Posted in eternal life, glory, manger, swaddling

Jesus in the manger: a compare and contrast exercise

Posted on by elizabethprata

I published this on December 16 but I’m publishing it again this morning, a holy morning when we gladly honor the Savior who came to put away sin, and honor the Him who was and is and is to come.

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It is the season of the baby Jesus. We love to think of Him as the innocent babe in swaddling clothes, his parents Mary and Joseph (and God) looking down on the sleeping baby. It is a scene of peace.

But we can’t be glad about the babe in the manger unless we remember that without the babe we are living a life of corruption, wrath and death. He was born to save us from it. That juxtaposition is just as as startling as the fact of Messiah’s bursting in from glory to live in depravity on our behalf.

In my mind, I think of these examples that are equally a juxtaposition. From His humble beginnings, He was born and laid in swaddling clothes amid the hay of the stable. The vision of the hay strewn around evokes the hay that will be burned up on His day.

“Now if anyone builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw— each one’s work will become manifest, for the Day will disclose it, because it will be revealed by fire, and the fire will test what sort of work each one has done. If the work that anyone has built on the foundation survives, he will receive a reward. If anyone’s work is burned up, he will suffer loss, though he himself will be saved, but only as through fire.” (1 Cor 3:12).

Hay is only temporary. It’s fodder for animals, stuffing in log cabin cracks, filler for brickmakers. Hay doesn’t last. Yet Jesus said, “Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.” (Matthew 24:25).

The babe was laid in another man’s barn, bearing witness to the fact that the Son of Man has no place to lay His head. “And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.”  (Luke 9:58).

He didn’t have a place to lay His head when He was born, and He didn’t have His own place to lay His broken body to rest when He died. Jesus was buried in another man’s tomb.

“When it was evening, there came a rich man from Arimathea, named Joseph, who also was a disciple of Jesus. He went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. Then Pilate ordered it to be given to him. And Joseph took the body and wrapped it in a clean linen shroud and laid it in his own new tomb, which he had cut in the rock. And he rolled a great stone to the entrance of the tomb and went away.” (Matthew 27:57-60).

Jesus left His home to live homeless, in order to give us HIS home. We have a place to lay our head: a place in heaven Jesus is preparing for us. It is called New Jerusalem. (Revelation 21:2)

Jesus came from holy glory and was pure. Yet His life began amid the dung of the animals. This evokes Him coming from sinlessness of heaven to the depraved corruption of earth and all that is in it. Isaiah said our works are like filthy menstrual rags (Is 64:6). Paul said our life apart from Christ is rubbish (garbage) (Phil 3:8). His perfect and glorious soul inside a baby’s body was laid down amid all that corruption.

From the moment of His birth, the contrast between Himself in eternal life, and our death and destruction apart from Him was made clear. He is so Great!

Source
He came down so that, “And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.” (John 12:32)
Posted in nerf, spiritual war, word

Playing nerf ball with the devil

Posted on by elizabethprata

I am old enough to remember when Nerf Ball was introduced to the world. Hasbro Toymakers had created a foam ball which soon was accompanied by a gun. When shot, Nerf guns emitted foam balls that hit a target but destroyed nothing. Millions of Huck Finns and Dennis the Menaces thanked Hasbro that no more windows and vases got broken. The foam ball would only bounce harmlessly off and nothing was destroyed inside the house or outside it.

It was 1970 and the Nerf ball was introduced as the “world’s first official indoor ball”. Marketing slogans promised that one can “Throw it indoors; you can’t damage lamps or break windows. You can’t hurt babies or old people.” By the end of the first year a million had been sold.

Hold that thought, about the Nerf ball.

We are under spiritual attack. Every Christian is a potential target for satan and his legion of minions. Satan lobs his own fiery darts at us. (Ephesians 6:16). He hates God and so he hates God in us. So he attacks. We are in a battle and cannot let down our guard for one moment. We have to “be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour,” as 1 Peter 5:8 warns.

One of the ways we engage in the war is that when we are sober and watchful we guard our thought life. The weapons in our war are not physical. We don’t go forth with sword and shield like a gladiator and smite people.

In actuality WE are the weapon. If we remain vigilant and sober, stay in prayer, walk in His ways, and delve into the Word, we become sharp, internally. It is an internal thought-battle. We capture every thought—

“For though we walk in the flesh, we are not waging war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds. We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ”, (2 Corinthians 10:3-5).

The main weapon we use against satan is God’s word (as a sword) and the main weapon satan uses against us is a twisted version of God’s word (as fiery darts). If we are internally honed as God’s weapon, when we speak of Him or share His word, being submitted to the indwelling Holy Spirit and being steadily regenerated in His image, then when we do speak Christ, the words are sharp.

The ultimate example of that, of course, is Jesus. Look what happened when He spoke:

“When they heard these things, all in the synagogue were filled with wrath.” (Luke 4:30)

“But when the chief priests and the scribes saw the wonderful things that he did, and the children crying out in the temple, “Hosanna to the Son of David!” they were indignant,” (Matthew 21:15). The word ‘indignant’ here in Greek means ‘to grieve much.’

“When the soldiers approached Jesus that night in the Garden of Gethsemane and asked if He was Jesus, Jesus answered “When Jesus said to them, “I am he,” they drew back and fell to the ground.” (John 18:6).

And there are many other examples from the life of Jesus to illustrate the point. After His ascension, His word was powerful in the mouths of His disciples. Think of the wrath of the crowd when Stephen preached to the Pharisees and was killed. The wrath of the crowd at Iconium when Paul was stoned. The word of God is a sword that riles up wrath in the unrepentant.

But! It is also a sharp sword that pierces strongholds!

“For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.” (Hebrews 4:12).

“Is not my word like fire,” declares the LORD, “and like a hammer that breaks a rock in pieces?” (Jeremiah 23:29).

Since the Christian life is a metaphor of an internal and unseen war, and the word of God is a metaphor for a sword as our weapon in that war (Ephesians 6:17), then here is a picture illustrating that.

When the Word goes out from a finely honed, disciplined, thought-guarded Christian warrior, the word will pierce the strongest armor, the meanest heart, the loftiest stronghold!

GraceLife Pastor Phil Johnson said in his sermon “Wisdom Guards the Heart,” to-
“control your thoughts. This is the whole point, and this is the area where the virtue of self-control is most important. This is the one area where your battle for self-control will be won or lost: your thought life. If you willingly and deliberately allow yourself to indulge in evil thoughts or wicked fantasies, what this verse says (Proverbs 4:23) is you’re filling the wellspring of your life with poison—and nothing is more self-destructive!”

Pastor Johnson continued, “One of the key verses in the New Testament is Mark 7:20-23, where Jesus said this, “That which cometh out of the man, that defileth the man; for from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, and foolishness.” Jesus said, “All these things come from within and defile the man.” He was answering people who had charged His disciples with eating with unwashed hands, and He was saying, you know, “It’s not what goes into you that defiles you, but what comes out of your heart.” You cannot entertain wicked thoughts without being utterly defiled by them. In fact, that is, is it not, the very principle our verse is teaching? “A corrupt tree cannot bring forth good fruit,” Matthew 7:18, “A contaminated well is unhealthy.” So, it’s vital to guard your heart and keep it from every kind of defilement.”

The more defiled you get, the less sharp the Word is from your mouth.

Just as the battle is internal, if you study up, guard up, pray up, and walk rightly, you will not be defiled. But if you’re polluted inside, what comes out of you will be ineffectual for God. Though you think you are holding a wicked crossbow and aiming squarely at satan, all satan sees is this:

He sees a child holding a Nerf gun. He says “Oh really?” and laughs because what comes out of the Nerf gun will only bounce harmlessly off him and roll away. Due to your polluted thoughts and defiled heart, your weapon has gone from this:

To this:

Except you didn’t realize how far you’d gone and how exposed you were when you waged into the battle. Guard your thought-life. Going from sharp word to harmless Nerf happens fast, my friends. Be vigilant, and repentant. Phil Johnson again,

“Scripture is full of this truth. God sees our hearts. If you would blush to have the secret thoughts of your heart made manifest for everyone in this room to see, you ought to tremble at the reality that God already sees those thoughts and knows them altogether. Jesus said, “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.” Hebrews 12:14 adds this: “Without holiness, no man shall see the Lord.” So, this is a vitally important matter. It underscores the desirability of guarding our hearts. An impure heart can ruin us for life and all eternity. There’s no advantage, frankly, to poisoning the wellspring of your heart. So, where do we go for a pure heart? I’ve already spoken of the utter impossibility of cleansing your own heart. What do we do with defiled hearts? Well, first and most obviously, we have to repent of the impurity…”

Repent. Guard. Resist. Flee. Because you don’t want to play Nerf ball with the devil.

Posted in earthquakes, prophecy, rapture

By the numbers: how many earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, & bank failures were there in 2o12?

Posted on by elizabethprata

At the end of each year I like to look at the numbers. I look at what God has said will happen in the last days and check the quantifiable data. Not that we need data to cement the truth of God’s word. God’s word is unique in that it alone IS the barometer for truth. As such it stands alone. But on Christmas vacation, I like something to do. Mentally, it’s a neat exercise, lol. Take it for what it is.

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Aliyah

The return to the Holy Land has been a Jewish aspiration since the Babylonian exile. Large scale immigration to Eretz Israel and later Israel began in 1882. (Wikipedia)

Aliyah is the Hebrew word for immigration of Jews to the Land of Israel. It is a difficult and complicated process. It’s not like you pick up your passport and one day decide to emigrate to Israel. It’s rigorous, and not everyone makes it. That is why it is called “making Aliyah”.

The LORD said He will gather them all back to the Land. So we watch the immigration of Jews to Israel because of what he has said, notably in Ezekiel and Micah.

“I will surely assemble all of you, O Jacob; I will gather the remnant of Israel; I will set them together like sheep in a fold, like a flock in its pasture, a noisy multitude of men.” (Micah 2:12)

“Then they shall know that I am the Lord their God, because I sent them into exile among the nations and then assembled them into their own land. I will leave none of them remaining among the nations anymore.” (Ezekiel 39:28)

This has never happened before, that all the Jews are back in the land, so we watch.

In 2011, it was reported, “On Israel’s 63rd anniversary its population stands at 7,746,000 people, a 2% increase (150,000 residents) compared with 2010. In comparison, on the night of its establishment, the State of Israel consisted of only 806,000 residents.”

Aliyah Jumps 20% in 5771 (2011)
“Aliyah to Israel rose by nearly 20% during the Hebrew calendar year of 5771, compared to the previous year, the Immigration and Absorption Ministry announced Thursday. Over 21,000 immigrants settled in the country since last Rosh Hashana, with the majority from the former Soviet Union and North America. Immigrants also arrived from Europe – mostly France and Britain – and South America. The Ministry also said that some 2,800 immigrants came from Ethiopia, double the number in 5770.”

It appears that in 2011, more Jews came to Israel from America than emigrated from Israel to America, a reversal of the long-term trend. That trend kept up this year, 2012.

The year 2010 ended with a 16% increase in the number of new immigrants to Israel.
The year 2011 ended with an almost 20% increase over 2010.
I have not been able to find 2012 statistics for Israel immigration

It makes the fourth year that emigration to Israel from North America is significantly up. It doesn’t take much to see what the catalyst might be.

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Volcanoes

“When he opened the sixth seal, I looked, and behold, there was a great earthquake, and the sun became black as sackcloth, the full moon became like blood,” (Revelation 6:12)

How can an earthquake blot out the sun? If the earthquake is associated with volcanic eruptions it easily can blot out the sun. This has happened before, in Iceland with the eruption of Laki and in 1883 with the eruption of Krakatoa. Both times, global weather was dramatically altered for a period, as huge amounts of ash was spouted into the air. World temperatures dropped when the sun’s light was dimmed. Sunsets were glowingly beautiful for a year after Krakatoa.

Scientists call the phenomenon dry fog. “The sun, at noon, looked as blank as a clouded moon, and shed a rust- coloured ferruginous light on the ground, and floors of rooms; but was particularly lurid and blood-coloured at rising and setting.” (Gilbert White, of the Iceland Laki eruption, 1783).

In North America, the winter of 1784 was the longest and one of the coldest on record. It was the longest period of below-zero temperatures in New England, with the largest accumulation of snow in New Jersey and the longest freezing over of the Chesapeake Bay. A huge snowstorm hit the south, the Mississippi River froze at New Orleans and there was ice in the Gulf of Mexico. (Wiki)

So yes, earthquakes combined with volcanic eruptions will have a devastating effect on the earth, moon, and sun. You can read more about dry fog here.

The Smithsonian Institute has a Global Volcanism Program which keeps track of volcanic eruptions. I plotted their data for every year since 1950. I tallied up each decade’s number of eruptions and averaged them. Then I plotted the results on a chart.

The chart is below. You can see a big jump in the number of volcanic eruptions for the decade of the 2000s.

Data Source- Smithsonian Global Volcanism Program

Raw Data: Average number of eruptions worldwide in the decade of the
1950s – 52
1960s – 56
1970s – 57
1980s – 59
1990s – 58
2000s – 70

Here is some data plotted long-term, using the same source, to view a longer-term trend.

Data Source: Smithsonian Global Volcanism Program

Raw data:
YEAR #eruptions
1850 22
1860 33
1870 24
1880 30
1890 39
1900 34
1910 43
1920 32
1930 38
1940 46
1950 49
1960 57
1970 55
1980 66
1990 55
2000 67
2010 69
2011 56
(*2012 data not available yet)

Here’s the Atlantic’s roundup of 2012 volcanic activity, with cool photos. They said that “Out of an estimated 1,500 active volcanoes around the world, 50 or so erupt every year” but that has not been true since 1998. That was the last year that any year had 50-something eruptions. The only exception was 2011 when 56 erupted. For half of the 2000s, over 70 erupted, and the other half over 60 erupted.

I believe the data shows that volcanic eruptions are increasing in number and in impact.

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

Wealth

Here is a graph of United States Bank Failures, as per the FDIC website. In looking at the raw data and the graph as visually presenting the data, it is clear that events after 2008 were dramatic.

Raw data, number of FDIC bank failures per year: Some of the source was from FDIC,
2000 – 2
2001 – 4
2002 – 11
2003 – 3
2004 – 4
2005 – 0
2006 – 0
2007 – 3
2008 – 25
2009 – 140
2010 – 150
2011 – 92
2012 – 51

The rest was from here
1999 – 8
1998 – 3
1997 – 1
1996 – 6
1995 – 8
1994 – 15
1993 – 50
1992 – 181
1991 – 271
1990 – 382
1989 – 534
1988 – 470
1987 – 262
1986 – 204
1985 – 180
1984 – 106
1983 – 99
1982 – 119
1981 – 40
1980 – 22
1979 – 10
1978 – 7
1977 – 6
1976 – 17
1975 – 13
1974 – 4
1973 – 6
1972 – 2
1971 – 7
1970 – 7
1969 – 9
1968 – 3
1967 – 4
1966 – 7
1965 – 5
1964 – 7
1963 – 2
1962 – 1
1961 – 5
1960 – 1
1959 – 3
1958 – 4
1957 – 1
1956 – 2
1955 – 5
1954 – 2
1953 – 2
1952 – 3
1951 – 2
1950 – 4
1949 – 4
1948 – 3
1947 – 5
1946 – 1
1945 – 1
1944 – 2
1943 – 5
1942 – 20
1941 – 15
1940 – 43
1939 – 60
1938 – 74
1937 – 75
1936 – 69
1935 – 25
1934 – 9

As Dave Manuel wrote at the site I linked to above, he said, “As you can see, the worst single year for bank failures since the introduction of the FDIC came in 1989. This was at the height of the savings and loan crisis in the United States, and was also the same year that the Resolution Trust Corporation (RTC) was formed.”

Even though the failures seem to be subsiding since 2008, in comparing 2000 when 2 banks failed to 2012 when 51 banks failed, it is still a 2,450% increase. Comparing the number of banks failed in year 2000 to year 2010 the percent increase is 7,400%. However we can see that the current recession exceeds the 1930s Depression but is far smaller than the 1980s recession in terms of banks failed. Remember Enron?

Still, it’s hard to be poor…

“A poor man is shunned by all his relatives–how much more do his friends avoid him! Though he pursues them with pleading, they are nowhere to be found.” (Proverbs 19:7)

But sometimes it’s better not to be rich…

“Here now is the man who did not make God his stronghold but trusted in his great wealth and grew strong by destroying others!” (Psalm 52:7)

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Wars

Jesus said the end time would be characterized by wars and rumors of wars. (Matthew 24:6). While wars have always been among us, beginning with the violence of Cain against Abel and fanning out into tribal and national wars that meet the benchmark of an actual national conflict, the end time is noted to have them in increasing number. (Definition of war: “an armed conflict (interstate or intrastate) with at least 1000 battle related deaths in one year – where a state is one of the belligerents.”

I noted last year in the annual data roundup that “John MacArthur preached on the end time verses in Luke 21. He cited the Encyclopedia of Wars as a source and offered the following numbers. He said that in the 1000 years prior to Christ’s coming, there were 170 recorded wars. This number excludes skirmishes, conflicts, disturbances, etc. In the 1000 years after Jesus, there were 50 wars. In the 500 years after that, 100 wars. In the 300 years after that, 250 wars. In the last 200 years, there have been 500 wars. And in the last four years (not depicted on graph) there have been 20 wars.”

I have not updated the data from last year, as I do not own Riley’s Encyclopedia of War and any other sources are too scattered to be quantifiably credible.

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

Earthquakes

One of my favorite tracking by data variables to follow is the number of earthquakes in any given year. God definitely speaks through earthquakes. It is a constant in His vocabulary. Jesus said that His Second Coming would be presaged by “earthquakes in diverse places” (Matthew 24:7) and Revelation is rife with devastating quakes that are prophesied to be used as a judgment upon the wicked. (Revelation 6, 8, 11, & 16).

I got the data from US Geological Survey (USGS). The “Avg Yrly” column is the average number of quakes the USGS says usually happen in a year. If more quakes happen in the next week I’ll update. Click on any graph to enlarge.

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Ultimately, the Lord said He will come at a time unbelievers do not expect. (Luke 12:40). He will come like a thief in the night, when unbelievers are not paying attention. (1 Thess 5:2). However, believers must stay alert. (1 Thess 5:4-8). Joel Rosenberg wrote,

“In describing these “labor pains,” the apostle Paul echoes the words of the Lord Jesus when he explained in Matthew 24 and Luke 21 that the world will be experiencing “birth pangs” in the last days (1 Thessalonians 5:3). Thus, while we don’t know exactly when or how the Rapture will occur, it seems to come not specifically during a time of intense “contraction” (major wars, terrorist attacks, etc.), but during a time of “release,” a time when things seem to the non-Christian world to be relatively more peaceful and safe than they had previously been (1 Thessalonians 5:3).”

I recommend Mr Rosenberg’s essay explaining the rapture. he uses clear language and bible verses. He also addresses many misconceptions, such as the claim that the rapture is a theory, that it isn’t in the bible, or that it will happen after or during the tribulation. (It will happen before).

Keep looking for Him from heaven, keep living for Him on earth. Today may be the day…

Posted in egypt, elections, israel, jesus, jordan, person of the year

News: Obama Time’s Person of Year; Israel/Jordan/Egypt elections; Syria’s Chemical Weapons

Posted on by elizabethprata

Here is some news for this bright Christmas Eve Eve…

Did you know that lawmakers in Germany have been working hard to ban the ancient Jewish practice of circumcision? The measure failed last week. There are lots of ways to oppress Jews and Christians. One way is excessive bureaucratic interference and laws.

Germans overwhelmingly oppose making circumcision illegal
Germany’s parliament approved a bill to keep male circumcision legal, after a court ruling earlier this year put the practice into question. Discussions focussed on child welfare versus religious freedom. This follows months of debate. In May 2012, a Cologne court ruled that the circumcision of a young boy on religious grounds amounted to grievous bodily harm, and was therefore illegal. The decision prompted many Jews and Muslims to question their acceptance and sense of feeling spiritually at home in Germany. Months of debate on the cultural and religious tradition of infant male circumcision in Germany followed. Nowhere else in the entire world has this debate been held “with such acrimony, frostiness and at times brutal intolerance,” Dieter Graumann, head of the Central Council of Jews in Germany, said at the time.”

Satan has gone after God’s chosen people since the very beginning. Genesis records him attacking Eve and Adam in the garden, (Genesis 3), and Revelation records that he will go after them in the end. (Revelation 12:17). The day that he is thrown into the Lake of Fire will be the day when all of God’s children will finally be safe. (Revelation 20:10).

So what is going on with those chemical weapons in Syria? “Israel frets chemicals weapons could fall into wrong hands“:

“Syria’s chemical weapons are still secure despite the fact that President Bashar al-Assad has lost control of parts of the country, a senior Israeli defence official said today. … “Suppose he (Assad) does leave, there could be chaos … in the Middle East you never know who will come instead…”

That is true. Ask Egypt if they feel they made a good swap of Mubarak for Muslim Brotherhood…

Egypt constitutional vote: ‘Things are definitely worse than under the old regime’:
“…second half of the referendum on the draft constitution, which was drawn up by an Islamist-dominated panel from which Christians and liberals had withdrawn in protest. Among the many charges levelled against the constitution by both human rights groups, secular and liberal activists, and the Coptic Christian minority, is that its defence of basic freedoms is heavily curtailed when it comes to religion and politics. Specifically, it will forbid any law that would permit anything deemed insulting either of people or of religion, the Prophet Mohammed or the other figures considered by Islam to be God’s messengers. Such a clause could clearly have a chilling effect on free thinking and speech.”

That referendum on the new Egyptian (Muslim Brotherhood) Constitution was voted on this week and it passed, Reuters reports:

“The Muslim Brotherhood, which propelled President Mohamed Mursi to power in a June election, said an unofficial tally showed 64 percent of voters backed the charter after two rounds of voting that ended with a final ballot on Saturday.”

Read Isaiah 19 for a look ahead for what is going to happen to Egypt. It is pretty dark for a while but then thanks to God’s grace Egypt is restored. The people come to saving knowledge of the Lord and they are blessed. Knowing the end makes reading about what is happening to Egypt now a bit easier. A bit.

Elections in the Middle East:

I just reported on Egypt’s big voting event, the Constitution. Jordan has an election coming up on January 23 to vote in a new Parliament. King Abdullah is still the King, of course. Prior to the elections a new electoral law was passed, allowing voters to cast two ballots; one for a candidate in their constituency and one for party lists elected by proportional representation at the national level. In addition, The number of seats reserved for candidates of political parties was raised from 17 to 27 out of the 140 seats in the House of Representatives.” (Wiki)

Israel is holding elections too. They will be held on January 22 for representatives to their Parliament, called the Knesset. “Next month Israel will see another parliamentary election – an event that takes place almost every two years, which is considered by some Israelis as far too often. The country has swapped more than thirty governments in 64 years. 20 Israeli interior ministers, 14 foreign ministers and 15 justice ministers have been and gone in the last twenty years.”

Obama was selected (again) by Time Magazine as Person of the Year.

Another cover is making the rounds that I much prefer:

And there was a bit of news for you as we go forward on this Christmas Eve Eve. Here is a Good Thought brought to you from the Creator of the Universe, the Savior of the World and the Comforter of the People:

“For we know that if the tent that is our earthly home is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. For in this tent we groan, longing to put on our heavenly dwelling, 3if indeed by putting it ona we may not be found naked. For while we are still in this tent, we groan, being burdened—not that we would be unclothed, but that we would be further clothed, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life. He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who has given us the Spirit as a guarantee. (2 Corinthians 5:1-5)

Posted in jesus, lynch

Israeli-linked Facebook page says Palestinians would lynch Jesus if He lived in Bethlehem today

Posted on by elizabethprata

A news item in the UK Daily Mail caught my attention

“The Israeli embassy in Dublin has apologised for a post on its Facebook page which said if Mary and Jesus were alive in Bethlehem today Palestinians would probably lynch them. The post, which was made on the Israel in Ireland Facebook page, showed a picture of Mary and Jesus. It was accompanied by the comment: ‘A thought for Christmas… If Jesus and mother Mary were alive today, they would, as Jews without security, probably end up being lynched in Bethlehem by hostile Palestinians.”

The Daily Mail grabbed a screen shot before the post was removed:

RT.com (Russia Today) reported the story too:

“Israel’s diplomatic corps finds itself in hot water after posting an inflammatory message on an official Facebook page. Although the message has now been deleted, this is not the first time Israel has used social media to post controversial views. The message appeared on the IsraelinIreland Facebook page – which is linked to on the official embassy site – on Monday morning. … The message sparked immediate heated debate, but was taken down within hours.

“An image of Jesus and Mary with a derogatory comment about Palestinians was posted without the consent of the administrator of the Facebook page. We have removed the post in question immediately. Apologies to anyone who may have been offended,” said an official statement from the Israeli embassy in Dublin”

“Since then, the IsraelinIreland page has been shut down altogether, and the link on the official website has been removed. This was not the first time the account, which is updated by unnamed embassy staff, broadcast strong opinions.”

Is a ‘derogatory comment’ inflammatory if it is true?

Jesus has always brought controversy. When He was born, Herod sought to kill Him. (Matthew 2:16). The Pharisees & Sadducees sought to kill Him. (Mark 3:6). His own Nazarene townspeople sought to kill Him. (Luke 4:29). Eventually, the government and the religious establishment did kill Him. (Matthew 27:50).

As Charles Spurgeon preached, “And many times Satan attempted to put the personal existence of Christ in danger, so that he might get Christ to die. Poor fool as he was, he did not know that when Christ died he would bruise the devil’s head.”

Jesus brings a sword, and division- even in families. (Matthew 10:34-35). He always has.

Voice of the Martyrs reports, “In more than 40 nations around the world today Christians are being persecuted for their faith. In some of these nations it is illegal to own a Bible, to share your faith Christ, change your faith or teach your children about Jesus.”

Some of those nations which persecute Christians are Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, Gaza, and Egypt- all abutting nations to Israel. If the Arabs and Muslims IN the Holy Lands kill Christians for preaching Christ, then what makes anyone think they wouldn’t kill Christ if they had a chance? After all, it was only one month ago that we read that Palestinians were protesting in Bethlehem in an Anti-Israel fervor

“Anti-Israel protests erupted in the West Bank Tuesday as Palestinians took to the streets and clashed with IDF troops. The worst clashes took place in Bethlehem and Hebron, where IDF soldiers used rubber bullets and tear gas to disperse stone-throwers. Scores of Palestinians hurled stones and empty bottles at soldiers near Rachel’s Tomb in Bethlehem.” [bold mine]

Political correctness is reaching stupid levels. We should pray harder for the Christians who live in the dangerous places and who boldly proclaim their Savior amidst a harsh reality and potential repercussions.

We praise Him that He came to die and rise again so that we may live eternally, even if we die bodily.

Posted in grace, mourn, sin

George Carlin, sin, and Godly sorrow

Posted on by elizabethprata

This is a weird coincidence. I queued up the original episode of Saturday Night Live, which debuted in October 1975. As I began to watch, I listened to host George Carlin’s opening monologue. I was thinking I first watched it 38 years ago, and my how the time flies by. I was wondering how many of the cast are dead by now. Just then, Carlin asked,

“Do you ever look at the crowds in old movies and wonder if they’re dead yet?”

Either I should be spooked by the coincidence, or worried that I think like George Carlin. Anyway, here are the ones who are dead:

Dan Aykroyd
Chevy Chase
John Belushi
Jane Curtin
Garrett Morris
Laraine Newman
Gilda Radner

First head writer: Michael O’Donoghue
First musical performer: Billy Preston
First host: George Carlin

Did Carlin ever wonder if someone would wonder that about him?

During the program, Carlin joked about the vagaries of the English language, which was funny. He mocked corporate and government America, which was intellectually provoking. Then of course Carlin landed on Jesus as his main topic of satiric rebuke. He settled in to a riff of disdain for the Savior, so I turned it off.

My mind then went further on the “are they dead now” thought. George Carlin spent a lifetime mocking the only One who could save Him from hell, and hell is surely where Carlin is right now. Carlin is living the ultimate irony. I mourned.

Far from chortling over someone’s eternal destiny, I do cry, lament, become melancholy. The deeper I go into Christ, the deeper the grief over the world and over people who reject eternal life. When I look a them I see walking skeletons. They are dead in their trespasses.

It’s like when you pass an accident by the side of the road. All these lives, millions upon millions of lives are wrecks, and yet I can’t look away. For example, I watched a biopic of Sonny & Cher last night. Sonny Bono was killed in a ski accident in 1998 at the Heavenly Ski Resort. He was an avowed Roman Catholic who dabbled in Scientology. Chances are, though he died in a place called heavenly, he is not there now. While watching the biography movie, that was all I could think about. Except when my thoughts went to Cher, who is living out Jonathan Edwards’ famous sermon “Sinners in the hands of an Angry God,” and that her foot shall slide in due time. Then I thought of their child, sweet Chastity Bono, who had a sex change operation and is now a man called Chaz. Yet another grief to lament another lost soul.

The problem is, the whole world is an accident at the side of the road. There is no way to look away. Nowhere to avert one’s eyes so as not to see the carnage. It’s all a wreck.

Though this seems like a downer, and it is really, there is an upside. First, because I don’t think I’m the only one to feel this way. After Newtown School Massacre, I think many Christians were brokenhearted for the world. The act brought us to new levels of grief. One cannot help but think about the effects of the fallen world on unsaved individuals polluted by almost total corruption.

Additionally, as the chasm between sinner and saved grows wider prior to the rapture, and the world comes hurtling toward its prophesied end, many on the side of Jesus feel the weight of loss. John MacArthur spoke of it at a Q & A recently. He said the older he gets, the sadder he gets. This is because the deeper in Christ you go the more vivid sin becomes to us. In his sermon, Satan’s Plan for the Church, he said more,

“The older I get and I’m sure it’s true with you if you think about it, the older I get, the more I realize that the world has fallen. The older I get, I guess the more I realize that basically things are not going to get any better. They continue to get worse. Everything in the world has been touched or tainted, has been marred or scarred by the pervasive power and the presence of sin. And that our entire world and our entire universe and our very culture itself is winding down becomes imminently obvious to anyone who looks. No matter how good, no matter how successful, no matter how prosperous, no matter how happy people might be in any given moment, they’re always on the brink of disaster, always on the brink of destitution, always on the brink of evil, sorrow, failure and such is the nature of life in a fallen world.”

Yes, mourning over sin is a downer, but the upside is that Jesus is gracious. He has anticipated each and every feeling and circumstance humans have or ever will have. He said, in Matthew 5:4,

“Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.”

I believe this means those who mourn over sin are blessed.

“For godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret, whereas worldly grief produces death.” (2 Corinthians 7:10).

I believe this means the true source of every grief is sin, and so the only comfort in Godly grief is Jesus.

“Truly, truly, I say to you, you will weep and lament, but the world will rejoice. You will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will turn into joy.” (John 16:20).

In that verse, Jesus was foretelling His death and resurrection on the cross to His disciples, but I believe we can extrapolate that to a generalized feeling of hope of the future joy He will bring when He finally disposes of all sin and we lay eyes on His resurrected Self.

If you have been mourning over sin, for whatever reason and in whatever form, take heart. Psalm 56:8 says:

“You have kept count of my tossings; put my tears in your bottle. Are they not in your book?”

The ancient Greeks and Romans used to actually collect tears of grief and place them into small bottles baked of clay or fashioned out of onyx or agate, and either bury them with the loved one or keep them as a memorial of friendship or love over loss. These bottles were called lacrymatories. When David asks God ‘are they not in your book?’ he knows God has taken an exact account of all the tears shed in relation to His business.

Grief over sin, our own and the world’s, is a weighty thing, but Jesus has the scales in His hand and He knows exactly to the ounce how much we can carry.

Ultimately, each tear shed over sin is a connection to the grace of Jesus. Take comfort in that, my dear brethren. “For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison,” (2 Corinthians 4:17)

Posted in end times, prophecy

Prophecy and News round up

Posted on by elizabethprata

Well, the world hasn’t ended. The Mayan Apocalypse (so far) seems to have been a bust. So what other news is happening in the world? What news is there that the bible indicates would be happening in the last days? Here is a survey of headlines that in my opinion rise to the top in prophetic importance.

The economy is important to keep a watch on. It’s not only important because we’re participants in the economy, and not only because we are affected by the economy, but because the economy will completely fail and be taken over by the antichrist.

Revelation 6 and Revelation 13 show this. As an institution God set up, trade, commerce, finances, and money, as with all things on earth, it will be completely corrupted. The last 7 years of the Tribulation will be a time when sin saturates everything, completely. This includes the economy.

Revelation 6:5-6, “When he opened the third seal, I heard the third living creature say, “Come!” And I looked, and behold, a black horse! And its rider had a pair of scales in his hand. And I heard what seemed to be a voice in the midst of the four living creatures, saying, “A quart of wheat for a denarius, and three quarts of barley for a denarius, and do not harm the oil and wine!”

The symbolism of the scales are explained by Barnes Notes:

“Scales or balances are the emblems of justice or equity (compare Job 31:6; Psalm 62:9; Proverbs 11:1; Proverbs 16:11); and when joined with symbols that denote the sale of grain and fruit by weight, become the symbol of scarcity. Thus, “bread by weight” Leviticus 26:26 denotes scarcity. So in Ezekiel 4:16, “And they shall eat bread by weight.” The use of balances here as a symbol would signify that something was to be accurately and carefully weighed out.”

Bread will cost a day’s wage. This indicates scarcity and/or hyperinflation. There will still be luxuries like oil and wine for the rich to buy, which indicates that some will be super-rich. It seems there will be a a huge gap in the rich and the poor. Revelation 18 shows us that the merchants lament their trade when Babylon falls, and what they lament are luxuries. A healthy trade in wealth-items had been going on all the while the poor starve for lack of bread. That gap is widening now.

ECONOMY

Retailers Hammered by Winter Storm ‘Draco’
“When I was running other people’s money, I had a rule: If a retailer blames the weather for bad results, sell the stock. Good merchants understand climate volatility and plan accordingly. No exceptions were made and no excuses were accepted. That is until now. The winter storm that shutdown most flights in and out of O’Hare yesterday and is threatening to do the same to most of the eastern seaboard over the next two days comes at an inconceivably horrible time for retailers. Draco, as the storm is being called, may not be of historic magnitude in terms of storms but it will go down in history for U.S. merchants.”

With retail trade as tenuous as it is already, a several day loss at the only time of year people feel free to spend money to excess, and even to spend money they don’t have, is a drastic problem.

Greek austerity – it’s just like aftermath of World War Two
“In the Greek mountain town of Kastoria, less than an hour from the Albanian border, Kostas Tsitskos (88) can’t afford fuel to heat his home against the winter’s cold. So he and his son live in a single bedroom, warmed by a small electric heater. When temperatures fall below freezing, Tsitskos spends most of his time in his bedroom and rarely leaves the house, he said. For meals, he and his son move the electrical heater to the kitchen. … The household price for heating oil in Greece reached €1,266 per 1,000 litres in the second quarter of this year, surging 48pc from a year earlier, according to the International Energy Agency. The same quantity cost €861 in the UK and €790 in New York. … Tsitskos has relatives in Astoria, New York, who have considered returning to Greece to retire and he cautions them to stay in the US. He would leave if he could afford it, he said. “I was expecting a different type of life,” he said. “There’s nothing that makes me happy. I’m living just to live.”

Angelos Tzortzinis/Bloomberg

Caption: Greece Austerity Diet Risks 1930s-Style Depression. Wage and pension cuts have heightened tensions in Athens and other Greek cities as the economy shrivels and an anti-foreigner party flaunting a swastika-like insignia won 18 seats in Parliament.

Imagine how eagerly the people will embrace any leader who comes forward with a solution to their lack. By the time the antichrist comes, and the economy will have worsened (fiscal cliff, anyone?) imagine how they will clamor to do what he proposes…

And if you know your history, the aftermath of WWII bore the beginnings of the European Union. The European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) was a six-nation international organization serving to unify democratic countries of Europe during the Cold War and create the foundation for the modern-day European Union. It was first proposed in 1950. In other words, scarcity brings union. People look toward each other when things get tough. This will be fulfilled ultimately in the ten nation conglomerate of Daniel 7:7.

RUSSIA

Next is Russia. I included news about them because they will figure prominently in the Gog-Magog alliance prophesied in Ezekiel 38-39. They are a protector nation and ally of Syria and Iran, nations which (among others) attack Israel in the last days. This attack is what God uses to supernaturally show Himself in the earth and thus bring Israel back to Him in covenant. So we watch Russia… and its leader.

Vladimir Putin goes on offensive against US
“Vladimir Putin signalled his support for a controversial new law that would ban American citizens from adopting Russian orphans as he issued a fierce verbal attack on the United States. Mr Putin said that despite Americans being “up to their ears in a certain substance” made up of their own problems, they still insisted on highlighting Russia’s ills. “Why does one country consider itself entitled to spread its jurisdiction to the entire world?” he said in his characteristic rapid-fire delivery. “Abu Ghraib, Guantanamo – people are kept in prison for years without being charged, they walk around in shackles like in the Middle Ages. “They have legalised torture inside their own country.”

The jackals are skulking closer to the wounded carcass that is America, eh?

SYRIA

Next: we watch Syria because of the prophecy in Isaiah 17 that Damascus will be destroyed and its environs devastated and depopulated. The verse at 14 seems to indicate that the destruction will happen quickly, even overnight. I can’t imagine many weapons that will depopulate a place faster than either chemical weapons, or nukes.

Syria fires more Scud missiles as refugee projections climb
“The head of NATO condemned the Syrian government’s return to firing Scud-type missiles yesterday, saying they were “acts of a desperate regime approaching collapse.”

Syria’s chemical weapons transported towards Lebanon
“Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has moved some of his chemical weapons arsenal in the direction of Lebanon. If one reads between the lines of a report written by David Ignatius this week in The Washington Post, it is not hard to make the jump between that trip and the possibility of such trucks — or missiles carrying warheads with their contents — crossing the border.”

WEATHER

Crazy weather! It was another year of incredible weather extremes. The disasters that have occurred in America are unprecedented in US history during 2012. There were 11 billion-dollar weather disasters that hit the U.S., a figure exceeded only by the fourteen disasters during the previous year of 2011. But 2012 cost us more. Wow.

Remember in past posts, I mention the superlatives. Bad weather in and of itself is NOT an indicator of the nearness of the time, but when weather keeps getting worse, and worse, and worse, topping itself, it is an indicator. When meteorologists use superlatives like “biggest storm” or “most vicious in a hundred years,” etc, that is an indicator. God ordains each thing that happens on earth (Ephesians 1:11; Romans 11:36), and He controls the weather. If a weather event isn’t ordained directly by His hand, then He has allowed it to occur as a natural course of the effects of sin’s decay on the world. Either way, as we get closer to the time, the weather will be increasingly haywire.

With this next news piece, we have news of a once in ten years storm, which compared to recent storms and also the mythological Mayan apocalypse, barely rates a ‘pffft’. I’d mentioned before that we were running out of superlatives to describe the unprecedented weather events, and now it seems the ability to describe them has subsided to not even being bothered unless it is of unimaginable size or impact. In other words, a few years ago, a ten-year storm would be big news. Nowadays it isn’t.

Not-quite-apocalyptic storms hit Israel
“Sure, the Water Authority says the weather system is a once-in-a-decade event, but it’s not the end of the world. Though no once-in-a-civilization, earth-wrecking storms surfaced, the Israel Water Authority said the severity of Friday’s storms represented one of the most significant winter weather events of the past decade. Over 100 ml of water fell in some towns in the North, and the Kinneret lake rose some 6 cm, Army Radio reported.”

Storm lashes Northeast with wind, rain; thousands of flights disrupted
“With Christmas around the corner and winter officially arriving Friday, travel headaches brought on by the first big storm of the season continued — with disruptions now plaguing Northeast airports due to wind and rain after the Midwest was socked Thursday.”

Johnston Iowa

Ukraine and Russia hit by extreme cold snap and heavy snow
“Cold weather has killed 37 people in Ukraine so far this month as temperatures reached minus 23 Celsius in parts of the former Soviet republic. Night temperatures are expected to drop to -28C (-18F) in northern, central and eastern Ukraine this week. The cold snap followed heavy snowfall which left some areas covered with as much as 53 cm (21 inches) of snow. Cars were blocked for 18 kilometres (11 miles) overnight on Saturday on the main road between the capital Kiev and Lviv, officials said.”

A woman looks through an icy window in a bus in Ukraine’s capital, Kiev, on Friday

Cold snap claims nearly 200 lives in Russia, Eastern Europe
“MOSCOW: A vicious cold snap across Russia and Eastern Europe has claimed nearly 200 lives, officials figures showed today, as forecasters warned it would last until Christmas Eve. In Russia, the cold has killed two people in the past 24 hours, the Ria-Novosti agency reported, citing medical sources, bringing the total number of deaths over the past week to 56. The freeze had also left 371 people in hospital. Thermometers have been stuck below minus 20 degrees Celsius (minus 4 Fahrenheit) in Moscow — and below minus 50 degrees (minus 58 F) in some parts of Siberia — for a week.”

Ouch. I really feel for those folks.

VOLCANOES

Volcanoes are becoming more active. The undersea Pacific Ring of Fire is also becoming more active. It should be noted that Ecuador’s Tungurahua volcano is a constantly active one. However, the next volcano that is listed in the news, Russia’s Kamchatka, is not.

Ecuador’s rumbling Tungurahua volcano spews more hot rock from crater
“QUITO, Ecuador – The Tungurahua volcano in central Ecuador keeps spewing gas, ash and red-hot rock, forcing hundreds to evacuate from their homes. The country’s Geophysical Institute says incandescent rock shot from the crater of the 16,479-foot (5,023-meter) high mountain fell about half a mile (a kilometer) down its flanks. Explosions early Wednesday rattled windows 9 miles (14 kilometers) away, while rain-borne ash has been falling to the southwest of the crater.”

Russian volcano erupts – video
“A volcano in Russia’s far eastern Kamchatka peninsula, which has been dormant since the 1970s, erupts, spewing lava and sending clouds of ash into the air. A crack about 5km long appeared on the slope of Plosky Tolbachik. The lava poured into a river valley, destroying a volcanologist research base and a tourist campsite, both of which were empty at the time.”

Geology Professor Erik Klemetti reports in his eruption update for December 17, 2012, “Across the globe in Indonesia, Lokon has also been keeping active with numerous explosions, like this one from earlier today. That same brief Reuters report claims that Lokon has experienced over 800 explosions over the last 6 months, an impressive number to say the least. The plumes from the explosions are reaching 3-4 km / 11-14,000 feet. Lokon is joined by Paluweh in this week’s Global Volcanism Program Weekly Volcanic Activity Report and another 6 volcanoes are on Orange Alert status according to PVMBG.”

Guatemala’s Pacaya Volcano spits ash, gases
“GUATEMALA CITY – Pacaya Volcano, located 47 kilometers south of the capital, has had increased activity in recent days with ash and gas being released into the air, said the Institute of Volcanology (Insivumeh). On Wednesday, the institute issued a preventive alert and recommended the National Coordinator for Disaster Reduction (Conrad) to keep monitoring the 2,500-meter-tall volcano, located between the departments of Guatemala City and Escuintla. “The activity yesterday [Tuesday] was a manifestation of reactivation, so people should be aware of developments in coming days,” Insivumeh experts said.”

Here is The Atlantic’s “2012: the Year in Volcanic Activity” with some really great photos. They write,
“Out of an estimated 1,500 active volcanoes around the world, 50 or so erupt every year, spewing steam, ash, toxic gases, and lava. In 2012, active volcanoes included Guatemala’s Volcan de Fuego, New Zealand’s Tongariro, Russia’s Plosky Tolbachik, Chile’s Puyehue, Italy’s Etna, and a new island appearing in the Red Sea. In Hawaii, Kilauea continues to send lava flowing toward the sea, and locals living near Mexico’s Popocatepetl continued to deal with ashfalls. Collected below are scenes from the wide variety of volcanic activity on Earth over the past year.”

That “50 or so” per year is not correct. It hasn’t been correct for a while. You’ll see the data soon. I am preparing my annual year-end report in numbers of volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, etc. It is called “by the Numbers” and it will be up in a day or so.

MYSTERY BOOMS/SKY NOISES

Who knows what those weird noises are?! They have been occurring for several years. The reports come from credible sources. When they occur, official government agencies deal with numerous calls and then make statements. YouTube and other video recordings capture the noise and they are posted on the internet for all to hear. I’ve written about them before, several times. I’ve speculated they may be leak-over from spiritual battles in the heavenlies. The roar of invading host, as it were. They may be something related to Jeremiah 25:31 —

“A noise shall come even to the ends of the earth; for the LORD hath a controversy with the nations, he will plead with all flesh; he will give them that are wicked to the sword, saith the LORD.”

Or they may be something we can’t comprehend. In any case, they are still happening.

The weird sky noises continue to happen and when they do, they continue to baffle. It isn’t quarry work and it isn’t earthquakes. Those have been ruled out. And no military activity as taking place either. Those are the three main culprits that cause loud noises like these, and they have been ruled out.

Columbia County (GA) Booms Continue To Baffle Community
“Columbia County residents are stumped over the origin of a mysterious series of loud, wall-rattling booms that have been shaking their eardrums -and homes- several times over the last few weeks.”

PESTILENCE

Luke 21:11 says that there will be pestilences as a sign of the end time. Pestilences are a contagious or infectious epidemic disease that is virulent and devastating.

Whooping Cough on the dramatic rise: Maine cases tripled
“Reported cases of whooping cough in Maine more than tripled this year, in line with a national trend that resulted in the worst year of pertussis infection in the United States in more than 50 years.”

source

Vermont is experiencing an outbreak too. Their cases this year have doubled over the previous next highest year of number of cases.

Pertussis outbreak has state encouraging vaccinations for adults and children
“Vermont is experiencing the most severe outbreak of pertussis, or whooping cough, in documented history. While state numbers show the vaccine’s inefficacy in the Green Mountain State, top health officials say there’s no better solution. The 568 cases the state has so far recorded this year are double the previous high of 283 cases set in 1997.”

In the UK, cases have doubled.

Whooping cough outbreak continues but cases have dropped.
“The biggest outbreak of whooping cough for 20 years is continuing but experts said cases have dipped slightly. The number of new cases recorded in November dropped for the first time in 18 months, but experts warned that the disease does usually die down in winter and it may not mean the outbreak has peaked. … So far this year there have been a total of 8,819 cases, higher than in any year since the 1990s.”

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

The point of posts like these is three fold, mainly. First, we recognize God’s sovereignty in all things. the news headlines may say that there is travel “chaos” but in heaven there is no chaos. God is in control of each and every thing, including our lives. God is a mighty rock in a weary land!

Secondly, He said He will come again and take us to where He is. This is known as the rapture. All believers who are dead will be resurrected into glorified new bodies, and we who are alive will be taken up with them into the air where we will meet Him in the clouds. This will be a real event. It is not a theory. (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 and 1 Corinthians 15:50-54.)

So then, if He will come back a time we do not expect, how will we live from day to day? In expectation? Do we long for Him? Do we know the signs, or are we looking at life signs and not spiritual signs, much to our shame and rebuke? (Matthew 16:1-4).

Third, we take comfort in these words! He will return and right all things! He will hold us close and wipe our tears. He is the Good Shepherd who takes care of His sheep. He will install us in His fields, to lay down in good pasture, with still waters. Heed the words of David:

The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.
He makes me lie down in green pastures.
He leads me beside still waters.
He restores my soul.
He leads me in paths of righteousness
for his name’s sake.
Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,c
I will fear no evil,
for you are with me;
your rod and your staff,
they comfort me. (Psalm 23:1-4)

Whether He is near on His day of the rapture or He is near because he is indwelling us, He is near! Call on the mightiest name in the universe, your friend, Jesus.

 “I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.” (John 14:18). Look for Him and live for Him. Selah

Posted in angels, bible, government, jesus, powers

Government will be upon His shoulders: The heavenly government to come

Posted on by elizabethprata

Though the United States presidential election happened only 6 weeks ago, it feels like a lifetime ago.

However, undiminished 6 weeks later is my shock that Obama won again, and with that, the terrible feeling that the US is under judgment.

I’ve been a political animal all my life. My father was politically involved in supporting candidates, and later as a candidate himself. I remember as a four or five year old, laying in dusty grange halls and admiring the colorful banners strung up. Later as a newspaper reporter I covered government, government officials, and took my duty seriously that we live in the greatest nation in the world and I needed to do my part in being an informed participant in elections and to be a journalistic watchdog of those who win them.

As a lover of history I feel deeply the sacrifices the Pilgrims made to dare cross an ocean in a tiny boat and start a new nation, and of the Revolutionaries who dared to poke a stick in the eye of the most powerful nation in the world, Britain, to separate and go our own way.

What American isn’t moved by the words in the Declaration of Independence, and who wouldn’t cherish the US Constitution? It hurts to see the government destroyed by man’s greed, sin, and God’s judgment due to the disobedience and opportunity we have squandered.

So government is always on my mind, and thus, when I read the famous ‘Christmas’ verse in Isaiah 9, I treasure these words:

“For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. (Isaiah 9:6)

“Government shall be on His shoulders”

We usually focus on the child, or the titles for the child such as Counselor etc. But this blog entry is about government, on earth and in heaven; the present institution and the coming glorious eternity.

The Isaiah verse continues with the government theme:

“Of the increase of his government and of peace there will be no end, on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish it and to uphold it with justice and with righteousness from this time forth and forevermore. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will do this.” (Isaiah 9:7)

The Hebrew word for government in the verse is misrah, meaning ‘rule, dominion’.

God is orderly. His orderliness extends to every atom in the universe, including the government of His temple and the hierarchy of His angelic host. Let’s look at the order of the angelic host for a minute.

In Nehemiah 9:6 we read of the host:

“Thou, even thou, art LORD alone; thou hast made heaven, the heaven of heavens, with all their host, the earth, and all things that are therein, the seas, and all that is therein, and thou preservest them all; and the host of heaven worshippeth thee.”

The word host here means tsaba: defined as army, war, warfare. It evokes the orderly organization of armies into cohorts, legions, companies, divisions, etc. as we know them on earth. Colossians 1:16 continues the idea that the angels are divided into divisions of hierarchical structures:

“For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him”.

No one is quite sure what those powers and principalities are or what they involve (except trying to thwart God’s plans as seen in the Daniel 10 verse below) because though the bible mentions the powers, principalities and thrones and dominions, they are not defined for us. Therefore there is much debate.

However we do know that the bible says that there was an angelic-demonic Prince of Persia who caused a delay in Gabriel’s dispatch to Daniel, and Michael had to come help break that resistance. (Daniel 10:13). Perhaps this is an indication of the fact that if angels are called “princes” in the heavenly realms, they also have “principalities.”

However since they are referred to as the host which means an army, one can perhaps safely say that they are a hierarchy. It’s just that no one is sure of the order from top to bottom.

Additionally, the bible mentions classes of angels such as seraphim and cherubim and archangels.

Isaiah 6:2 first mentions Seraphim. The word “seraphim” (singular is saraph) is probably a translation of ‘fiery ones’ and seems to stem from the fiery imagery in the Presence of God (cf. Ezekiel 1:27; Ezekiel 28:14).

The Cherubim seem to guard important things, like the Ark of the Covenant, and the Tree of Life. (Genesis 3:24; Exodus 25:20; Ezekiel 10:16). They may have four faces or two faces and wings and hands. Amazing creatures!

Michael is mentioned as an archangel (Jude 1:9) and the word archangel is translated chief angel.

Gabriel is an archangel too, identified so in translation of his name into the Hebrew, “man of El, archangel,” Strong’s 1403. Daniel 8:16; Daniel 9:21).

The verse 2 Peter 2:10 uses the word authority [some translations it is government] and the Greek translation refers to a hierarchy:

“But chiefly them that walk after the flesh in the lust of uncleanness, and despise government. Presumptuous are they, self-willed, they are not afraid to speak evil of dignities.” KJV (lordship: divine or angelic lordship, domination, dignity, usually with reference to a celestial hierarchy.)

The word authority also indicates in the Greek, “dominion; a power exerting itself in a particular jurisdiction (“ruling”).

See how orderly everything is??

Though this survey of the angelic hierarchies and the dominions God has set up has been brief,  I wanted to offer the concepts of order in established government as a comfort. God is orderly. Even though there is rebellion in heaven and rebellion on earth, what He has set up will be restored. Even though angels resist and try to thwart, and man is sinful and rejects, everything is still subject to His rule and He controls it.

If you love government at its best, all functioning perfectly for the common good, just wait until the government rests on Jesus’s shoulders! What perfection! What Good will come of it! What glory will shine upon Hm and through Him!

because He was born and lived and died and was resurrected, on His Day, He will restore all order and all the government will be on His shoulder. The government will function perfectly and in total harmony. Plus, no more elections and if there are no more elections there will be no more campaigns. Phew! His restoration of the government upon His shoulders is yet another blessing the baby Jesus as God-man gives us hope to look forward to!

Read this conclusion to Ephesians 1:15-23. I added the emphasis–

Thanksgiving and Prayer

For this reason, because I have heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love toward all the saints, I do not cease to give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers, that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him, having the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints,  and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to the working of his great might that he worked in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come. And he put all things under his feet and gave him as head over all things to the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all.

Posted in christmas, messiah

Rejoice, Messiah has come!

Posted on by elizabethprata

Andrew and Simon Peter followed John the Baptist and when John pointed to Jesus and said to Andrew, “Behold the Lamb of God!” Andrew followed Jesus and brought his brother with him, saying–

“He first found his own brother Simon and said to him, “We have found the Messiah” (which means Christ).”

In order to find something, you have to be looking for it. These two disciples were looking. They knew the Messiah was prophesied to come and they were waiting, praying, sacrificing, and hoping. They looked and they found. Seek and ye shall find … (Luke 11:9a).

The Greek word for ‘found’ as it’s used in John’s verse means, “I find, learn, discover, especially after searching.”

I pray you are searching for Messiah, too. Here are some of the precious names He is called in the bible:

King — “As for me, I have set my King on Zion, my holy hill.” (Psalm 2:6)

God with us — “Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, a virgin will be with child and bear a son, and she will call His name Immanuel.” (Isaiah 7:14)

Son of Man — “I kept looking in the night visions, And behold, with the clouds of heaven One like a Son of Man was coming, And He came up to the Ancient of Days And was presented before Him.” (Daniel 7:13-14). He is referred to by His own lips as that title about 80 times in the New Testament.

Star — “I see Him but not now, I behold Him but not near. A star shall come forth from Jacob, a scepter shall rise from Israel.” (Numbers 24:17)

Good Shepherd — “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. ” (John 10:11)

Redeemer — “‘A Redeemer will come to Zion. And to those who turn from transgression in Jacob,’ declares the Lord.” (Isaiah 59:20)

Any study of Jesus, even if it’s simply a list, would be comprehensive and overwhelming. He is so great, we can study about Him forever. And glory to God in the Highest, we who have repented and are counted as justified and sanctified, CAN and WILL study Him forever–

“Your word, O LORD, is eternal; it stands firm in the heavens.” (Psalm 119:89)

Merry Christmas!

(adapted from John MacArthur’s sermon “The Perfect Mediator“)