The year 2017 will mark 120 years from an event known as the First Zionist Congress which met in Basil, Switzerland beginning on August 29, 1897. It was called by Theodor Hertzel who declared that the goal of Zionism is to create for the Jewish people a home in Eretz-Israel secured by (international) law. The congress came up with four goals, including promoting the settlement in Eretz-Israel with Jewish farmers, artisans and manufactures, the organization and unifying of worldwide Jewry, the strengthening of Jewish national sentiment and national consciousness and promoting the cause with national governments.
Theodor Hertzel is known as the father of modern day Israel and August 29, 1897 marked the beginning of the reestablishment of the Jewish people into their ancient and promised homeland.
The time frame of 120 years is first mentioned in scripture in Genesis chapter 6;
Now it came about, when men began to multiply on the face of the land, and daughters were born to them, that the sons of God (fallen angels in this reference) saw that the daughters of men were beautiful; and they took wives for themselves, whomever they chose. Then the Lord said; "My Spirit shall not strive with man forever, because he also is flesh; nevertheless his days shall be one hundred and twenty years."
God was not pleased with this corruption of man's genetic code and He also noticed that the wickedness of man was great on the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. So God decides that He is going to wipe off mankind from the face of the earth with the exception of Noah and his family. Before this judgement God gives man another 120 years of grace.
Now let us look at a couple of things that Jesus tells His disciples in the 24th chapter of Matthew. The temple during Jesus day was considered to be one of the wonders of the ancient world. In Matthew's account Jesus is walking out of the temple and His disciples come up to Him and point out the temple buildings. In response Jesus informs them;
Truly I say to you, not one stone here will be left upon another, which will not be torn down.
Jesus words came true in 70 AD when at the end of a 2 year campaign the Romans breached the walls of Jerusalem, slaughtered the inhabitants, set fire to the temple and when the massive amount of gold in the temple melted in the flames the soldiers tore apart the stones to get to the gold.
The disciples later come up to Jesus and ask Him; What will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age? One of the things Jesus tells them is the parable of the fig tree. In scripture the fig tree is one of the symbols for the Jewish nation.
Now learn the parable from the fig tree: when its branch has already become tender and puts forth its leaves, you know that summer is near; so you too, when you see all these things recognize that He is near, right at the door. Truly I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things take place.
The Jewish nation basically ceased to exist after the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD. Millions of Jews were either killed or hauled off into slavery and although there were other rebellions such as Masada some years later. that was it. There would always be a small remnant of Jews left in the land but most would eventually settle in other parts of the world.
In Matthew 24 Jesus is talking about things that would happen in a reestablished Israel and it's capital Jerusalem. Israel is the fig tree that would start to bloom and the word generation is not, as many try to suggest, a time frame for the last generation. It refers to the Jewish people. They would be scattered throughout the world but would not become extinct. Always God's unique people they would be restored to their promised land and see Jesus prophecy fulfilled.
From this we must notice two things. First, Israel is now after almost 2000 years once more a Jewish nation. And second, "When you see these things (false Christs, the gospel of the kingdom being preached to all the world, the Abomination of Desolation standing in the holy place which would require a Jewish temple located in Jerusalem,) recognize that He (Jesus) is near".
And why is Jesus near? To bring about a judgment on the world, the purpose of which is to prepare the world for the return of Jesus, this time as the King of kings who will rule the world from the nation of Israel, based in it's capital, Jerusalem.
And the judgement will be horrible, both for the world as well as for all Jews living either in Israel or any other part of our planet. Jesus words from Matthew 24 goes on;
For the coming of the Son of Man will be just like the days of days of Noah. For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and they did not understand until the flood came and took them all away; so will the coming of the Son of Man be.
There are other significant dates concerning the Jewish nation. In the year 1517 Jerusalem and the promised land became controlled by the Ottoman Empire. In 1917, twenty years after the First Zionist Conference in 1897 and 400 years after 1517, control of the promised land switched over to Great Britain who conquered Jerusalem without a fight during WWI.
In 1917 Britain issued The Balfour Declaration which was a letter from Foreign Secretary Balfour to Baron Rothschild, a leader of the Jewish community, stating: "His Majesty's government views with favor the establishment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people, and will use their best efforts to facilitate the achievement of the object."
In 1947, 50 years after the First Zionist Conference, 30 years after Jerusalem was freed from total Arab and Muslim control, and 30 years after the Balfour Declaration the United Nations adopted on November 29 Resolution 181. This called for the creation in Palestine of an independent Arab state, an independent Jewish state, and the status of the city of Jerusalem to be under international trusteeship.
On May 18, 1948 Israel declared itself to be an independent Jewish nation and survived all attempts during the next few years to wipe it out.
Then in 1967, 19 years after becoming a nation, 20 years after the UN resolution, 50 years after Jerusalem was freed from total Arab and Muslim control by the British who gave consent to the Jews to settle there and 70 years after the First Zionist Conference, the eastern half of Jerusalem was captured by Israeli forces during the 6 day war against Egypt, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon and Iraq. Prior to that the old city of Jerusalem was divided into four quarters. One was Muslim, one was Christian, one was Armenian and one was Jewish. Almost all of the Jewish holy places, including the temple mount, had been under Muslim control and were not accessible to Jews. Now for the first time in almost 2000 years control of the entire city reverted back to Jewish hands. The foundation for prophecy to be fulfilled was now laid. Israel was once again a nation and Jerusalem was once more at the center of everything.
The year 2017 will also be the Jewish year 5777. On May 18, 2017 (5777) modern Israel will celebrate it's 49th anniversary. That is a time frame of 7 weeks of 7 years (7 x 7). It will probably wait until it's 50th anniversary in 2018 to begin the rebuilding of the temple. The year 2017 will mark 120 years from the call in Basil, Switzerland for a Jewish homeland. It will mark 100 years of freedom from total Arab and Muslim control. It will mark 100 years of exodus from the gentile nations back to the promised land. And it will mark 70 years from when the world via the United Nations called for the creation of a Jewish state.
On June 4, 2017 (5777) the Christian world celebrates the feast of Pentecost. The corresponding Jewish feast of Shavuot is celebrated on May 30/June 1. As I've suggested before, if the Rapture is to occur on a feast day it is my opinion that because the Holy Spirit was poured out upon the Church on the first Pentecost after Jesus resurrection and ascension it would make sense that the ministry of the Holy Spirit through the Church would be removed via the Rapture on another Pentecost.
Like Noah and his family the Church is first taken from the world (secured in the ark) so that God's judgment can proceed.
Pentecost is the middle of the 7 major Jewish feasts. In His sufferings and death (Passover), His time before the resurrection (Unleavened Bread) and resurrection (First Fruits) Jesus prophetically fulfilled the first 3. These were Spring Feasts. Passover/Shavuot was 50 days later and then we have waited all these years for the fulfillment of the final 3 Jewish feasts which happen in the fall. Most prophecy scholars are looking for the Rapture during the Feast of Trumpets / Rosh Hashanah (the first fall feast) because of the mention of trumpets that the Bible talks about in a couple of end time prophecies that are connected to the Rapture of the Church and also because the idea of the trumpet blast was to call out the assembly (the Jewish nation or in this case the Church) from the world. And maybe they are right.
Rosh Hashanah is also known as the Jewish New Year. in 2017 Rosh Hashanah occurs on September 20/22 and will be at the beginning of the Jewish year 5778.
If the Rapture does happen on that Pentecost or Rosh Hashanah there will still be at least 7 years before the return of Jesus to Jerusalem sometime in the year 2024 or later. There may be a gap of days or weeks or even years until the Antichrist makes a 7 year agreement with the Jewish nation. In the middle of that his image is set up in the holy place of the Jewish temple (the Abomination of Desolation) and the Jewish people will flee Jerusalem for their lives.
The world can change quite a bit by the time we reach June of 2017. Ebola or something else might lead to panic, the collapse of the financial markets, martial law and the overall destruction of our society. Or, as scripture says, everything could be just fine. People will be eating, drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, blissfully unaware that an hour later The Restrainer will be taken away and the Righteous Judge will begin the process of reclaiming what is rightfully His.
Saturday, October 18, 2014
Wednesday, October 8, 2014
The Meaning Of Isis
Submit. To submit or die. That is what the word Islam means.
The Bible talks about God calling Abraham out of Ur of the Chaldeans to go to a land that He would show him. Abraham was to walk through that territory and any place he traveled would be given to Abraham and he would become the father of a great nation. Go forth from your country . . . to the land which I will show you; And I will make you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great . . . And I will bless those who bless you, and the one who curses you I will curse. (Gen: 12: 1-5) This "royal grant" is much larger than what is occupied by the nation of Israel today. God's covenant promise to Abraham was reconfirmed by God through his son Isaac and then again through Isaac's son Jacob, who had the 12 sons who were the beginnings of the 12 tribes of Israel.
God had promised Abraham that a great nation would come from him but Abraham had some doubts because he and his wife Sarai were getting along in years. So Sarai arraigned for Abraham to have sexual relations with their Egyptian servant Hagar. As soon as it was obvious that Hagar conceived Sarai got jealous and had Abraham send her away. The offspring from this union was Ishmael. God then made a promise through an angel to Hagar; I will greatly multiply your descendants so that they shall be too many to count . . . Behold, you are with child, and you shall bear a son; And you shall call his name Ishmael . . . he will be a wild donkey of a man, his hand will be against everyone and everyone's hand will be against him; (Gen. 16: 10-12) Those descendants would become the Arab nations who settled in the regions of central and north central Arabia.
The child that God's promise was to go through from Abraham was not Ishmael but rather it was through Isaac, the child that Sarai (now Sarah) bore some years later. When Isaac's wife Rebekah first conceived she had twins, Jacob and Esau. Esau was the first born and the promise was to go through him but as you remember Jacob tricked Esau into selling this birthright to Jacob for a bowl of stew. Later on when it was time for now blind and dying Isaac to give his blessings Jacob and his mother Rebekah conspired to trick Isaac into giving the first born blessing to Jacob. The blessing ends with the same phrase that God gave to Abraham; Cursed be those who curse you, and blessed be those who bless you. (Gen: 27: 29)
Esau then comes for his blessing and this is what he gets; Behold, away from the fertility of the earth shall be your dwelling, and away from the dew of heaven from above. By your sword you shall live, and your brother you shall serve . . . So Esau bore a grudge against Jacob because of the blessing. (Gen. 27: 39-41) The descendants of Esau would become the Edomites and would settle in a land much less fertile than Canaan in territory which is now part of Jordan. Most people calling themselves Palestinians have come from this area.
Let us now jump ahead over 1500 years. In about 570 AD in central Arabia (Saudi Arabia) in the town of Mecca was born a man whose name was Mohammad. His parents, part of the dominate tribe of the area, left him orphaned at an early age. Eventually he was raised by an uncle and became a traveling merchant. Every year he would take a week or two and go into a cave in a mountain to contemplate. Around the year 610 Mohammad claims that he was visited by the angel Gabriel who gave him certain revelations. At first he thinks he has been visited by a demon but after a few years he starts preaching to his family and neighbors the revelations he has received.
Eventually he gets some converts, things snowball, his revelations, teachings and examples are written down in books called the Qur'an and the Hadith and the religion he created is spread by force in the Arabian peninsula and beyond, spreading throughout northern Africa, Spain, the Balkans, Asia Minor (Turkey), southern Eurasia (all the "stan" countries), Persia (Iran), eastern China and parts of India. Islam began in the Arab world but as you can see there are many other races that claim Islam as their faith.
The basic precepts of Islam for every Muslim are very simple: Acknowledge that there is no God but Allah, and Mohammad is his prophet. Pray toward Mecca several times a day. Make a pilgrimage to Mecca at least once in a lifetime. Give alms to the poor. Fast and make an animal sacrifice during the Islamic holy month.
To understand the roots of Islam, where it has come from and where it is going, we need to start looking at the time and place of Mohammad back in 610 AD. The Arab people were tribal with no central leadership. They worshiped a pantheon of gods and each tribe and city had a special god that was their protector. There was a building in Mecca called the Kaaba which housed 360 of their pagan statues as well as a black meteorite which people would honor and worship by kissing it. The head and most powerful god of the Arab pantheon was named Allah, who was the male moon god whose symbol was the crescent moon. There is a tremendous amount of archaeological evidence showing that the moon god was worshiped widely throughout the Mid-East at that time and well before. Allah had several daughters who were considered goddesses.
Mohammad was familiar with both Jewish and Christian thought and their scriptures. He had a Jewish and a Christian wife and Mecca was the center of a trade route which saw the mingling of many cultures. His new religion declared some things that were payback for the historic enmity between the Arab and the Jew and their offshoot, the Christians. He taught that there were certain prophets throughout history that worshiped only one God. These were Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses, Jesus and others who worshiped one God and the God they worshiped was Allah. Mohammad taught that he was the final and last prophet and as the last prophet he declared that the Jewish and Christian scriptures were corrupted and must be understood by his teachings. Thus you see the first tenant of Islam, there is no God but Allah, and Mohammad is his prophet.
Now here is a point that I don't want you to miss and is crucial to understanding what is happening today with ISIS and all other expressions of what is now being called radical Islam. Mohammad taught that God's promise would come through Ishmael, not Isaac and that the promise of land, not just for the Arab but for those that submitted to Islam would eventually cover the entire world. The charge for the followers of Allah was to take the land, by force if necessary and either convert all the conquered to Islam, or have them submit to Islamic rule and pay an annual tax, or die.
In the early 300's the Roman emperor Constantine recognized Christianity as an official state religion for the purpose of uniting the far flung empire. He didn't ban all the other forms of religion and the worship of their gods but he heavily supported the Christian religion making it the dominate religion. Mohammad would in effect do the same thing for the Arab people. He didn't come up with a new god that the people were not acquainted with. Allah was already recognized as the chief deity. Most Arabs would pray toward the Kaaba in Mecca several times a day and would make an effort to make a pilgrimage there sometime in their life. Killing an animal like a sheep as a sacrifice to their god was already practiced and most people gave alms to the poor. The annual month of fasting that Mohammad instituted would begin and end on a crescent moon, thus honoring Allah, an obvious connection to Allah as the moon god.
And because Mohammad was the last prophet, what he taught and did became the basis for a new legal system that would be imposed on all the conquered peoples.
Today there are 4 streams or factions of Islam. They all recognize Allah as the only god and Mohammad as his prophet but are divided on their interpretation of the Qur'an and the Haddith and on which successors to Mohammad were most legitimate. The Hanbali school of law is the strictest, meaning that it follows most closely the literal meaning of the Qur'an and Haddith. This is the one followed in Saudi Arabia and is also the one accepted by most Islamic terrorists. They believe that any land once ruled by Islam still belongs to Islam but also that the ultimate goal is for the entire world to become ruled by the same brand of Islam that Mohammad and his armies followed.
They view the world as being divided into two; Dar al-Islam, which means the house of Islam (land now ruled by Islam) and Dar al-itarb, which means the house of war (any other land, including our dear USA that eventually will become ruled by Islam). And for the ISIS's and other militant groups it isn't just good enough to already be Muslim. One now has to accept the Hanbali brand of Islam or die, no matter if you are man, woman or a child.
The goal of ISIS on the road to world domination is to create an Islamic caliphate covering all the territory once ruled by Islam or currently heavily populated by Muslims. Recently the head Turkish imman revealed a map listing 13 Islamic states that will form this caliphate. They are named Andalus (Spain), Maghreb (north western Africa), Alkinana (north eastern Africa), Habasha (central Africa), Orobpo (the Balkan region of Europe, Romania and Austria), Anathol (western Turkey), Qoqzaz (all the land between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea), Kordistan (eastern Turkey, western Iran), Sham (Syria, Lebanon, Israel and Jordan), Iraq (Iraq), Hijaz (Saudi Arabia), Yaman (Yemen and Oman) and Khurason (all the stan countries plus India and western China). The plan is to eventually eliminate the Christian states and end up with 10 states, all headquartered in Turkey.
At one time this all seemed so far away to us living in the U.S. The average American is not aware of the violent conflicts that exist between Muslims and other religions in places like India, Africa and Asia. We are not aware that Muslim populations have skyrocketed throughout Europe and that they establish communities that do not intermingle or assimulate with the general population and have their own Islamic laws. We are not aware of the many mosques being built in our country which are paid for by Saudi Arabia, many of which teach the Hanbali school of thought. We are not aware that cities like Dearborn, Michigan are heavily populated and run by Muslims, that although Islamic law is not officially on the books there it is still being enforced in the Islamic community. And now 13 years after 911 we forget that 19 of the hijackers came from Saudi Arabia.
However, now that Americans have been beheaded with the public warning that our homeland is next there seems to be a greater awareness that we are not facing a threat from an isolated bunch of loony radicals. Our politicians, dumb as they are toward Islamic thought, have always thought that land for peace would be a good deal for Israel. Western thought could not fathom the idea that land for peace was always a ploy, a tactic toward the eventual goal of reclaiming Islamic lands and enforcing the edict of their prophet, to destroy all the Jews.
Let me end by retelling a story that I heard in church last Sunday. Our pastor received an email from a missionary family from our church who are ministering in northern Africa. They said it was the beginning of the Muslim holy month and the talk of the town was all about sheep. Every family needed to purchase at least 1 sheep to sacrifice and people would say, "Have you got your sheep yet?", or "Where did you get your sheep?" or "How much did your sheep cost?" The missionary family was actually quite sad for the people because their faith was so works based. Theirs is an angry god who requires animal sacrifices and in return gives no assurances to the people that they could ever do enough to enter paradise.
Our pastor then read from the book of Hebrews which talks about Jesus being the lamb who was slain for our sins. and not through the blood of goats and calves, but through His own blood, He entered the holy place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption. (Heb. 9: 12)
We are not to hate anyone but we need to be aware that the world is rapidly changing and that traditional Islam is on the move and gaining steam and with each success there will be a switching of alliances from the moderate to the radical. The foundations of our laws, based on Judeo Christian thought, have been crumbling for decades and what is to replace it? If it is not rebuilt something else will replace it and everything we hold dear as Americans will be doomed. Wake up America!
The Bible talks about God calling Abraham out of Ur of the Chaldeans to go to a land that He would show him. Abraham was to walk through that territory and any place he traveled would be given to Abraham and he would become the father of a great nation. Go forth from your country . . . to the land which I will show you; And I will make you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great . . . And I will bless those who bless you, and the one who curses you I will curse. (Gen: 12: 1-5) This "royal grant" is much larger than what is occupied by the nation of Israel today. God's covenant promise to Abraham was reconfirmed by God through his son Isaac and then again through Isaac's son Jacob, who had the 12 sons who were the beginnings of the 12 tribes of Israel.
God had promised Abraham that a great nation would come from him but Abraham had some doubts because he and his wife Sarai were getting along in years. So Sarai arraigned for Abraham to have sexual relations with their Egyptian servant Hagar. As soon as it was obvious that Hagar conceived Sarai got jealous and had Abraham send her away. The offspring from this union was Ishmael. God then made a promise through an angel to Hagar; I will greatly multiply your descendants so that they shall be too many to count . . . Behold, you are with child, and you shall bear a son; And you shall call his name Ishmael . . . he will be a wild donkey of a man, his hand will be against everyone and everyone's hand will be against him; (Gen. 16: 10-12) Those descendants would become the Arab nations who settled in the regions of central and north central Arabia.
The child that God's promise was to go through from Abraham was not Ishmael but rather it was through Isaac, the child that Sarai (now Sarah) bore some years later. When Isaac's wife Rebekah first conceived she had twins, Jacob and Esau. Esau was the first born and the promise was to go through him but as you remember Jacob tricked Esau into selling this birthright to Jacob for a bowl of stew. Later on when it was time for now blind and dying Isaac to give his blessings Jacob and his mother Rebekah conspired to trick Isaac into giving the first born blessing to Jacob. The blessing ends with the same phrase that God gave to Abraham; Cursed be those who curse you, and blessed be those who bless you. (Gen: 27: 29)
Esau then comes for his blessing and this is what he gets; Behold, away from the fertility of the earth shall be your dwelling, and away from the dew of heaven from above. By your sword you shall live, and your brother you shall serve . . . So Esau bore a grudge against Jacob because of the blessing. (Gen. 27: 39-41) The descendants of Esau would become the Edomites and would settle in a land much less fertile than Canaan in territory which is now part of Jordan. Most people calling themselves Palestinians have come from this area.
Let us now jump ahead over 1500 years. In about 570 AD in central Arabia (Saudi Arabia) in the town of Mecca was born a man whose name was Mohammad. His parents, part of the dominate tribe of the area, left him orphaned at an early age. Eventually he was raised by an uncle and became a traveling merchant. Every year he would take a week or two and go into a cave in a mountain to contemplate. Around the year 610 Mohammad claims that he was visited by the angel Gabriel who gave him certain revelations. At first he thinks he has been visited by a demon but after a few years he starts preaching to his family and neighbors the revelations he has received.
Eventually he gets some converts, things snowball, his revelations, teachings and examples are written down in books called the Qur'an and the Hadith and the religion he created is spread by force in the Arabian peninsula and beyond, spreading throughout northern Africa, Spain, the Balkans, Asia Minor (Turkey), southern Eurasia (all the "stan" countries), Persia (Iran), eastern China and parts of India. Islam began in the Arab world but as you can see there are many other races that claim Islam as their faith.
The basic precepts of Islam for every Muslim are very simple: Acknowledge that there is no God but Allah, and Mohammad is his prophet. Pray toward Mecca several times a day. Make a pilgrimage to Mecca at least once in a lifetime. Give alms to the poor. Fast and make an animal sacrifice during the Islamic holy month.
To understand the roots of Islam, where it has come from and where it is going, we need to start looking at the time and place of Mohammad back in 610 AD. The Arab people were tribal with no central leadership. They worshiped a pantheon of gods and each tribe and city had a special god that was their protector. There was a building in Mecca called the Kaaba which housed 360 of their pagan statues as well as a black meteorite which people would honor and worship by kissing it. The head and most powerful god of the Arab pantheon was named Allah, who was the male moon god whose symbol was the crescent moon. There is a tremendous amount of archaeological evidence showing that the moon god was worshiped widely throughout the Mid-East at that time and well before. Allah had several daughters who were considered goddesses.
Mohammad was familiar with both Jewish and Christian thought and their scriptures. He had a Jewish and a Christian wife and Mecca was the center of a trade route which saw the mingling of many cultures. His new religion declared some things that were payback for the historic enmity between the Arab and the Jew and their offshoot, the Christians. He taught that there were certain prophets throughout history that worshiped only one God. These were Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses, Jesus and others who worshiped one God and the God they worshiped was Allah. Mohammad taught that he was the final and last prophet and as the last prophet he declared that the Jewish and Christian scriptures were corrupted and must be understood by his teachings. Thus you see the first tenant of Islam, there is no God but Allah, and Mohammad is his prophet.
Now here is a point that I don't want you to miss and is crucial to understanding what is happening today with ISIS and all other expressions of what is now being called radical Islam. Mohammad taught that God's promise would come through Ishmael, not Isaac and that the promise of land, not just for the Arab but for those that submitted to Islam would eventually cover the entire world. The charge for the followers of Allah was to take the land, by force if necessary and either convert all the conquered to Islam, or have them submit to Islamic rule and pay an annual tax, or die.
In the early 300's the Roman emperor Constantine recognized Christianity as an official state religion for the purpose of uniting the far flung empire. He didn't ban all the other forms of religion and the worship of their gods but he heavily supported the Christian religion making it the dominate religion. Mohammad would in effect do the same thing for the Arab people. He didn't come up with a new god that the people were not acquainted with. Allah was already recognized as the chief deity. Most Arabs would pray toward the Kaaba in Mecca several times a day and would make an effort to make a pilgrimage there sometime in their life. Killing an animal like a sheep as a sacrifice to their god was already practiced and most people gave alms to the poor. The annual month of fasting that Mohammad instituted would begin and end on a crescent moon, thus honoring Allah, an obvious connection to Allah as the moon god.
And because Mohammad was the last prophet, what he taught and did became the basis for a new legal system that would be imposed on all the conquered peoples.
Today there are 4 streams or factions of Islam. They all recognize Allah as the only god and Mohammad as his prophet but are divided on their interpretation of the Qur'an and the Haddith and on which successors to Mohammad were most legitimate. The Hanbali school of law is the strictest, meaning that it follows most closely the literal meaning of the Qur'an and Haddith. This is the one followed in Saudi Arabia and is also the one accepted by most Islamic terrorists. They believe that any land once ruled by Islam still belongs to Islam but also that the ultimate goal is for the entire world to become ruled by the same brand of Islam that Mohammad and his armies followed.
They view the world as being divided into two; Dar al-Islam, which means the house of Islam (land now ruled by Islam) and Dar al-itarb, which means the house of war (any other land, including our dear USA that eventually will become ruled by Islam). And for the ISIS's and other militant groups it isn't just good enough to already be Muslim. One now has to accept the Hanbali brand of Islam or die, no matter if you are man, woman or a child.
The goal of ISIS on the road to world domination is to create an Islamic caliphate covering all the territory once ruled by Islam or currently heavily populated by Muslims. Recently the head Turkish imman revealed a map listing 13 Islamic states that will form this caliphate. They are named Andalus (Spain), Maghreb (north western Africa), Alkinana (north eastern Africa), Habasha (central Africa), Orobpo (the Balkan region of Europe, Romania and Austria), Anathol (western Turkey), Qoqzaz (all the land between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea), Kordistan (eastern Turkey, western Iran), Sham (Syria, Lebanon, Israel and Jordan), Iraq (Iraq), Hijaz (Saudi Arabia), Yaman (Yemen and Oman) and Khurason (all the stan countries plus India and western China). The plan is to eventually eliminate the Christian states and end up with 10 states, all headquartered in Turkey.
At one time this all seemed so far away to us living in the U.S. The average American is not aware of the violent conflicts that exist between Muslims and other religions in places like India, Africa and Asia. We are not aware that Muslim populations have skyrocketed throughout Europe and that they establish communities that do not intermingle or assimulate with the general population and have their own Islamic laws. We are not aware of the many mosques being built in our country which are paid for by Saudi Arabia, many of which teach the Hanbali school of thought. We are not aware that cities like Dearborn, Michigan are heavily populated and run by Muslims, that although Islamic law is not officially on the books there it is still being enforced in the Islamic community. And now 13 years after 911 we forget that 19 of the hijackers came from Saudi Arabia.
However, now that Americans have been beheaded with the public warning that our homeland is next there seems to be a greater awareness that we are not facing a threat from an isolated bunch of loony radicals. Our politicians, dumb as they are toward Islamic thought, have always thought that land for peace would be a good deal for Israel. Western thought could not fathom the idea that land for peace was always a ploy, a tactic toward the eventual goal of reclaiming Islamic lands and enforcing the edict of their prophet, to destroy all the Jews.
Let me end by retelling a story that I heard in church last Sunday. Our pastor received an email from a missionary family from our church who are ministering in northern Africa. They said it was the beginning of the Muslim holy month and the talk of the town was all about sheep. Every family needed to purchase at least 1 sheep to sacrifice and people would say, "Have you got your sheep yet?", or "Where did you get your sheep?" or "How much did your sheep cost?" The missionary family was actually quite sad for the people because their faith was so works based. Theirs is an angry god who requires animal sacrifices and in return gives no assurances to the people that they could ever do enough to enter paradise.
Our pastor then read from the book of Hebrews which talks about Jesus being the lamb who was slain for our sins. and not through the blood of goats and calves, but through His own blood, He entered the holy place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption. (Heb. 9: 12)
We are not to hate anyone but we need to be aware that the world is rapidly changing and that traditional Islam is on the move and gaining steam and with each success there will be a switching of alliances from the moderate to the radical. The foundations of our laws, based on Judeo Christian thought, have been crumbling for decades and what is to replace it? If it is not rebuilt something else will replace it and everything we hold dear as Americans will be doomed. Wake up America!
Monday, September 22, 2014
This Generation's Call
I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you will know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and what is the surpassing greatness of His power toward us who believe. Eph. 1: 18-19
The talk radio pundit Rush Limbaugh likes to say that everything is political. If the press has wall to wall coverage over something like the personal behavior of NFL football players then there are underlying political reasons to do so.
I am thinking more and more that everything is actually spiritual. At one time I looked at the constant breaking down of morality, the glorification of violence, the acceptance and inroads that occultism has made throughout society, the indifference and then hate toward anything Christian and I saw that as irreversible, a sign that we are in the last days before the return of Jesus.
Now I am realizing that even though we may well be on the very brink of seeing our blessed Lord return the spiritual battle we are in today is no different than any other since the time of the Apostles. Each generation of believers, whether they know it or not, is placed in the midst of a conflict that has been going on since the evil one rebelled. We are the forces, in our place and time, that God in His great wisdom has chosen to fight the forces of darkness.
It would seem that we are at a great disadvantage. The enemy's spiritual forces have an established game plan and play book that is both ancient and being constantly refined. Their leader is called the father of lies who also seeks to murder and destroy. Religions, societies and people groups are infiltrated by their agents for the express purpose of denying or distorting the truth.
And what do we have, each generation of us, born into such a dangerous world filled with traps, snares and enticements to follow an attractive way that ultimately leads to disaster?
We have a heavenly Father who loves us and only desires the best for us. Any other testament about Him is a lie.
We have His Son Jesus, who is one with the Father, who gave up His heavenly estate and became man and as God and man suffered and died for our sins so that we could find eternal life in Him. This He gives freely to any who would surrender to Him as Savior and Lord.
We have The Holy Spirit, the power part of the Godhead, who moved through the prophets of old, who gave Jesus as man the wisdom, knowledge and power to teach, to prophesy, to cast out evil spirits, to destroy strongholds and to perform mighty miracles. This Holy Spirit Jesus poured out upon His church to do the same.
These are in accordance with the working of the strength of His might which He brought about in Christ, when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the age to come.
And He put all things in subjection under His feet, and gave Him as head over all things to the church, which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all. Eph. 1: 19-23
Christ, our Savior and Lord both lives in us and is seated in the heavenly places in a position of authority over everything. He is head over His body which is the church and which we belong to because we are in Him. By His great grace we have been freed from the power of the evil one who is the god of this world and we have been set apart to do the work that God desires to help free this fallen world from the grasp of the destroyer.
And you were dead in your trespasses and sins, in which you formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience . . .
But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us . . . made us alive together with Christ . . . and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus . . .
And the reason that the Father has done that is
so that in the ages to come He might show the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. Eph. 2: 1-6
The spiritual battle we are in today is not just for ourselves or our family. It is not just for our city or nation. It is not just for the time that we live in. What we do, believing in the grace and mercy of The Father, trusting Him in every circumstance and hurdle, worshiping Him through the midst of our tears, rejecting the passing attractions of this world to walk a life pleasing to Him, all of this is a testimony that resounds in the past, present and future.
As the church, the body of Christ, we must fight the good fight now, not accepting that the enemy has territory that cannot be conquered or is too powerful to prevent the light of Christ from shinning in. Perhaps we are in a period that is just like the days of Noah, when the world became so evil and debased and Jesus is just around the corner to judge the world and the rebels of this age and their leader. Yet our marching orders are still the same.
May we be a generation willing to do all that God has called us to.
The talk radio pundit Rush Limbaugh likes to say that everything is political. If the press has wall to wall coverage over something like the personal behavior of NFL football players then there are underlying political reasons to do so.
I am thinking more and more that everything is actually spiritual. At one time I looked at the constant breaking down of morality, the glorification of violence, the acceptance and inroads that occultism has made throughout society, the indifference and then hate toward anything Christian and I saw that as irreversible, a sign that we are in the last days before the return of Jesus.
Now I am realizing that even though we may well be on the very brink of seeing our blessed Lord return the spiritual battle we are in today is no different than any other since the time of the Apostles. Each generation of believers, whether they know it or not, is placed in the midst of a conflict that has been going on since the evil one rebelled. We are the forces, in our place and time, that God in His great wisdom has chosen to fight the forces of darkness.
It would seem that we are at a great disadvantage. The enemy's spiritual forces have an established game plan and play book that is both ancient and being constantly refined. Their leader is called the father of lies who also seeks to murder and destroy. Religions, societies and people groups are infiltrated by their agents for the express purpose of denying or distorting the truth.
And what do we have, each generation of us, born into such a dangerous world filled with traps, snares and enticements to follow an attractive way that ultimately leads to disaster?
We have a heavenly Father who loves us and only desires the best for us. Any other testament about Him is a lie.
We have His Son Jesus, who is one with the Father, who gave up His heavenly estate and became man and as God and man suffered and died for our sins so that we could find eternal life in Him. This He gives freely to any who would surrender to Him as Savior and Lord.
We have The Holy Spirit, the power part of the Godhead, who moved through the prophets of old, who gave Jesus as man the wisdom, knowledge and power to teach, to prophesy, to cast out evil spirits, to destroy strongholds and to perform mighty miracles. This Holy Spirit Jesus poured out upon His church to do the same.
These are in accordance with the working of the strength of His might which He brought about in Christ, when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the age to come.
And He put all things in subjection under His feet, and gave Him as head over all things to the church, which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all. Eph. 1: 19-23
Christ, our Savior and Lord both lives in us and is seated in the heavenly places in a position of authority over everything. He is head over His body which is the church and which we belong to because we are in Him. By His great grace we have been freed from the power of the evil one who is the god of this world and we have been set apart to do the work that God desires to help free this fallen world from the grasp of the destroyer.
And you were dead in your trespasses and sins, in which you formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience . . .
But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us . . . made us alive together with Christ . . . and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus . . .
And the reason that the Father has done that is
so that in the ages to come He might show the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. Eph. 2: 1-6
The spiritual battle we are in today is not just for ourselves or our family. It is not just for our city or nation. It is not just for the time that we live in. What we do, believing in the grace and mercy of The Father, trusting Him in every circumstance and hurdle, worshiping Him through the midst of our tears, rejecting the passing attractions of this world to walk a life pleasing to Him, all of this is a testimony that resounds in the past, present and future.
As the church, the body of Christ, we must fight the good fight now, not accepting that the enemy has territory that cannot be conquered or is too powerful to prevent the light of Christ from shinning in. Perhaps we are in a period that is just like the days of Noah, when the world became so evil and debased and Jesus is just around the corner to judge the world and the rebels of this age and their leader. Yet our marching orders are still the same.
May we be a generation willing to do all that God has called us to.
Wednesday, September 10, 2014
The Line
Well little bugs have littler bugs
Up on their backs to bite'em
And littler bugs have still littler bugs
And so ad infinitum
From: Their Ain't No Flies On Me
It's like you've been working for a week to unravel a knot and once you've got it you realize that the knot you've just finished is only part of a much bigger tangled mess. You don't see the beginning, you don't see the end and you don't know where the heck you are along the line.
At some point you realize that as beautiful and intricate as the line is there are some parts that seem rotten and look just plain ugly. And to top everything off it's impossible to just let the line be. I mean, one can go on and live their normal life but eventually you notice the line and wonder where it goes and as you work on that next knot the blisters on your fingers get cut and as you bleed you let out a nasty curse.
Cursed is the man who works on a knot
and never sees the ends
who knows not what
or if or but
it only just depends.
Perhaps it's chance
or poetry
that's placed me by this line
there are endless possibilities
and so little time.
Then one day, totally out of the blue, a thought crosses your mind. In that flash of inspiration you are able to see the twists and turns, the ins and outs of the knot structure and you can visualize how to place your fingers for maximum advantage. You rush to the line and untangle the knot in seconds. Exhilarated you quickly clear up every knot in sight, letting out a little whoop with each.
Later, reflecting on what has just happened, you stare long and hard at the line. Now one would think your focus at this point should be on the line ahead but something is drawing you to the line before. Grabbing the line you give the before part a little tug and as you grasp it starts moving and changing. Nothing is as you remembered it. And here you are. For the first time in like forever you have finally seen how to manipulate the line yet at the same time it starts changing on you. As you look at your nice callased free fingers you again blurt out a curse.
I am nothing but a man
lost on an island
an endless sea in every direction
I'll build my hut
and oil my beard
a chief by my own election.
Weeks later another thought wakes you up in the middle of the night. You had a dream and in the dream you saw yourself actually walking on top of the line. A knot came, you stepped over it. The line rose up to form a giant gate, you passed right through it. It started raining but your traction remained firm. Eventually you saw a form a distance away walking on the line toward you. For a split second you debate if you should stop and let the form meet up with you or if you should advance. But then you let out your little knot whoop and start sprinting toward the form. Losing sight of the line you fall helplessly and wake up.
Not able to go back to sleep you start crying. It was so close if even just a dream but now everything is as it always was. The line is ugly you think. It has always been ugly. Whomever or whatever made it is ugly. I will not play with the line anymore. But you find out that now the line will not let it be ignored.
During the day when you are busy on some project you hear the line snap. You briefly peek at it while watching TV and at just that moment it changes color. At night if inserts itself into every dream, sometimes not so nicely. For the third time you curse.
Am I now lord of nothing
of nothing in control
not birth nor death
nor in between
the spirit and my soul
One day something very surprising happens. Over the last few weeks your precious line has developed a lot of new knots. Knots that are different and which you have no idea how to undo. You were just about to get grumpy about it but thought, oh what the heck, let's have some fun with this. So you speak to the line and tell it that you are quite thankful for all the new knots. "You win line. You're the boss. If you like being tied up it knots, well then that's just fine with me. But if you want to get rid of them I'll do whatever you want". This time instead of cursing you sing out a blessing.
There is beauty in every fiber
purpose in every inch
wonders around the corner
to be found.
Joy is in the journey
strength with every step
rest when they lay me
in the ground.
And in your happiness you feel a tear streak down your face. One tear leads to more and you can no longer stand. You now feel ashamed and ask the line to forgive you. And as you do the line fills the room and the knots gently wrap around you and you can feel life coursing through the fibers. And now you know.
Up on their backs to bite'em
And littler bugs have still littler bugs
And so ad infinitum
From: Their Ain't No Flies On Me
It's like you've been working for a week to unravel a knot and once you've got it you realize that the knot you've just finished is only part of a much bigger tangled mess. You don't see the beginning, you don't see the end and you don't know where the heck you are along the line.
At some point you realize that as beautiful and intricate as the line is there are some parts that seem rotten and look just plain ugly. And to top everything off it's impossible to just let the line be. I mean, one can go on and live their normal life but eventually you notice the line and wonder where it goes and as you work on that next knot the blisters on your fingers get cut and as you bleed you let out a nasty curse.
Cursed is the man who works on a knot
and never sees the ends
who knows not what
or if or but
it only just depends.
Perhaps it's chance
or poetry
that's placed me by this line
there are endless possibilities
and so little time.
Then one day, totally out of the blue, a thought crosses your mind. In that flash of inspiration you are able to see the twists and turns, the ins and outs of the knot structure and you can visualize how to place your fingers for maximum advantage. You rush to the line and untangle the knot in seconds. Exhilarated you quickly clear up every knot in sight, letting out a little whoop with each.
Later, reflecting on what has just happened, you stare long and hard at the line. Now one would think your focus at this point should be on the line ahead but something is drawing you to the line before. Grabbing the line you give the before part a little tug and as you grasp it starts moving and changing. Nothing is as you remembered it. And here you are. For the first time in like forever you have finally seen how to manipulate the line yet at the same time it starts changing on you. As you look at your nice callased free fingers you again blurt out a curse.
I am nothing but a man
lost on an island
an endless sea in every direction
I'll build my hut
and oil my beard
a chief by my own election.
Weeks later another thought wakes you up in the middle of the night. You had a dream and in the dream you saw yourself actually walking on top of the line. A knot came, you stepped over it. The line rose up to form a giant gate, you passed right through it. It started raining but your traction remained firm. Eventually you saw a form a distance away walking on the line toward you. For a split second you debate if you should stop and let the form meet up with you or if you should advance. But then you let out your little knot whoop and start sprinting toward the form. Losing sight of the line you fall helplessly and wake up.
Not able to go back to sleep you start crying. It was so close if even just a dream but now everything is as it always was. The line is ugly you think. It has always been ugly. Whomever or whatever made it is ugly. I will not play with the line anymore. But you find out that now the line will not let it be ignored.
During the day when you are busy on some project you hear the line snap. You briefly peek at it while watching TV and at just that moment it changes color. At night if inserts itself into every dream, sometimes not so nicely. For the third time you curse.
Am I now lord of nothing
of nothing in control
not birth nor death
nor in between
the spirit and my soul
One day something very surprising happens. Over the last few weeks your precious line has developed a lot of new knots. Knots that are different and which you have no idea how to undo. You were just about to get grumpy about it but thought, oh what the heck, let's have some fun with this. So you speak to the line and tell it that you are quite thankful for all the new knots. "You win line. You're the boss. If you like being tied up it knots, well then that's just fine with me. But if you want to get rid of them I'll do whatever you want". This time instead of cursing you sing out a blessing.
There is beauty in every fiber
purpose in every inch
wonders around the corner
to be found.
Joy is in the journey
strength with every step
rest when they lay me
in the ground.
And in your happiness you feel a tear streak down your face. One tear leads to more and you can no longer stand. You now feel ashamed and ask the line to forgive you. And as you do the line fills the room and the knots gently wrap around you and you can feel life coursing through the fibers. And now you know.
Saturday, September 6, 2014
Ain't No Flies On Me
Oh, there ain't no flies on me
there ain't no flies on me
there may be flies on some of you guys
but there ain't no flies on me.
We have just rounded the corner and young Mario starts waving his hand at his head. "I'm having a little trouble concentrating on my driving" he says. "There is a dang fly buzzing me." I smile, lean back and tell him the honest truth; "There ain't no flies on me!"
My younger sister Char loved this little ditty. She went to an all women's college and taught her intramural football team how to terrify their opponents with the ain't no flies chant.
The poem actually has quite a few more classic verses.
A peanut sittin' on a railroad rail
His heart was all a flutter
Along came a Choo Choo on the track
Toot! Toot! Peanut butter!
I first heard this verse from my very special nephew Kevin who would run around our house and entertain us with "Toot! Toot! Pea nut but ter!
Here are a couple more verses for your enjoyment.
Oh, it ain't gonna rain no more no more
It ain't gonna rain no more
How in the heck can I wash my neck
If it ain't gonna rain no more?
and finally
She lay down at the sewer
And by the sewer she died
And at the coroner's inquest
They called it sewer side.
As my dad would often say when hearing such inspiration (while holding his hand to his heart); "It kinda gets you, right here."
there ain't no flies on me
there may be flies on some of you guys
but there ain't no flies on me.
We have just rounded the corner and young Mario starts waving his hand at his head. "I'm having a little trouble concentrating on my driving" he says. "There is a dang fly buzzing me." I smile, lean back and tell him the honest truth; "There ain't no flies on me!"
My younger sister Char loved this little ditty. She went to an all women's college and taught her intramural football team how to terrify their opponents with the ain't no flies chant.
The poem actually has quite a few more classic verses.
A peanut sittin' on a railroad rail
His heart was all a flutter
Along came a Choo Choo on the track
Toot! Toot! Peanut butter!
I first heard this verse from my very special nephew Kevin who would run around our house and entertain us with "Toot! Toot! Pea nut but ter!
Here are a couple more verses for your enjoyment.
Oh, it ain't gonna rain no more no more
It ain't gonna rain no more
How in the heck can I wash my neck
If it ain't gonna rain no more?
and finally
She lay down at the sewer
And by the sewer she died
And at the coroner's inquest
They called it sewer side.
As my dad would often say when hearing such inspiration (while holding his hand to his heart); "It kinda gets you, right here."
Sunday, August 31, 2014
Must Have Been The Stender Coming Out
We had the Kuiper kids over last night and after the boys sacked out Jackie and I decided to teach Raleigh and Sydney how to play some card games.
Out first effort was crazy eights. After 3 long games the score was Jackie 2, Sydney 1 with Raleigh and I shutout. Next we advanced to a game that has many names but we called in I Doubt It. Each time Jackie would lay a card or two face down I would smirk and Raleigh would interpret my smirk as proof that grandma did not lay what she was claiming to lay and poor Raleigh would end up with a fist full of cards. Jackie won all three rounds of I Doubt It.
Then, feeling a little guilty I think, Jackie suggests that we lay all the cards out face down and play the memory game. This sounds like a great idea to the girls and it's even OK with me, even though I have never been able to beat even a 3 year old at that game.
Raleigh starts out but alas, no match. Sydney is next, but alas no match. I am next and alas, no match. Now it's Jackie's turn and she comes up with 4 matches, getting more excited with each. Round two sees Raleigh with no matches, Sydney with no matches, me with no matches and Jackie with 4 more. I started looking up because I thought I heard the hallelujah music playing.
In the next round Raleigh gets 1 match, Sydney is shut out, I come up with a wild card so I get a match, and Jackie does even better than before and gets 5 matches. By this time she is standing up, one arm waving, scanning the table and snatching, snatching, snatching up winning matches.
I pause here for effect.
Just then Raleigh and Sydney come up with a great idea. They start moving around all the remaining cards. Jackie spurts out, "Hey, that's not the way the game is played!" Raleigh and Sydney, still smiling very sweetly, reply in unison, "I think it is grandma." After several more rounds with the girls mixing up the cards between each round, no one finds any more matches, the game ends, Raleigh, Sydney and I get up to check out what might be in the kitchen, and Jackie
stays seated, counting her matches.
Eventually the girls also go to sack out and Jackie and I play a little solitaire Jackie looks up at me (after running the deck and playing all the cards), smiles sheepishly and confesses, "I guess I just didn't want the girls to think their grandma was stupid." Stupid? No. A little competitive maybe? Ask out kids.
Out first effort was crazy eights. After 3 long games the score was Jackie 2, Sydney 1 with Raleigh and I shutout. Next we advanced to a game that has many names but we called in I Doubt It. Each time Jackie would lay a card or two face down I would smirk and Raleigh would interpret my smirk as proof that grandma did not lay what she was claiming to lay and poor Raleigh would end up with a fist full of cards. Jackie won all three rounds of I Doubt It.
Then, feeling a little guilty I think, Jackie suggests that we lay all the cards out face down and play the memory game. This sounds like a great idea to the girls and it's even OK with me, even though I have never been able to beat even a 3 year old at that game.
Raleigh starts out but alas, no match. Sydney is next, but alas no match. I am next and alas, no match. Now it's Jackie's turn and she comes up with 4 matches, getting more excited with each. Round two sees Raleigh with no matches, Sydney with no matches, me with no matches and Jackie with 4 more. I started looking up because I thought I heard the hallelujah music playing.
In the next round Raleigh gets 1 match, Sydney is shut out, I come up with a wild card so I get a match, and Jackie does even better than before and gets 5 matches. By this time she is standing up, one arm waving, scanning the table and snatching, snatching, snatching up winning matches.
I pause here for effect.
Just then Raleigh and Sydney come up with a great idea. They start moving around all the remaining cards. Jackie spurts out, "Hey, that's not the way the game is played!" Raleigh and Sydney, still smiling very sweetly, reply in unison, "I think it is grandma." After several more rounds with the girls mixing up the cards between each round, no one finds any more matches, the game ends, Raleigh, Sydney and I get up to check out what might be in the kitchen, and Jackie
stays seated, counting her matches.
Eventually the girls also go to sack out and Jackie and I play a little solitaire Jackie looks up at me (after running the deck and playing all the cards), smiles sheepishly and confesses, "I guess I just didn't want the girls to think their grandma was stupid." Stupid? No. A little competitive maybe? Ask out kids.
Sunday, August 24, 2014
Stand By Me
If the sky that we look upon
Should tumble and fall
All the mountains should crumble to the
sea
I won't cry, I won't cry, no I won't
shed a tear
Just as long as you stand, stand by me.
Lyrics to STAND BY ME by the
Temptations
Early last week I did a road test a
third time for a middle age lady who had come here from Syria. This
time she passed and after I gave her the review she told me that at
the end of the week she was heading back home for a visit. “Pray
for me.” she said looking very concerned. “Are you afraid?” I asked. She said
she was. “Just yesterday 3 bombs went off outside our home.”
You and I cannot really imagine what
that would be like, either living in conditions where people actually
want to kill you with no remorse, or being safe but having family
enduring that daily fear.
I follow a blog written by one of my
favorite authors, Joel Rosenburg. He converted to Christianity from
Judaism and although he is a tremendous advocate for the nation of
Israel he also created something called THE JOSHUA FUND which raises
money to provide food, clothing and other aid for Jews, Muslims and
Christians in the Mid-East. They have been very active in supporting
Christian pastors in Iraq. Last week he posted that after a lot of
prayer over the last year he and his family would be moving that week
to Israel. They had been granted Israeli citizenship but could also
retain their U.S. Citizenship. Here is a paragraph from that post:
Moving
to Israel during a war may seem crazy to some, but we are at peace
that this is what the Lord is calling us to do. Indeed, we count it
an honor to stand with our Israeli and Palestinian friends to pray
for the peace of Jerusalem, as the Psalmist commands. Our hearts
grieve for those on both sides of the border who are suffering
because of this war, and we want to serve them and care for them in
any way we can. The Lord Jesus said in Matthew 5:9, “Blessed are
the peacemakers.” We trust the Lord will show us how in some small
way we can serve Him in a Land still so in need of His grace and
peace.
A couple of days ago I was talking to
my daughter Becky who has always had a great interest in the
persecuted church. A FB friend of ours know a family that was
ministering to persecuted Christians in the Mid-East, I think maybe
even Iraq, and he gave my daughter their contact information. They
told her that their ministry has suddenly gained great credibility
with the locals because when the troubles came all the foreigners
left, except their family. We would think that is extraordinary but
their heart response was, “how could we leave them?”
When my daughter was telling their
story to a co-worker the person wondered how anyone could go to a
place when they knew that both them and their children would be
endangered. Becky thought about it and responded that it all had to
do with wanting to share the love of Jesus and the new life that is
possible in Him to a hurting people living in darkness. Whose lives
are more precious?
My father use to remark that it takes a
strange type of person to be a salesman. “You have to like
people.” He would say that in reference to owners of furniture
businesses he knew who loved to design and produce beautiful product
but thought the customer was a necessary evil and the salesman an
even greater evil. “I would get home from my travels on a Friday
night and have a list of angry clients that needed to be calmed down
because they had received a nasty response from the owner in response
to a reasonable grievance."
I think the same philosophy is true for
people who want to share the truth of the gospel, or to minister
healing or deliverance. It is not an intellectual truth, a better
way, a special formula or any program designed to produce great
results. Instead you begin with this bit of wisdom from my father;
YOU HAVE TO LIKE PEOPLE.
Francis MacNutt in his books on healing
and deliverance emphasizes that we need to remember that the sickness
or the evil spirit, as ugly and detestable as they are, are not the
same as the person being ministered to. We need to separate the two.
In reflecting on the long and successful ministry he had in healing
and deliverance he said that many people told him the most powerful
thing they experience while being ministered to was not a particular
prayer or word of console but rather the sense that here was someone
who actually loved and cared for them.
Many times a wound caused either by a trauma or sin or exposure to the occult results in a person's reluctance or inability to trust the one willing to help. They don't believe that God can love them and they don't believe that other people can really love them either. In these cases the wound needs to be healed, the sin needs to be repented and the occult activity needs to be renounced. Then after the house is swept clean the Holy Spirit must be shown in to repair, restore and rebuild what was lost. This may take time. We might be willing to do that for family but what will drive us to do that for others?
I've written awhile back about what is a common thread among successful missionaries and evangelists. They have a heart for the lost. They have a great love for a certain people, land or nation. They lay in bed at night praying for the lost. The works of the enemy actually makes them mad. And yes, they trust in God's provision and timing and they are sensitive to the leading of the Holy Spirit.
The song by the Temptations was a love song. The world can fall apart but it won't matter because I know that even in all that distress you will stand by me. We can also see it as someone who trusts that God will be with them no matter what else happens in life. Through all these trials and tribulations He is standing with me.
And finally we can see that as a call for us to stand with those that need us now. For people who need God's love because they are sick or hurt or living in darkness. For people who are being driven from their homes because of hate that comes straight from the pit. For the missionaries and aid workers and their families who are risking their lives because of their love for these people. And finally, for God's chosen people, many of whom are also living in darkness but are threatened with extinction simply because they are His chosen.
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