Global Peace, Stability, and Unity Through Interfaith Cooperation

By Justin Edwards

As the world scrambles to avoid world war, stifle economic collapse, and strengthen global governance,  it is fascinating to see the call for religious unity to be their best hope to achieving these efforts. The Jordan Times is reporting today that King Abdullah of Jordan is seeking to bring security among the nations through interfaith dialogue. In a time where the world is on the brink of total chaos by threats of war, terrorism, pandemics, crashing economies, and religious intolerance, this push to bridge religions and cultures by Abdullah could not have been more timely. In fact, it's just on time, prophetically speaking.

The Bible tells us that before the second coming of the Lord Jesus Christ, the world will be in turmoil and doing everything in its power to bring peace and unity to the nations through global governance, a global economy, and global religious unity. Of course, these efforts are ultimately to transfer global power to the Antichrist government as he prepares to build an army looking to destroy Christianity and overthrow God Himself. In the end, however, Jesus Christ will return at the brink of Armageddon to destroy evil and set up His earthly kingdom. Until that day, we are fortunate to be living in a time to see these prophetic chess pieces move into place, such as the efforts being made by King Abdullah. The Jordan Times reports:

In his address at the European People’s Party (EPP) summit, delivered in the presence of 20 presidents and prime ministers, EU institution chiefs and opposition leaders, along with HRH Prince Ghazi, His Majesty outlined Jordan’s efforts in interfaith dialogue, stressing the need for joint efforts to spread the values of peace and tolerance (source).

Abdullah stressed, 

We have systematically worked on easing intra- and inter-religious tensions, which pose a serious threat to our collective security (source).

According to the Jordan Times, King Abdullah invoked a message "to spread harmony and love among the world's 1.5 billion Muslims", and referred to a 2007 initiative called "A Common Word".  Abdullah stated:

Through this open letter by 138 Muslim scholars to the leaders of the Christian churches, we sought to promote Muslim-Christian harmony.

Upon further investigation of "A Common Word", I discovered this initiative is embraced by Pope Benedict and the Archbishop of Canterbury. According to the "Official Website of A Common Word's" Abridgment and Summary page:

The basis for this peace and understanding already exists. It is part of the very foundational principles of both faiths: love of the One God, and love of the neighbour. These principles are found over and over again in the sacred texts of Islam and Christianity. The Unity of God, the necessity of love for Him, and the necessity of love of the neighbour is thus the common ground between Islam and Christianity.

On this Christian Responses page of the same website, you will find a smorgasbord of ecumenical leaders and churches endorsing this interfaith cooperation, including the Pope, Archbishop of Canterbury, Bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America, Tony Blair, the president from the Princeton Theological Seminary, and the stated chairman from the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), the latter of whom stated:

In issuing "A Common Word Between Us and You," Muslim religious leaders and scholars from around the world have invited Christians to come together in pursuit of peace and justice, rooted in the principles of love of the One God, and love of our neighbors found in both our faiths.

I welcome this invitation and the careful articulation of the Qur'anic and biblical ideas underlying it. A Common Word offers much that is worth our study and consideration (source).

Other church organizations endorsing the movement include the World Council of Churches, the National Council of Churches, the Baptist World Alliance, Disciples of Christ, Columbia Theological Seminary, the World Alliance of Reformed Churches, the Presbyterian Church in Canada, and dozens more. The stench of liberal ecumenism is overwhelming.

In his address on Thursday, King Abdullah put his foot forward by declaring,

This year, Jordan took the message of religious peace and love to the whole world. We did so by initiating "World Interfaith Harmony Week", which will be held the first week of February each year...[this will be] a voluntary occasion for people to express their own religious teachings about tolerance, respect for others and peace, [hoping it will] help more people come together (source).

The Jordan Times informs that Abdullah's following words were that of the "A Common Word" open letter, which calls for tolerance of "difference, mutual respect and fairness":

Let our differences not cause hatred and strife between us. Let us vie with each other only in righteousness and good works (source).

King Abdullah also stressed how critical it was for the Middle East to achieve peace through a two-state solution between the Palestinians and Israel, as  “nothing less can bring the regional, and indeed the global stability, we need in today’s dangerous era”(source). He continued,

For Palestinians, it is a secure future, in an independent, viable and sovereign Palestinian state on their own national soil...For Israelis, it is the real security that acceptance and normal relations bring, not just with immediate neighbours, but with 57 Arab and Muslim countries, one-third of the UN...For the Middle East, it is the security of a region at peace, able to devote resources to development and progress, and for the global community, it is the security of a global alliance for moderation and justice...If negotiations do not succeed, the two-state solution, the only solution that can work, might not be possible...If that hope is killed, we can anticipate much more vicious warfare. Europe, the US and other countries have already been dragged into regional conflicts. New catastrophic scenarios would only drag the world in deeper (source).

The Jordan Times article goes on to explain Abdullah's calls for economic cooperation in the European-Mediterranean region, and that "an opportunity-rich future is one of the most effective answers to extremist agitation" (source). Stressing the importance of resolving the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, the Jordan Times reported,

The King said that the alternative to seeking progress towards this solution is further tensions and conflicts that would hinder efforts to achieve security and stability in and outside the region and pose threats to the US, European and international strategic interests (source).

There is just so much of prophetic significance pact into this single article. The Jordanian King is making every effort to bring about religious harmony and Middle East peace for the sake of global security and economic stability. The writing is on the wall for these things to be realized, even though any sort of peace and stability will be very short-lived according to Scripture. A day is soon coming where the people of the earth see the four horseman of the apocalypse be called forth by as the Lamb of God opens the seals of the scroll in Revelation 6. These judgments against the earth will soon follow the confirmation of a peace accord between Israel and the Antichrist on behalf of the world. The globe will be further deceived as the harlot of idolatry brings together all religions to worship the Antichrist and his image, for they will have trusted in him for the world's salvation as he brings about temporary peace and prosperity. But those who do not pledge their loyalty to this Antichrist will be subject to his wrath (Revelation 13:15).

Praise God the story does not end there. For those who place their trust in the Lord Jesus Christ and repent from their sins, there is great hope to be expected as the King comes to set up His eternal reign. If you have doubts about your salvation or are living a lifestyle contrary to the call to holiness, or perhaps you know you have yet to surrender your life to Christ, you can do that today. This article clearly reveals that Scripture is coming alive before us, and any moment, literally any moment, the final dominoes will fall.

The world is soon coming under the judgment of Almighty God. For those covered by the blood of Jesus Christ, we need not worry about the future. However, those who continue down the path of destruction have every reason to worry, both in this life and the next. If you would like to learn more about these things or how you can be sure of where you will spend eternity, please leave a comment or contact me privately. That is the very purpose of this blog. Don't play with your eternity any longer, and receive assurance of salvation today.

The footsteps of the Messiah are rapidly approaching, don't wait any longer.

Look Up

By Ron Graham


“And when these things begin to come to pass, then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh.” Luke 21:28.

It is my sincere hope and my fervent prayer that my brethren are all in the same frame of mind and that they are all, metaphorically speaking that is, looking up right now. We are so close to the return of Jesus Christ that many believers have moved into the position of being watchmen on the wall. The Israelites had their watchmen to sound the alarm when danger approached and Christians today have their watchmen who are sounding alarms. Listen to the voices of those who are telling you to get ready for there is no doubt that we are on the very precipice of the Rapture of Christ’s Church.

Letters from my brethren are continually flowing in concerning the Rapture, and folks are now becoming concerned with the lateness of the hour. Obviously many are now seeing the signs which are beginning to make a real impression on us. Jesus spoke of signs as future history as He sat with His disciples. He fully explained the end times scenarios which were to unfold. We can read all about them in Matthew 24, Mark 13, and Luke 21. As we read those chapters the light begins to shine on us. What do those chapters say to those who are watching and waiting? Read them and at the same time read current world events and you’ll come away thinking the Bible was written yesterday. 

The signs Jesus addressed would begin gradually, and increasingly those very same signs would appear to be even more severe, ultimately bringing their frequency and severity to a raging crescendo of catastrophes. And what do we currently see unfolding before our very eyes? The beginning signs Jesus told us to watch for and be mindful of. Remember, Jesus said that when they begin to appear “look up”. 

Right now, and each day from here until the Rapture, the signs Jesus spoke about will become so numerous and intense that it will be impossible to keep up with these events as they rapidly unfold. We can see that we are currently standing just this side of the seven-year tribulation period.

Speaking for myself, I can hardly wait to get up in the morning to see what has transpired overnight with my country and world events. I know the signs are emerging exactly as Jesus foretold. I’m not frightened by those signs, no, not at all. Instead I’m encouraged and even excited with each sign that unfolds. We, that is those who follow Jesus Christ, were given our history lesson in advance for one reason, so we would know how very close His return is and put forth a definitive cry of warning to those who are still lost. 

As we watch world history unfold around us we are to prepare ourselves for the inevitable, “...then look up, and lift up your heads...” Luke 21:28. But more importantly we are to spread the Gospel of Christ as never before. We who are believers in Christ must not allow ourselves to be muted, but clearly and concisely speak the truth to all who are perishing. 

So, what are the signs Jesus spoke about? Let’s take a look at a few of them, sign by sign. First of all we read “Take heed that ye be not deceived: for many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and the time draweth near: go ye not therefore after them.” Luke 21:8. We’ve seen the damage wrought by those who’ve falsely declared that they are the Christ, and through their deceptive ways many have been led astray. Clearly not everyone has heeded Jesus’ words. We aren’t going to stop these deceptions from occurring but we need to be on guard, ever watchful, and ready to confront deceptions.

Secondly, we read “But when ye shall hear of wars and commotions, be not terrified: for these things must first come to pass; but the end is not by and by.” Luke 21:9. Jesus basically tells us that these are non-signs. Not to get all worked up over rumors of wars and even full blown wars when they take place because they are ever constant and somewhat predicable, they’ve always been numerous as well as frequent, so essentially they’re non-signs. 

In three of the Gospels, Matthew, Mark, and Luke, Jesus lays out a scenario that pretty much details the future of humankind. “Then said he unto them, Nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: And great earthquakes shall be in divers places, and famines, and pestilences; and fearful sights and great signs shall there be from heaven. But before all these, they shall lay their hands on you, and persecute you, delivering you up to the synagogues, and into prisons, being brought before kings and rulers for my name's sake.” Luke 21:10-12. Surely we’ve all witnessed, either by reading about them or being there firsthand, great earthquakes in many different (divers) places. They are increasing in intensity and frequency, and apparently, according to many scientists, we haven’t seen anything yet. 

All of the above mentioned signs Jesus prophesied are going to open up for many to behold in the last days, but for the believer in Christ we will only see the beginnings of these signs “And when these things begin to come to pass...” Luke 21:28. “Begin” is the key word here; believers won’t be on earth for the brunt of the action. 

Nation against nation, kingdom against kingdom, this too is currently in the making and can be somewhat unnerving as we read about all the saber rattling. And Israel is constantly being blamed for every little skirmish. One of these days, and very soon I’m afraid, either North Korea or Iran will push the rest of the world into another world war. 

Certainly, we are currently witnessing around the globe and within the boundaries of many nations, turmoil, nation against nation, their own citizenry rebelling and fighting in the streets, many are being slain and many more are being injured, and for what? Because their governments, in many cases, have cut back on the handouts people were accustomed to receiving. It takes money and lots of it to withstand the turmoil besetting the world, and this world’s economy is very much at risk of failing. The US economy is teetering on a knife edge; watch for the turmoil of aggressive demonstrations beginning to occur here in the states in the not so distant future. 

The unrest now surrounding Israel due to the flotilla incident is a worldwide phenomenon; the hatred is obvious in practically every nation. We are seeing the stage being set for the prophetic war of Psalm 83. This unrest will continue and worsen as the days progress. Most of Israel’s enemies are arming themselves to the hilt. They have one purpose in mind, one agenda, and that is the annihilation of Israel. Their only reason for living is to eliminate Zionism from the face of this planet. God says in His word to pray for the peace of Israel and we should be doing so daily. But we also know that God’s hand is upon Israel and He will not allow the annihilation of His chosen people, no matter how many come against her. 

“Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of trembling unto all the people round about, when they shall be in the siege both against Judah and against Jerusalem . And in that day will I make Jerusalem a burdensome stone for all people: all that burden themselves with it shall be cut in pieces, though all the people of the earth be gathered together against it.” Zechariah 12:2, 3. The scriptures are clear, and they point out that every nation will come against Israel and that God will destroy them. Seemingly, since all nations wish to curse Israel and do so without fear of God’s retribution, believers should be keenly aware of just what’s around the corner. Every nation is going to be in that mindset of destroying Israel; clearly those who faithfully follow the Savior of the world should be looking up. 

Earthquakes, pestilences, fearful sights, great signs from heaven will only be as a prelude for those of us who are in Christ to be witness to. But for those folks who remain on earth after the Rapture, they will witness the full force of all those prophetic catastrophes. 

Besides all the news on the national and world fronts which clearly indicate the last days are upon us and that we should be “looking up”, there’s a strange spiritual, supernatural side unraveling before us. Jesus also tells us of a great apostasy (falling away from the faith) in the last days. This phenomenon is quite pervasive. How do I know? By the many letters I receive concerning the inability of many believers to find a Christ-centered, Bible-believing congregation where they can attend worship services. I can tell you all that the apostasy Jesus speaks about has now infiltrated many a Christian Church worldwide.

When these things begin to come to pass? My brethren, they’ve begun. Interestingly, an unthinkable event occurs in the 8th chapter of the book of Revelation which may give us reason to pause and reflect as we read “And the second angel sounded, and as it were a great mountain burning with fire was cast into the sea: and the third part of the sea became blood; And the third part of the creatures which were in the sea, and had life, died; and the third part of the ships were destroyed.” Revelation 8:8-9. I wonder if that mountain could be a mountain of oil seeping from a broken pipe out in the Gulf of Mexico. Could this catastrophe be a prelude to fulfilling Revelation 8? We’re told by the scientists observing the leakage that the oil under the water now resembles huge plumes, kind of like mountains, and the US coast guard is using fire to disperse that oil. Certainly a catastrophic event is unfolding before our eyes. Just my thoughts.

At any rate our days on planet earth are clearly numbered. As such, those of us who are diligently following our Lord Jesus Christ and His commandments should be in the midst of the unsaved sharing the Gospel of Christ with them, praying for the ones we’ve spoken to who are fence setting, and looking up intently as our “redemption draweth” so very close.

God bless you all,

Ron Graham
twotug@embarqmail.com

(HT: Michael Mickey)

The Immorality of the U.S. National Debt

By Dr. David R. Reagan

What would you think of me if I were to purchase a ten million dollar house and charge it to my children, my grandchildren, and my great grandchildren? I have no doubt that you would think I was both insane and immoral. And you would be correct.

No one has any right to pile up debts for other people to pay. To do so is to commit a form of theft.

Our federal government is completely out of control. With the encouragement of the executive branch, the Congress continues to spend with reckless abandon.

The inevitable result is going to be a runaway hyper-inflation that will destroy our nation's economy.

Our debt has become so huge that it is now beyond the comprehension of the mind. A recent article in World magazine illustrated this point in a clever way:

How much is $1 trillion? To get an idea of how massive this amount is, think of it in seconds. Going back in time 1 million seconds would take you back 12 days. One billion seconds would take you back 30 years, and 1 trillion seconds would take you back 32,000 years.

The U.S. national debt exceeded $12 trillion at the end of 2009 and is projected to top $20 trillion in 10 years!

Both individually and as a nation, Americans have become debt junkies, insisting on instant gratification through mindless borrowing. Our basic motivating force is greed.

In contrast the Bible exhorts us to be content with what we have (1 Timothy 6:6-8). The Bible does not prohibit debt, but it warns strongly against it: "...the borrower is the slave of the lender" (Proverbs 22:7 – ESV).

This truth can be seen in our relationship with Israel. They are our natural ally, sharing our values. And yet we are limited in what support we can give them because we are indebted to the Arab world for oil. In like manner, it is doubtful that we would come to the aid of another natural ally, Taiwan, should the island be invaded by China. The Chinese own too much of our debt for us to stand up to them.

Meanwhile, we continue to sell off our assets to foreign nations in an attempt to stay afloat. The days are clearly numbered for both the dollar and our status as a world power.

(HT: Lamb and Lion Ministries)