Shadowboxing the Apocalypse

Comet Elenin--Rapture Level Event?

2011-06-16T09:40:00.000-07:00

There is much speculation on Youtube (though little anywhere else) that the approaching heavenly body c/2010 X1, or comet Elenin will bring with it an "extinction level event" resulting in the death or extinction of up to 90 percent of all life on the planet Earth.

As a Bible believer and a prophecy believer, I will be very surprised if anything on this scale occurs. In fact, I can categorically state that the planet will NOT be destroyed in September, October, or November of this year, next year, or the year after.

The Bible is amazingly clear about the events that are too take place prior to the return of the Son of God to establish a 1,000 year reign of universal peace and righteousness on this planet. On this planet, and not another.

The Bible narrative is replete with "judgments" on the earth that cause the population of the earth to decrease drastically over very short periods of time. But each incident predicted reduces the population of the earth by a quarter or a third. It is hard to imagine that the entire chain of events would be kicked off by an extinction level event where 90 percent of all men are killed and that the Bible would not mention it.

But there are some prophetic events coming up which may in fact involve this comet, or whatever it is. Elenin began attracting real attention earlier this year. There are many videos on Youtube posted in January, February, and early March of this year warning of an earth event on March 11 when Elenin would be in perfect alignment with the sun and the earth. In fact, one of the largest earthquakes in history took place in Japan on that date. Since that time people have started paying more attention to Elenin's predicted path into and out of our solar system, especially since its predicted path brings it very close to earth and it is predicted to come between the sun and the earth at very close proximity.

On September 27, the current models show Elenin aligned perfectly between the sun and the earth. The potential for some sort of seismic incident at that time are tremendous, as the magnetic pull on the earth could cause every fault line to shift and every volcano to blow. The solar activity caused by Elenin's pull on the surface of the sun could easily cause all communications and power grids on the earth to go down.

Extinction level event? Probably not. Rapture level event?

There are many, including myself, who have observed that each one of the Spring festivals of Israel were fulfilled with the first coming of Christ, and each festival was fulfilled on the day of the festival. That is, Jesus was slain at the precise time the lambs for the passover were being presented and slain in the temple. He lay "unresurrected" on the days of unleavened bread and arose on the Feast of Firstfruits. On the morrow of the seventh sabbath from that event, on Pentecost, the Holy Spirit fell on His believes, forming the mystical body known as His church.

If all of the events surround His first coming were fulfilled on the precise day of each particular festival, it is not unreasonable to believe that the fall festivals will be fulfilled at His second coming, and that the event prefigured by each festival will be fulfilled on the festival day itself. Many critics of this view (the modern term would be "haters") often attach a descriptive term such as "secret" or "silent" to the word "rapture" and then ridicule the idea of a rapture in that it could not possibly be secret or silent. In this, the "haters" are correct. However, there is not one verse in scripture that says the Rapture will be silent or secret.

The first "Second Coming" event is the Rapture of the true church, and the first Fall Festival is Rosh Hashanna, or the Feast of Trumpets. Paul specifically mentions the Rapture twice, and each time he mentions it he relates it to the blowing of a trumpet.

Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. (1 Corinthians 15:51-52)

For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep. For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. (1 Thessalonians 4:15-17)

And the Apostle John concurs in his description of a Rapture event in Revelation 4:

After this I looked, and, behold, a door was opened in heaven: and the first voice which I heard was as it were of a trumpet talking with me; which said, Come up hither, and I will shew thee things which must be hereafter. (Revelation 4:1)

Interestingly enough, the Feast of Trumpets this year will begin on September 29, just two days from the date that Elenin is predicted to be directly between, and perfectly aligned with the sun and the earth. Some are predicting three days of darkness at that time as Elenin (if it is indeed a brown dwarf as some believe and not a comet as NASA is telling us) eclipses the sun. This eclipse is projected to take place between September 25 to September 28, but it could just as easily be September 26 to September 29. During the time of darkness, the entire earth could be in seismic upheaval, with every major city being leveled and literally millions of deaths and tens or hundreds of millions "missing." It may be months after the fact before communications start going back up to normal(television, Internet, etc.) and survivors begin comparing notes.

This would also be a great time for one great man to stand up and become a world leader for a world in chaos and grief. But the rise and reign of the antichrist is the subject for another article. For this article, suffice it to say that "comet" Elenin may portend the coming of the "hated" Rapture, kicking off the chain of end-time events that will result in the Second Advent of the Lord Jesus Christ.

If so, it is safe to say the earth will survive Elenin's visit, but that does not mean that the death toll will not be unprecedentedly great. The best advice anyone can give then, is for anyone concerned about the future to make peace with God and to be prepared to meet their Creator.

For more information on how to do this, see the Gospel of John, visit http://www.midnightcry.net, or e-mail webmaster@midnightcry.net.

How to Avoid the Coming Deception

2006-03-05T16:44:00.000-08:00

Everyone agrees it’s coming, very few have any idea what it really entails.  Most people will tell you “any Spirit that denies Jesus is Lord,” is the anti-Christ and they have no idea what they are talking about.  If this is what you are depending on to prevent you from being deceived by the spiritual imposters that are coming (that are here today), you don’t have a chance.

Here’s a quick rule of thumb you can apply to any prophet, teacher, or ministry to determine if they are true to the Word of God or of they are attempting to lead you astray, wittingly or unwittingly.  The things that sound “positive,” “encouraging,” and “uplifting” to men are most likely totally out of sync with God, His plans, and the things that are actually about to occur as the End Times play out in actuality.

When asked about “when these things would be” in connection with His Second Coming, and what would be the sign of the end, Jesus enumerated a number of telltale signs—all of them negative with the exception of the fact that “this gospel of the Kingdom shall be preached” everywhere on the earth.  Outside of that, the Lord predicted horrendous affairs occurring in the natural realm.  He said it would be time of trouble such as never has been before in the history of the world.  He directly addressed “His people” and told them they should be prepared to “run for their lives” and pray that they might escape the things that are coming on the earth.

Is this the message we are hearing today from most of our “end-time” prophets?  For the most part, we are hearing how we should be prepared for the “emergence” of some new and greater manifestation of the power of God—whether it be “Joel’s Army,” “The Manchild Company,” “The Manifested Sons of God,” “a Daniel Company,” or whatever.  We are told to be ready for Revival on an unprecedented scale, and warned that those who are not spiritually prepared will miss it!

It is always interesting to hear great “men of God” who are so respected by the masses of believers as they spout off prophecies about what God is about to do and what the next move of the Spirit is going to encompass as if the Lord had not already spoken very clearly regarding this topic.  Of course, to these men He has not because they have not taken the time to study the Word of God as it relates to these issues, or if they have, they have dismissed the truth of the Word of God where it does not support their optimistic view of the present and near-future.

A case in point is a recent article by an “Elijah List” prophet, Paul Keith Davis.  In an article called “Change is Imminent,” he says:

The Great Reformation was launched with a clear prophetic word from the Lord's heart. A fullness-of-time moment had occurred in God's plan and the ministry of restoration was set in motion. That movement has been progressively accelerating to this present hour. Another crossroads has been met and great change is imminent.

Such statements, while probably almost universally accepted by the “the church” reveal a lack of understanding of the written revelation of God that has already been give us, and lack of respect for those of us who have some real understanding of what has transpired over the last 2,000 years since the ascension of our Lord Jesus Christ.

The “Great Reformation” took place in the early 16th century as the result of a resurgence in the study of scripture on the part of many, including one Martin Luther.  Although it is generally referred to as “the Great” Reformation, in fact, it accomplished little besides laying a foundation for the continued breakup and splintering of God’s people into a thousand schisms or factions which we glibly refer to as “denominations.”  This statement is in no way a defense of the Roman Catholic church, it is rather a commentary on the true “prophetic word” that went out from God regarding the Reformation.  It is found in Revelation 3:1-6.

Brother Davis makes reference to a “clear prophetic word from the Lord's heart.”  Unfortunately, he does not tell us how that word came about or who heard it!  Therefore it is difficult to comment more upon it.  It would appear however that he is totally ignorant of the true prophetic word that the Lord had spoken regarding this “fullness-of-time moment.”

He goes on to say that once this “fullness-of-time moment” had “occurred in God's plan,” the ministry of restoration was set in motion and has been progressively accelerating even to this hour.

In fact, there have been two distinct, discernable movements that have occurred in church history since the Reformation that have brought us to the present moment.  To understand, perhaps we should take a good look at the “present condition” of the Body of Christ as it is and not as some would have us believe it is.

Currently believers in the Lord Jesus Christ, or “Christians” as they are commonly called, are generally “denominated” or somehow related to one “denomination” or another.  There are thousands of denominations, but these can be grouped into several major categories:  Roman Catholicism (the denomination led by “Jezebel” as described in Revelation 2:18-29), which is prophesied to be the longest standing denomination and to be on the earth when the great tribulation comes upon it; the protestant or reformed denominations prophesied in Revelation 3:1-7, which are also predicted to be on the earth at the advent of the tribulation period when the Lord shall come upon these believers as a thief; the premillenial, fundamentalist denominations that are prophesied in Revelation 3:7-13, to which the promise is given that they will be “kept” from experiencing the tribulation that is coming upon all the earth; and the final “Charismatic Renewal,” totally obsessed with itself and full of spiritual pride and self-deception as prophesied in Revelation 3:14-22.

According to the true Word of Prophecy, then, there is not going be another “movement” of the Spirit of the scope of the Reformation, the Fundamentalist Movement, or the Charismatic Revival.  This salient fact is lost to 99.9% of all of the apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers operating on the earth today.  And this is why any of them can easily lead you astray when it comes to speaking of the things that are about to occur on the earth.  Most of them, especially those of the amillennial bent Roman Catholics and Reformation-protestants will try to paint a positive picture of the future where men of good faith and reason will prevail over the radical fundamentalist extremists of all faiths to usher in the kingdom—a world where men live in peace.  Most Charismatic-leaning “prophets” have transitioned from the previously held traditional premillennial eschatology to some weird “new” thing—“new” apostolic, “new” prophetic,” “new” Reformation-based eschatology which if anyone would take the time to look, is nothing but old, old, old amillennialism, Dominion, Kingdom Now teaching dressed up in Fundamental Premilliennial-sounding terminology.  So much so that many people could be fooled, or deceived, by these teachings without realizing it.

How can one tell the real thing from the “new” thing?  The new thing will ALWAYS have more of positive element than negative.  It will always tout the great healings that are going to take place, the great miracles, the “greater things than these” that are going to accompany the greatest revival the world has ever seen.  In its more bodacious forms, it even touts “super-apostles” that are about to appear.

My suggestion:  Do NOT follow them.  No matter how many people they raise from the dead “in Jesus name;” no matter how many people they heal “in Jesus name.”  Such a movement of God is NOT prophesied for our time, while exactly such a ministry of Satan IS prophesied, and it is prophesied that the lying signs and wonders and miracles that will accompany the coming of the antichrist will deceive many who will believe they are of God—in spite of the fact that God has clearly foretold us that they are not of God but of the Devil.

Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is?

2005-11-19T21:07:00.000-08:00

And that, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep: for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed.
(Rom 13:11)

A former NASA rocket engineer turned prophecy teacher by the name of Edgar Whisenant gained quite some notoriety nearly 20 years ago with a publication titled 88 Reasons Why the Rapture Could Be In 1998.  In this booklet, Whisenant predicted that Jesus would return to rapture His church sometime during the Jewish holiday of Rosh-Hashanah in 1988.  When that did not happen, the prevalent joke was that he was working on a sequel to be titled 89 Reasons Why the Rapture Could Be In 1999.

But beyond that, Bible teachers and prophecy proponents fell back to their default position:  “Matthew 24:36 teaches that we can not anticipate when the Lord might return.”  And this in spite of Paul’s clear teaching:

But of the times and the seasons, brethren, ye have no need that I write unto you. For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night. For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape. But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief.
(1Th 5:1-4)

So there you have it.  No man knoweth the day or the hour, but you have no need to question the times (year) and the seasons (month).  For if you are prepared for the month and the year, that day will not overtake you unexpectedly!  In the minds of the simple or the careless, this passes for a contradiction that must somehow be resolved, which is generally achieved by denying that we can know the month and/or the year of the Lord’s return based on Mathew 24:36!

This type of sloppy and inconsistent exegesis has been successfully passed off on the Body of Christ as “Christian scholarship” with the same aplomb with which John Tetzel was able to hawk indulgences in Luther’s Germany in the early 16th century.

Having said all that, do I claim to know the year and the month of the Lord’s soon return?

I don’t claim to have a handle on that, but that is a far cry from saying that no could ever know because somehow the Scripture prohibits it.

And of the children of Issachar, which were men that had understanding of the times, to know what Israel ought to do…
(1Ch 12:32)

Ah—an understanding “of the times” in which one moves and has his or her being is a rare thing indeed.  It is much easier to look back and claim to have a clear understanding of the whens, whys, and wherefores of events past.  To have and understanding of what ought to be done in the present, which is of much more crucial importance, is a much less prevalent gift.  For the clearest example possible, see the Congressional Democrats braying that the war in Iraq was a big mistake and Bush lied, etc.  Not one of them has set forth what the U.S. should do now that we are involved up to the neck in the conflict.

So here is the bottom line.  We are much closer to that day than we have ever been before, and we ought not to be surprised, shocked, or offended by anything that might be around the corner that would signal the great, final shaking has begun.  It is also a time when apostasy and deception will abound.  This deception may very well take the form of a great revival marked by unprecedented “signs and wonders.”  How does one prepare for that!?

Not by sloppy, silly, and inconsistent exegesis of the God-given prophecies intended to reveal the mystery of the eternal purposes and intents of the Almighty to those who “love His appearing,” (This, by the way, is the basic immunization against the coming deception.  It is those who love something else, whatever that may be including healing, signs, miracles, revival, more than they love His appearing.

God help us.  Lord, please raise up even a handful of prophets and teachers who have an understanding of the times we are in and who will deal straight with the brothers and sisters.

Then Cometh the End--Day Certain

2005-11-12T14:40:00.000-08:00

And the four angels were loosed, which were prepared for an hour, and a day, and a month, and a year, for to slay the third part of men. And the number of the army of the horsemen were two hundred thousand thousand: and I heard the number of them. (Rev 9:15-16)

How many of us were taught that the timing of the Tribulation and the End of the World was totally dependent on each one of us as individuals and our effectiveness in spreading the Good News?  There is a magic number of Gentile believers known only to God, and when that magic number is reached—POOF!  We will all be raptured out of here in an instant.  Therefore, we have the ability to hasten or speed up the Second Coming by preaching the Gospel and getting sinners saved.

That is what I believed until the implications of Revelation 9:15 really began to “sink down in my ears.”  The fact of the matter is, there is a moment in time that has already been set, and that moment consists of an hour or time of day, on a certain day, of a certain month on a certain year that is known only to God.  At that moment, on that day, in that month of that year, the final slaughter will be unleashed.  It will result in the death of 1/3 of the population of the earth at that time.  That hour and day and month and year is already determined.  And that is without reference to anything else other than the predeterminate will and knowledge of God.

That is to say, God went ahead and made plans for the end of the world without any respect for how you thought it should work, or for your own interpretation or misinterpretation of Romans 11:25.

In Revelation 2 and 3 the then future history of the church age is laid out prophetically in seven periods, or “churches,” beginning with the Apostolic period of church history, followed in turn by the age of general persecution, the assimilation of Roman paganism into Western Christianity, the ascendancy of the papacy, the Reformation, the recovery of Premillennial, dispensational truth (the Fundamentalist movement), culminating in the Charismatic Renewal (the church associated with a desire for, if not the possession of, health, wealth, and prosperity, power, signs, and miracles).

The most significant facet of this outline is that there is nothing more to follow after the Charismatic Renewal as far as the timing of the End of the World goes.  This does not bode well for those who for some reason believe the Bible predicts a coming age of Great Revival prior to the Great and Terrible Day of the Lord (if you have any inkling what the scriptural basis for such a belief is, I would appreciate it if you would contact me at webmaster@midnightcry.net and explain it to me.  I am obviously at a loss to find anything in the Word of God that would lead me to believe there is a period of Great Revival yet to take place in the church before the end can come.

Some things that must transpire before the end include the revelation of the Son of Perdition, which requires the rebuilding of a Jewish temple in Jerusalem, a great falling away (apostasy) in the church, and deception on a grand scale created by false signs and wonders that are being done in the name of Christ.  There is also a coming invasion of Israel by Russian and allies including Iran.  Write me and I’ll give you the scripture for each of these events.

Other events that seem certain are the invasion of aliens in their space ships, nuclear attacks on the mainland of the United States with the sudden elimination of major cities, and mass executions of Christians and Jews in FEMA camps around the country.  Scripture can also be provided to support these claims, although not as convincingly as the events previously mentioned.

But there is far more scriptural support for an alien invasion than there is for a major Revival, local or worldwide, occurring before the end.

One thing is certain, now is our salvation than when we believed (Romans 13:11).  And it will happen a time certain, and at a time not so long from now.

Conservatives Bitch-slapped by Bush Once Again

2005-10-04T20:44:00.000-07:00

During the course of the first Supreme Court justice search, when U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzalez’ name was being floated, conservatives were quick to voice their opposition to the closet liberal’s nomination for the post.  Bush’s response to the loyal GOP party base that was responsible for his election and reelection to the highest office in the land? “When someone attacks my friends, it makes me mad,” or something to that effect.

I remember the morning I heard the quote listening to NPR on the way to work.  “I guess he does not consider the “conservative right wing” to be his friends,” was all I could surmise.  It was that morning that my high opinion of and support for George W. Bush evaporated.  From that day on I realized George Bush is not a friend to conservatives, and certainly no friend of mine.

And then—surprise, surprise—W. nominated a man who appears to be a judicial conservative.  In my naiveté, I imagined that the President had become aware of the deep resentment his “friends-of-mine” comments had evoked throughout the Christian Right, and the base of the Republican Party, and had offered John Roberts as a peace offering.

And then, given the opportunity of a political life-time to name a second justice to the Supreme Court, the President nominates a complete nonentity on the basis of his friendship and trust, asking us to trust him that she will turn out not to be another Sandra Day O’Conner or David Souter—both of whom we were told, “trust us” wink-wink, were Constitutional constructionists who would toe the conservative line.  Of course, Souter turned out to be a flaming liberal, and O’Conner time after time swung left, siding with the liberal justices in important rulings.

Then today we heard it again—the President declaring that Harriet E. Miers was a close friend of his, and implied he considered any opposition to her nomination to a life seat on the highest court in the land as a personal attack against him.

Like an abused wife who learns to suffer in silence, the Republicans in congress have remained mute, with the notable exception of Senator Sam Brownback, who bluntly stated that he would not feel compelled to vote in favor of her nomination.  But some of the rest of us have been slapped down for the last time.  We get the message and we know where we’re not welcome.  And we know who our friends are.

Of Fear and FEMA

2005-09-26T15:36:00.000-07:00

Once again, cities in the south, including most of this country’s oil refining capacity, have narrowly skirted disaster.  Or have they?  President Bush is suggesting the laws regarding when federal troops can move into an area without being invited by local authorities be rewritten to allow more immediate federal response.  Considering the criticism that has been leveled at Bush and his administration for not responding sooner to Katrina, and too soon to Rita, it is not surprising that he has asked for increased authority to respond to “catastrophic emergencies.”

Understandable as it may be, the move nevertheless opens the door for unprecedented direct federal control anywhere in the United States without the express agreement of affected local authorities.  This of course raises the specter of martial law, shock troops marching through U.S. cities, forced evacuations, and FEMA camps sprouting up across the landscape.  For those who have paid much attention to the dreams and visions of the last days of America that have been published over the last few years, it is difficult not to have a visceral reaction to even the mention of FEMA.  It is fairly well-known and expected by the Prophecy Club set that FEMA will run the death-camps set up to deal with Christians who refuse to take “the mark of the beast,” and that guillotines and perhaps other devices of death and torture will be the most prominently featured hardware at these camps.

It was interesting to watch the evacuation of New Orleans as we observed large numbers of displaced people basically becoming wards of the state, herded to facilities throughout the country.  Practice run?  Perhaps.

While we continue to watch for earthquakes and solar flares, the prospect of a nuclear attack on U.S. cities, whether intentional or accidental, could be just the sort of “catastrophic emergency” needed to fully establish unquestioned federal supremacy over local and state authorities at the discretion of the President and his advisors.  Just such attacks are predicted for December of this year.  Or has one well-known prognosticator told Art Bell replacement, George Norrey, we have had the last “merry Christmas” the world will ever know.

Is it certain that these predictions will come true this year?  Maybe not.  But there certainly is not long to wait before we find out.

Prophets to no Profit (Jeremiah 23:31)

2005-09-08T19:08:00.000-07:00

Mine heart within me is broken because of the prophets; all my bones shake; I am like a drunken man, and like a man whom wine hath overcome, because of the LORD, and because of the words of his holiness. Jeremiah 23:9)

I have been led to a number of interesting Web sites over the last month or so and have become familiar with a number of “interesting” prophetic personalities.  The one thing I find “attractive” about them is that they are virtually unheard of by the “church-at-large” vis-à-vis such notable figures as Benny Hinn, Kenneth Copeland, Joyce Meyers, and the entire Elijah List cabal. This is a plus, as it quite likely that if the Lord has anything to say to the church today, that it will most likely come from some totally unexpected voice rather than the highly paid, highly esteemed Christian entertainers that pass for prophets and apostles to the enthusiastic applause and financial support of the Christian masses.

Just as the Pharisees of Jesus’ day were taken totally by surprise at the sudden appearance out of nowhere of the scruffy and uneducated, unorthodox, and unprofessional baptizer, so I have been searching for a voice certain among the stable of unlikely prophets and apostles that can be Googled from the vast wilderness of Internet obscurity—the familiar voice of the God—a voice with the unmistakable resonance of eternity, a voice that only His sheep can recognize.  A voice that is unfortunately not often discernable among the well-known Christian glitterati.

The disconcerting thing about each of these lesser lights is that for some unknown reason, they are unable to “deal straight” when it comes to relating scripture.  From Sherry Shriner and Harry Walther’s Paul bashing, to Benjamin Baruch and David Eell’s rapture-phobia (a widely prevalent affliction among modern-day prophets), to C. Peter Wagner and Bill Hamer’s confusing eschatological scenario, it seems no one is able to just relax and allow the scripture to be the final authority in these and all other matters.

I am the first to admit that I don’t know everything and I don’t have every line of scripture totally figured out.  I don’t know if the rapture takes place at the beginning or the middle of the “Tribulation,” and I’m not 100 percent sure how we know exactly what marks the beginning of the Tribulation.

Having said that, here is what I do know for sure.  I know that “the church” is mentioned more than 20 times in chapters 2 and 3 of Revelation and then is not mentioned again until the chronological narrative of the end times is concluded in chapter 21. Between the end of chapters 2 and 3 and the opening of the first seal in Revelation chapter 5 a scene strikingly reminiscent of the “rapture” is described in chapter four, i.e., a trumpet blast and a command to “come up hither.”

I know that every measure of time mentioned in the Book of Revelation adds up to three and a half years—not seven years.

I know that a group of 144,000 from every tribe of Israel is NOT the church, because there is neither Jew nor Gentile “in Christ.”  I also know that a group of people of said to “without number” and taken from every nation is NOT the same group as the group with a specific number taken from the 12 tribes of Israel.  And I know that this second group is also NOT the church for the same reason that the first group is NOT the church.  I also know that many of those who presume to comment on the “last things” are desperate to make BOTH of these groups “the church.”  What I don’t understand is why.  Why insist on doing such violence to the clear meaning and intent of scripture?

Where we can we find a commentator that will deal honestly with the scripture as it stands?  Chuck Missler probably comes as close as anyone.  And Ken Parsons of warzonewinner.com seems to be a fairly straight shooter.

According to David Eells, all things will be dissolved PRIOR to the 1,000 year millennial kingdom. Makes you wonder why John put the chapter describing it AFTER the chapter describing the 1,000 year kingdom. But according to this brother, the rapture and the resurrection are synonymous, so the rapture does not occur until the end of the 1,000 year kingdom. Either that, OR the Heavens and Earth pass away PRIOR to inception of the kingdom.

It is encouraging to see Mike Bickle somewhat conspicuously back-peddling to a more traditional premillennial view of the coming kingdom, having come to the brink of the abyss of a Wagneresque neo-amillennialism.  He continues to fumble and bumble about when attempting to push the rapture out as close as possible to the actual second coming event, but in the attempt he leaves only a matter of days for all of the vial judgments to take place, as it is incumbent upon him to begin the rapture event and the descent of the Lord Jesus prior to any of the vials being emptied, at the occurrence of the final trumpet judgment. And then he makes the rapture an extended process rather than a suddenly-of-God event that may take a month or longer to accomplish.  That should be enough time to get those seven chronologically inconvenient vials poured out on the earth.

Nevertheless, it is heartening to see that the word “rapture” has reasserted itself into the vocabulary of such an influential teacher as Mike Bickle.  Perhaps we can look forward to the term regaining some semblance of respectability, which it has been totally lacking since falling into disrepute by Stan Johnson and the Prophecy Club club and other Left Behind bashers.

Jack Van Impe is lost to us now, having gone the way of Chuck Colson and Tony Compolo, all the way to Rome.  Apparently none of these men have read Dave Hunt’s “A Woman Rides the Beast,” or if they have, they have not been persuaded.  So there stand Grant Jefferies, Hal Lyndsey, and John Hagee pretty much where we left them not so many years ago.

So where are the prophets the Lord spoke of in Amos 3:7?  A Google search yields precious little worth reporting.  But with the earth about on its last leg, with the earthquakes about to ring out, and the sun flares threatening to scorch the landscape, now would be a really good time to hear from one.

So I’ll keep up my search and if I find anyone interesting—more interesting than Prophet Yahwah or Elija the Tishbite, I’ll be sure to let you know.  In the meantime, if you know of a real prophet on the earth today, drop me a line and let me in on it.

Portent of Things to Come?

2005-09-01T22:19:00.000-07:00

Hurricane Katrina slammed into New Orleans bringing destruction of Biblical proportions.

The images of thousands upon thousands of men, women, and children awaiting rescue from the rising waters, without food, water, or basic sanitation are both heartbreaking and frightening.  Roaming bands of armed looters, sniper shots aimed at rescue helicopters, reports of rape and beatings, videos of men and women growing increasingly desperate and increasingly angry can be viewed with indifference only because the events are taking place somewhere else—not in my town.

But what is happening in my town? Gas prices are skyrocketing and it is being blamed on those faraway, surreal events. Gas shortages coupled with the closure of the largest port in the United States could soon result in shortages of fresh fruit and vegetables and who knows what in places as far away as Missouri.

We’ve been sitting here waiting for the other shoe to drop. Take a good look—the same thing could very well be coming to a town near you.  Before it’s over, many of us may be herded into FEMA camps “for our own protection” only to be led to the guillotines reserved for all those who refuse to take “the mark.”

For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be. (Mat 24:21)

The residents of New Orleans were warned repeatedly to flee the storm to come, but many doubted the predictions would come true.

How many people today doubt that the Big Trouble spoken of by Jesus may actually come to pass in our lifetime?

Things are beginning to shape up.  The things predicted so long ago are gradually coming into focus.  Trouble is on the horizon, tribulation just around the corner.  There is only one way to find refuge, and that is to come to Jesus before the levees break and trouble rises like a flood.  Right there where you live.

As the prophet Neil Young once intoned, “Are you ready for the country? Because it’s time to go.”

But go ye and learn what that meaneth.

Blessed is he who is not offended in me...

2005-08-26T19:51:00.000-07:00

Blessed are you who are not offended
and blessed are you who are not confused!

He's not a baby in a manger anymore.

He's not a man hanging on a cross.

And He will not stay in heaven forever.

He's preparing to do a new thing.

For the LORD shall rise up as in mount Perazim, he shall be wroth as in the valley of Gibeon, that he may do his work, his strange work; and bring to pass his act, his strange act.(Isa 28:21)

And blessed are you who are not offended
And blessed are you who are not confused

Who is this that cometh from Edom, with dyed garments from Bozrah? this that is glorious in his apparel, travelling in the greatness of his strength? I that speak in righteousness, mighty to save.

Wherefore art thou red in thine apparel, and thy garments like him that treadeth in the winefat?

I have trodden the winepress alone; and of the people there was none with me: for I will tread them in mine anger, and trample them in my fury; and their blood shall be sprinkled upon my garments, and I will stain all my raiment.
For the day of vengeance is in mine heart, and the year of my redeemed is come. (Isa 63:1-4)

The Lord will roar from Zion.

And blessed are you who are not offended
And blessed are you who are not confused

And it's nearer now than when you first believed.
It's closer than it's ever been.

Blessed are you if you are not offended.
Blessed are you if you are not confused by the things that shortly must come upon the earth and all that dwell therein.

For then shall be Tribulation on the earth, such as never has been nor ever shall be. And men's hearts shall fail them for fear for looking on the things that are coming on the earth.

And blessed are you...

Israel Identity and the Amazing Vanishing New Testament

2005-08-19T20:50:00.000-07:00

Once again I find myself rubbing shoulders with “patriots” and “American Sovereigns” and the old, once forgotten vocabulary is reasserting itself into my consciousness. I have always shrugged off some of the absurdities of the terminology; I am not me, I am a legal fiction; my name is not my name, it is the name of a corporation; the government is not legal; our money is not real money (but if I sign my name to an IOU, that IS real money); and on and on.

I have even sat quietly as those about me asserted that George Bush personally planned and directed the attack on the Twin Towers to provide an excuse to go to war with Iraq. Why? For the oil, of course! No one has explained to me where W. is putting this oil. In a barn in Crawford, Texas?

But now I am hearing something I cannot abide and about which I cannot remain silent. And that is, that the Jews are not really Jews and the modern nation of Israel has nothing to do with the prophesied restoration of Israel because it is being run by Zionists who believe the Talmud rather than Judaistic adherents of Torah.

Now, there are just all kinds of things wrong with this kind of thinking.

First of all, if I claim to be a Bible-believing Christian and I want to know who is a “true Jew,” I only need to look to the sons of Esau and Ishmael to help me locate them. It will be the people that is most detested, held in the most contempt, and for whom the most animosity is displayed. Yep. See how easy it is?

Since it doesn’t make sense, there must be some deeper reason why it becomes so important for these “Christians” to distance themselves from the historic victims of the Inquisition, the Pogroms, and the Holocaust (easily identifiable and traceable—this is the Diaspora that has streamed into the nation of Israel since the refounding of the nation in 1948). What could the reason be?

As far as I can see, they are motivated by the same hate for the U.S. government in general and George W. Bush in particular that drives Cindy Sheehan and her fellow ditch-dwellers camped out in Crawford, Texas.

This, with a healthy dose of racism, known as the “Christian Identity” movement or the “Israel Identity” movement seems to explain a lot. These “identity” movements are nothing more or less than blatant racism (many can be traced to the White Supremacist movement) attempting to demonstrate that white, Bible-believing Christians in America are the “true Israel” and the Jews currently in the nation of Israel are half demonic imposters who are not to be supported in any way shape or form.

The intellectual and scriptural contortions one must subject oneself to in order to actually come to a place of believing this are almost beyond imagining.

It seems once one has taken this position, it is just a hop, skip, and a jump to the position that the Apostle Paul was an imposter and that he is not the great Apostle God used to establish the church throughout Asia Minor, but is in fact the greatest corrupter of the Gospel of Jesus Christ that ever walked on two legs. This is the “new thing” being promoted by Sherry Shriner, Harry Walther, Zeph Daniel, and a host of others. If you don’t know who these people are, it’s quite alright.

But what impresses me most is how wonderfully and masterfully the Word of God has been woven, like an intricate tapestry—such that an effort to eliminate even one line eventually causes the entire book to unravel in your hands. For example, these “Identity-ists” find it necessary to defuse Romans 9 through 11:25. To achieve this, they have to eliminate all of the writings of Paul. But having made a devil out of Paul, they also lose the book of Acts, and to accomplish this (the discrediting of Luke), one also loses one of the four Gospels. The New Testament now consists of Matthew, Mark, John, and Hebrews through Revelation.

But wait. Paul’s authorship of Hebrews, although denied by mainline scholars is almost a certainty, and if it is not authored by Paul it is certainly authored by a Pauline wantabee. So let’s strike Hebrews as well. But it gets worse. Peter insists that the letters Paul has written are to be accepted as scripture (II Peter 3:15, 16). He goes further to say that those who try to twist the writings of Paul to suit their own needs do so at the risk of their own damnation!

No problem. We can appeal to the textual critics who doubt the Peterine authorship of the epistles ascribe to Peter (as they doubt all things attested to in Scripture).

And if one accepts the argument they use to discredit the writings of Paul, namely that the things he teaches contradict the teachings of Jesus, one could easily make the same arguments against the writings of John. After all, nowhere in the two gospels that agree did Jesus say anything about a “new birth,” the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, or being “saved by faith” as John proposes in John 3:16 and elsewhere. This concept of being “saved by faith” is said by Sherry Shriner and her ilk to be the most reprehensible false teaching of Paul. Therefore, the gospel of John can be shown to wholly Pauline in its teachings. So let’s toss all of the writings of John. Our New Testament now consists of Matthew, Mark, James, and Jude. We could eliminate the gospel of Mark through his association with Peter, who we have already had to dump. And it is questionable whether Jude was one of the 12 apostles, leaving Matthew and James.

Some New Testament!

Don’t mess with Texas… and leave that New Testament alone. God has it booby-trapped so that you either take the New Testament as whole, or lose the whole thing.

Wheels, Bridges, and the Gaza Strip

2005-08-12T21:06:00.000-07:00

I've paid my vows, no turning around
I've burned the bridges, they can't be found

Or as the Grateful Dead sang

The wheel is turning and you can't slow it down
You can't let go and you can't hold on
Can't go back and you can't stand still
If the thunder don't get ya, then the lightening will

The world continues to press on toward Armegeddon.

The Israeli government will begin its forced evacuation of Jewish settlements in the Gaza strip this week.

What a monumental mistake! The Lord God the Holy One of Israel has returned the children of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob to the land which He promised to their fathers, and for the first time in history the leaders of the people are voluntarily giving the land away, abandoning it to the enemies of Israel, God, and all that is good.

Could this be the very "covenant with death" the Lord spoke of in Isaiah 28:15-18, which He said He would "disannul." It certainly has every indication of being suicidal. After all, there will be no peace with the Palestinians. Not ever. Have you ever heard a Palestinian proposal for a Palestinian state and a secure Israel. Why, of course not. The Palestinians are totally of one mind and one accord in their determination to utterly destroy every Jewish man, woman, and child in Israel. And you're going to appease this bunch by surrending a few settlements?

This is going to be a hell of a week.

A hell of week.

We've been waiting for the other shoe to drop. Watch this! For when they say "Peace," then sudden destruction shall come upon them.

Sudden.

Destruction.

The pullout from the settlements, they say, are intended to result in... peace! Hold on to your hat. Fasten your seat belts. The wheel is turning and you can't slow it down. It won't be long now.

Small wheel turn by fire and rod
Big wheel turn by the grace of God
Every time that wheel turns 'round
We're bound to cover just a little more ground.

End of the World (I Feel Fine)

2005-08-09T18:09:00.000-07:00

Today was a mixed bag at best. I couldn't get Sherry Shriner's "Aliens in the News" and I think she may have discontinued it. Where are we going to find out what's really going on around here? Fox News!!??

I was able to listen to an archived broadcast of Rob McConnell's X-Zone Radio, and as usual he played one of my favorite songs:

What if God was one of us
Just a slob like one of us
Just a stranger on the bus
Trying to make his way home

Truly inspired. Another great tune by R.E.M heard on McConnell's show today...

Tell me with the rapture and the
reverent in the right - right.
You vitriolic, patriotic, slam, fight, bright light
feeling pretty psyched.
It's the end of the world as we know it.
It's the end of the world as we know it.
It's the end of the world as we know it and I feel fine

Also inspired, if not inspiring. Something to keep us entertained while we sit here and wait for the other shoe to drop.

And we need to be entertained. We have come to feel it is a constitutional right, endowed on us by our Creator.

What is most of what we see on TBN and in most of our churches if it is not entertainment? It is certainly NOT preaching in the sense that you would have expected from Paul, Peter, John, or any of the first century apostles! It is specifically designed NOT to make anyone uncomfortable, but, on the contrary, to make people feel good about themselves, and to feel, well, entertained. How else are you going to keep them coming back when there is so much competition?

If God had a name, what would it be
And would you call it to his face
If you were faced with him in all his glory
What would you ask if you had just one question

And as always, have a nice day!

Have a Nice Day!

2005-08-06T19:59:00.000-07:00

I just rediscovered this blog. Evidently I posted once and then forgot about it.

Lately I've been thinking it might be a good time to get a blog going. There is so much going on. Things are heating up so quickly. The Lord is at the door. The world is about to be shaken apart, almost to the point of utter destruction. Billions will die. This will be a time of great tribulation such as has never been...

Have a nice day!

So what should we talk about? The coming alien invasion? The earthquake that is about to nearly destroy the West Coast? Nuclear strikes on U.S. cities? Solar flares, or "kill shots" turning the earth into a rotisserie? United Nations troops rounding up Christians and moving them to FEMA-run concentration camps for "their own safety?" The government deliberately poisoning the water supply of millions to effect selective population control?

These are a few of my favorite things--as the song goes. This is just a sampling of the things we will be faced with over the next very few years.

Why do you think Jesus said men's hearts would be failing them for fear when they see the things coming upon the earth?

Did you think He was kidding? Or exaggerating?

Let me tell you something. God does NOT exaggerate.

I know one thing. Very soon our priorities are going to change. Drastically. So many of things we sit around and argue and bicker about now are going to pale in significance compared to finding food and water, finding safe lodging underground to keep from being roasted by the sun and contaminated by nuclear fall out.

So, like I said, have a nice day.

Blogging toward Jerusalem

2004-04-19T21:05:00.001-07:00

Here we are, blogging toward Jerusalem. The King is about to return. The church is in total confusion. Oh, there's going to be a great revival, we're told. Signs! Wonder! Miracles! The Greater Works! The Holy Spirit is coming in Power to give dreams and visions, and all that stuff. But the fact of the matter is, the church for the most part is in dreadful disarray. The left hand doesn't know what the right hand is doing.

Don't talk about being "Pentecostal" if you can't get together with 120 other believers and all be in one accord. The Lord prayed the believers would be "One." Paul said we are all baptized into ONE Body by the same spirit. I'm not talking about getting along with other believers in YOUR denomination, or who agree with you about doctrine and who use the same Bible version you do. I'm talking about "no divisions" -- not even between you and those who totally disagree with everything you think you believe.

What would the King say if He were here "in the flesh?" Bickering children, arguing about who will sit on the right hand and who will sit on the left. Making a great stand for doctrinal positions -- "understanding neither what they say, nor whereof they affirm."

You don't like my tone? Tough. I'm a brother in Christ. Washed in the Blood. Saved. Sanctified--as good as in Heaven with the door shut.

"That sounds like 'once saved always saved.' We don't believe that in MY church."

"Your Church? When did you start a church? How many days did you spend in the bowels of hell to earn the right to establish a church? There's only one church, brother, and only one way in.

Yes, my heart is inditing a good matter. I speak of things touching the King. He's coming. And like the bumper sticker says -- "Boy, is He mad!" Judgment begins in the House of God. Get ready to rumble.