 28 Senators). Also, even though President Biden has spoken out strongly in support of Israel, his lack of action has spoken louder than his words. He has refused to send military aid that Congress has approved.And he keeps demanding a cease-fire instead of encouraging Israel to finish off both Hamas and Hezbollah. Israel is determined to defeat its monstrous enemies. Biden wants to appease them. For over 40 years, I have been teaching that in the end times — in accordance with Bible prophecy — all the nations of the world will turn against Israel. In response, American Christianshave reacted in disbelief, arguing that our nation would never turn against Israel. But today, the streets of our largest cities and the campuses of our major universities are filled with violent anti-Semitic protestors demanding that our nation abandon Israelin support of two of the world’s most vicious terrorist organizations. How can this be explained? A Spiritual Anomaly In natural terms, it cannot be explained, and that is because it is a supernatural phenomenon. The Bible makes it very clear that Satan knows Bible prophecy (Revelation 12:12). Satan can readthe signs of the times, and he therefore realizes that the time he has left before Jesus returns is running out fast. He has, therefore, shifted his evil actions against the Jewish people into high gear because he is determined to annihilate them before thereturn of Jesus. Why? Because the Bible says that a great remnant of the Jews will be saved when Jesus returns (Zechariah 12:10 and Romans 9:27), and Satan is determined to keep that prophecy from being fulfilled. The reason, of course, is that Satan hates the Jewish people with a passion because: •God chose them to be His witnesses to the world. •Through them God gave the world the Bible. •Through them God gave the world the Messiah. •God has promised that He will save a great remnant of them. •God has promised that through that remnant, He will bless all the nations of the world during the Millennium. It should be noted that Satan has had considerable success thus far in his attempts to annihilate the Jewish people. Just think: the Jews and Arabs were established at the same time. The Jewscame through Abraham’s son, Isaac; the Arabs, through Abraham’s son, Ishmael. Today, there are 460 million Arabs and only 17 million Jews! Those numbers clearly reflect the degree of persecution the Jews have experienced worldwide during the last 2,000 years. Current Anti-Semitism The Bible says that Satan is the “Father of Lies” (John 8:44). And lies are what he is using to generate hatred of the Jews worldwide and here in America. As proof, consider the current lieshe is using to incite hatred of Israel: 1) The Jews are European Colonialist Occupiers of Palestine The truth is the land was given to the Jews by God 3,500 years ago, and they lived there for 1,500 years until they were forcibly ejected from the land worldwide by the Romans in 135AD followingtheir final revolt. During the 2,000 years that followed, their land laid vacant and desolate. The few Arabs who lived there considered themselves to be Syrians because most of the land was owned by absentee Syrian landlords. During this long time span, the land was never an independent state with Jerusalem as its capital. In short, there was never a Palestinian state with a Palestinian government. Nor was therea Palestinian language or culture. When the Jews returned after World War II, the United Nations recognized their claim to the land and authorized the establishment of their state. 2) The Jews Practice Apartheid Against the Palestinians This is an absolute lie, yet it has turned many people against Israel The truth is that there is no apartheid in Israel and there never has been. Two million Palestinians are citizens of Israeland have all the rights of Jewish citizens. The only apartheid that exists in the Middle East is among the Arab nations who expelled all their Jews in 1956 after the Suez War and continue to refuse to allow any Jews to live within theirboundaries. 3) The Jews Need to Free Gaza The truth is that Gaza was completely freed in 2005 when Israel forced all Jewish citizens to leave the area. Millions of dollars flowed into Gaza from nations around the world to enable themto build schools, hospitals, streets, and other infrastructure items, like electricity-generating plants. The leaders of Hamas immediately started using their land as a missile launching site into Israel. And they spent their international funding on three things: weapons, construction of 300miles of tunnels, and mansions for their leaders in Qatar. The only thing Gaza needs to be freed of is Hamas! 4) The Jews are Practicing Genocide The truth is that the only thing Israel seeks to annihilate are the terrorist groups called Hamas and Hezbollah. They have no interest in eradicating the Palestinian people. The real goal of genocide is expressed in the favorite slogan of the anti-Israel protestors: “From the river to the sea.” This is a veiled call for the annihilation of Israel. Meanwhile, the diplomats of the world, including the United States, are demanding a “Two- State” solution. The truth here is that this is no solution at all because you cannot make peace withsomeone whose goal is to kill you. Benjamin Netanyahu has summed it up well in his often quoted statement: “If the Arabs would disarm, we would have peace; if Israel were to disarm, Israel would cease to exist.” A Forgotten Truth Furthermore, people seem to forget that a Palestinian state already exists! Most Americans are not aware that the Ottoman Empire sided with Germany during World War I, and it was decided that after the war, the Empire would be broken up and the province called Palestinewould be entrusted to England as a League of Nations Mandate, with the goal of leading the area to independence as a state. In November of 1917, The British issued the Balfour Declaration, in which they promised to make Palestine a Jewish state. But in 1923, the British suddenly decided to curry the favor of the oil-rich Arab states by giving two-thirds of Palestine to the Arabs, leaving the Jews only a small sliver of land 280 mileslong and 80 miles wide. The area given to the Arabs was all the land of Palestine east of the Jordan River. It was named Transjordan. In 1946, when it received its independence, its name was change to Jordan. TodayJordan has a population of 11 million, and 60% of those are of Palestinian descent. Thus, Jordan consists of two-thirds of the geography of Palestine and a population majority of Palestinians. The point: A Palestinian state already exists. Fulfilled Prophecies Before the 20th Century Christians do not need to worry about the ultimate destiny of the Jewish people. God loves them and that love has been manifested in his faithful fulfillment of prophecies concerning them. Before the 20th Century began, God had already fulfilled four promises to the Jews contained in Old Testament prophecies: •Dispersion — Moses warned that if they were unfaithful to God, they would be dispersed worldwide (Deuteronomy. 28:58, 64) •Persecution — Moses further stated that they would experience severe persecution wherever they were scattered in the world (Deuteronomy 28:65-66). •Desolation — Moses also prophesied that the land of Israel would become desolate when the Jews were evicted from it (Deuteronomy 29:22-27). •Preservation — Repeatedly, God promised that he would preserve the existence and identity of the Jewish people in their dispersion (2 Samuel 7:24 and Jeremiah 30:11). Fulfilled Prophecies During the 20th Century During the 20th Century, God fulfilled seven end time prophecies regarding the Jews and their nation: •Regathering of the people — The Jewish people would be regathered from the four corners of the earth in unbelief (Isaiah 11:11-12). •Re-establishment of the state — The Jewish state would come into existence once again (Isaiah 66:7-8). •Reclamation of the land — The desolate land would become like the garden of Eden (Ezekiel 36:33-35). •Revival of the language — The Hebrew language would be revived from the dead (Zephaniah 3:9 & Jeremiah 31:23). •Resurgence of the military — The Israeli military would become a regional powerhouse devouring its enemies (Zechariah 12:8-9). •Re-occupation of Jerusalem — The Jewish people would once again occupy their capital city of Jerusalem (Zechariah 8:7-8). •Re-focusing of world politics — The nation of Israel would become the focal point of international relations (Zechariah 12:2-3). Jewish Prophecies Yet to Be Fulfilled This brings us to the prophecies that are yet to be fulfilled for the Jewish people. As you will see, there is one horrible one followed by several glorious ones. 1) Another Holocaust The first is a Second Holocaust. This will occur during the second half of the Tribulation. The Jews will become the focus of the Antichrist’s wrath. He will seek to annihilate them and willsucceed in killing two-thirds of them: Zechariah 13:8-9 KJV – “And it shall come to pass, that in all the land, saith the Lord, two parts therein shall be cut off and die; but the third shall be left therein. And I will bring thethird part through the fire, and will refine them as silver is refined, and will try them as gold is tried: they shall call on my name, and I will hear them: I will say, It is my people: and they shall say, The Lord is my God.” 2) Repentance The second prophecy yet to be fulfilled is Repentance. The suffering of the Tribulation will bring the Jewish people to the end of themselves, and they will repent before the Lord: Deuteronomy 4:30 KJV – “When thou art in tribulation, and all these things are come upon thee, even in the latter days, if thou turn to the Lord thy God, and shalt be obedient unto his voice.” 3) Salvation The third future prophecy yet to be fulfilled is Salvation. As a result of their repentance, at the end of the Tribulation, a great remnant of the Jews will accept Yeshua as their Messiahand will be saved. Zechariah speaks of this glorious event: Zechariah 12:10 KJV – “And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplications: and they shall look upon me whom they havepierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn.” Jesus Himself stated that He would not return to this earth until a remnant of the Jews were ready to receive Him as their Messiah by crying out: “Baruch Haba Bashem Adonai!” (“Blessed isHe who comes in the name of the Lord!” — Matthew 23:39). 4) Regathering in Belief The fourth prophecy yet to be fulfilled is the regathering of the Jewish people in belief. They are being regathered now in unbelief. But there is another regathering in their future. When Jesus returns, He is going to regather all the Jews on planet earth who have put their faith in Him. This regathering is mentioned in several places in the Hebrew Scriptures. Here’s onefrom the time of Moses: Deuteronomy 30 1-4 KJV – “And it shall come to pass, when all these things are come upon thee, the blessing and the curse, which I have set before thee, and thou shalt call them to mind amongall the nations, whither the Lord thy God hath driven thee, And shalt return unto the Lord thy God, and shalt obey his voice according to all that I command thee this day, thou and thy children, with all thine heart, and with all thy soul; That then the Lordthy God will turn thy captivity, and have compassion upon thee, and will return and gather thee from all the nations, whither the Lord thy God hath scattered thee. If any of thine be driven out unto the outmost parts of heaven, from thence will the Lord thyGod gather thee, and from thence will he fetch thee:” 5) Primacy The fifth and final prophecy the Lord will fulfill when He begins His millennial reign will be the establishment of Israel as the prime nation of the world. Jesus will reign from Jerusalem as King of the World. David, in his glorified body, will reign as the King of Israel. We, in our glorified bodies will be scattered across the earth to reignwith Jesus over the Gentile nations. Isaiah devotes three full chapters (60-63) to a description of the blessings that God will pour out on the Jewish people during the Millennium. He proclaims that God will “make Jerusalem apraise in the earth” (Isaiah 62:7). Zechariah describes the glory of the Jews with these words: Zechariah 8:22-23 KJV – “Yea, many people and strong nations shall come to seek the Lord of hosts in Jerusalem, and to pray before the Lord. Thus saith the Lord of hosts; In those days itshall come to pass, that ten men shall take hold out of all languages of the nations, even shall take hold of the skirt of him that is a Jew, saying, We will go with you: for we have heard that God is with you.” The Messages Let’s conclude by considering the messages we can draw from the Bible concerning Israel in End Time Prophecy. •God’s Word is true and reliable. •God is on His throne and in control. •God is faithful to keep all His promises. •God still loves the Jewish people and has a great purpose for them. •We are living on borrowed time because the fulfillment of these prophecies proves that Jesus is returning soon. Conclusion One final thing: What is the message of Israel in Prophecy for you and me? What is its meaning forthe Church? I would contend that it proves that God is faithful to keep all His promises, and that is a very important message for the Church, for God has made a lot of promises to us. He has promised that at any moment, Jesus is going to appear in the heavens to take His Church — both the living and the dead — out of this world. Then, while He pours out His wrath on anevil and unbelieving world in the Tribulation, believers in Heaven will receive rewards for how they used their spiritual gifts to advance the Lord’s kingdom. After all the rewards have been distributed, we will enjoy the greatest feast in the history of thecosmos — the wedding feat of the Lamb, when the Bride of Christ (His Church) celebrates its union with the Bridegroom (Jesus). When that feast is concluded, we will return to earth with Jesus and will witness His destruction of the Antichrist and his forces, after which we will celebrate His coronation as King ofkings and Lord of lords. Believing Jews will serve in his government in Jerusalem. Glorified Gentiles will be distributed worldwide to reign over those in the flesh (those saved during the Tribulation and who live to the end of it). We will have the privilegeof witnessing the world enveloped in peace, righteousness, and justice as the waters cover the sea. And at the end of the Lord’s thousand-year reign, we will live forever in our new, eternal bodies in a New Jerusalem on and New Earth in the presence of our Creator and Jesus. Maranatha! (1Corinthians 16:22).

Why Two Goats on Atonement? (Part One)

 Why Two Goats on Atonement? (Part One) In Galatians 3:24, the apostle Paul tells his audience that the law "was our tutor to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith." He writes in a similar way to the Christians in Rome, "Christ is the culmination of the law so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes" (Romans10:4, New International Version). God intended the law He gave through Moses to point the Israelites to their future Messiah, and perhaps nowhere is this seen more plainly than in the animal sacrifices He required. Each sacrificial animal—of every specified species, age, and gender—testifies of the Savior in some facet. Each must be unblemished because each represents a pure and innocent life given to instruct God's people about sin, devotion, fellowship,uncomplaining service, or other essential matters. God dedicates a substantial, even surprising, amount of space to specific instructions about what animals should be used for which occasions and who should be involved, along with a multitude of details concerningwhat should be done with the blood, entrails, hide, and meat. None of these details is redundant; we should not overlook even one word of God's revelation. Such instructions may not stir us like other sections of Scripture, yet the Creator teaches us criticalthings even in the jots and tittles. Each year on the Day of Atonement (YomKippur), the high priest performed an elaborate ceremony consisting of four sacrificial animals (see Leviticus 16). He offered a ram as a burnt offering, a bullock as a sin offering for the high priest and his household, and two goats together as a sin offering. These two goats receive the most attention on this day. A vital detail in this ceremony is that the two goats together accomplish atonement for the nation. Notice Leviticus 16:5: "And he shall take from the congregation of the children of Israel twokids of the goats as a [singular] sin offering" (emphasis ours throughout). This instruction is unusual, for the ordinary sin offering consisted of a single animal (see Leviticus 4:3, 14, 23, 28; 5:6-7). Why did God command two animals as the sin offering for the nation? One goat was slain; what was the purpose of the second goat, the azazel? To answer this question, we must first examine the typical sin offering, outlined in Leviticus 4. There, God commands four slightly different rituals, depending on who had committed the unintentional sin: a priest (verses 3-12), the whole congregation(verses 13-21), a leader of the people (verses 22-26), or an individual (verses 27-31). Regardless of the transgressor, though, the priest conducted the same basic procedure—one to take note of, for it helps to explain the Day of Atonement ceremony. In the standard sin offering, the guilty party first laid his hands on the sacrificialanimal (Leviticus4:4, 15, 24, 29). This action symbolized the innocent animal taking the place of the sinner, figuratively transferring the guilt of the person to the animal. Second, the animal was killed. Third, the priest sprinkled some of its blood in front of the veil,and he put some on the horns of either the golden altar (used for incense) or the brazen altar (used for burnt offerings), depending on who sinned. He poured the rest of the blood at the base of the brazen altar. Finally, select parts of the animal were burnedon the brazen altar, while the rest of the animal was burned outside the camp. The procedure for the sin offering essentially ends there, but more needs to be considered. The offering has symbolically cleansed the guilty party, but is the sin truly gone? In this regard, the book of Hebrews teaches us that 1) animal blood is used for symbolic cleansing and purification (Hebrews9:13, 22); but 2) the blood of bulls and goats cannot take away sins (Hebrews10:4). In the ritual of the sin offering, then, the transgressor is symbolically cleansed, yet his sin is not taken away—it cannot be removed simply through the shedding of animal blood. To further understand the symbolism of blood and sin, remember that God repeatedly prohibits the eating of blood (Genesis9:4; Leviticus 7:26-27; 17:10-14; 19:26; Deuteronomy 12:16). Even though the animal to be eaten is dead, God still considers the blood of the animal to contain the life of the animal! Deuteronomy 12:23 proclaims, "Only be sure that you do not eat the blood, for the blood is the life; you may not eat the life with the [lifeless] meat." Blood is a symbol of life, even after the heart has stopped! It is a representation—even a record—of the life lived. Thus, the first usage of blood in Scripture is anthropomorphic: God considered Abel's blood to have a voice evenafter Cain had cut his life short by violence (Genesis4:10). If the blood of an unblemished animal represents an innocent life, the blood of an animal upon whose head sins have been transferred represents a sinful life. Therefore, while the transgressor is symbolically cleansed of his sins after layinghis hands on an innocent animal and shedding its blood, the substituted blood still bore witness—a record—of the transgression. In some scenarios, priests could eat the meat of a sin offering, but because of the symbolic defilement of the blood, if any ofits blood got on the priests' garments, they had to be washed (Leviticus6:27). There is no such proscription for the blood of burnt offerings or peace offerings, in which blood is shed yet which do not involve sin. Because of this symbolic, sin-carrying quality of blood, it is as if the horns of the golden or incense altar—covered with the blood of countless substitutionary animals—became a repository for all the nation's sins, sins that still had to betaken away (compare Jeremiah 17:1). This is shown by God's command that the incense altar—specifically the horns, where the defiled blood was placed—had to be cleansed once a year: And Aaron shall make atonement upon [the altar's] horns once a year with the blood of the sin offering of atonement; once a year he shall make atonement upon it throughout your generations. It is most holy to the LORD."(Exodus30:10) The incense altar was symbolically cleansed once a year through the high priest "mak[ing] atonement" upon it, meaning he would cover it with blood that did not represent sin. This verse gives the essence of what was to happen on the Day of Atonement, while Leviticus 16 provides all the specifics of how God's instructions were to be carried out. In Part Two, we will look at the annual cleansing and removal of sin, and see plainly why two goats were required—why the sin offerings on the Day of Atonement accomplished far more than the typical sin offering, and how this explains the enigmatic azazel goat. - David C. Grabbe

The Two-State Solution

 The Two-State Solution - Bill Wilson – www.dailyjot.com A Palestinian state living side by side in peace, widely promoted by President George W Bush and overwhelmingly supported by world leadership, is fatally flawed. This concept is the posterchild for doing the same thing repeatedly expecting different results, insanity. How can one remotely expect that a state of people who believe the slogan “from the river to the sea” will lead to anything but destruction? Even when the “Palestinian” peoplewere being displaced, used and abused by their elected government, Hamas, polls showed that a super-majority in upwards of 75% believed Hamas would eliminate the state of Israel and its citizens and establish a Palestinian state from the river to the sea. Let us remember that when former Prime Minister Arial Sharon evacuated all the Jews from Gaza under tremendous pressure from Bush and the rest of the world, they left under gunfire and bombs.Let us not forget that ever since that day of “disengagement” in August 2005, missiles rained down on Israeli citizens’ schools, homes and neighborhoods. It is unforgettable that billions of dollars in humanitarian aid to Hamas-controlled Gaza from the US,the European Union and others were and are diverted to pay for tunnels under schools, hospitals, and UN facilities, and funded missiles and weapons to kill the hated Jews. Billions from the Biden-Harris regime replenished money to Hamas and Iran that President Donald Trump ended during his term. The result was the October 7 attack on Israeli citizens and thecurrent ongoing defense by Israel against Hamas. Moreover, it is part and parcel to the most aggressive terrorism fomented by Iran through its many terrorist proxies, notably Hamas and Hezbollah against Israel. This is not a coincidence. The Islamic war ofextermination by sworn enemies of Israel and Jews is raging as it never before has during this century. Let us not forget either that the bolstering of Obama foreign policy of the Muslim Brotherhood through Arab Spring set the stage for the current hostilitiestoward Israel. Now comes Kamala Harris with her version of Middle East peace. During the infamous “Cat Lady” debate, Harris said that she would “work around the clock” for a two-state solution, adding asa “by the way” comment, Israel has a right to defend itself. In her New Way Forward campaign theme, she is telling the world it’s back to reestablishing a terrorist state that is dedicated to the elimination of Jews and Israel. Psalm 17:8,9 pleads to the LORD, “Keep me as the apple of Your eye; Hide me under the shadow of Your wings,From the wicked who oppress me, From my deadly enemies who surround me.” Modern politicians, employing their misguided and failed concepts, are brokers of war. Only the Lord can bringpeace and salvation. Harris’ around the clock quest is not only unachievable, it’s, say it with me…Stupidocrisy.

God’s Word Trumps Trump

 God’s Word Trumps Trump – Terry James - https://terryjamesprophecyline.com/2024/10/06/gods-word-trumps-trump/ It appears we are, in a sense, at the end of the cosmic end game. If compared to cards, the winning hand is about to be revealed. And the outcome is not a gamble in any sense. The One who holds that winning hand cannot lose. He knows every card held by every opponent, and they are all losers. This is because they choose to not accept the hand originally given them,but rather continue determined to play by rules contrary to the One who deals only in truth. Truth is all that matters in this game, and when deliberately denying the truth, either on purpose or in ignorance, the player suffers loss to one degree or another. And now I get to the point of this metaphor. I will aim it at the presidential candidate I support in the upcoming presidential election. It is not a gentle comparison I make, because I wantMr. Trump to realize that when it comes to God’s Word, we are not in the hallway of our junior high years. It is a deadly serious matter to deny the truth—and God’s Word is the only truth there is. In this eternal high-stakes end game, your word, Mr. President, is trumped by the inerrant Word of the one who holds the hand that cannot be overridden. Your declaration recently is a most egregious misunderstanding of earthly geopolitics from God’s inerrant view. In his characteristically outspoken manner, Trump has been critical of Jews who support his opponent. At a speech addressing antisemitism Thursday night in Washington D.C., he warned thatif Harris enters the White House as president, Israel would be “eradicated.” “If I don’t win this election, Israel in my opinion will cease to exist within two years, and I believe I’m 100% right,” Trump said. “If I do win, Israel will be safe and secured.”… Dr. Miriam Adelson, the widow of late casino magnate Sheldon Adelson, [Who leads the way in a large Jews-for-Trump group] spoke in favor of the candidate, saying that Jews have a “sacred duty” to vote for Trump, “in gratitude for everything he has done and trust in everything he will yet do.”… She has written that Trump “should enjoy sweeping support” among U.S. Jews and Israelis and that Trump deserves a “Book of Trump” in the Bible due to his support for Israel… She did, however, chide Trump after the event. While noting that his claims had some merit, she added, “Our people have one more secret.” Adelson quoted from the Passover Haggadah to explain what that secret is, “And this [promise] is what has stood by our ancestors and us; for it was not only one man who rose up to destroyus: in every single generation people rise up to destroy us—but the Holy One, Blessed Be He, saves us from their hands.” (“Trump warns President Harris would “eradicate” Israel but Megadonor corrects him: ‘Jews have a secret’”—Israel365 News) Donald Trump as president did much to support Israel. He has taken strong and definitive stands against anti-Semitism. For this he no doubt was at least in part brought to that high officeby the Lord. But it is obvious from his rhetoric that he is woefully ignorant of the truth in this cosmic end game we’re in the midst of. This Jewish influencer/supporter has corrected him, although I’ve not seen or heard any evidence of Mr. Trump acknowledging that he was wrong by saying that if he doesn’t win this November,Israel will cease to exist within two years. Mr. President, I hope someone will pass this along to you. You can’t play junior-high word games when it comes to God’s chosen nation. And I say that as one who is praying that if we reachElection Day, you will be the victor. I pray for your safety, and for ours as a nation. That God will assure our continued traversing upon this planet is something we can’t know for certain. But the continued existence of the nation Israel is a God-guaranteed matter. God’s Holy Word trumps your words, Mr. President. Here is that Word, issued from the Holy Spirit-inspired prophet Jeremiah thousands of years ago: This is what the Lord says, “He who appoints the sun to shine by day, Who decrees the moon and stars to shine by night, Who stirs up the sea so that its waves roar—the Lord Almighty is HisName; Only if these ordinances vanish from My sight,” declares the Lord, “will the descendants of Israel ever cease to be a nation before Me.” (Jeremiah 31:35–36) The date of posting this article is most poignant as we remember October 7, 2023. Israel’s blood-vowed enemies inflicted the most heinous atrocities against the Jewish people since the timeof Hitler’s Holocaust. This is but one more reminder of just how near the world is to entering the time known as Jacob’s trouble (Jeremiah 30: 7). But even during the time Jesus, Himself, said would be the worstin all of human history, Israel and the Jewish people will, as a chosen remnant, be preserved to go into the millennial reign of the Messiah they rejected two millennia ago. It will not be Donald J. Trump, or anyone or anything other that will bring them to that glorious head of all nations of history. It will be done by the very Word of the Living God! If his sons forsake My law, and do not walk in My judgments, if they violate My statues, and do not keep My commandments, then I will visit their transgression with the rod, and their iniquitywith stripes. But I will not break off My loving kindness from him, nor deal falsely in My faithfulness. My covenant I will not violate, nor will I alter the utterance of My lips. Once I have sworn by My holiness; I will not lie to David. His descendants shallendure forever like the moon, and the witness in the sky is faithful. (Psalm 89:30–37)

To Oppose Israel’s Existence Is to Oppose The Will And Plan Of God

 To Oppose Israel’s Existence Is to Oppose The Will And Plan Of God – Jim Showers - https://harbingersdaily.com/to-oppose-israels-existence-is-to-oppose-will-and-plan-of-god/ Hamas’s brutal attack on Israel last October and the subsequent war exposed the current global rise of antisemitism. Protesters justified Hamas’s massacre and declared support for the terroristorganization with the rallying cry “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free.” But many who chant this phrase don’t understand its implications. “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free” is a cry for the elimination of the State of Israel and the Jewish people. It demands the removal (or murder) of all Jewish people fromthe Jordan River to the Mediterranean Sea. Calling for Israel’s demise is not only antisemitic; it’s genocidal. Many within the church sadly fail to understand modern Israel’s existence as an act of God’s will. Some of these skeptics believe the State of Israel’s establishment was an overreaction tothe Holocaust of World War II, and they hold the nation responsible for all violence in the Middle East. Such thinking indicts God for permitting Israel’s rebirth and allowing the Jewish people’s return to their ancient homeland—a development that began in the late 19th century, prior to theHolocaust. Yet, God did exactly what He said He would do through the prophets (Isa. 11:11; 66:8; Jer. 16:14–15; Ezek. 20:33–34; Hos. 3:4–5). He declared the Jewish people will be replanted in their land, never to be uprooted again (Amos 9:15). Thus, to opposeIsrael’s existence is to oppose God’s will and plan. This defiance also impugns God’s sovereignty, implying that He was uninvolved in bringing about Israel’s return or failed to foresee the trouble it would cause. Claiming Israel’s regenerationwas an accident accuses God of mistakenly permitting it to happen and denies that He purposefully acted to return the Jewish people home from the places to which they were scattered. But through a biblical lens, modern Israel fits neatly into God’s redemptive plan. Just as God prophesied and fulfilled the scattering of the Jewish people, He also promised to return andrestore them from the four corners of the earth. The process of Israel’s regathering that began more than a century ago continues today. Modern Israel is a miracle. There is no other way to explain how the Jewish people were exiled from their Promised Land for 1,900 years and then returned. Yet, everything aligns with God’spromise to bring them back. The fact of Israel’s return and restoration is a unique historical phenomenon. Usually, an exiled nation is absorbed into the people groups it joins. It is unnatural for a nation to live inexile for centuries and keep its identity and dream to return home. No other exiled people have ever returned to their homeland to become a nation again. This is why the State of Israel is a miracle unfolding before our eyes. Israel still faces hatred and violence because the Jewish people are God’s uniquely Chosen People and the vehicle through whom He will redeem the world. But continued attempts to wipe Israelfrom the map, like Hamas’s attack on October 7, 2023, will result in utter failure. Israel will never be destroyed. One day, God will complete His plan (Rev. 21:6). He loves the Jewish people “with an everlasting love” (Jer. 31:3) and has promised they will endure forever (vv. 35–36). Seeking Israel’s destructionis a fool’s errand spearheaded by Satan, God’s enemy. The modern Jewish State of Israel is proof that God continues to fulfill His prophetic Word and that we are quickly approaching the end of this age.

Are Psalm 83 and Isaiah 17 About to be Fulfilled?

 Are Psalm 83 and Isaiah 17 About to be Fulfilled? – Britt Gillette - brittgillette@substack.com Is the Current Israel-Hezbollah War a Fulfillment of Prophecy? Two weeks ago, Israel pulled off what previously had only been imagined by Hollywood screenwriters and authors of best-selling spy thrillers. To initiate an offensive against Hezbollah, Israeldetonated explosives hidden within the communication devices of thousands of the terror organization’s top operatives. In the first 48 hours, they killed at least 27 and injured thousands more. Since then, aerial strikes have taken out additional Hezbollahtargets, including high profile individuals such as Ibrahim Aqil (long wanted by the U.S. for the 1983 attacks on the U.S. Embassy and Marine barracks in Beirut) and Hassan Nasrallah (the longtime leader of Hezbollah). As I write this, news reports confirmIsrael has launched a targeted ground invasion of southern Lebanon named Operation Northern Arrows to uproot Hezbollah positions. It's clear Israel is determined to destroy Hezbollah as a threat to Israel. For decades now, Iran has funded, trained, and equipped Hezbollah. Iran has expended a significant amount of time,energy, and financial resources building proxy forces and positioning them around Israel. Their aim is to threaten (and eventually destroy) Israel from a distance while maintaining plausible deniability when it comes to their direct involvement. Nevertheless,it’s no secret Hezbollah is an extension of Iran. It’s the crown jewel of Iranian proxy forces. Right now, Israel is in the process of wiping out that prized proxy force. The big question is what will Iran do? Will they simply stand by and watch all their efforts training, funding, andequipping Hezbollah come to nothing? Will they watch the destruction of Hezbollah from a distance and not come to its aid? If not, then what will they do? What Will Be Iran’s Response? As it stands, I believe Iran has only four options it can pursue. Iran can: 1) Do Nothing Iran could make the choice to simply do nothing. They can stand by and idly watch as Hezbollah is uprooted, dismantled, and destroyed. To do so, means Iran is willing to watch as years ofmeticulous planning and investment in Hezbollah as a military asset literally goes up in smoke. Is Iran willing to watch their proxy army get erased in short order all while they do nothing? It’s highly unlikely, but it can't be completely ruled out. 2) Engage in an All-Out Direct War with Israel Iran could also make the choice to directly engage Israel in all-out war. I don't think they have the option of launching an attack as they did back in April unless they're willing to followthrough with additional attacks and engage in all-out war. Based on statements from Israel's leadership, any attack from Iran will likely be viewed as a declaration of war. And given the timing of events (the U.S. election is just five weeks away) and theprospect of another four years of the Biden-Harris administration, Israel will likely use any opportunity it has in the near term to eliminate any threats – including Iran. If Iran chooses this option, they need to be confident they can survive such a choice. The missile and drone attacks Iran launched back in April were a total failure. If reports are true,the Ayatollah is currently in hiding because he fears for his life following a series of surgical strikes on high profile Hezbollah, Hamas, and Iranian leaders in the region. Based on the failure of the April attack, Iran may fear the repercussions of a directassault on Israel – especially if they’re incapable of striking a significant blow. It also begs the question – why build a proxy army if your first option is a direct strike? Given Iran’s past investment in its proxy forces (most notably Hezbollah), I thinkit’s unlikely they’ll engage in all-out direct war with Israel. However, this too cannot be ruled out. 3) Engage in an All-Out Proxy War with Israel A third option available for Iran is to respond through its proxies by engaging in an all-out proxy war with Israel. I believe this is the most likely scenario. After all, why build up Hezbollahfor decades only to see it destroyed without ever using its full capability? If reports are true, Hezbollah has over 150,000 rockets, missiles, and drones at its disposal – many of them hidden in deep underground caverns. No doubt, Israel has identified manyof these installations. It's highly likely they will act swiftly to destroy as many of them as possible while Hezbollah struggles to reorganize following the decapitation of their leadership. With Hezbollah in disarray, Israel will move quickly to destroythem before they have a chance to rebuild their communications and backfill their leadership ranks. If Hezbollah is at all capable of acting and launching an all-out assault on Israel, now is the time. Iran will most likely give them a green light to do so. 4) Apply International Pressure on Israel A fourth option available for Iran involves the application of extreme international pressure on Israel to call off its attack on Hezbollah positions. This fourth option could be pursued aloneor in tandem with Option #2 or Option #3. Iran could even pursue Options #2, #3, and #4 simultaneously. While Israel's enemies constantly appeal to the international community hoping to apply pressure on Israel, Iran is unique in its ability to apply pressureguaranteed to make world leaders act. How? Just as its Houthi rebel proxies managed to close the Red Sea to all shipping traffic related to Israel and its allies, Iran is capable of closing the Strait of Hormuz – the most critical shipping lane in any bodyof water on the globe. As the only way in or out of the Persian Gulf, the Strait of Hormuz sees 21% of global oil production flow through its waters on a daily basis. Moreover, this equates to 40% of all the world'sexported petroleum. If Iran decides its best option is to appeal to the global community by closing the Strait of Hormuz until Israel ceases hostilities toward Hezbollah, then many world leaders will be desperate to find a resolution in order to restore thefree flow of oil at market prices. Foremost among these world leaders will be U.S. President Joe Biden. His Vice President, Kamala Harris, is in a tight election race with only five weeks to go. A prolonged closure of the Persian Gulf would cause oil pricesto skyrocket. That, in turn, would solidify the current global downturn into a global depression. Gasoline for most U.S. consumers would exceed $10 per gallon. It's hard to imagine such a scenario takes place and Harris doesn’t lose in a landslide. So facedwith this prospect, President Biden would likely demand Israel cease its assault on Hezbollah. Other world leaders, whether engaged in reelection battles or not, will also want a quick resolution to such a crisis. Energy is the lifeblood of all economic activity. Without it, nothingmoves. Elevated oil prices will result in much higher prices for everyday essentials, and the most important of those is food. Hungry people spark revolutions. So every leader in the world will have a vested interest in seeing oil prices return to normal. I’ll be very surprised if Iran chooses Option #1. I’ll be equally surprised if they don’t choose Option #4. My best guess is they’ll pursue Options #3 and #4. If they choose Option #3 – anall-out proxy war with Israel – then I believe Psalm 83 and Isaiah 17 have a high probability of being fulfilled. Psalm 83 and Isaiah 17 How do Psalm 83 and Isaiah 17 factor in? It's possible they don't. Many people who have diligently studied the Bible believe Psalm 83 is not prophetic in nature. Others believe Isaiah 17 wasfulfilled in the past, and it does not prophesy a future event. I believe differently. However, I’m not rigid in this position. I could be wrong. In fact, I hope and pray I’m wrong, because of what it means for the people of Syria and Israel. However, this is why I believe these two passages in the Bible point to a coming conflict involving great devastation. The consensus view says Psalm 83 is an imprecatory prayer and nothing more. I believe it’s a prayer and a prophecy. First, Asaph – the author of Psalm 83 – is named as a prophet in Matthew13:35. Second, when you read verses 4 thru 8, they cite many of the same people groups standing against Israel today, and they say the same things today that Asaph cites in verses 4 and 12: “‘Come,’” they say, “‘Let us wipe out Israel as a nation. We will destroy the very memory of its existence.’” Psalm 83:4 (NLT) and  “For they said, “‘Let us seize for our own use these pasturelands of God!’” Psalm 83:12 (NLT) Verses 9 thru 18 consist of a prayer asking God to take specific actions against Israel’s enemies. So why do I believe Psalm 83 is more than a prayer, but a prophecy of things to come? Because God says He will answer this prayer. In verse 13, Asaph says: “O my God, scatter them like tumbleweed, like chaff before the wind!” Psalm 83:13 (NLT) In Isaiah 17:13, we read about God’s response: “But though they thunder like breakers on a beach, God will silence them, and they will run away. They will flee like chaff scattered by the wind, like a tumbleweed whirling before a storm.” Isaiah 17:13 (NLT) Because of this, I believe these two passages describe the same event. Both use the same words for “tumbleweed” (Strong’s 1534) and “wind” (Strong’s 7307). Also, both verses use differentwords for “chaff” (Strong’s 7179 and 4671), but the translated meaning of both words is the same. Therefore, it’s reasonable to conclude both verses describe the same event – Psalm 83:13 as a prayer and Isaiah 17:13 as God’s response to the prayer. So if both passages describe the same event, what does Isaiah 17 point to? Isaiah 17 prophesies a future devastating event. Again, some people disagree. They say this has already happened,and maybe they’re right. But this is what I believe the scriptures point to. Verse 1 says Damascus will disappear: “This message came to me concerning Damascus: ‘Look, the city of Damascus will disappear! It will become a heap of ruins.’” Isaiah 17:1 (NLT) Some believe this occurred in 732 B.C. when Assyria defeated the Arameans, captured Damascus, and carried away its people as slaves (2 Kings 16:9). However, this did not result in the completedestruction of Damascus. It continued to exist. In fact, Damascus is believed to be the longest continuously inhabited city on earth with a history dating back almost 5,000 years. So I believe this is a prophecy yet to be fulfilled. As if this isn’t bad enough, Isaiah 17 paints a picture of widespread destruction in Israel as well: “‘The fortified towns of Israel will also be destroyed, and the royal power of Damascus will end. All that remains of Syria will share the fate of Israel’s departed glory,’ declares the Lordof Heaven’s Armies. ‘In that day Israel’s glory will grow dim; its robust body will waste away. The whole land will look like a grainfield after the harvesters have gathered the grain. It will be desolate, like the fields in the valley of Rephaim after theharvest. Only a few of its people will be left, like stray olives left on a tree after the harvest. Only two or three remain in the highest branches, four or five scattered here and there on the limbs,’ declares the Lord, the God of Israel.” Isaiah 17:3-6(NLT) How could all this happen? We can only speculate. But it’s not difficult to envision a corneredHezbollah firing thousands of missiles, rockets, and drones into Israel. If they overwhelm the Iron Dome defense system or if a weapon of mass destruction makes it through, Israel will respond with overwhelming force – quite possibly using nuclear weapons.One of the most likely targets? Damascus – a city long known for harboring terrorist leaders. Where Will This Lead? So what is the likely end result of the events we're seeing play out in Israel and Lebanon right now? Whether or not Psalm 83 or Isaiah 17 play into this, I believe once the dust settles fromthis current conflict, we will see the stage set for the events prophesied in Ezekiel chapters 38 and 39. These chapters foretell a future surprise invasion of Israel by a coalition of nations involving Russia, Iran, Turkey, and a number of other nations.The Bible is clear this invasion will come against the modern day nation of Israel in the last days. It also clearly states Israel will be a land of unwalled villages, living in a state of tranquil peace (Ezekiel 38:11). Israel is currently not in such a state.However, if Israel pursues the goal of destroying Hamas, Hezbollah, and all the enemies on its border – all those enemies that pose an existential threat at the current moment – then we could see Israel end up in such a state of tranquility (at least for atime). What Happens Between Now and Then? In the meantime, what happens between now and then? I don't know. I'm not a prophet. However, I know what the Bible says. Israel as a nation state will not be destroyed (Amos 9:14-15). Betweennow and the events of Ezekiel 38-39, something has to take place in order to create the state of peace Israel will be living in prior to the Gog of Magog invasion. It's quite possible the events we're witnessing right now will result in the destruction ofHezbollah, Hamas, and other terrorist organizations committed to the destruction of Israel. If Israel wipes out these threats, they may well find themselves in the state of peace outlined in Ezekiel 38-39. If Psalm 83 and Isaiah 17 are yet-to-be-fulfilled prophecies, then it's highly likely we’ll see them fulfilled in the very near future as this conflict unfolds. Again, I hope I'm wrong. Tobe right means catastrophic war. It means the destruction of Damascus. It means devastation to a large part of northern Israel. It means an entire world in turmoil. But it also means Jesus is coming. Because no matter what happens, the world is currently setting the stage for the seven-year Tribulation and the Second Coming of Jesus Christ at the endof that Tribulation. That means the rapture of the church (which I believe the Bible teaches will come before the Tribulation) will occur even sooner. In other words, Jesus could return at any moment. Make sure you’re prepared!

Seeing Through a Glass, Darkly

 Seeing Through a Glass, Darkly – Jack Kinsella - https://www.rev310.net/post/seeing-through-a-glass-darkly ”And it shall come to pass in the last days, that the mountain of the LORD’s house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shallflow unto it.” (Isaiah 2:2-4) We discussed the four rational creations of God in the last briefing, but, judging from some of your comments, I didn’t do such a bang-up job of explaining it all. I will try and clarify themurky spots. Some of you questioned the application of the word ‘creation’ to describe them. Nobody disputes the fact that the angels were created, or man. One member argues that Jews were not ‘created’ separately, but were selected from an already living group. Jewishness is both a spiritual and a physical manifestation, neither of which existeduntil God created it out by an act of His own will. Abraham was chosen out of the land of Ur to be the father of a great nation. Abraham decided that, given his age and that of Sarah’s, that he would father this great nation through Sarah’sEgyptian slave, Hagar. But God said that HE would create a great nation: “And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing:” (Genesis 12:2) It was by the sovereign act of God that Sarah conceived, it was the sovereign choice of God that the Abrahamic covenant would flow through the descendants of Isaac, and it was by Divine decreethat his descendants would be a peculiar people, unique from all the rest of humanity. The Abrahamic covenant resulted in a new spiritual creature, not Gentile nor angel, but children of the Promise. The Jews are genetically unique; the priestly caste of Cohanin bears the uniquegenetic signature of Aaron, enabling the modern Jews to positively identify the hereditary priests that are necessary to the restoration of Temple worship. Abraham didn’t make his descendants the children of the Promise. God did, by an act of His sovereign will. Until the creation of the Jews, there were just two spiritual creations — angelsand Gentile descendants of Adam. That is the operative phrase here; ‘SPIRITUAL creation’. Let’s define ‘creation’ for the sake of clarification as that which comes into being by the sovereign will of God. By an act of His sovereign will, God introduced a third spiritual creation, one that had not previously existed. Jews are not Jews by choice, they are born Jews. A Buddhist Jew is still a Jew. No matter what religion a Jew practices — or none at all — the Jew is still a Child of the Promise and has a unique spiritual standing before God. It isn’t a question of attitude or whether or not the Jew has a ‘right relationship’ toward God. I don’t know exactly how God accomplishes His plan for the Children of the Promise, but I trustthe Bible. “And so ALL Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob:” (Romans 11:26) Angels were created with spiritual attributes unique to angels. Man was created with his own unique spiritual attributes. He became a Gentile, separated from God, with Adam’s fall. Out of Gentile spiritual humanity, God created a third unique spiritual being, the Jew, and endowed him with spiritual attributes unique from other men. The fourth spiritual creation is the Christian. This spiritual creation also comes into existence as the consequence of a sovereign act of God. This spiritual creature, like angels, Jews,and Gentiles, has an eternal component, but unlike the Jews and the Gentiles, it is a new form of spiritual creation. “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.” (2nd Corinthians 5:17) No matter how hard he tries, a Jew cannot become a Gentile by an act of his own will. No matter what religion he practices, (or even no religion at all), he will always be a Jew. I was bornan Irish Catholic. But no matter what religion I practice, Catholicism, Christianity, Buddhism, or Hindu, I will always be Irish. But, uniquely, only the Jew who becomes a Christian is no longer a Jew. By becoming a Christian, a Jew isn’t even a Jew to other Jews. Even Israel recognizes that he becomes a ‘new creature’ in Christ and often revokes or refuses Israeli citizenship to Messianic Jews. Equally uniquely, a Christian can never become a Gentile. Spiritually, he is already a ‘new creature’. His transformation is accomplished by the sovereign act of God of forgiveness by gracethrough faith. A Gentile can become a Jew, or he can become a Christian. Reversing the process by an act of man’s will is impossible since the process itself is accomplished by God, and “the gifts and callingof God are without repentance.” (Romans 11:29) The second question revolves around the continued existence of the Gentiles in the Millennial Kingdom. More than a few of you questioned that. We opened this briefing with Isaiah 2:4, which speaks of the ‘nations’ that will “go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob.” Note that this is what a Gentile would say, not a Jew. Isaiah also says He will judge between the ‘nations’ [more than one] and will settle disputes for ‘many peoples’. They will beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation will not take up sword against nation, “nor will they train for war anymore.” Israel is but ONE nation. The Church is raptured and has received their translated bodies. The only possible explanation for the ‘nations’ is that they are Gentile nations. Will there be Gentile survivors of the Tribulation Period who enter into the Millennial Kingdom AS Gentiles? “And it shall come to pass, that everyone that is left of all the nations which came against Jerusalem shall even go up from year to year to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, and to keepthe feast of tabernacles.” (Zechariah 14:16) “And before Him shall be gathered all nations: and He shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth His sheep from the goats: And He shall set the sheep on His right hand, butthe goats on the left.” (Matthew 25:32-33) Jesus is speaking of the destiny of nations, not individuals. “Then shall the King say unto them on His right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: For I was an hungered, and ye gaveme meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in:” (Matthew 25:34-35) The sheep and goat nations will be judged as either worthy to enter the Millennial Kingdom or unworthy, based on how each nation treated Israel. They are Gentile nations, neither Jew nor Christian. Christianity, as we understand it, ends with the conclusion of the Church Age. When the ‘elect company’ being called out of the world as the Bride of Christ reaches its complete number, the Rapture takes place, followed by the Marriage Supper of the Lamb. There are tribulationsaints, but those saints are not saved according to the Dispensation of Grace but rather are saved according to the Dispensation of the Law. Tribulation saints, [with the exception of the 144,000 of Revelation 7] are NOT sealed ‘with the Holy Spirit of Promise’ (Ephesians 1:13) — since the indwelling of the Holy Spirit is uniqueto the Church Age. If all Tribulation believers are indwelt with the Holy Spirit, like the new creatures of the Church Age, there would be little point in devoting an entire chapter to describing the ‘sealing’ of the 144,000 Jews during the Tribulation. The Tribulation saints are NOT ‘new creatures’ transformed by the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, but remain Gentiles, saved the same way the Jewish saints of the Old Testament were – by beingdeclared judicially righteous by God. The Bible indicates that judicial declaration of righteousness is directly related to their treatment of the nation of Israel. It also says that the Gentile nations who enter the MillennialKingdom will serve Israel. Melchizedek, king of Salem, was a Gentile, but the Bible calls him the ‘priest of the most high God’ for siding with Abraham against the King of Sodom and bringing Abraham bread and wine.(Genesis 14:18). I realize a lot of this challenges what is taught today, mainly because of a fundamental misunderstanding of Dispensational truth. Dispensationalism holds that, during different periods throughouthistory, God dealt with man’s salvation in different ways. He walked with Adam ‘in the cool of the garden’ during the Age of Innocence. After the Fall, but before the Flood, God allowed man to pretty much govern according to his own will in what iscalled the ‘Age of Conscience’. After the Flood, God dealt with individuals one-on-one as he did from Noah until Moses. When Moses received the Law, it introduced a new Dispensation in which God dealt with His people judicially in a corporate, rather than individual manner, setting up Judges over Israel torule according to Divine Decree. After the Jews failed miserably at keeping the Law, Jesus introduced a new Dispensation, the Age of Grace. The Age of Grace concludes with the Rapture of the Church and the withdrawal of theRestrainer. (2nd Thessalonians 2:7) There is yet a final seven-year period for the Age of the Law, during which God pours out His wrath against unbelieving Jews and Gentiles, called the ‘Time of Jacob’s Trouble’. Then there is the final Dispensation, the Millennial Kingdom, in which Jews and righteous Gentiles will live under the direct reign of Jesus Christ from Jerusalem for a thousand-year period. Assessment: “Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.” (2nd Timothy 2:15) ‘Rightly dividing the word of truth’ means that there IS a division in the word of truth. It means one cannot apply the tenets of the Age of Law to the Church Age and get any understandingof salvation by grace through faith. One cannot apply the tenets of the Church Age to the Tribulation Period and get any clear understanding of how the Tribulation saints can be saved, or how they could later subsequently belost by accepting the Mark of the Beast. During the Church Age, the saints cannot be overcome by Satan — “resist the devil, and he will flee from you” does not apply in some metaphysical sense that eventually, we will die and beoutside Satan’s power. In the Church Age, it means what it says. The devil cannot stand before an indwelt believer who pleads the Blood of Christ. But during the Tribulation, “it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to OVERCOME them: and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations.” (Revelation 13:7) Without an understanding of the division in the Word, that would appear to be a contradiction. The power ‘to overcome them doesn’t mean he has the power to kill them. Satan has ALWAYS had that power. Over the course of human history, he has killed uncounted billions through sin. But during the Church Age, believers are indwelt by the Holy Spirit, Whoseministry is to guide the Church in all truth. During the Tribulation, the antichrist will be able to deceive ‘even the very elect’ and any, Jew, Gentile or Tribulation saint, who accepts his mark will be forever damned. ” . . .and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received hismark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years.” (Revelation 20:4) Those who worship the beast and receive his mark are not among that company. Where, under the Dispensation of the Law, God says, ‘an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth’; under the Dispensation of the Age of Grace, Jesus says, ‘turn the other cheek’. Were it not for the understanding of Dispensationalism, one could argue that Scripture contradicts itself. But unregenerate Gentiles are sinners. How can they enter the Millennial Kingdom? David sinned. Noah sinned. Abraham sinned. But note that, “Abraham believed God, and it was imputed unto himfor righteousness. . .” (James 2:23) It is a difficult study since the Bible doesn’t say that much about the Gentiles of the Millennial Kingdom, other than they will live in a restored ecology, will enjoy lifespans similar tothose before the Flood, and that they will eventually be deceived one last time by Satan and will make war against God. The first six Dispensations are outlined in great detail, where we are only given a shadowy look at the Millennial Kingdom. The Millennial Kingdom will be administered directly by Christ fromearth. There is no real need for detail. When the time comes, those alive then can enquire directly of Him. The Apostle Paul explains; “For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known.” (1st Corinthians 13:12)

The scariest parable Jesus ever told

 The scariest parable Jesus ever told - By Robin Schumacher - https://www.christianpost.com/voices/the-scariest-parable-jesus-ever-told.html Sometimes what I read in the Bible scares me, and I mean it literally sends a shiver down my spine where I physically twitch. How about you? It happened again just the other day as I was reading through Matthew’s Gospel. I came to chapter 22 and the parable of the marriage feast, which I’m telling you is, hands down, the scariestparable Jesus ever told. Let’s walk through it together and I’ll show you why it floors me every time. Why parables? Before we start, let’s understand what Jesus’ parables really were. They weren’t sermon illustrations or a friendly type of sage-driven storytelling, but rather a form of judgment handed downafter Israel’s religious leaders formally rejected Christ and equated His work with the devil. You can read about it in the 12th chapter of Matthew, which is the book’s “hinge” chapter. You also see the same thing in Mark 3. After Jesus’ rejection comes the parables and their reason: “The disciples came and said to Him, ‘Why do You speak to them in parables?’ Jesus answered them, ‘To you it has been granted toknow the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been granted. For whoever has, to him more shall be given, and he will have an abundance; but whoever does not have, even what he has shall be taken away from him. Therefore I speak to themin parables; because while seeing they do not see, and while hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand’” (Matt. 13:10–13). Let’s now dive into this particular one, which can be broken up into three distinct sections: 1. the rejected invitation and its consequences (verses 1–7); 2. the gathering of the other weddingguests (verses 8–10); and 3. the improperly clothed guest (verses 11–14). God’s promises go both ways Jesus spoke to them again in parables, saying, “The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who gave a wedding feast for his son. And he sent out his slaves to call those who had beeninvited to the wedding feast, and they were unwilling to come. Again he sent out other slaves saying, ‘Tell those who have been invited, Behold, I have prepared my dinner; my oxen and my fattened livestock are all butchered and everything is ready; come tothe wedding feast.’ But they paid no attention and went their way, one to his own farm, another to his business, and the rest seized his slaves and mistreated them and killed them. But the king was enraged, and he sent his armies and destroyed those murderersand set their city on fire” (vv. 1–7). Given what we know now, the first part of the parable isn’t difficult to interpret. The idea of the marriage feast draws a straight line to the one associated with Christ’s eschatologicaltriumph — the marriage supper of the Lamb found in Rev. 19:7–9. We first see the grace and patience of the king [God] in sending multiple messengers calling people to the event. The first envoys represent the Old Testament prophets sent to Israel, whilethe second group likely denotes John the Baptist, Jesus and his disciples, and those afterward like Paul. This brings to mind what Jeremiah was inspired to say to ancient Israel: “Since the day that your fathers came out of the land of Egypt until this day,I have sent you all My servants the prophets, daily rising early and sending them. Yet they did not listen to Me or incline their ear but stiffened their neck” (Jer. 7:25–26). And what happened to those who “stiffened their neck” at God? This is where things first start to get scary. Scripture tells us repeatedly that there is a limit to God’s patience (Gen. 6:3; Prov. 29:1; Dan. 5:22–31; Matt. 21:40–44; Luke 13:9; Rev. 2:21, 22). We talk a lot about God keeping His promisesabout salvation, but we can forget He is also a promise keeper when it comes to His judgment. You don’t need a more terrifying illustration of this than 70 AD, which proved that God's judgment does fall, just as Jesus promised in the parable. The historian Josephus says this aboutthe destruction of Jerusalem, which Jesus was referencing: “While the sanctuary was burning … neither pity for age nor respect for rank was shown; on the contrary, children and old people, laity and priests alike were massacred” (VI.271). It’s believed that more than a million Jews perished and afterwards, Israel ceased to exist as a significant nation. God indeed “was enraged, and he sent his armies and destroyed those murderersand set their city on fire,” just as Jesus stated. And if He kept His promise of judgment for them, what about us? Scary to think about? You bet. God’s general call Next, we read: Then he [the king] said to his slaves, “The wedding is ready, but those who were invited were not worthy. Go therefore to the main highways, and as many as you find there, invite to the weddingfeast.” Those slaves went out into the streets and gathered together all they found, both evil and good; and the wedding hall was filled with dinner guests (vv. 8–10). I doubt this part is hard for you to figure out. When Israel stiff-arms Christ, others are brought to Him, mostly from the Gentiles (cf. 8:11, 12; 21:41), though other Jews can’t be excluded.This is what Jesus talked about in John when He said, “I have other sheep, which are not of this fold; I must bring them also, and they will hear My voice; and they will become one flock with one shepherd” (John 10:16). This part of the parable isn’t frightening at all but is instead comforting to read: “…and the wedding was filled with guests.” But it isn’t over; don’t miss the fact that those who were broughtin were “both evil and good”. Let’s see what happens next. Speechless before God But when the king came in to look over the dinner guests, he saw a man there who was not dressed in wedding clothes, and he said to him, “Friend, how did you come in here without wedding clothes?” And the man was speechless. Then the king said to the servants, “Bind him hand and foot, and throw him into the outer darkness; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” For many are called, but few are chosen (vv.11–14). This part really gets to me. The third section can be thought of as another parable, making this a double-edged statement, which may be why the chapter opens with Matthew saying Jesus spoke to them again “by parables” (plural). Suddenly, the king (God) appears to look over the guests, an act representing the omniscient inspection of every professed believer in Jesus that will occur one day. The fact that “both goodand evil” are present at the feast is something seen in another parable — the dragnet — found in Matthew 13:47–50. The king finds a man who isn’t properly clothed for the event and stands “speechless” before the king, who promptly casts him out of his wedding event’s light and into darkness. But wait aminute — why is the king upset that the guy isn’t appropriately dressed? Weren’t all the guests quickly hurried to the feast as they were? Near East historians tell us it was customary for prominent hosts of major events to provide suitable garments for their guests. 2 Kings 10:22 details one such occurrence done even at paganaffairs: “He said to the one who was in charge of the wardrobe, ‘Bring out garments for all the worshipers of Baal.’ So he brought out garments for them”. The only way the man would be without such a provision and still in his own clothes is if he declined the king’s garment. Just like the original guests who turned down the king’s initial invitationand met with terrible consequences, we have a dreadful repeat. The lesson? You don’t come into the presence of the King of kings clothed in your own righteousness. Instead, you want to say with Isaiah: “I will rejoice greatly in the LORD, my soul willexult in my God; for He has clothed me with garments of salvation, He has wrapped me with a robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decks himself with a garland, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels” (Is. 61:10). Paul tells us, “For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ” (Gal. 3:27). And we don’t do this ourselves because, like the parable says at the end, “manyare called, but few are chosen” (vs.14). Salvation, then, in the final analysis, is not a human accomplishment but the gift of God’s sovereign grace. To those of us clothed by God, we will hear “Enter into the joy of your Master” (Matt. 25:21). But those who refuse the righteousness offered them will have a different fate: “I will punish the princes, and the king’s children, and all such as are clothed with strange apparel” (Zeph. 1:8). There’s that shiver down my spine again. At the end of the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus didn’t use a parable to get His point across, but plainly said: “On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name,and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness’” (Matt. 7:22–23). May we never hear those words. Take the King’s robe now if you haven’t already.