Our Role In These Evil Days

By Bill Keller

 

TWO YEARS AGO God spoke to my heart about what WILL HAPPEN in this nation one day very soon. In light of the messages God has given me to share with you recently, I felt this prophetic word of several years ago needed to be repeated today. My heart has been very heavy as of late, and I spent several hours in prayer last night. Here is what God confirmed in my spirit.

 

In these last days as we watch our nation and world spiral into a spiritual abyss, the only real answer is seeing the lost won to Christ. Sharing our faith is what God has called His children to do. It doesn't matter who is in office, it doesn't matter what the church is doing, WE are the ones God has called to impact our nation and world. May we not be discouraged by what is happening in the world today, but be encouraged and faithful in fulfilling God's calling on our lives. YOU can make a difference!

When they padlock the doors of the churches in the United States! Impossible you say? That day is closer than you think my friend. If you would have told someone just 50 years ago that there would no longer be prayer in our schools, they would have called you crazy. If you would have told someone 50 years ago that crosses and manger scenes would be banned from public buildings, they would have called you crazy. If you would have told someone 50 years ago that it would be illegal to display the 10 commandments in a courthouse, they would have called you crazy. If you would have told someone 50 years ago that there would be major efforts to take "under God " out of the Pledge of Allegiance and "In God We Trust" off of our money, they would have called you crazy. However, 50 years later, these are all a reality!

Here is some more reality for you. Things are NOT going to get any better. I am thankful for all of those who love God and work so diligently in the public arena. We MUST continue to fight for the issues that support God's Word. We must never vacate the political arena, rather support those who are in public office that support the agenda of God. We have to maintain that voice. But here is the problem. Despite the numbers that Barna puts out, this nation is becoming more Godless every single day. It happened in Europe, it happened in Canada, and it is happening right before our very eyes here in the United States. We are fast becoming a Godless society.

There is now a large percentage of two full generations in our nation that do not go to church. The generation that is in their 20's and 30's has a large percentage that has never been to church. They grew up in homes void of God. They are now having children that are growing up in homes void of God, which means the coming generation will also grow up in homes void of God. On top of that, the vast majority of those in these two generations that DO go to church are NOT in a committed 24/7 relationship with Christ. They range from the Christmas/Easter churchgoers to those who simply put in their "hour" each week. Their day in and day out lives really are no different than those who don't go to church at all.

So what is next for our nation? The false religions will continue to grow. The false religions are based on the writings of men and prey on the fact that  people are looking for God, but use man's sinful condition to lead them into deception. They tell them they can buy their way into Heaven, they will have sex with virgins, they can work to become a god, and numerous other lies. Perverting the things of God that we used to honor will continue to get worse. Marriage has already become little more than a legal date to most people. Sex with people you are not married to, with the same sex, are now the mainstream norm. This will continue to destroy the family and simply create more generations of people totally void of God in their life, meaning the nation will adopt their Godless values and view of life.

IF YOU THINK I AM CRAZY, LET ME SUGGEST YOU READ YOUR BIBLE! IF THIS HAPPENED TO THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL, THAT WERE BORN OUT OF THE PROMISE OF GOD AND WITNESS TO HIS GREAT MIRACLES, WHY DON'T YOU THINK THIS CAN HAPPEN TO  the U.S.?

The answer my friend is this. We still enjoy amazing freedoms in this nation to share the Word of God. WE MUST TAKE ADVANTAGE OF IT! Jesus said that we had to work while it was still light because the night was coming.

We have got to stop playing games and get serious, because we have a very real enemy who is deadly serious. Oh how I wish the church was as committed to building the lives of people, to building the Kingdom of God, as it is in building great structures of brick and mortar. It is amazing how a church can find 20 million dollars to build a new building, but not $200 to help pay someone's rent! It is time for pastors to stop worrying about being politically correct and start being Biblically correct! Churches need to take out the theater seating and make people stand up in the presence of God. God's church was never supposed to be a place where people are entertained, but a place where they are trained up to do the work of God.
This is the third time in the last 30 days that the Holy Spirit has prompted me to give you such a word. I sense in my Spirit a great sense of urgency, that the time is truly very short now. Jesus is coming back at any moment for His church. We are living in a very evil and dark world. This nation has rapidly deteriorated spiritually right before our very eyes over the past 40 years. BUT GOD HAS ALWAYS HAD A PEOPLE! GOD HAS ALWAYS HAD A REMNANT! I pray today that you will be part of that remnant God will use to bring in this last great harvest.

Now more than ever, those who refuse to bow their knee to Baal need to stand up and be counted. The Bible proclaims that the gates of hell shall not prevail against the church. That is because the church is not a building, it is all those people that have accepted Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior and will follow Him to their death. THAT is the true church, and that is why they can padlock the doors of a building, but they will never stop the work of God! GOD WILL HAVE THE LAST WORD!

If I can help you in any way you can contact me through my personal email at:

bkeller@liveprayer.com

The Lord's Prayer Series Part 3 (VLOG)

By Justin Edwards

In Part 3 of the Lord's Prayer series, Matt explains that we are to pray for God's will to be done, not ours. Matthew 6:9-10,

⁹After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.
 ¹⁰Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.

 Part 1:  The Lord's Prayer Series (VLOG)
 Part 2: The Lord's Prayer Series Part 2 (VLOG)

The Lord's Prayer Series Part 2 (VLOG)

By Justin Edwards

Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord God Almighty! His very name is Holy, and is what we learn from the first part of the Lord's Prayer - Matthew 6:9,

 Our Father in heaven,
      Hallowed be Your name. 

 Listen to Matt explain the word, hallowed, and how it epitomizes the name of our Lord.


View Part 1: The Lord's Prayer Series (VLOG)

The Lord's Prayer Series (VLOG)

By Justin Edwards

Matt Slyman begins his series on the Lord's Prayer with this brief introduction. The Lord's Prayer in Matthew 6 has been turned into a traditional and mundane routine by many who say it on a regular basis. Oftentimes, it's the only prayer some even say. This is religiosity, my friends. The Lord wants prayer to come from the heart, not through a mindless recitation. It's how we communicate with Him. 1 Thessalonians 5 tells us,

¹⁶ Rejoice always, ¹⁷ pray without ceasing, ¹⁸ in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.

 Prayer is mere communion with God. We realize the peace that passes all understanding through prayer, as Philippians 4 says,

⁶ Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; ⁷ and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

The Lord's Prayer is to be understood as an example to us on how to pray. What God wants is speaking to Him from the sincerity of our hearts. We give Him thanks, we confess and repent from our sins, we praise His Holy name, and we make our requests known to Him. There is nothing wrong with memorizing and reciting this prayer, not at all, but make sure you are crying out to Him from the bottom of your heart.

I'm looking forward to what God has laid on my brother's heart:

Gay Christian Singer Jennifer Knapp Out on Larry King

GAY CHRISTIAN SINGER JENNIFER KNAPP OUT ON LARRY KING LIVE

By Ken Silva pastor-teacher 

But now I am writing to you not to associate with anyone who bears the name of brother if he is guilty of sexual immorality or greed, or is an idolater, reviler, drunkard, or swindler—not even to eat with such a one. (1 Corinthians 5:11)

The Sad Truth Has Now Come Emerging

By now you may know that recently Christian Singer Jennifer Knapp came out as a lesbian, which Apprising Ministries covered in Jennifer Knapp And Homosexuality. The other night she appeared on Larry King Live as you’ll see below via SuchIsLifeVideos. In previous posts like Correcting Brian McLaren “On Faith” And Homosexuality I’ve warned that there’s a same-sex storm gathering hurricane force, which is right now, looming only slightly off the horizon of the mainstream evangelical community.

As I’ve pointed out before, there’s a very specific reason why the Lord moved me to begin covering the issue of a growing acceptance within evangelicalism that the deviant and sinful lifestyle of having sexual relations with another of the same sex, i.e homosexuality, is a viable one for the regenerated Christian. Now for those who may be familiar with fire bases in Vietnam, which were temporary artillery encampments there to provide fire support and quarters for ground operations near the front lines, in the dark of night there were many times enemy forces would try and move in for a sneak attack.

So periodically flares were shot high above the area to light up the night sky in order to monitor any possible movement of enemy troops. And even in this spiritual war Satan’s seducing spirits sneak around in the darkness with their didaskaliais daimonion (doctrines of demons). Well, I’m using the issue of homosexuality to light up the sky with the Word of God to give you a chance to see the wide, and very rapid, advance of the egregiously ecumenical Emerging Church—which is a cult of neo-liberalism now firmly within mainstream of the visible church. Its primary goal has been to attack Sola Scriptura.

Through its core doctrine of corrupt Contemplative Spirituality/Mysticism (CSM), masquerading as spurious Spiritual Formation ala Living Spiritual Teacher and Quaker mystic Richard Foster and his spiritual twin Dallas Willard, Emergent Church leaders have been quite successful in taking the focus off proper Christian spirituality and putting it upon mere subjective feelings. As one theologian put it recently:

it is a defined dogma that God cannot be defined! And therein lies the rub, which I felt already in those early years, but which later became an even greater spiritual and intellectual irritant: how do I hold together all the certain knowledge I have as a theologian and am supposed to affirm as a believer with what I have increasingly felt,…

I’m not asking for some kind of neat, well-defined meaning to take the place of the literal meanings of those [cardinal doctrines of Christianity]. I, and many of my fellow Christians, are simply asking, “What do we believe if we don’t believe in the literal sense of such statements.” [1]

But no one’s saying that we know everything there is to know about God; what we are saying is: What God revealed about Himself in Scripture can be known; that’s a huge difference. You’ll often hear the following EC red herring as well; and you’d best get ready for it. The below was tweeted earlier today by EC church planter Jamie Arpin-Ricci, inner city pastor, Fransciscan, and missional practioner:

“The Bible is perfectly clear on that topic” can all too often be code for “This is what I believe & there is no room for discussion”. Hmmm (Online source) 

However, that proves nothing because I can just as easily turn around and say, “The Bible is perfectly clear on that topic” can also be the code for “This is what the Bible does say, and so, I believe it & there is no need for discussion.” The above views are absolutely essential for such as these to open the door for existential, and unverifiable, mystic experiences as the criterion for interpreting Holy Scripture; in other words, they are imposing onto the text how they personally feel about a given section of the Bible. And being we have a corrupted reasoning process, due to the Fall, it’s a perfect recipe for spiritual disaster.

Professing Christian Jennifer Knapp Has Made The Sad Choice Not To Repent Of Her Sin

Now against this proper backdrop we look at Knapp’s appearance on Larry King Live. A couple of things come emerging: Knapp does indeed claim Jesus Christ; and she has chosen to contend that her unrepentant, and ongoing, homosexual lifestyle is not sinful one for a Christian. Knapp’s argument is essentially summed up below when King asks Jennifer Knapp about the Bible and homosexuality:

KING: You don’t feel that your Bible speaks against it. Or, do you?
KNAPP: Well, I think there’s plenty of evidence in my exploration of my faith through the sacred text of the Holy Bible that I have definitely recognized that we are somewhat at the handicap of our own interpretations of a sacred text. Let’s take for example the original Greek translation of which I am no academic scholar of. Yet, you know, we all know that any time that we read a book or we read any kind of word, that it becomes the interpretation of our life’s experience, what we want to bring out of that. (Online Source)

Christian apologist Chris Rosebrough, host of Fighting for the Faith (FftF) on Pirate Christian Radio, has elsewhere done an excellent job refuting this argument. [2] And then Knapp uses another common liberal/progressive tactic of injecting a red herring to try confusing the categories. Knapp is talking with Pastor Bob Botsford of Horizon North County, whom I know nothing about, and she asks him a question he obviously wasn’t ready for:

KNAPP: If I am a sinner and homosexuality is a sin, let’s just go on that premise for a moment. But what separates that particular sin out from the fact that I’m angry or mad at someone or that I cheat or maybe, you know — what separates that out as so grievous to you that we have to sit here and have this type of conversation?

BOTSFORD: Well, it’s interesting. There’s — sin is sin. You’re absolutely right. And we all have sin.

KNAPP: So, why are we — why am I — why aren’t you in this seat and I’m in the other seat condemning you on national television?  (Online Source)

I’ll come back to that in a moment. First, I remind you that previously in Jesus Defines Marriage For Red Letter Christians I showed clearly from the Bible Jesus defines marriage as strictly between a male and a female; and by doing so He is instructing us, from God’s standpoint, any homosexual activity will always be outside of the marriage covenant. And, since the Bible condemns all sexual activity outside of marriage as sin, therefore homosexuality is actually found among the sexual immorality that Christians are specifically told by God, our Creator, to flee from (e.g. see—1 Cor. 6:15-20).

So when Knapp introduces that “why” question, if you’re not careful to sidestep here and stay on point, you’ll end up running down a rabbit trail and end in what I refer to as wrestling with the snake. As soon as you focus on one area it then twists you to another, and before you know it, you’re far away from the subject you’re actually attempting to discuss. Concerning homosexuality, we must remind people that this is sin of a sexual nature, which immediately sets it apart from the other sin Knapp has mentioned above. Notice carefully what God tells us below:

Flee from sexual immorality. Every other sin a person commits is outside the body, but the sexually immoral person sins against his own body. (1 Corinthians 6:18) 

Can you see; the Holy Spirit chose to set all other sin apart from that of sexual immorality, which itself includes all sexual relations outside of marriage—whether it be homosexual or heterosexual. There’s Knapp’s answer right there: She’s willfully committing the sin of sexual immorality using her personal temple of Jesus Christ to bring Him shame before the world. And my love for Jesus compels me now to call Jennifer Knapp to repent; and since she’s continuing to disregard the Word of God, she should now be very publicly, and openly, shunned by the Body of Christ until she repents.

Don’t you kid yourself; the EC is already embracing Knapp, also in violation of God’s Word, so look for her to show up at a major EC conference soon. And you’d best understand that, with its new “big tent” Progressive Christian theology aka Emergence Christianity, the neo-liberal cult of the Emerging Church is right now working to make affirming homosexuality an issue even within your own mainstream evangelical church—and sooner than you may even think.

_________________________________________________________________________
Endnotes

1. Paul F. Knitter, Without Buddha I Could not be a Christian [Oxford: Oneworld Publications, 2009] , 56, 57, emphasis his.
2. An In-Depth Look At What The Bible Says About Homosexuality, accessed 4/25/10.

Who Is Responsible for a Believer's Salvation?

By Mike Ratliff

30 And because of him you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption (1 Corinthians 1:30 ESV)

There are so many who want to attack the teachings I post with their extra-biblical arguments, which are mostly based in tradition. There are many topics where the numbers of those doing this drop drastically, but when it comes to the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ and how it relates to what is hot in the visible church “right now” like “missional” stuff my spam bucket seems to fill up fast.

The Bible clearly shows us that God is sovereign, completely sovereign, in salvation, not the person. Let us ask some questions and then answer them scripturally. I will ask a few questions then list the answers by linking to scripture so you can go there and prayerfully read it yourself.

“Did God sovereignly elect us and save us? Or did He act in accord with what He knew we would do? In other words, “Who makes the first move?”

God wills                                                  John 1:12-13; Eph. 1:5, 11
God draws                                                John 6:44
God grants                                                John 6:65
God calls                                                   1 Thess. 2:12; 2Thess. 2:14; 2Tim. 1:9; 1Pet. 2:9
God appoints                                           Acts 13:48; 1 Thess. 5:9
God predestines                                      Rom. 8:29; Eph. 1:5, 11
God prepares                                           Rom. 9:23
God causes                                               1 Cor. 1:30
God chooses                                            1 Thess. 1:4; 2 Thess. 2:13; Eph. 1:4
God purposes                                          Eph. 1:11
God delivers and transfers                   Col. 1:13
God saves                                                 2 Tim. 1:9; Titus 3:5
God makes us alive                               Eph. 2:5
God pours out His Spirit                     Titus 3:6
God brings us forth                               James 1:18
God justifies                                            Rom. 8:30; Titus 3:7
God sanctifies                                         1 Thess. 5:23
God glorifies                                           Rom. 8:3

The passages above summarize what Sacred Scripture teaches about God’s role in salvation. If you have taken an honest look at these passages then you have seen that God is the ‘first cause’ or imitator of a believer’s salvation.

Soli Deo Gloria!

Are You Sharing the Gospel?

By pastorboy

Do We Really Love the Lost? 

But when he saw the multitudes, he was moved with compassion on them, because they fainted, and were scattered abroad, as sheep having no shepherd.(Matthew 9:36)

I just came back from my district conference, a time when the gathered churches in our district come together to talak about the ‘politics’ of overseeing some 90 churches. It differs from a business meeting in that we open and close with praise songs, we worship as we hear the Word presented, and we go about the mundane tasks of electing men and setting policy. The benefit surely is that it can be a time of encouragement and sharpening iron. I personally enjoy seeing so many of my friends that I know from the other churches. I enjoy speaking with the leadership ( I truly love our District Staff- great people of God from the Superintendent to the administrative professionals).I love my adopted denomination, indeed I love the people.

But I have a bone to pick, and this is not just with CM&A people, it is with all who name the name of Christ. We go to these conferences, yes, we go to church. We read and study the Bible, we are built up and equipped. I say for what?!

The theme of this conference was God’s heart for lost people. Indeed, it borrowed a line from our CM&A core values which says: Lost people matter to God, He wants them found. This is from the scripture, Luke 19:10:

For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.

Jesus came to seek and to save the Lost. This is the example that he left for the church to follow. It is why we are here on this earth. Unfortunately, I believe that many pastors and therefore many church-goers have that knowledge that lost people matter to God and He wants them found, but they do not live like they know it. Our speaker left the pulpit and went into an institutional chaplaincy because he found himself insulated from the outside world in the church. That is so true. I mean, we like church people. We love fellowship. It is easy to ‘preach to the choir’. It is easy to talk with one with whom you agree. In fact, the fellowship is sweet, it is enjoyable, and we are built up and equipped in our local church. Again, I ask, for what?

A core value is something that drives you, that motivates you, that is at the center (the CORE) of your life. I am afraid that as a denomination, in my admitedly small knowledge of the whole, it seems as though we need salt water in order to lead a missional life that is seeking to save the lost. I would say that many Pastors and church-goers hide the light of the world under a bushel basket called the church.

We are called to pray, and indeed we must. We are called to study the Word, and indeed we must. The soil needs work, indeed, we need to take the time to pick the rocks and prepare the ground. But there is a time to put the hand to the plow and get the work of planting done. If the seeds never get planted, there will never be a harvest.

I challenge the Pastors, Associate Pastors, Elders, Deacons, and other leaders to make a point of leading a lifestyle of evangelism, applying the attitude of seeking the lost. I challenge congregations to set aside hours of our leaders’ schedules so that they can intentionally go where lost people are and strike up a conversation. When the leaders get a taste of the gift and the blessing of Evangelism, the church members will follow. Believe me, I would love to sit and hear AMEN’s from a crowd of my friends whom I love. It is like sipping milk from a bottle, very comforting and relaxing. It can lull a baby to sleep, but it not for the adult who has grown out of it. Evangelism is like drinking water from a firehose. It will wake a Christian out of their sleep, make them rely on prayer and the study of the Word, indeed on the power of the Holy Spirit more and more. And it demonstrates that we love and reverence God more than we fear men. And it will show up on Sunday Morning and Wednesday Nights as well as your Pastors and Leaders are finding themselves leaning on God more for their ministry. They will also be swallowed up in a singular passion for lost people.

he challenge is this: If you believe that God wants lost people found, what are you doing about it? The Biblical method is NOT to make your church more attractive through programming, cool events, media, or music. The Biblical method is, and will always be, God’s people built up and equipped in the local church going out and seeking the lost and proclaiming the glorious Gospel. If you leaders do it, your people will surely follow. Even if they do not, indeed, even if they disapprove, as a Christian leader you are supposed to be doing all things for the glory of God anyway.

For you pew sitters: We are willing to give money, yes, and even until it hurts. But are we willing to share the Gospel with our co-workers? We go to missions conferences and are wowed by the stories of Missionaries, but do we have the guts to hand a stranger a gospel tract, or to start up a spiritual conversation? We pray for the lost to come to a knowledge of God, but do we open up our mouths and share that Gospel? You are the ones ‘in the world’ earning a living, going to school, raising the kids. Indeed you are the ones who support the work of the church and the work of the missionaries. But you are responsible to share the good news of the Gospel within your circles of influence. Don’t just be built up and equipped in the church; you are God’s workmanship created in Christ Jesus to do good works (Eph 2:10). Prayer is a good work, indeed, so is Bible Study. Whatever we do to the glory and magnification of God is worship, but in all things that we do, the best work is to share the Gospel with those all around you.

Each Christian has been given a command: Preach the Gospel to every creature (MK 16:15) It is not an option. Go out and share the Gospel today.

No Fear of Death

He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; he that overcometh shall not be hurt of the second death. (Revelation 2:11)

The first death we must endure unless the Lord should suddenly come to His temple. For this let us abide in readiness, awaiting it without fear, since Jesus has transformed death from a dreary cavern into a passage leading to glory.

The thing to be feared is not the first but the second death, not the parting of the soul from the body but the final separation of the entire man from God. This is death indeed. This death kills all peace, joy, happiness, hope. When God is gone, all is gone. Such a death is far worse than ceasing to be: it is existence without the life which makes existence worth the having.

Now, if by God's grace we fight on to the end and conquer in the glorious war, no second death can lay its chill finger upon us, We shall have no fear of death and hell, for we shall receive a crown of life which fadeth not away. How this nerves us for the fight! Eternal life is worth a life's battle. To escape the hurt of the second death is a thing worth struggling for throughout a lifetime.

Lord, give us faith so that we may overcome, and then grant us grace to remain unharmed though sin and Satan dog our heels!

- C.H. Spurgeon

From the Spurgeon Archive

Angry White Men - Are You a Domestic Extremist?

By Jack Kinsella

Are you angry at the fact that the government took on average, $7000 of your tax money and gave it to the banks?

Are you angry because more than half of Americans (52%) pay no federal taxes but get a 'refund' (Earned Income Credit) funded by the 48% of Americans who do pay federal taxes?

Are you angry because the federal government has done so little to secure the southern borders that local Texas law enforcement is calling on citizens to arm and defend themselves?

Are you angry at the way the Congress is ignoring the majority will of the voters?    Are you angry because the government is stealing from the next generation to buy off this one?

Are you sympathetic to the Tea Party?  Are you white?

Then the only difference between you and Timothy McVeigh is that he already blew up a building to express his anger.

You haven't yet, but you probably will.  Bill Clinton said so.

Speaking at an event sponsored by Center for American Progress Action Fund, the former president drew a parallel between the terrorist nuts who blew up the Alfred P Murrah Building in Oklahoma City in 1995 and the Tea Party movement.

"What we learned from Oklahoma City is not that we should gag each other or that we should reduce our passion for the positions we hold - but that the words we use really do matter, because there's this vast echo chamber, and they go across space and they fall on the serious and the delirious alike. They fall on the connected and the unhinged alike."

So if you went to one of the thousands of Tea Party rallies held across the country on April 15th, you are too passionate about the position you hold -- then you are either "serious" (presumably the 49% who approve of the job Obama is doing) or you are "delirious" (the 46% that disapprove).

You are either numbered among "the connected" who support the socialist transformation of America,, or among the "unhinged" that disapprove.

If you disapprove of the way the health care bill was rammed through in a procedure in which only the opposition was bi-partisan,  then you're probably off your medication, according to the former prez, (who sounded like he was off his).

"I'm glad they're fighting over health care and everything else. Let them have at it. But I think that all you have to do is read the paper every day to see how many people there are who are deeply, deeply troubled."

Deeply troubled, indeed!  But the proper response isn't to protest and demonstrate. No, no, no.  That might be your Constitutional right, but you need to exercise it 'responsibly' -- and not by coming together as "angry mobs of white men" that are only pretending to be angry over domestic policy.

However, if they just have to demonstrate, they should be more responsible with their rhetoric and show a little more respect for the office.  (You know, like when they were ones protesting against the Bush administration.)


Even the 'Tea Party' label, according to Bill Clinton, is a fraud.

"The Boston tea party was about … no taxation without representation. It was not about representation by people you didn't’t vote for and didn't’t agree with but can vote out in the next election."

Isn't that exactly what the Tea Party's rallying cry is?  Vote the bums out in November?

So it isn't really about taxation without representation (even though the Republicans were shut out of the process). No, the real reason is because Barak Obama is black and you are a racist.

"Before the bombing occurred, there was a sort of fever in America. . . Meanwhile, the fabric of American life had been unraveling. More and more people who had a hard time figuring out where they fit in, it is true that we see some of that today."

You see?  It's simple!  (And so are you). White people are angry because they used to hold all the power. But all that is slipping away, so the Tea Party is really a reflection of those Americans Obama derided as "clinging to religion and guns and having antipathy (antipathy: a natural, basic, or habitual repugnance) for those who aren't like them."

The fact that some of the leaders of the Tea Party movement are black is irrelevant -- they are just "Uncle Toms".  The real motivation behind the Tea Party movement is that we object to the president's race, so we of course reject his policies.

Clinton is an expert on race.  That's how lost Teddy Kennedy's support for Hillary during the '08 campaign. According to a new book called "Game Changer"  Clinton reportedly said to Kennedy of Obama, "A few years ago, he'd be getting us coffee."

After Kennedy sided with Obama,  Clinton reportedly griped, "the only reason you are endorsing him is because he's black. Let's just be clear."

 

As you can see from the photos, the Tea Party movement needs to take a few lessons from the liberals about how to protest 'responsibly'.  Got it?  Good.

What the Obama administration needs right now more than anything else is a good crisis.  It isn't that there isn't a shortage of potential crises that would suit -- but timing is important and November is fast approaching.
If a war doesn't break out in the Middle East, or if there isn't a significant terror attack somewhere inside the US or some other violent crisis that might justify the declaration of martial law and the suspension of November elections,  then one will have to be ginned up somewhere else.

And the Tea Party is the PERFECT patsy. If only they will cooperate.

The Left has maintained a running narrative about the Tea Party being mainly composed of unhinged right-wing Republicans but notice the contrast between the Tea Partiers in this photo and anti-Bush demonstrators at the top of this page.

The Tea Partiers are not freshly-indoctrinated university students out for an adventure.
They are mature, responsible Americans.   Fox News' Chris Wallace scoffed at the notion of the Tea Partiers as an angry mob, describing the demonstrations as being more like "meetings of the Rotary Club."

But the portrait, nonetheless, has been painted.   All it would take is one act of violence at a Tea Party rally for the media to 'prove' the angry white man narrative was accurate all along.

And all it would take is one act of terrorism by somebody claiming to be part of the Tea Party to justify taking extreme measures to 'preserve the peace."

The seed has been planted, watered and carefully cultivated.  Clinton's comment was just that much more fertilizer (pun intended) to help it grow.

"This know also, that in the last days, perilous times shall come. For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof . . . ."  (2nd Timothy 3:1-5)

I'm reading through that list to see which apply to the Tea Partiers and which apply to their accusers.   I recommend that you try it for yourself.

I'd be curious to see how your own lists balance out.

Earth Day—A Creationist Perspective

By Ken Ham of Answers in Genesis

There is more behind what has been designated today as Earth Day (April 22) than planting trees, reducing pollution, and conserving natural resources. Of course, a lot of what is promoted on this day certainly sounds admirable. Furthermore, Christians are to be good stewards in caring for the earth (Genesis 1:28). But there is a lot more to Earth Day than meets the eye.

For instance, at some Earth Day celebrations, you will find New Age crystals for people to “channel” through, and material can be found on how to worship “Mother Earth.” For many people, this day is really a religious service for the New Age movement (and it’s often based on evolutionary thinking). While we may be responsible for caring for the earth, we are not to worship it but to use it for man’s good—and to God’s glory.

The founder of Earth Day, Gaylord Nelson, believed: “The fate of the living planet is the most important issue facing mankind.”¹ In reality, the most important issue facing mankind is that everybody needs to recognize their sin and need for salvation in Jesus Christ.

Also, the fate of the planet is, ultimately, not in the hands of mankind. While we are responsible for earth care, we are not in control of the earth. It belongs to the Creator (Psalm 24:1), and we are His stewards. We care for the creation, which was once “very good” (Genesis 1:31), but now suffers from the curse of sin (Genesis 3).

Answers in Genesis has co-produced an eye-opening DVD entitled Global Warming: A Scientific and Biblical Expose of Climate Change.

One of the prominent debates in regard to the earth today concerns climate change. Christians need to know how to look at the earth and deal with various questions, such as climate change, through the lens of the Bible. For instance, whether one is a Christian or non-Christian, or even a creationist or evolutionist, all people can legitimately believe that over various times of earth’s history, the climate has changed.

As stated above, we live in an abnormal world because the once-perfect creation is now affected by sin and the Curse: “For we know that the whole creation groans and labors with birth pangs together until now” (Romans 8:22). So, climate can change.

Now, there are disagreements over when various changes (like climate change) occurred on this earth and what type of changes have occurred . . . and to what extent—and whether humans were responsible and can do anything to reverse the effects of such changes.

As a biblical creationist, let me illustrate how I would deal with a specific issue like climate change, which can serve as a useful example of how we should use biblical principles when we approach any issues associated with Earth Day.

I argue that the earth’s climate has gone through a few major periods of change, but in every case, humans did not produce the change. Ever since the Flood of Noah’s time, about 4,400 years ago, people have seen an unsettled earth in its sin-cursed state. Many smaller climate changes have occurred and continue to occur (perhaps in cycles). Whether humans have contributed significantly in a detrimental way is just not suggested by the evidence we have at hand.

Of course, if humankind’s impact on the climate is small, this does not mean that we should not look after the environment. To the contrary, we need to do the best we can to use the environment for man’s good and God’s glory, as good stewards of what God has entrusted to us. But good stewardship requires us to avoid rash decisions based on inconclusive evidence.

You Can't "Save the Planet"

By Justin Edwards

In honor of "Earth Day", I'd like to present a balanced, biblical perspective of what this planet is intended for and our responsibilities as Christians to be good stewards, not earth-worshiping idolaters of a dying world. The following excerpts from Got Questions  provides answers from a Biblical perspective to questions about environmentalism, climate change, global warming, and recycling. Click on each link at the beginning of the paragraph to read each article in its entirety. The bottom line is this: we are called to be good stewards of the property God loaned to us. Efforts to "save the planet" are foolish vanity and point people to worshiping the creation rather than the Creator. While there is nothing wrong with being environmentally conservative, no Christian should hoist the environment as their top priority, which should be their relationship with Jesus Christ and the spreading of His Good News to the lost people of this fallen world. This is earth is passing away, and there's not a thing man can do about it:

As Christians, we should be concerned about our effect on our environment. God appointed man to be the steward of this world (Genesis 1:28), not the destroyer of it. However, we should not allow environmentalism to become a form of idolatry, where the “rights” of an inanimate planet and its non-human creatures are held in higher esteem than God (Romans 1:25) and man created in His image. With global warming, as with any other topic, it is crucial to understand what the facts are, who those facts come from, how they are interpreted, and what the spiritual implications should be.

 There is a difference between the biblical view of the environment and the political movement known as "environmentalism." Understanding this difference will shape a Christian’s view of environmentalism. The Bible is clear that the earth and everything in it was given by God to man to rule over and subdue. "And God blessed them, and God said to them, 'Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth and subdue it; and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the air and over every living thing that moves upon the earth'" (Genesis 1:28). Because they were created in His image, God gave men and women a privileged place among all creatures and commanded them to exercise stewardship over the earth (Genesis 1:26-28; Psalm 8:6-8). Stewardship implies caretaking, not abusing. We are to intelligently manage the resources God has given us, using all diligent care to preserve and protect them. This is seen in the Old Testament where God commanded that the fields and vineyards would be sown and harvested for six years, then left fallow for the seventh year in order to replenish the soil's nutrients, both to rest the land and to ensure continued provision for His people in the future (Exodus 23:10-11; Leviticus 25:1-7).

In addition to our role of caretakers, we are to appreciate the functionality and beauty of the environment. In His incredible grace and power, God has placed on this planet everything needed to feed, clothe, and house the billions of people who have lived on it since the Garden of Eden. All the resources He has provided for our needs are renewable, and He continues to provide the sun and rain necessary to sustain and replenish those resources. And if this were not enough, He has also decorated the planet in glorious color and scenic beauty to appeal to our aesthetic sense and thrill our souls with wonder. There are countless varieties of flowers, exotic birds, and other lovely manifestations of His grace to us.

At the same time, the earth we inhabit is not a permanent planet, nor was it ever intended to be. The environmental movement is consumed with trying to preserve the planet forever, and we know this is not God's plan. He tells us in 2 Peter 3:10 that at the end of the age, the earth and all He has created will be destroyed: "But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, and then the heavens will pass away with a loud noise, and the elements will be dissolved with fire, and the earth and the works that are upon it will be burned up" (NKJV). The physical, natural earth in its present form, with its entire universe will be consumed and God will create a "new heaven and a new earth" (2 Peter 3:13; Revelation 21:1).

So we see that rather than trying to preserve the earth for thousands or even millions of years to come, we are to be good stewards of it for as long as it lasts, which will be as long as it serves God's sovereign plan and purpose.

Is there anything wrong with going green? No, of course not. Is trying to reduce your carbon footprint a good thing? Probably so. Are solar panels, wind mills, and other renewable energy sources worth pursuing? Of course. Are any of these things to be the primary focus of followers of Jesus Christ? Absolutely not! As Christians, our focus should be proclaiming the truth of the Gospel, the message that has the power to save souls. Saving the planet is not within our power or responsibility. Climate change may or may not be real, and may or may not be human-caused. What we can know for certain is that God is good and sovereign, and that planet earth will be our habitat for as long as God desires it to be. Psalms 46:2-3, "Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging."

The earth itself is winding down in preparation for that cataclysmic event, [of 2 Peter 3:10] one that will cause man’s destructive behaviors toward the environment to pale in comparison. Romans 8:20-22 speaks of a creation which groans in anticipation of the time when it will be set free from the bondage to the principle of decay. This is the end we should be looking to and planning for, and which should make our evangelistic efforts all the more urgent. Soda cans can be recycled; people cannot. Therefore, our greatest efforts should be toward saving souls, not the planet.

In the end, whether or not to recycle is a matter of conscience, but should not to be viewed legalistically. Christians who feel it’s important to recycle should certainly do so. Those who don’t are free not to. But as with all things, recycling should not divide Christian believers from each other (Luke 11:17). Care and concern for one another far outweighs care and concern for the environment.

Spurgeon on Repentance

From Peter Cockrell

“Remember that the man who truly repents is never satisfied with his own repentance. We can no more repent perfectly than we can live perfectly. However pure our tears, there will always be some dirt in them; there will be something to be repented of even in our best repentance. But listen! To repent is to change your mind about sin, and Christ, and all the great things of God. There is sorrow implied in this; but the main point is the turning of the heart from sin to Christ. If there be this turning, you have the essence of true repentance, even though no alarm and no despair should ever cast their shadow upon your mind.”

C. H. Spurgeon, All Of Grace, page 70.

Evangelical Christians Face Growing Hostility in Morocco

By Joel Rosenberg

I am deeply concerned about recent developments in Morocco, a country I have visited numerous times and have grown to love and respect.

Earlier this year, 43 American Christians were expelled from Morocco by the government, accused of being ”missionaries.” Now, an accredited American school in Casablanca has been legally attacked by a parent of a sixth grade boy enrolled in the school, accused of trying to convert minors. Morocco has been a leading “Reformer” country – peaceful, tolerant, friendly to the West and eager to build warm, constructive relations with Evangelical Christians. Has the government decided to change course?


With regards to the expulsions, I have been amazed and disappointed that so many Americans could be so hastily deported or refused entry to Morocco without due process of any kind. It appears that Morocco’s own immigration laws were not even respected. This action will send shock waves into the American business community who could now fear doing business there if due process is no longer respected in Morocco. It certainly has already sent shock waves through the American Christian community as it appears that Evangelical Christians are no longer welcome in Morocco.

With regards to the court case, here’s the background: several sixth-grade classmates shared their Christian faith with this Moroccan Muslim boy and he decided to put his faith in Jesus Christ as his Savior and Lord. The legal complaint states the names of 14 people associated with the school and accuses them all with “shaking the child’s [Islamic] faith.” The problem is that only a few of these 14 people have ever even met the boy. The only evidence the lawyer provides that these 14 people have membership in Christian churches and organizations and are in some way connected to the school. In one case, the lawyer cites that a certain individual made charitable contributions through a well known Christian foundation. The lawyer filing the complaint cited an “army of evangelists” from “extremist denominations” (Baptist, Community Church, United Bible Society, etc).

Noteworthy is that the lawyer representing the boy is also the parliamentary leader of the Muslim fundamentalist political party in Morocco (PJD). He is turning the decision of one young boy into a political debate pitting Christians against Muslims. This has potentially far reaching implications and reminds me of the largest complaint of Al Qaeda dating back to 1991. Osama Bin Laden was incensed at the fact that there were hundreds of thousands of “Christian” soldiers in Saudi Arabia. This was the rallying cry that led to most of the terrorist attacks leading up to September 11, 2001. Are the members of the Moroccan PJD party now bringing this same logic to Morocco? Do they want to rid Morocco of all Evangelical Christians? Do they want to turn the tolerant Muslim kingdom into a new Iran or Saudi Arabia?

It appears that Morocco is at the crossroads. It has been reaching out to Christians in the West and seeking to promote the “Morocco Model” as I described in Inside the Revolution. If they convict people of “shaking the faith of a Muslim” who have never even met that person, it will be clear that merely holding the evangelical faith would be a crime in Morocco.

I am contacting Moroccan officials I know to discuss this matter and express my concerns. I would ask Christians to show patience and love towards the Government of Morocco, as well as to pray for Morocco’s leaders to change this policy and to correct and apologize for recent mistakes. Should the Moroccan government not take corrective action soon, then more Christian leaders should speak out directly against this. I will keep you posted. What a shame this would be, given Morocco’s wonderful recent history of relations with Christians.

Introducing: Pressing OnWord

By Justin Edwards

I would like to introduce you to my friend and dear brother in Christ, Joshua Earl, host of Pressing OnWord. This ministry will focus on two primary goals: edification of the saints and spreading the Good News of Jesus Christ. The means by which Josh will serve you will be through short podcast messages posted to Pressing OnWord, and you can expect these messages to be posted here at airō. Josh's wife, Michelle, will also be serving in this ministry through her blog articles, which will seek to edify sisters in Christ. For future reference, you will find the link to Pressing OnWord under The Great Commission resource on the right of airō's page.

The following is a message from Josh that will give you a better understanding of the mission of Pressing OnWord. Please visit the website to learn more. I'm looking forward to joining Josh in getting the message of Jesus Christ out to the world, and with your help, we can all help to edify the Body through this ministry and reach lost souls while there is still time.

Brothers and Sisters,

The two-fold mission of Pressing Onword is to:

1. Exhort and encourage brothers and sisters in Jesus Christ,
Life is filled with challenges and hardships.  A great responsibility in being the “hands and feet” of Christ is to edify, encourage, and care for one another.  Romans 12:15 says to “rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep,” and Galatians 6:2 says to “bear one another’s burdens.”  Paul sent Timothy to the church at Thessalonica to encourage them concerning their faith (1 Thessalonians 3:2), so they would not grow weary.  He knew that it was easy to become tired and worn while fighting the good fight, and that the Believers needed a faithful brother to bring words of refreshment.

I pray also that God will use this site to warn the Body to stay on guard against the flesh and the Enemy.  Satan is likened to a lion who walks about, “seeking whom he may devour,” (1 Peter 5:8) so may the messages you hear and the blog posts you read be an aid in keeping your mind fresh and your heart battle-ready, so you do not fall into the deceitfulness of sin. (Hebrews 3:13)

2. To proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Hebrews 4:12 says “For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.” God’s Word is true, life-giving, and brings hope to the Believer and conviction to the sinner. My desire in preaching is that I would be a faithful steward of what He has given me, that He has entrusted me with the gospel, so I will speak as He leads, not as pleasing men, but God. (1 Thessalonians 2:4)

My desire  is (and has always been) that no matter what is said or preached, that Jesus Christ would be at the center of the message.  There are many places we can go to hear a sermon, but few that will constantly point you to the Messiah.  I will be always in prayer that I do not fail to point you to Him.

May we continue to press on, that we may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has laid hold of us! (Philippians 3:12)

 Blessings for the journey,

Joshua Earl

That Special Place (VLOG)

By Justin Edwards

We all have those certain spots, locations, or places that are very special to us.

Syrian Scuds Could Make Middle East War a Soon Reality

The Syrian Missile Crisis: Threat of War Very Real

By Sean Osborne
Eschatology Today

The threat of a regional war involving Syria, Lebanon, Hezbollah and Israel is more ominous today that it has been at any time since the end of the brief summer war of 2006. The hair-trigger this time involves the reported Syrian delivery of WMD-capable SS-1C "Scud-B" ballistic missiles or, according to anonymous Israeli sources the SS-1E "Scud D," to the Shi'a terrorist organization Hezbollah in Lebanon.

On Tuesday, 13 April 2010, Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak went public in confirming the stunning news that the governments of Syria and Lebanon were in blatant and deliberate violation of United Nations Security Council Resolution 1701 which brought a tenuous end to the Israel-Hezbollah war of July-August 2006. The bombshell news first reported by the Kuwaiti Al-Rai news agency was that Syria was in the process of transferring Scud ballistic missiles to Hezbollah in Lebanon.

Item 8 of UNSCR 1071 called for "no sales or supply of arms and related materiel to Lebanon except as authorized by its Government," and Item 14 called for "the Government of Lebanon to secure its borders and other entry points to prevent the entry in Lebanon without its consent of arms or related materiel," and Item 15(a) which decided "all States shall take the necessary measures to prevent, by their nationals or from their territories ... The sale or supply to any entity or individual in Lebanon of arms and related materiel of all types, including weapons and ammunition, military vehicles and equipment, paramilitary equipment, and spare parts for the aforementioned, whether or not originating in their territories; and 15(b) The provision to any entity or individual in Lebanon of any technical training or assistance related to the provision, manufacture, maintenance or use of the items listed in subparagraph (a) above..."

With the reported transfer of Scud ballistic missiles and the training in Syria of Hezbollah troops on the operation and maintenance of these weapons Syria has been caught red-handed and in clear war-provoking violation of UNSCR 1701. The government of Lebanon shares in culpability due to its obvious complicity in the arming and training of Hezbollah's forces due to its failure to control its national territory and borders. This is the most egregious violation of UNSCR 1701 to date, as evidenced by the wholesale re-arming of Hezbollah with even more advanced weapons (such as Syrian-made M-600 rockets and Russian-made Igla-S MANPADS) by Iran, Syria and possibly North Korea during the past 3 years and 7 months, and constitutes a rock-solid casus belli for Israel to immediately begin pre-emptively striking the missiles, and fixed targets related to the weapons transfer and associated training facilities in both Lebanon and Syria. Syrian President Bashar al-Assad bears the lion's share of personal responsibility for provoking the threat of a regional war which could very rapidly escalate to a large-scale exchange of weapons of mass destruction in the Levant.

While rumors continue to circulate in major world capitals that the Syrian's transferred top-of-the line SS-1E Scud-D (50 meter CEP) missiles to Hezbollah, no proof has yet been made public to confirm the rumor. These missiles would give Hezbollah the capability ot act as a proxy for Iran in launching a preemptive or retaliatory strike against Israel's Dimona nuclear complex should Israel strike Iranian nuclear targets in the near term. Sans photographic or human intelligence proof of the Scud variant transferred to Hezbollah, my assessment is that Syria sent the SS-1C Scud-B variant to Hezbollah. Scud-Bs are 1960s-era missiles (obsolete for a modern army), and they would suit Hezbollah better because they're very much a weapon of terror with a 900 meter CEP (Circular Error Probable). Scud-B can carry a thickened VX gas chemical warhead. As with a tossed grenade - close is good enough.

In either case, once Israel confirms Hezbollah's possession of Scud missiles and their operational status vice a malicious ruse of inoperable missile shells, an imminent and series of strategic strikes by Israel would be virtually assured. Should these strikes occur, as I believe they will, then this will likely become a war of widespread WMD use per Isaiah 17:4-11, followed by a rapid escalation into the fulfillment of Psalm 83, Joshua 13:1-7 and Zechariah 9.

Today we should enjoy the calm before the storm, a storm which lies a hair's breadth distance between the current relative calm and full-scale war.

Run to Him!

By Justin Edwards

Flee the Wrath to come - today is the day of salvation! Give up on yourself, and come to Jesus. Run to Him!

Everything

By Justin Edwards

Jesus wants the best for us, and it's why He gave us the blueprint of His Word. But destruction comes when we let the things of the world enter our lives. In fact, we were destined for destruction straight out of the womb. We were condemned already because of our sin nature. As life goes on, pride can eat us alive and can lead to things like greed, the love of money, materialism, lust and sexual impurity, selfishness, self-obsession, idol worship, partying, and addictions. These non-fulfilling "things" can then lead to depression, lack of satisfaction, anger, unhappiness, emptiness, and dare I say, thoughts of suicide in extreme cases. Simply put, these sins keep us from joy as God intended. But...

...God rewards those who seek after Him . The consequences of a sinful lifestyle overtake us, but Christ has a better plan. We fight and fight trying to break our own chains but we fail every time. We get sucked back in often times in worse shape than before. The Holy Spirit continues to pluck our hearts, prodding us to come, drawing us closer and closer, until we realize we are lost and cannot fix ourselves. We cry out in surrender at the foot of the cross, and it is at that moment the chains are broken! Christ took the burden of our sins and nailed it to the cross. He bore the weight of sin for the entire world so that those who trust in Him will receive eternal life. By His grace, our faith in Christ brings us into Holy Communion with Him, and He imputes His righteousness to us.

With the chains broken, we overcome because He overcame the world already. We become more than conquerors through Him!  We then begin walking according to the Spirit, and no longer to the flesh or worldly desires. Christ becomes our refuge, our peace, our hope, our salvation - and through Him we can do the things He has planned for us before the foundations of the earth. The fruit begins to grow in our lives, fruit that will last, as we put off the things of this world, renewing our minds, and becoming conformed to His likeness.

So what burdens are you bearing? Are you tired of the weight of this world? Are you tired of caring what it thinks? What your friends think? Don't let them keep you down, thus preventing you from receiving the Greatest Gift of all. Call on Jesus to break your chains of bondage and come to rest in Him today!

Israel Preparing Missile Defenses

Israeli Air Force Conducts Anti-Missile Defense Drills

By David Dolan
DDolan.com

The Israeli Air Force recently conducted a series of defense drills to test how well prepared Israel is to deal with the possibility of coordinated missile attacks from several declared enemies. Officials have been warning for some time of the potential that a missile barrage could be launched simultaneously by a number of countries, especially Iran, Syria and Lebanon. Rockets might also be launched at the same time from the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip, which has been receiving Iranian Grad rockets with increasingly longer ranges.

Lieutenant Colonel Avi Cohen said the Air Force “checked which defense system we will use if missile attacks are launched from different countries with different ranges.” He added that some Israeli anti-missile systems “can deal with a number of different threats, and we need to set up the doctrine for how we will use them” if a simultaneous barrage is fired at the Jewish state.

Many international security analysts say Israel’s multi-layered anti-missile defense systems are among the most advanced on earth, with a number of Western countries interested in learning more about the country’s approach to the growing missile threat.

Prepare for War in the Middle East

Mideast Matters May Meltdown in 2010!

By Bill Salus
ProphecyDepot.com

Major Mideast wars are coming according to the Bible prophecies in Psalm 83 and Ezekiel 38-39. It would be prudent for people to prepare now, in 2010, for their soon and sequential arrivals.

It is public knowledge that as of December 2009 Iran, Syria, Hezbollah, and Hamas became allied together by bonafide war pacts against Israel. Iran is a member of Ezekiel 38-39 and Syria, Hezbollah, and Hamas appear to be identified in Psalm 83. These war pacts reportedly commit them to fight alongside each other should any of them come under attack by Israel. Had these war pacts been in place during the 22 day conflict between Israel and Hamas that ended in January 2009, the outcome could have been dramatically different.

Back then the Israeli Defense Forces (I.D.F.) seemingly ambushed Hamas with their retaliatory show of force and caught these others off guard. None of them were able to lift a finger to rescue Hamas from the pounding inflicted by the I.D.F.Iran ’s nuclear program was incomplete, Hezbollah was in the process of restocking their rocket arsenals, and Syrian war scars from 1948, 1967, and 1973 made them reluctant to join alongside Hamas. Thus, these vowed enemies of Israel were reduced to sideline saber-rattling at the time.

However, matters have deteriorated and are quite different today. A brief review of Mideast events occurring since the Israel–Hamas war suggests the Fertile Crescent is presently a ticking end time’s bomb set to explode. In addition to the war pacts described above, here are a few more troublesome interim occurrences:

• Israelis are being fitted for gas masks.
• Israelis are preparing for a multi-front chemical war with Iran, Hezbollah, Syria, and Hamas.
• Israel is constructing new and renovating thousands of old bomb shelters.
• Israel is threatening a pre-emptive strike against Iran’s nuclear sites.
• Iran could have a nuclear bomb within eighteen months.
• Syria is now thought to have the most powerful scud missiles in the world.
• Syria has reportedly shipped scud missiles to Hezbollah.
• Syria has threatened to attack major Israeli cities in the event of war.
• Hezbollah has declared that it can wipe out one-half of Israel’s army.
• Hezbollah has been training for hand to hand combat inside Israeli cities.
• Hezbollah and Syria reportedly have chemical weapons.
• Hezbollah has stockpiled over 50,000 rockets.
• Jerusalem and Tel Aviv are within rocket reach of Israel’s enemies.
• Hamas reportedly has rockets that can reach Israel’s nuclear reactor in Dimona.

These are just a few of the numerous events that point toward war soon in the Middle East. The Israel–Hamas war created a heightened degree of animosity amongst Israel’s Arab and Persian enemies against Israel. As a result of the conflict, Turkey restricted relations with Israel and the Arab League voted unanimously again not to normalize relations with Israel.

Warranting additional concerns, King Abdullah of Jordan recently voiced serious dissatisfaction about his country's fragile peace treaty with Israel. In an interview with the Wall Street Journal, he warned that "Jerusalem could blow up into another war" and declared "Jordan was better off economically before it made peace with Israel in 1994." Jordan and Egypt are the only Arab States presently at peace with Israel making Abdullah's statements extremely disconcerting.

Odds are strong that war is about to break out soon in the Middle East. Diplomatic solutions to resolve the conflict have continually failed. Relations betweenIran and Israel, the Arab League and Israel, and even America and Israel are desperately tense and in a seeming state of disrepair.

At no time in Israel’s history has it ever faced an existential threat of the magnitude it faces presently. Israel’s ancient enemies possessed bows and arrows, but today the Jewish State faces arsenals that can wipe it off the map.

Humanity ought to now heed the war prophecies of the Bible and prepare for war rather than peace in the Middle East! These prophecies are scheduled to occur soon and sequentially, each building upon the other. According to scripture the aftermath of these wars will lead to a one world order, construction of a third Jewish Temple, and the arrival of Antichrist.

Time is of the essence evidenced by events stage setting in the Holy Land. Christians, not knowing if they will experience these prophetic wars or be Raptured prior, should consider living each day on earth as though it were their last. In so doing, they will improve their Christian witness. These are the days when Evangelists and Eschatologists should work together in order to bring more people to Christ.

Will Israel Strike by August?

-Joel Rosenberg

Russia has just announced that it intends to allow the Iranian nuclear reactor facility located in Bushehr (near the Persian Gulf) to go live in August. This is an ominous development. Now Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu has a fateful decision to make. Will he order a preemptive military strike against all of Iran’s nuclear sites before August when the Bushehr site becomes “hot”? His mentor, Menachem Begin, ordered an Israeli air strike against Saddam Hussein’s Osirik nuclear reactor in Iraq before it went hot in 1981. Netanyahu wants the world to act with decisive unity to stop Iran from getting the Bomb. But that is increasingly unlikely. The Obama administration is no longer calling for “crippling sanctions,” and even if they were, it appears to be too late for sanctions to be effective. U.S. officials — including Defense Secretary Robert Gates — says Iran could have the Bomb by next year. German intelligence thinks it could be sooner. We need to pray for peace, but prepare for war.

Biblical Assurance of Salvation Part 4

By Justin Edwards

Paul Washer continues in the book of 1 John in Part 4 of this 5-part series on assurance of salvation. The true test of salvation does not come from praying, participating in a religious organization, or observing rites; the evidence of salvation is the working of God in our lives that causes it to grow in conformity to His character and in conformity to His will. 1 John 2:7-11,

Brethren, I write no new commandment to you, but an old commandment which you have had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word which you heard from the beginning. ⁸ Again, a new commandment I write to you, which thing is true in Him and in you, because the darkness is passing away, and the true light is already shining.

⁹ He who says he is in the light, and hates his brother, is in darkness until now. ¹⁰ He who loves his brother abides in the light, and there is no cause for stumbling in him. ¹¹ But he who hates his brother is in darkness and walks in darkness, and does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes.

Possibly the greatest sign that we are a true believer is that we love the brethren. Are we willing to risk our lives for a brother or sister? Are we willing to lay down our lives? Jesus says in John 15:13

Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends.

Love is not just something - it's everything. It is more than not doing the negative, but what positive actions of love are we demonstrating to people of Christ?  If we are truly converted, we will love the people of God because we are one!  Born again believers are marked by love. If you have not love, then you are in spiritual darkness.  Our great goal is to be like Jesus, to love people in the truth with all of our hearts.

1 John 3:14-15 says,

¹⁴ We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love the brethren. He who does not love his brother^[c] abides in death. ¹⁵ Whoever hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him.

A murderer? One who hates his brother is a cold-blooded murderer. It's a habitual practice of hate. A serial killer, killing over and over and over again. We are are commanded to love our brothers and sisters. It is impossible to have a vertical relationship with God with no horizontal relationships with the Body.  If the extent of our Christianity is going to church and hearing a sermon and worshiping, we're not loving.  We must love the brethren in practical ways. 1 John 3:17-18 tells us

¹⁷ But whoever has this world’s goods, and sees his brother in need, and shuts up his heart from him, how does the love of God abide in him?

 ¹⁸ My little children, let us not love in word or in tongue, but in deed and in truth.

So, how's your love life?


Biblical Assurance of Salvation - Part 4 mp3