 November 8th is approaching quickly - what to do - what to do!? That is the scenario that most of us face as we watch the time when we will step into a voting booth and express our right and responsibility to be patriots. The problem we also face is how to be both a patriot in the United States and also be a Christian in our conscience. To be perfectly honest with you - I am also in the throes of such a decision. I continue to pray about it - read to become better informed - and maybe - just maybe fret about it a little more than I should (Told you I was going to be honest).
First of all, I need to be candid. I will not under any circumstances vote for the Democrat Party or their standard bearer Hillary Clinton. The Bible teaches us that the life in the womb does have rights. It may not have rights in the eyes of the Democrat party or in the eyes of their presidential candidate - but God’s authority is infinitely higher than theirs - and He says that the precious baby in the womb is His masterpiece. God forbid that I would do anything to strengthen the hands of those who add innocent blood through abortion to the massive amount we’ve already spilt advancing erotic freedom without responsibility. I also cannot vote for this agenda because I am not in agreement with giving the LGBT community a carte blanche to rewrite the first amendment to the Constitution so that religious freedom is stamped out via the revisionist decisions made by the Supreme Court. There are a host of other reasons that would take too long to list here, but suffice it to say that until the agenda in the Democrat party changes - I will be casting no votes for any of their candidates. Now to the much harder part of the coming election. Can I vote for a man like Donald Trump - who if he said and acted toward my wife or daughters in the manner in which he has - I wouldn’t want him to be in charge of anything - other than his own reformation of character? If I can do this - what would I be sacrificing as a believer and as someone who holds to a biblical definition of character? (all the time knowing that I don’t even measure up in some areas myself - thank God for His grace and gift of righteousness through Jesus Christ!) That is where I am having such a difficult time - even today. These are matters that I will have to continue to wrestle with for a few more weeks. Eventually I will go into a booth and vote my conscience - and hopefully support someone who will lead our country, albeit haltingly, in a somewhat better direction that it is currently being led. Each time I consider that - I am no more excited than I was before. If you began reading this hoping I would come up with some magic formula to make this easier - I’m sorry that you will be disappointed. God has begun taking me in another direction - even as I continue in the quandary over how to cast a vote that will in some way honor Him. It has always been a comfort to me to remember God’s sovereignty in this world. That sovereignty can both change the direction of a nation toward righteousness - or allow a nation that turns from Him to descend into ruin. Both are seen clearly in Scripture - especially when it refers to His people. God began putting the question into my heart, “What are we going to be doing on November 9th?” If Trump is elected, and that is a big “if” will all our problems be solved? I am so glad to see so many prayer meetings and special times of prayer being called. It is an encouraging thing to watch God’s people pray. But can I ask if we will be praying after the election? Will we have the same passion to pray - when maybe, and it is a big “maybe” Hillary Clinton may be elected president of the United States? Are our hopes so set on electing one candidate over the other that we are blind to the spiritually desolate condition of the church in the United States of America? Are we so set on protecting our Constitutional rights that we are deaf to God’s call for bus to lay down all our rights for the sake of His gospel and His kingdom? Will we be so depressed that Christians were so divided over - and let’s be honest about this - such a divisive candidate that we don’t see our need to come together over a greater need of loving one another and living to glorify God and advance His gospel - no matter what form or perversion of our government that will exists after this election? Will the upward call of God in Christ Jesus be enough to motivate us to pray as passionately after the election as the political call to win an election over the ungodly agenda of the Democrat party? I hope and pray the answer to such questions is that we will pursue God with greater passion - knowing that no government has ever been able to extinguish the glorious light of the gospel of Jesus Christ. The early church and the persecuted church have shown us that regardless of those who reign in the realms of men - God still reigns over the hearts of His people. They had no political standing and yet turned the world upside down. They advanced the gospel through their willingness to lay down the lives for Jesus Christ. They advanced the work of God with no favor in the courts - no favor with the emperor - and often with great persecution from others within their society. Yet God prevailed. The one thing God is graciously allowing me to begin to see is that when it comes to His gospel and His plan and purpose - neither Donald Trump or Hillary Clinton will prevail over it. God is sovereign - and His eternal purpose WILL PREVAIL. I hope you will forgive me for quoting such a long section of Scripture as I close this article - and engage in a little exegesis as well - but here we go. Paul wrote something we need to grasp - prior to a call for prayer. We might need to see it again - in light of our current circumstances. To me, the very least of all saints, this grace was given, to preach to the Gentiles the unfathomable riches of Christ, 9 and to bring to light what is the administration of the mystery which for ages has been hidden in God who created all things; 10 so that the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known through the church to the rulers and the authorities in the heavenly places. 11 This was in accordance with the eternal purpose which He carried out in Christ Jesus our Lord, 12 in whom we have boldness and confident access through faith in Him. Paul makes it clear that our purpose is to “preach the unfathomable riches of Christ” which is the riches made available to us in His gospel. This glorious message has been being presented to our world since it began. It truly began to mean something to us at the Fall - when our sin meant separation from God - and the prospect of eternal punishment for such a foolish rebellion. This message is called the “manifold wisdom of God” which is supposed to be being made known to all “through the church.” This plan and purpose - that the gospel be proclaimed through the church is in accordance with God’s eternal purpose. LET ME PUT THIS IN ALL CAPS - NOT BECAUSE I’M MAD - BUT BECAUSE IT IS IMPORTANT. GOD’S ETERNAL PURPOSE IS THAT THE CHURCH LIVE AND PREACH THE GOSPEL TO THE WORLD. According to Paul it is through the relationship we have with Christ Jesus our Lord - that we have boldness and a confident access to God - so that we might carry out this purpose! 13 Therefore I ask you not to lose heart at my tribulations on your behalf, for they are your glory. Paul also states. in one small sentence, the reality of his life as he lives to accomplish God’s eternal purpose of preaching the gospel to the world. He is facing tribulations - troubles - trials - hardships - beatings - all because he chooses to embrace God’s eternal purpose. He tells them, “not to lose heart” at the tribulations he is facing. Instead he says that those tribulation are for your glory! What?! Yes - it is our glory to see that living for and preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ will involve tribulations. In fact Jesus Himself told us that we would be treated just like He was if we embraced true discipleship. So where does this lead us? Paul had to preach the gospel in a hostile environment - without political support - facing persecution and difficulty. Yet he spoke of boldness and confidence in the midst of it. HOW!? 14 For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, 15 from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name, 16 that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with power through His Spirit in the inner man, 17 so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; and that you, being rooted and grounded in love, 18 may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, 19 and to know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled up to all the fullness of God. 20 Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, 21 to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen. - Ephesians 3:8-21 Paul knew the true battle was not for a political win over society - but over the manifestation of Christ dwelling in the hearts of His people. He knew the true battle was that we all would be rooted and grounded in love for God and one another. He knew the true battle would be to know the breadth, length, height, and depth of the love for Christ. This is a love for the Father. This is a love for one another. This is a love for the lost. It is even a love for those who hate us, persecute us, and speak evil falsely of us on account of our embrace of Jesus as Lord. And this battle was so that we might be filled up to all the fullness of God Himself - as His Holy Spirit works in and through us to preach the gospel, speaking the truth in love. Paul also promised that this battle was going to be won on our knees as we trusted in the one who as able to do far more abundantly than all we ask or imagine - according to the power with which God will work in us and through us. This battle was to see God glorified in the church and in Christ Jesus forever and ever! Dearest precious saints of God - on November 9th our calling will be the same as it was prior to the election. It will be to love the Lord our God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength. It will be to love one another as Christ has loved us. It will be to take the gospel of Jesus Christ to the ends of the earth for the glory of God. It will be to see the glory of God shine ever brighter THROUGH His church! So - regardless of whether Trump or Clinton become president - our purpose remains an eternal one. And just as Paul has indicated through the Spirit in Ephesians - HOW MUCH MORE DOES THAT CAUSE CALL US TO PASSIONATE PRAYER! Oh pray, dear saints - pray prior to this election. But please, I beg you, please don’t think all is lost if it does not turn out as you hope and pray. Regardless of who is our president - our Lord still reigns supreme! So, therefore, let us be bold, be loving, be prayerful, and always be abounding with hope that our work in the Lord is NOT in vain! And may that work always be to take the gospel of Jesus Christ everywhere for the glory of God!
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 I recently read an article on facebook that God used greatly in my life to bring about an awakening of sorts. The article is entitled, “Enjoy your transgender bathrooms. We just lost America.” Below is a link to the article. (I do need to warn you that the author uses one curse word in a description of our elected leaders – so please be aware of this in advance)
http://newbostonpost.com/blogs/enjoy-your-transgender-bathrooms-we-just-lost-america/ The author of this article does a good job and is very eloquent at identifying some of the problems in our nation. There is only one thing I noticed as I finished the article. I didn’t really see a whole lot of answers being offered – except to shut off the TV and the myriad of screens in our homes and enjoy the innocence of the writer’s little child. These are good things – but not enough to honestly see any change in the things that the author was seeing in our nation. In all candor, there honestly will be no real unity in our country until we realize just what we are "unifying" under in the area of our worldview. The division comes because we (and I include myself) are selfish, self-centered, and sinful. That will NOT change until the hearts of men and women are confronted by the Gospel for the purpose of being changed by that same Gospel. Then the gospel will facilitate and empower us to turn from self to God. Then God will change our hearts so that we will live for the glory of God and not the glory of our own self-love. HOW DO WE GET THAT TO HAPPEN!? It begins when I repent of MY sin - MY selfishness - MY self-centered living - MY lack of love for God - MY coldness and indifference to the glory and honor of God and to the fact that I am not living FOR HIM! It continues as I am broken - I return to Him with all my heart and all my soul - and then expend all my strength for His purposes once again. It grows as I then get right with MY wife - MY children - MY brothers and sisters in Christ - MY neighbors - and even with MY enemies (whom I should be loving and praying for - more than protesting against and being infuriated with for their practices, politics, and public ungodliness). This is not so that I can just sit and let society degrade and dissolve - but so that I can be in a position to actually DO something about the plight of our society and world. Real change will begin first and foremost with me being right with God, right with my family, and right with my brothers and sisters in the Body of Christ! The church has not been salt to preserve our world - or light to illumine it of its need of God (and by the way – we are the only real hope of either of those two things happening). The emptiness of our spiritual lives is what is killing our nation. It is not the emptiness of the wicked - but the emptiness that I MYSELF have and am promoting. I am promoting it by not being filled with the Holy Spirit. I am promoting it by lacking an impassioned love for my Savior and Lord Jesus Christ. I am promoting it by not loving God with all my heart, soul, mind and strength – and evidencing that love by being obedience to God. I am promoting it by not having my chief desire to be seeing Him honored and glorified by the proclamation of the gospel that will bring people into a right relationship with Him. This gospel is the ONLY thing that can truly alter people’s hearts and turn them to a pursuit of godliness out of a fear and love for God. Here is what I see - and it lets me know that things may not change very soon (but oh how I hope they do by the working and power of God). I personally pastor a small to medium church. Our prayer meetings - especially the one set on Wednesday night that is most convenient for people to attend - are empty for the most part. There is no great concern being poured out by the saints who should be the most concerned about these things. The other prayer times - most of which are in the mornings at 6 a.m. are for the most part empty as well. That speaks volumes to me - and to God as well. We may be concerned enough to post an article on facebook - or even comment or press LIKE when reading that article - but we are, as of yet, not moved enough by our circumstances to seek out a unity in prayer with our brothers and sisters in Christ. We are not moved enough yet to cry out to God for His work of revival in our own hearts and in the church (which I truly believe is the only hope for us in our nation). I am not lifting myself up in this - because I've been delinquent in making the choice to go to bed early enough to make the early morning prayer meetings for about 2 weeks now (and for that I am currently ashamed of the coldness and hardness of my heart evidenced by my lack of commitment to pray together with a few brothers). I truly intend to change that immediately and ask for your prayers that my cold, indifferent heart would be revived and changed so that, as a pastor and supposed spiritual leader, I won’t continue to be part of the problem. The state of the church leads me to make the following prediction, which I believe to be in accord with what we see in Scripture. God will continue to allow things to fall apart further and with greater consequence until we are moved by how bad it gets - to finally turn to Him in personal - and then corporate prayer. He said in Matthew 5:13 that if the salt has lost its savor/flavor - it is good for nothing except to be thrown out and trampled under foot by men. Historically that has meant that the government of the nation in which the church finds itself will become more and more totalitarian and anti-Christian so that persecution will motivate us to turn to Him and seek Him once again. Please forgive me for sounding too adamant about all this. If you will grant me mercy, which I need desperately, I need to be the first one to read what I've written. I need to repent - and lead the way by example once again, and to do so by crying out to God for a personal revival, a revival among the men in our church, and then a revival in the whole church. And maybe, if God is merciful to the extreme, maybe a spiritual awakening in our land. But . . . even if He does not choose to do that in our nation, there should be no lack of revival in my own heart as I return to Him in repentance and a passionate pursuit of knowing, loving, and serving Him with all my heart. I am committed to doing this immediately. For you see – the falling of America is not due to a bathroom issue – a marriage issue – or a “ungodliness among the masses” issue. The fall of America has been due to a spiritually impotent church. The spiritual impotence of the church has been due to cold and hardened hearts among her pastors and leaders. Unless these things are FIRST addressed – there is little hope for our nation. May God have mercy on me - and on the United States of America. 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. Just yesterday we looked at Iran and their most recent terrorist plot. We wondered out loud, “What was Iran thinking,” and looked at some of the ramifications of their actions – even looking into the longer term future at what could happen as a result. Today, we are going to look at this again, yet from the angle of Iran’s worldview. This is important for us to do because unless we grasp the worldview that Iran is working from, we will tend to misjudge not just their previous actions – but we will also be caught off guard again and again as to their future ones. Unfortunately for us in the United States the current leadership, as well as the vast majority of thinkers from both sides of the aisle in Washington, are unwilling to wake up to just what this worldview is. Their unwillingness to do this has led, and will continue to lead us in directions that will leave us totally unprepared for what is coming in the days and months ahead.
What was Iran thinking when they attempted to assassinate the Saudi Arabian ambassador to the United States? To those in Iran’s leadership, they were following a logical course of action spurred on by their worldview. Some might want to restate this as their “religious” worldview but this does not recognize that they do not dichotomize their lives into the religious and the secular like we do in the West. Their worldview is Muslim from every possible vantage point. What is driving them is the logical conclusions of Islam and the teachings of the Koran as interpreted by their religious leaders. This is what drives them religiously, politically, legally, and socially. This is exactly what led them to every action they’ve taken from their political repression of opposition movements to their pursuit of nuclear weapons to their incendiary statements about wiping Israel off the map. Iran’s spiritual leadership as well as their current political leadership believe in the classic version of Islamic eschatology (end-times doctrine). That doctrine centers around two basic things. The first is the return of the 12th Imam who is called the “Mahdi.” He is an apocalyptic figure who, according to their teachings, will come up out of a well in Iran – and will lead the Islamic world to reinstate the Caliphate. The Caliphate is the term used for a one-world government/religious system based on Islam and worldwide Shar’ia law. The Mahdi will be the supreme leader of this movement – Islam will be its religious basis – and Koranic Shar’ia law will be its political vehicle for ruling the world. Our governmental leaders desperately need to grasp this worldview and how it motivates the actions and attitudes of the current Iranian leadership. The Mahdi will come in the midst of worldwide chaos and disruption. Some might state that this is not a whole lot different than the view of the Bible. The Bible does state that in the last days there will be wars and rumors of wars. The major difference in worldview between these two though is that for the Biblical Christian – we are merely watching these things happen. For the “Twelfth-er” Muslim, they sek to do all they can to encourage these disruptions and problems. They want war, political problems, and worldwide chaos. This is what will help bring the Mahdi back – it will aid in his return to set up the worldwide Islamic Caliphate. Here is where we come to what the Iranians were thinking when they did what they did recently. They were thinking that by causing disruption and even war – they will bring back the Mahdi. This is why we need to wake up and realize what we are facing. Too often our press and our political leaders tell us that Islam is a peaceful religion – that we can peacefully coexist with them in love and harmony. But the fact is, that at least with Iran’s brand of Islam (and I would argue all sects eventually), they do not want peaceful coexistence and harmony. They want Islamic domination and worldwide Shar’ia law. They want the world to be ruled by the Mahdi – and for all nations to be under the Islamic Caliphate. What we are doing now in seeking a diplomatic solution is futile. It is a repeat of the negotiations that England and France sought to have with Hitler. There is no negotiating with those who seek worldwide domination and rule. Chamberlain would have been better off to have met with Hitler’s Germany and let them know that if they continued to aggressively seek European domination – they would face stiff opposition and eventually war. Hitler did not listen to appeasement. He saw it as weakness – and sought to exploit it to his advantage. The Iranians see our penchant for “sanctions” and our constant appeal to the U.N. for their wonderful intervention (please read this as sarcasm – actually more like rampant sarcasm) as weakness. They exploit our useless efforts to rein them in – and see it as a gift of more time to plant additional operatives whose goal is the destruction of the “great Satan.” One would think that the reality of that name alone would wake us up. But our response is to retract in Freudian political horror – and blame ourselves for their actions, attitudes, and worldview. What should we do? How should we act in this situation? Politically, we need to elect those to office who are not beholden to the view that Islam is a peaceful, cooperative worldview with our own. Some would blame president Obama for the current state of affairs, but to do so would be to ignore at least 6 years of appeasement under the Bush administration. We have a “State Department” problem. Those who are responsible for our foreign policy think that we can win over the Islamic world by gradually abandoning our evil western ways – oh, and also by also gradually abandoning our support for our faithful ally Israel. They are fools for thinking this. This is not a PR problem – it is a worldview problem. Therefore, IF we are to reverse the trends that currently make us weak and vulnerable to future attacks, we are going to have to accurately define and deal with Islamic designs for the world. That will involve a much more aggressive stance toward Iran – and any other Islamic state that threatens our nation – and our way of life. This is the political solution to our problem. Now, having stated this, I have the unpleasant task of informing you that most likely this will not happen until the next couple of attacks have taken place. The other unfortunate truth is that most likely the next major attack will make the Twin Towers attack look like child’s play. In light of this I remind myself that the kingdom of God is not of this world. Therefore as a patriot, I hate this development – but as a Christian, I realize that my faith is not based on what governmental system rules the country in which I live. There is a far greater responsibility that I have in light of all these things. That responsibility is as a Christian. My responsibility is to live for the glory of God by continuing to do the will of God. That means that regardless of the threat to my country, I am to love my enemies and pray for them. I am not to fear or hate Muslims, but love them and seek for every opportunity to share the gospel of Jesus Christ with them. Therefore as the world continues to move toward the confrontation of the Islamic worldview and the view of the Western world – I am to preach Jesus no matter what the cost. In the end, my concern is not ultimately what the Iranians are thinking as they act politically. My concern is to affect their thinking and worldview by preaching that there is salvation in no other name except Jesus Christ. My ultimate task does not change with the winds of political fortune. The authority from which my task has been commanded will never be overthrown by the schemes and political actions of mankind. God was seated upon His throne before mankind ever existed – and He will continue to be seated on his throne long after the last political schemes of mankind have ended. Remember this and know that whatever Iran was thinking, it will not ultimately affect God’s will and purpose from being accomplished. All things will be summed up in Jesus Christ. Every knee WILL bow and every tongue WILL confess that JESUS IS LORD TO THE GLORY OF GOD THE FATHER! May these two facts give you hope and confidence to live for Jesus in the midst of our chaotic world. Now this will be the plague with which the LORD will strike all the peoples who have gone to war against Jerusalem; their flesh will rot while they stand on their feet, and their eyes will rot in their sockets, and their tongue will rot in their mouth. It will come about in that day that a great panic from the LORD will fall on them; and they will seize one another's hand, and the hand of one will be lifted against the hand of another. Judah also will fight at Jerusalem; and the wealth of all the surrounding nations will be gathered, gold and silver and garments in great abundance. So also like this plague will be the plague on the horse, the mule, the camel, the donkey and all the cattle that will be in those camps. Zechariah 14:12-15
While reading through the Bible this year, I recently came upon this passage in Zechariah fourteen – a passage that brings to mind images that are horrific – but that also calls to mind a modern weapon that can actually cause the very thing that God speaks of in this passage. The weapon of which we speak is called the “neutron bomb.” Neutron bombs act on the part of an atom called the neutron. A neutron is a basic component of every atom. In general, for every atom to be a stable element it must have a proton (a positively charged particle) an electron (a negatively charged particle) and a neutron (a neutrally charged element – with no electrical charge whatsoever). Neutrons are a critical building block of every material thing in our entire universe. When these neutrons are clinging to protons in the nucleus of an atom, they are vital to the existence of matter itself. When they are freed from this relationship with a proton, they cause a very deadly form of radiation – in fact it is lethal. The first atomic bombs involved the splitting apart of “heavy atomic nuclei.” When this happens there is a tremendous release of power – thus the massive mushroom-clouded type of explosion results. This was the type of bomb released on Japan at the close of the second world war. The second generation of nuclear bomb is called the “thermonuclear bomb.” This involves a process where hydrogen isotopes are fused together to form even heavier atoms – which when split release almost unbelievable amounts of energy. That is why we are very careful and loathe to release one of these bombs today. The explosion and effect of a thermonuclear bomb makes the first generation of nuclear bombs look like a mere firecracker. When we consider the massive destruction at Hiroshima and Nagasaki as a firecracker, we tremble at the destruction one of these second generation bombs could cause. The Neutron bomb is a third generation nuclear device. This bomb is similar to the thermonuclear bomb except that a blanket of heavy U-238 isotopes is removed from it. What this does to the bomb is make it release only a massive number of neutrons combined with gamma radiation at its detonation. When this bomb blows the release of the neutrons are lethal to humans and any other animal life around it. If you are within the radius of a neutron bomb you will be killed almost instantly. If you are within the blast radius what will happen to you is eerily similar to what Zechariah describes in chapter 14 of his prophecy. Any kind of flesh is destroyed by a kind of melting process as all the atoms are destroyed within it. Thus Zechariah’s description of something that rots flesh, eyes, and the tongue are often compared to what happens at the detonation of a neutron bomb. The reason the military would choose one of these bombs is because they are considered to be much “cleaner” than conventional nuclear bombs. A neutron bomb blast will only kill living things. This will leave all the weapons and buildings in the area pretty much intact. If a nation were attacked by a huge army – as Israel will be attacked in the last days – the bomb will kill all the troops, but will leave all their armor and weaponry undamaged. The other important difference is that a neutron bomb will leave no radioactive fallout behind after its detonation. Unlike the first two generations of nuclear weapons, a person is safe walking in the area of the bomb blast immediately after the explosion. Even soldiers who are dug in many feet below the earth will not escape the results of a neutron bomb blast. What is fascinating is that currently only the United States, Israel, and possibly China have this kind of weaponry. That is interesting to the student of prophecy because if attacked by a huge army, Israel may choose to release such a weapon. It would effectively destroy their enemies without causing a massive ecological event that would poison the region for decades. The question though for us is whether God is going to use something like this in the Gog-Magog invasion that is coming – or whether the deliverance in this scenario is simply going to be a plague that comes from the hand of God. To be honest with you I do not have a clue which it will be, since God has worked in both ways in the past testimony of Scripture. At times His judgment and wrath fall through an army that is divinely empowered for victory. At other times He acts apart from any human involvement and brings His power to bear directly on those who oppose Him. What I get from all this is that it is foolish to stand against the apple of God’s eye – the nation of Israel. Scripture very clearly indicates that the nation of Israel will be a major focus in the last days. It also indicates that in the end, all nations will turn against Him and against His people. Yet God will use even this to accomplish His ultimate purposes and plans. Those plans have nothing to do with world domination – and everything to do with bringing salvation to the people of His own choosing. They may have rejected their Messiah at His first coming – but eventually God is going to bring Israel to Himself with the events of these last days. As I read Zechariah fourteen and realized that for the first time in history a human weapon has the capability of doing what is said here – I had another sense that we are indeed living in the last days. May such a realization cause me – and saints, cause all of us to look up, for indeed our redemption is drawing near! I’m on vacation presently – but as I’ve taken the time to keep up with the news I’ve had a sense of destiny in the things that I am reading. Let me explain by making reference to the book of Revelation and the things we see happen in that amazing prophecy of last things.
In the book of Revelation we see some astounding things happening in the world prior to the return of Jesus Christ. Among them is a world leader who arises promising peace, but delivers something far different. We see war on a scale possibly unknown to mankind. We see horrific events involving famine and plague that seem almost out of the realm of possibility. We see a world system of finance that no longer involves a currency or currencies of the nations of the world. All these things seem so far fetched that many have written off Revelation as either a book that is to be interpreted non-literally – or as the rantings of a crazed prophet or worse. Yet, as I read the news I cannot help but watch the stage being set for the return of Jesus Christ. We are watching our own nation on the edge of a financial Armageddon – not because of the debt ceiling debacle in Congress, but because we have $14.2 trillion in debt and actually think that more borrowing is not a bad thing for us. Because of our position in the world as the largest consumer nation, if we fall the world is coming with us. There is such an inter-connectedness in economies in our world today that a failure in the United States will bring down the world with it. But the debt crisis is not just in the United States alone. European countries who have embraced the lies of socialism are coming to their own day of reckoning as their ability to handle a debt explosion are coming upon them. Not only is the U.S. economy going to implode, but Europe’s as well – and they may get there first. Consider the implications of all this. Two of the world’s largest economies are going to implode. With that we will see a collapse of the U. S. farming community as well – because without financial backing, the system we’ve maintained for our farming will fall apart as well. That will bring a lack of food the likes of which the world has not seen in modern times. With it will also come the looming specter of famine as one of the largest producers of food in the world suddenly will be struggling with feeding themselves as economics prevents the growing of food. This coming economic Armageddon will also affect the nation that has done more to promote world health than any other on the planet. That work will come to a grinding halt as the companies that have pioneered much of the innovation and advance of medicine also implode. Medicines that have been readily available will soon find shortages popping up all over the world. With this kind of financial meltdown will also come the inevitable showdowns between nations who are now facing dire choices as the shortages grow. Historically this has led to war between nations – because contrary to biblical truth – wars are primarily not engaged in because of political differences. James tells us that the reason for wars is because we want and we cannot have – so we argue and fight on a local level – but on a geo-political scale such arguments become wars. Now add to this the growing problem of an Islamic radicalism that is wanting world domination and you have a recipe for a worldwide conflagration that is coming soon to a planet near you. Some will read this and commence hand-wringing as they try to figure out how to stop it. But the fact is that you will not be able to stop these kind of events when Christ’s return is imminent. When I look at the things that are happening now – I see two things. First I see that when a world sows to the wind, they will reap the whirlwind. Our world has been in rebellion against God since Adam’s fall in the garden. This rebellion seems to be reaching a critical mass in our day. The godlessness in our world only knows one other context historically and biblically – and that is the days prior to Noah and the first destruction of the earth by water. Just as the pre-flood world had to face the consequences for their sin and rebellion, so does ours – and that host of consequences seems to be knocking at our door. The second thing I see is possibly an engineering of all this as God is sovereignly working in our world. Please understand I do not see God as the author of such sin and wickedness. He is not responsible for the sin and rebellion – yet He is still sovereignly working through it toward the ultimate end of His eternal purposes. That eternal purpose has as its goal the summing up of all things in Christ Jesus – the ultimate punishment of the wicked – the ultimate reward of the righteous – and then the penultimate reign of His Son for all eternity. So where does that leave us – you know, the ones who are still on this planet as these things hurtle toward their horrific conclusion? It leaves us where we have always been – redeemed ones of Jesus Christ who have a task before us. That task is to continue making disciples of all the nations – preaching the gospel to the ends of the earth – and preparing our own hearts for the return of our glorious Lord and Savior. The days and years will continue to be piled upon the past – until He comes and our salvation is completed as we are glorified in heaven. But no matter whether this end comes in days or years – or decades – or centuries – our task is the same as our brethren right after the ascension of Christ and the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. Preach Jesus – live Jesus – lead others to Jesus – disciple them for Jesus – and love Jesus until the end . . . whether it is an end as we die on this earth – or one where we greet Him in the clouds in a glorious reunion as He comes again! I awoke this morning to the same news many of you did, that the enemy of our nation, Osama Bin Laden, has been killed by our armed forces. Just like all of you this news made me proud of our armed forces and those in our Intelligence Community who worked so hard to find and dispose of this mass murderer. I am grateful that this man is no longer out there plotting new and more horrific terrorist actions that seek to destroy innocent citizens. Now he is facing the judgment of God—not in the presence of 72 virgins, but in hell where all those who do not believe on the Lord Jesus Christ will face their eternal demise. I do not delight in this end for him – for I wish that he had come to Christ and had been saved as a result of hearing the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Now let me share something that may not paint so rosy a picture. I share this only because I have a bad feeling that all this will blind us to what is really going on—and was the whole reason for Bin Laden’s rise to prominence as an adversary of the United States. Many, in light of the recent events of Osama Bin Laden’s death, have viewed this as a tremendous victory for the United States. I even heard one commentator call this a sign that the United States is not on the decline. If that is how the majority of people in our nation see this, as a sign that we are now on the rise, they really don’t get why Bin Laden ever came on the scene in the first place. To help you understand where I am coming from I will take you to a section of Scripture that will help illumine us to God’s purposes in all this. In First Kings chapter 11 we read of how Solomon’s heart turned from the Lord. Solomon married many foreign women who in turn led his heart from following the Lord. He began worshipping other gods because of the influence of these women (something God warned of in the book of Deuteronomy). As a result of Solomon’s sin—we read the following in verse14. “Then the LORD raised up an adversary to Solomon, Hadad the Edomite; he was of the royal line in Edom.” It is wise for us to see that due to the sin of God’s people—GOD raised up this adversary. It was in fulfillment of God’s promise to discipline His people if they turned away from Him. Before we leave this chapter of Scripture it would behoove us to also look at verses 23-25 as well, “God also raised up another adversary to him, Rezon the son of Eliada, who had fled from his lord Hadadezer king of Zobah. He gathered men to himself and became leader of a marauding band, after David slew them of Zobah; and they went to Damascus and stayed there, and reigned in Damascus. So he was an adversary to Israel all the days of Solomon, along with the evil that Hadad did; and he abhorred Israel and reigned over Aram.” Solomon and Israel had a problem on their hands. It seems that two people, Hadad and Rezon, were causing serious problems for Israel. When I read of Rezon’s actions, I see an eerie parallel to what we are experiencing today. Rezon had a “marauding band” of men who did evil in Israel similar to the evil that Hadad was doing. One might even see them as an ancient counterpart to the terrorists that are causing so much trouble today. Yet the part of this passage that causes me the most discomfort is the statement that God was the One Who raised up these two, might we go as far to say, terrorists. His reasons for doing so were that Solomon and Israel had turned from Him and turned to other Gods. They had turned to Ashtoreth and her sexually immoral worship. They had turned to Baal and the sexual immorality that attended his rituals. They had turned to Molech who required his followers to offer up their infant children as part of their worship. Because of these things God began to discipline Solomon and Israel. They did not listen – but continued in their ways – and the result was Israel’s demise. If, during that time, either Hadad or Rezon had been caught and killed, Israel would have rejoiced. They may have even broken into spontaneous choruses of “God bless Israel” on their streets and in the subways. Yet in spite of their adversary being brought to justice, they would have missed the whole point of God’s purpose in raising up such an adversary in the first place. God did not raise up these men to help Israel become more patriotic – he raised them up to wake up Israel and bring her to repentance. He wanted Israel to notice that they were no longer protected by God. This was because Israel had lost favor with God – DUE TO HER SIN. If these “terrorists” were killed – God would only raise up new ones because His purpose in all this was to bring Israel to repentance. No repentance and return to God – no end to the adversaries that would be raised up to get her attention. Now, let me take what has been said to this point and apply it to our current situation. What I am about to say will upset many. Let me state here that I am a patriot – and that I bleed red, white, and blue. But we need to face facts today – biblical facts. Our greatest enemy is not – nor has it ever been Osama Bin Laden. What is destroying the United States is not a terrorist or any group of terrorists. What is destroying our nation is the sin which we have embraced. We have turned from the Lord and turned to our own set of false gods. We have worshipped materialism, power, money, and sex in America. Since we have called ourselves a “Christian nation” (which I believe is accurate due to how our forefathers founded this country), we need to realize that all Bin Laden was to us was a manifestation of God’s discipline and call for us to repent and return to Him. Yes, Bin Laden is dead – but God can raise up a thousand more just like him to continue our discipline. The truth is that there are already thousands of other Radical Islamic terrorists who want nothing more than to destroy our nation and our way of life. But our problem is not Radical Islam either. It is our sin – it is our immorality – it is the murder of the innocents that we call abortion on demand – it is our embrace of homosexuality – it is the lack of God’s power, prayer, and passion for the gospel in His church. I am going to be bold enough to say that God did not allow Osama Bin Laden’s discovery and subsequent destruction so that we could sing patriotic songs and think that we’re back on the rise as a nation. My guess is that this will become clear in the next 6-12 months. During that time I fear that terrorism will rise and new attacks will happen on American soil. I fear that our financial system will continue to deteriorate if not collapse altogether. I fear that things like famine and plague may strike our nation in ways that we’ve never seen before. If we think that this has happened so that we can rejoice and celebrate without repentance and brokenness, without tearful confession of sin, without calls to prayer for revival in the church and awakening among the lost, we are doomed. This has happened to show brief mercy in the midst of God’s discipline. That discipline will continue if God’s desired purpose of repentance and return are not embraced in the church and in our nation. I will end this article by asking a question. With this event have we seen repentance among God’s people today? With this event have we experienced a greater conviction that our nation is on the wrong track morally and spiritually? With this event have we watched a turn from worshipping the gods of our culture, sexual immorality, homosexuality, and abortion to name a few, and a turn instead to the God of the Bible and the Gospel of Jesus Christ as His message to the whole world? If we are not watching these things happen, I would strongly suggest that what we will watch is God, raising up an even more formidable adversary to continue His discipline until we do repent? May God bless America . . . with a repentant, broken, praying church who has returned to Him with all her heart, soul, mind, and strength. |
 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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