UN Resolution and the Gog/Magog War

Well this one seems to have snuck in under the radar.

When the PA's bid for recognition by the UN died out months ago, I figured they would eventually try again but that we'd hear about it before hand, like we did months ago but just like so many political decisions being made today, they seem to pass without the general public's knowledge or consent. Isn't it ironic that the very same organization that helped create the modern state of Israel now becomes the vehicle for the greatest threat to its survival?

Recognizing the PA seems in this case also recognizing the Palestinian-friendly map of the region in which Jerusalem is in PA territory and Israel becomes essentially indefensible. This decision by the UN changes nothing on the ground as Benjamin Netanyahu said but it certainly will embolden the terrorist state. It may very well be just the push that Israel's enemies need to launch an attack, in order to take back the territory lost in the 1967 war. This could be the groundwork for the Gog/Magog war mentioned in Ezekiel.

Could we have stopped this? Probably not but it does not matter whether this particular gambit could have been prevented. The fact is that Israel will be surrounded by her enemies because it was prophesied and that the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob will step in and save them in such miraculous fashion (major earthquake with a little dash of pestilence, friendly-fire, hail, torrential rain, and let's not forget fire and brimestone) that the nation of Israel will need to create a "department of grave digging" and spend the following seven months burying bodies. Alongside that, they will have collected enough weapons to burn in place of wood for seven years. Okay... that one escapes me a bit. How exactly does one use a spent RPG to bake bread? I'm obviously missing something. I wonder if some new type of weapons will be used.

What do we do? Only what we've been told in the scripture. Pray for the peace of Israel. Also give financially or materially, if we can, to build bomb shelters and support those on the ground already to counsel our Jewish brothers and sisters that are no doubt feeling a lot of stress right now. It may very well be that after this event, the 144, 000 Jewish men come on the scene (after having seen the power of God save them) and start evangelizing the rest of Israel (and I hope the world). This may also be the time that antichrist barters his peace treaty with Israel, only to break it 3.5 years later.

A Prayer from Canada

Father in heaven

These are dark times. The U.S. is more divided than it has been in nearly 150 years. Your people Israel are facing a greater threat than they have in decades, the earth is groaning and people are desperate. Send out a spirit of truth and trust... a spirit of repentance and reconciliation, a spirit of power and peace. Help believers in the U.S. to know that You are in control... that sometimes the storm has to break up the ship they are on in order for them to make it to shore. Help those that call themselves by Your name to not let the waves around them, cause them to lash out at their brothers and sisters. Help them to see that when things look impossible, that the only place they can turn is to the God of the impossible. Ready their hearts for what is ahead. May eyes be open and hearts be receptive. Help them to shed anything that is not of You in their lives and start on a new path that You direct. Draw Your children to You.

May those in Israel not put their trust in military might or political process but to You and You alone. We know that You will glorify yourself through the attack that is coming and that the world will know that You ARE Lord. May a cry of faith go up from Eilat to Metula so that many will be saved and that the millions in Israel that do not even believe in You come to know Yeshua Ha'Mashiach and be vessels of Your will.

Give us all a heart and a mind to walk in You in the coming months. May You be pleased to be in our midst and may You glorify Yourself through us.

Thank You for Your hand of protection, provision and empowerment in these dark times. Bless You oh Holy One of Israel.

In the name of Yeshua, Your only begotten son... Amen. 

Now What?

Two years ago, few people would have dreamed that Obama had a chance at a second term. Well it has happened, so now what?

For those still in shock, imagine what the disciples felt the day after the crucifixion. Before anyone thinks I am comparing Obama to our Messiah, I'm most certainly NOT... although many people early in his first term did. He in turn, mocked that sentiment in a speech he gave... but that... is for another blog.

I am saying, to a very small degree, that the disappointment some are feeling today has similarities. In the minds of the disciples, Christ was supposed to conquer the Roman oppressors and set up His earthly kingdom in their time but all their hopes had been dashed. Arrest? Torture?, Death? None of these factored into their plans even though Yeshua told them many times that those things must first take place. Coming to grips with the fact that the things we've seen in the last four years (gutting of the constitution, basic freedoms being eroded, hats being tipped to radical islamists) may continue and even ramp up, can be a depressing thought. 

Like the disciples though, let's not be shortsighted. No one saw what was coming, not even satan. Had he known what was to occur in a couple of days, he would not have influenced the people to crucify Yeshua. God is never limited and He desires to show himself mighty on the behalf of His people who will humble themselves before Him and turn from their sin and pray. Scripture seems to indicate that the world at this point cannot go back to its prosperous and carefree times and no one country can have pre-eminance anymore... it just doesn't play into God's endtime scenario. Times will be tough for many who have become used to privilege and ease (relatively speaking) but we are also one day closer to the resurrection.

Since the fall of man, all of creation has been groaning, waiting expectantly for the revealing of the sons of God (Romans 8) If we can turn our sight to that day when our Saviour returns and does what Peter and John and the others thought He was going to do 2000 years ago, then we can weather the coming storm a bit better. If we will turn from our sin, humble ourselves and pray, then we can also believe God for supernatural protection and provision. 

This battle is not over yet either. God is a god of the impossible. Votes are still being counted, there could be unseen circumstances that may come into play... things could yet still change. The same hand that brought water out of a rock to give drink to a million people in the desert can do anything for His people.

Pray to Him, seek Him, listen for His voice, look for what He might do. If His will is for the current administration to stay in power, so be it, we have a better promise... a universal kingdom with no death, disease, hunger or pain... a kingdom of peace, joy and righteousness that will last for eternity. Isn't that worth four more years of... well you get my point.

Shalom

Seemingly No Choice

When the Israelites were "locked" onto the shore of the Gulf of Aqaba, the choices seemed rather poor; drown in the sea, starve on the beach or die at the hands of Pharoah's army which was now thundering through the narrow canyon towards them. Likewise, many may be thinking that there is no real choice in the upcoming election. One candidate seems pretty bent on continuing to "downgrade" the country, the other (a member of a cult) seems to serve the same special interest groups and ultimately the same one world order agenda. 

What is the believer to do?

He/she could just abstain from voting. I'm sure many will choose that route but perhaps there is a fourth choice... think about the exodus story again.

Contrary to the famous movie line by Yul Brenner, "Moses's God is a poor general", Yahweh knew exactly what He was doing. Our Creator did not look down and say, "oops, there is only one way onto or off of that beach and the chariots are coming... what ever shall I do?". No of course not. He wanted to show the Israelites and us today, that the great El Elyon will not, and cannot be penned in by mountains, oceans or circumstances. He brought His people to that beach to show them that He is the God of the impossible, the God of the unseen choice.

If God's people will humble themselves and pray, perhaps God will once again, do the impossible. "How can that be" you might say. "There is no third candidate and no time..." Humanly speaking you are absolutely right, but then who has ever heard of a wind blowing through an eight mile stretch of sea, creating a water-walled passage allowing people to cross over on dry ground?

The election is only days away. Pray for another choice.

Unholy Birthday

As we walk through our spiritual journeys, we are typically confronted with beliefs and customs we had held that are then revealed as outside of scripture and true biblical faith. Unfortunately so many of these tend to be beliefs and customs that we have held since childhood... and typically those which are embedded in our culture. This blog is not the place to cover them all so I'll skip to the latest I've learned about... birthdays.

Just like so many of the traditions and festivities that we take for granted, birthdays and the birthday party have a source... a beginning. It and the accoutrements that go with it, all have meaning. Quick question before we get too far... if we learn that those beginnings and original meanings are anti-God, would we be willing to abandon them?

The birthday celebration can trace its origins to pagan worship of the Greek goddess Artemis. In ancient Greece, worshippers would bake a cake, place lit candles on it and set it at the feet of her idol. Even singing "Happy Birthday", blowing out the candles, making a wish, and playing games such as "Pin the Tail on the Donkey" have their source in the pagan customs of warding off evil spirits, fortune-telling and magical powers.

There are two hurdles to adopting the proper response to all of this. The first is believing the facts. Is the birthday celebration really pagan... come on! Well that one is solved simply enough. Look up books such as "The Lore of Birthdays", "World Book Encyclopedia" or Google "historical roots of birthday" etc.

The second hurdle is perhaps the highest and that is coming to grip with the fact that the origins of a practice or belief is important even if we've "changed" the practices meaning in our minds. Imagine... would any of you throw a party where each child salutes their friends with the Nazi salute and says "Heil Hitler" and then eats desserts decorated with swastikas? Why not? Well what if you convinced yourself that the salute was to symbolize strong growth and forward progression of that persons life? What if you changed the phrase "Heil Hitler" to mean, "Be in Good Health" and what if the swastikas mean for you a full life encompassing all four directions... or something like that. Would altering those offensive symbolisms make them any more palatable? Of course not. They are still rooted in the evil slaughter of millions of people in the greatest act of genocide in the last century. Likewise God is not going to overlook the true meaning of birthdays and their pagan meanings just because we choose to alter those meanings. Every time we light birthday candles, we are mirroring the pagan worship of a false goddess.

Sure it will be tough to tell our children that they cannot have any more birthday parties. It may be a little awkward to tell your friends that you don't want a fuss made over your upcoming 40th but isn't it better to offend our family and friends than to offend the One who hold the keys to hell and death?

Shalom

Prince of the Power of the Air

Most of us are familiar with Ephesians 2:2-3, which says "in which you once walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience, ³among whom also we all once conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, just as the others."

We've often heard that phrase "Prince of the power of the air" used to describe how satan is in control of the airwaves... media and the like. Perhaps a Greek scholar can offer some insight into those few words but that particular definition seems like a convenient conjecture.

That being said, satan does seem to have an almost iron grip on the media and popular culture. Even if the verse in Ephesians had read, "Prince of the power of the worms" it would not take away from the clear reality that satan and Hollywood are bedfellow.

So... my question is... are we giving place to this prince in our homes? Are we in any way conducting ourselves in the lusts of our flesh and mind... behaving like children of wrath?

This post came about as a result of some commercials that kept popping up on my wife's computer as she was trying to catch up on some middle east headline news. All of them were for upcoming movies and all of them had occult themes. 

We know that in the end times... err... I mean NOW, that the enemy will pour it on and draw people's heart away from the living God but how are those of us who are supposed to know better, responding to it? Are we keeping these things out of our home or are we allowing the world's pressure to shift our God inspired morals?

I was at a large inner-city church years ago to watch a public presentation of a move called "Time Changer". In the movie, a bible professor from 1890 travels forward in time to 2002 and gets a first hand taste of our "modern" world. The professor goes to a movie with a local church group but rushes out during the movie to demand that the movie be stopped. He was in a complete panic, leaving many in our audience thinking that perhaps there was a fire. When other characters ask the professor why the movie needed to be stopped, he explains that a character in the movie he was just watching took the Lord's name in vain. Many people in the church group I was in started to laugh... as did I. I then (and I hope all the others who laughed) was hit with heavy conviction over having considered a blasphemous word as such a light offence, not worthy of the reaction the professor showed. That lesson has stuck with me all these years later and I use it as a check to see if my morals are slipping. 

Would this professor, or better yet our Messiah, tell us to "stop the movie" if he were sitting beside us, watching what we watch? Will we have to give answer at the judgment seat to having let the prince of the power of the air into our homes and minds? 

It is time to cut ties with the world. I enjoy entertainment as much as anyone (used to be an avid movie buff) but it is simply getting too hard to find anything the world offers up as entertainment, even family entertainment that does not contain something that is an affront to God. Let us send the prince of the power of the air packing!

Blessings.

Eye for an Eye.... not

Despite all of the mainstream news media stories that would attempt to portray Israel as oppressive occupiers, the truth is that they repeatedly show a spirit of forgiveness, humanitarianism and restraint with their "enemies'. A recent story about a mountain climber proves this once again.

Israeli mountain climber Nadav Ben-Yehuda set out to be the youngest Israeli to ever reach the peak of Mount Everest back in May. Just 300 metres from success, personal satisfaction and probably his 5 minutes of fame, he came across a Turkish climber, Aydin Irmak, who lost consciousness while on his way down from the peak. Ben-Yehuda set aside his personal goals and instead took on the role of the good Samaritan. He revived Irmak and and then carried him on his back for 8 hours until he reached their camp. In the process, he nearly lost some fingers to frostbite.

This, along with many other similar stories, are not going to appear on CNN or any other liberal media outlet. It has become uber-fashionable to hate Israel. I pray that this story opens up at least one persons eyes to the truth. The truth is that jews, struggle with sin and the flesh like we all do. They are just as capable of retribution and hatred as anyone and in some cases, do act that way but God's heart and hands are with them so that in spite of being isolated and hated by the world, they, for the most part, continue to show love and mercy. They need our prayer and support. They need the whole truth to be told.

Are There Any Dormant Volcanoes Left?

It seems that for the past few months, volcanoes, some of which have been dormant for centuries have begun in increasing fashion to wake up... even the mound that formed after Krakatoa took out most of it's island and killed 36,000 people in 1883, has started to rumble.

The bible makes no specific mention of volcanoes as an end time player but since earthquakes and volcanic explosions can have a similar cause (magma flow) this does seem natural. Some scientists have suggested that a single super volcano has the potential to wipe out life on this planet. We know that the many lives that will be lost in the coming months/years will not be from a single super volcano but the increased activity we are seeing makes one wonder what the final days of this planet will be like if it suffers under the effects of famine, disease, nuclear conflict, supers torms, earthquakes AND volcanoes.

If you haven't already done so, please realize that the natural disasters, political unrest, economic upheaval and stellar anomalies you are seeing are the final calls of a Holy and just God who wishes for no one to perish... but to turn to Him in obedience.

Seek His face now. Turn from all sin in your life and submit your life to Yeshua Ha Mashiach, who died to take your sins upon Himself so that if you accept His gift of eternal life, you can know ultimate peace, joy and fulfillment. Don't be one of the many that will have to face the tribulations that are about to hammer this planet and yet still stand in front of a Holy God to face further judgment. Humble yourself today and give your life to the One who gave His life for you.

May you be blessed in Yeshua.

Arab Spring, Islamic Winter, Antichrist "Fall"

Bible teachers have been declaring since the uprising in Tunisia in 2010 that what we were seeing was not a revolution of the people but a gambit of the enemy (Satan). Two years later, we are seeing multiple demonstrations and skirmishes (wars and rumours of wars) in areas all over the world that have are radical-islamic inspired. I'm not speaking against people of the islamic faith that want to live in peace (even though islam at its core is NOT a peaceful religion) but speaking against what is happening in the radical wings of the faith and against western governments that have been and still are blind to the real power behind this movement.

Syria is a perfect example of the nature of this revolution. We all agree that the Assad regime is evil and in a perfect world, it would be easy to side with the rebels that the mainstream media is trying to paint as a group humble civilians that have been pressed into action by years of oppression. The reality, however is that this grassroots uprising has been hi-jacked (and perhaps was instigated) by the Muslim brotherhood. This radical group is actively carrying out the goal of global jihad and the more victories they win, the more they become emboldened to press ever further. 

Let's clear our consciences right here and right now. An Arab Spring is a nice idea... where oppressed and dis-advantaged peoples of Arab origin win their right to self-determination. That is what we would like to see happen and so part of us seems to blinded to what the Arab Spring really was and is.

So... where is this leading? What comes after the Islamic winter? How about an Antichrist Fall?

How exactly does the Antichrist come to power? He's not just going to appear on CNN one day and announce himself supreme ruler... that comes later. He comes onto the scene with answers to crises that the world has never encountered before and is given successive power over the world. I believe that this islamic movement is part of Satan's scheme to put the man he will one day inhabit, into power. Imagine large groups of radical muslims storming the embassy in your city, taking over major intersections in protest or in prayer (as is seen in London) or imposing sharia law in your community. Imagine huge riots every time anyone does anything that the radicals find offensive (such as having a picture of Winnie the Pooh (Piglet) on an office wall... more on this another time). In the face of persistent violence and intimidation, people everywhere will cry for a "Spring" of their own and will welcome a leader... any leader that promises peace and safety. A man who seems able to placate the radicals, bring peace to the middle east and who has a solution for the devastating financial crises about the break, would be welcomed... even worshipped, as we know will happen. 

According to 2 Thessalonians 2:3-12, the antichrist will present himself as God and unleash a campaign of violence and terror that makes Syria look like a cafeteria food fight. Revelation 13:7 says he will overcome even some of the saints and exercise power over all peoples of the earth. Praise God for His mercy and power for this antichrist's end has already been established. When our Lord and Saviour comes back to establish His kingdom, He will cause the antichrist to "Fall" into the Lake of Fire and then there will be a true Spring for the people's of the earth... under a righteous loving king.

Maranatha

What Happens When We are Poor Stewards

Believers agree for the most part that things are winding down. Evil and wickedness are increasing, the love of many is growing cold. We are seeing what many call discipline, falling upon our world as well in the form of financial, political and natural upheavals. I want to proclaim God's mercy and grace in all of this for God abhors evil, especially from those under His favour and blessing. In North America, we have enjoyed blessing and influence unlike any other nation on earth, perhaps aside from Babylon or Egypt at their pinnacles, and yet we have been poor stewards in so many ways and are deserving of far more than we have to this day seen. God in His mercy, is giving us more time.

"We know all of this" you might say. Well there is a point. The pattern of judgements that we seem to be falling under are not new. 

In 1873, the American West was the focus of most of the interesting events. It was also a period when there was a relatively quiet war... against the aboriginals and the buffalo. Yes the buffalo. Without going into the finer details, the military and private citizens were hunting the native buffalo at an insane level. Millions were slaughtered partly in order to starve aboriginals out of the region. Skirmishes helped to finish off their way of life. Is it simple coincidence that a series of events followed which just about destroyed the settlers way of life in the region as well?

In 1873 the bank that had been financing the rapid expansion of the rail system, failed, which cascaded into a failure of the whole national banking system. Following that, yellow fever swept through the Mississippi valley and drought struck the plains. Swarms of locust descended on the region, sometimes massing so thickly that locomotives were forced to stop. 1 Million Americans became jobless and the country fell into a severe depression. 

This certainly sounds like the discipline of a holy God. One might argue that point but I hope you were struck by the parallels here. Today, people are still slaughtering aboriginals, and whites, and blacks and latinos and asians through abortion, violent crime and unholy wars. Poor stewardship of our environment and wildlife is on par with wiping out the buffalo. In short, many are exhibiting the same pride and carelessness that almost brought the US to its knees 140 years ago. It is only by God's mercy and grace are we still standing and only by turning to Him with a broken and contrite spirit over our sins can we hope to be spared the judgements yet to come. 

Don't wait for history to repeat itself. Cry out to God for His mercy to rain upon you, your family and your country before the panic of 1873 revisits 2012.