prophecy – Page 7

The cross in public life

Posted on May 5, 2023May 5, 2023 by elizabethprata

By Elizabeth Prata

The Wayside Cross is a huge tradition in Canada and Europe, where it has abounded for over a thousand years. Granted, in those cases it is usually a crucifix, a pagan symbol from Catholicism, “In Quebec, and Europe, a wayside cross marks a place where the members of a community gather to meet and pray, and often commemorates an important moment in their communal history.”

Charles Bourget reports that there are 3000 wayside shrines dotting the countryside in Quebec, however, many of them are falling into disrepair because the tradition is waning. I wrote about the fate of one American Wayside Cross in East Greenwich RI.

Photo by eberhard 🖐 grossgasteiger on Unsplash

In America, the tradition never really caught on. They are still seen occasionally. In Bedford NY, one was erected in 1936 and it was hoped that the sight of it would invite the prayers of the passersby.

In 1922 East Greenwich, it was hoped by “those who placed this beautiful memorial to an exemplary life feel that it will indeed be a light by the way and a guide post to Heaven.” By and large wayside crosses, especially Protestant crosses, are not seen much on the public byways and those that do exist are under increasing challenge.

The point of the cross in public life is that it would point the way to Jesus. These were visual reminders of the higher being. That upon seeing it, thoughts of Him and the Good News would ruminate in the mind, and through the strength of the Holy Spirit, those thoughts would germinate. For people seeing such displays, who have already heard the Good News, perhaps its sight would loosen the bonds around the heartstrings and their conviction would grow, as in the allegorical depiction of Christian at the Wayside Cross in Pilgrim’s Progress.

A wayside cross was a pivotal point in the very famous book Pilgrim’s Progress by John Bunyan, published in 1678 and has remained on the ‘bestseller list’ ever since, never having been out of print. The passage is below:

“He ran thus till he came at a place somewhat ascending, and upon that place stood a cross, and a little below, in the bottom, a sepulchre. So I saw in my dream, that just as Christian came up with the cross, his burden loosed from off his shoulders, and fell from off his back, and began to tumble, and so continued to do, till it came to the mouth of the sepulchre, where it fell in, and I saw it no more. Then was Christian glad and lightsome, and said, with a merry heart, ‘He hath given me rest by his sorrow, and life by his death.’ Then he stood still awhile to look and wonder; for it was very surprising to him, that the sight of the cross should thus ease him of his burden. He looked therefore, and looked again, even till the springs that were in his head sent the waters down his cheeks. Now, as he stood looking and weeping, behold three Shining Ones came to him and saluted him with Peace be unto thee. So the first said to him, Thy sins be forgiven thee;”

It is amazing that the sight of the cross should ease a person’s burdens, but it does, for the person who is ready to receive grace. For every individual on the planet, there comes that critical moment, upon which the eye falls to the cross – either the literal one along the roadways, or the mental one having shared through the Gospel – and a decision is made either aye or nay.

The cross to the unsaved does make one’s soul burn, satan would have it so. But in the process of that the soul-singe the cross is emblazoned on the mind and heart and soul, thereafter to linger as a brand. It stays there, to rankle. Opponents of Christ do not want that rankle, and therefore strive to remove the cross from all areas of life even private property and churches. The right to display the cross in public life is waning.

The public crosses I saw during the course of my life affected me and were sure steppingstones on my path to the Lord. I mentioned the initial event that started me thinking about the public life of the cross in yesterday’s post, the RI Wayside Cross that stood at the intersection of my street. I saw that cross a lot growing up. Each time I did, I exhibited varying amounts of offense at varying times until I moved far away to a godless state and never no more was troubled by public displays of the cross.

The public crosses that stand alongside roads, hang round our necks as jewelry, appear on cars and trucks and shipgoing vessels, all can and do minutely penetrate the web of dark sin in which the the unsaved labor. If we see through a glass darkly, they see not at all, and the cross is the only light that can and will penetrate that darkness.

If you own a cross as a tie clip or jewelry, wear it. If you should be of a mind, erect one at the edge of your lawn. Do not let the Christian cross become a fading symbol here in the United States.

The visibility of the cross is decreasing in America too. Don’t let it.

The cross was a public declaration that God’s righteousness was satisfied. It is an offense to the pagan. (Romans 3:24-25; Galatians 6:14, Galatians 5:11). We should be no less open about the cross, mentioning it, affirming it, even wearing it if we have one. In doing so, He is lifted up.

do not worry, end time, prophecy

On being joyful

Posted on April 25, 2023 by elizabethprata

By Elizabeth Prata

Someone told me the other day that she enjoyed my bright smile. I replied that though I did have my issues and my problems, I choose joy. I do not focus on my problems. She was surprised, saying that one would never know by looking at me that I felt sad or down. I said that my problems will pass away but the light of Jesus will never pass away. I want people to see His Light, not my problems.

To that end, I work at refocusing my attitude each day. Some days I need to refocus it hour by hour, and some days moment by moment. It is work to choose to rely on joy and not wallow in personal problems. I know sometimes I look glum, I try not to. But I don’t want to be a hypocrite either, faking that I have NO problems. But some people’s problems are so massive, mine in comparison are actually quite small. It’s all about perspective.

What do you want people to see? Your problems written on your face, body, and posture? Jesus warned the disciples not to purposely draw attention to one’s face when fasting or praying. In that case it was so people would ask the Pharisee ‘What’s the matter?’ so they could answer in a humblebrag about their lengthy fasting.

Can people see His light in you despite your problems? If we rely on Him, then really rely on Him. Don’t worry about the medical report, you will get a glorified body. Don’t worry about the scarce cupboard, He will provide. Don’t worry about the job, He will send one. Don’t worry about anything. It’s hard, I know, but worry doesn’t increase your life one second more. Worry is actually a distrust of God’s providential care and work in our life.

He says:

“Anxiety in a man’s heart weighs it down, But a good word makes it glad.” (Proverbs 12:25).

“I inquired of Yahweh, and He answered me, And delivered me from all that I dread.” (Psalm 34:4).

“Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and petition with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4:6-7).

He says all that and more. Let people see your light, for He that is within us is greater than he who is in the world (1 John 4:4). Your problems will pass away, but He will never pass away, so He should be the focus. Choose joy.

end time, prophecy

Are you a cotter pin?

Posted on March 31, 2023March 31, 2023 by elizabethprata

By Elizabeth Prata

In the body of Christ, all are important- even the seemingly small. Are you doubting your importance to Christ and His work? Don’t.

Isaiah 33:23a – “Your rigging hangs loose: The mast is not held secure, the sail is not spread“

I was reading this verse today and it reminded me of something that happened to me some years ago. We were liveaboard yachtsmen then and had sailed from Maine to the Bahamas. We were anchored a while in the Bahamas, enjoying the numerous islands, hopping from one to the other. We had made some friends and sailed with them, anchoring at night and socializing by day over scrabble and rum. On the day of the photo below, I and my husband were sailing with our chums on Sea of Abaco. It was a yacht race, and we were aboard their boat.

So me and the boat owner’s wife were sitting amidships enjoying the race, looking at the other boats, and chatting. After a few minutes, she said, “Let’s go below and get some water.” We moved to the galley and a second later we heard an enormous crash! The boat shook and rolled! We instantly thought we had run aground, even though the Sea was deep at that location. We scrambled up to the deck only to see that the mast had fallen down! It had crashed down on the spot where we had just been sitting!!

The other owner had fallen into the water and the sails and heavy ropes and rigging were ensnaring his legs, potentially dragging him under. The boat came to a dead stop in the water and we were simply in shock.

A dismasting is one of the most terrible things that can happen to a yachtsman on the water. Fortunately we were half a mile from nearly the only and the best boatbuilding and repair facility in the entire 700 mile chain of islands. The owner guy was a schmoozer and finagled parts from the States in no time and within a week they were on their way. As with any tragedy, we wanted to know why. What did the mast autopsy say?

The cotter pin was gone.

This is a cotter pin:

This is how a cotter pin is used:

A cotter pin is “a metal fastener with two tines that are bent during installation used to fasten metal together, like with a staple or rivet.” (Wikipedia)

A mast and its rigging system is complex, and it relies on the sum of its parts, plus tension, to work. “On a sailing vessel, a forestay, sometimes just called a stay, is a piece of standing rigging which keeps a mast from falling backwards. It is attached either at the very top of the mast, or in fractional rigs between about 1/8 and 1/4 from the top of the mast. The other end of the forestay is attached to the bow of the boat.”

And the cotter pin holds the forestay to the bow. With the cotter pin gone, the tension of the system was disrupted, and at just the right moment, the mast fell backwards.

The first thing you see on a sailing vessel is its mast and sail. It is a beautiful thing, billowing in the wind, doing important work to propel the boat. The next thing perhaps you see is the boat itself, its lines and its beauty. As Alan Jackson sang in “Boats to Build,” it has a “fair curve from a noble plan.”

The next thing you may notice is the stays and shrouds hearing them hum and sing in the wind. You hear the engine, you see the keel when heeling in a stiff breeze. You never notice the cotter pins.

Isaiah 33:23a – “Your rigging hangs loose: The mast is not held secure, the sail is not spread“

We Christians make up a body. Every body part has a function. If we’re serious about our walk with Jesus, we want to make a difference. We see great evangelists opening hearts to the Spirit and subsequent salvation. We see missionaries making great sacrifices. We listen to pastors preach as if they were on fire, and altars filled with weeping responders. We see teachers publishing book after book, with eager readers excitedly discussing new points of view.

We never notice the cotter pins. Some folks serve in quiet ways, unnoticed. In the background. But if the pin is gone, the mast falls down. It has its part in the system, and every body part is important to Jesus, the Head of the Body. If you have been feeling sad, like you’re insignificant, like you don’t make a difference, YOU DO.

1 Corinthians 12:18-31-

But now God has appointed the members, each one of them, in the body, just as He desired. 19And if they were all one member, where would the body be? 20But now there are many members, but one body. 21And the eye cannot say to the hand, “I have no need of you”; or again the head to the feet, “I have no need of you.” 22On the contrary, how much more is it that the members of the body which seem to be weaker are necessary, 23and those members of the body which we think as less honorable, on these we bestow more abundant honor, and our less presentable members become much more presentable, 24whereas our more presentable members have no such need. But God has so composed the body, giving more abundant honor to that member which lacked, 25so that there may be no division in the body, but that the members may have the same care for one another. 26And if one member suffers, all the members suffer with it; if one member is honored, all the members rejoice with it.

27Now you are Christ’s body, and individually members of it. 28And God has appointed in the church, first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then miracles, then gifts of healings, helps, administrations, various kinds of tongues. 29Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Are all workers of miracles? 30Do all have gifts of healings? Do all speak with tongues? Do all translate? 31But you earnestly desire the greater gifts.

And I will yet show you a more excellent way.

lot, open door, prophecy, sin

A tale of two doors

Posted on March 15, 2023 by elizabethprata

By Elizabeth Prata

EPrata photo

I was reading 2 Thessalonians and I read this verse from 2 Thessalonians 2:5-7,

Do you not remember that when I was still with you I told you these things? 6And you know what is restraining him now so that he may be revealed in his time. 7For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work. Only he who now restrains it will do so until he is out of the way.

I’d always focused on extracting the meaning from the part of the verse that says “he who restrains” but this time I was focused on the “mystery of lawlessness.” My mind began to question. “Why is lawlessness a mystery? The Bible speaks of sinfulness often. That’s what sinfulness is, lawlessness. So why is it a mystery? We’ve been living with it for 6000 years…”

I find that asking questions of myself about the meaning helps me dig deeper. I’m not speaking of doubting the meaning. Nor am I suggesting I am questioning God’s judgment. I am asking myself what, who, when, where, why questions like a journalist would do to get at the truth of a story. ‘Why is this word here? Who was Paul writing to? Why is his tone so abrupt? What is the city or geographical location? What was the context?’ Those kinds of questions.

So why is lawlessness a mystery? Let’s hold that thought while I take you down another line of inquiry and then I’ll tie the two together.

I was listening to a John MacArthur sermon last Saturday morning. It was titled, “Heaven: The Future of Christians.” In the sermon MacArthur was talking about salvation and the process of getting into heaven. He explained this verse:

From the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven has suffered violence, and the violent take it by force. (Matthew 11:12)

He said of the narrow way, the small door of Matthew 7:14, that it’s hard to go through. “Why? Why is it so hard?” He’d said-

“First, it’s hard to find because it’s small, second, to go through you have to strive. You have to agonize. You have to be violent about it. You have to press into it…”

It is hard to go through the door of repentance. It is the most difficult thing a person will ever do. Turning your back on your own wickedness and lawlessness is agonizing over our sin nature and violence because one is turning one’s back on one’s self. It is hating not just the sin IN us, but our very selves because sin is our very nature.

In a different sermon but on the same verse, Matthew 7:13-14 and the narrow door, MacArthur paints a picture of the struggle to come to repentance and salvation-

So Jesus says in Matthew 11:12, “The Kingdom of heaven suffers violence and the violent take it by force.” What amazing words. There’s a certain violence in coming to salvation. You’re in the throes of a war and a battle with your own soul to release your love of sin and self and pride. It’s a wrenching experience. Luke 16:16 says, “Every man presses into it.”

Becoming a Christian is not easy. It’s hard. Another way to say all that is that the Kingdom opens up to those who seek with all their hearts. You’re not going to sleep your way into the Kingdom. The Kingdom requires earnest endeavor, untiring energy, utmost exertion.

Pressing into the door with all exertion and violence. His word-pictures brought to mind another door that people were pressing into.

The door to Lot’s house at Sodom.

The men who were deep in sin and given over to it were pressing into the door with violence and all exertion. Here is the scene at Genesis 19:9-11.

EPrata photo

But they said, “Stand back!” And they said, “This fellow came to sojourn, and he has become the judge! Now we will deal worse with you than with them.” Then they pressed hard against the man Lot, and drew near to break the door down. 10But the men reached out their hands and brought Lot into the house with them and shut the door. 11And they struck with blindness the men who were at the entrance of the house, both small and great, so that they wore themselves out groping for the door.

The men were immersed in their sin-nature and they exhausted themselves trying to go through the door to perform their sin. They wanted to go through the door from bad to worse. The penitent person wants to go through the door from worse to best.

In referring back to the Matthew 11:12 verse,

From the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven has suffered violence, and the violent take it by force.

I’d always pondered over that scene at Lot’s hose. The men had obviously experienced something supernatural, they’d all just been struck blind. But their sin was so potent they still tried to beat down the door with violence. This is a peek at the mystery of lawlessness.

Lawlessness is a mystery because mystery means veiled from our full perception. We know that in 1 Corinthians 13:12 we see through a mirror dimly

For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known.

We can’t fully comprehend the mystery of Jesus, the mystery of the heights and the depths of His glory, the mystery of his perfections. It is partly veiled from us. It is the same with sin. The full height and depth of sin is partially hidden from us. This fullness will come when the Man of Sin is revealed, who is the antichrist. We have a sense of the mystery of lawlessness now, because John said there are many antichrists. We know from history what Hitler did. But sin can be and will be so much worse than that when it’s full expression is revealed in the Tribulation, embodied by the man whose nickname IS sin.

Just as Jesus’ glory is infinitely beautiful, so is sin infinitely gross and putrid. The fullness of sin’s depravity is hidden from us and its full expression is not revealed … yet. We see sin through a mirror dimly.

This essay is the tale of two doors. The door to salvation which the penitent presses into, exerts himself toward with violence. Then there is the door to sin which the impenitent presses into, exerts himself toward with violence. They exhaust themselves groping for the door to the next layer of descending depravity, the depths of which is bottomless like the pit where the worst of the demons are being held in chains, restrained from expressing themselves until the time of Revelation 9:2 arrives.

The path is wide and leads to a big door, or the path is narrow and leads to a small door. My hope is that many more will press into the small gate and change from goat to sheep. Use all exertion, violence and pressing into repentance, forsaking all behind, even yourself.

bilderbergs, end time, prophecy

Conspiracy theories: Hall of mirrors, or lifted veil; your choice

Posted on March 3, 2023March 3, 2023 by elizabethprata

By Elizabeth Prata

But if the ministry of death, in letters having been engraved on stones, came with glory, so that the sons of Israel could not look intently at the face of Moses because of the glory of his face, which was being brought to an end, 8how will the ministry of the Spirit not be even more in glory? 9For if the ministry of condemnation has glory, much more does the ministry of righteousness abound in glory. 10For indeed what had been glorious, in this case has no glory because of the glory that surpasses it. 11For if that which was being brought to an end was with glory, much more that which remains is in glory.

12Therefore having such a hope, we use great boldness, 13and are not like Moses, who used to put a veil over his face so that the sons of Israel would not look intently at the consequence of what was being brought to an end. 14But their minds were hardened; for until this very day at the reading of the old covenant the same veil remains unlifted, because it is brought to an end in Christ. 15But to this day whenever Moses is read, a veil lies over their heart, 16but WHENEVER a person TURNS TO THE LORD, THE VEIL IS TAKEN AWAY. 17Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. 18But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit. (2 Corinthians 3:7-18)

In reading these passages from 2 Corinthians 3:7-18 I was struck by two images the verses evoked. The first is the veil. The second is the phrase ‘where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.”

There is much spiritual meat here. Praise His name! But the focus today is the veil and mirror. We are in the end times. We know that at the time of the very end there will be a one world dictator in control of the currency, economy, religion, and politics of the entire globe. This is the antichrist. The time prior to the antichrist is characterized by shrinking; shrinking economy, shrinking currency, shrinking spheres of influence for formerly powerful nations, shrinking amount of people who wield power; all aimed toward the moment when the shrinking will have been reduced to only one power-wielder.

There IS power behind the throne and those are the fallen angels who are given permission by God to influence these powerful men, leaders, and elected officials. People have become interested in these powers, groups such as the Freemasons, Bilderbergs, Illuminati, World Economic Forum (WEF) and so on. And there is always a germ of truth at the core of the rotten conspiracy.

But think about this fact: Chasing the Illuminati and Freemasons et al is in effect chasing satan. In chasing the Illuminati and the Freemasons and the other shadowy organizations (Bohemian Grove, and so on…) , we get trapped in a hall of mirrors with reflections of the evil fallen angels dancing from mirror to mirror. Pursuing the Illuminati, even in thought, is pointless. We already know that satan influences some of earth’s leaders. Does it matter that we know who these Bilderbergs are and what they plan? We know who the power is behind the throne. We know that there will be a New World Order. We know that prayer is the most effective weapon. We know God wins. Isn’t that enough?

We have a choice on what to watch on television and where to put our energy and resources. We can pursue the shadows in a never-ending race or we can remember we have had the veil lifted from our face and the glory is in Jesus. “But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord.” How wonderful! How great!

‘Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.’ We can spend time and energy with veiled eyes pursuing the endless mirror of the Illuminati/Masons/Bilderbergs, or we can remember the veil is taken away in Christ and gaze upon HIM!

prophecy, Uncategorized

Kay Cude Poetry: Desertion

Posted on February 12, 2023 by elizabethprata

Kay Cude is a poet whose sensitivity to the glorious salvation of Jesus Christ is uniquely expressed through poetry and picture. Here is her latest offering, in which she explains her thought process. Enjoy. Used with permission. Right-click to see larger in new tab.

—————————–Kay Cude—————————–

If you look closely at the tower, you’ll see a tiny figure of someone, which refers to the statement, “As gazed I o’er the valley fair, to there below from tower high.”

That little figure caught my eye, as well as the city lighted up and the storm approaching from the left (approaching spiritual death). So I began to write. The city represents the safety of true salvation in Christ and understanding His Gospel.

The people represent those captured by a “different gospel” suggested as the “real” place of safety. Even though they “know” God’s truth — they are persuaded to run to false teaching and reject Christ.

Christ’s refuge is known to them and still stands in its truth, but when extreme peril approaches, they are convinced by someone’s whim (spiritual deception), to flee to eternal death and separation. Even the donkey digs in his heels against the “unknown” way,” and the dog barks at their sudden rejection.

Their end is eternal separation and eternal living death because they quickly deserted Christ’s truth for a distorted gospel.

Kay Cude is a Texas poet. Used with permission

end time, prophecy, the end

Doomsday clock moves 10 seconds closer to midnight

Posted on January 25, 2023January 25, 2023 by elizabethprata

By Elizabeth Prata

Headline this week! “A time of unprecedented danger: It is 90 seconds to midnight“. The lede says- “The Clock now stands at 90 seconds to midnight—the closest to global catastrophe it has ever been.”

Oh noes! Is we doomed?

The Doomsday Clock is a symbolic clock depicting how close our planet is to complete annihilation, based on factors the scientists calculate that will result in planetary doom. It is only symbolic.

The Doomsday Clock and its annual warnings about the imminency of annihilation have generated some skepticism over the years and prompted debate over its purpose. Source

It was moved in 2017, 2019, 2020. In 2020, the scientists moved it ahead to 100 seconds before “midnight,”— the closest the clock had been to Doomsday since 1953. In 1953 they’d moved it ahead due to the United States’ test of its first thermonuclear device, followed months later by the Soviet Union’s hydrogen bomb test. People were legitimately scared in 1953, thermonuclear landscapes were a new and frightening horizon to deal with.

This graphic from the BBC shows the times the ‘clock’ was moved.

Scientific American devoted their entire magazine some years ago to our fascination with ‘the end.’ According to the scientists, we focus on the end because of our pattern seeking brains, and also to feel special. In the September 2010 issue, the editors and writers take a hard look at all kinds of finales, including doomsday scenarios. The magazine presents 18 stories all devoted to the end, finality, sustainability, catastrophe, and doomsday. They opened with an editor’s note, below:

Eternal Fascinations with the End: Why We’re Suckers for Stories of Our Own Demise
“Welcome to “The End,” at least as we know it. The features here, from the September 2010 issue, cover a range of topics, such as the decomposition of human flesh, the disappearance of cultures, the Earth’s remaining natural resources, and apocalypse scenarios. Once again, the world is about to end. The latest source of doomsday dread comes courtesy of the ancient Mayans, whose calendar runs out in 2012, as interpreted by a cadre of opportunistic authors and blockbuster movie directors. Not long before, three separate lawsuits charged that the Large Hadron Collider would seed a metastasizing black hole under Lake Geneva. Before that, captains of industry shelled out billions preparing for the appearance of two zeros in the date field of computer programs too numerous to count; left alone, this tick of the clock would surely have shaken modern civilization to its foundations.”

Remember the 2012 doomsday scenario? I do. It was hectic!

The secular world has always been fascinated with life endings, planet endings, universe endings… They claim that Christians, with our book of Revelation, are the ones fascinated by it, but in reality the constant barrage of “climate change doom”, “sinking continents doom”, “melting ice caps doom”, “asteroid doom”, “famine doom” – and never mind “alien doom!” and the like, illustrate they are the ones really fascinated by it. Shows like “End Day” and “Life after People” bring in the high ratings.

I used to wonder this question often myself, before I was saved, about the end of life on the planet. In my 20s I used to be scared of the warnings of a solar ray doom crisping the planet. It’s normal to muse on the eternal question, ‘is this all there is? Or is there something else?’ Those who are not saved always wonder what comes after death, even death of the planet.

In 1970 we ‘celebrated’ our first Earth Day. Earth Day is a day that is intended to inspire awareness and appreciation for the Earth’s natural environment. Not the God who made the earth, but the environment, the result of His works. Romans 1:22-23 come to life: “Professing to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the incorruptible God for an image in the likeness of corruptible man and of birds and four-footed animals and crawling creatures.”

There is the sense of the eternal placed in all humans’ hearts, they know instinctively that the planet will end. But not the way they surmise.

That early focus on environmental appreciation turned to hysteria, and doomsday movies centered around population explosion and earth sustainability came along, notably Soylent Green. This award-winning and popular movie depicted the investigation into the brutal murder of a wealthy businessman in a dystopian future suffering from pollution, overpopulation, depleted resources, poverty, dying oceans and a hot climate due to the greenhouse effect. (That was what they called “climate change” before they called it climate change.)

In the movie, much of the population survives on processed food rations, including “soylent green.” Tune out now if you do not want to know the ending of this movie. OK, here comes the spoiler. The processed food named ‘soylent green’ is people, it is made from human flesh. The film ends with the main character Charlton Heston screaming, “Soylent Green is people!” It became a catchphrase throughout the 70’s.

In this article from the Scientific American issue devoted to “The End”, “Laying Odds on the Apocalypse: Experts Assess Doomsday” the writers ask “Could modern civilization really come to an end? Experts take stock of eight doomsday scenarios.”

See? The secular world is just fascinated with the end.

Yes, civilization really will come to an end. The unsaved with their fascination with the end, yet at the same time denying they have a fascination with it. The Bible says “Know this first of all, that in the last days mockers will come with their mocking, following after their own lusts, and saying, “Where is the promise of His coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all continues just as it was from the beginning of creation.” (2 Peter 3:3).

I think it is an interesting dichotomy. On the one hand our culture constantly depicts ‘the end’ in movies, TV shows, and films, and the public gobbles them up. On the other hand, mockers and scoffers mock and scoff at the notion when Christians proclaim that the world really will end, sneering that the world always has gone on and it always will.

As for eschatological Christians, that is, Christians who study the branch of theology that is concerned with the end of the world or of humankind, are fascinated with the end for a reason: it IS the end. And we will see Jesus, the author of the beginning and the end because He is the Alpha and the Omega.

Atomic scientists of the Doomsday Clock, Scientific American, and others, can look no further than the Bible to discover what has happened, what is happening, and what will happen, even at the end. Here is a summation of all the prophetic verses in the Bible:

The ungodly will rebel, they will refuse Jesus’ nail scarred hand of salvation, and they will meet their end. The end will come, not by overpopulation or asteroid or global warming. The end will come, and it won’t be as stimulating as comfortable intellectual discussions from ivory tower editors and scientists publishing theories in magazines. The end will come, and it won’t be as sexy as when they watched it in the movie theatres with fancy graphics and computer generated people. All one needs to do is look at the bible, and believe what it says. The end is there:

“looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be destroyed by burning, and the elements will melt with intense heat!” (2 Peter 3:12)

“The earth is broken up, the earth is split asunder, the earth is thoroughly shaken.” (Isaiah 24:19)

“The mountains melt beneath him and the valleys split apart, like wax before the fire, like water rushing down a slope (Micah 1:4)

“By the same word the present heavens and earth are reserved for fire, being kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men.” (2 Peter 3:7)

It is the end for the ungodly, but that is not the end! It is not the end for the Godly! Believers in Jesus will see the earth renewed! We will live!

Rev 21:1-6 – “Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” He who was seated on the throne said, “I am making everything new!” Then he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.” He said to me: “It is done.”

So. It is the end and it is the beginning. It is an Alpha and an Omega. Repentance of your sins and believing in Jesus will secure for any person an eternally bright future in bliss and joy and in glory. The earth will be remade new, and His people will dwell on it forever. No doom ever again, just joy. Who wouldn’t be fascinated by THAT!

abraham, end time, prophecy, remember lot's wife

Abraham’s altars and the lesson for us

Posted on January 21, 2023January 21, 2023 by elizabethprata

Genesis is such an amazing book of the Bible. In re-reading Genesis 12, I was again astounded by the depth and complexity of human history and our relationship with God. Gen. 12 is the famous chapter in which God called Abram (later name changed to Abraham) and made a significant promise:

I will make you a great nation; … I will bless those who bless you. And I will curse him who curses you; And in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.” (Gen 12:2a & 3a)

You can be sure that the promise of God is solid, and that we are seeing the curse of nations who curse Israel beginning before our eyes. In verse 7 of Genesis 12, “Then the LORD appeared to Abram,” God appeared to Abraham. In my interpretation he appeared as the Son (Jesus said in John 8:58,”Before Abraham was, I AM.” He was quoting God speaking to Moses at the burning bush in Exodus 3:14). God appeared to Abram! Think on that for a moment. The El-Shaddai, the I AM, the ALMIGHTY, appeared to a man, walked with him, spoke to him, comforted him, and commanded him. It is a shuddering thought to ponder the gravity of those moments. That gravity was not lost on Abraham, who built altars to Him all over the Land wherever he went. Abraham did not build houses for himself, he built altars to God.

Then the LORD appeared to Abram and said, “To your descendants I will give this land.” And there he built an altar to the LORD, who had appeared to him. And he moved from there to the mountain east of Bethel, and he pitched his tent with Bethel on the west and Ai on the east; there he built an altar to the LORD and called on the name of the LORD. So Abram journeyed, going on still toward the South.

Abraham built altars right away, to mark his obedience to the LORD, and to sacrifice and worship. When Abraham came back from Egypt, “to the place of the altar which he had made there at first. And there Abram called on the name of the LORD.” (Gen. 13:3-4) which is another way of saying worship and sacrifice. When Abraham and Lot had separated and Abram moved to the region of Hebron, he “built an altar there to the Lord” (Gen. 13:18).

Abraham corresponded with the LORD by building altars for worship. Building an altar is an intentional, physical act. Worshiping on front of an altar is an intentional, physical act. When Abraham returned from Egypt, Abraham saw the altar he had originally made and ‘called on the name of the LORD’ in worship and thanks. In this case, the altar was a reminder of his relationship with the great I AM.

We do not need to build altars, but we do need to be as dedicated and as intentional as Abraham in our relationship with God and Jesus and the Holy Spirit. You note that when Abraham and Lot separated, there was no mention of Lot building an altar to the LORD. Lot was with Abraham when Abraham got the calling from God (Gen. 12:5) and was with Abraham throughout the blessing of his peoples’ increase. Lot saw God working in his family’s life. He reaped the blessings of Abraham’s obedience. But Lot did not build an altar. And from the biblical record we see how the distance between man and God can slowly grow when we fail to consistently correspond with the LORD. Lot crept toward Sodom, closer and closer he pitched his tent, until he was finally living inside the city with all its sin and perversity. Though the sins of the city grieved Lot greatly (2 Pet. 2:6-8) Lot did not build an altar. And in the end, Lot lost his city, his possessions, his family, his wife, (“Remember Lot’s wife” Luke 17:32) and sin fell upon his daughters, who lay with their father.

We do not build altars … but we pray. Our part of the correspondence between ourselves and God/Jesus/Holy Spirit is maintained through prayer, corporate worship, and fellowship in the body of the believers. Is your heart an altar to I AM? Do you pray constantly? Do you worship in faith and obedience, as Abraham did? No? Remember Lot’s wife. Jesus said:

Likewise as it was also in the days of Lot: They ate, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they built; but on the day that Lot went out of Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven and destroyed them all. Even so will it be in the day when the Son of Man is revealed. “In that day, he who is on the housetop, and his goods are in the house, let him not come down to take them away. And likewise the one who is in the field, let him not turn back. Remember Lot’s wife.

Build an altar of prayer in your life and you will be blessed by the presence of the I AM Himself!!!

prophecy, Uncategorized

Thirty Days of Jesus: Postlude, He is coming again

Posted on December 26, 2022December 26, 2022 by elizabethprata

By Elizabeth Prata

Advent- Thirty Days of Jesus: Day 30, He sat down

Posted on December 25, 2022December 25, 2022 by elizabethprata

By Elizabeth Prata

We are coming toward the end of our look at the life of Jesus through scripture. The first section of His life was seen through verses focused on prophecy, arrival, and early life.

The next section of verses looked at Him as the Son, second person of the Trinity.

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