 Well folks, it’s over. According to a well-known televangelist on TV - he, as a prophet of God, commanded that the COVID19 virus was healed and that its authority in America was over. According to him - that night - at his pronouncement and demand - the COVID19 virus was cast out of the USA. (Kenneth Copeland Ministries - telecast on March 29, 2020)
Why am I writing about such a things? Because it is dangerous and false doctrine like this that will cause great shame and reproach to come upon the church in these difficult days. Unfortunately, there will be those who will hear this, who will “name it and claim it” for themselves, and who will then take no precautions in the future. We’ve already seen what this kind of stuff can do in Arkansas. Now it has a greater likeliness of happening elsewhere among those who hold to such terrible doctrine as this. Am I saying that God cannot heal the COVID19 virus and eradicate it from the entire United States? He can. Do I believe that this false prophet’s declaration did it? Nope. The reality is that false prophecy uttered by a false prophet has not come true - because today there continues to be new cases found, and people will die of it by tomorrow. That means that this individual is a false prophet. No one should listen to him or fear or follow anything he says. He needs to repent and stop teaching and following a false doctrine that says he can make pronouncements using Jesus’ name - and they have to come to pass. The truly sad thing about this false doctrine is that when people don’t experience healing - and when, as it did, the coronavirus continues to spread in our nation - this false prophet will say it is only because those who get sick and die did not have enough faith. So, in the end, the problem is not with the prophet - it is with the terrible person who did not believe enough. Let’s take a look at Scripture for a few moments. God spoke of those He would send as prophets to Israel. But in the process God revealed that some might say, “How will we know?” Look at the passage below: "You may say in your heart, 'How will we know the word which the LORD has not spoken?' 22 "When a prophet speaks in the name of the LORD, if the thing does not come about or come true, that is the thing which the LORD has not spoken. The prophet has spoken it presumptuously; you shall not be afraid of him. Deut. 18:21-22 God’s answer was very simple. When a prophet speaks in the name of the Lord, if what he says does not come true - the Lord has not spoken. It is that simple. Now, if the pronouncement made - or honestly, the demand that was shouted - does not come to pass, then the ones making it are not prophets and the Lord has not spoken through them. The mark for a true prophets of God is 100% accuracy in his or her prophecies. There is no room for fudging on this. There was a false teaching out at a supposed school of prophets that we learn how to prophesy. If we get a few wrong, we will learn from it and prophesy better next time. Sadly, that does not square with God’s Word. Note what is said happened when both Samuel and Agabus prophesied below. Thus Samuel grew and the LORD was with him and let none of his words fail. 20 All Israel from Dan even to Beersheba knew that Samuel was confirmed as a prophet of the LORD. 1 Samuel 3:19-20 As we were staying there for some days, a prophet named Agabus came down from Judea. 11 And coming to us, he took Paul's belt and bound his own feet and hands, and said, "This is what the Holy Spirit says: 'In this way the Jews at Jerusalem will bind the man who owns this belt and deliver him into the hands of the Gentiles.'" Acts 21:10-11 There we see an Old Testament and a New Testament prophet. Both had their prophecies come to pass. Agabus even prophesied of a famine that would come - and it came. Here is the danger in such false doctrine as that which happened on March 29th of this year. People who follow these two men will ignore any wisdom in going out into the world and taking precautions against catching this virus. As a result some will most likely contract it - and sadly some may even die as a result. The shame and disgrace and ill will that will come upon Christians for this will be great. We are already seeing where those in the media are mocking things like this - and who lump all Christian’s together. They say we are dangerous - and should be treated accordingly. Saints, please be wise when it comes to televangelists and supposed prophets who claim to speak for God. If their pronouncements do not come true - they are charlatans who are deceived at least, and dangerous at worst. God does want us to pray in faith - but the faith we have is in His Word. Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of Christ. Our faith is not in what we decide to shout in demands of God. Our faith is in coming humbly before Him - even boldly to the throne of grace to find help in our time of need. It is interesting that we don’t find one instance in the New Testament of any apostle or believer commanding God to do something. Our place is not to put our DEMANDS before Him - shouting things like this: "In the name of Jesus, standing in the office of the profit of God, I execute judgment on you COVID-19...I call you gone...No more...And the United States of America is healed and well again...It's dead. At exactly 12 noon on the 29th day of March. It's over. It's over." These are the demands of a false prophet - not the humble requests of a servant of God. Just remember saints, the next day, and today the 31st COVID19 isn’t gone - it isn’t no more. It is NOT over. If anything, these two false prophets are making declarations contrary to God’s will. Consider these words of Scripture. "If you are not careful to observe all the words of this law which are written in this book, to fear this honored and awesome name, the LORD your God, 59 then the LORD will bring extraordinary plagues on you and your descendants, even severe and lasting plagues, and miserable and chronic sicknesses.” Deut. 28:58-59 "If there is famine in the land, if there is pestilence, if there is blight or mildew, if there is locust or grasshopper, if their enemies besiege them in the land of their cities, whatever plague or whatever sickness there is, 29 whatever prayer or supplication is made by any man or by all Your people Israel, each knowing his own affliction and his own pain, and spreading his hands toward this house, 30 then hear from heaven Your dwelling place, and forgive, and render to each according to all his ways, whose heart You know for You alone know the hearts of the sons of men, 31 that they may fear You, to walk in Your ways as long as they live in the land which You have given to our fathers. 2 Chronicles 6:28-31 By biblical terminology what we are experiencing is a plague. It is honestly nothing like the Beubonic plague or the Great Plague of the Spanish Flue of 1918. Nevertheless it is a plague that has come upon the world - and upon the United States. Honestly, if you want to look at a biblical response to this, it would be that we should do the following:
So, we’ve seen 3,580 since February 29th, when the first man died of Coronavirus in the state of Washington. The numbers we have reflect deaths in 30 days due to COVID19. Since February 29th, a rough estimate of the abortions in the United States has been around 2300 per day (that is a low number because it does not take into account abortions induced by medicines - that number would be more like 3000 per day). That would mean that since COVID19 began taking lives in the United States, we’ve taken the lives of 69,000 babies in the womb. We’ve seen 65,420 more deaths by abortion than by COVID19 since it started. Worldwide, the abortion rate is conservatively said to be 125,000 per day (Other reliable estimates say it is as high as 170,000 per day - but we will go with the Guttmacher Institute’s numbers). That means that while COVID19 has resulted in roughly 41,660 deaths since the first reported death in Wuhan, China on January 9th, abortion in that time (82 days) has resulted in 10,250,000 babies being aborted. So, we’ve seen 10,208,340 more deaths due to abortion than COVID19. Why did I go through all that morbid math above? It is because our nation and our world is deep red in the death of the unborn. 10,208,340 more dead from it than even from the dreaded COVID19. Please stay with me because there is a reason I went through all this. Our false prophets (remember them) made a declaration that COVID19 was over on the evening of March 29th. It was a false prophecy. But do you think for one moment that God is willing to cut us free from this plague, or any other plague, when during the same amount of time we’ve killed 65,000 more babies in the United States, and over 10,000,000 more worldwide? I am neither a prophet or a son of a prophet. But I am a student of the Scriptures. Oh, and by the way, I am writing this to speak to the biblically orthodox, conservative Christians in America, not those who do not know Christ. Brothers and sisters in Christ - we are in God’s crosshairs. It is not time to embrace false doctrines or false teachers who would dare proclaim COVID19 over and done - while the blood of 69,000 babies in the U.S. still remains. We’re responsible for 60 million plus babies aborted since 1973. Do you really think that we are not under God’s discipline for this - if not His judgment? Now is the time for serious, deeply repentant, broken-hearted prayer in our nation. We don’t need false prophets to declare false prophecies to ease our burden in this time. We need a greater burden. We need for prayer to begin to grow at a rate far more exponential than what we are seeing with COVID19. We’ve now had 2 weeks with more time on our hands than usual. Unfortunately, too many have decided that the purpose for this time is to binge-watch old TV shows and movies. I have to honestly say I’ve watched too much on TV - and spent too little time crying out to God for my own heart, as well as the hearts of those in God’s church. If there was ever a time for prayer meetings to be flooded with the concerned (albeit through platforms like Zoom instead of in person) who are praying for a reviving among God’s people and awakening in our nation it is now. If there was ever a time to cry out to God that deaths due to abortion would cease, it is now! My prayer is that we would not listen to false prophets, but that God would raise up true ones to speak to His people. Prophets who would write down our sin with an iron stylus and call us to repent and return to God. Those who prophesy only good things, according to God’s Word - will have plenty who flock to them. They will find in the end that they will be disappointed because of the lies they believed. But may God grant us true prophets who will remind us of the following. "If I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or if I command the locust to devour the land, or if I send pestilence among My people, 14 and My people who are called by My name humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, will forgive their sin and will heal their land. 2 Chronicles 7:13-14 (emphasis mine) Think about it. We quote this verse over and over again and yet, are unwilling to go back 7 words and see that the context for this kind of prayer is NOW. And what is said seven words earlier? God says, ". . . if I send pestilence among My people". That is an astounding thing to read, isn't it? My hope then is now that we have read it - we would respond. Let us pray. (Photo used by permission, CDC via Unsplash - cdc-L0jLHqF7Q94-unsplash.jpg)
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 God makes an interesting statement as He is reproving His people through the prophet Jeremiah. In Jeremiah 6:15 God says that although His people should have been ashamed of their actions and choices, “They did not even know how to blush.” Now for too many in our culture, the whole concept of blushing at certain behaviors is a long-lost memory, but I actually can remember early in my walk with God when He restored to me the ability to blush. Let’s take a brief look at God’s lament – and maybe try ourselves to recover from Him an ability to blush once again.
The reason a nation can no longer blush begins, strangely enough, in the pulpits of the land. It begins when men of God begin to value money and things more than they do truth and intimate fellowship with God through the Holy Spirit. "For from the least of them even to the greatest of them, Everyone is greedy for gain, And from the prophet even to the priest Everyone deals falsely.” What begins as false motives for men of God quickly degenerates into a false message to the people. They no longer can honestly preach about sin, because they are excusing it in their own lives so they can pursue things rather than pursue God. Thus they preach a message that is saying, “Peace, peace,” when the reality is there is no peace as long as sin is not exposed and dealt with as God desires for it to be. "They have healed the brokenness of My people superficially, Saying, 'Peace, peace,' But there is no peace.” There is a brokenness that is among the people – there always is because of the Fall – and because man is not basically good – but basically sinful and selfish. That message, though, won’t bring the crowds. They need something far more positive – far more engaging to those who choose sin. They need to find a way to “superficially” deal with sin. So, they begin to proclaim that man is at peace with God – even when sin is not dealt with as God demands in His holiness. The problem is – there is no peace when sin is not confronted and repentance is not called for by the messengers of God. And what is the result of such theology, or the lack thereof? No more shame and no more blushing. "Were they ashamed because of the abomination they have done? They were not even ashamed at all; They did not even know how to blush. Therefore they shall fall among those who fall; At the time that I punish them, They shall be cast down," says the LORD. God speaks of the abomination that they have done. What was their abomination? It was that they had left the true and living God – and made a god of their own – one who would justify however they wanted to live. Now before we think too harshly of the Israelites – we may want to note that this is something that has been repeated in the New Testament in Romans chapter 1. God’s wrath is revealed against all unrighteousness and ungodliness of men who suppress the truth in unrighteousness. Three times in that first chapter we are reminded that they did not know the true God, but exchanged Him for a god of their own making. What was the hallmark of this new false god? No sin! At least no sin according to what is revealed by God in the Bible. Let me define the word “blush” before we continue. To blush is to experience a reddening of the face due to a feeling of shame or a desire for modesty. The reason God says that they did not even know how to blush is because they had come to a point of utterly rejecting the morals or the Word of God. They were doing abominations – but no longer considered them to be that. As a result – they, and the culture in which they lived now considered what God to be an abomination to be normal fare. No reason to blush. No reason to feel any shame. There is a false teaching that says Christians should not feel shame. But I find that hard to understand. If we are talking about undue shame, I agree. But if we are talking about having sinned against God – shame is normal – can I say, even good. It was a good thing after I received Christ that actions I would normally do before, now caused me to feel shame if I did them. It was a wonderful thing that seeing or hearing things suddenly elicited a response of blushing rather than a shrugging of the shoulders. The passage in Jeremiah shares more of the sad results of no longer being able to blush. There is a corresponding response to the Word of God that comes as well. “Thus says the LORD, "Stand by the ways and see and ask for the ancient paths, Where the good way is, and walk in it; And you will find rest for your souls. But they said, 'We will not walk in it.' 17 "And I set watchmen over you, saying, 'Listen to the sound of the trumpet!' But they said, 'We will not listen.” God says to them, “Ask for the ancient paths, where the good way is, and walk in it; and you will find rest for your souls.” These “ancient paths” and the “good way” are nothing more than what God’s Word says to do – the way He commands for us to walk. But what is the response? “We will not walk in it.” God responds by saying to listen to the watchmen when they sound the trumpet. This is a reference to when a watchman was set upon the wall of the city. The reason he would sound the trumpet would be to warn of imminent danger. But the response again is that they will not listen. They will not respond to God because they have set themselves to disobey God’s Word. They do not regard it as authoritative – or of any real value to them. What God says is wrong – isn’t wrong to them. What God warns as being dangerous – is not even worthy of their attention. Thus what God calls “blush-worthy” and should cause us to blush in shame or a desire for greater modesty – is ignored. Those who have lost the ability to blush have few moral boundaries if any at all. To blush would involve seeing some moral behaviors – some sexual choices as wrong. To call something wrong in this society is the new reddening statement. But now the redness of face is no longer a response of shame or modesty. It has become the standard response to anyone who would dare to put some kind of moral or sexual restraint in place that limits our freedom to do or to be whatever we want. What is the end of such a culture? What happens when any culture loses its ability to blush? God says what happens in the last verses of this section of Jeremiah 6. "Therefore hear, O nations, And know, O congregation, what is among them. "Hear, O earth: behold, I am bringing disaster on this people, The fruit of their plans, Because they have not listened to My words, And as for My law, they have rejected it also.” Disaster is the end of such a society. There is a disaster because they are ignoring a loving God whose restraints are in place because they guard us from destructive behavior. The very fruit of their plans is what they will receive. They refuse to listen to God’s words – the reject His law. All that is left is for that culture to begin self-destructing. Usually it won’t be immediate. Sin is, after all, enjoyable for a season. But in the end – the result is death – spiritually, emotionally, mentally, and yes – even culturally. That was what God was wanting to communicate to His people – not because he wanted to harm them – but because their very choices were harming themselves.  For the past several days I’ve been reading through the book of Jeremiah. The prophet Jeremiah lived in a day much like our own. It was a day when the nation of Israel was turning from the Lord and was beginning to experience more and more problems as God’s discipline rose in its intensity. I hope that you realize that for the past several decades (actually more like the past 50-60 years) we’ve been turning from the Lord as a nation. The result of that has been a steady diet of God’s discipline as He seeks to bring us back to Himself. I could go into detail on what that discipline looks like – but instead want to give a perspective from Jeremiah on what the religious world looks like in a time of decline. That is what chapter 23 of Jeremiah details for us. If you want to stop at this point in the article and read Jeremiah 23 feel free to do so – it might help in giving you a better context for this article.
One of the things that happens in a nation in decline is that the men of God meant to preach and declare God’s Word – stop doing that task. It is not a pleasant task to be those who help act as the conscience of a nation – yet without them, that nation will find itself plunging into ruin as sin abounds. What had happened in Judah was that their prophets and priests had decided to turn to a “more positive message” than that of declaring that the nation had sinned and needed to repent. Look at these passages from Jeremiah 23. "Moreover, among the prophets of Samaria I saw an offensive thing: They prophesied by Baal and led My people Israel astray. Also among the prophets of Jerusalem I have seen a horrible thing: The committing of adultery and walking in falsehood; and they strengthen the hands of evildoers, So that no one has turned back from his wickedness. All of them have become to Me like Sodom, and her inhabitants like Gomorrah.” Jeremiah 23:13-14 (NASB) Thus says the LORD of hosts, "Do not listen to the words of the prophets who are prophesying to you. They are leading you into futility; they speak a vision of their own imagination, not from the mouth of the LORD. They keep saying to those who despise Me, 'The LORD has said, "You will have peace"'; and as for everyone who walks in the stubbornness of his own heart, they say, 'Calamity will not come upon you. But who has stood in the council of the LORD, that he should see and hear His word? Who has given heed to His word and listened? Jeremiah 23:16-18 (NASB) "I did not send these prophets, but they ran. I did not speak to them, but they prophesied. But if they had stood in My council, then they would have announced My words to My people, and would have turned them back from their evil way and from the evil of their deeds. Jeremiah 23:21-22 (NASB) "I have heard what the prophets have said who prophesy falsely in My name, saying, 'I had a dream, I had a dream!’ How long? Is there anything in the hearts of the prophets who prophesy falsehood, even these prophets of the deception of their own heart, who intend to make My people forget My name by their dreams which they relate to one another, just as their fathers forgot My name because of Baal? The prophet who has a dream may relate his dream, but let him who has a My word speak My word in truth. Jeremiah 23:25-28 (NASB) "Behold, I am against the prophets," declares the LORD, "who use their tongues and declare, 'The Lord declares.' Behold, I am against those who have prophesied false dreams," declares the LORD, "and related them and led My people astray by their falsehoods and reckless boasting; yet I did not send them or command them, nor do they furnish this people the slightest benefit," declares the LORD. Jeremiah 23:31-32 (NASB) To summarize – the spiritual leaders of God’s people had first let their own morals and character decline. As a result of their own sin – they were less likely to speak on sin – and therefore strengthened people in the same sins that were rampant in their own lives. The second passage related how, having grieved the Holy Spirit, they no longer had the Spirit leading them. What is a prophet to do when he has no prophecy from God’s Spirit? Why that’s easy – he prophesies from his own spirit instead. That is what they were doing – prophesying on their own – telling people what they wanted to hear – preaching peace where there was no peace – and helping people sin and think God was going to do anything about it. God even asks if any of them had stood in His counsel and received His Word. The answer to that was a resounding – NO! They spoke dreams and visions of their own making – or they stole stuff from other prophets who were popular among the people. God said that these “so-called” prophetic words, dreams, and declarations were not helping people at all. God’s Word would have declared to them their sin – and presented God’s remedy for it. They didn’t want that because that meant speaking of sin and repentance to the people. What is truly dangerous about all this is that in the end – the people love the new prophets! They are not “negative” and don’t speak of things like sin and repentance. They have a God who never judges – except against those who are judgmental! There is a haunting end to all this according to God – who speaks to Jeremiah. "Thus will each of you say to his neighbor and to his brother, 'What has the LORD answered?' or, 'What has the LORD spoken?' For you will no longer remember the oracle of the LORD, because every man's own word will become the oracle, and you have perverted the words of the living God, the LORD of hosts, our God. Jeremiah 23:35-36 (NASB) The end of all this is a complete loss of the Word of God among a nation – or at least a perverting of it. The men of God, who should be waiting on God for His Word, are no longer doing so. Instead they prophesy from their own inspiration and share their own “more positive” message. Before long – everyone can “learn” to prophesy – and they start to do so, which results in just about everyone thinking that they have, “a word from the Lord.” But what has actually happened is that the “Word from the Lord” has actually been lost. This is because as God says here through Jeremiah, “every man’s own word will become the oracle.” What happens is that everyone’s word is considered the Word of the Lord – because to say otherwise is to be judgmental and sectarian. The religious world looks very similar to the time of Judges when “every man did what was right in his own eyes.” The only difference is that in this situation – every prophet’s word becomes God’s message in his own life. God sent Jeremiah into the midst of this mess to declare His Word in the midst of it. It was a word of righteousness calling the people to repentance and return to God and the Word He gave in Scripture. It was a word that sounded harsh to that generation – because they no longer thought God to be a righteous God – who had absolute moral truth – and a godliness to be followed. It was also a word that warned that God WAS about to bring judgment to the world – and severe discipline to His people for their abandonment of Him. When they asked Jeremiah what the Word of the Lord was – he simply answered, “I will abandon you.” That is a difficult word to hear – especially for any generation like ours. But an even more terrifying word was coming to those men who were posing as prophets, priests, and men of God. To the ones who prophesied out of their own spirit – who turned from being God’s prophet – to being one who only seeks profit from being a prophet – God had an even harsher (yet perfectly righteous and just word). "Therefore behold, I will surely forget you and cast you away from My presence, along with the city which I gave you and your fathers. I will put an everlasting reproach on you and an everlasting humiliation which will not be forgotten." Jeremiah 23:39-40 (NASB) In the end – these posers faced not only their own demise – but also the demise of the entire nation whom they had led astray. They would be cast from God’s presence – along with the city (or maybe in our generation we can read “audience”) where they prophesied. They would receive an everlasting reproach and humiliation from God Himself for their wickedness. Saints of God – I don’t particularly enjoy having to write such things. But the fact of the matter is that we are living in Jeremiah’s day again in our nation. As we plunge head first into whole new depths of wickedness, sin, and depravity – the false prophets and dreamers are continuing to tell people that what they lack is health, wealth, and prosperity. You can turn on the religious TV stations and hear it again and again – with an appeal at the end for more of your money to help fund their wicked empires (and to get them a new jet which they say is a necessity for their ministry). Their preaching draws huge crowds and their “self-styled” and “self-inspired” words from God are providing absolutely no profit to the people – even as they do provide plenty of profit for the false prophet. In the end – both they and their hearers will be abandoned and given over to judgment. Oh that there were men of God who would wait in the presence of the Lord to declare the Word of the Lord to His people. Oh that God would raise up true prophets who would declare the sin of this nation to its people – so that there would be a benefit from their words. Oh dear God – where are the Jeremiah’s of God for this current generation!? This morning I am beginning the arduous work of putting together the 2015 Prophecy News Update. This may be a difficult task, yet it is one that I actually enjoy as I look over what is to come in 2015. Just a reminder to all those who will hear this update. I do not intend to update what God has prophesied - as that is not something anyone can do. We need to be reminded of this because there are those who unfortunately think that their own statements can prophesy the future.
There are those who think that the current gift of prophecy can foretell the future in ways that are contrary to what is already given in Scripture. This is a false understanding of Scripture, as well as a dangerous one. Any choice that God may make concerning revealing the future to us through a prophetic utterance - is completely under the authority of what we currently have in the Scriptures. Anyone who contradicts what is given in the Word of God is a false prophet - as is anyone whose previous supposed prophetic statements have not come 100% true. Oh how we need to remember those two important things when dealing with any kind of statement concerning prophecy. What I endeavor to do each year is to take a look at what is happening in our world today, and then see how that fits into the prophetic events that God says will happen in the last days. This is difficult to do because there are differing views on how those events will unfold. That is why anyone who attempts this needs to be careful how specific they are concerning what is going to happen. Ultimately, the one thing we are certain of is that Jesus Christ will return again to judge the world. That is one thing we all can agree on concerning end times. Beyond that one pivotal truth, we need to be gracious with one another. This year's Prophecy/News Update will have the usual information about major events concerning Israel as well as the other players that Scripture indicates will be a part of the end times scenario. But this year's message will have more to do with what is happening in our own nation and how it will affect the church. This is an area that we need to be awakened to because it it going to radically affect the church in the months and years to come. The ongoing moral revolution in our nation when it comes to sexuality and now, even gender confusion, is about to have a radical affect on the church and how it operates. There are also rumblings of racial tensions as well as the battlefronts that multiculturalism will bring to the advance of the gospel in our culture. There is much that is happening news-wise that will truly change how the church will operate in our culture. There is much that will determine if the church will remain above ground in our culture as well. One last thing I want to comment upon before I close this article is the way that I desire for you to receive this year's Prophecy/News Update. Because of the nature of this information, some react in fear to what is said. Please understand that I do not mean to try to scare anyone with what is presented. The health/wealth and prosperity movement has mislead us concerning what the Bible has to say about this world and its future. The influence of the health/wealth and prosperity teaching has led many to believe that truly every day is supposed to be Friday for us. Forget that Jesus said that in this world we would have tribulation. Forget that Paul told us that if we desire to live godly in Christ Jesus we will suffer persecution. Forget that He told us that if He was rejected, we would be rejected as well. Forget all that the Scriptures tell us about a world that grows steadily worse in its wickedness and will one day be destroyed with fire. We have false teachers who promise that only good things are coming in our future. This has given rise to an entire generation of those in the church who reject the biblical teaching of the last days. They reject it because it is not positive enough for them. They reject it because it speaks of suffering - and even martyrdom for those who remain faithful to Christ in the last days. This has led to a very serious rejection of anything negative by those who hold to these heretical teachings. It has also led to a general rejection of the last days biblical narrative. The current teaching by those who teach these heresies is that because of our wonderful influence as Christians, the world will get better and better until Jesus comes back and takes over a world that we've redeemed by our corporate wonderfulness. Those who hold to this kind of teaching will embrace two things as our world moves toward its ultimate conclusion. First, they will have to utterly delude themselves as things grow steadily worse. Second, they will embrace compromise with the world as the world embraces an ever-worsening moral revolution against true biblical sexuality and morality. Unfortunately we are already seeing this as more and more abandon any biblically informed sexuality - and embrace the sexual and gender confusion of our day. Dear saints of God . . . we have the honor and the priviledge of standing and shining like stars in the midst of the morass of darkness and rebellion against God and His Word and ways. As we hold fast the Word of truth and the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ - we will be as lights and beacons of hope to those who watch the world crumbling under the weight of its rebellion against God. This is not a time to fear - a time to be timid - or a time to be frightened by the things the world fears. We are to fear God and hold forth the message of His salvation to a world that more desperately needs it than ever before. May God help us to be that people - that city set on a hill - that light, not under a basket, but on the lampstand giving light to all who see it. May our hearts be given fully to knowing and loving Jesus Christ. And may our testimony be to the grace that saved us - and that can save all those who come to Him in repentance and faith! PJ  An Open Letter To Phil Robertson
Dear Brother, Greetings in the name of Jesus, Mr. Robertson. Let me say as I begin this open letter that I have enjoyed Duck Dynasty. The primary reason I enjoy it is because of the values that are expressed regularly in between the antics of a family that truly deserves the title of “redneck.” What brings me back to your show again and again though, is the depiction of a family that loves the Lord and loves one another. That being said – please allow me to say a few things to you today. First of all, Phil, you were set up from the start. Last time I took a good look at GQ magazine (which was probably back in college) it was not even remotely a magazine friendly to the type of Christian you are. The fact that they questioned you about homosexuality should have set off every alarm in you the Holy Spirit has. I am grateful that you expressed yourself according to what the Bible teaches. It may shock some that homosexuality is listed among the more horrific sexual perversions in the Scriptures – but it does not shock me - because I’ve read it numerous times. By the way, brother, I applaud you for not just speaking about the sin of homoseuxality, but also stating that heterosexual immorality is sinful too! What does shock me just a little is that you thought you’d be well-received by GQ or any other worldly publication for expressing Biblically conservative views on these things. I do not fault you at all for your comments, because I agree with you completely. Both homosexuality and any sex outside of marriage (i.e. heterosexual immorality) is called sin by God in His revelation to us. No one was born this way. These are sins people choose to do. They are also choices that continue to be embraced when confronted by God's Word that they are sin. That being said - it shouldn't shock us that the entertainment types and news media freak out when such things are said in any worldly open forum. You were set up, brother - and all this was probably intended to be the result. Second of all, Phil, I just want to remind you of something Jesus Christ said in Luke 6:26. "Woe to you when all men speak well of you, for their fathers used to treat the false prophets in the same way.” For about 4 years most have spoken well of you and your family. I realize that in the last year or so that has begun to change. That is because they will speak well when they think you represent rednecks who hunt and who act funny. They will no longer speak well of you when you have the audacity to speak openly of your faith in Jesus Christ. Your boldness, which is to be commended, has led you to express that you believe what the Bible says about moral issues. That, dear brother, is what led to the current situation – and the outcry about supposed hate speech toward homosexuality. You did not express hate - just truth. Remember though that the world, "can't handle the truth." Just wanted to remind you that we were not promised smooth sailing in a world that runs after sin and sexual immorality. Third, I’d like to comment on A&E’s decision to remove you from the show. They have every right legally to do this – just as Christians have every right to boycott the network. BUT . . . let me say that I always chuckled a little that your show was on this network anyway. I would say that I am going to boycott A&E – except that if I no longer watch Duck Dynasty. the only time I will come across that network is when I click over it to get to something else on TV. Can we both agree that A&E has never been a bastion for godly or righteous programming. I actually hope that this leads to Duck Dynasty moving to another network where you will have greater freedom to be who you are as Christians. I honestly felt that this was eventually coming because if your family was true to who they truly were – more problems were on the horizon between you and the A&E network. Fourth, I want to encourage you Phil. As I’ve heard you on the show and read of your statements elsewhere I have quickly learned that you are a man who is going to speak the truth regardless of the consequences. Brother, you are not exactly a wall-flower who shrinks from addressing the moral issuesof our day! I am not calling you a prophet – nor do I figure you fancy taking that title either - but – I do feel like the things you say are said in a prophetic manner. Do these things need to be said? Yes they do. But realize brother, that when you do say such things, you will receive a prophet’s welcome. You will not receive the welcome of a TV star and on-air personality. That is reserved for those who know their place as a TV star– and are willing to sacrifice everything to keep it. You, my brother, are not such a man (halleluijah!). So, do not be discouraged that this has happened. Let me remind you of the words of Jesus once again. "The world cannot hate you, but it hates Me because I testify of it, that its deeds are evil. John 7:7 (NASB) When you choose to align yourself with Jesus – and with Biblical truth (especially when that truth speaks to sexual immorality of any kind – heterosexual or homosexual) you should NOT expect the world to embrace you or thank you for your comments. Let me say one last thing to you – because I love you as my brother. In a way, I am glad this is happening. One of the most dangerous things that can happen to a Christian family is what has happened to yours. I am not referring to the current attacks that are being made on you and your beliefs. I think you will see that this will prove to eventually be a blessing. I am however referring to the dangers of being wildly successful in the public eye. Am I against success? No – but I do know that you will never face a greater trial than being successful - and still loving Jesus more than anything else in life. When I look at Jesus Christ and His disciples in that first generation of Acts – I see something much different. Although they were successful at times, they never embraced success - they embraced Jesus and gospel ministry. Every single one of them was persecuted for the gospel and for the truth. Except for John the apostle, every one of them was martyred for their faith – and for preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ. For at least a year I’ve been concerned for you and your family. This is not because I’ve seen any kind of ungodliness of which I am aware. I am a head of a family much like you. That means I am watching my children and grandchildren navigate their way through a wicked and ungodly generation. My greatest joy is that they walk in the truth – and love the Lord Jesus Christ passionately. None of my family is famous – even remotely – and yet it is hard for them to walk in this world and remain faithful to God. I feared for your family only because of the pressures and pitfalls that come with fame and fortune. I did not want to see them fall prey to what worldliness and a desire to please the world could bring. It is my hope that all that is happening now will serve to refocus your family – and even you as well – upon eternal things. May this trial draw you even closer to the Lord in your walk with Him. May this do the same for your family. Honestly, I hope that your entire family walks in unity on this matter, even if it means shutting down the show immediately. There are things far more valuable than “network ratings” and “pleasing advertisers.” There is the joy of knowing that we are walking with God – loving Him – and loving others by preaching and speaking the gospel to them. There is the reality that those who are involved in sexual sin need to be confronted, shown that their lifestyle IS a choice, and that as with all sin – it leads to death. There is also the reality that all sin can only be remedied by turning to Jesus Christ, Whose death on the cross is the ONLY way to pay the price that God demands for it. And there is the reality that even God's church needs to be reminded that standing for such things will cost us in the world's opinion polls. So, as reality shows go – there is a much greater reality men need to grasp. All the kingdoms of men, all governments, and yes – even all dynasties will one day answer to God. May your answer continue to be that you are not ashamed of the truth – not ashamed of the gospel – and not ashamed of being willing to suffer for the sake of His name! God bless brother – and – I’ll be praying for you! Just recently I've finished reading through the prophets in the Old Testament. I do this at least once a year as I read through the Bible. This year, however, their voice is reverberating in my mind and heart as I look at our nation and what God is currently doing. Let me share with you what I saw this year - and how it relates to our nation, our coming election, and the difficulties and disasters which I believe are in our future. Please also let me share why God, in His sovereign providence, is allowing them.
First, I need to comment on the state of the church leading up to this coming election. As the saints of God we are to get our marching orders from heaven. Those directives come to us through the Scriptures. I fear that too many in the conservative wing of the evangelical think that their marching orders are coming from the RNC or the Tea Party. There is an errant notion that by electing Governor Romney as president and a Republican majority in the House and Senate - our problems will be on the way to being solved in this nation. Even though I believe in voting in elections and seeking for political action toward things like abortion, homosexual marriage, racism, and matters of justice and righteousness - I do not see the United States government (even if it is the hands of conservatives) doing a whole lot to advance righteousness in America. They may use such things as election issues - but I've been burned to many times over 32 years of voting by their actual ruling looking little like their stump speeches. Also, I seem to notice in Matthew 28:18-19 that Jesus did not call us to go and make Republicans of all the nations. We are called to God's will in conduct, purpose, principle, and action. That won't fly in any political arena in present day politics. And I am not willing to cede the work of the gospel to those who are offended that the Bible presents truths that show that Muslims, Mormans, Hindus, Buddhists, and anyone else who does not repent and believe on the Lord Jesus Christ are lost and destined for God's judgment. Such things are not up for a vote. As I've read the prophets this year I've been somewhat overwhelmed with the reality that God commands us to repent and return to Him. If we do not repent - if we continue to serve other gods - gods acceptable to our culture and acceptable to our flesh - God will begin bringing difficulties upon His people. The prophets thunder with God's unrelenting call to Himself. They do not apologize that God is sovereign. They do not apologize for His moral standards. They do not apologize that God authoritatively calls men to worship and serve Him only. And they certainly do not want to make adjustments so that the Baal worshippers, the Asherah-adherants, and the worshppers of other false gods can feel more comfortable and be a part of a "big-tent." The prophets say things very offensive to a multi-cultural world - not so much to the culture - but to anything driven by a culture's embrace of false deities. But God is not focused on the "lost" in the prophets. He is focused on His people - those who should know better. He is focused on calling His people to much needed repentance. What happens in a society when its Christians refuse to return and to repent? According to the prophets, God begins to remove first His blessing and later His protection from them and from their nation. If you've ever read the prophets you know that over time this can get very rough. God will allow earthquakes, disasters, and military conquest to overtake His people. Israel and Judah experienced horrific consequences for their love of foreign gods and the lifestyles that came with them. Baal and Asherah embraced a lifestyle of sexual immorality. Marriage was denigrated as first men committed heterosexual immoralities - and eventually moved on to homosexuality as well. Those who think the 1960's ushered in free love, know little about how far Israel and Judah fell in their pursuit of these false deities. The worship of Molech led many to sacrifice their babies in a firey death. Those who see such a thing as disgusting should remember the modern day Molech - Planned Parenthood - who promote the sacrifice of babies for the sake of supposed greater sexual freedom. Actually what they are getting is greater sexual bondage in the guise of immorality without consequences. Then there is the immorality that disguises itself as free trade, or socialism, or communism, or any other "ism" that takes precedent over Scriptural principles of business or government. You see, our culture is not all that different from the days of the prophets. We have just named things with a more sophisticated name - hiding the hideousness of what they truly are. We've also got better at lying about the true nature of things while ignoring Scripture - and occasionally insulting God and the way that He needs to improve His own image by becoming far more "hip" and "culturally-sensitive." The truth is, WE are Israel and Judah in the times of the prophets! WE have our modern day worship of Baal, Asherah, and Molech - along with calls for accepting the gods of Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam, and a host of cults embraced even by political candidates of our day (oops, did I say that out loud - nope, just wrote it). But the church is different, some may assert! But my question to you is to take a long look at her and answer the question, "Is it?" Do you see a movement of repentance and return in the church today? Do you see scores of people in broken repentance and prayer meetings where they are crying out for revival? Do you see the church expanding its evangelsitic outreach the point of being persecuted by groups whose numbers are being decimated by the number of people being saved? Do you see complaints by wicked businesses Who sell porn and other ungodly products that the church and her efforts in evangelism is hurting their bottom line? God calls us in 2 Chronicles 7:14 to "humble ourselves, pray, seek His face, and turn from our wicked ways. Read of the revivals that took place in the 1700-1800's. Read of what took place on a far wider scale in our country. Imagine what they would look like in our day - a revival driven by repentance, brokenness, and prayer. A revival with the aisles filled with repentant church members - and others being radically saved from sin. What then am I trying to say through all this? After reading the prophets . . . honestly - I'm concerned - no - I'm scared. We are about to be ushered into MORE discipline as a nation - and that discipline is meant to wake-up God's people to repentance, prayer, and brokenness. I don't want to say this - but sense the need to do so for the sake of the saints who read this. We are about to experience events that will make 9-11 look like a picnic in the park. God tried to wake us up by allowing that disaster to come upon us. We didn't wake up though. Therefore - more is coming. Far worse is coming. Do I know what that will be? No, because I am not a prophet. But I can tell you that things like a devastating earthquake come to mind. Military disasters that involve the destruction of entire armies have happened to God's people. Drought and famine are also options for God. He has soereignly allowed the destruction of entire cities - whch is terrifying in our day of bombs that can do that in a matter of moments. With our current arrogance toward money - a complete financial collapse unlike anything we've ever seen is very possible. All these things and a dozen others are possible - even probable considering our currrent lack of response to God's call to pray and seek His face. I read recently where the Mississippi river is at historic lows. If the drought we are in continues, it is possible to see the Mississippi so low that no boat traffic is allowed. That will cut off over 300 million dollars of commerce a day. That is a monthly total of 9 billion dollars of our economy stifled. The prognosticators said that would throw our natin into depression within 2 months. Kind of sobering isn't it? I can hear the comment, "Why are you writing stuff like this, pastor John?" Do you get some kind of sick thrill scaring people to death? NO! A thousand times NO! That is not my intent. My intent is to help wake up Christians to what is looming in our future. Do you really think God is going to continue to bless our nation as it is currently going? Do you really think that the church is not going to be affected by what happens in our nation? Do you really think that by maintaining a positive confession in the midst of such spiritual squallor that we will be delivered? God is going to continue allowing greater and greater disasters and troubles to come upon us until we repent, drop to our knees, and begin to cry out in desperate prayer for revival in the church and spiritual awakening in our land! This is not going to magically get better - neither is it going to be averted by electing a Morman as president and a group of Tea Party conservatives to the Congress - who have NO INTENT on addressing the moral and spiritual rot of the church and our country. We are currently as blind as Israel and Judah during the times of the prophets. The same situations and the same false prophets of health, wealth, prosperity, and "nothing bad is going to happen to us" exist today. The political leaders (kings in those days) who made a difference made it by leading the nation to repentance and a whole-hearted return to God. Such a leader who would start doing this in our day - would most likely be impeached for such actions. God speaks of the blessing of those who live godly lives. In a contrast He also speaks of the lawless - and never does so in any kind of glowing terms. Therefore we should realize that there is a blessing to a land that abides by its laws - and a potential disaster looming for those who ignore the rule of law. What we are facing more and more is a president who refuses and even flaunts the fact that he is not going to abide by the law of the land. In the last 3 years President Obama has trampled the Constitution again and again. He has a blatant disregard for our founding document - acting as if he is a law unto himself. This does not bode well for our nation - and if he is not confronted soon - for our future freedom.
Whether we are referencing the federal government forcing people to buy health insurance or the most recent appointment of government officials without the consent of the Senate, this president thinks he can do whatever he wants. So far, because we have a Congress without the backbone to oppose him and bring him to court for his offences - he can. Our recourse in these matters is to call the president's bluff and force a Constitutional crisis. That crisis would involve the courts determining if the president has acted outside the laws of our land. What is sad is that even the most casual perusal of the Constitution should lead to the conclusion that our president is out of control. But no one has the guts to call his bluff. They probably fear being called a partisan or even worse a racist - as that is often the way that this administration deals those who oppose it. But I care little what race a man is or what party he is from - either we have a governing document by which we determine law, or our president can make up whatever laws he chooses. Consider that our president began his term in office by appointing a host of so-called czars that were never received the advice and consent of Congress. Consider that they still rule on matters without any congressional oversight. Consider that recently the Congress itself violated the Constitution by making it legal for American citizens to be arrested and held without charges indefinitely. Consider that our government can now use the Armed Forces against its own people. Consider that there is an FCC law working its way through the system that will allow an unelected official to remove any website from the internet he or she wants. The attacks against our free speech are staggering - and too often the one recourse we have, the Supreme Court, will either not hear the cases brought up or will completely ignore our Constitution in its rulings. We are sliding down a slippery slope at a speed that very soon will not be able to be stopped. You might ask why this matters to someone who is writing a "prophecy/news update." It is because I believe we are watching Scripture fulfilled with this situation. My concern is both patriotic as well as spiritual. As a patriot I find it glaringly arrogant that the Constitution, our governing document is being treated like little more than toilet paper by a man who put his hand on a Bible and swore to uphold and defend it against all enemies foreign and domestic. If he fulfilled this oath, he would need to resign the presidency immediately - because he, more than any other elected official is denigrating it horrifically each day he continues this unconstitutional path upon which he is currently governing. I use the word "governing" lightly - because he acts more and more like a dictator than a president every day. My concern spiritually has been that God is using this president as a form of discipline and judgement upon our nation. Jesus said that if the salt has lost its savor - it is good for nothing any longer except to be thrown out and trampled under foot by men. The church has departed from God in the United States. For decades we have been watching the spiritual fervor and evangelistic zeal of God's people and God's shepherds subside. We have watched as the moral underpinnings of the church have come loose. We are now a nation that has the unfortunate responsibility of over 40,000,000 deaths by abortion upon us. The blood of these children, as well as the 4000 plus additional ones put to death each and every day cries out for God's judgment. We seem to no longer address the issue of heterosexual immorality and drunkenness that run rampant in our land. Our college campuses turn into drunken orgies on the weekends - and many are so addicted to alcohol that by the time they finish college they are drinking almost every day to cope. Homosexuality is arguably no longer considered a vice, but is trumpeted as a viable, acceptable alternative lifestyle. All this continues to grow in our land - while the lethargy of the churches is palpable. What do we expect God to do in a situation like ours? Do we expect Him to bless America? President Barak Obama is an instrument in the hand of God to judge our land - and he is doing his job by ignoring our Constitution and doing whatever he wants. My dear brothers and sisters in Christ . . . I do not write these words out of anger and recrimination against our president, but I write them as a warning to us all. I could as easily bring charges against 8 years of the presidency of George W. Bush - because he did little or nothing to stand against the tsunami of immorality that has crashed against our shores with ever-increasing ferocity. We've listened to the lie that this is about the economy - but the truth is that unless we repent and return to the Lord - our economy is the least of our problems. Let me finish by answering my own question, "Dude, where's my Constitution?" Our governing document has gone the way of God's Law in our land. We have decided that we cannot tolerate the 10 commandments any longer in America. Long before that decision was codified, our nation was trampling on it by their moral decay. Yet we would be amiss if we did not lay a certain amount of responsibility at the foot of the church in America. We've lost our moral fortitude. We've lost our boldness to speak. We've tolerated prophetic charlatans in our pulpits who preach, "Peace, Peace!" when there is no peace. One of our most prolific preachers refuses to speak of sin - and focuses mostly on how we can be rich and healthy and have our best life now. In a word - we've lost our savor. We are not salty with the gospel or the truth - and now we are being systematically being thrown out and trampled under the foot of a growing dictatorship. That is how it has always happened historically - and that is how it is happening today. Oh, that we would awake out of our slumber and realize that November 3, 2012 is not the day of our potential deliverance. It will matter little who is elected in November if we do not do much before then to repent, fall to our knees, and cry for God's mercy on our MORAL FAILURE. The trampling of the Law of God is always followed by the historic trampling of the rule of law in a nation. That, dear saints, is usually followed by the systematic destruction of the visibility of the true church . . . and then . . . the complete discarding of any governing document and the rise of a dictator who rules by his own tyranny. [AFTERTHOUGHT . . . May God restore us and make His face to shine upon us! May God grant us broken repentance and return to Him and to the joy of seeking His face and walking in His ways! May our greatest concern in the days ahead be His glory rather than our comfort within a decaying political system. May we act with the same kind of passion in our prayers for revival in the church that we do with the positioning of ourselves to attain political victory this coming Fall.] Several folks have asked me to weigh in on Harold Camping and his prediction that the world should have ended (or at least the rapture should have come) on October 21, 2011. The simple fact that this article is dated October 24th SHOULD BE ALL THE COMMENTARY NEEDED.
In case it is not enough - I'll make a plain statement. Harold Camping is a false prophet who has now wrongly predicted that the world would end in 1994, on May 21st, 2011, and now on October 21st, 2011. Also let me remind you that Scripture says that NO MAN KNOWS THE DAY OR THE HOUR of Christ's coming. That includes Harold Camping or any other prophetic goober who is foolish enough to put a date on that event. Here is what Scripture says. First - it is coming soon. Second - be ready. |
 What is the Prophecy/News Update?At Calvary Chapel of Jonesboro, we believe that history is moving toward fulfilling God's plans and purposes. In an effort to help us be prepared for His appearing - and also to chronicle news items you just won't see in the national media - this page is devoted to sharing those items and their possible significance to 
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