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By now I’m sure that regular readers of this blog are aware that my wife Lura who created and wrote in this blog went home to be with the Lord last December 30th, 2008. You may also know that in a final posting that I put on several of her other blogs that I said that intend to keep this one going because it while she didn’t post here nearly as much as she wanted to, she felt that this was the most important of the blogs that she wrote in.
Several times I’ve sat down with the intention of starting this task but I’ve always found myself at a loss for words and ended up putting it off again. I’ve come to the conclusion that perhaps the best, most fitting way for me to begin posting here is to start with the basics. Later I’ll be referring to her notes and posting things in them that I know she intended to post here. I’ll probably throw in my own two cents here and there as well.
I guess the best place to start is that while I miss her terribly and wish very much that she was still here, I have not actually lost her. I know exactly where she is and fully expect to see her again someday.
You see, Lura accepted Jesus as Lord many years ago. Because she did, I know that she’s with Him now and that when my turn comes to leave this mortal world I’ll be joining her. And that’s the message that I know she wanted to get across.
It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out that the world we’re living in is, in many ways, getting worse every day. Evil is showing up more blatantly and more severely in more ways and places than ever before. All it takes is reading Matthew 24 & 25 and taking a good look at the world and people around us to see that we are in fact living in the last days. Because of this it’s more important than ever to make sure that everyone accept Jesus as Lord and claim the forgiveness that He died to give us.
We have to recognize that God exists, and that there is an eternity waiting for all of us. We each have the ability to choose how we’ll spend that eternity.
If a person makes the choice to ignore or reject God then they are in fact choosing to spend their eternity in a place of eternal condemnation that was NOT made for humanity. It’s important to note that God neverdamns anyone. He want’s us to come to Him. It’s up to US to decide to obey Him or not.
If that same person chooses to Accept Jesus as their Lord then they are able to become citizens of the Kingdom of heaven.
God does not force us to obey Him, he’s given each of use the ability to decide for ourselves what we’ll do. If he made the choice for us or forced us in some way then our accepting Him would have no value. He’s not after mindless automatons or robots, He wants us to come to Him freely.
So what do you have to do?
Believe that God exists and that He will reward those who diligently seek Him.
Understand that Because God’s standard is one of absolute perfection. Sin cannot exist in His presence and will never enter the kingdom.
Admit to yourself and to God that you cannot “save yourself” or by your own efforts meet this standard of perfection and qualify to enter the Kingdom of Heaven.
Believe that Jesus died to pay for your sins and that he rose from the dead on the third day.
Accept him as your Lord and accept the gift of salvation that he died to give you.
After that it’s a really good idea to get a Bible and begin to learn about Jesus and His teachings (start with the gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.), get connected with other Christians (in person and online) that can help you understand the scriptures, spend some time every day both praying and studying His Word.
Then, when you see the things that are going on in the world you can rejoice in the knowledge that Jesus is going to return some day, probably sooner than most would like to think about, and that when He does you’re going with Him to an eternal reward.
How many people ask you that? OUCH! That question came from God. It hurts to hear it because most of us never hear that question coming, no one asks. Why is that? The reality is that those same people do not see Jesus in us. OUCH! Yes, these things hurt us and it hurts our witness. We are not doing what we must to put forth the Word of God as we should. If we were doing what we were supposed to be doing, the world would already be completely divided into two factions, believers and non-believers. That is so true. Right now, even though you can argue that this is exactly what we have, I say that’s not strictly true. What we have are THREE factions; believers, non-believers and fence sitters, those who might or might not choose the Lord. Some are that way because they have never heard the Gospel, ever. Is it so strange to realize that people right here in the U.S. have never heard the Gospel? How about in other countries where it’s preached a lot?
We need to get the Gospel to the world! Why? Jesus told us that when that happens, the end shall come. What end? The world? Oh no. Jesus was talking about the end of an age of misery and pain, death and destruction. That is the end Jesus was talking about. The end will come when Jesus comes back to claim what is rightfully His. There is a song that I love to hear and sing, Till We All Fly Away. Songs like that move the heart, spirit of a person. I have no idea when we will fly but we will. God was clear that the Christian will not go through the wrath of God. And make no mistake, God’s wrath is coming. With the world conditions as they are now, the time is ripe for the enemy to take hold with his diabolical and horrifying dark servant, the anti-christ. He is exactly as that sounds, anti, the very opposite of God and Jesus. Our Father is giving, compassionate, loving, merciful, graceful, saving and Lord. The enemy is just the opposite and his dark servant will be the same. Time is ready for that to occur.
We absolutely must be ready for a time when people will come to us and say that very thing, “Please, tell me about Jesus!” and we will need to be prepared to answer that with the joy of the Lord, the salvation message. But if you never give anyone that message, are you doing your job as a Christian believer? I don’t think so. We ask the Lord Jesus into our hearts because we feel that need inside ourselves to know Him and want Him in our lives. He drew us to Him by the power of the Holy Ghost through others who felt the need to pass on what they knew.
Let me ask you this. If John, Peter, Paul, Luke, Mark, Matthew had not heeded God and wrote the New Testament, where would we be? I have no idea how God would have done it, I am certain His plan would go forth but how much harder would it have been to understand the Gospel message? Do you see how easy God has made it for us? Do you see how God worked it out so that we could have His message, His Word right in front of our eyes? We take that so for granted. I think about the countries that did not allow the Gospel to come in like Russia and the satellite countries at the time. One of the most compelling stories I have ever read concerned Brother Andrew and how he got Bibles into the closed countries. He started with one Bible, hidden from view. Then another Bible that sat on the seat beside him which the guards could not see. When that realization hit, he decided to send truckloads of Bibles into a country that said NO! You cannot have that here. Still, the people in that country were taking ONE Bible, cutting it up and each person having a page to memorize and pass around. Now that is wanting to know the Word of God.
People, we are so blessed in the countries where the Bible is fully accepted. We can have as many Bibles sitting in our homes as we have money to purchase them. How blessed and fortunate we are. But do we use that? Not really. And there are so many excuses not to share the Gospel. “I can’t say anything at work, I would get fired.” “I don’t know how to tell anyone.” “My neighbors would think I’m strange or lost it.” “I’m too shy to do all that. I don’t know where to start.” All these and so many more excuses are just that, excuses. I want to know something here. Are you grateful for the saving grace of Jesus? Did you go to the cross and have Him tell you no, that you were not good enough? Did He say to you that He was too shy to tell you the Gospel? No, He died a horrible, horrifying death on a cruel cross so that you could go to church and sit silently in your little pew for years on end, putting your dollar into the plate every week, listening to the pastor preach, wagging his hand after the service and going home to the same old situation, having forgotten everything the pastor just preached to you.
Before I get all the comments, I do realize that not everyone is like that. But just examine your life. Are you the shining example of Christianity so that someone will come to you some day soon and say to you, Please, tell me about Jesus! Examine yourself to see if those around you will know that you have something that they want. See, you do not have to present the Gospel at work by having a meeting around the table. You can be a shining, silent example of Jesus just by living the life of a righteous, born again child of God, a child of a King! The King’s kids act like King’s kids usually. They simply have the assurance that they are rulers. We have that as children of the King but we do not live like it.
Isn’t it time to live the life we were born to live? We, who claim to be Christians, need to show by example and our lives who we are in the Lord. You know, Jesus told us to let our lights shine and not put them under a bushel basket. Most of us live in our basket covered world. Let the Light shine! And one day, someone will come up and beg you to tell them about Jesus and because you love Him so much, are so grateful to Him for what He really did for you, you will tell the story to them and they will know that they can have what you have. No more secrets!!! Let the Light shine!
Do you have that? Sometimes I think that we say we do when, in fact, we have no idea what that is, not until we experience it.
(Neh 8:10) Then he said to them, Go eat the fat and drink the sweet, and send portions to him for whom nothing is prepared. For this day is holy to our LORD. And do not be sorry, for the joy of Jehovah is your strength.
God is so interested in us receiving the joy of the Lord that He told us that it IS our strength. Don’t you sometimes feel like a wet dishrag, like someone has taken all of your strength and zapped it away. Not all of that strength is spiritual. Remember, God is a Spirit first so He teaches spirit first but He also teaches us how to handle our physical selves too. The problem is that if we do not immerse ourselves in the Lord, we lose the strength we have. Then when it’s needed, it’s already depleted.
I get the feeling people think that the joy of the Lord is all about jumping around and being happy, happy, shouting and having a good time. Maybe it’s partly that, though that would be the smallest part, it is also a knowing in your heart that the Lord is with you and taking care of everything for you, that He is right there no matter what. Now, lots of people say that they believe that but when push comes to shove that is not necessarily so. Why? Because they need to immerse themselves in God. Taking the time to talk with Him, study His Word and learn all you can is immersion in the Lord. I admit that I have not done that for a while myself. But it is time.
Billy Sunday, noted preacher once said;
“If you have no joy, there’s a leak in your Christianity somewhere.”
That is so true. Where is the leak in your Christianity today? Are you filled with the joy of the Lord which is your strength? Take note here. The joy of the Lord IS YOUR STRENGTH. If you do not feel strong in the Lord, perhaps it’s time to get back to the way things should be. God is right where He always is. It would be you who changed directions and tracked off somewhere. Yep, I know about that one. These days are dangerous and perilous. You can watch the scripture coming true right in front of your eyes. What happens when the world falls apart? Will you still have the joy of the Lord which is your strength? Not if you do not talk to the Lord, seek His face and enjoy the peace that passes all understanding.
(Php 4:7) And the peace of God which passes all understanding shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
Add this together with the joy of the Lord and how can you miss?
Ξ October 11th, 2008 | → Comments Off | ∇ End Times, Video|
Yesterday, I talked about the Fear Factor in this country. Sometimes we simply do not remember who is in charge of the whole creation. God was and is the Creator of all things. At times, it feels like He is not available for comment, doesn’t it. He is not asleep or on vacation! There is something else we need to remember when the fear tries to take over like it is in the secular world. Jesus took care of it all on the cross. ALL of the problems, diseases, financial woes, everything was taken care of on the cross. Many people in this world do not believe that fact. But it is the truth. Those who know this, sometimes also forget that He is alive! He is our Savior. We owe Him everything!
There are times when all of this fear hanging around takes away the joy of the Lord. When that happens, I find some good music that will bring back my feelings of joy and well being even in these times of financial problems. This particular song that I picked out for just such a time as this, is called Then Came The Morning by Ernie Haase and The Signature Sound. They are quite good. I first heard them with the Gaither Vocal Band and then on a DVD that Gaither puts out. I just love the way they sing these beautiful songs. This one will remind you of the day of Jesus coming out of the tomb. Awesome! Here is Then Came The Morning.
It has occurred to me that some may be somewhat disappointed that I did not put a devotional or lesson here but, instead, let a video do the work. Perhaps if you look at the video and listen to the words that God brought to my mind, you will see what the lesson really is for today. I did. Thank You, LORD!!!
As always, if you happen to have a favorite that you would like to see on here, please email me or put it into the comments below. It has been an awesome day! Despite the financial problems in the world and country, exciting things are happening. We are coming to the end of the age. While there will be some things I would rather not go through, God is in control. He is there for us. All we need to do is call on His name and He will be there! Seek God while He may be found.
The country and the world, for that matter, are gripped in fear at this moment. Fear is running the tanking of the stock markets all across the globe. Tanking. What a word. The definition is that super fast slide downward and it doesn’t appear to want to quit anytime soon. This is the worst sliding down that anyone has ever seen. It is now time to sit up and take notice, something that most people have not done in all these years. When I say “all these years” I am not referring to just the few years since the black Tuesday of the depression. Oh no. I am talking about in all the years since Jesus walked the earth.
I should like to point out here that fear is a destructive force and it should by now be quite evident to everyone just how much. In the New King James version of the Bible, the words “fear not” appear 375 times from Genesis to Revelation. In my experience with the Lord, I have found that the more a statement or phrase comes up, the more emphasis God is putting on it. Now, that does not discount those that are only spoken once or twice. Oh no way. But He is very clear that certain phrases and words are to be continually noticed. “Fear not” is one such phrase. Wonder why? Perhaps you can guess just seeing what happens when fear takes over as it has at Wall Street and in the financial community at large.
Why would God say “fear not” so much? Fear takes over. Fear runs from God. When someone is fearful, it’s very hard to get through to them about anything. You have to get their attention first. Sometimes, people actually look out of it with their fears. And the enemy loves for you to be afraid since that is the opposite of faith. Often, the fear will come upon you without warning. I know that one. Your heart starts to pound, adrenaline courses through your veins and everything is focused on what started the fear in the first place. So God says:
(Heb 13:5-6) Let your way of life be without the love of money, and be content with such things as you have, for He has said, “Not at all will I leave you, not at all will I forsake you, never!” so that we may boldly say, “The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do to me.”
Do you see that this verse actually answers the whole crisis here today? Do you see that if only we would follow THIS VERSE, we could feel joy in the face of this world wide crisis? Those who started this whole money crisis were greedy to the point of not caring what it might do to family, friends, company or world. They did not do anything to stop it when they could. Now, it is a world wide epidemic for fear is an illness of the spirit, spiritually driven by the enemy. We can deal easily with this crisis by not allowing ourselves to have a love of money and be content with what we have available to us right now. That is not so easy when the bills stack up but if we just put our trust and faith in the Lord, He knows the end from the beginning, He can handle your own particular crisis though it may not be the way you would like it to be. God gives you what you need, not always what you want. If your car that you could hardly afford or not afford at all is being repo’d for instance, it would not necessarily be saved by God.
You must allow God to work in your life, not try to direct His path in the way YOU would like Him to go. And how do I know you are doing that? Heah heah. I know since I have been guilty of that myself. You panic because the payment is coming in a day or two and you do not have the money. Fear takes over. You can’t think what to do. On the corner is this really great payday lender who can help you out at so much interest on your loan. Hey! An answer! Thank You, Lord! Wait just a minute. Is God really in that or are you grabbing at straws because you cannot see what other solutions could possibly be there? Uh huh. Just as I thought. That lender is not your friend. He is not God’s answer for you. Now it’s time to bite the bullet and get real with God..not the world. You know in your heart that getting the money like that isn’t right. Take the time to talk to God and ask what HE wants you to do.
Perhaps that person a few doors down is having a problem. You knew about it but sort of put it off to another day. God has been nudging you to visit them anyway but you didn’t have time. Is it possible that you could do that visit now instead of wondering what God can do for you? Maybe just taking the time to listen to their problems will give you an idea how to help them even if all they needed was to talk for a few moments. Perhaps you have the answer to their problem. God must think so or He would not have been nudging you to go to them. They may need you to tell them about Him. Ah ha, the fear is back. You can do this! God equips you with what you need when He sends a person out.
Right now, take the time to talk to God. Find out what He wants you to do. Seek His face while He may be found. That verse keeps hitting me when I type these posts out. He wants us to seek Him out, nestle into His arms, get into our hiding places in the Lord. He will comfort you, give you strength through His joy, the faith will grow since you are relying on Him for all your needs. The time is coming when we will have to give all our attention to God and let Him take care of our needs. That time is coming very quickly now. Seek the Lord while He may be found.
(Isa 55:6) Seek Jehovah while He may be found; call on Him while He is near.
Most of us talk about this being a future event. Sometimes we do say that it’s close. However, there are some who think that we have been in the last days for a long time. Not so. Not possible actually. Because the reality is that the “last days” which are, by the way, not really the last days except in the fact that they are last days before the visible return of Jesus. They are not, in fact, the last days of the earth.
We are heading into the very last days as defined above. All you have to do to see this is watch the news, read your paper, listen to the national news on the radio or read your internet news pages. With the housing market in sad shape, the credit market just as bad, banks and lending institutions either falling or needing a bailout, banks and lending institutions world wide seeing the effects, stock markets around the world reeling from the financial crunch, it’s pretty easy to see that we are in deep trouble. It will not matter what the news anchors say or the pundits, we are in deep trouble. Today, the Dow sunk below 9000 points which has not been the case since 2003. What is going on? This is terrible, you think. But it’s actually worse than what you think since more and more people are either rejecting the Lord or walking away from the Lord for whatever reason.
These are truly perilous times. Now is not the time to be shaky where the Lord is concerned. You must make up your mind to either accept the Lord and witness or walk away. Unfortunately, if you do not seek the Lord while He may be found, when you see the “Light”, it may be too late. Oh I know, preachers have been saying that for years and nothing has happened yet. That’s true. Sort of. Yet, those who died without knowing the Lord certainly understand now but it’s too late for them. Do not allow the fact that you got away with it up to now to sway you away from God.
This message is too urgent for me right now. I cannot allow another day to go by without saying this to you. Please get straight with God, whatever it takes. If you feel that you have some sin in your life that God will not forgive…please go to Him. He will forgive your sin. There is but one sin He does not forgive and that can only come if you reject the Holy Spirit. The only way you can do that is to completely say no to all of what God has to offer you. These times are so perilous.
Last night, I received what appears to be a prophecy that I wrote up on another blog of mine. I want to quote it here for you:
The time is coming. We are in the time of the last days. It is coming. World leaders are about to seek someone who will lead the nations seemingly with peace. He will make a pact with those in the middle east. He will bring peace to Israel. The pact will be signed for 7 years but he will break it half way through the time. He is a liar and a fake. He will lead those who do not believe into the pit of hell.
Seek God now!!! If you do not, He will reject those who do not find Him. The hour is spent. The time is short. Growing up, I heard it was the eleventh hour. The clock now strikes twelve. There is NO MORE TIME LEFT!!!
The world is falling apart. Financial crisis after crisis. It was foretold in the scriptures. And now it is coming to pass. The time is so short. Seek the Lord while He may be found.
I ask you to consider the possibility that those of us who talk about the last days might just be right. All of what we are experiencing right now in the world was foretold in the scriptures. There are passages about financial downfall of the major players in the financial world. That is not happening as yet. Isn’t that amazing? It is going to get WORSE, much worse. Hard to imagine isn’t it. But the financial capitol has to be located in the middle east. That will come when the person who appears to be the so-called “savior” of the world shows up and moves it all there. This leader is alive and ready to show up right now. Look for that person to be from probably Europe. I have heard that the current President, one or another of the candidates and others were the anti-christ. It is highly unlikely since they should come from somewhere outside the U.S. The individual will be extremely charismatic. None of the people I mentioned are that. They could be to some but not to everyone.
Those are just things to watch for in your life. With what happened today coupled with what has been happening for quite a while, you can probably see that the world is on the brink of a serious financial crisis that could continue because these fixes are not going to do it this time. It will take someone who can “work miracles” to get all this straightened out. Don’t believe me? That’s okay. You will. Things are going to be much, much tougher for those who are Christians. The trouble is that preachers and laypeople have been saying all this for years. People are getting so used to it that they may very well miss the signs of the times. Jesus was clear that we MUST know these things. We MUST pay attention to them so that we know when to look for His return. It will not be long now. I cannot say when. I have no idea. God only knows this information.
Please take the time to go to the Lord, seek Him now, while He may be found. He is waiting for you. If you are a Christian who has simply not done what He has asked of you, go do it. Ask forgiveness and just do that. Right now is the perfect time to get everything straight with the Lord. Now is definitely the time!
Ξ September 8th, 2008 | → Comments Off | ∇ End Times, Video|
Again, I do not know for certain but what is certain is that there are things going on right now that have never happened before or have not been as intense and important at this time. I find it interesting that despite what people say about these times, there are still doubters. Of course, it’s possible that we as Christians see things much differently than others do since we have the ability to get information from our Father. Make no mistake, He is in control regardless of what it may look like at any given moment.
A few days ago, I wrote a post about this very subject and included some things that pointed to the likelyhood of it being in or close to the last days of the age. And again, this would not be the last days on earth since there is to be a one thousand year reign of Jesus Christ when He comes back as He soon will.
However, there are some who do not see this as we do. Well, I found a video that simply points out a few things, some like I was saying in the other post. But there are scriptures that show what is coming. Here for you now is “End Times: Wake Up, America” from Godtube.
If you have any comments or questions concerning any of what is depicted in the video, please put them in the comments section. It is moderated but I will answer the questions that I can. If I have no idea, I will state that too. Some things are not known by us at this time. God was clear in that not even Jesus knew the day and the hour but the season only. That is all we can know but we can know that.
Seek the Lord while He may be found (Isa. 55:6) Not always will the Lord be available and found. After that time, those that have not sought Him will not be part of the Lord’s family. Simple.
Interesting question, isn’t it. The fact is, I do not know for certain. What I can tell you is that we are quite close if not truly in the end of the age. Some people want to call it the end times. I have even done that myself but that is not truly accurate. See, if it were the end times, that would mean that after Jesus comes back, the world would end. That is not happening. In fact, there will be a full thousand years on earth after Jesus comes back at the end of the seven years of tribulation. And then what? God made it quite clear that at the end of that thousand years, there is to be a judgment. Beyond that, the new world. New Jerusalem shall come down from heaven and will be placed where the current Jerusalem is now.
But first, there are some terrible things that have to happen. Our enemy knows he has but a short time left. Because of that, he is intensifying his attacks on the world, in general, and people who are Christians and who are Jewish or those who are likely to become Christians. Now, I am aware that not all who see this blog and other blogs like it are currently Christian but you are having serious problems too. This world is becoming more and more evil. There are many discussions now about this very topic. People are intensely interested in what is going on today. It is not that it just seems to be worse now, it really is worse now than say 20 years ago.
Jesus told us that our world would be suffering such as a woman would suffer childbirth. At first, the pains are small and almost not there. They are not regular. Things such as earthquakes, tornadoes, hurricanes, strange weather patterns, plagues, sicknesses and diseases, all were there but each happening mostly at different times. There was always a breather between one crisis and another. But now, the birth pains are intensifying, coming closer and closer. We do not have that breather we used to have. If you do not believe that, just check out the Salvation Army and the other help places when there are tornadoes and hurricanes. They simply are having trouble making it because of the huge needs. Remember that tsunami and the quakes? How many quakes are you hearing about lately? Are they worse than they used to be? Yes. When childbirth is almost occurring, the woman has pains, the water breaks, the child is about to appear. As with that, our world is in the last stages of birth pains. Labor is getting stronger and stronger. Soon, the culmination of all that will happen and the last seven years of tribulation will occur.
I know the argument. Some will say that we know now because of the communications devices. That is true to a certain extent but these things are still happening more rapidly, more intensely, on a bigger scale than ever before. Just take the latest hurricanes, for instance. We did not just have Gustav which, when it hit the U.S. had gotten less intense. However, before that, it took the lives of a number of people. Katrina was worse in that regard. Before that, Ruth the same year within a week or two of each other. Now, after Gustav we have Hanna, followed by Ike and then Josephine. Hurricanes and tropical storms are coming in waves. There is no doubt that they are more intense and there are more of them. Just look up the stats on it. Quakes, too, are more…..intense and more of them. We have been awaiting the “big one” in California for years. And yes, I do believe it will happen. But there are other sites too. California is only one place that comprises what is called the “ring of fire” which includes Japan, Alaska and other places in a circle. This is a major earthquake zone.
And what else is coming that will be a sign that we are in the end of the age? Israel and someone who will look like a savior to them will bring about a seven year peace treaty that will actually make peace happen in the middle east in Israel. The Temple of Solomon will be rebuilt and sacrifices will resume. While much of the world will be having major troubles, Israel will be living in a peace it has never had before…..for three and one half years. In the middle of those seven years of peace, after the Temple has been rebuilt, that savior will go into the temple and sit down. Since he is not allowed to do that according to the Jewish religion, he will be desecrating the temple with his presence. This person is called the anti-christ in the scriptures. Jesus is also clear that when this happens, flee…leave Jerusalem, go into the hills and hide there. Do not turn back for it will be incredibly dangerous to do so.
There will be wars and those rumors of wars. But this time, it will be more and more intense. I keep using that word, don’t I? Intense. It means that it will be incredibly extreme. That’s what it will be like in part of the last seven years. Tribulation like has never been seen on this planet. We have had some truly horrible things done to humans in the name of keeping things pure. However, that will be a cakewalk compared to what is coming. Eventually, there will be a time when the government of the world will require everyone to take a mark in order to buy and sell anything. There has been much speculation on what it might be. The prisoners of war in Germany were given a tattoo. But these days, the technology is such that there are small capsules, as small as a grain of rice, that they an implant under your skin that will tell medical info and much more. It can be scanned by a computer. It can be tracked by GPS. And it will not be voluntary at all. If you do not take the mark, you die.
And do we really want to go into the financial aspect of all this? Eventually, there will be a downfall of the world’s financial places. Sooner or later, because of all the problems and turmoil in the world, there will be a need for a one world government, the head of it being the person who brought peace to the middle east in Israel. This guy is going to be extremely likable and interesting. Most people will want him to be the leader right off the bat. He will be incredibly charismatic and charming. But he will be filled with lies and deceit.
All this is pretty grim, isn’t it. Too true but it is coming. But you know what? Our Lord has taken care of the cares and worries about this situation in the world. Jesus Christ, called of God to be the sacrifice, died on a cross at Calvary 2000 years ago. He took on the sin, sickness and diseases of this world….all of it from the beginning of time to the end of all things prior to the new heaven and new earth. He had you in His heart when He hung on that cross. If you are not now a Christian but would like to be, please take this opportunity to ask Jesus into your heart tonight. Tell Him that you are sorry for the sins you have committed. He has already taken care of those sins for you. You have only to ask Him to come into your heart and He will do so. He tells us that He is at the door knocking. Won’t you let Him into your heart tonight?
I cannot tell you that when you do this, you will have everything be all right. Christians have problems just like everyone else. But we have the assurance that our lives are watched over by our Lord. We can ask things in His name and receive them such as healing and peace. God is so good. He has given us the plan in His Bible. We have only to read and accept it. Take the time today. You will not regret it. Then, get out that dusty Bible and start to read. Try John in the new testament. It’s a good place to start.
I have a confession to make. There was a time when I believed that I could spot the anti-christ in a heartbeat so I did not think I had to do as much studying or praying as I should. There were things I knew and it wasn’t going to be easy to deceive me, that’s for sure. What does that say about me? I was an arrogant, obnoxious individual when I thought that. Truly, we do not know these things unless we look into the scriptures and study. Then pray.
(Mat 24:4) And Jesus answered and said to them, Take heed that no man deceive you.
If Jesus did not think that you could be deceived, He would not have said it. In fact, He says things like that because we are too easily deceived by many people. How many times have you been unhappy or shocked to find out something about a close friend or spouse that you had no idea about even though you knew them quite well? It is especially easy to deceive family members who do not think you are capable of doing wrong things.
These are perilous times. I have said that quite a lot lately. Let me mention it again. These are perilous times. Not only do we need to be in God’s Word, our Bibles every day, we need to be in prayer and talking to God for fellowship, a relationship and information. That one is very important to us. We NEED to know what to do in situations that will come up especially in these times. Those situations might be something you have never encountered before. As I has stated before, things are going to get steadily much worse before they will ever get better.
We are approaching the end of the age. The signs are there. Much Biblical prophecy is finished. Since Jesus died on the cross, the enemy has known that his time on earth was limited. He has stepped up his actions. We must learn to protect ourselves from the attacks that are here and those that are coming. Despite doing everything you know to do, are you having more and more problems financially, physically, emotionally? That should be a real red flag concerning the activities of the enemy in your life. Did you think that it was just “your bad luck” hanging around? This may be tough to swallow but there is no such thing as luck bad or otherwise.
God is in control. Yes, I know. It does not appear to be that way. You can safely say that you have prayed and you were not answered or were answered wrong. Yes, I get it. You wanted something and God didn’t jump and do it for you. And when people die that is not because He wasn’t watching or helping. His ways are not our ways. He has a plan for each of us. The problem is that we cannot usually hear Him enough to get that plan and work on it.
Once again, these are perilous times. It is imperative that you see this. We are heading into the last days of the age. No, I am not going to say that the end of the world is coming. Frankly, that rumor has been going around for a lot of years. It is not accurate. At the end of this particular age, there will be one thousand years of peace with no enemy to bug us. He will be locked up and unable to do his nastiness during that time. But in order to get to that point, we are going to see some rather impressive nastiness in the meanwhile…should we survive, that is.
So, can you be deceived? Yes, of course you can. Do you have any idea who should be President of the U.S.? If you can hear the Lord, He will tell you who needs to be in that position. Now, for those who think they hear the Lord but miss it, they have been deceived. Does that make sense? The problem here is that many Christians are going to say that they have heard from the Lord and want one of the candidates over the other. BUT, Christians are going to vote for both candidates. Who is right and who is wrong? Good question. The ones that are wrong are deceived. The ones that are right are not. Which is which?
The only way that you can answer that question is to be in prayer, seek God’s face and understand what He tells you. Then do what He says. But because we live in a sin-natured world, sometimes it’s pretty hard to hear God over a person’s own thoughts and the interference from the enemy as well. Trust me, I understand that. When I pray, I get some pretty strange things coming through my mind. But things that are not of God are going to be confusing and different from what God’s Word has to say about it.
If what you hear is negative in any way, is going against God, is simply not something that you feel you can do, then it is probably not from God. Oh, there is one thing. Be SURE you don’t feel you can do that something. Often, God will require you to do things that take you out of your comfort zone pretty far. But if the things you are hearing are strange, negative or possibly fit very neatly into a plan you had going anyway, it is highly likely that you are being deceived if you are still willing to do it.
How can we know for certain that we are not being deceived? By going to God for everything in your life. He wants to be part of all of your life, to be your Guide. But He cannot be that if you take back portions of your self so that you are making decisions and He is sitting on the sidelines watching you put yourself into bad situations after bad situations. Take the time to be with the Lord, pray and study. Open that dusty Bible every day and seek what He has to say. You will be amazed at the things you will no longer be deceived by. And enjoy. God is so good. And He loves you!
So many people these days are looking for and likely dreading the end of the world. Some are trying to set dates on when this or that thing will occur as according to the scriptures. The latest person in the news to do so was a man named Hawkins who predicted that the beginning of the end would come on a Thursday this month. That beginning was to include war and destruction. He was wrong. Why is that so important to note?
In Mathew 24, one of my favorite chapters in the Bible, it says that no man shall know the day or the hour. Only the Father knows this for certain, not even Jesus has this information.
(Mat 24:36) But of that day and hour no one knows, no, not the angels of Heaven, but only My Father.
Now I suspect that if the Father is not telling Jesus then it is probable that we humans aren’t going to have a clue until right before it actually occurs. So, date setting seems to be the wrong thing to do. See, if a person is all focused on the one date, their whole life revolves around that date. When it comes and goes and nothing happens, what happens to their faith…in God, in themselves, in what they believe? It is imperative that we live our lives as though Jesus is coming back today but plan for the future as if He may not come back for another hundred years. Do you see this?
We live in perilous times, of that there is no doubt whatsoever. If you do not believe it, look around you. Gas prices are at an all time high and people are struggling to put fuel in their tanks just to go to work. Sometimes, it pays to stay home because the price of gas plus the cost of child daycare exceeds the paycheck. The housing market is reeling from the unwise lending and the loss of so many homes to foreclosure. Security is an issue in this country now that we have been vulnerable to attack on our home ground. Crime is at an all time high. Natural disasters are increasing and intensifying all over the world. For those who say that we have had all this before, do not be hiding your heads in that. This is more and worse than ever before and it is unlikely to change for the better any time soon. That small relief at the pump is going to be gone in a few days. Count on it.
Once again, in Mathew 24, Jesus was clear that all these things do need to come to pass but that we would see an increase in intensity. This is that time.
(Mat 24:6-8) And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not troubled, for all these things must occur; but the end is not yet. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be famines and pestilences and earthquakes in different places.
All these are the beginning of sorrows.
Did you see that? All these things are the BEGINNING of sorrows. That does not mean the end of all things. It means that this too is a sign for what is about to come.
In the past, when people thought the end was near, not all of the conditions were met for that to happen. Could Jesus have come back in those days? Of course, He could have. The conditions will be there when it is necessary for them to be there. Remember, God is in control here. He is co-ordinating everything. Yes, we do have sorrow and pain. That’s because we live in this sin natured world and as long as it is that way, we will have that. The future must play out in the way intended.
(Mat 24:14) And this gospel of the kingdom shall be proclaimed in all the world as a witness to all nations. And then the end shall come.
One of those signposts to what will come is this scripture. Only through the system of satellites can we now see that this particular prophecy could come to pass. And it is. With all the television ministries plus the Christian networks we are in the days of the whole world seeing the Gospel preached to all the world. One thing that has really made me a bit mad is all the griping and complaining about the television ministries. There are countless news stories about how they are ripping people off and having lots of wealth. Sigh. Has anyone at all thought about the fact that Solomon was the wealthiest person in the world and that only through God was he so blessed? Now, I do not say that all of them are like that but many honorable and honest ministries are doing the things we cannot or won’t do; feeding the hungry, spreading the Gospel.
I suggest that each of you read Mathew 24 over and over again. This is not to be a stand alone chapter but it does give amazing insight to what is about to occur. No, it has not yet happened. But look at the things that have. Read that chapter and try to deny that things are happening as if they were reading that chapter.
Folks, now is the time to get back to the Lord, seek His face, gather together in one accord. Believe and have faith in the Lord Jesus and the Word of God because there is where your answers lie, not in preachers who are human and can get things wrong. Go to the Source of all things and seek Him. Read your Bible, pray and listen to Him. He will tell you the path He has for you in these very perilous times. Now more than ever, we must get in line with God’s Word and live the life He has set for us.
