prophecy – Page 39

discernment, glory, perilous times, prophecy, self-worship

Ultimate selfie: man edits himself into one-man orchestra playing every instrument (and conducting)

Posted on May 17, 2015May 9, 2016 by elizabethprata

A man played each part in a 70-piece orchestra and cut it into a one-man show

A man from Hull in the UK has taken the concept of the one-man band and run with it. Ben Morfitt, 24, spent a month creating a video of himself playing the parts of a 70-piece orchestra in his bedroom and posted the bizarre result to YouTube. He filmed an empty concert hall in the city’s Abermarle Music Centre as the basis for the clip, before then taping himself playing each instrument in front of a green screen and slowly building the orchestra, the Hull Daily Mail reports. It took a full month to film,” Morfitt said. “I used about three-and-a-half hours’ [worth of] footage for the final piece, and there’s about ten times that in outtakes.” He had to edit out his cat every time it wandered into the shot. The whole thing ends with 70 versions of himself turning to the camera to give it the finger.

Because…why? Why waste that much time? Energy? Talent? After reading 6 articles about Mr Morfitt, the only clue I could glean regarding his employment is that he makes a living from composing work. He actually did play each of the nine instruments depicted. He is talented and creative…but to spend that much time on one’s self, seems to me to be just ridiculously inward. And flipping the bird at the end, that’s over the top crass.

The Bible says,

For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy,(2 Timothy 3:2)

The Strong’s Lexicon explains the word ‘lover of self’ in the Greek. it is only used once, here in 2 Timothy 3:2,

phílautos (an adjective, derived from 5384 /phílos, “lover” and 846 /autós, “of self”) – properly, a lover of self, describing someone preoccupied with their own selfish desires (self-interests).

Preoccupied with self and one’s own desires. The young man who took such an inordinate amount of time to film himself in every orchestra position, then gave the finger to the audience at the end of the piece, seems to fill this scripture perfectly.

It takes a selfish desire and a heavy preoccupation with one’s self to do this. It is a gross idolatry. Matthew Henry says of the 2 Timothy verse:

Even in gospel times there would be perilous times; on account of persecution from without, still more on account of corruptions within. Men love to gratify their own lusts, more than to please God and do their duty. When every man is eager for what he can get, and anxious to keep what he has, this makes men dangerous to one another. When men do not fear God, they will not regard man.

Man’s Chief End is to Glorify God, preached Puritan Thomas Watson. He wrote,

Here are two ends of life specified. 1. The glorifying of God. 2. The enjoying of God.

First. The glorifying of God, 1 Pet. 4:11. “That God in all things may be glorified.” The glory of God is a silver thread which must run through all our actions. l Cor. 10:31. “Whether therefore ye eat or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.” Everything works to some end in things natural and artificial; now, man being a rational creature, must propose some end to himself, and that should be, that he may lift up God in the world. He had better lose his life than the end of his living. The great truth asserted is that the end of every man’s living should be to glorify God. Glorifying God has respect to all the persons in the Trinity; it respects God the Father who gave us life; God the Son, who lost his life for us; and God the Holy Ghost, who produces a new life in us; we must bring glory to the whole Trinity.

When we speak of God’s glory, the question will be moved, What are to understand by God’s glory?

Answer. There is a twofold glory: 1. The glory that God has in himself, his intrinsic glory. Glory is essential to the Godhead, as light is to the sun: he is called the “God of glory.” Acts 7:2. Glory is the sparkling of the Deity; it is so co-natural to the Godhead, that God cannot be God without it. The creature’s honour is not essential to his being. A king is a man without his regal ornaments, when his crown and royal robes are taken away; but God’s glory is such an essential part of his being, that he cannot be God without it. God’s very life lies in his glory. This glory can receive no addition, because it is infinite; it is that which God is most tender of, and which he will not part with. Isa. 48:11, “My glory I will not give to another.” God will give temporal blessings to his children, such as wisdom, riches, honour; he will give them spiritual blessings, he will give them grace, he will give them his love, he will give them heaven; but his essential glory he will not give to another. King Pharaoh parted with a ring off his finger to Joseph, and a gold chain, but he would not part with his throne. Gen. 41:40. “Only in the throne will I be greater than thou.” So God will do much for his people; he will give them the inheritance; he will put some of Christ’s glory, as mediator upon them; but his essential glory he will not part with; “in the throne he will be greater.”

2. The glory which is ascribed to God, or which his creatures labour to bring to him. 1 Chron. 16:29, “Give unto the Lord the glory due unto his name.” And, 1 Cor. 6:20, “Glorify God in your body, and in your spirit.” The glory we give God is nothing else but our lifting up his name in the world, and magnifying him in the eyes of others. Phil. 1:20, “Christ shall be magnified in my body.”

Please click on the link to learn more of what it means to glorify God.

There are only two occupations for man, to glorify God, or to glorify self. This viral video which the social media proclaims is so clever is an object warning for myself. As I approach the end of school and begin to look forward to 8 weeks of staying at home, I can easily slip into the same kind of mind-set as Mr Morfitt- navel gazing, indulging selfish desires, and being preoccupied with my own glory and not the Great God whom I serve.

I must remember to submit to the Holy Spirit in yielding up my old man, and focus on the new man. I want to use my time well and glorify God in what I do. I can use the time to study, minister, pray, read the Bible more, disciple, and grow. Lord, help me this summer remain diligent in seeking YOUR glory, and avoid resting in any false laurels I build up in myself. I desire to redeem the time. Summer is glorious for me because of the time off, yet the lure of the leisure life can easily descend into too much personal work, introspection, and just plain silliness (like Mr Morfitt)… and leave no room for the purpose of my life: the glorification of God

EPrata photo

Prayer

At times I feel I could bear any suffering, but how can I dishonour this glorious God? What shall I do to glorify and worship this best of beings? O that I could consecrate my soul and body to His service, without restraint, for ever! O that I could give myself up to Him, so as never more to attempt to be my own! or have any will or affections that are not perfectly conformed to His will and His love! But, alas, I cannot live and not sin. ~Valley of Vision

colton burpo, end time, NDE, near death experience, prophecy

Is the growing acceptance of both secular and "Christian" near-death experiences one of the prophesied lying signs?

Posted on May 15, 2015May 9, 2016 by elizabethprata

FMI on Raymond Moody

The 1970s and 1980s were funny decades. The Free Love movement of the 60s gave way to Age of Aquarius, Eastern Mysticism (thanks, Beatles) and Near Death Experience movement. The 1970s for some reason was a breakthrough decade for study in NDE. For the first time the phenomenon was studied seriously. Books galore came out and the adults around me ate them up. I remember seeing Raymond Moody’s Life After Life, a seminal book for the decade that broke open the study of what happens after we die. Elisabeth Kubler-Ross‘ study of death and the five stages of grief was another that fascinated the adults around me. Then came all the philosophical books from New Age promoting spirituality and mysticism based on “discoveries” reported from NDEs such as those from Carlos Castaneda, (A Separate Reality) and Richard Bach (Jonathan Livingston Seagull).

As a side note, adults, if you think the books you read and put on your bookshelves go unnoticed by your kids, you’re crazy. Growing up and as a young adult, I was hugely impacted by the books the adults around me were reading.

As far as NDEs went, I became fascinated by the fact that all these people nearly died or did die, and came back and reported the same thing. They all talked of beauty in another place or dimension, a tunnel, the light, peace. There had to be something to it, I thought! From the vantage point of today, of course I know these to be satanic deceptions perpetrated on unsaved people deluding them into thinking they are going to “that place”, “into the light” without repenting of sins or knowing Jesus.

Those 1970s NDEs are no different in their high deception-factor than are the ones from today by “Christians” like Colton Burpo (Heaven is For Real) or Alex Malarkey (The Boy Who Came Back from Heaven).

But when I was a young adult noticing all these New Age books talking about peace and light after death, it made sense to me. It was by the grace of God only that I didn’t stop there and came to know the real Light and can read the only book that reports what it is really like “over there” – the Bible.

The “Christian” books 90 Minutes in Heaven, by Don Piper; Heaven is For Real, by Colton Burpo and his dad; The Boy Who Came Back from Heaven, by Alex Malarkey; 23 Minutes in Hell, by Bill Wiese; Proof of Heaven: A Neurosurgeon’s Journey into the Afterlife, by Eben Alexander; To Heaven and Back, by Mary C. Neal, Mary K. Baker’s A Divine Revelation of Heaven and other such books, exploring ‘the other side’ from a Christian perspective, have been enormous best-sellers. As each “Christian” NDE book has been published, they have grown in popularity…and acceptance. By the time Heaven is For Real came along people applauded the book, trusted the four-year-old’s account of rainbow horses and homework in heaven, and made a movie out of it. The Burpos are considered evangelical.

There have been great inroads that the testimonies of Christians who claim to have had a personal encounter with Jesus or angels at near death have become mainstream, a path that the 1970s NDE books started, which at that time were looked upon as paranormal quackery.

In this recent article in The Atlantic, the convergence of the “Christian” NDE and the New Age NDE appears to have been finalized.

The Science of Near-Death Experiences

Yet even these skeptics rarely accuse experiencers of inventing their stories from whole cloth. Though some of these stories may be fabrications, and more no doubt become embellished in the retelling, they’re too numerous and well documented to be dismissed altogether. It’s also hard to ignore the accounts by respected physicians with professional reputations to protect. Even if the afterlife isn’t real, the sensations of having been there certainly are.

There is something about NDEs that makes them scientifically intriguing. While you can’t rely on an alien abduction or a spiritual visitation taking place just when you’ve got recording instruments handy, many NDEs happen when a person is surrounded by an arsenal of devices designed to measure every single thing about the body that human ingenuity has made us capable of measuring.

And that’s exactly it. That is what intrigued me as a teen and young adult there are too many stories of NDE, they’re too similar, and in this age of technology they are too scientifically confirmed to simply ignore. What the people don’t know, however, is that simply the fact of the cumulative existence of thousands of NDE cases doesn’t confirm that they are sent from heaven.

Yes the NDE occurred. No, it doesn’t mean it was heaven. Satan is a deceiver and a liar, and he can perform lying wonders, (Matthew 24:24, Revelation 16:14), can appear as an angel of righteousness, (2 Corinthians 11:14), and alter the physiology of a targeted human. (Mark 4:3-4).

The fact that it occurred is not the proof. The world believes the NDE occurred but they never stop to think that the NDE itself may be real but is a deception. Satan counts on this.

I’d had a conversation with a young person, age 7. He was fervently trying to convince his mates that Bigfoot is real. Here is his argument.

I KNOW Bigfoot is real, because I had a dream about him…and DREAMS ARE REAL!

He made me laugh, and his argument was a circular but internally consistent logic that made it hard to argue against. I got to thinking about his argument though a little later. It’s the same argument that evangelicals make about Jesus, and when they do, it isn’t so cute or funny any more. But it is the exact argument that people who have had NDEs (or visions or dreams of Jesus) claim.

I had a dream/vision/near-death experience of heaven. Dreams are real. Therefore Heaven is for Real.

Too many Christians fall prey to this also. They blindly believe that simply because a supernatural event occurred that it must be from heaven. But more likely in this day and age, it is from hell.

Some don’t believe that satan is capable of deceivingly presenting a false heaven to people. However remember that angels are powerful. Satan was the most powerful angel of all, dwelling immediately next to the Most High in the heavenly realms at His throne. He was capable of showing all the kingdoms of the world to Jesus! (Matthew 4:8). The magicians were able to replicate Aaron’s and Moses’ sign from God by the power of their secret arts, turning their own staffs into snakes as Moses and Aaron had. (Exodus 7:11-12).

Do not overlook the many cautions and warnings in the Bible about satan’s lying signs and his power to deceive. The lying sign serves several purposes. They lead people astray. They confirm man in his error – for example, emphasizing Gods love toward the unrepentant sinner and the unrepentant sinner’s presence in heaven. Lying signs thus encourage people to rely on the sign and not the word of truth which would set him free.

The coming of the lawless one is by the activity of Satan with all power and false signs and wonders, (2 Thessalonians 2:9)

For false messiahs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect. (Matthew 24:24)

Because of the signs it was given power to perform on behalf of the first beast, it deceived the inhabitants of the earth. (Revelation 13:14)

Satan has the power to deceive the entire earth. Do we not think he can deceive one unfortunate car accident victim lying in a state of drugged unconsciousness?

In The Atlantic article it’s stated,

Whether you saw a divine being or your brain was merely pumping out chemicals, the experience is so intense that it forces you to rethink your place on Earth.

The secular person and sadly the ‘Christian’ nowadays put faith in the experience and rate its credibility based on its intensity. Yet Theologian John MacArthur stated,

Studying mystical accounts of supposed journeys into the afterlife yields nothing but confusion, contradiction, false hope, bad doctrine, and a host of similar evils.

In my opinion, the fact so many “Christian” NDEs are occurring it is in itself a prophesied lying sign. A further sign is the convergence of Christian acceptance of (lying) wonders with with New Age (false) wonders. Another sign is the fact that evangelicals are accepting the New Age/Spiritual NDE instead of the Bible’s word on the matter.

Convergence almost complete

Conclusion point #1: Stay in the Word so that you will not be deceived.

Conclusion point #2: A supernatural wonder is not necessarily from God. Satan is supernatural, too.

Conclusion point #3: The world’s fascination with life after life is not only unabated since breaking through to the mainstream in the 1970s, but it’s growing. Christian booksellers are helping this along, partnering with New Age thought, and blending the two so that one is virtually indistinguishable from the other.

Yet even then, the positive outcome of this is that we have the knowledge of the truth, and can share with any person who is similarly fascinated with near-death experiences, as I once was before I was saved. Intrinsically, I knew life didn’t end at death. Eternity is written on our hearts. Share Revelation 21 and 22 with friends or family who want to know more. It is a beautiful future ahead for those who believe. Try to bring as many as possible along with you.

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Further reading

Heaven is Real: Hallucinations are not

discern, judgment, prophecy, signs

“Discerning the Signs of the Times” by Pastor Phil Andrukaitis

Posted on May 7, 2015May 9, 2016 by elizabethprata

A pastor-friend from Maine recently wrote this below, what was on his heart. I agree with it. It’s on my heart too.

In Hosea 5:12, the LORD promised to bring moth-like judgment upon Israel.

But I am like a moth to Ephraim, and like dry rot to the house of Judah.

Gill’s Exposition explains this long-slow kind of judgment.

Therefore will I be unto Ephraim as a moth,…. Which eats garments, penetrates into them, feeds on them privately, secretly, without any noise, and gradually and slowly consumes them; but at last utterly, that they are of no use and profit: this may signify the various things which befell the ten tribes in the reigns of Zachariah, Shallum, Menahem, Pekahiah, and Pekah, which secretly and gradually weakened them

It is not hard to imagine the Lord employing the same kind of judgment on America and other nations as we deepen our apostasy and turn from Him.

Pastor Andrukaitis

The author of the piece below, Pastor Phil Andrukaitis, is senior Pastor of First Baptist Church, South Portland Maine. Please read the below and see if you agree also.

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“Discerning the Signs of the Times”

When hostile, threatened, religious leaders questioned Jesus about His identity and ministry, Jesus responded, “When it is evening you say, ‘It will be fair weather, for the sky is red;’ and in the morning, ‘It will be foul weather today, for the sky is red and threatening.’ Hypocrites! You know how to discern the face of the sky, but you cannot discern the signs of the times.” (Matthew 16:1-3).

I’m reminded of an earlier time during the initial reign of King David [1011 BC – 971 BC], when the men of Issachar, one of the twelve tribes of Israel, were identified as those “who had an understanding of the times…” (1st Chronicles 12:32).

Question: I wonder how many Christians understand the present times in which we live.

In my devotional reading this morning, my heart was moved by King Josiah’s response when the Book of the Law [God’s Word] had been found in the house of the LORD, while it was being restored by faithful servants.

Evidently, during his grandfather’s 55-year reign as king [Manasseh] and his father’s 2-year reign [Amon], the Book of the Law was lost because these two kings, like many kings before them, had served idols, seduced the nation to follow after other gods, and shed much innocent blood throughout the nation. However, when Hilkiah the high priest found the Book of the Law, he brought it to the attention of King Josiah.

As the Book of the Law was read to King Josiah, the Scriptures says that Josiah’s heart was tender. In addition, Josiah humbled himself before the LORD when he heard what lay ahead for the nation – judgment and desolation because the nation had turned away from God Almighty and had forsaken His Word. And Josiah wept before God and he tore his clothes (2nd Kings 22:1-20). Judgment was on the doorstep of the nation. Judgment was certain. God had set the date.

Questions: First, how do we respond when the Word of God is read? Think about it. Are our hearts tender towards the Word? Do we humble ourselves before God? Do we weep and grieve over the sins in our lives, in our families, in our churches, in our nation? Do we desire spiritual and numerical growth for the body of Christ?

Second, I wonder how oblivious God’s people are towards the events unfolding in our world today. I am not an alarmist who is crying, “The sky is falling! The sky is falling!” Rather, my cry is, “Jesus is coming! Jesus is coming!”

Consider the sins of our nation for just a moment.

ABORTION: We have slaughtered nearly 55 million innocent infants in their mother’s wombs in the past 42 years, all for the sake of “protecting a woman’s choice.” This is a most damnable grievance before God. God is not going to turn away from the innocent cries of these infants. I praise God that these little ones who have been forsaken are in the presence of Jesus.

GBLT: We have cut loose the mooring lines that held this nation firm to the biblical, moral foundation by forsaking the Bible. The LORD God identifies these lifestyles an abomination in His eyes.

SELF: As sinners, we are prone to demote God in our lives and promote ourselves as “gods,” choosing to follow our sinful passions with a heart full of pride. Consequently, every imaginable sin flows out from our hearts and through our lives.

Listen, America is under God’s judgment. The Lord warned ancient Israel that if His people turn away from Him and forsake His Word, God would bring upon them the following curses (Deuteronomy 28): A state of confusion, diseases, natural calamities, rampant domestic violence, economic collapse, and evil rulers.

While these curses were specifically given to ancient Israel, principally speaking, our nation is experiencing the same type of judgments. Consider the evil rulers throughout our nation, the state of confusion and corruption within government, the growing unrest in our country, and the increasing disrespect for authority in our land.

I believe our nation is on the verge of a global economic collapse. I believe government is waiting for the right opportunity to impose martial law in our country. And I believe the church is on the threshold of her glorious hour, especially when God visits our nation with judgment. May the church of Jesus Christ do away with its stupid, petty fights and truly demonstrate that they are Christians, known by their love for one another and others.

I believe it is too late for America. However, it is not too late for individuals to return to the Lord. Confess your sins and your role in the moral collapse of our nation. Believe that Jesus died for you, paying your sin debt by being crucified on the cross. The Bible says, “Without the shedding of blood, there is no forgiveness of sins” (Hebrews 9:22). Believe that Jesus rose from His grave, as this is God the Father’s proof that Jesus’ sacrifice was acceptable and that Jesus has conquered death, sin, and the grave. Moreover, the Lord is willing to forgive the humble, repentant sinner who comes to Jesus in faith. Go on, surrender your life to Him and know the forgiveness and peace that comes with knowing God through a personal relationship with Jesus.

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By Pastor Phl Andrukaitis, Pastor First Baptist Church South Portland, ME. Phil enjoys fishing and target shooting. His passion is making disciples. As a former Marine, his motto is “Honor, courage and commitment are ‘corps’ values that build character. Phil has been married to Sally for over thirty years.

Rare quake shakes Michigan, "strongest ever". Other earth updates

Posted on May 2, 2015May 9, 2016 by elizabethprata

What Was That Rumble? Officials Confirm 4.2 Magnitude Earthquake Hits Michigan
May 2, 2015 12:42 PM

Source

KALAMAZOO (WWJ) – If you thought you felt an earthquake on Saturday — you did. And It was one of the strongest quakes ever experienced in Michigan. Officials with the United States Geological Survey said an earthquake with a magnitude of 4.2 and a depth of focus of 5.9 km was measured around 12:23 p.m. about nine miles southeast of Kalamazoo. Multiple residents in several different regions beyond Kalamazoo — from Mount Pleasant and Sterling Heights to Lansing and even as far as Cleveland, Ohio — reported feeling a rumble and the ground shake for between five and 10 seconds. No damage or injuries have been reported. The strongest earthquake in Michigan history was a 4.6 magnitude in nearly the exact same location in August 1947.

History of earthquakes in Michigan
The U.S. Geological Survey says the earliest record of earthquake tremors in Michigan came from a series of shocks in Missouri about 1811.

In 2010 a large earth crack appeared in Upper Michigan.
One day the land was flat and filled with trees shooting straight into the air. Twenty-four hours later there’s a 600-foot-long crack, 4-feet deep twisting its way through the woods – and those vertical trees are now pointed 30 degrees left and right where the earth has mounded 15 feet high. No, it’s not a disaster movie; it’s what happened Monday at the home of Eileen Heider on Bay de Noc Road in Birch Creek. Heider was sitting in her recliner watching TV at about 8:30 that morning. “The chair shook for a few seconds and I thought the spring in the chair went,” she said. … The next day Heider’s friend, Doug Salewski, found a hole in the ground and a 200-yard crevasse a short ways away which wasn’t there before. Heider went to investigate and said the crack was three-feet wide and about five-feet deep in spots.

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Steve Herman, reporter for Voice of America, Asia, reports, USGS: M6.1 #quake SE of #Japan (Too small to trigger significant tsunami).

LONDON: An earth tremor of magnitude 5.7 struck 185km south-southeast of Japan’s Izu islands on Saturday (May 2), the United States Geological Survey said. The USGS at first put the quake at 6.1, but later revised it to a weaker reading. The tremor was at a shallow depth of 10km.

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Underwater Volcano May Be Erupting Off Oregon
An underwater volcano off the coast of Oregon has risen from its slumber and may be spewing out lava about a mile beneath the sea. Researchers were alerted to the possible submarine eruption of the Axial Seamount, located about 300 miles (480 kilometers) off the West Coast, by large changes in the seafloor elevation and an increase in the number of tiny earthquakes on April 24. Geologists Bill Chadwick, of the Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory and Oregon State University, and Scott Nooner, of the University of North Carolina, Wilmington, successfully forecast the eruption in a blog post in September 2014.

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You might remember the Japan 9.0 Quake of 2011 shifted the earth off its axis, shortened the day and moved the island 8 feet. Is anything too hard for the LORD? (Jeremiah 32:27).

Nepal Earthquake Shrank Mount Everest, Lifted Areas Near Kathmandu 3 Feet
Nepal’s massive 7.8-magnitude earthquake transformed the land the was shaken by the natural disaster, pushing areas near the city of Kathmandu higher in elevation and making Mount Everest slightly shorter. It won’t be enough to unseat Everest as the world’s tallest peak, but according to studies performed after last weekend’s temblor, the mountain is now an inch shorter than before the quake. On the other hand, some locations just outside Nepal’s capital city of Kathmandu were lifted 3 feet higher than before the tragic event, the study also found.

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Lava lake on Hawaii’s volcano overflows in spectacular show
HONOLULU (AP) — A lake of lava on Hawaii’s Kilauea volcano has been rising over the past week and, at times, overflowing in a spectacular show. Video posted online by visitors shows lava splashing over the side of the vent rim. Janet Babb, a geologist with the U.S. Geological Survey Hawaiian Volcano Observatory, said Thursday that this is the first time lava from this vent has come into view from a public platform within Hawaii Volcanoes National Park on Hawaii’s Big Island. “It’s always been out of view for visitors who were in the park public viewing areas,” she said. But this past week, because of lava is rising inside the volcano, the lava lake rose high enough that it was visible, she said. The last time molten lava was visible in the crater was in 1982 when a fissure erupted. The last time there was a lake was in 1974.

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Chile’s Calbuco Volcano erupts for third time in 8 days

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Bulusan volcano erupts
Mount Bulusan in the province of Sorsogon erupted on Friday morning, causing an explosion of steam and ash that lasted five minutes followed by 40 volcanic quakes, government seismologists said. While the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) did not raise the alert level at the volcano, it warned the public against venturing into Mount Bulusan’s four-kilometer permanent danger zone because of possibility of sudden explosion. Ed Laguerta, Phivolcs resident volcanologist, told The Manila Times that the explosion scattered ash in Puting Sapa and Sangayon villages of Juban town and in Cogon, Gulang-Gulang and Tinampo villages of Irosin town. “This is just a minor explosion [that] coincided with Labor Day celebrations. We’re closely monitoring the [volcanic] activity if it will escalate in the coming days,” he said.

Around 10:30 a.m., when the crater became visible, dirty-white steam was seen coming out of it. Phivolcs seismologists said Mount Bulusan, one of the most active volcanoes in the country, exploded at 8:09 a.m. The volcano has erupted 15 times since 1885 and is considered as the 4th most active volcano in the Philippines after Mayon, Taal and Kanlaon. Bulusan last erupted in 2011.

jesus, prophecy, restrainer, sin

The four sin-restraining mechanisms presently operating in the world (not too well, obviously)

Posted on May 1, 2015May 9, 2016 by elizabethprata

I was listening to a sermon from John MacArthur, delivered this past February 2015, apparently to a group of law enforcement officers. It’s called How God Restrains Evil in Society. To sum up the main points, there are four ways God restrains evil:

1. The conscience. Everyone has the law written on their heats. “They show that the work of the law is written on their hearts, while their conscience also bears witness, and their conflicting thoughts accuse or even excuse them” (Romans 2:15). This means that intrinsically, people intuit right from wrong. Their conscience tells them when they’ve drifted into the ‘wrong’ side of the street.

2. The Family.

While conscience is a personal restraint, family is a relational restraint. Family is the building block of society. Family is the building block of civilization. God has established the family to be a loving, truthful, exemplary place that restrains evil in the next generation.

3. The Civil Authority (including law enforcement).

This is a societal restraint. Biblically, the prime duty of civil authority – if you look at the Bible, the Old Testament and New Testament – it’s not charity, it’s not economics. The primary duty of civil authority is the moral well-being of its citizens. It is restraining sinners and rewarding those who do good so that we can be civilized; enjoy a measure of peace and joy in life and God’s creation.

4. The Holy Spirit through the church

The final restraint is the church; the church. That is a spiritual restraint. And when I talk about the church, I’m talking about the organized church because there are a lot of false churches and a lot of phony religion as you all know very well. I’m talking about true Christians, true believers. What makes us a restraint is because God has done a work in us that is internal. (2 Thessalonians 2:7)

A little side trip regarding the Holy Spirit as Restrainer-

The Holy Spirit of God is the only Person with sufficient (supernatural) power to do this restraining. … How does He do it? Through Christians, whom He indwells and through whom He works in society to hold back the swelling tide of lawless living. How will He be taken out of the way? When the church leaves the earth in the Rapture, the Holy Spirit will be taken out of the way in the sense that His unique lawlessness-restraining ministry through God’s people will be removed (cf. Gen. 6:3). The removal of the Restrainer at the time of the Rapture must obviously precede the day of the Lord. Paul’s reasoning is thus a strong argument for the pretribulational Rapture: the Thessalonians were not in the Great Tribulation because the Rapture had not yet occurred.

Constable, T. L. (1985). 2 Thessalonians. In J. F. Walvoord & R. B. Zuck (Eds.), The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures (Vol. 2, p. 719). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.

It is so saddening to see the restraints lift. In each case I believe it is plain to see that sin is advancing beyond the previous beachheads.

1. The Conscience
There is force and fervor in the declarations of the individual who suppresses the truth in unrighteousness, searing their conscience. Gay pride, (a monstrous reversal where sodomy was against the law until recently but is now celebrated ‘proudly’) polygamous marriage, (“what’s one more? It doesn’t change the definition of marriage”) child molestation (“it’s how I show love”), pornography (“it doesn’t hurt anyone”) are but a few examples of how the sinner is attempting to normalize sin to the expense of their conscience- and eternal destiny.

2. The Family
As for the family, we saw a stark example of a mom restraining sin in her son this week. In Baltimore as the riots were ongoing over the muddy circumstances of the death of Freddie Gray in police custody, a mom spotted her son throwing bricks with the rioters and she marched in and smacked him down and boxed his ears and took him by the proverbial earlobe to home.

www.abc2news.com

The NY Post opinion piece stated:

Parents have authority that a badge cannot confer. Son realized the person who knows him best, and is more interested than anyone else in his well-being, was right. So he submitted to her superior authority. Crime, conviction and punishment all happened without the criminal justice system getting involved.

What’s interesting is the fact that so many people are hailing the Baltimore mom for…doing her job. This is because society infrequently sees strong parenting, or parenting with authority. Parents long ago capitulated their jurisdiction and ceded their ground to the children. It’s most exhibited in the parent who constantly asks their child for permission to do such and such. “Do you want to go home now?” “Can you please put down the screwdriver?” “Do you need a nap?” The questions should be “Why are we thrilled a mom hunted down her son and prevented him from wrong doing? Where is his dad? Why did the mom have to wade into a dangerous situation to extract her son? And…where were all the other parents of the teens out there in the riot and why didn’t they come get their kids?

3. Civil Authority
I believe anyone who has eyes can see the difficulty in being a law enforcement officer in these days. The law is little regarded and sinful behavior is increasing. Flash mobs (pleasant public pop-up groups of people who sing in harmony to surprised and happy spectators) have shifted to angry mobs lobbing bricks and beating police. The Baltimore Police lost control and were overwhelmed with the fierceness of the reaction to Freddie Gray’s death, circumstances which are still being investigated by the way.

But in very recent years the Baltimore incident is not alone in showing the suddenness of fierce rioting and police losing control. London (2011), Vancouver (2011), Egypt (2012), Ferguson MO (2014) are all top-of-the mind examples of rioting where civil authority was not strong enough to restrain sin, i.e. where police lost control.

Communities are responding with ever-increasing heavy-handed tactics. Rolling out the SWAT team as a first-pass instead of a last resort for example. Purchasing military-grade equipment, is another example. Showy drills and practices is yet another example of the show of force the civil authority is forced to make in response to increasing lawlessness of both the legal and spiritual kind.

There is some push-back to the military intrusiveness into civil authority. One Texas town was concerned enough with troops drilling with military grade equipment they sent the State Guard to monitor them so martial law would not be instilled.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbot ordered the Texas State Guard to monitor federal troops as they conduct Jade Helm 15 military exercises later this year that some fear are a prelude to declaring martial law. … Operation Jade Helm 15 is a massive training exercise involving 1,200 special operations troops operating clandestinely in several southwest states, including Texas, which, for the duration of the exercise, has been designated a hostile country.

The Governor is being made fun of and called paranoid, but martial law was put in place in Boston after the terrorist bombing at the Marathon, and again in Baltimore as the riots erupted. The problem is not martial law, when it’s temporary until a riot or terrorist situation is under control. It’s forgetting to lift martial law afterwards.

Not many towns like the one in Texas resist the heavier handed displays of force to combat rising lawlessness. It’s a circle the drain situation because the more citizens disobey the law the fiercer the law enforcement gets, the harder the lawless ones push, and so on. The bottom line is that civil authority such as laws, police, and jails are beachheads that have been penentrated and are presently being overrun.

4. The church
This is a sad one too. It is ‘organized religion’ that is the restrainer at present (energized by the Spirit) but organized religion is under attack- from inside. “Christians” decry organized religion and want only a “relationship with Jesus”, but the Church is a restraining force Jesus instituted for the benefit of society through one-on-one evangelizing and for making disciples. Change occurs on the inside of a person by Jesus making a new creation. The soul-by-soul salvation and protection and growth of the new babes in Christ takes place in the church through the mechanism of organized religion. When religion is organized it is easier to submit to those in authority because you actually know who they are. It is easier for the pastor to hold those who are part of the organization accountable because he actually knows who they are. But many liberals want to do away with the organized religion part, making ‘Jesus followers’ like free-floating amoebas occasionally bumping into one another and then drifting around in a primordial soup of feel good platitudes that passes for purity.

This attitude is a direct attack on the force that Christians have in restraining sin. Combine that attack with apostasy and many tares infiltrating the church and you have a visible ‘church’ that can’t, won’t, or doesn’t know how to restrain sin.

One example of this is the decree that famous pastors have signed announcing they will not follow the law if the Supreme Court institutes gay marriage for all the land. Many, many of the signatories are not of the faith. Signatories include Orthodox priests, Catholic priests, James Robison, Rick Joyner, Rod Parsley, Sid Roth, John Hagee, Franklin Graham, Johnathan Cahn, female pastors, self-styled prophets, false; all of them. It is nice to politically stand for marriage but it is not biblical to partner with darkness to do it. We change people from the inside by giving the Gospel and the Spirit birthing them again.

Yet the world is reporting that the ‘church’ and ‘pastors’ are objecting to the pending decision by SCOTUS. Yet those above are not the church. They are tares. Sin isn’t being restrained, not with that crowd.

If these 4 vanguards of sin-restraint, (conscience, family, civil authority and the church) are weakening to such a degree, how much closer would the rapture be when the Church is totally taken out of the way and he who has been restrained (antichrist) is let loose? How long until the man of sin is released onto a world that wants to ‘be free’? How long until no one will tell anyone else that what they are doing is wrong, and which offends a holy God? Sinners, be careful what you ask for.

As for us, we continue to be holy as He is holy, relying on the Spirit to continue in the faith. Shine brightly, the light of holiness and purity will be a beacon to those who are either being drawn to Him or are being repelled and want to shield their eyes.

What should we do in these times? Protect our restraining mechanisms.

1. Conscience
Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. (Hebrews 10:22)

2. The Family
The strong, biblical family is a stepping stone to keeping the church pure-
For if someone does not know how to manage his own household, how will he care for God’s church? (1 Timothy 3:5).

3. Civil Authority.
Rome was a brutal and evil empire in many respects. The first century saints were told to submit to it. (1 Peter 2:12, Romans 13:5). We do the same. Unless we are forced by law to directly contradict God’s law, we submit to civil authority. And don’t let your kids throw bricks at police.

4. The Church
Built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord. In him you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit. (Ephesians 2:20-22)

Keep the church pure by being pure yourself. Also, respect doctrine and keep it pure. Speak up in humility when errant doctrine infiltrates your church. And pastors, practice rightly biblical church discipline so the church will remain strong. We need the church to restrain sin in the world. Pray.

children, justice, prophecy

To those who harm children:

Posted on April 28, 2015May 9, 2016 by elizabethprata

Sin is ramping up so much and families are just disintegrating. It all falls on the children. They take the brunt.

Just as Cain killed Abel and the LORD said,

“And the Lord said, “What have you done? The voice of your brother’s blood is crying to me from the ground.” Genesis 4:10

Parents, Adults, what have you done? The children’s tears cry out from the ground!

Just as Abel’s blood cried out from the ground, the children of the world and our county who are neglected, abused, trafficked, homeless, hungry, aborted…their pain slips out of them at night when they cry, their tears seep into the ground.

The flood of tears is saturating the ground that the ground cries out to God for justice. The agony of the world’s sin is painful enough, but the children are suffering terribly, horribly and their tears wet the earth and the earth gives up its strength and weeps with the children.

arm, good shepherd, prophecy, the worthless shepherd, zechariah

The strong arm of Jehovah and the antichrist’s withered arm

Posted on April 27, 2015May 9, 2016 by elizabethprata

There are many symbols in the bible. Many of those symbols refer to an aspect of God, the Spirit, or Jesus. In the case of God, his ability to reach into the doings of humankind is shown in a symbol of His mighty Arm, or His right hand. I focus on His arm.

I was listening to a sermon by RC Sproul on Mary’s Magnificat, and in Luke 1:51, Mary extols the strength of the LORD by His arm in saying,

He has shown strength with his arm; he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts; (Luke 1:51)

Here are other verses which do the same:

Who has believed what he has heard from us? And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?” (Isaiah 53:1)

You Yourself crushed Rahab like one who is slain; You scattered Your enemies with Your mighty arm. (Psalms 89:10)

“Say, therefore, to the sons of Israel, ‘I am the LORD, and I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, and I will deliver you from their bondage I will also redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great judgments.” (Exodus 6:6)

Dr Henry Morris at The Institute for Creation Research wrote,

“The LORD hath made bare his holy arm in the eyes of all the nations; and all the ends of the earth shall see the salvation of our God.” (Isaiah 52:10)

The human arm is often used in the Bible to symbolize spiritual strength or power. The word is first used in Jacob’s dying prophecy concerning His beloved son Joseph: “But his bow abode in strength, and the arms of his hands were made strong by the hands of the mighty God of Jacob” (Genesis 49:24).

The source of all true strength is in the mighty God, so it is not surprising to find at least 40 biblical references to the Lord’s powerful “arm” or “arms.” One of the most striking is our text, promising that when God “bares His arm” for His great work of delivering the lost world from its bondage to Satan and sin and death, then the whole world will see His salvation (literally, His “Jesus”).

It is an interesting article, please feel free to click the link and read the rest.

The arm of the LORD symbolizes many aspects of Himself, but for now we focus on the strength. How much more can we see the lack of strength when we contrast the following verse,

He stomps the earth but his arm is withered!

“Woe to my worthless shepherd, who deserts the flock! May the sword strike his arm and his right eye! Let his arm be wholly withered, his right eye utterly blinded!” (Zechariah 11:17)

That powerful chapter of Zechariah depicts a several-fold prophecy over the course of time. Zechariah is prophesying about Israel’s future rejection of Christ. Here is an outline of the verses’ meanings by Roy Gingrich:

3. The coming of a false shepherd (11:15–17)
(Because Israel rejected Her true Shepherd, God will chasten her by giving her a false shepherd. There is already a time gap of more than 1900 years between verses 11:14 and 11:15.)
a. His character—He will be “a foolish, (wicked) shepherd.” The Old Testament writers often associated foolishness and wickedness. See Psa. 14:1.
b. His identity—He is: (1) The “little horn,” Dan. 7:8; (2) “the desolator,” Dan. 9:27; (3) “the willful king,” Dan. 11:36; (4) “the man of sin,” 2 Thes. 2:3; and (5) the “Antichrist,” 1 John 2:18.
c. His origin—God will indirectly raise him up to punish His people, 11:16. Satan will directly raise him up to promote his end-time total rebellion against God, 2 Thes. 2:4; Rev. 19:19.
d. His ruthless ministry—He will not feed, but will fleece, the flock. He will not tend, but will tear, the flock. He will not edify, but will eat, the flock. He will not feed, but will feed on, the flock.
e. His punishment (his end)—He will receive woe. His right arm (with which he slew the sheep) will be completely dried up and his right eye (with which he looked upon the sheep for evil) will be completely blinded. These things mean he will be utterly destroyed, Dan. 9:27; 2 Thes. 2:8; Rev. 19:20. God will first use and then punish this masterpiece of Satan.

Gingrich, R. E. (1999). The Books of Haggai and Zechariah (p. 52). Memphis, TN: Riverside Printing.

The worthless shepherd will strike the sheep, but the LORD will wither his arm.
EPrata photo

This foolish and wicked shepherd Zechariah speaks of is the prophesied antichrist, also spoken of in the book of Daniel. John MacArthur writes of the Zechariah verse,

With the removal of the true shepherd, the drama called for the prophet to play a foolish shepherd, who depicted the antichrist of Daniel’s 70th week. (cf. 2 Thess 2:3; John 5:43; Dan 9:27). Zechariah’s prophecy jumped from the first century A.D. to the last days before the second coming, omitting the present mystery of the church age.

This foolish (wicked) shepherd had a broken staff or club that he used to beat stubborn sheep into submission, something clearly inappropriate for a shepherd who thoughtfully and carefully cared for his sheep. Because they did not choose the good shepherd, Israel will do a foolish one who will do absolutely the opposite of what is expected of shepherds. He will destroy the sheep (11:16). This is exactly what the antichrist does. (cf. Dan 9:27, Matthew 24:15-22). Source: MacArthur Study Bible: Note on Zech 11:17

In returning to the symbolism of the arm, we have a great God whose arm is stretched out to perform mighty deeds, the mightiest is that Jesus is God’s arm. Christ is the power of God unto salvation (cf Isaiah 53:1, 52:10)

Thus the foolish shepherd is also a worthless shepherd who rightfully deserves the condemnation pronounced (Woe). The arm indicates his strength and the eye his intelligence. The foolish plottings of the worthless shepherd will be annulled when the True Shepherd returns (cf. 12:10; Rev. 19:19–20).

The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures J. F. Walvoord & R. B. Zuck (Eds.)

We can ponder the mightiness of the arm of the LORD in giving His Son to us. Whether one meets the Messiah Redeemer as friend or foe, His mighty arm will be extended to perform wonders and holy perfections. He will wither the arm of the worthless shepherd. He will strengthen His saints. He will direct His angels. He will cast the rebels into the Lake of Fire. His arm does wonders, forever!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Let Us Reason Ministries: The Arm and Right Hand of the LORD

Alexander MacLaren, The Arm of the Lord from his Expositions of Isaiah and Jeremiah

earthquake, God, mighty, nepal, prophecy

Nepal’s large quake: a tragedy and an opportunity

Posted on April 25, 2015May 9, 2016 by elizabethprata

The large earthquake in Nepal is saddening to the extreme. As of 1:00 today there have been over 27 aftershocks. It is shocking and upsetting to see a headline like “Everest shaken.” Our earth’s tallest mountain, solid, strong, stalwart against all storms, it is shaken like a toy in a moment of time. Yet we know in the Tribulation, all the mountains will be thrown down.

The sky vanished like a scroll that is being rolled up, and every mountain and island was removed from its place. (Revelation 6:14)

O, Nepal, your dead idols cannot help you now! Turn from them and repent to the True and Living God!

Source

And behold, here come riders, horsemen in pairs!” And he answered, “Fallen, fallen is Babylon; and all the carved images of her gods he has shattered to the ground.” (Isaiah 21:9)

This warning given in Isaiah regarding the fall of Babylon was fulfilled in 689BC when Babylon fell to the Assyrians, and again in 539BC to the Persians. Yet there is one fulfillment left, the future when by Revelation 18 Babylon the city, the spiritual Babylon and Economic Babylon all fall at the mighty arm of God. No more idols! No more prayers to dead Vishnus or Ganeshas or Shivas.

Our Lord God is alive. Every single person on earth has a “relationship” with Jesus. Either they are His enemy or they are His friend. The difference is repentance. Have you turned from your sin and appealed to Jesus for forgiveness of sins, acknowledging the resurrected King as the only One who can forgive? He is perfect, holy, and just, and He will demand an account of every life lived.

The tragedy is that with a thousand dead and more to be discovered, hell is receiving many who worshiped the dead gods of Hinduism and not the Living God of all. (81% of Nepal is Hindu, second is 9% Buddhist). May those who are in Nepal and those who are watching Nepal’s tragedy unfold, give glory to God in heaven. Is now the time to press for honor and glory to God, with so much death and strife? Yes. Look what happens in the future Tribulation when there is a great quake:

And at that hour there was a great earthquake, and a tenth of the city fell. Seven thousand people were killed in the earthquake, and the rest were terrified and gave glory to the God of heaven. (Revelation 11:13)

The God who can shake Mount Everest is the God who holds in His hand life and death of all who dwell on the earth. You can have everlasting life in Him, by repenting and giving Him glory.

I pray that those who are affected repent and understand the might and patience of the True and Holy God. I pray that those who by going there to participate in humanitarian aid bring with them the TRUE Gospel to share with those who are homeless, hurt, and spiritually lost.

Pray for Nepal

contend for the faith, encouragement, greed, moms, prophecy

America’s decay is speeding up, and more links to edifying essays

Posted on April 22, 2015May 9, 2016 by elizabethprata

Here are some interesting links for you.

I don’t think anyone would disagree with this first article-

America’s Decay is Speeding Up

As one who loves America — not only because I am American, but even more so because I know (not believe, know) that the American experiment in forming a decent society has been the most successful in history — I write the following words in sadness: With few exceptions, every aspect of American life is in decline. “Decay” is the word.

Yup.

I’m not a huge fan of the magazine below but this article is good-

7 Unbiblical Statements Christians Believe

We don’t often stop to consider the magnitude of what the Bible represents. It is literally God revealing Himself and communicating Himself to mankind in written word. Orthodox Christianity teaches that the Bible was inspired and authored by the Holy Spirit of God using human instruments. And many Christians believe that—in its original languages of Hebrew, Greek and Aramaic—it is without error and fault. However, there are many things that Jesus-following, Church-going, Bible-believing Christians believe that are completely unbiblical. How does this happen? Often, we’ll hear someone quote a statement that sounds nice to us, and we’ll begin repeating it as though it’s biblical truth without ever researching it in Scripture.

You’re a theologian, OK?

3 Reasons Why You Aren’t Allowed to Be Theologically Dumb

The Christian cannot be a passive theologian who has idle thoughts about God here and there. Christians are called to be active theologians who are constantly trying to learn more about the God we worship. … It’s about time Millennial evangelicals start loving the God who created them more than a god they’ve created.

I love Dr Robin Schumacher’s articles. His blog at The Christian Post is titled The Confident Christian-

Predestination and God’s Sovereign Choice

Dan Delzell’s Christianpost article, Predestination and God’s Desire to Save Everyone, reminded me of a statement made by theologian Loraine Boettner in his classic book on predestination: “The doctrine of Predestination has been made the subject of almost endless discussion, much of which, it must be admitted, was for the purpose of softening its outlines or of explaining it away.”[1] I mean no disrespect at all to Mr. Delzell when I say that, only that his article – written from the Arminian point of view – is definitely something crafted to take the punch and sting out of what I believe the Biblical doctrine of predestination truly means.

Ugh, it sickens me to see what is being sold in Jesus’ name-

The Marketing And Exploitation Of The Cross: Commercializing Christianity

The gospel in America has been hijacked, replaced with another gospel, a gospel of greed. When news broke regarding Creflo Dollar’s plea for Christians (namely those who follow him) to donate to the purchase of a 65-million dollar jet, it not only raised eyebrows, it settled within the hearts and minds of the faith’s leading accusers that Christianity has become nothing but an ends to gaining great wealth at the expense of its followers. And they would be right, to a degree.

Re-posting a testimony, but deliberately deleting references to Jesus-

His Absence Changes Everything

… I battled against that bottle for hours – finally flinging it aside, not from a place of faith that things would get better in life, but from one of fear that I would fail in my attempt and find myself in even worse straits than the current moment contained.

Moms…

These Aren’t The Best Years of Your Life

A friend with a stroller was walking through town when an older woman stopped her to see the baby. After admiring her, the granny said, “These are the best years of your life; too bad you’re too tired to enjoy them!” Mothers with small children often hear this–at least the first part.

Truth in the church is so yesterday-

Contend Mondays: Tell Me Lies, Tell Me Sweet Little Lies
As I’ve mentioned, not only is the world a mission field, but the visible church is as well. The battle is for truth through rightly divided scripture and sound doctrine. If you’ve tried to correct a brother or sister in Christ, you are familiar with the desire to set them free from lies. … Exposing error seems to have no place in the church these days despite what scripture says (Ephesians 5:11).

full number, fullness of the Gentiles, God, prophecy

The precision of prophecy

Posted on April 21, 2015May 9, 2016 by elizabethprata

The lord God is great. His Son Jesus, Immanuel, God With Us, is great. His Spirit is great. I praise Him and all His ways!

He set for a plan since before the foundation of the world. He is the architect of history. He elects people to salvation according to His plan, in the fulness of time He sent His Son, (Galatians 4:4) and now He is drawing to a close this era of history as we or the next generation prepares to go through the next phase of His perfect prophetic plan.

In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will, (Ephesians 1:11)

We all know the marvelousness of the Scriptures being fulfilled in Jesus. For example, He was praised as He entered the holy city on a colt. (Mark 11:3, Zechariah 9:9). We know the precise amount Judas was paid to betray Jesus, for that was prophesied (Zechariah 11:12). We know the scriptures were fulfilled when Jesus cried out, “I thirst”. (John 19:28).

And many more.

I particularly enjoy these following two prophecies. They have not been fulfilled yet, but they will be.

I do not want you to be ignorant of this mystery, brothers and sisters, so that you may not be conceited: Israel has experienced a hardening in part until the full number of the Gentiles has come in, (Romans 11:25, NIV)

Other translations say the “fullness of the Gentiles”. The word fullness according to Strong’s is from the Greek plḗrōma meaning “sum total”.

When he opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain for the word of God and for the witness they had borne. They cried out with a loud voice, “O Sovereign Lord, holy and true, how long before you will judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?” Then they were each given a white robe and told to rest a little longer, until the number of their fellow servants and their brothers should be complete, who were to be killed as they themselves had been. (Revelation 6:9-11)

Again, the Greek word is from pleroo, meaning fulfilled or completed.

Since before the universe was even created, the LORD our God had a perfect number in mind of those who will fulfill the number or quota of people who will be part of His Bride, the church (Romans 11:25). And He also had a perfect number in mind of the number of Tribulation saints who will be martyred. Nothing is out of control with God. He isn’t looking down and thinking, “Yah, the church looks big enough, let’s cut it off here.” Or He is not looking down at the people being beheaded during the Tribulation and saying “Whoo, we better put a stop to this.” Nothing is a surprise to Him because He planned it down to the very last inch…the very last dust mote…even down to the last person.

The Church will be full when His number is reached. Only He knows what that number is. For the sake of the elect those days will be cut short. Not only because He loves His children but because He knows the certain, exact, precise number of martyrs He will allow. When that number is reached, He will return and end it at Armageddon.

Isn’t it wonderful to know that He has everything so meticulously mapped out? Not that it absolves us of doing our duty, of working diligently among the brethren and for the lost, and studying His word. But whatever happens, He is in control, and so precisely, that when the 5 billionth, 3 hundred millionth, 6 hundred thousandth, and third person is saved, (or whatever His number is) we will be raptured. He knows what the number is, who will fulfill that number and when that number will be reached. He is worthy to be worshiped! His mind, His plan, and His ability to manage all things in heaven and earth makes Him worthy.

Who is like me? Let him proclaim it. Let him declare and set it before me, since I appointed an ancient people. Let them declare what is to come, and what will happen. Do not tremble and do not be afraid; Have I not long since announced it to you and declared it? And you are My witnesses. Is there any God besides Me, Or is there any other Rock? I know of none.’” (Isaiah 44:7-8)