Proving The Bible Is The Word Of God

Reblogged from gracethrufaith.com/selah/the-bibles-authority

Table of contents for Proving Their Existence

1. Proving the Existence of God
2. Proving the Existence of Jesus
3. Proving The Bible Is The Word Of God

A Bible Study by Jack Kelley

American blood to help Islamists in Syria?

Pat Buchanan warns against getting involved in another Mideast conflict

Published: 20 hours ago
 

  

“The worst mistake of my presidency,” said Ronald Reagan of his decision to put Marines into the middle of Lebanon’s civil war, where 241 died in a suicide bombing of their barracks. 

And if Barack Obama plunges into Syria’s civil war, it could consume his presidency, even as Iraq consumed the presidency of George W. Bush.

Why would Obama even consider this?
Because he blundered badly. Foolishly, he put his credibility on the line by warning that any Syrian use of chemical weapons would cross a “red line” and be a “game changer” with “enormous consequences.” 

Not only was this ultimatum unwise, Obama had no authority to issue it. If Syria does not threaten or attack us, Obama would need congressional authorization before he could constitutionally engage in acts of war against Syria. When did he ever receive such authorization? 

Moreover, there is no proof Syrian President Bashar Assad ever ordered the use of chemical weapons.

U.S. intelligence agencies maintain that small amounts of the deadly toxin sarin gas were likely used. But if it did happen, we do not know who ordered it.
Syrians officials deny that they ever used chemicals. And before we dismiss Damascus’ denials, recall that an innocent man in Tupelo, Miss., was lately charged with mailing deadly ricin to Sen. Roger Wicker and President Obama. This weekend, we learned he may have been framed. 

It is well within the capacity of Assad’s enemies to use or fake the use of poison gas to suck us into fighting their war.
Even if elements of Assad’s army did use sarin, we ought not plunge in. And, fortunately, that seems to be Obama’s thinking. 

Order Pat Buchanan’s brilliant and prescient books at WND’s Superstore.

Why stay out? Because it is not our war. There is no vital U.S. interest in who rules Syria. Hafez Assad and Bashar have ruled Syria for 40 years. How has that ever threatened us?
Moreover, U.S. intervention would signal to Assad that the end is near, making his use of every weapon in his arsenal, including chemical weapons, more – not less – likely. 

U.S. intervention would also make us de facto allies of Assad’s principal enemies, the Muslim Brotherhood and al-Nusra Front, Syria’s al-Qaida. As the New York Times reported Sunday, “Nowhere in rebel-controlled Syria is there a secular fighting force to speak of.”
Do we really wish to expend American blood and treasure to bring about a victory of Islamists and jihadists in Syria? 

If Assad’s chemical weapons threaten any nation, it is Israel. But Israel knows where they are stored and has an air force superior to our own in the Med. Israeli troops on the Golan are as close to Damascus as Dulles Airport is to Washington, D.C. Yet Israel has not attacked Syria’s chemical weapons. 

Why not? Israel is well aware that Syria’s air defense system is, as the Wall Street Journal reported yesterday, “one of the most advanced and concentrated barriers on the planet.”
And if Israel does not feel sufficiently threatened by Syria’s chemical weapons to go after them, why should we, 4,000 miles away? 

Then there is Turkey, with three times Syria’s population, NATO’s second-largest army and a 600-mile border. Why is ridding the Middle East of Assad our assignment and not Ankara’s?
Surely the heirs of the Ottomans have a larger stake here.
And if we get into this war, how do we get out? 

For the war is metastasizing. Hezbollah is sending in fighters to help the Alawite Shia. Other Lebanese are assisting the Sunni rebels. The war could spread into Iraq, where the latest clashes between Sunni and Shia are pulling the country apart. Young Muslims are coming in from Europe.

Iran and Russia are aiding Damascus. Qatar and Saudi Arabia are aiding the Islamists. The United States, Jordan and Turkey are aiding the secularists. Syria could come apart, and a sectarian and ethnic war of all against all erupt across the region.
Do we really want the U.S. military in the middle of this? 

Because his “red line” appears to have been crossed, Obama is being told he must attack Syria to maintain his credibility with Iran and North Korea.
Nonsense. To attack Syria would compound Obama’s folly in drawing the red line. Better to have egg on Obama’s face than for America to be dragged into another unnecessary war. 

Obama would not be alone in having his bluff called. George Bush proclaimed that no “axis of evil” nation would be allowed to acquire the “world’s worst weapons.” North Korea now has those weapons. 

Congressional war hawks, led by Sens. John McCain and Lindsey Graham, are cawing for air strikes and no-fly zones, which would mean dead and captured Americans and many more dead Syrians. 

Time for Congress to either authorize Obama to lead us into a new Middle East war, or direct him, in the absence of an attack upon us, to keep America out of what is Syria’s civil war. 

Before we slide into another war, let the country be consulted first.

Surprise Israeli military drill on Syrian, Lebanese borders. Reservists mobilized

Surprise Israeli military drill on Syrian, Lebanese borders. Reservists mobilized

Reblogged from www.debka.com  DEBKAfile Special Report April 30, 2013, 4:01 PM (GMT+02:00) 

 

Israel's Golan border with Syria

 

Israel’s armed forces launched a snap division-scale drill along the full length of the Syrian and Lebanese borders Tuesday, April 30, with call-up orders for thousands of reservists, debkafile’s military sources report. 

The exercise will last up to week’s end. 

 

It was taken into account that the unannounced exercise would send military tensions shooting up on the volatile Israeli, Jordanian, Syrian and Lebanese borders. Moscow, Tehran, Damascus and Hizballah headquarters would assume that Israel is massing troops in advance of US military intervention in Syria.

 

Its timing is also connected to the speech Hizballah leader Hassan Nasrallah is scheduled to deliver Tuesday night in case he announces military steps against Israel.Our Washington sources report that President Barack Obama is poised for a momentous decision on whether to pursue military action against Syrian military targets, including Bashar Assad’s chemical weapons facilities. 

 

These appear to be his three primary options:

1. An American aerial bombardment of the Syrian military bases and facilities which are the mainstay which keep Bashar Assad in power;

2.  A missile strike on his chemical weapons from the sea and from ground bases in Europe and the Middle East;

3.  The deployment of 20,000 American troops to the Jordanian-Syrian frontier.
Alternatively, Obama may choose to combine elements of all three options and activate them simultaneously.
The surprise Israeli military exercise and concentration of reserve units along the borders of Syria and Lebanon place the IDF including its air and naval branches on the ready for a role in a potential American military operation against Syria.
The Israeli military also stands prepared to repel possible reprisals by Iran, Syria or Hizballah against US, Jordanian or Israeli troops.

How churches fake God´s work!

The Coming Blood Moons

Reblogged from gracethrufaith.com/selah
This Week’s Feature Article by Jack Kelley

I first wrote about the so-called blood moons five years ago. (For reasons I’ll explain below, total lunar eclipses are called blood moons.) At the time a video series on the subject was being heavily marketed as revealing the date of the second coming. By now most people no longer believe that, but the series is still popular and since we’re getting closer to the time of their arrival I’ve been getting questions about the blood moons again. So here’s an update.


As many of us already know there are some remarkable celestial events coming in 2014 and 2015. There are two sets of lunar and solar eclipses that will take place on or near Jewish Feast dates. There will be lunar eclipses on April 15 and October 8 in 2014 and on April 4 and September 28 in 2015. What makes them remarkable is that in both these years the spring eclipses will come on Passover and the fall ones will come on the Feast of Tabernacles.

When four consecutive lunar eclipses are all total eclipses the series is called a tetrad. While there will be 6 other tetrads during the 21st Century those in 2014 and 2015 are the only ones that will all come on Feast dates. We should note that of the 2014-15 lunar eclipses only the last one (Sept. 28, 2015) will be visible from Israel, and then only partially.

But there’s more. In 2015 there will also be two solar eclipses, and again one will come in the spring and the other in the fall. The spring solar eclipse will take place on the first day of Israel’s religious year (Nisan 1) fourteen days before Passover, and the one in the fall will come on the first day of the civil year (Tishri 1) six months later, which is Rosh Hashanah, or the Feast of Trumpets.

Does This Happen Often?

Counting the ones in 2014-15 there will have only been 13 tetrads in the last 500 years and of those only 2 have previously come at the time of Jewish feasts. One was in 1949-50 and the other one was in 1967-68. A tetrad being a series of four, that means we’re talking about eight total lunar eclipses. Of those eight only the one in April 1950 was fully visible from Israel, four others were partially visible and the rest were not visible at all. (Since these are being touted as signs to Israel, you might wonder why they weren’t all visible there.)

The tetrad in 1949-50 began a year after Israel’s re-birth as a nation on May 14, 1948. The one in 1967-68 began in April, about six weeks before the 6 day war that ended in the reunification of Jerusalem. The proximity of these occurrences to watershed dates in Israel’s modern history leads some to believe that the tetrads coming in 2014-15 will be similarly important to Israel.

Personally I’m not as impressed with this as some others are. Biblical history tells us God’s signs are clear and specific. The Bethlehem star is a case in point. If you’ve ever tried to follow a star without the benefit of modern equipment, you know the fact that the Magi were able to follow it to Jerusalem from hundreds of miles away is impressive in itself, but then it led them from Jerusalem to Bethlehem, a distance of only 5 miles. According to Matthew 2:9-11 the star led them right to the house where the Lord’s family was staying. Could it be God?

Contrast that with the tetrads in 1949-50. They weren’t specific to the event they were supposed to be heralding. God’s chosen people officially became a nation again after a 1900 year absence on May 14,1948 but the first eclipse in the tetrad didn’t appear until a year later. Signs from Heaven are supposed to tell us that things are about to happen, not that things already have happened. Proponents of this theory had to search through the records to find an event related to Israel’s history that would coincide with the date of the eclipse. They chose the conversion of Israel’s provisional government to a permanent one. Did God wait until then to provide a sign because He was uncertain as to whether Israel would make it? And did anyone on Earth recognize these events as signs from heaven at the time? You could forgive Israel for not noticing. For the most part the eclipses were not even visible there.

To prophecy students, the rebirth of Israel was a long awaited sign that the end times had begun, and everyone of them noticed it. This is the sign God was sending us at that time, not a series of eclipses that arrived a year after the fact, and were only visible to some.
At least the first half of the 1967-68 tetrad bracketed the six day war that led to the reunification of Jerusalem, but again no one noticed it for 40 years. That’s probably because neither of the 1967 eclipses was visible at all in Israel, and of the 1968 eclipses only the one in April was visible and then only partly so. Three out of the four could not be seen at all by the people for whom the sign was supposedly intended.

Some say the tetrads of 1949-50 and 1967-68 happened during two important wars in Israel, the war for independence and the six day war. They use this as support for predicting another important war for Israel in 2014-15. This at least sounds plausible, even though the war of independence ended a month before the first of the 1949 eclipses occurred, and none of Israel’s other important wars happened during a series of eclipses. But there are three wars prophesied for Israel that have yet to happen, any of which could theoretically take place between the spring of 2014 and the fall of 2015. Of course I’m referring to those prophesied in Isaiah 17, Psalm 83 and Ezekiel 38-39.

Is That Biblical?

But let’s look at what, if anything, the Bible says about this. The underlying support for the eclipse hypothesis is Genesis 1:14 where the King James translation reads,
And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years;
To make the passage read more easily in English, the translators inserted the word “and” in several places in this verse. According to the interlinear Bible, a more literal reading of verse 14 would go like this.
Let there be lights in the expanse of the heaven to separate the day from the night. Let them be for signs; seasons, days, and years.

Inserting the additional articles makes the King James version look like the lights are for signs as well as to mark the seasons, days and years. But I think the interlinear is closer to the original intent of Genesis 1:14. The NIV translation agrees. It reads,
Let there be lights in the expanse of the sky to separate the day from the night, and let them serve as signs to mark seasons and days and years.

All this to say it’s not clear that Genesis 1:14 says one of the functions of the lights in the sky is to serve as signs of important events. This has to be read into the passage. Most likely it simply says that observing the Sun and Moon enable man to keep track of time.
Second, the phrase “moon turned to blood” comes from Joel 2:31 which says this will happen before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord. Peter quoted this verse in Acts 2:20. In Rev. 6:12 we find another appearance of the “blood moon” phrase. These three are the only such verses in the Bible and they all agree that a “blood moon” will appear sometime before the beginning of the Great Tribulation. But all three of these references also mention the Sun going dark at the same time.

Most of us know that the Moon doesn’t produce any light of its own. Light from the Moon originates on the Sun and is reflected to Earth. You can’t have a lunar eclipse if the Sun is not producing any light, as is the case in Joel 2:31, Acts 2:20, and Rev. 6:12.
Some explain this as being a case of a solar eclipse and a lunar eclipse happening at the same time. But that’s impossible, too. A lunar eclipse occurs when the Earth passes between the Sun and the Moon. As the light from the Sun bends around the Earth and passes through it’s atmosphere on the way to the Moon it takes on a reddish hue. During a total eclipse this will make the Moon appear to be dark orange in color, causing it to be called a blood moon.

But a solar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes between the Sun and the Earth. As the eclipse progresses the Moon will look like a black ball crossing the Sun. In a total solar eclipse all the Sun’s light will be blocked and both the Sun and the Moon will appear to have turned black.

Matt. 24:29, which speaks of the end of the Great Tribulation, says the Sun will be darkened and the moon will not give its light. This event is also mentioned in Mark 13:24-25. (In Luke 21:25 it’s referred to as signs in the sun, moon and stars.) It’s what a total eclipse of the Sun looks like, although in this case I believe something much more permanent will be happening. I don’t think the Sun will ever come back, but will be replaced by the New Jerusalem.
The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and the Lamb is its lamp. The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their splendor into it (Rev. 21:23-24).

Also, from any given location a lunar eclipse can only happen at night and a solar eclipse can only happen during the day. For these reasons you can’t have a solar eclipse and a lunar eclipse at the same time.

How Many Blood Moons Are There?

The Bible only mentions one blood moon, not a series. Nor does it mention a blood moon in connection with any event in world history except the one that will come in advance of the Great Tribulation. All this means the celestial event spoken of in Joel 2:31 and repeated in Acts 2:20 and Rev. 6:12 is unlikely to be an eclipse of either the Sun or the Moon.  Clearly the appearance of a blood moon before the beginning of the Great Tribulation is intended to be a unique and unmistakable sign.

What’s Your Point?

In conclusion we can say that the mention of the sun and moon as signs in Genesis 1:14 probably refers only to keeping track of time. We can also say that the past tetrads do not meet the test of a Biblical sign as exemplified by the star of Bethlehem or the blood moon of Rev. 6:12. Further, tetrads are never mentioned in the Bible at all and therefore can’t be Biblically linked to any significant event in Israel’s history or future. And finally, the blood moon that will signal the coming Great Tribulation is a single sighting, not a tetrad, and most likely isn’t due to an eclipse at all because the Sun will be dark and it’s impossible for solar and lunar eclipses to happen simultaneously.

Therefore, although there’s a high probability that something of prophetic significance will happen in or to Israel between the spring of 2014 and the fall of 2015, I don’t think the tetrads that will occur during that period can be viewed as a sign from God that this will be the case.

Amos 3:7 says, Surely the sovereign Lord does nothing without revealing His plan to His servants the prophets. It’s still true that if you want to know everything the Lord has revealed about coming events, the best place to look is in the Bible.  Natural occurrences can never substitute for the word of the prophets. Selah 04-27-13

Mid-East Prophecy Update - April 28th, 2013

The Willing Fundamentalist

The Willing Fundamentalist: 04/26/13 from Gary Stearman on Vimeo.

How Do I Deal With This? Biblical Q and As

 Reblogged from gracethrufaith.com/ask-a-bible-teacher

Q.  I have recently posted to a Christian forum a study I did to learn more about and better understand the End-Time events.  I was accused of error and of spreading false doctrine even though I backed up everything with many Scriptural references.  I guess my questions are how do I deal with this, both on a personal level and in the public forum?


A.  The short answer is “you don’t”.  People like this hold to their beliefs for emotional reasons and are not persuaded by reason or logic. Personally I don’t like forums or debates because confrontation usually results in both sides becoming more convinced of their original position, and the truth often gets lost in the process. 

The best approach is to be certain of your own views, offer them with Scriptural support and let them stand on their own.  Reasonable people will follow Paul’s advice and search the Scriptures to see if you’re correct (Acts 17:11). As for the rest, in Matt. 10:14 Jesus said just shake the dust off your feet and move on.

From Facebook Question of the Day

 
Q. In many of your articles you speak of a "Christian World View." I would like to know what you think that view consists of. I feel that it is looking at what is happening in the world news and relating it to Bible prophecy, and living in anticipation of what Jesus said would happen in the end times in which we are living. Am I close?

A. The Christian world view holds that although the Church is in the world we are not of the world. Our citizenship is in heaven (Phil. 3:20). That means we know we don't belong here, so we don't try to fit in. Paul told us not to conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but to be transformed by the renewing of our mind as we seek to discover God's will for our life (Romans 12:1-2).

If we hold a Christian World view, our thoughts and actions will be focused on Heaven, where we do belong, and on making sure we're always ready to go there. We will long for the Lord's return because we know that He's coming to take us there (John 14:2-3).

In the meantime, we will love the things that God loves, hate the things He hates, and try to show by the way we live what an incredible blessing it is to be in a relationship with the Lord.

Indonesia Papua Korupun Kimyal- Bibles translation arrive.

Close confidante of Netanyahu warns “it’s now or never” for military strike on Iran: Analysis.

Reblogged from: flashtrafficblog.wordpress.com

In Uncategorized on April 26, 2013 at 9:02 pm

Tzachi Hanegbi (right) has been a long-time friend and confidante of Netanyahu.

Tzachi Hanegbi — a close, trusted, long-time personal friend and confidante of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu – made remarks on Tuesday at a security conference in Tel Aviv that did not make news in the U.S. But they should have.
Hanegbi explained that the time for sanctions and diplomacy and covert options to neutralize the Iranian nuclear threat is over, and the time for Israel to use its military option has come.

“It’s now or never,” said Hanegbi, ”and the option of never does not exist.”
Hanegbi formerly served as the Minister of Intelligence and as Justice Minister in previous governments. He is currently a Member of Knesset (Likud).
“Israel has to act according to its own imperatives,” he said.

Given how close Hanegbi and Netanyahu are — and given how sensitive the current moment is – it is difficult to believe Hanegbi spoke without knowing the Prime Minister’s mind, and without having his blessing to make such ominous remarks.

I, for one, am praying for peace. I don’t want to see another war in the Middle East. I’m asking the Lord to bring down the regime in Tehran, and sabotage their nuclear weapons projects, and keep Tehran from going to far. But even as I pray for peace, I know Israel is preparing for war.

Consider other indicators that an Israeli first strike may be increasingly close at hand:

• At the same conference, Israeli Major Gen. (res.) Amos Yadlin, a former head of IDF Military Intelligence, said that “for all intents and purposes, Iran has crossed Israel’s red line…in the summer, Iran will be a month or two away from deciding about a bomb.”
• Netanyahu and his inner circle are watching how Iran has been accelerating its building of uranium centrifuges, expanding its nuclear facilities, and possibly building secret new facilities.
• President Obama is doing nothing after the Assad regime in Syria crossed the Obama “red line” by using chemical weapons against the rebels, killing and wounding many. Are they concluding the White House is serious about dealing with Iran if and when Tehran crosses the “red line”? Hardly.
• Netanyahu and his inner circle are watching how President Obama is doing nothing to stop North Korea from building — and testing — nuclear warheads and the ballistic missiles to deliver them. Are they concluding the White House is serious about preventing nuclear proliferation? Again, hardly.
• Netanyahu are his inner circle are watching how President Obama has pulled U.S. military assets out of the Persian Gulf region, claiming budget cutbacks.
• All this suggests the Netanyahu team believes it is all alone to deal with the Iran problem.

Now, let me be clear: I don’t know if war will happen or not. I hope not. I pray not. But I want to be honest and keep you up-to-date on the latest developments.

The Joshua Fund and I are going forward full steam ahead with our plans for our “Prayer & Vision Tour” in Israel this summer (June 25 to July 7) and the 2013 Epicenter Conference on July 5th in Jerusalem. We have nearly 200 people signed up for the trip — mostly evangelical Christians — are we are grateful for their trust and eager to take them into the Holy Land to pray, study God’s Word, meet Israelis and Palestinians, learn about TJF’s humanitarian relief work, and even participate in humanitarian relief projects. 

If we need to cancel the trip because war breaks out or is clearly imminent, we will do so — and our guests will receive 100% of their money back. But we won’t be swayed by rumors of war, and we’re impressed with this group that’s signed up because they don’t seemed to be swayed by the rumors either. They know we won’t knowingly take them into harm’s way. But they also know that this is the right time for Christians to stand with Israel and show our love and support by going there and praying for the peace of Jerusalem, as we are commanded in Psalm 122:6. There’s still some room on the trip if you’d like to join us. Click here for more details.

In the meantime, let’s keep praying for peace from wherever we are on the globe. Let’s keep a close eye on the developments in the region. And let’s keep preparing for war, should it break out [see video of how The Joshua Fund is making war preparations].

I’ll be in speaking and ministering in Europe for the next two weeks. While I’m there, I’ll do my best to post blogs and Tweet on a regular basis, as possible. Thanks, and God bless.

Lord, hold my hand - Yiruma

Question Of The Day. Gracethrufaith

Reblogged from Facebook.

Gracethrufaith

Q. I Thes. 5:4 alludes to believers not being surprised by the coming Day of the Lord. I've always thought that it means that we will not be caught off guard because we are prepared, we have Christ. Is there more?

A. Yes there is. In fact I don't agree that "having Christ" fulfills the spirit of Paul's statement in 1 Thes. 5:4. Remember, The context of 1 Thes. 5:1-11 is the Day of the Lord. The people Paul was writing to were already saved.

Lots of people "have Christ" but don't have a clue about what's coming because they've never learned what the Bible says about the End Times. They are like the people Jesus criticized at His first coming.

“When evening comes, you say, ‘It will be fair weather, for the sky is red,’ and in the morning, ‘Today it will be stormy, for the sky is red and overcast.’ You know how to interpret the appearance of the sky, but you cannot interpret the signs of the times." (Matt. 16:2-3).

They also won't know about the crowns they could have won during their life as a Christian because they were never taught about them. The same goes for the Lord's admonition to store up treasure in Heaven rather than on Earth (Matt. 6:19-21). Having been so focused on having a good life here, they will have made no preparation for the life to come.

Many of them will enter eternity with little or nothing to show for themselves. Paul said they will still be saved, but only "as one escaping the flames" (1 Cor 3:10-15). Their cries of “No one ever told us” will not help, because even though their teachers will be judged for this failure (James 3:1) it will be too late for anyone to go back and try again.

If any of this applies to you, rejoice in your excitement about the nearness of the Lord's coming. In doing so, you're earning the Crown of Righteousness. But don't forget to thank Him for also giving you the time to try for some other crowns as well. For more detail on how to win your crowns go Here.

Forgiven and free!

Reblogged from: servehiminthewaiting.wordpress.com

On the wings of the morning He quietly comes
Lighting nearby, patiently waiting
Dis-ordered thoughts begin to wander
Soon upon waking, toward tasks ahead
Spirit is tethered, grounded by gravity.
For life itself is very grave
Every struggle becomes a link
In the chain, growing heavy
And still He waits.   I know He is near
And then He speaks: “Why do you carry these?”
So as not to leave them littered along the way
How long have you carried them?
My, I couldn’t say.  Some of them are so old I feel they’ve always been there.
What good are they?
Good? What do you mean?
Why did you not lay them down?
I thought I was meant to keep them.
But why would you think that?
Well, they bear my name
Are you certain?
Last I checked!
Checked lately?
Well, no, but I count them pretty often
What on Earth for?
A habit by now, I suppose. Keeps me humble.
Humble?
You know!  Grounded!
Oh, I get it, restrained, repressed?
Yeah, something like that, I guess.  I mean, it feels like that sometimes.
Why would you want that?
I don’t want to be.  I just have been for just about as far back  as I can remember.
As far back as you can remember, or as far back as you dare to remember?
What’s the difference?
The difference is, I created you for more than this. You knew that once upon a time!
Yes, I know.  “Someday” I’ll be free from this sin nature and…
No, even now! Cast thy burden upon Me, and I shall sustain you.
Yeah.  I read that.
And?
I don”t deserve for You to carry my load
That’s true!

Look at Me! Do you see anyone here who condemns you?
I condemn me!
Ah!
I see.
Do you know what the word “deem” means?
To reckon something as being so?
That is pretty close, but more succinctly, it means “to judge”.
Do you know what redeemed means?
I guess that would mean “to judge again”?
You were deemed guilty but once you repented and asked for salvation, you were re-deemed to be “not guilty”.  Do you know that being “not guilty” is not the equivalent of being innocent?  “Not guilty” merely means that no punishment will be accounted to you for the crime.  As I said to Job, “I will demand of thee, and declare thou unto me.  Wilt thou also dis-annul my judgment? wilt thou condemn me, that thou mayest be righteous?” I have declared you “not guilty”, yet you persist in self-condemnation. Who is right, Me or you?
You are, Lord
Where is your Bible?
Right here.
Open it to John 8:36 and read to Me what it says.
If the Son, therefore, shall make you free, then ye shall be free indeed. I know, Lord, but…
I don’t see a but in that verse.
Ok.  What about everything else?
What else?
Our life seems like an endless series of “unfortunate events”, trials, setbacks, obstacles, whatever you want to call them!  It feels so relentless.  What are we doing wrong?
These “other things” you speak of, the trials, who has told you that they come due to something you are doing wrong? These things are so, that My works might be displayed in you. (John 9:3)  In my winnowing I separate wheat from chaff, using the wind of adversity to blow off the chaff, which is just an impurity, and retaining in you that which is good. On the other hand, Satan desires to sift you! (Luke 22:31)  Sifting is agitating in a way that shakes out all that is good, so that the only thing that remains is the bad.  He doesn’t touch your life without my permission.  What he means for evil, I use for your good.
I have prayed for you.  Right now, chaff fills the air, the shaking and the tossing feel turbulent, but trust Me.  I will complete the good work which I have begun in you.

Israel, The Church, And The Hebrew Roots Movement

This Week’s Feature Article by Jack Kelley
Reblogged from  gracethrufaith.com/selah

I have always been a strong advocate of the idea that there is much to be learned about our Christian faith by studying the Old Testament, and especially the  commandments and traditions surrounding the Feasts of Israel.  Having served for a time as the leader of a Messianic congregation where we observed these feasts in their prescribed manner, I saw how dramatically they reveal the Messiah.  In my opinion, Christians who don’t understand or appreciate the Hebrew origins of our faith lack the perspective this knowledge brings us.

Sadly, many in what’s now being called the Hebrew Roots movement seem to be going to extremes with this. It’s like they’re trying to become the polar opposite of Replacement Theology. (Most of you know that Replacement Theology claims the church has replaced Israel in God’s plan due to Israel’s rejection of the Messiah). Where Replacement Theology claims the only place for Israel is as part of the Church, some in the Hebrew Roots movement assert that the only place for the Church is as part of Israel.

While Hebrew Roots appears to teach that because of the Lord’s death, obedience to the Law is a privilege and not a requirement, a number of its teachers seem to be going well beyond that. They claim that in fact Torah observance is a requirement for all believers. Some have also abandoned the Greek based New Testament in favor of translations from Aramaic texts, due to alleged errors in the Greek based texts. They say those who call the Lord by His English name (Jesus) are actually worshiping a pagan god, which according to them makes traditional Christianity a pagan religion. They want us to believe that the only acceptable name for the Son of God is Yeshua (His name in Hebrew), and the only acceptable way to worship Him is by obeying the Torah and observing the Feasts of Israel.

(One of the favorite tactics used by people on both ends of the spectrum who can’t find support for their beliefs in the Bible is to say it wasn’t translated correctly. And yet the best scholars of each generation have poured over the ancient manuscripts to give us the most accurate translations possible. There are about 5600 Greek manuscripts of the New Testament in existence, and cross checking has shown their consistency to be over 99%.  In other words all these ancient Greek manuscripts essentially say the same thing. For additional support there are 19,000 early manuscripts in other languages. This exceeds the manuscript base for any other ancient book by a very wide margin.

Most reasonable people would agree that for all practical purposes our New Testament is an accurate rendering of these early manuscripts.  Therefore the only conclusions we can draw are that either 1) all these scholars have somehow committed identical mistakes in their translation efforts, or 2) they’ve all participated in a massive conspiracy to mislead us that has spanned 2,000 years, or 3) the people who say the Bible is translated incorrectly because it doesn’t support their position are wrong.)
But even more importantly, neither Replacement Theology nor Hebrew Roots seems to recognize that Israel and the Church are uniquely different and that both have roles in the fulfillment of end times prophecies that are mutually exclusive.

Give Us Some Examples

In the Old Testament, God promised Israel that He would return one day to dwell among them in their land on Earth forever (Ezekiel 43:1-7).  In the New Testament, Jesus promised the Church that He would come back and take us off the Earth to be with Him in His Father’s House (John 14:1-3).  Both these promises will come true, so Israel and the Church will fulfill their prophetic destinies in different locations.

The purpose of the rapture of the Church is to remove us from the time and place of the end times judgments that will take place on Earth (1 Thes. 1:10, 1 Thes. 5:9, Rev. 3:10).

The purpose of the end times judgments is to completely destroy all the nations to which Israel has been scattered (Jeremiah 30:4-11) and to purify Israel in preparation for the coming Kingdom (Zechariah 13:8-9).

The Millennium For Israel

The primary purpose of this Kingdom (known to the church as the Millennial Kingdom) is to give Israel its long promised Kingdom Age, although the entire millennial world will benefit from it. After the Lord returns, Earth will be restored to the condition it was in when Adam was created (Matt. 19:28, Acts 3:21). This will include restoring peace between man and the animals, bringing back Earth’s original garden-like environment with its world wide sub-tropical climate, eliminating foul weather, killer storms, earthquakes and extremes of heat and cold.

Israel will be the preeminent nation on Earth during the Kingdom Age, and surviving tribulation believers and their descendants from all nations will come to Jerusalem to learn the ways of the Lord. He will settle their disputes, making war between nations a thing of the past.

The promised land will blossom as never before. The desert and wastelands will be transformed into a garden paradise so lush and beautiful that people will know its been transformed by the Lord himself. Everlasting joy will crown their heads while sorrow and sighing will flee away.

The wealth of neighboring nations will pour into Israel. Camels will be brought from Midian. Gold and incense from Sheba will adorn the Lord’s Temple in Israel. Flocks from Kedar and Nebaoith will be received as offerings on His altar there. (Midian and Sheba were descendants of Abraham and Keturah, the wife he took after Sarah died. Kedar and Nebaioth were sons of Ishmael. Their descendants are all part of the Middle Eastern Islamic nations of today.) The ships of Tarshish (Great Britain) will bring gold and silver from afar. Any nation that refuses to serve Israel will be utterly ruined by divine decree.

Although death will still occur among natural humans, the span of man’s life will begin increasing again to approach those of the Genesis patriarchs. Sickness and disease, those by-products of sin, will be greatly reduced. It appears the population of Earth will be sustained by their return to an agrarian economy, but with all the obstacles Adam faced gone as the curse of Genesis 3 will finally be lifted. The land will become so rich and productive that one season’s crop will barely be harvested before it’s time to plant the next one. Every man will easily produce enough for his family’s use, and enjoy doing it. None will labor unproductively, or for the benefit of others. Children will grow up without fear and adults will grow old in peace (A summary of Isaiah 2:1-5, 4:2-6, 35, 41:18-20, 60:10-22, 65:17-25, Amos 9:13-15, Micah 4:1-8, Zech 8:4-5).

The Millennium For The Church

Meanwhile, life will be far different in the home of the Redeemed Church.  Although the Kings of the Earth will bring us their splendor, no unbeliever can ever set foot in the place, nor even a believer in his natural state. Our mansions in the sky will be built of the purest gold as will the streets that run before them, their foundations made from precious stones. There will be no Temple in the New Jerusalem because the Lamb of God will dwell there and is our Temple. The energy source that will light and warm us is the Glory of God, and our radiance will in turn provide light for the nations of Earth. (Rev.21:9-27)

Other than calling us Kings and Priests, the Bible doesn’t mention any kind of work for us. Our glorified bodies will have been released from their dimensional bonds, allowing us to appear and disappear at will, traveling back and forth through time at the speed of thought as we plumb the limitless delights of God’s Universe (1 John 3:2). No detail will be overlooked where our comfort and happiness are concerned. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain (Rev. 21:4), only the endless joys of exploration and discovery. As it is written: “No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him.” (1 Cor. 2:9)

Our eternal home is not on Earth, but it’s not at the Throne of God either. Coming down out of the heavens but never landing on Earth, our home could be called a low orbit satellite in today’s terminology. 1400 miles high, wide and deep, it wouldn’t fit in Israel, let alone Jerusalem. If we did touch down on Earth we’d need a space equivalent to the area from Maine to Florida to the Midwest in the US, or all of Western Europe from Sweden to Italy. The New Jerusalem will be over 4000 times as tall as the world’s tallest building. Being nearly 2/3rds the size of the Moon, it simply won’t fit anywhere on Earth.

One God, Two Destinies

So the destiny of Israel has its place outside of the Church and the destiny of the Church has its place outside of Israel. The two are not the same and were never intended to be seen as such. The only thing these two groups will have in common is their belief that Jesus (Yeshua) died for their sins and rose again on the third day (1 Cor. 15:1-4).

But just as gentiles who converted to Judaism in Old Testament times became part of Israel, Jews who convert to Christianity in New Testament times become part of the Church. No matter what our background happens to be, conversion to Christianity makes us a new creation, neither Jew nor Gentile, part of an entirely new race of mankind.

Paul explained it this way. His (God’s) purpose was to create in himself one new man out of the two, thus making peace,  and in one body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross, by which he put to death their hostility (Ephes. 2:15-16)

Calling it a mystery previously unknown on Earth. He said, This mystery is that through the gospel the Gentiles are heirs together with Israel, members together of one body, and sharers together in the promise in Christ Jesus (Ephes. 3:6).

In the beginning there was one classification of mankind. But in calling Abraham, God created a new classification. From then on there were two, Gentiles and Jews, and they are forever different. It remained that way until the cross, when as Paul explained, a third classification was brought into existence. Taking some from among the Gentiles and some from among the Jews, but making them different from either, God created a new classification called the Church. No matter what their former status was, from Pentecost until the Rapture everyone who comes to faith in the Lord becomes part of the Church and will inherit the Church’s destiny.

Those who choose to express their gratitude for the free gift of salvation through living by the Torah are free to do so. In the same way, those who choose to express their gratitude by striving toward the victorious Christian life described in the New Testament are free to do so. But anyone who teaches that either form of expression is required to achieve or maintain their salvation has run afoul of clear Biblical instruction to the contrary.

Paul was a great Jewish theologian who, because of the revelations he received, had a better perspective on this than anyone before or since. He admonished us to go beyond “mere” salvation to battle for victory over the flesh (1 Cor. 9:24-27). But in some of the clearest statements in the New Testament he said,
No one will be declared righteous in God’s sight by observing the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of our sin (Romans 3:20).

Therefore do not let anyone judge you by what you eat or drink, or with regard to a religious festival, a New Moon celebration or a Sabbath day (Colossians 2:16).

I would like to learn just one thing from you: Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law, or by believing what you heard? Are you so foolish? After beginning by means of the Spirit, are you now trying to finish by means of the flesh? (Galatians 3:2-3).

There’s Nothing New Under The Sun

This disagreement over the proper response to God’s gift of salvation is not new. In the earliest days of the Church there were those among the Jewish believers who insisted that the only path to salvation for Gentiles was to first put themselves under the laws and practices of Judaism. The council of Jerusalem put that idea to naught and authorized Gentiles to be received directly into Christianity. Still the “Judaizers” followed Paul from city to city trying to undo what he had done. Later, Gentiles who called themselves Christian forced whole communities of Jews to convert to Christianity upon pain of death. Both of these efforts were thought by their proponents to be pleasing to God, but in the end we can see that neither was.

That’s because when God looks into our future it’s not Jews and Gentiles He sees.  It’s Israel and the Church.  Each has its unique origin and each has its unique destiny. Whether it’s called Replacement Theology or Hebrew Roots, or anything in between, the idea of making either one a part of the other is man made and cannot be supported in Scripture. Selah 04-20-13

"Stating heresy IS the heresy"

 Reblogged from Elizabeth Prata: the-end-time.blogspot.com

I put the title in quotes because I read that sentence this week on a blog somewhere. It is so true. (I wish I could remember who wrote that, because I'd give full credit!)

Today, even 'daring' to point out heresy makes me the heretic; I'd like to share a comment on a older essay that I received last night and my response. It is a conversation that is becoming all too common these days.

I had written a series about the modern-day Gnostics, people who claim to have ecstatic experiences with the Jesus of heaven in their bathroom, living room, bar, car, zoo or any other place, and ascribe to Him and/or the Spirit something that He would not say or do. However, many people are not only believing these experiences on its surface, with no scriptural checking, they seek after and find their own experiences. They claim the experiences are as good as or better than scripture. This is dangerous. Once satan unhitches you from checking these things against scripture, you're a sitting duck for his wiles. Remember, you're no match for satan, he is the craftiest creature in the Garden. (Genesis 3:1-2).

Here is what the commenter said:

the only falsehood idea i see is your own these people have a love for god that you people would not understand how dare you judge them for thier love of christ the fruit of what they are doing is bringing them to christ how dare you judge them like the pharisee did to jesus christ you are the ones that will be called to account for your actions against your fellow

See? It is heretical these days to say that any person's "experience" checked against scripture and coming up short, is in fact the heresy, not the other way around. Here is my reply:

Fervency does not equal salvation. Even the demons believe- and tremble (James 2:19). Actually, they are further along than the Gnostics, because with their alleged experiences of 'hanging out' with Jesus, they don't even tremble!
Simon the Magician SAID he loved God, even followed Philip for a long time, fooling even Philip, who had baptised Simon! (Acts 8:1-25)
I am NOT judging them like Jesus judged the Pharisees. Judgment to the eternal fire only belongs to Christ. However, I AM judging their doctrine, matching up what they say against the bible. That is something John definitely says to do-
"Do not judge by appearances, but judge with right judgment.”" ESV
The NLT says, "Stop judging by mere appearances, but instead judge correctly.""
Your condemnation of me urges me to judge by appearances, but that is not biblical. So, how does one judge righteously? But comparing what they say and do to scripture. We can detect fruit, the fruit of the Gnostics is bad, coming from a bad tree. Just because someone says they love Jesus, does not mean they do.
Paul called many to account, so did Peter, John,etc. Failing to hold so-called believers to the holy standard is unloving.
Here is an essay written by Pastor Paul which speaks to the issue. He begins it this way:
" Evil Becoming More Evil "
"Wouldn't it be great if we could just throw open our arms and embrace anyone and everyone who claimed to be Christian. It should be like that but most of us know it isn't. So many people who claim to be Christian are stating their family tradition and not their personal relationship with Jesus. They haven't a clue what it is to live in the Spirit or to have anything to do with God except when they are in some kind of trouble. Even then the name of Jesus is used more as an exclamation than a plea for help. ... This is vital for us so we do not allow ourselves to be enticed away by those who claim Jesus but don't live Jesus. Paul warned Timothy:"
But evil people who pretend to be what they are not will become worse than ever, as they fool others and are fooled themselves. (2 Timothy 3:13)
------------------
Heed the warnings in the bible. Don't fall for the notion that stating heresy IS the heresy. Honor Jesus by being a Berean and looking into these things.

It is becoming such a problem, that John MacArthur, Phil Johnson, Conrad Mbewe, RC Sproul, Steve Lawson, and Nathan Busenitz organized a second Master's Seminary conference to specifically address these exact issues. It is called "Strange Fire" because when someone accepts false experiences as real, or touts their own false experiences as from the Spirit when they are not from the Spirit, ti is akin to offering strange fire before the LORD.

I encourage you to go to the website and learn more about the conference, go here to find links all together in one place, or go here, where there is a thoroughly scriptural explanation as to why they plan to "Confront the Charismatic Movement."

Are YOU offering strange fire before the LORD?

Scoffers Abound

Scoffers Abound

By Jan Markell

www.olivetreeviews.org

April 19, 2013

Excuse me while I rant. I think Bible prophecy gets a bad rap.  I think that those of us who long for Jesus' return are marginalized in the church today. I even think there is a war on Bible prophecy starting in our seminaries. The carnage is played out in our churches that across-the-board stay away from the subject. The fact that the King is coming is seen as bad news to many because the event is shrouded in the world's bad news.

But my perplexity goes beyond this. As a ministry, we have asked ourselves just how we can get the under age 45 crowd out to our events. Todd Strandberg of Rapture Ready writes about this as well. He says, "Every time I go to a prophecy conference, I can't help but notice the sea of gray hair in the main meeting room. A few years back, at a conference in South Carolina, there wasn't a single person under age 50 -- and we had over 500 people in attendance."  

Strandberg concludes, "I'm very concerned about the state of leadership in the field of prophecy. I'm 47, and I am a spring chicken when compared to the ages of my peers."

So I threw the dilemma out to my radio listeners this past weekend.  I asked that if they were of the "younger generation," and loved the topic of eschatology (end-times), would you please send me a note? I cannot say that I am inundated! I've had less than a dozen replies thus far. Here are a few examples.

Nick is 27 and writes, "I'm very concerned with the young generation. We are moving into the 'end times' at such a rapid rate and this young generation is in a coma." Those are his words, not mine! I am certain that not every young person is in that condition. 

  

Mike is 34 and writes, "You asked on your program today for young people to let you know if end-time prophecy is an issue. End-time prophecy is not AN issue, it is THE issue. You can look at it as I do as the blessed hope or you can look at it as frightening."  

     

Ashley writes, "I am completely enthralled about learning about end times and how events in our world are carrying us closer to the return of our King. It thrills me!! Most of my (young) friends know nothing about it and have little desire to learn. They say it scares them. Personally though, I am filled with hope that we could be caught up with Jesus and not have to taste death. I can't wait to meet Jesus face to face!"

   

Russ, who is 32, writes, "It is surprising to me that there are so many people I have tried to talk to about prophecy who have brushed me off by saying that they consider it 'doomsday talk.' It is difficult to get anyone to even talk about it. Even my own family doesn't want to hear about it and this includes all ages."

   

Jenni writes, "I am 37 and want you to know that we ARE out here! I also thought I'd let you know that my 14 year old daughter is also just as interested in both the Rapture and end-time prophecy, and has become quite a missionary for Christ! One of our other favorite sites is Rapture Ready. Thanks for having Terry James on."  

    

Leah made my day by writing, "I see a real remnant among the church here in our military community who are actively searching Bible prophecy and discussing end-time things. We belong to a Bible study and I have personally had many conversations with some of the 30+ folks that attend, mostly the other young moms, and am surprised at how many of us really are feeling the urgency in the air. Many of us have taken our kids out of public school and are homeschooling in order to get our kids grounded in God's Word so that they can take a stand in their faith, whatever comes. Your broadcast has helped us to ask important questions about our times and what our stance should be. THANK YOU! Take heart, the next generation does, indeed, have a remnant that is awake, listening and watching for Christ's return. God Bless!"

 

These few replies out of a potential audience of millions, tells me there is a problem. I am told that younger people want to "live out their life." This world is not our home and I thought we didn't WANT it to be our home. This is the home of the Antichrist and everything evil. If I am off base here, I am hoping folks will tell me so!   

Another e-mail emphasizes how terrified young mothers are concerning our times. They simply interpret all current/prophetic events as doom and gloom. Their world and their families must not be touched. See no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil. A sanitized world!   

Then there are the mockers. Grant writes to me saying,
"An early 30's pastor friend of mine I brought to your conference 2 years ago openly scoffed at what was said and argued against a lot of it when I tried to show him the realities of what is happening in this world today. I don't have a lot of people to discuss these topics with." 

 Eschatology spells out the devil's demise and thus he is putting up a war against it. So the world asks -- and scoffs, "Where is the promise of His coming?" just as the Bible predicted in II Peter 3:4. Don't bother me with this info. Don't depress me with it. Don't enlighten me with it. Don't bore me with it!  

God has asked us to be His ambassadors in this depraved world. He asks us to stand for truth; to be light in the dark; to be salt in a world that is decaying. He asks us to distribute hope.  

  

When you review all the road signs of the Olivet Discourse, Jesus was giving us some warnings, not to scare us, but to prepare us. A loving God keeps us informed on the days prior to the era of Antichrist. The warning is not to give in or to give up, but to endure.

Whether anybody gets excited about it or not, Jesus is coming again and soon. Whether those who are excited about that are young, middle age, or old, is irrelevant. His coming will be right on time. Then the final days will play out exactly as the Bible outlines. It's a sure thing that those days will be frightful.

Let's prepare ourselves for perilous times. We're in them. The signs of the times are screaming at us! As a headline reads that I posted to our Web site headlines early today, "The Rapidity With Which the World Is Descending Into Chaos Is Amazing."  

That is why God's end-time promises are so important and why it is tragic that they are now marginalized.