Thorns in the Flesh-

Thorns in the Flesh- Jack Kinsella - Omega Letter Editor - http://www.omegaletter.com/articles/articles.asp?ArticleID=7268

The word 'holy' comes from a Greek word that means 'separated' -- in this context, it means 'separated' from the world of sin. In context, Peter and Paul were therefore two of the twelve holiest men who ever lived.

They were Personally 'separated' from the world by Jesus Christ! But neither went on to live a sinless life. Peter fell back into some legalistic Judaic practices and had to be publicly upbraided by Paul. (see Galatians 2: 11-21)

Paul approached the Lord three times, requesting the Lord remove a "thorn in his flesh," a "messenger of Satan sent to buffet me" -- complaining that this infirmity hindered his ability to minister effectively.

Paul wasn't lying when he said he was chief among sinners back then. And I am not lying when I say that I am chief among sinners today. I don't know every sinner. But I am certain that I am the worst sinner that I do know.
Thus it is with each of us, if we are honest. I may know of a Christian who commits more obvious sins than I do -- but I cannot honestly name somebody who sins MORE than I do.
The only sins that I know others commit are the sins I actually see them commit. I am with ME every time.
I am with me when I get cut off in traffic. I am with me when I think bad thoughts. I am with me when I do things I wouldn't do if I was with my pastor.
I am with me when I am uncaring for strangers, unkind to loved ones, unreasonable, unthankful, unholy, disobedient . . . the list goes on.
To be brutally honest, I don't know ANYBODY who sins more than me. (And if you are honest, I suspect you can probably say the same thing about you.)

Peter was called out and separated by Jesus Christ to serve the Gospel. But Jesus did not drop him like a hot rock after Peter said, "I don't know Him."
Jesus called out Paul on the road to Damascus and separated by Jesus Christ to serve the Gospel. He told Paul to stop worrying about his problems with the messenger of Satan.
"And He said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for My strength is made perfect in weakness. . ." (2nd Corinthians 12:9)

I was called out and separated by Jesus Christ one winter night in 1975 to serve the Gospel. That is what salvation is all about -- being separated for the Great Commission.
But it isn't YOU that does the separating. It is Jesus Christ. If it is you that is the one doing the separating, then how would you go about it?
The answer would seem to be obvious. You avoid places where sin is going on. You stay away from people that might lead you into sin.
You surround yourself with other like-minded Christians and you separate yourself from the world. That's what Paul said to do. Didn't he?
"Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness? And what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel? Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you." (2nd Corinthians 6:14-15)
But clearly, that seems contradictory. When Jesus was criticized for mingling with sinners, He replied, "It isn't the healthy that need a Physician."

So what is Paul talking about? Paul's letter was addressed to the body of believers at Corinth who had fallen into all kinds of pagan practices.
He was speaking to the Corinthian church's practice of mingling idol worship and depraved parties masquerading as the Lord's Supper with some sins "such are are not even named among the Gentiles."

Individual believers are, by virtue of their salvation, already called out and made separate (holy) and righteous (by imputation). It is accomplished;
"Not by works of righteousness that we have done, but by the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Ghost." (Titus 3:5)

The New Covenant with the Church Age is not a corporate agreement between God and a specific people, but rather is individual relationship between Jesus Christ and just ONE person -- you.

That is why God does NOT punish believers. He chastises them. And God does NOT visit the sins of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation. The children have their own accounts to settle. Individually.
"My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked of Him: For whom the Lord loveth He chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom He receiveth." (Hebrews 12:5-6)
This is a good place to stop and examine the difference between chastisement (chastening) and punishment.
Chastisement is correction -- parents correct their children by chastising them until they fall back into line. The chastisement stops when the behavior is corrected.
Punishment is different. It is retribution -- punishment continues whether the offender changes his ways or not. If you are serving a life sentence, changing your ways is nice, but it has no effect on the sentence.

I don't know about you, but while I loved them all equally, all my children were different. Although the rules were the same, it was necessary to set different boundaries with each one of them.
I had a different way of dealing with the kid who tried a puff off a cigarette (and didn't like it) than I did with the kid who had a pack of butts hidden in his bedroom.
Same rules, same offense. But it was a greater threat to one of them than it was the other and so one of them needed a firmer form of correction than the other.

Is God not as good a parent as you or I?
The Lord doesn't have one set of rules for one Christian and a different set of rules for another. The rules are the same for us all.
"Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. On these two commandments hang ALL the law and the prophets." (Matthew 22:27)

Don't let the enemy steal your victory. Nobody is perfect except God and He made you the way you are for His glory and according to His purpose.
His strength is made perfect in weakness, the Lord told Paul. Paul didn't argue with the Lord and demand that God change Paul into the kind of Christian that Paul thought he ought to be.

Paul didn't get mad at God for his afflictions. Instead, Paul responded this way;
"Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me." (2 Corinthians 12:9)
So, you think you are weak and ineffective at your calling and unworthy of your salvation? You think you are too big a sinner to be used of God? Then you're just the one He's looking for.

Has He got a job for you!

Acordo-Stênio Marcius

Igreja doa 100% dos dízimos e ofertas aos pobres

Igreja doa 100% dos dízimos e ofertas aos pobres

Por Wesley Moreira

Passar a sacolinha durante os cultos de domingo, para cumprir o orçamento não era suficientente para os líderes de uma pequena igreja no Mississippi.

Então, dois anos atrás, o pastor e os líderes da Igreja Batista Traceway na cidade de Clinton começaram a orar sobre a melhor forma de servir a sua comunidade. Após dois meses de oração e jejum, eles ouviram de Deus que deveriam dar todos os dízimos e ofertas alçados pela igreja e doar aos pobres.

“Essencialmente, nossa oração era: Deus, o que podemos fazer para que quando as pessoas olhem para nós elas vejam a Ti?” Explicou o Pastor da igreja, John Richardson (foto), em entrevista ao Jornal Christian Post.

“Quanto mais oravamos mais sentiamos Deus nos dizendo: “Se vocês querem me apresentar para a sociedade tornem-se generosos, porque Eu Sou generoso”, explicou Richardson. “A forma como nós interpretamos que poderiamos realizar a vontade de Deus foi em doar todos os nossos dízimos e ofertas aos mais carentes.”

Apenas 50 pessoas, muitas delas de natureza transitória, freqüentam regularmente Igreja Batista Traceway fundada seis anos atrás. No entanto, somente de Abril de 2010 a Abril de 2011, a igreja foi capaz de doar US $ 60.000 para pessoas carentes na comunidade. A igreja começou a doar os dízimos e ofertas no ano de 2009 e desde então as entradas tem aumentado. 

“Tudo o que é ofertado e dizimado em nossa igreja é doado para as mães abusadas, pessoas em situações ruins e basicamente vivendo com as roupas do corpo, pessoas que estão tentando se libertar de vícios, para os que perderam seus empregos, aos que enfrentam despejos por não pagarem suas hipotecas ou precisam de tratamento médico e não podem pagar, casos assim “, explica o Pastor Richardson.

Quando questionado sobre como a Igreja foi capaz de operar sem rendimentos provenientes de dízimos, Richardson disse: “Foi um processo interessante.”

Agimos por fé e obediencia a Deus. Não sabiamos o que fazer mas criamos na palavra de Deus. Quando fizemos a primeira doação de 100% das entradas, e não restou nada nem para o aluguel. Então líderes de outra igreja vieram falar conosco da Traceway. Eles ainda não sabiam o que estava acontecendo conosco, mas vieram nos dizer que sentiram que Deus lhes tinham ordenado algo a fazer. Eles nos disseram que ficariam honrados se a Igreja Batista Traceway Batista se mudasse para umas instalações da igreja deles que não estava sendo usadas. Eles nos ofereceram tudo, livre de taxas, de aluguel e de contas de luz e água.

“Nós também cortamos o que pudemos de nosso orçamento”, disse Richardson. Ao longo de um ano, notavelmente Deus providenciou doações fora da nossa comunidade para cada uma das necessidades orçamentarias da igreja” continuou Richardson, “quando você realmente começar a viver generosamente, especialmente se você sabe que é algo que Deus lhe pediu para fazer, isso abre seus olhos para o quão incrivelmente generoso Deus é para nós”, disse ele.

“Generosidade não é apenas uma coisa agradável de fazer, mas é provavelmente a resposta para o maior obstáculo espiritual que temos hoje para nos tornar discípulos de Jesus. A generosidade ao próximo carente é um antídoto para a ganância” ensina o Pastor, “a generosidade ajuda você a imitar os caminhos de Deus e tornar-se mais como Ele é. É um pedaço enorme do processo de discipulado que a maioria das igrejas perdeu.”

O livro de Richardson é destinado a ajudar igrejas e cristãos a pensar mais sobre ser generosos. “Trata-se de levar os líderes de igrejas a um lugar onde comecem a olhar para o dinheiro e se perguntarem: Estou vivendo como se esse dinheiro pertencesse a Deus ou pertencesse a mim?”

Richardson é formado em Teologia pelo Golden Gate Baptist Theological Seminary e já serviu como pastor por mais de 10 anos.

Em 2005, quando em meio a amigos, questionava eu sobre a viabilidade em utilizar a maioria das entradas da igreja para ajudar os mais carentes fui zombado como ‘pastor comunista’, creiam-me, nada é pior que ser acusado daquilo que você desgosta. Duas coisas se provam com a experiência da Igreja Traceway, que a Igreja pode sim se manter doando grande parte de suas entradas e que eu preciso escolher melhor minhas amizades.

***

Fontes: The Christian Church – Traceway Baptist Church. Do blog Wesmo, de Wesley Moreira, colunista do Púlpito Cristão.

Jesus is our judge

Saturday, July 21, 2012

Jesus is our judge

http://the-end-time.blogspot.com

 

Jesus is our judge. He is the sole authority to Whom we will answer, and our sins are crimes we have committed against Him. (Acts 10:42; 2 Timothy 4:8)

The world hates this notion, and continually rebels against it. They say that we only answer to ourselves, or that Jesus doesn't exist, in the vain hope that their lawlessness will go unpunished. Most people will acknowledge there is some sort of God, distant and perhaps disinterested. But Jesus is the name at which they cringe.That is because He convicts of sin and will judge it.

"There is only one Lawgiver and Judge, the one who is able to save and destroy." (James 4:12).

If you really think about all the language of the bible, you realize just how much of it is "legal" language. This is because sin, also known as lawlessness, is a crime. (1 John 3:4). Crimes must be judged.

Many people say that the bible is a "love letter from God." In a way, it is. Others say that Jesus is our Friend, our Comforter, our Father, and all these are true too. However, when I came to Jesus for salvation, I came through a deep knowing of how pervasive and ugly sin is. By contrast, I understand His holiness. I appeal to Him as my Judge. Though Jesus is all things that are Good, and I enjoy my relationship with Him as Father and Friend, I relate to Him mostly as my Judge.

Far from it being a cold, distant relationship, I enjoy the order of His courts, the regularity and perfection of His dispensing of Justice, past, present and future. I am the kind of person who has always lived for justice, order, and for moral good, and in Jesus I finally found my home in that and it comforts me like a blankie and a teddy bear.

When we tune our ear, the Christian use of legal language is pervasive, all of it from the bible. I bet we say these things without really envisioning them being used actively in His court in a legal context, by God, Jesus, satan, But, let's.

By the way, I deliberately chose verses mostly from the New Testament to show that there is one God, not two. The bible does not show us an 'OT God of wrath' and a 'NT Jesus of love.' They are one and the same. He is wrathful in the first place because He hates sin.

Accuser

"And I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying, “Now the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of his Christ have come, for the accuser of our brothers has been thrown down, who accuses them day and night before our God." (Revelation 12:10)

Advocate

"My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.' " (1 John 2:1)

Confess

"because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved" (Romans 10:9)

Convicted

"I got convicted of that activity when I heard the preacher's sermon."

"It was also about these that Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied, saying, “Behold, the Lord comes with ten thousands of his holy ones, 15to execute judgment on all and to convict all the ungodly of all their deeds of ungodliness that they have committed in such an ungodly way, and of all the harsh things that ungodly sinners have spoken against him.” (Jude 1:14-15).

Court
There is a heavenly court, you know! It is much more perfect to be judged by God than by man.

"But with me it is a very small thing that I should be judged by you or by any human court. In fact, I do not even judge myself." (1 Corinthians 4:3)

Judge

"I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by his appearing and his kingdom:" (2 Timothy 4:1)

Lawlessness

"I am speaking in human terms, because of your natural limitations. For just as you once presented your members as slaves to impurity and to lawlessness leading to more lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness leading to sanctification." (Romans 6:19).

Pardon
He pardons us of our crimes!

"Therefore he had to be made like his brothers in every respect, so that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people" (Hebrews 2:17)

Penalty

"and the men likewise gave up natural relations with women and were consumed with passion for one another, men committing shameless acts with men and receiving in themselves the due penalty for their error." (Romans 1:27)

Testimony

During the Tribulation, the Two Witnesses testify to and of Jesus constantly for three and a half years.

"And when they have finished their testimony, the beast that rises from the bottomless pit will make war on them and conquer them and kill them,' (Revelation 11:7)

Verdict

"The decision is announced by messengers ['Watchers' in ESV], the holy ones declare the verdict, so that the living may know that the Most High is sovereign over the kingdoms of men and gives them to anyone he wishes and sets over them the lowliest of men.'" (Daniel 4:17).

I sure would like to know who these mysterious Watchers are mentioned three times in Daniel 4:13, 17, 23 but nowhere else. They seem to be a class of angel, because they are holy, and angel, because they are messengers. The term is introduced by Nebuchadnezzar who describes how he saw "a watcher, a holy one come down (singular verb) from heaven." They seem to me to be both Bailiff keeping watch over proceedings, and Jury Foreman announcing the verdict. But I don't know for sure. The bible is cloaked on the subject, only alluding to but not explaining these Watchers.

Witness
Paul is ordained as a witness for Jesus.

"for you will be a witness for him to everyone of what you have seen and heard" (Acts 22:15)

The Two Witnesses testify to the power and holiness of God.Rev 11:1-14.
(Gérard Jollain, engraving 1670)

This little missive is intended to remind us of the fact that God is HOLY HOLY HOLY. Everything stems from that. Sin, its effects, its lawlessness, our pardon, His justice...is all about dealing with sin in the face of a Holy God. Oh, yes, Jesus will judge. Are you ready?

All a person needs to do is be penitent, that means, to be sorry for your sins. You must ask the Judge (who is Jesus) to pardon you. His death on the cross satisfied the justice required from God as the blood sacrifice to satisfy the penalty. God's wrath is therefore satisfied in all people who come to Him through Jesus. You will be pardoned and washed clean of your crimes. The Judge will say "You are free to go."

Failure to repent before your own death means that you die having committed many crimes. Those must still be dealt with. Just because you're dead doesn't mean your crimes go away. They are in fact still boomeranging around the Universe, tainting everything. On the day of Judgment, Jesus will stand you before Himself and you will answer for those crimes in His court. The penalty for them is eternity in hell (jail) with no hope of parole. All judgments are final. But all His mercies are eternal!

PRESENTE DE DEUS OU PROPRIEDADE DE DEUS?

PRESENTE DE DEUS OU PROPRIEDADE DE DEUS?
http://www.pulpitocristao.com/

Por Isaltino Gomes Coelho Filho

Um dia desses vi uma pintura num veículo: “Foi Deus quem deu!”. Entendi a mensagem que o proprietário queria transmitir. Ele reconhecia que Deus lhe proporcionara uma bênção material. No caso, aquele carro.

Mais tarde pus-me a meditar no caso. Respeitosamente, não me soa o reconhecimento correto. Na realidade, há mais de mundano que de espiritual na frase. Ela não expressa apenas o reconhecimento de que foi uma bênção, mas traz certo ufanismo.

Afinal, conheço bem o movimento evangélico de hoje e sei da ênfase que ele coloca em bens materiais como sinal da aprovação divina. Quem é suficientemente bom aos olhos de Deus recebe bênçãos materiais. A doutrina da graça tem sido varrida para longe pelo neopentecostalismo. É um tal de “declarar”, “exigir seus direitos”, “reivindicar” que se vê uma total ignorância do que seja graça. Consequentemente, do que seja o evangelho. Quando alguém diz “Foi Deus quem me deu” pode muito bem estar dizendo: “Viu? Fui um bom menino, e Papai do Céu me deu de presente!”. Vejo tanto ufanismo com bens materiais! Muitos evangélicos parecem mais ligados em Mamom, o pseudo-deus das riquezas, que em Jesus Cristo.

O correto não é “Foi Deus quem deu!”. Porque se somos mesmo cristãos, nada é nosso, e tudo é dele. As coisas que nos vêm às nossas mãos, na realidade não são nossas, mas dele. Estão conosco para nosso uso, mas prestaremos contas delas, porque não somos proprietários, mas servos e mordomos (Lc 12.37 e 42) e despenseiros (1Pe 4.10). Alguns acham que são donos e assim dão migalhas dos bens, do tempo, das emoções e dos afetos para Deus. Amam os bens e dizem que Deus lhes deu.

Se você realmente é uma pessoa que entregou a vida (e não apenas o louvor) a Jesus, nada do que você tem é seu, mas é dele. As pessoas se lembram do Salmo 24.1 quando querem reivindicar coisas como “filhas do Rei”. Se tudo é dele, somos dele e nossas coisas são dele.

Sua vida é dele? Então seu carro não foi presente dele, mas é dele. Sua casa é dele. Seus filhos são dele. Sua carreira é dele. Se ainda não entendeu isso, cante o hino 422 do Hinário Para o Culto Cristão: “Tudo o que sou e o que vier a ser eu ofereço a Deus”. Em um ato de culto ofereça a Deus o que é dele por direito. Que seja de fato.

Nada seu é seu. Tudo seu é dele. Reconheça isso e viva isso antes que ele, insatisfeito com sua visão, dê a outro: “Tirai-lhe, pois, o talento e dai-o ao que tem os dez talentos” (Mt 25.28). Lembra-se desta história? Aconteceu quando o senhor chegou e chamou os servos à prestação de contas (Mt 25.19). Demorou, mas veio. Você é apenas servo, e não senhor. Quando ele vier, que não chame você de “servo inútil”.

***
Fonte: Isaltino Gomes Coelho Filho. Compartilhado do Ministério Beréia. Divulgação: Púlpito Cristão.

UPDATED- Aurora Colorado shooting

Friday, July 20, 2012

UPDATED- Aurora Colorado shooting

http://the-end-time.blogspot.com

 

Many tears this morning for our evil, sinful dying world, and the people affected by the tragic and wanton shooting in Aurora Colorado. The only Light of this world is Jesus. 'When the darkness closes in I will still say Blessed be the name of the Lord'.
Though the fig tree should not blossom,
nor fruit be on the vines,
the produce of the olive fail
and the fields yield no food,
the flock be cut off from the fold
and there be no herd in the stalls,
18 yet I will rejoice in the LORD;
I will take joy in the God of my salvation.
19 GOD, the Lord, is my strength;
he makes my feet like the deer’s;
he makes me tread on my high places.(Habakkuk 3:17-19)

---------------Update--------------

OK I've had time to cry, pray, mourn, sing, run to the bible, and pray some more. That's what I do on tragedy days.

Jesus is Good. How so, one might ask? Well, how many angels did He send to tend to the people who love Him? "Are they not all ministering spirits sent out to serve for the sake of those who are to inherit salvation?" (Hebrews 1:14). If we were blessed with spiritual eyes being opened as Elisha's servant was, (2 Kings 6:17) and God allowed him to see the myriads of chariots in the spiritual realms standing at the ready for battle, we might see legions of angels sent from on high at the command of God, to minister to those in pain and anguish in Aurora Colorado this morning.

He is Good because though the evil stain of sin and hate overspread the Mall in Aurora, His victory will out pace all that satan can do or ever thought to do. Satan is a loser and all his schemes and plans will fail. The Holy God of Israel has won! Take heart even in the darkness because He is the Light! He has the victory.

Therefore who can say how many miracles were given in grace to the people at the shooting location? Who can say how many medical miracles He effected through the hands and minds of the paramedics, nurses, and doctors? Who can say who many miracles were effected by His own hand, directly? Because He is good and loves us, we can have assurance that His eyes were on the situation.

"For the eyes of the LORD range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him." (2 Chronicles 16:9a)

What else is Good? We do not know how many people who were threatened with death at any second will re-think their time on earth and finally repent to Jesus unto salvation. He sends Gospel seeds which flower, and do so ever more when there is darkness and sin. This is so He can be glorified ever more brightly.

He is Good because He will accept true repentance from all who come to Him, even the shooter himself. His mercies are so far above us, we cannot conceive of a loving God such as this. Yet He does love us. He is Good because of this, caring for and redeeming a sinful humanity.

It is satan that is bad. But we are not unaware of satan's schemes (2 Corinthians 2:11) and we persevere in love so satan will not steal the joy, even on a dark day such as this. My love for Christ does not depend on positive circumstances. Let our love for Him and our faith that He is working in this situation just as He always has in every situation, ever since He said, "in the beginning..."

3 comments:

Have Our Future Sins Already Been Forgiven?

Have Our Future Sins Already Been Forgiven?
http://gracethrufaith.com/ask-a-bible-teacher

Q.  I recently read an article that claimed the Bible offers no proof that our future sins are forgiven.  It says this is just an assumption that Eternal Security advocates have made.  It says if that was the case we wouldn’t need Jesus to be our advocate (lawyer), and that Romans 3:24-25 proves that only our past sins were forgiven.  I’ve thought of Colossians 2:13-14 “He forgave us all our sins …” as a rebuttal.  Are there others?
 

A.  I read the excerpts you sent me and find them to be full of theological holes.  In the first place there is Scriptural proof that all our sins are forgiven. Along with Colossians 2:13-14 that you mentioned there are also Ephesians 1:13-14 and 2 Cor. 1:21-22 which say our inheritance was assured from the moment we believed, and that God has taken ownership of us and put His spirit in our hearts as a deposit to guarantee this.  How could our inheritance be guaranteed from the moment of belief unless all the sins of our life had been forgiven?

The critical word in these passages is not seal, as the article suggests, it’s guarantee. The Greek word translated guarantee means earnest.  It’s a legal term describing a deposit that obligates the purchaser to complete the transaction. When God set His mark of ownership on us and put His Spirit in our hearts (2 Cor. 1:21-22), He was giving us His word that He would redeem us. There is nothing we or anyone else in Heaven or on Earth can do that will cause Him to break His word (John 6:38-40, John 10:27-30, Romans 8:38-39).

Similarly, Hebrews 10:14 says by His one sacrifice the Lord has made us perfect forever, and 2 Cor. 5:17,21 says if we’re in Christ we’re a new creation having the righteousness of God. (The verbs in these two verses are all in the past perfect tense.  That means they’ve already happened and they are complete.)

The argument that we wouldn’t need an advocate (lawyer) if our violations were already paid for is also flawed.  Common sense tells you that even if you’ve been unjustly hauled into court, you’d better have a lawyer.  Remember, Satan is our accuser and he’s an unjust one at that.

And Romans 3:24-25 is being taken out of context.  The past sins Paul was talking about are the ones people had committed before the cross.  Because of their faith in the promised Redeemer God permitted the sacrificial system to set their sins aside until Jesus came to pay for them in full.

What you won’t find in the New Testament is any indication that having obligated Himself to save you, God will subsequently break His word and revoke His salvation. Once we are saved we are always saved.

(Komatsubara Shun) Kujira - Sungha Jung

A Generation Void of Outrage

Jul 16, 2012

A Generation Void of Outrage http://www.raptureready.com

One of the most frustrating aspects of being an end-time believer is dealing with the reality that society is doomed to become increasingly wicked as be we get closer to the Tribulation hour. Bible prophecy doesn't give us the excuse to just sit back and watch the world burn. When we stand before the Judgment Seat of Christ (Bema), the Lord Jesus will want to know what we did to combat the works of the devil.

Rather than fighting each problem, I see a common link in the way our society is sliding relentlessly toward judgment. The key problem is that we have become a generation that is lacking in outrage. We see evil and yet don't respond with enough anger to make a difference.

The battle against immorality is much like the battle against flood waters. Because many of our structures are built on waterfronts that are below the natural waterline, we need to run pumps 24/7 to keep them from flooding. The city of New Orleans and the New York subway system are two such examples. If there were a breach or if the pumps were to fail, they would be quickly flooded. Unless Christians maintain their steadfastness against sin, the enemy will flood in and corrupt society.

In recent years, the lack of outrage has reached levels I didn't think possible. One example is the case of Bishop Eddie Long. He is the head of an Atlanta mega church who was recently alleged to have sexual relations with underage male members of his parish. Long has denied wrongdoing, but has paid money to silence his accusers.

This past December, Long said he would be taking a leave of absence from his ministry after his wife, Vanessa Long, filed for divorce. Long's leave of absence lasted less than a month. He returned to the pulpit on New Year's Eve. If a minister can brush off allegations of sexual misconduct with young boys, one has to wonder if there is any transgression left that could automatically force a pastor to step down.

Church leaders have no backbone when it comes to standing up for biblical morality. In May, President Obama endorsed same-sex marriage and was proclaimed as the "first gay president" by Newsweek. A few days later, Obama had a meeting with a group of southern black pastors. They collectively told him that they were troubled by his support of gay marriage. I call hogwash on this outrage. I don't know of any time when these black churches have separated themselves from the moral corruption of the Democratic Party. Obama could have given a far better challenge by saying he's a satanist who consults with Beelzebub on major policy decisions.

Even on the secular front, there is a shortage of outrage. World leaders claim to be vexed by the endless massacres taking place in Syria, but no one is offering to take any action. President Bashar al-Assad has been branded as a murderer, but there was no break in the deadlock among world powers over how to bring about an end to the bloodshed. There is even word that the Syrian military is getting chemical weapons ready for us against the revolt. Of course, this more proof that Assad sees the West as a paper tiger.

People who neglect to show their outrage need to realize there is no neutral ground in the battle between good and evil. If we don't show our outrage against the forces of darkness, they will manifest their outrage against you. Chick-fil-A has found this to be true in its support of family values. The fast-food chicken chain gave $2 million to seven anti-gay groups and the left is trying to get the firm removed from nearly a dozen universities. Chick-fil-A recently lost a bid for a vendor spot at Northeastern University because of its moral stance.

Another thing that makes a quick response urgent is the fact that outrage cannot be sustained over a long period of time. Most people only oppose the type of sin that brings them immediate satisfaction. When is the last time you heard a minister preach about the evils of divorce and booze? You don't, because they know the subject has become boring to the public.

I see the lack of outrage as one of the greatest indicators of how close we are to the Tribulation hour. The whole reason for the seven-year judgment period is to convince mankind to repent of his sinful nature. The apathy of our day can only provide evidence to the Lord that it is time to move towards judgment.
 
"And the rest of the men which were not killed by these plagues yet repented not of the works of their hands, that they should not worship devils, and idols of gold, and silver, and brass, and stone, and of wood: which neither can see, nor hear, nor walk: Neither repented they of their murders, nor of their sorceries, nor of their fornication, nor of their thefts" (Revelation 9:20-21).

“Super Event” Warned Near As Weather Chaos Pounds Planet

“Super Event” Warned Near As Weather Chaos Pounds Planet

Posted by truther on July 10, 2012 

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A grim report prepared by the Russian Academy of Sciences (RAS) for President Putin on the catastrophic flooding in the ‎Krasnodar region that has killed at least 144 people warns that our world is fast approaching what is termed as a “Chizhevsky Super Event” due to the rapidly growing number of sunspots that continue to hurl M and X Class Flares towards Earth causing continued and massive global weather chaos.

A “Chizhevsky Super Event” is named after famed Russian scientist Alexander Chizhevsky (1897-1964) who founded “heliobiology” (study of the sun’s effect on biology) and “aero-ionization” (study of effect of ionization of air on biological entities). Chizhevsky was also was noted for his work in “cosmo-biology, biological rhythms and hematology.”

 Chizhevsky is most notable for his use of historical research (historiometry) techniques to link the 11 year solar cycle, Earth’s climate and the mass activity of peoples, research that was confirmed by Western scientists earlier this decade in two important studies titled Amplifying the Pacific Climate System Response to a Small 11-Year Solar Cycle Forcing and Synchronized Northern Hemisphere climate change and solar magnetic cycles during the Maunder Minimum.

Important to note, this report says, are the “four components” of Chizhevsky’s eleven year cycle and their approximate lengths: 1) a three year period of minimum activity characterized by passivity and autocratic rule; 2) a two year period during which masses begin to organize under new leaders and one theme; 3) a three year period of maximum excitability, revolution and war; 4) a three year period of gradual decrease in excitability until the masses are apathetic.

Of these “four components”, this report continues, our world has now entered into the Third Period: A three year period of maximum excitability, revolution and war.

According to Chizhevsky’s research, RAS scientists state in this report, the defining characteristics to be looked for when our world enters into a Third Period “Super Event” timeline is a rapid overturning of existing weather phenomena combined with an equally sudden major changing of the global social-political power structures all occurring during a period of Solar Maximum.

Interesting to note about the current Solar Maximum we are in was the 23 March 2009 scientific article titled Space Storm Alert: 90 Seconds From Catastrophe published by New Scientist that eerily describes somewhat exactly what is now occurring in the United States following their East Coast region being struck by what is being called a “derecho” storm that, in part, says:

“It is midnight on 22 September 2012 and the skies above Manhattan are filled with a flickering curtain of colourful light. Few New Yorkers have seen the aurora this far south but their fascination is short-lived. Within a few seconds, electric bulbs dim and flicker, then become unusually bright for a fleeting moment. Then all the lights in the state go out. Within 90 seconds, the entire eastern half of the US is without power.”

According to NOAA’s Storm Prediction Center web site, a derecho (pronounced “deh-REY-cho”) is a widespread, long-lived wind storm that is associated with a band of rapidly moving showers or thunderstorms.

Chizhevsky’s research, however, states that derecho storms are but a precursor to the much more damaging events associated with a “Super Event”, a finding made even more terrifying with the 2008 news that NASA’s five THEMIS spacecraft had discovered a breach in Earth’s magnetic field ten times larger than anything previously thought to exist. Solar wind can flow in through the opening to “load up” the magnetosphere for powerful geomagnetic storms.

RAS scientists in this report blame this “loading up” of the magnetosphere caused by solar flares for causing not only the catastrophic Russian floods, but also our present global weather chaos, to include: 1.) The unrelenting heat wave hitting the United States that has caused at least 30 deaths, hundreds of forest fires and billions in crop damage. 2.) The torrential floods and rain continuing to batter the United Kingdom. 3.) The catastrophic floods that have hit India leaving nearly 100 dead and millions homeless. 4.) The historic and severe drought that has hit northern and central Mexico. 5.) The historic drought that has ravaged Brazil’s northeast.

Most important to note about a “Chizhevsky Super Event”, this report concludes, is that while no one is able to predict exactly what the “main event” may be, the historic record leaves no doubt whatsoever that it is coming with terrifying suddenness and will most certainly upend the entire world as we know it.

Of particular concern for this particular “Chizhevsky Super Event”, say RAS scientists in this report, would be the sudden outbreak of global war combined with an equally catastrophic global flu outbreak such as that which happened last century during the Solar Maximum decade of 1910-1918 that saw the outbreak of World War I and the Spanish Flu Pandemic that combined killed estimated 500 million people.

Not known to but a few researchers was that in 2001 Canadian researchers warned that influenza epidemics are more likely to sweep the globe when the sun develops spots and sends its excess energy barreling toward Earth such as it is doing now.

“Epidemics are four times as likely during solar maxima,” said Ken Tapping, a solar physicist with the National Research Council, pointing to the striking correlation between flu pandemics and the peaks of the 11-year sunspot cycle, also known as the solar maximum. He and two colleagues have compared flu and solar records dating back to 1729 and found a statistically significant connection. There were flu epidemics, some of them fatal to millions of people, in 1729, 1830, 1918, 1957, 1968 and 1977, years when solar activity and flares bombarded the Earth with extra radiation and cosmic rays.

The effects of solar cycles on influenza epidemics is especially important to note as along with the current global weather chaos the highly deadly Bird Flu virus has once again emerged in Mexico, China and Indonesia.

Of greatest concern, however, to global health authorities is the mysterious respiratory and neurological disease that has killed, so far, at least 64 Cambodia children this past week that is feared to be a Bird Flu mutation more deadly than any ever seen before.

Purim Prophecy

Purim Prophecy

posted byjfletcher

Jerusalem is a city of mystery, to be sure. I learned just how mysterious one afternoon, having lunch with a friend who is a retired diplomat. He’d taken me to a place off the beaten path.

As we ate, he told me a story so amazing, I couldn’t get it out of my mind. It concerned the Jewish holiday of Purim, commemorating the deliverance of the Jewish people from the plot of the evil Haman.

My friend told me that not only is the Purim story told in the book of Esther, but that there is a “hidden” prophecy that looks far into the future…to the time of the Nazis, another barbaric group determined to eliminate the Jews. It seems, so my friend told me, that in Esther 9:6-10), we read of Haman’s 10 sons, who were hanged on the gallows intended for the Jews.

It seems that three letters in that series of names—Taf, Shin, and Zayin—are written smaller than the rest, and that this represents a prophecy, as the letters correspond to the Hebrew year, 5707 (or, 1946).

In October, 1946, 10 Nazi war criminals were hanged at Nuremberg. As the notorious Julius Streicher was led to the gallows, he blurted out, “Purim, 1946!” It was as if he almost involuntarily screamed the fulfillment of the prophecy, that he somehow understood.

A prophecy, or weird coincidence? Not surprisingly, I believe it is clearly the fulfillment of a strange and electrifying prophecy. The Lord’s anger at the enemies of His people burns hot, and He Who knows all things provides humans with a great gift of proof of His existence…prophecy.

Julius Streicher, at Nuremberg

Read more: http://blog.beliefnet.com/isittheendoftheworld/2012/03/purim-prophecy.html#ixzz20cYW4kMe

A MORTE DA IGREJA DE JOHN WESLEY E GEORGE WHITEFIELD‏

A MORTE DA IGREJA DE JOHN WESLEY E GEORGE WHITEFIELD‏

Openness to the Gospel exploding in tense Egypt

Openness to the Gospel exploding in tense Egypt
Mission Network News

Egypt (MNN) ― Egypt's president and military remain at odds after President Morsi defied a court ruling and convened Parliament. Tom Doyle with e3 Partners says the standoff could mean civil war as soon as next week.

Doyle just left Egypt a few days ago. In an e-mail, he reveals, "The mood in the country is extremely tense. Even though we were here in May...everything is different."
For the last year, the interim government of Egypt was run by the Egyptian military. Right around election time, the military dissolved the Muslim Brotherhood-dominated Parliament. Mohammad Morsi won the election, and this last Tuesday 0ordered parliament to reconvene. Doyle says that on Tuesday night Tahrir Square was jammed with thousands of protestors in favor of Morsi.

Doyle says since the military has threatened to remove Morsi from office if he does not dissolve parliament next week, civil war could erupt instead.
In the midst of disaster though, Doyle notes, "Egyptians have never been more open to Jesus."

Doyle says over 1 million Muslims have now become believers and have a deep love for Jesus. Recently an Egyptian official even went on television saying that 3 million Egyptian Muslims have left Islam and are now following Jesus.

These new believers are risking their lives to follow Christ. Doyle says 82% of Egyptians believe that if a person leaves Islam, they should be killed. Muslim converts to Christians are often killed, with no response from the government.

Yet believers are excited about their new-found faith, and record numbers seem to be meeting Christ in dreams and visions. As Egypt's political structure crumbles, its church presence is building brick by brick into a beautiful kingdom. The 10 national leaders that make up e3 Team Egypt have planted about 50 churches in the last six months, says Doyle, and eight of those are in villages which had no church until now.
The Spirit is moving in Egypt. Pray that in uncertain times more and more Egyptians would cling to the hope found in the Lord Jesus Christ.

Israel is on its own in war against terrorism

Jewish World Review July 13, 2012/ 23 Tamuz, 5772
Israel is on its own in war against terrorism
By Diana West
http://www.JewishWorldReview.com | The Washington Free Beacon reported this week on the continuing omission of Israel from a U.S.-sponsored organization called the Global Counterterrorism Forum (GCTF). At a recent forum meeting in Spain, Maria Otero, U.S. undersecretary of state for civilian security, democracy and human rights, delivered a speech titled "Victims of Terrorism," but, in her roll call of victims, she didn't mention Israel. The conference at which she spoke was described as a "high-level conference on the victims of terrorism," but Israel wasn't a participant.

It bears repeating because it is so fantastic: At an international conference devoted to victims of terrorism, the world's leading victim or, better, leading target of terrorism -- Israel -- was nowhere in sight, or mind.

Welcome to the GCTF -- U.S. counterterrorism's new "normal." This 30-member organization got its official start last September as a "major initiative" of the Obama administration when Secretary of State Hillary Clinton announced its launch in New York.
It was quite an occasion; Hillary curled her hair. Seated next to her Turkish co-chairman, ensconced amid ministers from Algeria, Egypt, Indonesia, Jordan, Morocco, Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and 18 other miscellaneous member-states plus the European Union, she then said the magic words: "From London to Lahore, from Madrid to Mumbai, from Kabul to Kampala, it's innocent civilians who have been targeted ..."
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Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, Ashkelon? Poof, gone. And that's the point: This new counterterrorism organization, with its related counterterrorism center coming soon to Abu Dhabi, is Judenfrei. Not coincidentally, it is also heavily Islamic. Eleven member-states -- slightly more than one-third of the organization's membership -- also belong to the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), a bloc of 56 Islamic countries working to impose Islamic law (Shariah) on the world. Six of those 11 members additionally belong to the Arab League. Both groups have defined "terrorism" to exclude Israeli victims (sometimes U.S. soldiers), and "terrorists" to exclude groups dedicated to the destruction of Israel, such as Hamas and Hezbollah. It is no wonder the Arab-Islamic members would now unite in "counterterrorism" without Israel.
What is both shocking and shameful, however, is that the U.S. would, too. It shows that the U.S. has implicitly but clearly accepted the Arab League/OIC definitions of terrorism and terrorists.

As in Libya, where the U.S. supported the jihad-linked side, as in Egypt (same), as in Syria (same), this side-switching sparks scant comment. Oh, sure, there was some media yapping last month when Hillary jetted to Istanbul to pronounce another Israel-free incantation about efforts to "defeat extremist ideology." Two -- count 'em, two -- U.S. senators (independent Joe Lieberman of Connecticut and Republican Mark Kirk of Illinois) wrote her letters. But such complaints are nothing next to the smiles and cooperation coming our way from the Islamic core of the GCTF. And it was so easy! Why didn't we think of this before? All we have to do is see things the way the Islamic world does; pretend things like Israel don't exist (just as maps in Arab countries already indicate); and insist that Islam is a boon to mankind -- not the animating doctrine of global jihad against Israel and the wider West.

I would like to say this is all something President Barack Obama initated, but such appeasement goes back a long way. If we look to the Gulf War in 1990-1991, we see this same denial of Israel's existence take shape in the makeup of President George H.W. Bush's "international coalition" -- sans Israel. The same is true in 2003 with the formation of President George W. Bush's "coalition of the willing" in Iraq (also Afghanistan) -- sans Israel.

These omissions were in no way due to Israel's unwillingness to join the "war on terror." They were due to the same Islamic pressure in force today. Both Bushes bowed to it, accepting a state of dhimmitude (inferiority of non-Muslims under Islam) for the high privilege of spilling American blood and treasure into the ungrateful desert. Israel, both Bushes agreed with their Islamic "allies," just wasn't fit to fight on Islamic sand. Thus, Israel was excluded from these wartime alliances.

Such dhimmitude only intensifies, as the latest developments show. Under the Bushes, after all, while Israel was not permitted to fight alongside coalition forces, at least it was still recognized for withstanding more than 60 years of Islamic terrorist attacks. Today, under the auspices of the Obama administration, Israel no longer rates mention even as a victim. "Big Satan" has thrown "Little Satan" to the sharks. Which says two things about Big Satan. Our institutions now see the world from the Islamic perspective, and, as far as the sharks go, we're next.