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"The need for Discernment", Average Us, Glenn Beck

Posted on April 22, 2013 by elizabethprata

So sorry for the short blog today. I am in the middle of something and I can’t concentrate on anything else right now…again, apologies. Here is a starter paragraph from Mike Gendron at Proclaiming the Gospel. It is an excellent essay. I recommend reading the entire piece.

The Need for Discernment
Written by Mike Gendron on 18 April 2013.

“When asked, “What will be the signs of your return?’, the Lord Jesus mentioned several signs, but he repeated one sign three times. There will be false teachers, false prophets and false Christs who will deceive even the elect if possible (Mat. 24:4,11,24). Knowing this we must examine everything carefully so that we can hold fast to that which is good and abstain from every form of evil (1 Thes. 5:21). We need to identify and expose religious leaders who are servants of the devil carrying out his goal is to deceive the world (2 Cor. 11:13-15).”

"Stating heresy IS the heresy"

Posted on April 22, 2013 by elizabethprata

I put the title in quotes because I read that sentence this week on a blog somewhere. It is so true. (I wish I could remember who wrote that, because I’d give full credit!)

Today, even ‘daring’ to point out heresy makes me the heretic; I’d like to share a comment on a older essay that I received last night and my response. It is a conversation that is becoming all too common these days.

I had written a series about the modern-day Gnostics, people who claim to have ecstatic experiences with the Jesus of heaven in their bathroom, living room, bar, car, zoo or any other place, and ascribe to Him and/or the Spirit something that He would not say or do. However, many people are not only believing these experiences on its surface, with no scriptural checking, they seek after and find their own experiences. They claim the experiences are as good as or better than scripture. This is dangerous. Once satan unhitches you from checking these things against scripture, you’re a sitting duck for his wiles. Remember, you’re no match for satan, he is the craftiest creature in the Garden. (Genesis 3:1-2).

Here is what the commenter said:

the only falsehood idea i see is your own these people have a love for god that you people would not understand how dare you judge them for thier love of christ the fruit of what they are doing is bringing them to christ how dare you judge them like the pharisee did to jesus christ you are the ones that will be called to account for your actions against your fellow

See? It is heretical these days to say that any person’s “experience” checked against scripture and coming up short, is in fact the heresy, not the other way around. Here is my reply:

Fervency does not equal salvation. Even the demons believe- and tremble (James 2:19). Actually, they are further along than the Gnostics, because with their alleged experiences of ‘hanging out’ with Jesus, they don’t even tremble!

Simon the Magician SAID he loved God, even followed Philip for a long time, fooling even Philip, who had baptised Simon! (Acts 8:1-25)

I am NOT judging them like Jesus judged the Pharisees. Judgment to the eternal fire only belongs to Christ. However, I AM judging their doctrine, matching up what they say against the bible. That is something John definitely says to do-

“Do not judge by appearances, but judge with right judgment.”” ESV

The NLT says, “Stop judging by mere appearances, but instead judge correctly.””

Your condemnation of me urges me to judge by appearances, but that is not biblical. So, how does one judge righteously? But comparing what they say and do to scripture. We can detect fruit, the fruit of the Gnostics is bad, coming from a bad tree. Just because someone says they love Jesus, does not mean they do.

Paul called many to account, so did Peter, John,etc. Failing to hold so-called believers to the holy standard is unloving.

Here is an essay written by Pastor Paul which speaks to the issue. He begins it this way:

” Evil Becoming More Evil “
“Wouldn’t it be great if we could just throw open our arms and embrace anyone and everyone who claimed to be Christian. It should be like that but most of us know it isn’t. So many people who claim to be Christian are stating their family tradition and not their personal relationship with Jesus. They haven’t a clue what it is to live in the Spirit or to have anything to do with God except when they are in some kind of trouble. Even then the name of Jesus is used more as an exclamation than a plea for help. … This is vital for us so we do not allow ourselves to be enticed away by those who claim Jesus but don’t live Jesus. Paul warned Timothy:”

But evil people who pretend to be what they are not will become worse than ever, as they fool others and are fooled themselves. (2 Timothy 3:13)

——————
Heed the warnings in the bible. Don’t fall for the notion that stating heresy IS the heresy. Honor Jesus by being a Berean and looking into these things.

It is becoming such a problem, that John MacArthur, Phil Johnson, Conrad Mbewe, RC Sproul, Steve Lawson, and Nathan Busenitz organized a second Master’s Seminary conference to specifically address these exact issues. It is called “Strange Fire” because when someone accepts false experiences as real, or touts their own false experiences as from the Spirit when they are not from the Spirit, ti is akin to offering strange fire before the LORD.

I encourage you to go to the website and learn more about the conference, go here to find links all together in one place, or go here, where there is a thoroughly scriptural explanation as to why they plan to “Confront the Charismatic Movement.”

Are YOU offering strange fire before the LORD?

christian persecution, martyr

Sunday Martyr Moment

Posted on April 21, 2013 by elizabethprata

I am reading Foxe’s Book of Martyrs. According to this summary from Christian Book Summaries,

Wiki photo of John Foxe, 1517-1587

Writing in the mid-1500s, John Foxe was living in the midst of intense religious persecution at the hands of the dominant Roman Catholic Church. In graphic detail, he offers accounts of Christians being martyred for their belief in Jesus Christ, describing how God gave them extraordinary courage and stamina to endure unthinkable torture.

From the same link, the book’s purpose was fourfold:

Showcase the courage of true believers who have willingly taken a stand for Jesus Christ throughout the ages, even if it meant death,
Demonstrate the grace of God in the lives of those martyred for their faith,
Expose the ruthlessness of religious and political leaders as they sought to suppress those with differing beliefs,
Celebrate the courage of those who risked their lives to translate the Bible into the common language of the people.

James, Timon, Parmenas, and Philip

James the son of Zebedee and Salome was the elder brother of the Apostle John. He was the first of the 12 Apostles to be martyred (Acts 12:2). His martyrdom may have been a fulfillment of what Jesus foretold about him in and his brother John (Mark 10:39).

It was ten years after the death of Stephen that the second martyrdom took place; for no sooner had Herod Agrippa been appointed governor of Judea, than, with a view to ingratiate himself with them, he raised a sharp persecution against the Christians, and determined to make an effectual blow by striking at their leaders. The account given us by an eminent primitive writer, Clemens Alexandrinus, ought not to be overlooked. As James was led to the place of martyrdom, his extraordinary courage impressed one of his captors to such a degree, that he fell on his knees before the Apostle, asked his forgiveness, and confessed he was a Christian too.

He said that James ought not to die alone, whereupon they were both beheaded.

Thus did the first apostolic martyr cheerfully and resolutely receive that cup, which he had told our Savior he was ready to drink. Two of the seven deacons, Timon and Parmenas suffered martyrdom about the same time; the one at Philippi, and the other in Macedonia. These events took place A.D. 44.

Ten years later, Apostle Philip is said to have been scourged, thrown into prison, and crucified at Hieropolis in Phyrigia.

Please pray for our brothers and sisters today enduring prison, beatings, and executions for the name of Jesus.

archaeology, israel, major find

Is Israel Hiding a Major Bible Era Find?

Posted on April 20, 2013 by elizabethprata

I had noted previously that there seemed to have been a LOT of biblical-era finds this month

–Mysterious stone structure at the bottom of the Sea of Galilee
–Rare 2,000-Year-Old Mikveh Uncovered in Jerusalem
–Archaeologists in Iraq find ancient complex near Ur, home of biblical Abraham
–Well-Preserved Wine-Making Facility Found in Southern Israel

The links to each one of those above are at the main link above. Now this from Arutz Sheva / Israel National News, and I’m posting this article in full.

Is the State Hiding a Major Bible Era Find?
Makor Rishon says authorities are keeping lid on what may be a royal castle from David’s time.
For unknown reasons, Israeli authorities are keeping lid on an archaeological find that may turn out to be a royal castle from David’s time, reports Makor Rishon newspaper.

According to the paper, the site was identified by Binyamin Tropper, of the Kfar Etzion Field School. As he descended into a cave in the area of southern Jerusalem, he identified what professionals know as “a proto-aeolic capital” connected to a column.

The capital – which is the decorated stone at the head of an ancient column – dates back to the Biblical era, according to Field School Director Yaron Rosental. Only 30 such capitals have been found in Israel so far, and only five of them were found in areas in which Biblical-era kings lived.

Unlike all of the other proto-aeolic capitals found in Israel – this one is not separate from the column but connected to it.

“For reasons that are not completely clear,” the newspaper writes, “several authorities in Israel have decided to silence the find, which may mark a breakthrough in the perception of the period of King David and his son, Shlomo [Solomon], and of the entire Judean kingdom.

The capital “apparently indicates that an entire temple of castle is buried beneath it,” the newspaper adds. However, when Rosental contacted the Israel Antiquities Authority to inform them of the find, the person he spoke to simply said – “Yaron, good for you. You found it, but we already are aware of it. Now forget about the whole thing and keep your mouth shut.”

Rosental said that he later found out that the IAA had known about the side for 18 months. He said that no digging has taken place since then, and that even steps like cordoning off the area to prevent damage to the rare find, have not been taken.

Rosental calls this “a scandal” but says that no less worrisome is that the state appears to have plans to move the separation fence between Israel and the PA in a way that will leave the site in the PA’s hands,

According to Rosental, excavation of the site has potential for uncovering a complete castle from the Judean kings’ period, for the first time ever. “We appear to have a complete castle here,” he said. “Those who came after it did not know of its existence.” The details found inside could be “amazing.”

The IAA confirmed to Makor Rishon that the find is an important one that appears to date to the period of Judean kings. However, the IAA added, the subject is “sensitive” and “requires serious and responsible handing.”

The IDF said that it offered the IAA “the full assistance needed” in order to remove the capital and column from the site.

If you can believe it, “there are still, to this day, raging debates between the school of archeologists who claim there was a great Jewish dynasty begun by David and Solomon, and the school that doubts there ever really existed two people by those names,” reports the Jewish Press on this archaeological find.

However the Jewish Press also asks this question- “The question is, based on their track record, how respectful would the future owners of the area, the PA [Palestinian Authority], of a site that could prove beyond doubt that it used to belong to a Jewish empire – the very empire the PA officially says never existed.”

I think all this is highly interesting. When confronted with truth, they suppress it, not just in their minds but actively on the earth.

From GotQuestions regarding archaeology

“Many secular archaeologists used to say that David was a legendary figure, on par with King Arthur, rather than a historical king. That is, until they found the Tel Dan Stela, a basalt stone dating from the 9th century B.C. bearing David’s name and identifying him as king of Israel. Thus, up until the stela was found, archaeology did not overtly support the Bible’s references to David. But, eventually, it was proved that God’s Word was true all along. David was a real person who was king of Israel, and archaeological naysayers turned out to be wrong.

“Many more archaeological discoveries have substantiated events and people in the Bible. Egypt’s invasion of Israel (1 Kings 14:25); the Assyrian siege of Lachish (2 Kings 18-19); the trade relations between Israel and Sheba (1 Kings 10); the Babylonian conquest of Jerusalem; and the reigns of Kings Omri, Ahab, Uzziah, Hezekiah, Ahaz, Jeroboam II, and Jehoiachin (1 and 2 Kings) have all been confirmed by archaeology. And the previously mentioned Dead Sea Scrolls, the discovery of which was one of the most significant of the 20th century, are decisive proof of the reliability of the Bible’s manuscripts.”

And this also—

“It is archaeological evidence that provides the best possible physical information on the life and times of the ancients. When proper scientific methods are applied to the excavation of ancient sites, information emerges that gives us a greater understanding of the ancient peoples and their culture and proofs that validate the biblical text. Systematic recordings of these findings, shared with experts worldwide, can give us the most complete information on the lives of those who lived in Bible times. Christian archaeology is just one of the tools scholars can use to present a more complete defense of the biblical narrative and the gospel of Jesus Christ. Often, when sharing our faith, we are asked by non-believers how we know the Bible is true. One of the answers we can give is that, through the work of Christian archaeologists, many of the facts of the Bible have been validated.”

earthquakes, signs of the times

Earthquakes this week (UPDATED)

Posted on April 20, 2013May 9, 2016 by elizabethprata

Update, adding one more that happened overnight.
Between April 13 and April 21st there have been 8 9 major quakes (as defined by USGS, quakes above 6.0 magnitude)

2013/04/21 Mag 6.1 IZU ISLANDS, JAPAN REGION
2013/04/20 Mag 6.1 KURIL ISLANDS
2013/04/20 Mag 6.6 WESTERN SICHUAN, CHINA
2013/04/19 Mag 6.0 EAST OF THE KURIL ISLANDS
2013/04/19 Mag 7.2 KURIL ISLANDS
2013/04/16 Mag 6.6 NEAR NORTH COAST OF NEW GUINEA, P.N.G.
2013/04/16 Mag 7.8 IRAN-PAKISTAN BORDER REGION
2013/04/14 Mag 6.6 BOUGAINVILLE REGION, PAPUA NEW GUINEA
2013/04/13 Mag 6.0 VANUATU

Note- I didn’t put all the Kuril Islands quakes marked as a dot because some overlaid each other. I just wanted you to get a rough idea as to where these quakes occurred.

abba, daily bread, Father, God, lord's prayer, provision

Abba, Father! Crying out to God for the LITTLE things

Posted on April 20, 2013 by elizabethprata

God provides. He provides the big things. He provided a way to heaven through His Son Jesus Christ for all who would believe. He provides the Holy Spirit to indwell us and help us resist sin. He provides good gifts of the spirit to edify the body and grow in faith. He provides patience in between the time we sin and fail to repent. He provides the earth to live on.

He also provides the lesser things but which are still important, like food and clothing. He said, “Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?” (Matthew 6:26)

Even during the Exodus when the Israelites were marching hither and yon for 40 years, His observance of each person was so detailed, He saw to it that their clothes didn’t even wear out and their feet didn’t swell or get blisters! (Deuteronomy 8:4).

I had three needs this week. I am extremely frugal with my supply and I dearly attempt to shepherd it well so that the Lord would be pleased. I have little to none left over for personal things.

Earlier this week I said “I need a frame to put this sketch in.” A dear friend had sketched for me a biblical scene of the lion and the lamb. It is a fitting artistic rendering because I have an issue with pictures of Jesus. I wanted to put it into a frame but I didn’t have any.

Later in the week I said, I am getting low on tee shirts. The weather is warming up and over the winter I’d forgotten I had gotten low on shirts. You know how they get stained or worn or just to small. (That blasted dryer shrinks ’em! 😉 I wear them under other shirts in ensuring modesty. Necklines these days are atrociously low. So I wear smaller tee shirts underneath.

Yesterday I said “I need some books…” I have had opportunity to obtain some theological books, and I study those. But the books I meant are the kind where you go outside onto the patio and read a summer potboiler to unwind in the afternoon. I don’t like to watch television because the shows are so terrible and even if a show is clean, the ads are awful. I’ve had a hard time finding clean, good, interesting movies on Netflix. A quiet evening reading is what I had been longing for but haven’t had because I’ve read all my books on the shelf.

So the other day I receive a Facebook message from a local artist. She said “Hey, I still have your artwork here, can you come pick it up?”

Six years ago I participated in a gallery show, and some of my art work was hung. I had forgotten ALL about the pieces I had installed there. I went to pick up the things and there were half a dozen pieces of large and small size, including some I will use for re-framing the piece my friend gave me. Six years is a long time and out of the blue the message came- and suddenly there are frames I can re-use. Wow. Six years.

The gallery was also holding an indoor yard sale, something I’d never have known since I don’t travel to that side of town, ever. At the sale there were paperback books for a quarter. I bought three. And also there were tee shirts, $1 each. I bought four.

So for five dollars I had all three needs met.

I am not saying God is a genie who responds to wishes, He doesn’t. He is the sovereign and holy God who does what He wills. I didn’t “sow a seed” like Jentezen Franklin says to do. I hadn’t ‘expected’ him to ‘do great things‘ in my life as Joyce Meyer tells her audiences. I did not “declare” things to come to pass as Joel Osteen teaches.

I pray to the Lord, read His word, worship Him corporately and privately. I talk to Him, sing to Him, think about Him, thank him, and follow Him. I obey Him too. I have a living and active relationship with Him, and I think it’s a close one, because after all, He is my everything.

Now, prayer is an obedient act of dependence on God. Therefore I pray for the big things, salvation, intercession, repentance for others and forgiveness for myself. I pray for the little things too. Didn’t He not say “pray in this way”…”Give us this day our daily bread”? (Luke 11:3). The things I’d needed were small needs, and not completely necessary to my life or well-being, but they are in a way part of my daily bread- clean entertainment that’s God-honoring, clothing that helps me remain dressed modestly, and framing a gift an artist had drawn that is not an idol but a representation of Him as Lamb of God and Lion of the Tribe of Judah. Bread isn’t just food but things that help us in our daily needs.

God does manage provision in our lives down to smallest of details. The Lord provides. After all, He kept the clothing of 3 million Jews from wearing out, for 40 years. His eye was on the threads and straps and sandals of each person! He is a great and mighty God, but He is also our Father. My dad, Abba!

Jesus called God ‘Abba’-
“Abba, Father,” he said, “everything is possible for you. Take this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will.” (Mark 14:36)

The Holy Spirit cries out to God as Abba-
“Because you are his sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, “Abba, Father.” (Galatians 4:6)

We who are His children by adoption call out Abba, too!
“For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!” (Romans 8:15)

bible, boston marathon, chechnya, gog magog, prophecy

Gog Magog connection to Boston Marathon bombers/Chechnyan region

Posted on April 20, 2013May 9, 2016 by elizabethprata

Baghdad. Karachi. Lebanon. Damascus. These are the places on maps our eyes rove to when thinking of terror, jihad, and evil. We see a great amount of hate emanating from these places where satan has his throne. (Revelation 2:13; Ezekiel 28:12).

And just when we got used to this place or that place being the seat of terror, BLAM! Chechnya!

The two brothers who executed the terrorist bombings at the Boston marathon were from Chechnya. They were Muslim and subscribed to a jihadi point of view. The Boston police Commissioner said, “We believe this man to be a terrorist,” said Boston Police Commissioner Ed Davis. “We believe this to be a man who’s come here to kill people.”

I had to look on a map to see where Chechnya is.

Aha. This explains a lot. It is part of ground zero of where the Gog Magog nations will combine to attack Israel in the Gog Magog Ezekiel 38 war.

Russia’s Caucasus: breeding ground for terror
“Militants from Chechnya and other restive regions in Russia’s volatile North Caucasus have targeted Moscow and other areas with bombings and hostage-takings, but the allegations of involvement in the Boston Marathon explosions would mark the first time they had conducted a terror attack in the West. The conflict in Chechnya began in 1994 as a separatist war, but quickly morphed into an Islamic insurgency whose adepts vow to carve out an independent Islamic state in the Caucasus.”

“The word of the Lord came to me; Son of man, set your face against Gog, of the land of Magog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal; prophesy against him and say: ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: I am against you, O Gog, chief prince of Meshech and Tubal. I will turn you around, put hooks in your jaws and bring you out with your whole army – your horsemen fully armed, and a great horde with large and small shields, all of them brandishing their swords. Persia, Cush and Put will be with them, all with shields and helmets, also Gomer with all its troops, and Beth Togarmah from the far north with all its troops – the many nations with you.’ (Ezekiel 38:1-6).

These Magog coalition nations are the nations of today –

Magog – there are over 130 historical references tying Magog to the ancient Scythians. In Colossians 3:11 Paul mentioned the Scythians. The Strong’s concordance identifies a Scythian as an inhabitant of Scythia or modern day Russia. The Great Wall of China was known as the “Ramparts of Magog” in ancient times and was built to protect China from Magog. Magog was a son of Japeth and inhabited central Asia. His children, the Scythians, are the ancestors of today’s Russian people.

Meshech and Tubal – These two were brothers of Magog and are linked to the same general area, but more likely with the Turkic people. Josephus associated Meshech with Cappodocia, home of the ancient Hittite Empire in Eastern Turkey.

Persia – Iran

Cush and Put – Ethiopia, Libya and the north part of the continent; Algeria, Tunisia, Morocco, Mauritania, etc.

Gomer– Eastern Europe of today.

Beth Togarmah – Armenians of today call themselves the House of Togarmah. The Turks (but not the Kurds, who are the ancient Medes of Media-Persia fame) are also included, and they’re the ones Ezekiel had in view.

Sheba and Dedan – commentaries none-the-less identify these two as probably representing the nations of the Arabian Peninsula, notably Saudi Arabia. The ancient capital of Saudi Arabia is still called Dedan on many maps today.

Tarshish – No one is sure. (go to link to see full explanation with scriptures)

Now look at the map again. Chechnya is smack dab in the middle of the exact geographic region which will combine in an unholy alliance against God, striking His nation Israel in the last days.

One thing that the surprise Chechnyan connection and the surprise US terror act tells us, is that satan is alive and well and busy, even in ways and in places we are not aware. If there is a good to come of this act, it is to unite us in prayer, to take a stand for Jesus, and to remember to put on our armor and be on guard even more vigilantly- spiritually.

No matter how dark the day, the Light is coming. He will prevail. He already has prevailed. In this way, all things are working perfectly to work out His plan. In the glory of the lilies, Christ was born across the sea, with a glory in His bosom that transfigures you and me. His truth marches on! His day is coming!

christian persecution

How do I stand up for Jesus?

Posted on April 20, 2013 by elizabethprata

Carlene Davis sings a reggae version of “Stand up, Stand up for Jesus”. I like that song a lot. Here is the story of its writing.

Stand Up, Stand Up for Jesus, the Song and the Story
Composer George Duffield Writes Stand Up, Stand Up for Jesus

Episcopalian Reverend Dudley A. Tyng (1825-1858) was a dynamic preacher known for taking strong stands against evil, no matter what the cost. His sermon regarding the evils of slavery in America is still in print today. This sermon resulted in him being removed from one of his pastorates.

On Tuesday, March 30, 1858, Tyng preached a sermon on Exodus 10:11, “Go now ye that are men and serve the Lord”, at a YMCA noon mass meeting. Tyng delivered his message to 5,000 men that day. More than 1,000 of those men responded to the altar call, to receive Jesus as their Savior. Just over a week later, Tyng lay dying as a result of a tragic accident. His final statement, whispered to friends and family, was “Let us all stand up for Jesus.”

The Sunday following Tyng’s death, Presbyterian Pastor George Duffield (1818-1888) preached a sermon on Ephesians 6:14, as a tribute to the final words of his friend Tyng. He concluded his sermon with a six-stanza poem. Duffield’s Sunday School superintendent printed copies of the poem and distributed them to all the congregation.

One of the pamphlets fell into the hands of the editor of a Baptist periodical. The editor was so impressed with the verses that he printed them in his widely read publication. The poem Stand Up, Stand Up for Jesus, has since become one of the most recognized hymns in all English-speaking Christendom.

Several melodies have been written for Stand Up, Stand Up for Jesus. The one used in most hymnals today was written by George J. Webb (1803-1907), founder of the Boston Academy of Music.

This devotional gives more specifics of Tyng’s life. It is a very great story.

Do we stand up for Jesus today? I am sure there are many times throughout a day, or a month, or a life, where we are called to make a stand for Jesus and stand up for His truth. Do we heed them? Even at a personal cost to ourselves? What does it mean to stand up for Him anyway?

First, remember that there is only One Person who matters. I know you love your husband or your wife, your children, your family, your beloved friend. Love is good. But the One who matters most is Jesus. In the end, perfect love of our friends and family on earth is made possible only through His love for us. We love Him first, and all the rest follows. (1 John 4:19, Revelation 2:4, Luke 14:26).

Stand Up for Jesus!
by Walter Martin

When we see idolatry, we are supposed to be provoked. When we see evil, we are supposed to get exercised about it. If you can calmly walk through this upholstered cesspool of earth; if you can see evil, filth, degeneracy, and hear vile language; if you can see the corruption of the media and the perversion of the gospel; if you can see the multiple forms of idolatry-the worship of things and of the creation more than the Creator; if you can see this today and you are not provoked about it, then you are not in touch with God the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is provoked by evil, and he stirs up the Church so that we may do something about it. (More at link.)

So when called, do we make a stand? If we are a pastor, do we make a stand even if it means risking loss of pastorate, as Pastor Tyng did? In this economy? Even if it means loss of family? (Mark 13:12). Even if it means being kicked out of your church and shunned by those with whom you used to break bread, worship, and take holy communion? Even if it means the world hates you? (John 15:18). Even if it means loss of your own life? (Luke 21:12).

Persecution of Christians in the world is up, and coverage of it and attention to it is down. But there are Christians taking a stand every day, at peril of their lives.

Yet most of us will never be called to make that ultimate sacrifice for Jesus. Most of us can take a stand in ‘small’ ways every day. We can live for His glory through humble service- and give credit to Him. We can be teachable. We can repent publicly. We can witness gently to a co-worker. We can sharpen iron by helping a loved one see sin. We can read the word and take it into our heart. We can speak His name in public. All these things and more are taking a stand for Jesus.

What a privilege to stand for Him! He died on the cross in an excruciating death, taking a stand against sin and becoming sin for us (2 Corinthians 5:21). Please stand up for Jesus. He has all the glory, all of it. Let’s point to Him in all we think, say, and do!

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

Stand Up, Stand Up for Jesus

Stand up, stand up for Jesus, ye soldiers of the cross;
Lift high His royal banner, it must not suffer loss.
From victory unto victory His army shall He lead,
Till every foe is vanquished, and Christ is Lord indeed.

Stand up, stand up for Jesus, the solemn watchword hear;
If while ye sleep He suffers, away with shame and fear;
Where’er ye meet with evil, within you or without,
Charge for the God of battles, and put the foe to rout.

Stand up, stand up for Jesus, the trumpet call obey;
Forth to the mighty conflict, in this His glorious day.
Ye that are brave now serve Him against unnumbered foes;
Let courage rise with danger, and strength to strength oppose.

Stand up, stand up for Jesus, stand in His strength alone;
The arm of flesh will fail you, ye dare not trust your own.
Put on the Gospel armor, each piece put on with prayer;
Where duty calls or danger, be never wanting there.

Stand up, stand up for Jesus, each soldier to his post,
Close up the broken column, and shout through all the host:
Make good the loss so heavy, in those that still remain,
And prove to all around you that death itself is gain.

Stand up, stand up for Jesus, the strife will not be long;
This day the noise of battle, the next the victor’s song.
To him who overcometh a crown of life shall be;
They with the King of Glory shall reign eternally.

“Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness.” ( Ephesians 6:14)

creation, God, spring

Spring is so beautiful around here

Posted on April 19, 2013May 9, 2016 by elizabethprata

I love northeast Georgia. It is so beautiful in spring. How can a person look at the cycles of the seasons, the new life of plants, trees and animals, and not see God orchestrating it all?

And one of my kitties, Bert!

days of lot, end time, gay, homosexual, marriage equality, prophecy

Days of Lot: in one generation, homosexuality went from being viewed as a vile practice to societally accepted

Posted on April 19, 2013May 9, 2016 by elizabethprata

I wrote the other day about the prophecy in the Olivet Discourse where Jesus referred to His second coming and said the conditions on earth will be as the Days of Noah. That essay is here. In Luke, Jesus made a different reference. It was to the situation at Sodom, when He said that the conditions prior to His second coming will also be like they were in the Days of Lot. Lot loved at Sodom, that infamous city of homosexual sin. He said,

“Likewise, just as it was in the days of Lot—they were eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building, but on the day when Lot went out from Sodom, fire and sulfur rained from heaven and destroyed them all— so will it be on the day when the Son of Man is revealed.” (Luke 17:28-30).

Lot and the story of Sodom is in Genesis 19.

Jesus is emphasizing that mankind will be deep in sin, unaware of the looming catastrophe their sins have wrought upon them. In referring to the days of Noah, the specific sins were not mentioned, except to say that man was evil all the time, and that the Nephilim were on earth in those days. (Genesis 6:1-8).

In the case of Lot, we know that he was living in Sodom at the time of the judgment upon that city and the four other cities ruined that day. (Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah, Zeboiim, Deuteronomy 29:23). Jude 1:7 mentions Sodom,

“Just as Sodom and Gomorrah and the surrounding cities, which likewise indulged in sexual immorality and pursued unnatural desire, serve as an example by undergoing a punishment of eternal fire…”

And Peter mentions Sodom-

“if he condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah by burning them to ashes, and made them an example of what is going to happen to the ungodly; (2 Peter 2:6 )

And Revelation mentions Sodom, comparing its great sins to end time Jerusalem:

“And when they have finished their testimony, the beast that rises from the bottomless pit will make war on them and conquer them and kill them, and their dead bodies will lie in the street of the great city that symbolically is called Sodom and Egypt, where their Lord was crucified.” (Revelation 11:7-8)

There is no doubt that Sodom stands as an example of judgment upon ungodly behavior- and the ungodly behavior at issue here is homosexuality, carnality of the most perverse kind.

Jesus said that the end of days would be like the days of Lot. So….has the sin of Sodom permeated many cultures, as homosexuals party unaware of the looming judgment upon them? Yes.

This week, New Zealand politicians have voted in the gay marriage bill, making New Zealand the 13th country to allow same-sex couples to marry. It wasn’t even close. The “Marriage Equality Bill” passed 77- 44.

Right, François Elluin, “Sodomites provoking the wrath of God, from Le pot pourri de Loth, 1781”

New Zealand is not the only nation dealing at a Parliamentary level with the homosexual agenda. Ireland also made some movement toward ‘marriage equality’ this week. This article from the Christian Science Monitor states,

“Ireland, a famously conservative country with a government dominated by the center-right, has taken a step toward legalizing same-sex marriage, following several other Catholic nations into what some say is belated equality – and others claim is murky legal and moral territory. Ireland’s Constitutional Convention, a body set up by the government to propose wide-ranging changes to Ireland’s Constitution, voted Sunday, with 79 percent in favor of extending marriage rights to same sex couples.”

South Africa recently held its first “traditional” gay wedding
“Two 27-year-old South African men, Tshepo Cameron Modisane (pictured left) and Thoba Calvin Sithole (pictured right), tied the knot Saturday in a ceremony that is being heralded as the nation’s first gay wedding, according to the Huffington Post. The couple was married in the town of KwaDukuza and stood before 200 guests as they exchanged their vows. On a continent that views homosexuality as vile lifestyle, both men were brave enough to proudly proclaim their love for one another in a public setting.”

Vile indeed. Yet the vileness is wearing off and the lifestyle is becoming accepted.

Did you notice the change in language about homosexuality? I’ve written about ‘softening’ language before, and in this case note that we have gone from saying–

sodomy/sodomites,
to homosexual,
to gay.

We have gone from-
Sodomy
to homosexual union,
to civil union,
to gay marriage,
to marriage equality.

Interestingly, it always favors the proponent to be the first to claim the language they want, because they can then frame the argument on both the pro and the con side. And the Lesbian, Gay, Transgender and Queers does have such a stylebook on ‘recommended language’ to use when referring to them in the public spheres. Therefore, someone saying “I’m for marriage equality” sounds nice. If you are against sodomites marrying, then you’re against “equality” and you sound mean-spirited.

From Wikipedia, we learn,

“The Jewish historian Josephus used the term “Sodomites” in summarizing the Genesis narrative: “About this time the Sodomites grew proud, on account of their riches and great wealth; they became unjust towards men, and impious towards God, in so much that they did not call to mind the advantages they received from him: they hated strangers, and abused themselves with Sodomitical practices” “Now when the Sodomites saw the young men to be of beautiful countenances, and this to an extraordinary degree, and that they took up their lodgings with Lot, they resolved themselves to enjoy these beautiful boys by force and violence; and when Lot exhorted them to sobriety, and not to offer any thing immodest to the strangers, but to have regard to their lodging in his house; and promised that if their inclinations could not be governed, he would expose his daughters to their lust, instead of these strangers; neither thus were they made ashamed.” (Antiquities 1.11.1,3[18] — circa AD 96).

There is a REALLY interesting 46-year-old video of a “CBS Reports” documentary, a precursor to 60 Minutes. The same Mike Wallace who had appeared in 60 Minutes, did an investigation of “The Homosexuals.” The hour-long program ran in 1967 and according to Yahoo! News today, “took on the then-taboo topic of homosexuality in America. …[NOTE: the article remains at the link but the video no longer exists. A different, presently working, link to the documentary is below]

The report is “now impossible to watch without cringing,” The Atlantic’s Conor Friedersdorf wrote.”

What they meant about cringing was, that the Days of Lot are here, because what America once thought of homosexuality as a lifestyle 46 years ago (vile, promiscuous, disgusting, and unacceptable, as well as more damaging to the societal fabric of America than adultery, prostitution, and abortion- and these are quotes) are attitudes America ‘cringes’ at now because America thinks homosexuality is just terrific. That happened in the space of just one generation.

In the documentary, the prevailing psychiatric position of the day was that homosexuality is a mental disorder, and a pathology. Now it’s gay to be gay. Back then, the prevailing attitude was that homosexuals were to be rejected and shunned. Today they are embraced and honored. Days of Lot.

This was Wallace’s conclusion to the report:

“The dilemma of the homosexual: told by the medical profession he is sick; by the law that he’s a criminal; shunned by employers; rejected by heterosexual society. Incapable of a fulfilling relationship with a woman, or for that matter with a man. At the center of his life he remains anonymous. A displaced person. An outsider.”

But today there are whole nations endorsing the lifestyle as normal by allowing marriage and other benefits that the bible states clearly should be denied people who engage in the behavior. The CBS Reports documentary is very interesting in using as a benchmark to see how far we have gone in ungodliness.

The documentary is below. And the Days of Lot are here.
//player.vimeo.com/video/61123970
“The Homosexuals”: Mike Wallace’s controversial 1967 CBS report from TRUTH Exposed and Revealed on Vimeo.