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June 29, 2009
Question:

I have a question regarding a statement you made about the people who wrote the Dead Sea Scrolls. You said they expected two messiah's. Did they think they were coming together or at different times? What does the Bible say about this? ­JA

Answer:

The Essenes, the authors of the Dead Sea Scrolls, were a prophetic organization, secretive, very religious and convinced they were living in the days the messianic vision was to be fulfilled. They were a Jewish cult. Theirs did not constitute mainstream Jewish beliefs. They refused even to enter the Jewish temple in Jerusalem.

When the Messiah appeared, the Essenes expected a final-day battle where human forces would join those of God against the armies of the world. Leading both angels and Israelites, this temporal Messiah, a fierce human warrior, would spearhead his divine army to a rout of the world enemy (the forces of Satan) and in the process, establish Jerusalem as the capitol city of the earth in a world-dominating kingdom of God.

They saw one transcendant and divinely chosen warrior, but were convinced he would be accompanied by a divinely chosen priest. Together, according to Essene writings, these two would rule Israel and the world once God's regime had taken control of it.

Some scholars are convinced the Essenes arose in the shadow of the Hassideans ­ a military organization, passionate and nationalistic, built by the Maccabee's to help wrest Judea from the clutches of Antiochus IV Epiphanes in the 2nd century B.C.

It is obvious in their writings the Essenes felt those officiating in temple services at the time of Herod had betrayed the trust of the scriptures.

As a consequence they broke with the Temple that bore Herod's name and refused to enter therin. Instead, they built a desert enclave in Qumran above the Dead Sea where they studied the scrolls of scripture, wrote extensive commentaries on their interpretations of these documents, and awaited the Messiah's imminentally expected appearance.

They studied the scriptures in minute detail and arrayed themselves in specialty groups, especially with respect to the Old Testament prophets. In their combined observations, they became convinced that there would be two Messiah's, a warrior and a priest, and that both would appear at the same time.

In scripture, the expectation for divinely inspired temporal and spiritual leaders in the messianic era was almost foundational. Israel was a theocracy. It followed the pattern of the Torah (the Law) which structured the partnership of Moses and Aaron (and the architecture of ritual they represented) at the pinnacle of Hebrew liturgy and politics.

Thus this dual expectation of leadership structured in Moses and Aaron followed through Hebrew history and can be seen in the people's demand for a king (with a high priest at his right hand). This led to David, and to a succession of kings and priests until the deportation to Babylon when Israel's monarchy ended.

In the final days of the exile, with the monarchy vanished, at least one prophet heralded the twin relationship in messianic terms. See Zechariah's proposed vision of a post-exilic "Joshua" and "Branch" (also named "Zerubabbel") ­ Zech.3 & 4. It was most likely Zechariah's writings that cemented the Essene view.

Their great expectation zenithed in a holy pair completely invisible to the Essenes. It arrived in the person of Jesus, the ultimate King (God Himself in the flesh) and in Michael, the divine spiritual guide who assists Him as the Guardian Angel of the people of God. "In all this there is no one to give me help except Michael, your prince." (Dan.10:21. See also, Malachi 3:1-3). In these two, Christianity sees all of human history incorporated, past, present and future.

Throughout the entire exodus, these two bookended the procession of refugees that made the journey from Egypt to the Holy Land during their 40-year trek across Sinai ­ the pillar of cloud in front and the angel of God at the rear of the departing column. (Exodus 14:19-20). This pattern will persist to the End. We have Jesus leading us now and in the final moments of history will appear Michael at the end of the procession.

The flight of the Exodus was, in reality, an allegory that pointed to our escape from Babylon under the leadership of Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit. It pointed to our liberation from Babylon by the Messiah.

"Writhe, cry out daughter of Zion, for now you have to leave the city and live in the open country. To Babylon you must go and there you will be rescued; There God will ransom you out of the power of your enemies." (Micah 4:10).

"Go away! Go away! Leave that place, touch nothing unclean. Get out of her, purify yourselves, you who carry the vessels of the Lord. But you are not to hurry away, you are not to leave like fugitives. No the Lord will go in front of you, and the God of Israel will be your rear-guard." (Is.52:11-12).

Scripture's vision did not forsee two "Christ's". Jesus is God and the Godhead is singular. There cannot be two Messiah's.

Instead, the Holy Spirit has revealed that scripture's vision focused, for the most part, on two earthly leaders. It followed in the pattern of Moses and Aaron. It focused on the two men chosen by God to head Christ's Church in Jesus' absence, i.e., two religious men, eminently holy, but below God Himself. These two turned out to be Peter and Paul.

Peter and Paul were for the New Testament what Aaron and Moses were for the old.

Christianity has persisted in this relationship down through history. In the shadow of Peter and Paul, we have seen a similar ruling pattern repeated again and again in the close relationship between the various Bishops and kings of the nations of the western world throughout history as, together, both temporal and spiritual leadership have supported Christ during troubled times, in a relationship that has co-ruled the world in His name down to almost our own time.

This is the pattern of government that produced the Christian era on earth.

Today that bond has been broken as the nations have revolted against Christ. The temporal part of this relationship has abandoned God and become secular. This rebellion was prophesied in 2 Thessalonians 2:3-4, and stands as a signal that the rest of Paul's prophecies (the dark night of godlessness he forcast in his writings as the consequence of this revolt) has begun to descend on a house now divided (2 Thes. 2:9-12).

 

For additional information on Qumran, see our paper, "The Dead Sea Scrolls"

 

"In addition to Russia and China, the Shanghai group includes Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.  Iran has permanent observer status along with India, Pakistan and Mongolia." ­10
­CM

Answer:

This is a reader update on the idea that the developing Shanghai Alliance might be the formative nucleus of the 10 eastern nations prophesied for the last days by Daniel, in his book, and by John in the Book of Revelation.

See Goodnews question page, June, 2006

 

Have you noticed the world is getting angrier? We need Jesus now more than ever. ­GA

Answer:

Anger is said to be one of the four stages of loss.

In individual terms, these stages happen over several months. In national terms or world terms, where vast populations are involved, the stages may take decades to work themselves through.

The greatest loss that could possibly happen to mankind is to lose God. This has happened to the world over the last 100 years or so. Jesus Christ and His Gospel, the flagship of the world for the last 1700 years, have been ripped out of the nations by their political leaders. The United States was ordered by its Supreme Court to follow this pattern in 1963.

The American politicians in subsequent decisions have concurred in the erradication of God from the state, thus solidifying the forfeiture and guaranteeing its permanence. The rule of the Christian Church on earth has ended.

The reverberations of that catastrophic loss have rippled through society ever since.

Anger is the third stage.

Since, in the case of God, the loss involves an invisible, intangible and hidden hunger, this anger cannot be focused on its real source. Instead it is an anger that is shotgunned throughout society, with every aspect of it, a target.  Some are able to buck the rejection and ridicule of God and find their way to the outlawed church, but for most, the loss is permanent.

The final stage is acceptance. The outcome points to a secular society, godless and atheistic, the fulfillment of 2 Thess.3:9-12.

 

If God made us in his own image does that mean God has arms and legs like we do? ­KK

Answer:

No.

Scripture does not say that God is made in man's image, just the opposite. It says that God has made us into His image

Jesus said God is spirit.

"Flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, and the perishable cannot inherit what lasts forever." (1 Cor.15:50).

In order to make us into His own image, God imparted into us His Holy Spirit. According to Paul we died to our body of flesh when we were baptised into Christ (see below) and in that moment, were reborn into a spiritual body whose form and shape will not be revealed until the resurrection.

What the exact form and shape of that new body is, Jesus and scripture do not say. Perhaps it is because we have no way to comprehend it ­ it is eternal. It can navigate the entire universe. It encounters no barriers.

In order to wear that body, our soul had to be made sinless. This is why Jesus died on the cross ­ so that our soul might be made into a vessel so clean and holy that we could be remade in God's image by housing the Holy Spirit within it.

The Holy Spirit brought our new body to us ­ a tiny child of a body that needs to be nourished with the food of heaven so that it can grow up strong and eternal. We are fortifying it into adulthood now by obeying Christ's Gospel. That is the spiritual food that leads to our new life in God's kingdom. Jesus called His Gospel the "bread of life".

In baptism our soul is cleansed in Christ's blood and our body of flesh is destroyed, replaced by an invisible body of spirit that is made in the image of God ­ a body we cannot see until the day of the End.

Until then, all we can do is speculate on its true nature. The following are some of the things revealed about that nature in scripture:

"You who wanted no sacrifice or oblation, prepared a body for me. You took no pleasure in holocausts or sacrifices for sin; then I said, just as I was commanded in the scroll of the book, 'God, here I am! I am coming to obey your will'." (Ps.40:6-8)

"Brothers and sisters: It is written, the first man, Adam, became a living being, the last Adam a life-giving spirit. But the spiritual was not first; rather the natural and then the spiritual. the first man was from the earth, earthly; the second man, from heaven. As was the earthly one, so also are the earthly, and as is the heavenly one, so also are the heavenly. Just as we have borne the image of the earthly one, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly one." (1 Cor. 15:45-49

Remember, we have gone through massive supernova explosions and a Big Bang to get here. The fact that we exist now in the flesh, made in fire out of nothing but an array of electrical charges is a kind of guarantee that we can exist again in any form God wishes to mold us. Our flesh is made out of this creation (this universe) but our new body will be made out of the new creation God is making in heaven.

"You have put on a new self which will progress towards true knowledge the more it is renewed in the image of its creator; and in that image there is no room for distinction between Greek and Jew..." (Col.3:10).

"In him you have been circumcised, with a circumcision not performed by human hand, but by the complete stripping of your body of flesh. This is circumcision according to Christ. You have been buried with him, when you were baptised; and by baptism, too, you have been raised up with him through your belief in the power of God who raised him from the dead." (Col.2:11-13).

"Someone may ask, 'How are dead people raised, and what sort of body do they have when they come back?'...Whatever you sow in the ground has to die before it is given new life and the thing that you sow is not what is going to come..." (1 Cor.15:36-37).

"You sow a bare grain, say of wheat or something like that, and then God gives it the sort of body that he has chosen: each sort of seed gets its own sort of body." (1 Cor.15:37-38).

"...There are heavenly bodies and there are earthly bodies; but the heavenly bodies have a beauty of their own and the earthly bodies a different one...the stars differ from each other in brightness.

It is the same with the resurrection of the dead: the thing that is sown is perishable but what is raised is imperishable; the thing that is sown is contemptible but what is raised is glorious; the thing that is sown is weak but what is raised is powerful; It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. There is a natural body and there is a spiritual body." (1 Cor.15:40-44).

Using such metaphore, God has, throughout scripture, revealed deep mysteries that few on earth know anything about. When asked about these secrets, Jesus told His apostles: .

'The mysteries of the kingdom of God are revealed to you; for the rest there are only parables, so that 'they may see but not perceive, listen but not understand'." (Lk.8:9-10; Is.6:9) "For anyone who has will be given more, and he will have more than enough; but from anyone who has not, even what he has will be taken away." (Mt.13:12).

It was very important to Jesus that we contemplate these unknowns (the differences between God's world and this world), and understand their true meaning (especially with respect to the parables), so that we see more clearly into the mind of God.

"If you do not understand this parable", he once asked (his apostles), "how then will you understand any of the parables?" (Mk.4:13-14).

The language of God is a language of metaphore. It is the only way of describing a world vastly different than our own.

The kingdom of heaven is vastly different. We have no basis in our understanding to even contemplate such a world, because in it even the atoms and molecules, if there are such things there, are of another kind. It is a construct that allows unimaginable freedom of movement throughout creation, unbound from the crutches of oxygen or wings or motors, and impervious to every kind of danger that stalks the natural creation.

The idea that there could be a form of life outside of biology is something one might see in science fiction shows like Star Trek or hear in the casual conversation of various physicts and astronomers, but to most the concept seems nonsensical. Yet this is precisely what the heavenly Host implies. The kingdom of God constitutes a vast civilization of eternal beings as real as you and me, yet entirely outside the realm of biology. Most likely, outside the realm of matter entirely. Who are they and what are they? All we know about them is that they are like us, but they are spiritual beings.

They are living beings with spiritual bodies. They have their own body but it is different from ours. In the form of the angels, these heavenly beings are around us right now, in our very room at times ­ yet we cannot see them because God has ordained they be invisible to our vision. They can pass right through walls. Jesus did this when He materialized in front of His apostles after His resurrection (John 20:26)..

It is important that we think of angels here, because when asked about our nature in eternal life, Jesus said we will be like the angels (Mt.22:29-30; Luke 20: 34-38). Because we are immortal, there will be no giving or taking in marriage; no male and no female.

Since our entire existance here is predicated on the pleasures and conditions that make up this world, an environment so foreign to this may seem frightening to some, or at the very least uncomfortable to current understanding of the way things should be. Yet a great many of the pleasures of this world come from Satan, not God. They are perversions of the Creator's intent. With Satan and his intrusions here removed, our world would be vastly different.

Those differences are highlighted in the degree to which most people approach Christ. What are we willing to give up for Him? "I am sorry, I cannot attend the meal you offer, I have to go feed my cows." What do we hold onto the tightest? These sacred cows are a reflection of the magnetism of Satan's appeal. Thiey also show the strength of faith. Weak faith clutches the things of this world. Stronger faith gives them up, trusting instead on God and obeying Him despite the loss (of worldly pleasures and goods) incurred.

In our physical birth into this world, we (and the people before us) have spent thousands of lifetimes exploring its nature and trying to find out what it is about and how it is constructed. Yet in all this time we have barely scratched the surface of its complexity. And this is the world God is discarding. Think of the kingdom of God which is eternal ­ how much more complex and beautiful we will find it. Especially since evil does not exist there. The polarity of this world will be left behind. Even the metaphore that describes that polarity will vanish. There will be no night; no darkness at all (Rev. 21:25).

Those who are blind to God cannot accept these things:

"The language of the cross may be illogical to those who are not on the way to salvation, but those of us who are on the way see it as God's power to save. As scripture says: I shall destroy the wisdom of the wise and bring to nothing all the learning of the learned. Where are the philosophers now? Where are the scribes? Where are any of our thinkers today? Do you see how God has shown up the foolishness of human wisdom? If it was God's wisdom that human wisdom should not know God, it was because God wanted to save those who have faith through the foolishness of the message that we preach." -1 Cor.1:18-21.,

"How rich are the depths of God­how deep his wisdom and knowledge­and how impossible to penetrate his motives or understand his methods! Who could ever know the mind of the Lord? Who could ever be his counsellor?..." (Rom.11:33-35).

 

I read one of your question answers concerning the Jewish "Feast of Tabernacles". You likened it to Christian communion. On what do you base your observation? ­NK

Answer:

In the Hebrew calendar there are three primary feast days during the liturgical year. The first is "Passover", celebrating the exodus of the House of Israel from captivity to Egypt, the second, on the 50th day afterward, is called "Weeks", celebrating the first fruits of the harvest, and the third is the "Feast of Tabernacles", the feast of ingathering from the harvest (see Lev. 23:1-44).

These three feast days are a command of the Hebrew Law, the Torah. That means that God must honor them in the way of His own choosing. This He has done.

Christianity (formed in the schematic of the Hebrew Law) has superimposed on these three required festivals the spiritual counterparts which the Hebrew days metaphorically represented. Passover is replaced by the Easter ritual from crucifixion to resurrection. The day of First Fruits is replaced by Pentecost, the anniversary of the appearance on earth of the Holy Spirit; and the feast of Tabernacles is replaced by the communion service, the holy meal of the churches.

Each one of these three festivals honors a member of the Holy Trinity. Easter for Christ, Pentecost for the Holy Spirit and the Day of God for the Father.

A part of the ritual of the feast of Tabernacles required the Israelites to live for seven days in shelters (or tents) to remind them of the period of the exodus when all the tribes had to live in such tents when the Lord brought them out of the land of Egypt (Lev. 23:42-43).

These shelters correspond to the multitude of Christian churches scattered across the world and within which we now live as Jesus Christ leads us from the land of Babylon to God's new kingdom in heaven. All this is what the Israelite feast actually stood for, the true "exodus" to eternal life.

Leading this feast, five days before it's beginning, is the Day of God. In the Hebrew liturgy it is called the "Day of Atonement" (in Hebrew, "Yom Kippur"). It is the highest holy day in the entire Hebrew liturgy.

In Christianity we recognize the Day of Atonement as the Day of Christ. It is the day of His Sonlight shining on the earth. It began on the day of Pentecost when the Holy Spirit first appeared on earth in 30 A.D. and it represents all the days the Gospel of Jesus Christ has been preached across the earth from then to the present day. The light of God's day, though now waning, is still shining. It will continue to shine until the beast orders it to be turned off. This will occur when he desecrates the perpetual communion sacrifice (Dan. 9:27; 8:10-12).

The term of God's Day of Atonement is the meaning of the "7 weeks" and "62 weeks" in the prophecy of Daniel. The Bible tells us that a day to God is like a thousand years to man. A prophecy in the Book of Joshua tells us that God will make the sun (the Son of God) stand in the sky long enough to make one day into almost two. To man, that means almost 2000 years.

If this prophecy is literal and is based on the first Pentecost, it means the light of Christ will go out before 2030 A.D.

In Daniel's prophecy of the "7 weeks" and "62 week", the first part (the 7weeks) stands for the first war against Christianity ­ a war that drove the developing church into hiding (its time in the Roman catacombs). The "62 weeks" almost certainly began when Constantine issued his "Edict of Milan", allowing Christianity to leave its hiding places and be proclaimed publicly across the world. Christ's religion was embraced by the empire and given favored status over all other forms of worship.

In that same prophecy in the Book of Daniel, the last week (a terrible week divided into two parts) follows the "62 weeks". This last week of the world will produce two kngs of the East in sequence, who, one after the other, will conquer most of the world militarily, crushing the western world and toppling the religion of God. In the first part of this week, the feast of the tabernacles (communion) will be gravely threatened. In the last half of that week (the 3 and 1/2 year reign of the beast), it will be outlawed.

And then the end will come (Dn.12:7). The trumpet will sound and Jesus will return in glory.

The feast of holy communion represents the "wedding feast" that all who choose Jesus are to share in the kingdom of heaven following our resurrection at the end of the world. That is what the feast of the tabernacles is ultimately pointing to.

 

How much time do we have till the world ends? ­GA

Answer:

At the dawn of the 20th century in the earliest days of the1900's, the science fiction writer H.G. Wells was permitted by God to envision a bomb that could wipe out entire cities in a single explosion. Wells called his device the "atom bomb".

God used Wells to signal to the world that He was about to put into man's hand an instrument so lethal it had the capacity to destroy the entire world in a single hour. This invention arrived in 1945, fulfilling Wells' vision, and giving man the capability to bring to fruition the darkest prophecies of the Book of Daniel and John's Book of Revelation.

In hindsight, Wells' vision had put the world on notice that the peace treaty God had initiated through Jesus' sacrifice on the cross was nearing its point of termination. Jesus warned that it would only be in effect for a short time.

That treaty (which allows the life of this earth to continue) is perpetuated by the communion sacrifice, and is held in place by agreement of both sides. Christians are required to remain humble and without ambition except to do good, while Babylon is required to allow its Christians to leave by the path of the Gospel without interference.

The allegory of this pact can be seen in Pharaoh's edict at the time of Moses allowing the Israelite captives to leave Egypt and make a trek to the Promised Land. Pharaoh agreed to let them go, but, as that exodus neared its end, changed his mind and attacked the rearguard of that departing column. He did not honor his word, nor is Babylon honoring the treaty of Christ which the Mosaic exodus allegorized.

This world only exists for the journey of Christianity to the kingdom of heaven. The treaty of Christ has given it extra life only for that purpose.

The global impositions we have seen initiated over the last century against Christian preaching point to a hardening of Babylon's heart. This includes the Soviet and Asian mandates to atheism, the religious intolerance of the Middle East and the global shift to secularism.

This escalating worldwide attack over the last 100 years on the teaching of the Gospel are early warnings that what took place in Pharaoh's palace are about to be duplicated against Christianity. It tells us the attack is near. The nations are no longer encouraging their citizens to listen to Christ's call. Instead, they are throwing up an ever increasing sequence of roadblocks to thwart that exodus and to discourage belief in the veracity of God's emissaries.

In the meantime, stockpiles of weapons capable of delivering the instant annihilation of almost all life on this planet are glutting silo's across the earth and dozens of nations are clammoring to add thousands more to the inventory. God, in the person of Jesus Christ, declared this world evil. It should have been destroyed at the very moment He preached, but God allowed it to live temporarily with His treaty of peace. This gave time for the righteous to be rescued. Jesus went to the cross specifically for that purpose.

Now, with the treaty nearing collapse under a burgeoning weight of wickedness, the mandate for the continuation of the evil planet is in dire jeopardy. The harvest is almost complete. Everyone seeing this transition progress, should note with care what they see and turn to Jesus for salvation and the protection of God. It is past time to enter His shelter.

The day of the End is known only to God and no one can foresee its moment, but we have been warned that before it happens, an intense darkness will descend on the land, snuffing out the light of the Gospel, causing people to run to and fro looking for God but not finding Him. The shadows of that darkness are represented by the changes that have roiled the Christian world over the last 100 years. These changes are the signs of its approach.

When the light of this world is taken away it will be too late (except for a very few) for anyone to accept God's offer of eternal life. Do not wait for the End. Work while you still have the light .

"As long as the day lasts I must carry out the work of the one who sent me; the night will soon be here when no one can work. As long as I am in the world I am the light of the world." (John 9:4-5)

 

Will there only be 144,000 saved? ­NA

Answer:

This question relates to the Book of Revelation, Chapter 7, verses 3-8 (& 3:9-17).

The number in question does not square with either the prophesies (both New and Old Testament), or with Jesus' teaching. Nor does it square with the numbers themselves. Christ has been preached for almost 2000 years. Much of the population of the earth over that time has been Christian. The 144,000 is not a number for the 21st century alone, or for 2009 alone. It is a number for all time.

Divide 144,000 by 2000 years (the number of years that have passed since Christ was crucified and you get 72 people a year. That covers all religions and all areas of the earth, and is a number that continues to get smaller every year as the distance in years from the date of the crucifixiion continues to increase.

72 itself is a very small number. Count the people in your church. 700? 2000? 8000? That's not in your denomination, it is in your current church building. How many Christian churches are there in America? In the world? Now figure out how to pick just 72 Christians from all over the world ­ from all the churchs across the face of the earth, combined, discarding everyone else.

Are those who feel they can be saved without going to church included as well? Will any of them be a part of the 144,000? Add them to the list of candidates for salvation and the number shrinks again.

Even if you just count churches alone, most churches will have zero. There are tens of thousands of churches across the planet today, and only 72 people can be selected out of all of them put together. Entire denominations may have only one or two people in a whole year.

Statistics show 87% of U.S. citizens are Christian. There are 350 million U.S. citizens. Eighty-seven percent of that number is 304 million people. Out of this you get 72 people? In fact, much less because world-wide the Christian population numbers almost 2 billion people. The statistics say 72 people out of the whole world. Out of 2 billion Christians?

If only one Christian in each state of the Union were saved, that would be 50 in the USA alone, leaving only 24 for the whole rest of the world, Canada, Mexico, S.America, Europe, Africa, Asia, Australia, etc.?

Adding in all those other countries, it would be more like 8 or 10 Christians in the entire USA. More than 40 states would produce none at all. If God's salvation were in numbers that small, God could rightly be accused of making what amounts to an impossible promise. No common people would have a chance. Even most of the Mother Theresa's would fail. This is just the opposite of Christ's promise. Obviously this interpretation cannot be true.

Closer inspection of the prophecy shows it isn't true. The 144,000 prophecy is metaphore. The number itself is metaphore. It details a specific group of the saved, not all of them. For in the very next paragraph of the same prophecy in the Book of Revelation we are shown a vast throng of "saved" who number more than the sands of the sea:

"After that I saw a huge number, impossible to count, of people from every nation, race, tribe and language; they were standing in front of the throne and in front of the Lamb, dressed in white robes and holding palms in their hands..."

"...One of the elders then spoke, and asked me, 'Do you know who these people are, dressed in white robes, and where they have come from?' I answered him, 'you can tell me, my lord'. Then he said, 'These are the people who have been through the great persecution, and because they have washed their robes white again in the blood of the Lamb, they now stand in front of God's throne and serve him day and night in his sanctuary; and the One who is on the throne will spread his tent over them. They will never hunger or thirst again; neither the sun nor scorching wind will ever plague them, because the Lamb who is at the throne will be their shepherd and will lead them to springs of living water; and God will wipe away all tears from their eyes." (Rev. 7:9-17).

Now that fits the promise. Everyone who chooses to accept Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, and tries to follow Him as best they can.

The road is narrow, yes, but it is not an impossible journey. The promise of an easy burden and a light yoke is true (Mat.11:28-30). Prophecy says that stumbling is allowed. It says that perfection is in progress (i.e., making headway), getting up from a fall and getting back on the road (i.e., returning to the path of Christ) (Ps.101:2,6). . The lesson the Exodus teaches is 'Don't turn back'. And Jesus Christ has said the same. Don't lose faith.

The Book of Revelation shows that no matter how low a person's faith gets, it can be rescued by their returning to the way of Christ. 'Think where you were before you fell...return to that...' (Rev. 3:2; 3:18-20)

 

This subject has been covered before in different ways on previous question pages.
To view these go to: "The 144,000"

I am actually surprised at how eerily quiet everyone has been about the sudden rise in popularity and power of our current president and the Biblical story of the rise of the antichrist. I am not trying to equate the two (I'll wait to see if time takes care of that for me), but I have always wondered how someone could have a vision so opposed to the Christian worldview and yet be hailed by so many as a great person - without someone publicly making the comparison. I always felt that the Left Behind series and so many other end-times fiction writers were unable to create a convincing scenario or series of events that could lead to someone "coming out of nowhere" to gain such power. Yet, we have someone who appears to be in his position solely based on empty promises and rhetoric. I suppose he is not the first world leader to come from nowhere, but to become the President of the US used to imply that a person had a serious resume' of service and experience...(It) shows how easily people are fooled or how shallow their judgment can be. (We) need to look beyond the surface of our elected leaders. We simply appear as hooligans voting for whoever will give us the most stuff. For the most powerful nation in the world to have done that is very disturbing. I see a trend that will result in (if it hasn't already) an elected leader who will quickly and easily steer the nation to idol worship. And the majority of the people will joyfully, cheerfully follow with 24/7 gala coverage by an adoring media.I have been mulling this over since the day after the election when a close friend (who supports Obama) told me - at church - "isn't it really nice to have someone in the white House who can speak so well". ­JF

Answer:

The popularity of the Antichrist does not extend to America. The Bible shows America as his enemy:

"At the time appointed he shall return and come into the south; but it shall not be this time as it was before. For ships of Kittim shall come against him, and he shall be afraid and withdraw, and shall turn back and be enraged..." (Dan. 11:29-30).

This passage in scripture clearly shows America to be at the doorstep of war with the Antichrist. From the reading, the standoff seems to be much like the Cuban missle crises of 1962. America will prove the stronger in this conflict, but it will only intensify the hatred between our country and the beast, as the rest of this scripture indicates.

The Antichrist amasses his popularity among his own ­ among the people of the East ­ the Parthians ­ the people of Asia and the Euphrates. Even the Europeans will cower before him. But not the United States. He will build his popularity slowly much in the way Bin Laden (in his attempt to mobilize the vast Muslim world against America) has done. It will be the same with the Antichrist. He will build a popularity in the same theatre of focus ­ aiming to impress the vast populations of the ten nations of the East.

The fact that Barack Obama is president of the United States eliminates him from consideration. If you check the full complement of the prophecies in the Bible concerning the Antichrist, you will see that Obama's position commanding the American presidential office, all by itself, negates any possibility of his being the Antichrist.

Even more important, Barack Obama has testified to the world that he is a Christian. This also excludes him.

Because he embraces Jesus Christ as his Lord and savior, he has divorced himself from Satan. Like the rest of us who have chosen Christ as our Lord, he lives under a blanket of grace. The Apostle John has specifically written in scripture that no one who calls himself a Christian can be considered the Antichrist (1 John 4:15).

"The man who denies that Jesus is the Christ ­ he is the liar, he is Antichrist; and he is denying the Father as well as the Son, because no one who has the Father can deny the Son, and to acknowledge the Son is to have the Father as well" (1 John 2:22-23).

Barack Obama has acknowledged the Son.

"If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in him, and he in God." (1 John 4:15).

Because John's words stand sealed in scripture, his statement acts as divine prophecy.

It not only means that Barack Obama cannot be the Anitchrist, it shows that the Antichrist will never voice acceptance of Jesus. John's statement is not just an absolute, it is a two-way street. The Antichrist will never embrace Christianity. And because Obama believes in Christ and has made this testimony public, he will never be the Antichrist.

Scripture's prophecies, as I have shown below, reveal that the Antichrist will arrive on the scene screaming terrible blasphemies against the Holy Trinity, against Christians and against the Church. And he will mobilize his enraged followers to do the same. He never endorses Christianity, just the opposite.

Jesus went to extraordinary lengths to insure that Old Testament scripture proved true. God will go to even greater lengths to make sure the prophecies of the New Testament prove true as well.

Paul expanded on John's prophecy:

"Face plain facts. Anybody who is convinced that he belongs to Christ must go on to reflect that we all belong to Christ no less than he does." (2 Cor. 10:7).

Everyone who embraces Jesus Christ begins a journey which is a trial by fire that tests and hones faith. We may stumble many times in this journey because we are imperfect, but as long as we persist in our faith, get up and continue on the journey, we remain on the path towards eternal life. It is God's decision who it is that is successful on this journey, not ours. For our part we must not judge other Christians, because it is God who is leading them through the fire of cleansing, not us. We cannot read the mind of the Holy Spirit.

We do know that as we judge, so will we be judged.

There are many, many Christians who seem not to live a perfect "Christian worldview" kind of life, but the Holy Spirit is often able, in His own way, through fire, to reformat their faith and bring them to the salvation they are working toward. Scripture tells us we need to pray for them.

Popularity does not make a person the Antichrist.

Barack Obama is popular because people feel he is committed to straighten out the mess our country is in. The nation is mired in the deepest recession the world has experienced in over 60 years, we are faced with Muslim terrorism, two active wars, bankrupting health costs, a financial catastrophe unseen since the Great Depression, and now a pandemic virus with possible lethal potential. Hope that he can be constructive against these malignant forces makes Obama popular.

Don't focus on popularity ­ especially American popularity. We are the only nation in the world whose defacto national anthem is a call for God's blessing: "God Bless America". We are a blessed country and the Beast does not come from here.

Remember, the Bible does not say that everyone on earth will worship the Antichrist, just non-Christians. It says everyone EXCEPT those who live in Christ:

"...and all who dwell on earth will worship it (the Antichrist), every one whose name has not been written before the foundation of the world in the book of life of the Lamb..." (Rev. 13:7-8).

Those whose names are written in the Book of Life will not worship the Antichrist when he appears.

When the Bible says that the "world" will worship the beast, remember there are only 350 million people in the entire United States put together. The world houses over 6 billion people. That's "B", billion. The world outnumbers us almost 20 to 1.

The East owns the extraordinary population numbers, not America. Think China, Indonesia, India, the "Stans" and so forth. A huge number of these people are atheists and non-christians. They have already been duped. "World" popularity demands an eastern Antichrist. Remember, in scripture the army of the Beast is described in terms so prodigious only the East could provide them; soldiers that number like the sands of the sea:

"Sound the trumpet in Zion, give the alarm on my holy mountain! Let all the inhabitants of the country tremble, for the day of God is coming, yes, it is near. Day of darkness and gloom, day of cloud and blackness. Like the dawn there spreads across the mountains a vast and mighty host, such as has never been before, such as will never be again to the remotest ages." (Joel 2:1-2).

"When the thousand years are over, Satan will be released from his prison and will come out to deceive all the nations in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, and mobilize them for war. His armies will be as many as the sands of the sea; they will come swarming over the entire country and besiege the camp of the saints, which is the city that God loves." (Rev.20:7-9).

"The Lord says this to you, 'Do not be afraid, do not be daunted by this vast horde; this battle is not yours but God's. March out against them tomorrow (but) You will not need to fight' ..." (2 Chron. 20:15-17).

The Antichrist rises to power in the East.

Barack Obama has risen to power in the West. These origins are polar opposites. The prophecies are very clear on the location of the Madman's appearamce (where he comes from). His origin is shown in the prophecies to be near the Black Sea. That's over near the Euphrates, just above Asia Minor. He is shown to command a Parthian army. That is a combination of Persian and Asian forces.

In the prophecies that army is hostile to America because we are aligned with Israel. The President of the United States sends his ships to block the Beast's army from invading Israel (Dan.11:29-30). So how could he possibly be the beast?  Not only that, read in the following quotation how powerful America is in relation to the Antichrist:

"At the time appointed he (the Antichrist) shall return and come into the south; but it shall not be this time as it was before. For ships of Kittim shall come against him, and he shall be afraid and withdraw..." (Dan.11:29-30).

He shall be afraid?

At the very height of his power, the Madman is shown in the Book of Daniel to be blocked by American warships ­ by the ships of Kittim (a mighty naval power in the western coastlands). Afraid, the Antichrist shall turn back. If this happens anytime in the next century we must assume that he will be thwarted by the U.S. Seventh Fleet.

Barack Obama is the commander and chief of that fleet, so if it happens on his watch, how can he be in two places at once?  How could he attack himself?

Scripture gives us a description of the Antichrist that is so detailed, a grammar-school sleuth would have no trouble identifying him when he appears. Don't isolate these prophecies by choosing just one. Take them all together. Each prophecy tells us a part of the Antichrist's profile. When all the verses about him are added together, the details spell out his entire personna.

If you are searching for a candidate for the Antichrist that fits scripture's descriptions to a "T", try Bin Laden. He meshes with prophecy's mold so well, it is chilling. He rose up with a small following out of obscurity in the East, without election or royal credentials. He has no office and since he has chosen to dwell in a cave, he has no country. This is a profile very similar to the one detailed in the Book of Daniel.

Coming out of Persia without a country, and wrapped in the robes of intrigue, Bin Laden has spent his early career warmongering in hiding. He has been around now for more than 12 years and yet is still working his intrigue out of the shadows, from a cave.

"...there will rise a wretch: he will not be given royal honors, but will insinuate himself into them in his own time and gain possession of the kingdom by intrigue." (Dan. 11:21-22)

The Antichrist seems to use the same kind of tactics Bin Laden is using to try to secure his own grasp on world power.

The Antichrist comes with several names in scripture. they describe his character. He is called the Beast, the Destroyer, the Prince of Persia, Gog, the King of the North, the Lawless One, the Man of Lawlessness, the Rebel, the Madman, the Wicked, the Wretch, the Man of Sin, the Man of Perdition, the Son of Perdition, the Lost One, Blasphemy, even Daystar (Is.14:12-13+) This because his appearance directly precedes the Return of Christ.

The Antichrist will have no power of his own.

"His power will gather strength ­but not through power of his own..." (Dan. 8:24).

Isn't that how we see Bin Laden? No kingdom, no army, no navy, no air force. Just a small rag-tag group of thugs ­ but now, even without a country or army, growing so strong in his warmongering he is able to pit himself successfully against all the worlds greatest nations and militaries simultaneously.

Where does Barack Obama fit in this profile?  He is just the opposite ­ he comes with enormous power of his own. He has been chosen by the people and duly elected to command the most powerful empire in the history of the earth. Elected by the people, his claim to authority is legitimate. As president of the United States, he is the most powerful and influential man in the world today.

When the Antichrist appears, he will mimic Bin Laden ­ at first, an obscure warmonger without any army, navy, airforce or weapons.

"Still conspiring, he will go from treachery to treachery, ever growing stronger despite the smallness of his following." (Dan. 11:23).

Read that again: "the SMALLNESS of his following". That is coupled to Daniel's words "ever growing stronger" in the quotation above. Together they show a slow ascent to strength, not an overnight catapult into command of the world's most powerful empire. Bin Laden has been growing stronger for 12 years and he is still in hiding. All the while, his popularity is growing among the Muslim youth.

Scripture's prophecies talk about the Antichrist's warmongering ­ his crushing defeat of armies (Dan.11:22), his invasion of nations, his plundering of the people and the institutions in the nations he conquers, the distribution of that plunder to his "Friends", etc. The Antichrist is a man of war, not peace. He comes with a brutal sword.

Even now while still operating from a cave, without any throne, or army (without even a country), Bin Laden has shown himself to be one of the more barbaric personages in history. Aside from directing multiple wars, he straps bombs on women and children and coerces them to go out and blow themselves up in the markets and cafe's simply to kill as many shoppers as possible. Using such measures, he is slowly ascending toward a future still unknown, and all the while gaining popularity among his own.

Will the Taliban give him Afghanistan? Pakistan?

Will Bin Laden prove to be the Antichrist?  He is probably too old. The End is likely not so soon.

If he is not the Antichrist himself, he has certainly presaged key parts of the model the Madman will follow. The Antichrist will gain popularity among his own the way Bin Laden has done­trying bit by bit to mobilize the entire Muslim world (a third of the world's population) into combat against the West. So far Bin Laden has failed in this effort, but his other successes to date have been extraordinary.

Scripture shows the Antichrist bolstering his popularity by offering not to crush those who agree to join his circle of "Friends" (Dan.11:39). The Bible writes of these "friends" as if they are some kind of exclusive club, a national "order" that is given special favor, even land and financial assistance ­ a group in which the populace covets membership, especially to escape the horrors that are unleashed on those outside.

There is a reason scripture refers to the Antichrist as the "Madman". He is a monster. He will be as crazed as Hitler. Don't be looking for a "nice guy" (in American terms). He comes on the scene shouting incredible blasphemies, fomenting vast hordes into frenzied mobs.

"In his own time he will invade the richest provinces, acting as his fathers or father's fathers never acted, distributing plunder, spoil and wealth among them, plottings his stratagems against fortresses ­ for a time. He will rouse his strength and his heart against the king of the South with a great army." (Dan.11:24-25).

The Antichrist rises in the East, not the West. He wars against the "king of the South" (the Israeli-American alliance). He will be white, not black. His predecessor rises in an area that seems to be Moscow and he himself will come from somewhere midway between Moscow and Iran. His allegiance will be with the Persians (the Parthians) and, like a returning and reborn Nero, he will lead these troops (the soldiers of the ten nations of the East) to Rome to rebuild his empire there.

Enraged by his embarrasing defeat at the hands of the Amerians, Daniel shows he will turn on the areas already under his control. In an attempt to destroy Christianity, he will vent his fury on the Holy Covenant and on all who worship Jesus. He will order the assassination of the Pope and set up his throne in the Vatican.

"This is the Enemy, the one who claims to be so much greater than all that men call 'god', so much greater than anything that is worshipped, that he enthrones himself in God's sanctuary and claims that he is God." (2 Thes. 2:4).

"Then they fortified the City of David with a great strong wall and strong towers, and made this their Citadel." (1 Macc.1:33-35)

From this platform the Madman will launch the final war against Jerusalem.

None of this is imminent. It is still a long way away. First, world power must shift according to the prophecies: The East will topple the West from its leadership post, and secure that pinnacle of influence for itself (Dan.7:23). A world war will occur, and at least two more wars against Jerusalem will take place before the final war begins (Dan.11:16; 11:30; 11:45).

All this is in scripture in its prophecies about the Antichrist. It is spelled out in newspaper-like detail, especially in the Book of Daniel.

Most of the Eastern Hemisphere will be under the Madman's control, but even there, his reach will not be complete. We can see this by the fact that he attacks Jerusalem. If he controlled Israel, he wouldn't attack it.

We can also see other nations in that area still out of his grasp as well.. Among these are the kingdoms of "the South". Daniel says (of the Antichrist) that developments in the East (apparently the Far East) will worry him, as will reports coming from the north (Dan.11:44).

If the Antichrist had total control of the world there would be no ships to oppose him and no place for him to attack. No kingdom of the Souith. There would be no ships of Kittim to block his way. There would be no Jerusalem outside of his reach. All of these circumstances, detailed in scripture, show a United States and an Israel existing outside of the Beast's empire ­ standing in opposition to him.

Since the Beast is killed and his army destroyed by God before it is able to topple Israel, how can anyone say that the Madman controls the whole world?  He never does.

The Bible can only say that because scripture shows there is more than one "Beast".

The greater world control goes to the Dragon, the father of the Antichrist. He, too is the Antichrist.

The Bible not only calls the Madman the Beast, it calls Satan the Beast too. (Note that in the Book of Revelation the Madman [the beast] is one of the seven "heads" of the Beast).

"And I saw a beast rising out of the sea, with ten horns and seven heads...One of its heads seemed to have a mortal wound, but its mortal wound was healed, and the whole earth followed the beast with wonder. "Men worshipped the dragon, for he had given his authority to the beast, and they worshipped the beast, saying, 'Who is like the beast, and who can fight against it?'

Confusing? One represents spiritual control (atheism, secularism) and the other represents physical control, the physical capture of nations.

 ...It was allowed to make war on the saints and to conquer them. and authority was given it over every tribe and people and tongue and nation, and all who dwell on the earth will worship it, every one whose name has not been written before the foundation of the world in the book of life..." (Rev. 13:1-9)

There are two Beasts, one physical and the other spiritual. According to this passasge of scripture, both are worshipped. Also we can see in this passage that the worship of the beast will equate to authority. Those who commit themselves to the secular way will be selected for leadership. These leaders will lead their nations away from God.

Much of this has already taken place. The world's gods are changing as we watch.

Even in the darkest hours of the End, there will still be some people who reject the beast . These are the people on earth who have been chosen by God for eternal life. These include Christians and Jews, the people of the two houses of Israel.

Thus it will be Satan, not his Antichrist who gains total control of all the nations. He is doing this by moving the leadership (and with them the public) philosophically out of Christianity and back into secularism and from there into atheism, i.e., into a philosophy of godlessness. So that in the end, every nation on earth will reject Jesus and His Gospel.

Where the Bible speaks about total commitment to the beast by the world, it points to secular philosophy. It speaks to spiritual control. It speaks to virtually the total rejection of Jesus by the nations.

World leaders are throwing God out of favor, out of their schools, out of their government, and out of their cities, by changing the philosophical framework guiding human civilization. Science and education are being morphed into the new gods. In the end, Religion will be treated as a fable. This is the darkness of the dragon that Jesus warned was returning,. His words speak to a descending spiritual darkness endorsed by the leaders of the nations ­ a darkness that will cover the whole earth.

And we can easily see this black cloud coming now. It is here today. Almost every nation on earth has already thrown God out of their government. Separation of State from Church is a ubiquitous term all across the world, not just in the United States.

By abandoning Jesus Christ, the nations have rebelled against God. Jesus said in the beginning that they would do this. And that is what brings the Wrath ­ the fact that they have turned their back on God.

"On these grounds is sentence pronounced: that though the light has come into the world men have shown they prefer darkness to the light because their deeds were evil." (John 3:19).

Scripture indicates that the rebellion we see now will accelerate and get much worse. Almost everyone will abandon their Christian worship as far as God is concerned. The world will be a spiritual wasteland before the End comes. Not just some of the churches will close, but most of them will follow in shuttering. Many will be forced to close:

"Determined to destroy us once and for all, they burned down every shrine of God in the country. Deprived of signs, with no prophets left, who can say how long this will last?" (Ps. 74:8-9).

"The city of emptiness is in ruins, the entrance to every house is shut. There is lamentation in the streets: no wine, joy is quite gone, gladness banished from the country. Nothing but rubble in the city, the gate is smashed to pieces; and so it will be on earth, among the peoples, as at the beating of the olive trees, as at the gleaning of the grapes when the grape harvest is over." (Is. 24:10-13).

"Oblation and libation have vanished from the house of God. The priests, the ministers of the Lord are in mourning." (Joel 1:9).

Those who are committed to sin will attack the Bible philosophically. As their ranks swell, this attack will grow increasingly fierce. They will call Christians bigots for clinging to God's righteousness, and blaspheme the scriptures for the very same reason. In their contempt for the Holy Spirit, they will pummel Christians with ridicule and violence. Throughout the nations there will be great social pressure (peer pressure) to abandon Christian doctrine.

When Adolph Hitler came to power, a large part of the population of Germany worshipped him and strew rose petals in his path where he walked, not just because his people loved him, but also because his "brown shirts" were in the crowds taking careful note of all who did not applaud or cheer. Hitler's popularity was driven by an engine of fear. Hitler was an insanely brutal madman, and all were advised to worship him or else.

The same will be true of the Antichrist, only more so.  He will not be a man of peace. In the same way that Hitler focused his rage on the Jewish people (one of the two houses of Israel) the Antichrist will focus his rage on the rest of the House of Israel: Christians and the Holy Covenant. He will mount repeated campaigns to destroy Israel.

He will emerge like Bin Laden, a proud and haughty-faced warmonger in hiding who loves killing, who hates Christians; who also hates Jews; who hates both houses of Israel and is determined to rid the earth of them. That is how scripture shows the Antichrist presenting when he appears.

Blocked by the ships of Kittim, the Madman "will return and take furious action against the holy covenant and, as before, will favor those who forsake that holy covenant.

Forces of his will come and profane the sanctuary citadel, they will abolish the perpetual sacrifice and instal the disastrous abomination there. Those who break the covenant he will corrupt by his flatteries, but the people who know their God will stand firm and take action.

Those of the people who are learned will instruct many; for some days, however, they will be brought down by sword and flame, by captivity and by plundering. And thus brought down, little help will they receive, though many will be plotting on their side. Of the learned some will be brought down, as a result of which certain of them will be purged, purified and made white ­ until the time of the End, for the appointed time is still to come." (Dan. 11:30-35).

The fact that the United States is shown in the Bible opposing the Beast militarily (and with such might that the Antichrist runs away in fear), and the fact that we are shown to be aligned with Israel in the final war indicates we are a country that has been endowed with favor by God. The Antichrist cannot arise here. When the rest of the world chooses to follow the Antichrist, we choose to stand by Israel.

Our gravest danger is Jeremiah's 40:29-30 prophecy ­ an act that could dictate the destruction detailed in Jeremiah 45:4 be launched now instead of in a more distant future. The timing for that destruction requires western troops to be stationed at the Euphrates river (Jer. 46:5-8). That is where western troops are now based. We have been there since 2003. Thus conditions are ripe for the catastrophe (Is. 24:1-6).

The world stands at one of the most dangerous crossroads it has ever encountered, and the public knows it. Not just in America but everywhere. The people want hope. Barack Obama may not be able to solve these problems, but he does offer a measure of hope. A far greater hope is Jesus Christ. The Bible shows that without Him the world will collapse and terrorism will fill the vacuum.

At the end of the terrorism a person who hates Christians, one who proclaims openly that Jesus is not the Christ, will come to power.  He will never say that he is a Christian. Just the opposite. Scripture shows that from the very beginning, he will loudly and wildly revile God and voice to the heavens his blasphemies against Jesus and the Holy Covenant (Rev.13:5). His mouth will be filled with great boasts (Dan.11:8):

"The king will do as he pleases, growing more and more arrogant, considering himself greater than all the gods; he will utter incredible blasphemies against the God of gods, and he will thrive until the wrath reaches bursting point; for what has been decreed will certainly be fulfilled." (Dan.11:36).

"How much longer, God, is the oppressor to blaspheme, is the enemy to insult your name forever? Why hold back your hand, why keep your right hand hidden? ...Now, Lord, remember the enemy's blasphemy, how frenzied people dare to insult your name. Do not betray the soul of your dove to the beast...Respect the covenant! We can bear no more ­ every cave in the country is the scene of violence! ...Rise, God, say something on your own behalf, do not forget the madman's day-long blaspheming, remember the shouting of your enemies, this ever-rising clamour of your adversaries." (Ps. 74:10-23).

"For forty-two ' months the beast was allowed to mouth its boasts and blasphemies and to do l whatever it wanted; ·and it mouthed its blasphemies against God, against his name, his heavenly Tent and all those who are sheltered there." (Rev. 13:5-6)

Such will be the character of the Antichrist when he appears. Such also will be the character of those who follow him.

Those of us who love God and worship Jesus will be kept safe from them. God will raise us up in His name.

It is our own behavior and our own faith that we must look to, not scan the horizon for a spectre whose appearance is still a long way off. When we see the Antichrist it may be too late.to act.

We can do nothing about the Beast, but we can escape him. Jesus gave us the way.

In the current edition of the National Geographic there is an in-depth article on the conversion of Russia to Christ. Since the renewal's beginning in 1987 when the communist Soviet Union collapsed, this transformation from atheism to the Gospel has been spectacular. "In 1987 there were only three monasteries in Russia; today there are 478. Then there were just two seminaries; now there are 25. Most striking is the explosion of churches, from about 2,000 in Gorbachev's time to nearly 13,000 today" (Serge Schmemann, National Geographic Magazine, April 2009). The fall of communism has not only spawned there a vigorous rebirth of the Russian Orthodox church, Christianity and the Russian state have become intertwined in it. Prime Minister Vladimir Putin (vigorously pro-Christian) has called the church "as vital to Russia's security as its nuclear shield" (Ibid).

With this regeneration of Christian faith in Russia as a backdrop, remember that Sister Lucia, the primary visionary in the 1917 Fatima apparitions announced that the second of the three mysterious prophecies associated with that event called for everyone to pray for the conversion of Russia. The call seemed an act of futility when Lucia first revealed the prophecy in the1930's. It widened even further over the ensuing decades ­ cascading by the 1980's into what seemed a pipe-dream so far from reality that the possibility of its fulfillment was dismissed by most people out of hand.

A nearly successful assassinaton attempt on the life of the Pope by a rumored agent of the Soviet Union in 1981 steeled the impasse and seemed to illuminate beyond all doubt, the throne of Satan on earth, as it pushed the battle line between the powers of earth and God right up to the front door of heaven.

Six years later that line appeared to vanish. The impossible had happened. Russia had converted! Now over 20 years old, a renewed Christian Russia has not only converted, its transformation has been spectacular. Atheism's authoritarian stranglehold on that nation has given way to a burgeoning faith in Christ, awesome by any calculation and fiercely championed by Russia's political leaders. Despite overwhelming odds, Lucia's prophecy has come true.

Our own political leaders in the west, having just thrown Jesus Christ out of our government and out of our schools can only stand and watch in disbelief.

Jeremiah wrote in his biblical prophecies that the cup of the Messiah would first be offered in Jerusalem and from there pass west across the world like the transit of the sun, making its way full circle around the earth to the river (the Euphrates) where the "king of Sheshak" would be the last to drink. Sheshak is considered by most scholars to be Iraq, the same Iraq where almost 5000 American troops have given their lives trying to bring democracy and with it, freedom of worship to that area.

The mass held in the "Green Zone", king Saddam Hussein's Baghdad Palace, in 2003 by the American forces, speaks to the Sheshak prophecy. Concomitant with that full circle of the Gospel around the globe and its deep penetration into the Asian continent has been the conversion of Russia. Both events offering certain proof of the prophecies that foretold them.

The cup of Christ has indeed circled the globe. Not only that, it has reached its final frontier.

All the prophecies fulfulled in our time seem to have the same ring of finality to them. The rebuildng of Jerusalem, the "maginot-like" line at the Euphrates, the arrival of the the "third day", the swift appearance and quick passage of the 7th head of the beast (Adolph Hitler), the reappearance of Sodom and Gomorrah, the recent rejection by the western nations of Christ after almost 2000 years of embrace, the strengthening of the nuclear arsenal with all the nations mobilizing for war, and gathering around Jerusalem, the ships of Kittim, the return of atheism, love in most people turning cold, the time of terrorism, the fall of the towers, the rise of Persia and the East, the roaring of the seas and earthquakes in diverse places rocking the cities.

The signs are warnings that everything Jesus said will come true. Everything. We are very close to the end of days when salvation's offer will cease. Who is it that dares forbid us to pray?

"Which of you listening to this, will pay attention and mark it, against the time to come? Who handed Jacob over to the robber, Israel to the pillagers? Was it not the Lord? We had sinned against him, we had refused to follow his ways or obey his Law. On him he poured out the blaze of his anger and the furies of war. It enveloped him in flames and he did not notice, it burned him up, and he gave it no thought." (Is. 42:23-25)

How can we tell the good prophets from the bad ones?­OL

Answer:

Paul said, "Keep to what is written". That means, stay with the bound scriptures, especially with the Gospel of Jesus. Anyone who follow's Paul's formula should be quite safe from false prophecy.

The main reason why the prophecies in scripture are so much more important than those uttered by the people surrounding us now is because God promised that the Bible's words would all come true. That promise does not hold true for the oracles uttered by ministers and other current seers.

With them it is maybe yes and maybe no. As Paul said, we see dimly (1 Cor.13:12).

Not so with scripture. Jesus confirmed that it was God's intent to keep His promise to make the prophecies in scripture come true. In fact, Jesus went to great lengths to prove that intent. Thus our faith assures us the prophecies that are written (those that have stood in scripture for the last 2000 years) are sure.

Because they are divinely programmed to come true, scripture's visions speak to us about the truth of Jesus Christ. Each time a prophecy happens as predicted, further confirmation of His truth is revealed. This should bolster faith and cause large numbers of people to navigate towards Him. Surprisingly, it doesn't. We find ourselves today in a time where, despite the fact that the prophecies of scripture are being fulfilled in numbers as large as any time in history, church attendance is in free-fall.

This also speaks to prophesy. Paul, in his letter to Timothy said,

"The time is sure to come when, far from being content with sound teaching, people will be avid for the latest novelty and collect for themselves a whole series of teachers according to their own tastes; and then, instead of listening to the truth, they will turn to myths. Be careful always to choose the right course; be brave as you suffer your trials for Christ and make the preaching of the Good News your life's work as you fulfill your ministry in the service of the Lord." (2 Tim. 4:3-6)

We have surely entered the time Paul was talking about. That is why it is so important we listen more closely to Jesus than anyone else, so that we are not tempted to be moved by the collection of teachers that turn out myths instead of the truths of God.

Jesus told His followers:

"This Good News of the kingdom will be proclaimed to the whole world as a witness to all the nations. And then the end will come." (Mat. 24:14).

In 1963 Billy Graham, preaching to 100,000 people in the coliseum in Los Angeles, remarked that his words (the very words they were hearing) were being broadcast at the same time across the entire world both by radio and television. He said that each time he spoke he was able to preach the Gospel to more people than had all the apostles and ministers in the first century put together.

He said that in1963, almost 50 years ago. Imagine how far-more-reaching the ministry is today than then. Especially now that Christ's message is being carried not just by radio and TV, but by satellite and internet. Truly Christ's prophecy about the global extent of His ministry has been fulfilled in virtually every possible way. Jesus said that when this reach of the Gospel had been achieved...then the end would come. (Mat.24:14).

That prophecy has come true in our own time. Not yet in the End forseen, but in the reach of the Gospel.

In the Book of Jeremiah it is written that, starting with Jerusalem, every nation on earth must drink from the cup (that is the Gospel) ­ a drink so powerful that many will be driven mad by it (Jer. 25:15-29). Jeremiah said that the "king of Sheschak will be the last to drink as God's cup makes its transit across the world. The translation of Sheschak is Iraq, a Moslem nation where the preaching of Jesus has been forbidden since 600 A.D.

All that changed in 2003 when American troops held communion ceremonies in Saddam Hussein's palace in the Green Zone. The country of Iraq has since gone mad, with war ravaging every quarter of the country for 6 years straight. More importantly, the cup of God has come full circle in terms of prophecy.

In 1947 a Jewish nation was restored to Palestine by the United Nations. In Jewish terms, at that moment, the rebuilding of Jerusalem was at hand. This fulfilled a great many prophecies in scripture. It was a seminal moment in Jewish history promising to put an end to the great Diaspora ­ the 2000-year separation of the Jewish people from their holy city.

Not even this has stemmed the falling belief in Jesus Christ across the world. A virtual cascade of prophecies have now been completed as written ­ end term prophecies pointing to the fact that the grandest of all the prophecies, the Return of Jesus Christ, is growing very close. And yet, in the face of a multitude of such prophecy-confirming events, all the people of this world can do is scoff.

That is why, in this shortness of days we must prepare for even greater displays of false prophecy:

"But when the Rebel comes, Satan will set to work: there will be all kinds of miracles and a deceptive show of signs and portents, and everything evil that can deceive those who are bound for destruction because they would not grasp the love of the truth which could have saved them. The reason why God is sending a power to delude them and make them believe what is untrue is to condemn all who refused to believe in the truth and chose wickedness instead." (2 Thes.2:5-12).

This is why I say to cling very close to Jesus. His words are the litmus test of prophecy. He comes to us in the name of God. The others come in their own names. Jesus said we will know them by their fruits. Instead of kindness and love of others, they promote the opposite. Overwhelmingly, their true god is money. So make the Word your home and listen to Jesus when He speaks. He really does know what He is talking about. Everything He said is coming true.

 

Questioning your writing re the "Christian era" you miss the complexity of history and present a benign and simplistic alternative that never was. Church rule was harsh and violent rule. If we have learned one thing in the study of history it is that religion is the driver of armies. ­KI

Answer:

It is not religion that is the salvation of man, but Jesus Christ.

Everything Jesus said is true.  And one thing He said was that He had not come to bring peace to the earth, but battle. "Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth: it is not peace I have come to bring, but a sword. For I have come to set a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law. A man's enemies will be those of his own household." (Mt. 10:34-36).

Not only does this warfare reach down into our households, it stretches all the way up to the churches, synagogues and mosques throughout the nations. It divides Christ from religion; as much as it does from non-religion.

The warfare is there because the world hates Jesus and everything He stands for. That is why Christians find themselves perpetually under seige. It is not Christ who brings the war ­ He has brought peace ­ it is His enemies that raise the sword against Him and against all who follow Him.

That is because His Word accuses them of sin.

And warns them that if they do not change they are going to die in their sins.

Even so, Any study of the thousand-year history of Rome ­ from Romulus to Romulus ­ will show there has been little correlation between religion and war over the long course of that history. The warfare that wracked the world in Roman times, though constant, was almost never driven by religion. Religion was persecuted, often violently, but was incidental to the ambitions drving a millenium of Roman sword.

Studying the previous regimes of world history before Rome we see the same intitiatives and motives. Religious factors were rare. Human ambition and an overarching thirst for power have been the driving motives for warfare on this planet.

According to the prophecies of scripture ­ prophecies written long before the fact ­ God dictated that He would make the religious views of the Messiah cover the world. This He did. It was into a world racked by war and violence that God inserted His Christ. His teaching preached peace and love and motivated a vast population to pursue such principles. Under the umbrella of a very powerful Church God placed the children He had found. The Lord then aligned that Church with the strongest and most powerful nations in the world.

Under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, the world's sword was purposely placed in the hands of those who protected the Church. The first world emperor to discover this fact was Constantine. It was this same formula, reenacted again and again over the course of history by other world leaders that produced, guaranteed and perpetuated the preeminence of the Christian era on earth.

God grasped the world on purpose and made it follow the course He dictated. The world had no choice in the matter, proved by the fact that Michael was ordered to lock Satan in the Abyss and keep him there in chains for the millenium prophesied. That left Satan's angels bereft of leadership.

God's purpose was to find the lost children of Israel ­ those who had been stolen from God and hidden in all the hollows of Satan's illicit kingdom. Jesus' singular purpose was to lead these captives out of harms way ­ to a place of certain safety.  God fashioned the earth just for this purpose, making it reflect His aims, forcing it to fitfully follow the course He dictated until the harvest was complete.

The only way God's reality can be seen is to believe wholeheartedly in the truth of Jesus Christ and the Word He preached. That is the meaning of faith. Any other belief will precipitate a different view.

This world does not know or even care about God's purpose. It doesn't believe in God. The world has invented its own purpose and that false reality is the view we have been raised up here to know and follow. The world sees our existance here like a fair full of bargains and our life in it like a game. It regards ethics as a smokescreen for suckers.

Thus we have before us a way of righteousness and a way of evil. This is the crossroads. Between these two roads is the choice of life's travel we must all make; that we were all born to make.

God said the Christian religious era would be short-lived and we have observed it breaking down over the last several centuries as the ambitions and greed that underlie human nature have percolated back up through the populations, increasing as their faith has waned.

Today the bonds that tied the Church to the strong nations of the world have been broken. That alliance is gone, vanishing with the disappearance of world faith, and it has left the Church vulnerable to assault and violent overthrow.  Even within the Church, civil wars have produced great fracture lines throughout its structure. This has weakened it further still.

Having abandoned faith in Christ and the peace He proposed, the strong nations are now forming bonds with His enemies. The sword of battle will remain firm in their hands, driven as it always has been by politics and nationalism. Unrestrained by compassion or love, these strong nations will set the world on fire, proving once and for all that war was never driven by those who obey Christ, but by the overwhelming absence of such people.

 

With the world making a mockery of marriage and the laws of God, especially the United States, how do we fight against these laws? These men and women that sit in high places and pass laws that are an abomination in the sight of God and his followers, what is the answer? We that want to follow God and stand tall during these terrible times in a country where morality is fading fast..The Bible said what man thinks he will do and now they are passing laws that all are expected to follow and they are despicable.. Besides our faith and prayer, what are we to do? ­CFM

Answer:

The times have changed. The world of Christian times is being slowly replaced by non-Christian elements in keeping with prophecy:

"The Spirit has explicitly said that during the last times there will be some who will desert the faith and choose to listen to deceitful spirits and doctrines that come from the devils; and the cause of this is the lies told by hypocrites whose consciences are branded as though with a red-hot iron." (1 Tim.4:1-3).

"You may be quite sure that in the last days there are going to be some difficult times. People will be self-centered and grasping; boastful and unappeasable; they will be slanderers, profligates, savages and enemies of everything that is good; they will be treacherous and reckless and demented by pride, preferring their own pleasure to God. They will keep up the outward appearance of religion but will have rejected the inner power of it. Have nothing to do with people like that." (2 Tim.3:1-5)

God said the time for the harvest would be short. The world is in the process of secularizing (terminating God's harvest). This has coincided with Satan being allowed to exit the Abyss where he was kept in chains for the period of time God allotted for the harvest (Rev.20:1-10).

Christ's harvest could not have occurred in perfection had Satan remained free during its course. That is why God had Michael lock him in chains for the 1000 years (a day made into almost two according to the prophecy in the Book of Joshua 10:12-14).  In his return, Satan has reorganized his forces and is mobilizing the world for war. This is all in keeping with the prophecies in the Book of Revelation (Rev. 20:7-8), and in fact, throughout scripture (Dn. 9:26; Joel 1:16-18; 2 Thes.2:9-12, etc.).

This battle is described briefly in Daniel (Dn.10:13-21).

"The prince of the kingdom of Persia has been resisting me for twenty-one days, but Michael, one of the leading princes, came to my assistance. I have left him confronting the kings of Persia and have come to tell you what will happen to your people in the days to come. For here is a new vision about those days..." (Dn.10:12-14).

"Do you know why I have come to you? It is to tell you what is written in the Book of Truth. I must go back to fight against the Prince of Persia, and when I have done with him, the prince of Javan comes next. In all this there is no one to lend me support except Michael your prince on whom I rely to give me support and reinforce me." (Dn.10:20-21).

The spiritual forces of God are pitted against the spiritual forces of the nations of this world. We can see this relationship measured in Daniel's verse in terms of the prince of Persia and the prince of Javan. Persia, as we have seen embraced the teachings of Mohammed 600 years after the crucifixion of Jesus and immediately mounted three great wars against the people and lands of Christ.

Javan (the west) is now warring against Christianity in a different way, but just as spiritually antagonistic. This is happening in the ways your describe.

All this is the beginning of the time scripture terms "the Wrath" ­ the time of the Great Tribulation. This time of fury is the great chaos (global sin) that begins Satan's attempt to overthrow the Church:

"...when the measure of their sins is full, a king will arise, a proud-faced, ingenious-minded man. His power will gather strength ­ but not through power of his own ­ he will plot incredible schemes, he will succeed in what he undertakes, he will destroy powerful men and the people of the saints. Such will be his resourcefulness of mind that all his treacherous activities will succeed. He will grow arrogant of heart, take many unawares and destroy them. He will challenge the power of the Prince of princes; but, no hand intervening, shall himself be broken." (Dn. 8:23-25).

"It (this horn) grew right up to the armies of heaven and flung armies and stars to the ground, and trampled them underfoot. It even challenged the power of that army's Prince; it abolished the perpetual sacrifice and overthrew the foundation of his sanctuary, and the army too; it put iniquity on the sacrifice and flung truth to the ground; the horn was active and successful." (Dan. 8:9-12).

Prayer gives God the means to fight the Wrath's persistant encroachment (note the spiritual warfare Jesus tells Daniel He and Michael are waging against the princes of Persia and Javan above). But as you have noted, prayer is waning. With the schools not allowed to talk about God (and actually able to mock Him), the young are being bred outside faith in Jesus.

It is going to go the way scripture describes, but that does not mean we should just give up. That would be to lose our faith as well, and thus our lives in Christ. Faith is very powerful and even a small amount can have a mighty impact.

Not only that, faith in Christ brings to our souls enormous peace. In these times, there is no peace outside of Him. Jesus puts us squarely into the 23rd Psalm where rod and staff truly do comfort and still waters abound; where there is nothing to fear; where absolute safety is assured forever.

The laws against God you write about come from our national leaders. In America, our constitution has language that seems to structure it against Christ, but it was not meant to be that way. Our earlier leaders understood this. That is why a compromise structure existed here from 1776 to 1963. We are a nation where 87% are stated to be Christian. We need to impress on our national leaders the need to return to some sort of compromise between the wording of the constitution and the morality of faith that made our nation so great in its first 200 years.

The truth is, we need our own form of "K" street in Washington. Much smaller groups have had enormous impact far beyond their size in lobbying there against God in opposition to His holy Word.

 

What is the "WRATH"? When is it coming? How soon?­GA

Answer:

The wrath is the time of tribulation warned about in scripture.

There can be little doubt that it is here now ­ that it has already started. To see that we have only to look to the extraordinary global calamities that have wracked the world since the beginning of the 20th century. Who could ponder that uninterrupted cascade of disasters which began even before the century appeared and have tumbled unabated into this century as well with increasing fury, and not see global wrath?

Into that space are crammed two world wars, almost every city in the Europe and Asia bombed to rubble and burned to the ground, the massacres of repeated genocides, more than a hundren million people killed, 500 million more maimed and injured ­ radiation and poison gas; horrors far worse than anything ever seen before on earth by man.

During this same period, every nation in the western world has rejected Jesus and His Gospel. They have cast Christ out of all their governments. In that rejection, the mortal wound Jesus delivered to Babylon has healed.

Absolute proof of that healing was made manifest when atheism as a major system of world government returned from its 2000-year hiatus, suddenly blanketing Russia, China and all their satellites ­ a third of the world ­ practically overnight.  Atheism had been held back by the Church. Governmental atheism was not allowed to exist on earth during the reign of Christ. It had been forbidden for almost1600 years.

On top of that return, the fourth kingdom of Persia, described by Daniel in his visions of the End (Dan.11:2), is now rising to power as we watch. Western troops have been sent to the Euphrates to block it in fulfillment of the prophecies (Jer. 46:1-10).

Mindless of the dark and towering waves approaching our shores, the government of the United States has expelled God from any participation in the governance of its people. The schools are forbidden even to mention His name. His words ridiculed, the name of His Son is becoming anathama to an entire global population.

None of the cataclysms of the 20th century have turned the people to God. And that is why they continue. Despite a ceaseless staccato of disasters, most have ignored it all and gone on in the same way as before, more stubborn than ever in their rejection of Him. No nation is listening anymore to the Lord. Instead, they ridicule the idea of a Creator in creation, and increasingly see God as a Bronze Age bias that needs expelling.

That vision, verbally expressed is blasphemy of the Holy Spirit. Scripture is very clear about what it brings.

"God will arm creation to punish his enemies; he will put on justice as a breastplate...he will forge a biting sword of his stern wrath, and the universe will march with him to fight the reckless. Bolts truly aimed, the shafts of lightning will leap, and from the clouds, as from a full-drawn bow, fly to their mark; and the catapult will hurl hailstones charged with fury. The waters of the sea will rage against them, the rivers engulf them without pity. The breath of God will blow against them and winnow them like a hurricane. So lawlessness will bring the whole earth to ruin and evil-doing bring the thrones of the mighty down." (Wis.5:17-24).

Now in the dark clouds of a recession so cavernous it may cut deeper than any depression the country has ever seen, a wrenching poverty has suddenly covered America like a blanket. Unemployment is surging around the world, threatening global stability. The banks are failing, finances are bankrupt, Wall Street has collapsed in shame and businesses are failing in thunderous crashes everywhere as the politicians play games ­ some so aloof they remain unaware of the dire situation that faces their constituents. A growing number of economists expect a return of normalcy to be decades away.

What has suddenly encompassed us is not a passing event. It is nothing like the past. Everything has changed. The 20th century was not an aberration. The Wrath is a rising tide of catastrophe, punishing not all at once, but in inceasingly bitter stages so those inclined might still recognize the truth and repent. It is not God's wish that any person perish. He came to save everyone ­ everyone possessing the courage to listen to Him.

Listening to Jesus ­ taking His words to heart ­ that is the light at the end of this tunnel. In God, rescue is certain!  All His promises still hold true.  Tough times will not change that.

(For more on this, see "Tribulation")

Will Gabriel sound the 7th and last trumpet at the 2nd coming of the son of David and could Gabriel possibly be David? And who are the 7 spirits of God in Revelation?? ­R

Answer:

The 12-page exegesis you provided with your questions (answering your own questions) details a well-defined thesis, but it doesn't fit the format of traditional Christian understanding. By making a u-turn out of the New Testmant back to the Old, you glorify what oughtn't be glorified: angels and Old Testament figures for instance. And you make up your own definitions concerning many of these things.

The traditional thinking in Christianity is that it is not uncommon in scripture for angels to appear in the form of people and talk in human voices. An angel is a heavenly being that can, among other things, take the form of a man and speak like a man. This is obvious in Joshua's description of his meeting with the arch-angel Michael (Joshua 5:13-15). So common was this transformation, the Bible talks about our entertaining angels without even realizing it (Heb.13:1).

Jesus said the obverse was even more true. "For at the resurrection men and women do not marry; no, they are like the angels in heaven." (Mt.22:29-30). According to Jesus they are the same as the angels of heaven (Luke 20: 34-38), "and because those who are chosen are children of the resurrection, they are sons of God", i.e., not just angels, but a unique and surpassing category of being ­brothers and sisters of Jesus the Christ ­ and therefore sons of God.

As we can see on earth looking at brothers and sisters of the king, it is the status of royalty.

Speaking of elevaton to that unique and surpassing category of being, Jesus said the least person who follows Him is greater than anyone of the past (Mt.11:11). In this sense no one can justify glorifing figures from the biblical past without recognizing that the least Christian is greater than them all ­ greater than Moses, greater than Joshua, greater even than Elijah.

Jesus told us that John the Baptist WAS Elijah, thus it was Elijah by inference that Jesus referred to when He said that those who obey Him are greater:

"I tell you solemnly, of all the children born of women, a greater than John the Baptist has never been seen; yet the least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he is. (Mt.11:11).

The advent of Christianity infinitely transcends the era and figures that heralded it.  It is those who have heared, followed and obeyed Christ's Gospel who are this world's greatest figures. That includes even David.

The word 'David' in scripture is a messianic metaphore, but David himself was a man whose own lineage is well defined in scripture. He was no angel in any sense of the word. And he was not descended from an angel.  In fact, Peter revealed David never ascended into heaven. He is still in his tomb awaiting the judgment (Acts 2:34). Remember, David is the one who ordered one of his generals to certain death because he lusted after the man's wife and wanted to marry her. Which he did.

When scripture uses the term "son of David", it is always in the metaphoric sense, alluding to the oft repeated prophecy that declared He would descend from David's root. Jesus, born into the lineage of David through Mary, fulfilled this prophecy.

David was a king of Israel. Long after Israel's monarchy disappeared, Jesus was declared a part of this royalty by Pontius Pilate.  Pilate's station ­ his absolute command over Israel ­ gave him authority to do this. Thus both the lineage and the prophecies of kingship apply to Him. It is the David of prophecy, not the David of history that defines Jesus.

The Book of Revelation describes Christianity in terms of seven churches. The 7 spirits (angels) described in the Book of Revelation are the heavenly guardians of these churches. Scripture shows they are to be held accountable for their guidance (see Rev. 2 & 3). The number seven has to be metaphoric because there are more than seven churches. Many more.

We are far closer to the end of the harvest on earth today than to its beginning. Thus we can now see clearly the structure of Christ's 7 churches. They number in the thousands, a vast number that shows not a literal, but a metaphoric relationship to the number 7.

Seven is a number which, in its symbolic sense, has always meant "perfection", "completion" or "fulfillment".

The same symbolism applies to the number of angels God has assigned to oversee the immensity of all these denominations and churches. God has assigned as many as needed to oversee the job. He has assigned fulfillment and perfection. When the job is done we will see that it has been done both completely and perfectly.

The name of the angel who blows the final trumpet is not what is important to us. If it were the Bible would inform us clearly. It is assumed in Christianity that it will be Gabriel. What IS important is that as soon as the trumpet sounds, the Archangel will call out the command and Jesus will return (1 Thess.4:16).

Moses is considered the author of the Law. That is because the core of the Old Testament (the Torah) was written by him. In the same way, much of the the New Testament was written by Paul. Thus Paul is to Christianity what Moses was to Judaism.  

Furthermore, Jesus appointed Peter to be the head of the Church, i.e., the priest in charge ­ a station far higher than the one occupied by Aaron, Moses' brother in the Old Testament. Aaron and Moses merely anticipated the higher stations in God's Church. Peter and Paul assumed them.

Peter and Paul were always the rightful heirs. That is because the religion of God infinitely transcends the religion of Moses. In Christianity, Jesus has lifted religion up to divinity.

The bread of life comes from Jesus not Moses. Eternal life comes only through Jesus. There is no eternal life in Moses. That is why we can't go back to the Old Testament. We must stay with Christ. The writing of all the prophets was about Jesus. Even the Book of Daniel defines an attack, not on Mosaic worship, but on Christianity and Christian worship. The Hebrew religion existed only to proclaim and prophesy the Messiah.

The 2 witnesses of Christ on earth are Peter and Paul. The sackcloth they preach from takes its name from the traditional black sackcloth-like cover of the Bible. We know them by their words, and their words come to us only from that Book.

Who is Peter? Who is Paul? Who is Jesus? We know them only by their words and by the power of the Holy Spirit who guides us in the understanding of their words. We open the pages of the New Testament, and there they are.

The traditional Church teaches that we must stay in the New Testament. Jesus did not come to lead us back to the Old Testament . He came to fulfill the testimony of the old, yes, but in the NEW understanding that He brought down to us from heaven. The Old Testament only alludes to that new understanding (see John 6 :32-35).

The Old Testament had a violent understanding. Jesus led the Law out of that violence into peace.

 

...about the illegal immigrants. Do you think they should be deported or forgiven? ­PL

Answer:

In most ways that's a state issue. Peter said that God has given government officials authority to punish lawless behavior. Only when the law comes into conflict with the Gospel, is there a problem. In that case we should obey God.

Fortunately, those instances of conflict are still rare. The Gospel does not promote lawlessness. Being meek amd humble, giving money to the poor, feeding the hungry, giving drink to the thirsty and tending to the sick are virtually always legal actions. More than that, they are the very threads of the wedding garment.

There are several passages in scripture in which God orders the protection of fugitives:

"Listen! Fugitives and runaways come from the land of Babylon to proclaim in Zion the vengeance of the Lord our God." (Jer.50:28).

"You inhabitants of Tema go and meet the fugitive and give him bread; since these are fleeing from the swords, from biting swords, from bent bows, from the stress of battle." (Is.21:13-15).

"Hide those who have been driven out, do not let the refugee be seen...be their refuge against the destroyer." (Is.16:3-4).

"Do not take your stand at the crossroads to cut off its fugitives. Do not hand over its survivors on the day of distress. For the day of God is near for all the nations. As you have done, so will it be done to you: your deeds will recoil on your own head." (Obadiah 7:14-15).

On TV a year or two ago law enforcement authorities entered a church where an illegal alien worked and had taken refuge. They dragged her out to be deported because she was in violation of the law. This event highlights a second side in this issue.

In scripture we, ourselves are the fugitives. And that is what these biblical passages are referring to. We are on the run trying to make our way from this world to the kingdom of God ­ trying to escape with our lives from a world filled with evil, and all the while fighting a spiritual blockade set up by Satan to prevent us from entering the domain of God.

This blockade was erected by Satan to insure that each of us be carefully sifted so that our illegal nature might be exposed.

It was Satan, in trying to bring us into the disfavor of God, that labeled us "illegal" in the first place. Not only that, he proved it.  In successfully tempting Adam and Eve he indelibly stained all mankind with a lawlessness mark that blocked the vision of man from the sight of God.  

As far as heaven and God are concerned, we were created to be the newcomers. Scripture tells us that it was Satan's enormous jealousy against our being selected by God to enter what Satan had considered his exclusive domain that caused him to mutiny, fomenting the great rebellion that set the universe on fire and engulfed the entire creation in war.

Spewing out a flood of propaganda, Satan was able to convince 1/3 of the angels of heaven to back him in his contempt for us, and to help him in his efforts to keep our souls unrighteous. They are still fighting that fight today, still filled with hatred and contempt for us despite God's fury at their efforts.

In that anger, God has defeated Satan's forces in heaven, thrown them all down to earth and condemned them to death. At the same time He sent his only Son down to grant us, through the Law, a pardon from sin.

Jesus died on the cross to take our illegality away. He paid our penalty by dying in our place and in our name. His death washes away the sins of everyone who takes refuge in Him and guarantees them free entrance into heaven. Those who refuse to accept His offer of safe passage must remain outside. Those who make their way in illegally (without a wedding garment) will be expelled (Mat. 22:11-14).

On account of his treacherous cunning, Satan has been allowed to sift us all like wheat. That's where everyone reading this page is right now ­ a fugitive and a runaway from Babylon, on a journey from illegality toward becoming a son of God ­ being sifted by Satan ­ a trial by fire designed to prove our faith in Jesus Christ ­ a faith that offers us the only passage there is out of death.

It is an easy faith. All it requires is baptism in the name of Jesus Christ and a life of humility and compassion ­ being meek amd humble, giving money to the poor, feeding the hungry, giving drink to the thirsty, tending to those in need and forgiving all we would ordinarily condemn.

Simply put, we must live as the Gospel teaches. Not just when we think about it, but 24-7. And when we stumble ask God for forgiveness. The cross is there for that very purpose so that every sin be erased.

 

I read the following on your web site, but I cannot find scripture verses that support this understanding. Please help. Thanks. ­A

"And that seed had nothing to do with evolution. It was breathed into man's flesh when the conditions were right. The universe was made only for Christ's appearance in it. It was made so that evil could be destroyed."

Answer:

Paul wrote that "flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, and the perishable cannot inherit what lasts forever." (1 Cor.15:50).. It is shown in the Old Testament that the flesh is the clothing of the soul. Just as clothing can be replaced while the person remains the same, so the body can be replaced while the soul remains the same. In Jesus we die to this body and are raised up in a new one, of God's design (see 1 Cor.15:35-44). That is what it means to be born again.

"In him you have been circumcised, with a circumcision not performed by human hand, but by the complete stripping of your body of flesh. This is circumcision according to Christ. You have been buried with him, when you were baptised; and by baptism, too, you have been raised up with him through your belief in the power of God who raised him from the dead." (Col.2:13).

In Jesus' parable of the mysterious growth of the seed we read this:

"This is what the kingdom of God is like. A man throws seed on the land. Night and day, while he sleeps, when he is awake, the seed is sprouting and growing ­ how, he does not know. Of its own accord the land produces first the shoot, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear. And when the crop is ready, he loses no time: he starts to reap because the harvest has come." (Mark 4:26-29).

The seed has produced its fruit.

In this parable we are shown not the growth of the human body from a baby into an adult, but the growth of the Word of God within it, changing the internal thinking and therefore the behavior of the person so that their physical and spiritual actions come to mimic as closely as possible the actions of God.

This can happen at any bodily age. What has been changed is not the body but the growth of the soul within the body in gaining the strength it needs to overcome the natural impulses of the body to follow the world. It is this growth process that enables the soul to navigate the body away from worldly ways and along God's path of righteousness instead. As Jesus said, "the spirit is willing but the flesh is weak". (Mat. 26:41).

What is changing in this process is the strengthening of faith within the soul to the point where it can overcome the body and guide it to produce the behavioral fruit of God. This process is described by Jesus in His parable of the seed cast into the ground.

This seed (God's Word) was breathed into man's flesh when he first heard the Word of God preached to him. The age of the man or woman receiving the seed of this sowing is irrelevant. Only the hearing matters ­ the moment when the veil is torn. Just as a seed is cast into the ground, the seed of Christ (the Holy Spirit) enters a person to do its mysterious work ­ to save the soul it has entered.

It is in this way that evil is destroyed (Mat.24-30).

The universe was made only for this sowing. We know that because Jesus said, "Heaven and earth will pass away, but my word will never pass away" (Luke 21:29-31).  Once the sowing and reaping is completed, this universe will be replaced by God's new kingdom, a kingdom that Jesus said "is not of this world" (John 18:36).

When we read the Apostle Peter's words, we can see the extent of the difference between this universe and God's new kingdom. The difference between them is enormous:

"They are choosing to forget that there were heavens at the beginning, and that the earth was formed by the word of God out of water and between the waters, so that the world of that time was destroyed by being flooded by water. But by the same word, the present sky and earth are destined for fire, and are only being reserved until Judgement day so that all sinners may be destroyed." (2 Peter 3:5-7).

I am endlessly amazed by the Book of Revelation and how closely it matches the things we are seeing now. Who still doubts that we are living in the last days? ­PT

Answer:

Not just the Book of Revelation. The whole Bible.

What has been shown by events over the last 20 years is the absolutely certainty with which we can plot current history on the template of the Bible. Not only can the past be plotted on that template (including the recent past) but the future as well, and with astonishing clarity.

Why does scriptural prophecy work? Because it all points to Jesus and to His divine reality. The Old Testament was created for one overarching purpose ­  to be a prophecy that God Himself would come into the world in the form of a Messiah that everyone must listen to. All who follow Him will be saved.

That Messiah was Jesus. He perfectly fulfilled all the prophecies made about Him long before He appeared. Even to the last which said the world that believed in Him would end up rejecting Him and thus usher in the bitter age of Wrath that follows the rejection of God's treaty for peace on earth.

His appearance proves the world was made for us. All of this, complex as it is, has been constructed to give us a chance to escape death. Jesus died on the cross for one purpose only ­ to give us that opportunity. All who accept God's offer by rejecting sin and turning to the righteousness of the Lord will live forever. Jesus will raise us from the dead.

All who listen to Him and put His words into practice will be resurrected to a new life, far more sophisticated than this, a life of absolute perfection, to live forever with God.

 

The sudden collapse of AOL's member web page server on Halloween night not only vaporized a vast network of AOL customer web pages, it took our own AOL presence with it as well. That collection of web pages has been up since 1995 and was our second oldest web site on the internet. We are not new to having ISP servers and their companies suddenly vanish, be sold or tampered with, but this loss was particularly unsettling.

We don't know the financial circumstances at AOL, and our old e-mail address there is still in working order, but a change of venue in light of the current economic situation in the country seems to be prudent. No ISP pulls the plug on its internet servers except under extraordinary circumstances.

For this reason, we have opened a new e-mail site on Google's "gmail" service. The address is as follows:

askgoodnews@gmail.com

All future e-mail to Goodnews Christian Ministry (questions as well as requests) should be directed to us through this new internet address.

TL

Persia. Esther. Purim. When? Where? Xerxes?? ­ER

Answer:

The biblical story of Esther does not match well with history. It is set in a hazy period after Babylon's defeat by Persia (thus after the Persian proclamation allowing a Jewish return to Jerusalem has been issued) but while the bulk of Jewish people are still resident in Mesopotamia. In other words, before most have left.

The importance of Esther's story is magnified by the fact that it seems to define one of the seven nations and personages designated in scripture as a "head" of the beast. Moreover, out of it comes a significant Hebrew holy period called Purim.

Add to that Persia's overarching significance in End-time prophecy and the possibility that Persia will field the 8th "head" of the beast, the fog surrounding the historical data becomes an extraordinary puzzlement. The study of prophecy depends on such data to triangulate circumstances in its proofs, and we are left here with one side of that triangle virtually missing.

We will never know the actual historical structure in this story; whether the featured king is Xerxes or how and where Esther and Vashti fit into a format that seems to preclude them. Fortunately there is so much written in scripture about the final era of history (the era Esther's story points to); and those events are scattered across so many divergent parts of scripture that deciphering involves a different process.

We have to put them together like pieces of a puzzle. Into this jumbled network must fit the events of the Maccabees, Antiochus IV Epiphanes, Daniel's 8th chapter, sections of the Book of Revelation, Mosaic declarations, Jesus' words, Paul's, even the Book of Chronicles. Much of this, material far afield from the geography and time frame circumscribed by Esther's residence in Susa.

It points to such a pivotal future event, we must take this story on its face (what God has given us) and ignore the forgotten elements that veil our understanding of its historical structure. Esther is a story about the future, pure and simple.

The fact that it is shown to take place after Babylon's defeat by Persia, and after Cyrus' proclamaation freeing the Jews from their dispersion, but still during the time of dispersion, places it (in terms of prophecy) within the 3-1/2 year period of the beast. That means it hasn't happened yet.

It happens after the Madman's forces have desecrated the holy place, trashed the perpetual sacrifice and after he has proclaimed an end to the Treaty of Peace Jesus made with Babylon on the cross. It takes place after the western world (excluding the United States) has been toppled by the forces of the East.

In other words, this is, without question, an event that borders the very end of time itself. The figures in the story represent the heirarchy of heaven engaged in a battle for the souls of the people of God against Satan and the planetary emperor Satan empowers here at the moment of the world's end.

When we fit into that story the parts we now know through Jesus, we can see that the king is God (the Father, Son and Holy Spirit); the first queen (Vashti) represents that part of the world that refused the banquet of Christ, while Esther represents the new Creation (the new Jerusalem), the queen of that banquet , i.e., Christ's bride (Rev.21:9).

Michael the Archangel is represented by Mordecai while Satan is Haman, the evil Persian prince who struggles to exterminate Esther's people (all who accept God's offer to attend His banquet, the wedding feast of the Lamb ­Rev.19:9). This is a story of two wives and spiritual combat. It invokes images of Sarah and Hagar, while revolving around the Eucharist; the communion sacrifice and Satan's hatred of God's people, the two houses of Israel.

It ends in Satan's defeat and the rescue of all he intended to put to death,, all those whose names are written in the Lamb's Book of Life.

 

I am struck by the riches in many churches-the golden goblets and all the golden filligree and all their opulence. Don't you think this money should be given to the poor instead of being lavished on the priests for their luxury just to impress ignorant worhippers?...(That) would be more in line with what Christ said don't you think?­NP

Answer:

You see scripture fulfilled, but instead of glorifying God, you rail about the richness of the cathedrals, saying the money should have been spent on the poor instead. Yet most people who say such things would rarely give their own money to the poor, no matter what the circumstance ­ even if their lives depended on it ­ and it does.

The finery has been diverted by God into the churches as proof of the reign on earth of Christ. What you see in all that filligree and do not understand is God fulfilling prophecy. Because it is prophecy no man has power to thwart it, perhaps even to temper it.

Here are some quotes from scripture. There are alot more as well.

"Strangers will be there to feed your flocks, foreigners as your ploughmen and vinedressers; but you, you...will feed on the wealth of nations and array yourselves in their magnificence." (Is. 61:5-6).

Above you the Lord now rises and above you his glory appears. The nations come to your light and kings to your dawning brightness...At this sight you will grow radiant, your heart throbbing and full; since the riches of the sea will flow to you, the wealth of the nations come to you; camels in throngs will cover you, and dromedaries of Midian and Ephah...bringing gold and incense and singing the praise of the Lord. (Is. 60:2-6)

All the flocks of Kedar will gather inside you, the rams of Nebaioth will be at your service. They will come up, for acceptance, to my altar, to adorn the Temple of my glory. (Is. 60:7)

And your gates will lie open continually, shut neither by day nor by night, for men to bring you the wealth of the nations with their kings leading them; for the nation and kingdom that refuses to serve you shall perish, such nations shall be utterly ruined. (Is. 60:11)

The glory of Lebanon will come to you, with cypress and plane and box, to adorn the site of my sanctuary, to glorify the resting place of my feet...You will be suckled on the milk of nations, suckled on the riches of kings, and you shall know that I, the Lord, am your savior, that your redeemer is the Mighty One of Jacob..." (Is. 60:13-16)

The conversion of the thief on the cross, does it prove salvation is possible without baptism? ­JW

Answer:

According to Billy Graham, the two thieves on the cross stand for us all. One decides for Christ and the other rejects Him. This is the decision God has placed before all of mankind. In our lives on earth we are all on crosses beside Jesus, condemned for original sin because of Satan's apostasy.

Like Jesus, we have all been born into a life that leads to death. The Law's stern sentence hangs over our souls like a sword of Damocles. We can escape it's command for our death by accepting Christ as our Lord and Savior. One person on the cross next to Jesus did that. The other scoffed at what he considered nonsense and forfeited the opportunity God had offered him. Isn't that the same with all of us?

The story of the cross is the fundamental oracle of Christianity.

Jesus saves all who believe in Him. Those who refuse to believe