Category: north korea

Posted in fordo, hamas, israel, jordan, north korea, syria, wars and rumors of wars

Updated–Was Iran’s nuclear facility sabotaged in a devastating blast?

Posted on by elizabethprata

This has not been confirmed yet and it may never be, but it seems that the incident may indeed have happened. I waited to publish anything about it because it lacked independent confirmation, and World Net Daily isn’t the best of sole sources.

**Update**Joel Rosenberg wrote today that there finally IS confirmation: “Not a single major media outlet in Iran, Israel, the U.S. or elsewhere reported on the story at the time, much less confirmed it. Iranian officials flat out denied there had been any explosions. This led to concern that Kahlili’s report was unreliable and that this was all mere rumor. Now, however, Israeli security and intelligence officials are indicating that there was, in fact, such an explosion.”

Israeli minister welcomes report of huge blast at Iran nuclear plant
Israel’s Home Front Defense Minister Avi Dichter on Sunday welcomed a report that Iran’s Fordo nuclear facility had been rocked by a huge explosion. The report was published Friday on the website wnd.com, under the sensational headline: “Sabotage! Key Iranian nuclear facility hit?” It claimed that a blast deep within Fordo last Monday “destroyed much of the installation and trapped about 240 personnel deep underground,” citing information from former intelligence officer Hamidreza Zakeri, who it said used to work with the Islamic regime’s Ministry of Intelligence and National Security.

The article claimed the blast “shook facilities within a radius of three miles,” that Iranian security forces had “enforced a no-traffic radius of 15 miles,” that the Tehran-Qom highway was shut down for several hours after the blast, and that, “as of Wednesday afternoon, rescue workers had failed to reach the trapped personnel.” It said US officials were aware of the reported blast. There was no independent confirmation of the claims. Nonetheless, Israel’s biggest-selling daily Yedioth Ahronoth led its Sunday paper with the report on the alleged blast, which it said might be “the most significant incidence of sabotage in the Iranian nuclear program to date.”

Asked about the story, Dichter said, “Any explosion in Iran that doesn’t hurt people but hurts its assets is welcome.”

Iran had been close to making a nuclear bomb. For a while in Israel it looked as though the nation was going to initiate a strike on Iran in order to stop their progress toward it. Attaining a bomb is a red line the nation’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said they will not allow Iran to cross:

The Israeli people are both encouraged and weary. They are encouraged that their economy, though slowing, is still ahead of many other nations in the first world. They are encouraged that their recent discoveries of gas, oil, and gold will enable them to become self-sufficient and even an exporter. They have enjoyed relative military success with the installation and protection of Iron Dome and David’s Sling. They have enjoyed relative stability with Netanyahu, the longest serving PM in their history.

However, they are weary of the real threats to their existence. Iran’s plans to make a nuclear bomb- and use it, wearies them. Lebanon’s constant willingness to aid any and all who want to transfer arms through their country is a problem. The Gaza Strip is a conduit for the same from the south. Syria’s chemical weapons are a huge problem. Even if Assad uses chemical weapons solely inside Syria, remember, the distances are not great in the Middle East. Damascus is only 47 miles from Israel’s Golan Heights. Residents of Israel living even at the center of the nation are still not far from any potential leak-over from the warring and bloody nation of Syria. Even Turkey has asked NATO for permission to receive Patriot missiles and to set them up at their border with Syria, just in case a missile accidentally or on purpose comes their way. Those missiles are now set and operational. Syria’s conflagration spilling over to Israel is a very real possibility.

To that end, Israel made another red line promise today–

Israel vows Syria strike at any sign of chemical arms transfer
Any sign of Syria’s grip on its suspected chemical weapons slipping as it battles an armed uprising could trigger Israeli military strikes, Israel’s vice premier said on Sunday. Silvan Shalom confirmed a media report that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had last week convened security chiefs to discuss the civil war in nearby Syria and the state of the country’s chemical arsenal. The meeting, held on Wednesday, had not been publicly announced and was seen as especially unusual as it came while votes were still being counted from Israel’s national election the day before, which Netanyahu’s party list won narrowly.

Joel Rosenberg was interviewed a few days ago as the votes from Israel’s election were being tallied. he has context and background for what it all means. He discussed-

* the fascinating outcome of the Israeli elections, what the results were, what they mean, and what they say about the trendlines in Israeli society

* the rise of Yair Lapid and his new secular Yesh Atid (“There is a future”) political party in Israel, now the nation’s second biggest party.

* the “complicated” relationship between President Obama and Prime Minister Netanyahu and the nuances of U.S.-Israeli relations

* the interesting trend of Netanyahu’s interest in the Bible, including why he recently started a Bible study in the Prime Minister’s residence

* the deep secularization of the Israeli society, and the serious lack of interest in the Word of God among most Israelis (I noted Amos 8:11, “‘Behold, days are coming,’ declares the Lord. ‘when I will send a famine on the land, not a famine for bread or a thirst for water, but rather for hearing the words of the Lord.”)

* the latest status of the Iranian nuclear threat and whether Netanyahu is more or less likely to order a preemptive military strike in 2013.

It lasts a little under an hour.

In a little- reported fact, Jordan’s King Abdullah was left red-faced at a top-notch economic summit when he tried to put forward the notion that Hamas was softening on its stance toward Israel. Abdullah said that the organization has softened its policy toward Israel and would be more realistic if coming to the peace negotiations table. Abdullah was left red-faced when Hamas immediately refuted that notion and said that their only goal was resisting Israel, forever.

The military belligerence of many nations is not abating but increasing. Iran vowed that any attack on Syria is an attack on Iran. China and Japan are still boxing circles in their initial foray in the China Sea, with Japan boosting military presence where the two nations are disputing over islands. North Korea is ready for their next nuclear test with NK’s leader vowing strong action if anyone interferes with it. Turkey warns against Israel-Cyprus gas deal.

The number of headlines where militaristic leaders are “vowing strong action” or threatening retaliations is growing by the day. Jesus said that the end time would be characterized by wars and rumors of wars. (Matthew 24:6).

Anyone knows that when you make enough threats and lay enough ammunition down, at some point it will ignite. We know from prophecy, that it will (Isaiah 17, Psalm 83, Isaiah 19, Ezekiel 38-39, Matthew 24:6).

During this present time of threats and potentialities, rather than worry or crumble under the weight of uncertainty as to when it will all blow up, and whether we will be here on earth for the first part of it, we can simply pray for strength. In his interview, Rosenberg said that this is a time of purification of the church. We surely are being purified as the dross rises to the top and the Refiner removes it. We can let our worries bubble up to the top and allow Jesus to remove them, leaving us more holy and pure than before. Look at this last time on earth as an opportunity to submit more deeply to Jesus and allow Him to purify us. It will be a glory for Him to do this and a better trophy of grace for His name.

Posted in north korea, secret sin

Of North Korea, secrets, and Jesus

Posted on by elizabethprata

It seems that our attention lately has consistently veered between North Korea and the Middle East. Like a ball moving over the net at a tennis match, our heads are scanning left, then right, then left then right…If NK is quiet for a while, there is a coup in Mali. The African coup settles down, only to find NK suddenly preparing to launch a ballistic missile. Then Kim Jong Un goes quiet and there is a rocket attack on Israel. Back and forth, wars, and rumors of wars. Just as Jesus said it would be.

It was unusual that NK’s new leader, Kim Jong Un, spoke for half an hour in public. It was unusual because in the entire time his father Kim Jong Il ruled North Korea from 1994 to 2012, he never spoke in public. That NK is secretive to the outside world is a given, that they are this reclusive and secretive with their own people is another thing entirely.

Source

Fox News reports, “North Koreans are told he graduated from Kim Il Sung Military University and speaks several foreign languages, including English. But his age, marital status and even the name of his late mother — said to be one of Kim Jong Il’s wives, Ko Yong Hui — have never been made public.”

Now that’s secretive. For the most part, Kim Jong Un has kept his personal history a secret, even from schoolmasters in Switzerland and from schoolmates.

However, Jesus knows all. He knows Kim Jong Un’s heart, his motivations, his intent. “For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil.” (Ecclesiastes 12:14). In Psalm 90:8 we read, “You have set our iniquities before you, our secret sins in the light of your presence.”

Of that last verse, I read a book last year that brought that situation to light. It was an edgy book, I read about a third of it and then stopped. It was kind of like an apocalyptic, dystopian Pilgrim’s Progress. The protagonist was wandering from place to place and at one point he wound up in a city. It was a dark city but he stayed for a bit because it was intriguing, the sins of the city, I mean. So all the people were streaming toward this large building and he went in. It was a show! In the center of a massive auditorium with seats all around it, like a boxing ring without the ropes, a raised stage was lit up. He settled in his seat and as the lights darkened, he saw that the wife and children he thought he had lost were sitting in the front row. He tried to get to them but couldn’t. And then the show started. Suddenly the stage was transformed into a hotel room, and inside the hotel room on the bed was the protagonist, or a replica of him! And the woman he had been in an adulterous affair came in and prepared to sit on the bed with him. Oh, no, the man realized, this was a show of the secret sin he had committed, and his wife and kids were watching!

He was in agonies of embarrassment and shame, and his wife began to cry as the scene shifted to its sordid conclusion.

I never forgot that part of the book, a book whose title I can’t even remember now. But I remember that scene. In His time, on His day, every secret shame, every hidden sin, every private motivation will be brought to light;

“Therefore do not go on passing judgment before the time, but wait until the Lord comes who will both bring to light the things hidden in the darkness and disclose the motives of men’s hearts; and then each man’s praise will come to him from God.” (1 Corinthians 4:5).

All the kings of the earth will be laid low, those who do not know Jesus that is. Men like Kin Jong Un, who oppress an entire nation and live in utter luxury, choosing to reveal this or that about himself, deciding to keep this or that private…all his life and all his deeds and all his works will be revealed. Him and others like him, the great and the small will be judged. (Rev 20:12). Sin grows in the dark, but Jesus is the Light, shining it upon the hearts of all men to expose them.

Even those who do know Jesus, or who or did know Him while they were alive, will wait patiently in line for their turn before the throne at the Bema Seat where our works will be examined and rewarded. (1 Cor 3:13-15; Rom 14:10-12). Ours will be a reward ceremony. However, I work hard  every day to ensure, I hope, that my works bear fruit for His name and are not just hay and stubble to be burned. I hope that there will be things left in the pile that show I was motivated rightly and worked for His name and not my glory. I pray that’s your wish as well.

Remember, every secret thing will be brought out. “And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them.” (Ephesians 5:11). There are no secrets from Jesus. Wait patiently, brethren, and soon Jesus will rectify all private things, all back room deals will be exposed, all undercover deeds will be seen.

“For there is nothing hidden which will not be revealed, nor has anything been kept secret but that it should come to light.” (Mark 4:22).

Posted in end time, north korea, prophecy, wars and rumors of wars

Will the church be on earth during wars? Will we experience wartime hardship?

Posted on by elizabethprata

We know that the first judgments in the Tribulation (the Church is gone) are the Seals. The Second Seal is the Red Horse and its rider takes peace from the earth. But the warnings of Jesus in the Olivet Discourse also remind us that one of the birth pang signs is also war, and not just between nations but kingdoms against kingdoms. Will we, the Church experience the effects of war? Will war occur on our soil prior to the Rapture?

We have experienced war since the moment Jesus ascended, as part of the prophesied birth pangs. In one sense, the Church is already experiencing wartime hardship. Any Christian in Afghanistan, Iraq, Iran, Israel, or much of Africa is living in a time when war touches their lives directly. But with the ramping up of the conflict between North Korea and South Korea, with the US and China being dragged in as powerful allies, it is a timely question. There was a mystery missile shot just 35 miles from the western shores of the US this month, which also spooked many. In our secret heart of hearts, we have visions of mushroom clouds over LA, NY, Kansas… Or Sydney or London. Will wartime hardship touch the Christians in other places and locations? Let’s take a look.

WARS RUMORS OF WARS-
Matthew 24:6: “You will be hearing of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not frightened, for those things must take place, but that is not yet the end.”
Mark 13:8a: “Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom.”
Luke 21:11– “There will be great earthquakes, famines and pestilences in various places, and fearful events and great signs from heaven.”

In the Olivet Discourse, Jesus spoke of what will happen in direct response to the Disciples’ questions about the end of the age and the signs indicating it. In the first verse of His answer in Mt 24:2 He told of something that will happen in a few years hence, though the Disciples were not aware of the timing. The Temple was going to be destroyed in 70AD. Then He spoke of signs of the end of the age in verses 4-8. Verse 9 begins a shift to the time of the Tribulation. Jesus says: “Then they will deliver you to tribulation, and will kill you, and you will be hated by all nations because of My name.” The rest of the Discourse relates only to the Jews and the Time of Jacob’s Trouble as they term it, or as we term it, The Tribulation.

We know that the first judgments in the Tribulation (the Church is gone) are the Seals. The Second Seal is the Red Horse and its rider takes peace from the earth. But the warnings of Jesus in the Olivet Discourse also remind us that one of the birth pang signs is also war, and not just against nations but kingdoms against kingdoms.

The number of military conflicts have risen dramatically as the end nears. In one of John MacArthur’s sermons on this subject (the end days) he cited statistics at the Encyclopedia of Wars, and I placed those numbers into a spreadsheet and turned it into a graph showing the number of military conflicts over the last 3000 years. No one on the planet since Jesus uttered His warning sign has been immune from wars, conflicts, battles, and uprisings. You can view that post by clicking here. The graph is below:

Though numbers of wars have been rising and rumors of wars are constant nowadays, I believe that the difference between our living through military conflicts now and those in the Tribulation will be markedly different. Why? The bible tells us. The verse in Revelation states: “When the Lamb opened the second seal, I heard the second living creature say, “Come!” Then another horse came out, a fiery red one. Its rider was given power to take peace from the earth and to make men slay each other. To him was given a large sword.” (Rev 6:4)

Please notice several things about that Tribulation verse. First, peace is taken from the earth. There is no peace, anywhere! Imagine living in a constant state of conflict. Even in your home, you feel no peace. Riots, wars, conflict, fights, any flavor of the opposite of peace you want to think of, will be the state of things, all the time. Now, even in the end time prior to the Tribulation, we can find peace. Rumors of wars are unsettling, but they are not the scale and breadth that they will be as soon as we leave and the Seal is opened.

Sword is the Lord’s metaphor for war, or actually, judgment. The root word in the verse in Rev 6:4 is megas, meaning exceeding, great, large; and machaira, meaning figuratively, war, judicial punishment — sword. So, second, the verse takes careful note of the size of the sword. The Lord gave unto men a sword in other verses throughout the bible, as in Ezekiel 21:14; Ez 32:20; Jer 50:36; etc. Look up sword in the bible, and then look up large sword (or great sword, mighty sword). The sword of war is never described in any of the verses I could find, as mighty, (except in one verse in Isaiah 27:1, The Deliverance of Israel, which is the Lord’s own sword.) In other words, the wars and rumors of wars now are normal business, but the Tribulation wars will be devastating.

See what happens in the Fourth Seal: When the Lamb broke the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth living creature saying, “Come.” I looked, and behold, an ashen horse; and he who sat on it had the name Death; and Hades was following with him Authority was given to them over a fourth of the earth, to kill with sword and with famine and with pestilence and by the wild beasts of the earth.” The verse tells us a quarter of the earth’s population dies, partly from results of war (sword).

Ultimately, I interpret the verses in Matthew 24 and Revelation 6 to say though there will be conflict both prior to the Trib and afterwards, the conflict in the Tribulation will be horrendous while the conflicts in the end of the age will be manageable. Will the US experience a nuclear holocaust, or even en electro-magnetic pulse wiping out all electronics? Maybe, I can’t predict the future, but I believe the church all over the world will experience normal conflict prior to leaving, but not horrendous hardship from nukes and direct attacks. That would be judgment, and we are not to be judged.

That is not to say that the normal course of war is anything to take lightly. It’s terrible. Ask any war widow. Ask anyone who lives in the line of fire, whose home is blown up and who has lost their nation, being a refugee. But the terrible times of the wars depicted in the Tribulation will be so much worse.

When Jesus said that there will be nations rising against nations, and kingdoms against kingdoms, it sounds quaint and old-timey to hear the word “kingdom.” Monarchies seem outdated and bygone. But there are kingdoms in the world today, many with ruling and active kings (or queens). UK’s full name is really The Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. The full name of other nations reveal many kingdoms. Others on the earth today include the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan. Kingdom of Denmark. Kingdom of Bahrain. Kingdom of Belgium. Kingdom of Bhutan.  Kingdom of Cambodia. Kingdom of Lesotho. Kingdom of Morocco. Kingdom of the Netherlands. Kingdom of Norway. Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Kingdom of Spain. Kingdom of Swaziland. Kingdom of Sweden. Kingdom of Thailand. Kingdom of Tonga.

Kingdom of Tonga

Isn’t it strange to think that in the Tribulation, no where will be peaceful, including the far-off, remote and tiny place of Tonga. How many travel posters tout places like Tonga as the quintessential peaceful place, perfect to escape to? Pictures sch as the one above are emblematic of peace and tranquility. But when Jesus tells John that “peace will be taken from the earth”, that means that nowhere on earth will you find peace. Nowhere. At all.

As for the current conflict in the China Sea, time will tell how that may or may not blossom into a hot conflict narrow in scope or worldwide in impact. We won’t have long to wait. The joint US-SKorean military exercises are due to begin on Sunday and NKorea has vowed retaliation of we do. Here are a series of recent news headlines illustrating the progression of the conflict that has evolved over the last four days:

Boston Globe: South Korea’s Defense Minister Resigns
South Korea’s defense minister resigned Thursday, two days after an artillery attack by North Korea killed four people on small island near their disputed frontier.  The move came as President Lee Myung-bak vowed to send more troops to the island and as residents tried to salvage belongings from its blackened wreckage. Pyongyang warned of additional attacks if provoked.

Korean Times: NK fired fuel-air shells on Yeonpyeong
North Korea used a new type of artillery shell capable of penetrating concrete walls and causing fires in Tuesday’s deadly shelling of Yeonpyeong Island in the West Sea, military investigators said Thursday.  The “special shell” similar to a thermobaric weapon, known as a fuel-air bomb, is believed to have been deployed since 1985, they said. A team of investigators has recovered some 20 duds that landed on the island for analysis.

BBC News: N Korea warns war drills take region to ‘brink of war’
North Korea has warned that impending joint military exercises by the South and the US are pushing the region to “the brink of war”.  A group of naval ships, led by a nuclear-powered US aircraft carrier, is heading to the Yellow Sea to take part in the drills, due to begin on Sunday.  At least four South Koreans died on Tuesday when the North shelled the Southern island of Yeonpyeong.

Korea’s Yonhap News: N. Korea says it is ‘ready to annihilate’ S. Korea’s stronghold North Korea said Friday it is “ready to annihilate” South Korea’s stronghold if its sovereignty is violated even a bit, raising already high tension after the two countries exchanged artillery barrages earlier this week, Yonhap reported. “We will show a firm and merciless example to whichever provoker encroaches on our dignity and sovereignty,” the North’s Committee for Peaceful Reunification of the Fatherland said in a statement released by the official Korean Central News Agency.

Japan Broadcasting Corporation: Japan increasing air patrols
Japan currently deploys five EP3 aircraft at its Iwakuni Base in Yamaguchi Prefecture, western Japan.  The aircraft routinely patrol the skies over Japan and surrounding areas, monitoring North Korea’s military activities, such as a ballistic missile launches.  The Defense Ministry appears to be increasing the number of EP3 flights to be on the alert for further possible military actions by the North.

UK Independent: Expats recalled as North Korea prepares for war
A mass exodus of North Korean workers from the Far East of Russia is under way, according to reports coming out of the region. As the two Koreas edged towards the brink of war this week, it appears that the workers in Russia have been called back to aid potential military operations.

China’s Xinhua News: Chinese FM discusses Korean Peninsula issue with Russian, Japanese counterparts on phone
Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi on Saturday discussed the latest situation on the Korean Peninsula in phone calls with Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov and Japanese foreign minister Seiji Maehara. He said all parties should work together to help cool the situation as soon as possible and effectively ensure no repeat of such conflict. Meanwhile, the Chinese minister expressed the hope that concerned parties would take a reasonable and pragmatic approach to actively create favorable conditions for resuming the six-party talks.

Hankyoreh (Korea’s Independent Newspaper): Joint drills will be far from NLL, military reports
Joint South Korea-U.S. drills with the USS George Washington in the West Sea will be held from Sunday to Wednesday. North Korea has promised retaliation if both countries hold the drills in the West Sea. South Korea and the United States have stated that the drills are routine and defensive in nature, but with the drills being held in the middle of the West Sea for the first time, they strongly take on the character of a show of force against North Korea.

Stock Analyst: SKorea may elevate NKorea to main enemy status
Meanwhile, an unidentified South Korean official told Yonhap Saturday Seoul was mulling over whether to designate North Korea as its “main enemy” when the Defense Ministry publishes its next biannual defense white paper. The South now considers North Korea “an immediate and direct threat” to its national security.

The world holds its breath as it teeters on the brink of war.
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Posted in end time, north korea, prophecy

NKorea fires on SKorea in fierce artillery attack; jets scrambled

Posted on by elizabethprata

Closed-circuit television images broadcast on Korean television show the impacts of several artillery shells fired by North Korea Tuesday afternoon.

N. Korea fires artillery towards S. Korean island, official says 
North Korea on Tuesday fired several rounds of artillery towards South Korean waters and an island near the tense west sea border, the South’s military said. The North’s artillery shells fell at 2:34 p.m. in the South’s waters off the island of Yeonpyeong, some of them landing directly on the island, said Col. Lee Bung-woo, spokesman at the South’s Joint Chiefs of Staff. The South’s military responded with its artillery firing.

Island is the one NK fired upon

“North Korea fired scores of artillery shells at a South Korean island on Tuesday, killing two soldiers, in one of the heaviest attacks on its neighbor since the Korean War ended in 1953.  North Korea shells South in fiercest barrage in decades:  The barrage — the South fired back and sent a fighter jet to the area — was close to a disputed maritime border on the west of the divided peninsula and the scene of deadly clashes in the past. South Korea was conducting military drills in the area at the time but said it had not been firing at the North. The attack came as the reclusive North, and its ally China, presses regional powers to return to negotiations on its nuclear weapons program and revelations at the weekend Pyongyang is fast developing another source of material to make atomic bombs.”

Still is from S Korean news footage

AF chief Schwartz: Latest North Korea “provocation” means that the US government should discuss reintroduction of nukes to Korean peninsula. However, “The United States says it is not moving additional military power into South Korea following artillery attack by North Korea.” Obama said it is “too soon to tell.” I really would like to know what the Pentagon recommended, though.

Other nations are spooked by the sudden attack. “Indonesia has expressed deep concern over the armed clash between North Korea and South Korea on Yeonpyeong island that has claimed lives. The term “WWIII” has come up more than once this morning from many quarters on various forums. It is indicative of the tensions we feel these days. As Bonnie Tyler said in her 80’s song, “We’re living in a powder keg and giving off sparks.”
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Posted in end time, FBI, militia, north korea, prophecy, wars and rumors of wars

Peace among rumors of wars

Posted on by elizabethprata

The disciples asked Jesus about the end of times in Matthew 24:3, “Tell us,” they said, “when will this happen, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?” Jesus gave a lengthy and specific answer. One of the signs He told the disciples to look for were “wars and rumors of wars.” The rumors of wars is often overlooked in light of the upcoming fact of the wars of Isaiah 17:1, Psalm 83, Ezekiel 38-39, and the war at Armageddon in Rev. 16:14, plus other wars that have not been described specifically but will occur as per Rev. 6:4.

The news today is sobering. On one side of the Atlantic, we read that The “Special Relationship” between US and UK is over, MP’s say. Also on that side of the Atlantic, we read that even as tanks roll into Gaza, “Israel will have to end Hamas regime.” On the other side of the world, a South Korean ship was sunk in the Yellow Sea with all hands on board. North Korea is suspected. At home, massive FBI – DHS raids were carried out in three states, militias are the suspected targets, as reported here, and here, and other places. In this report, the raids were against militia groups with Christian ties, specifically with end time orientation and philosophy.

Note that none of the prophesied wars have occurred yet. However, Jesus said in the same breath, ‘wars and rumors of wars.’ Wars are something we can wrap our minds around. There are concrete terms that we associate with wars. ‘Win,’ ‘lose,’ ‘enemy,’ ‘advance’, ‘retreat,’ ‘victory’, ‘defeat.’ We can understand what is required and take action. However, with rumors, there is nothing concrete. Truth could be anything and anything could be a lie. Nothing is certain. Rumors are quicksand. And rumors of wars are the worst kind of rumors because they keep a population on such edge and anxiety. Looking at the news today from east to west, north to south, we never quite can predict where or when the next blow will come. That is the nature of rumors.

Gary Alan Fine is a premier academic who has made a career of studying the social impact of rumor and legend. In his book “Rumor Mills,” Fine says that a rumor’s “major ideological function is to bridge over the cognitive gaps tearing the tissue of normative beliefs and standards.” In other words, as belief systems are shaken, people knit the few facts available into tales that satisfy the gaps in their understanding, an understanding that is being shaken ever more vigorously, and as it is shaken more vigorously, the tales increase to cover the gaps. The end time is certainly a time when belief systems are being shaken. People who believed whole-heartedly in the concepts of money, tenure, career, home, capitalism,  retirement, and security are concepts that no longer have the same meaning as they did even two years ago.

Rumors put you on edge. The search for truth often proves fruitless. Anxiety grows. Rumors draw energy away from our culture, life, society. The promote a general unbalancing. This is what rumors do and rumors of war are the worst. However, Jesus, being perfect, and intentional with every word He speaks, said in the same sentence as the promise of wars and rumors of wars, “but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come.” (Mt 24:6 NIV)

Jesus knows the effect that a time of prolonged rumor has upon a psyche, and He admonishes us not to be afraid! Do not be a slave to fears. There is nothing more tarnishing to a Christian testimony than a life of hand-wringing. Nothing is more detrimental to the Light of the Holy Spirit inside us than giving in to the fear that rumors of war brings.

UK and US may go their separate ways. North Korea may have sunk a South Korean ship. Israel may occupy Gaza. FBI may have busted up American militia groups. These are all potentialities. Look past the rumors of what MAY happen, to the certainty of what will happen. The Lord will come rapture us away. The Holy Spirit will draw multitudes to salvation during the Tribulation. God will re-create the earth. Of all people, Christians should exhibit the peace that passes all understanding. Others may fear and cry. Others may let rumors permeate their soul and dim their light. This time, above all times, should be the time when we heed the Lord’s admonishment and fear not! We can look past the time of uncertainty toward the time of certainty – when Jesus rules. We have the blessed Hope. Be bright with hope for others who are in the dark. Rumors come and go. They float up into a nation’s consciousness, and they they dissolve just as ephemerally. Jesus is solid. He never fades. And that’s a fact!