Why the Loss of Excitement for Our Blessed Hope?

TODAY'S NEWSLETTER... 
 

• Featured Article: Why the Loss of Excitement for Our Blessed Hope? 
• What is the “Nakba” and why it matters to Jews and Christians? 
• Nearing Midnight: The Baby Formula Nightmare 
• Does Amos' 2700-year-old prophecy have a direct bearing on the USA? 
• Daily Jot: It’s a character issue 
• Daily Devotion: God Keeps His Promises 

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Why the Loss of Excitement for Our Blessed Hope? – Jonathan Brentner - https://www.jonathanbrentner.com/https/jonathan-brentner-g8fgsquarespacecom/config/2022/5/24/why-the-loss-of-excitement-for-our-blessed-hope
 
My desire for writing The Triumph of the Redeemed is to reconnect the gospel with Jesus’ imminent appearing in a way that breathes hope into your heart, regardless of what you face today or in the future.
 
My passion is to give believers a solid biblical foundation for their hope against the constant assault of false teaching that results in the saints “tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes” (Ephesians 4:14). Sadly, this is the state of the church today in regard to future things; so many are carried about by end time scenarios based on earthly wisdom rather than God’s Word.
 
What follows is an excerpt from The Triumph of the Redeemed.
 
God designed the study of future things, what theologians refer to as “eschatology,” to encourage us each day as we step out of bed. Regardless of the messiness of our lives or the discouraging news reports that greet us each morning, an unwavering focus on the joys ahead in eternity injects needed assurance into our hearts and relieves anxieties regarding the future.
 
“If there’s really so much to look forward to in eternity,” you might ask, “why have so many believers lost their eagerness for it? Why do even seasoned students of prophecy at times lose their focus on our Lord’s appearing and their future reign with Him?”
 
Why the loss of excitement among believers for our “blessed hope?” Why do saints today have difficulty looking beyond the confines of this temporal world?
 
I believe this happens for many reasons:
 
THE BUSYNESS OF LIFE
 
It’s easy to live as though this temporal world is all we have. We get up, eat, go to work, return home, eat again, watch TV, and go to bed. We do a hundred different things throughout the day that focus our attention solely on the things of this existence with the result that we soon forget about eternity. Even if we spend time studying the Word and praying each morning, we soon find that the all-consuming activities of our days redirect our thoughts to temporal concerns.
 
I’m not saying we should concentrate on heaven all day long; if we did, we might not get anything done at work or at home! Yet we often go about our routines oblivious to the joys Jesus has planned for us after this life.
 
We live as though we have no hope beyond the grave, despite what we claim to believe.
 
MISCONCEPTIONS ABOUT HEAVEN
 
When it comes to heaven, misconceptions abound. How often have we seen depictions of solitary men and women sitting on clouds, strumming harps? Who would even look forward to such a dull existence? Not me!
 
Some believers imagine that heaven will be an unending worship service. Of course, we will sing God’s praises throughout eternity, but the Lord has so much more in store for us once we reach the brighter shore.
 
I love the movie It’s a Wonderful Life, but someday we will be far more than aspiring angels jumping into icy waters to earn our wings. In fact, Scripture not only does not say we’ll become angels, but it says that we will “judge angels” (1 Corinthians 6:3). I’m not sure of all that implies, but it certainly distinguishes us from them.
 
Perhaps the most popular myth regarding heaven is that it will be boring. Nothing could be farther from the truth; this is the greatest delusion of all!
 
Randy Alcorn, in his wonderful book, Heaven, addresses this fallacy:
 
Our belief that Heaven will be boring betrays a heresy—that God is boring. There’s no greater nonsense. Our desire for pleasure and the experience of joy come directly from God’s hand. He made our taste buds, adrenaline, sex drives, and the nerve endings that convey pleasure to our brains. Likewise, our imaginations and our capacity for joy and exhilaration were made by the very God we accuse of being boring. Are we so arrogant as to imagine that human beings came up with the idea of having fun?[i]
 
In Psalm 16:11, David confirms this upbeat view of eternity with these words:
 
In your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.
 
“I’VE HEARD THAT BEFORE”
 
Back in the 1960s and 1970s, eschatology became a hot topic. Many churches emphasized the soon return of Jesus. I remember the week televangelist Jack Van Impe came to my church to teach about prophecy. After hearing his words, I felt the excitement of waiting for the Lord’s imminent appearing.
 
Many decades, however, have passed since then. Large numbers of believers have lost their expectancy of Jesus’ return, and they often respond with “I’ve heard that before” to those telling them to watch for it. Having anticipated the Rapture for five decades, I understand the sentiment that finds it more than a little challenging to remain focused on that stunning event.
 
Yet, as we see the circumstances and events described in biblical prophecy coming to life before our eyes today at an ever-accelerating pace, if there was ever a time to be mindful of eternal matters, it’s now! An abundance of converging signs points to the soon beginning of the Tribulation and thus to Jesus’ imminent return for His Church, an event that will happen before the onset of the terrible time of the Lord’s wrath upon the earth.
 
Don’t let the sentiment behind “I’ve heard that before” take your focus away from the glorious prize that awaits you when Jesus comes for us!
 
SILENCE IN THE PULPITS
 
Rather than increase their focus on Jesus’ return as the day approaches, many pastors either remain quiet about our hope or they reject biblical teaching about it. Such silence not only takes the eyes of those in the pews (or chairs) off the Lord’s return, but it also deadens their expectation of it. How can the saints look forward to something they seldom or perhaps never hear about?
 
When pastors mention life beyond the grave, the subject often comes across as such a fleeting and lifeless allusion that those in the congregation forget about it by the end of the sermon. Such lackluster mentions of our gospel hope don’t stir our hearts or relieve our anxieties for the week ahead.
 
TEACHING THAT LACKS A BIBLICAL, TWO-WORLD PERSPECTIVE
 
When pastors and church leaders don’t present instruction based on a biblical, two-world perspective (2 Corinthians 4:17–18), they unwittingly make goals such as happy marriages, good parenting, and wise financial planning the ultimate hope of believers.
 
Of course, biblically centered teaching on such matters is essential. However, without a two-world outlook integrated into such instruction, these issues easily become all-consuming. As a result, believers put all their efforts into becoming “better Christians” and soon forget about forever.
 
Problems arise when the saints (believers) place their ultimate hopes on temporal outcomes wherein many factors, including sinful choices, negatively impact the results they so greatly desire. Children rebel, wives leave husbands and vice versa, finances fall apart, and tragedies often turns lives upside down.
 
What’s left when believers do their best to adhere to biblically sound principles, yet everything falls apart, and they end up alone to pick up the broken pieces?
 
I know of such turmoil; it happened to me.
 
The New Testament teaches us to expect difficult times (James 1:2–3; 1 Peter 1:6; 4:12–13). The Lord promises paradise once He comes for us—but not now. We set ourselves up for disappointment if we define anything in this life as our ultimate hope, even if it’s scriptural, desirable, praiseworthy, good, or wholesome.
 
Preaching that lacks a two-world perspective often sounds like a sanctified version of Joel Osteen’s book, Your Best Life Now. Yes, good things often happen when we heed biblical wisdom for our lives. However, that does not guarantee blissful outcomes in this life. As the powers of darkness continue to gain more clout in our world, we will need to look all the more to eternity as the time when we will flourish as God’s beloved children.
 
I’m not at all saying that we fail to enjoy the things of this life and the many blessings God sends our way. A two-world outlook doesn’t mean that we fail to dream, set goals, or plan wisely for our future. It does, however, teach us to place our ultimate aspirations on eternal realities versus the fleeting matters of this life.
 
THE GREAT DIVORCE
 
“What’s the big deal?” you might ask. “As long as I believe in my future resurrection from the dead and possess a general understanding of heaven, what difference does it make what I believe about the Rapture, the Tribulation, Christ’s Second Coming, or the Millennium?”
 
The danger of ignoring these specifics is this: Instead of eagerly waiting for Jesus’ appearing, our fondest desires naturally shift to matters in this life—to our plans for our future. Momentary concerns soon consume our focus, and thoughts of Jesus’ imminent return rarely, if ever, enter our minds.
 
Paul David Tripp describes this malady as “modern evangelical schizophrenia,” which he describes in this way:
 
It is the fact that we declare that we believe in forever, yet live as if this is all there is. This functional contradiction between our belief system and our daily living cannot work. Here’s why.
 
First, you cannot make sense out of the Christian life without eternity. This is the whole argument of 1 Corinthians 15….
 
Second, you and I have been hardwired for eternity. Ecclesiastes 3:11 declares that God has placed eternity in every person’s heart. That means that everyone hungers for paradise. No one is satisfied with things the way they are.[ii]
 
It’s the details of our everlasting hope that enable us to put the ups and downs of our lives as well as chaotic world events into a sound biblical prophetic framework that offers assurance of God’s unfailing sovereignty over all that concerns us. These specifics redirect our attention to the joys ahead in paradise during times when life doesn’t make sense, or when all seems lost.
 
The tragic divorce of the Rapture from the message of the gospel has resulted in a near blackout of teaching about our “blessed hope” (Titus 2:11–14). This negatively affects new believers as well as seasoned saints, as it leaves them ill-prepared to live in a fear-ridden society. In addition, this neglect, or even denial of Bible prophecy provides no context into which a follower of Jesus can place the violence and lawlessness of our day or the push for a New World Order or what the World Economic Forum calls the “Great Reset.”
 
My book, The Triumph of the Redeemed-An eternal Perspective that Calms Our Fears in Perilous Times, is now available on Amazon. This book not only shows the necessity of focusing on eternity during perilous times, but also provides a rock-solid foundation for our hope in Jesus’ soon appearing. Please consider purchasing it especially if you have any doubts regarding our imminent hope.
 
[i] Alcorn, p. 410.
 
[ii] Paul David Tripp, New Morning Mercies—A Daily Gospel Devotional (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2014), January 21 (the book does not have page numbers, just dates).

 


 
What is the “Nakba” and why it matters to Jews and Christians? – Olivier Melnick - https://www.newantisemitism.com/antisemitism/what-is-the-nakba-and-why-it-matters-to-jews-and-christians
 
Historically and prophetically speaking, a very important event took place on May 14, 1948, as a result of a United Nations vote that took place in November 1947. Israel was reborn as a modern nation. This didn’t happen in a vacuum. The famous 1917 Balfour Declaration set the wheels in motion for British Mandate Palestine to be born again as the modern Jewish State of Eretz Yisrael. A lesser-known, but equally if not more important event, was the 1920 San Remo Conference. That Italian conference established a legal precedent for the existence of Israel beyond what the Balfour Declaration had provided. In an ideal world, this should have been a geopolitical and legal slam dunk. Well…Not really!
 
May 14, 1948, was an important date indeed for Jewish people worldwide. Three years after the end of World War Two and the horrors of the Holocaust, European Jews in particular finally had a place to call their own and immigrate to.
 
on May 15, 1949, the Dhikra an-Nakba, meaning “Memory of the Catastrophe” started being commemorated unofficially. It was later officially established by Yasir Arafat in 1998. It has now become known as the Nakba. This date serves as a reminder of the catastrophe that took place for the Palestinians when Israel became a modern nation. So, apparently, one people group’s independence became another people group’s catastrophe. Is there validity in that claim?
 
Any time there is a wave of immigration, it has the potential to create a crisis or at the very least, a challenge. Why should it be different when it comes to Israel becoming a nation and starting to receive olim (Jewish immigrants)? Yet, the Nakba rests on a faulty foundation. It assumes that Jewish immigrants came to “Palestine” and stole land that wasn’t theirs. It assumes that Israel is committing crimes against humanity. It assumes that Israel is an apartheid nation, and it assumes that Israel is committing ethnic cleansing. These myths are easily debunked when we look at the facts and I know of no better source to do this than the book by Mitchell Bard: Myths and Facts: A Guide to the Arab Israeli Conflict.
 
Before accusing Israel of all these terrible acts leading to the Nakba, serious historians, researchers and politicians should consider what really took place. Historian Benny Morris explains: “The international community proposed a compromise between the two movements, giving to each part of the territory, so they would each have a small state. The Palestinians said no and went to war.” I do not agree with a two-state solution, but had the Arabs accepted what was proposed in the 1937 Peel Commission, today, Palestine would be 80% of the land and Israel 20%, and we could be looking at two celebrations today: Israel and Palestine, but instead we look at a 75-year conflict between Arabs and Jews. The reason why? They want 100% of “Palestine” or nothing! So, the colonizing-occupying-ethnic cleansing-apartheid-human rights-abusing narrative continues in full force, and the indoctrinated politically correct masses buy it all; hook, line and sinker.
 
Capitalizing on the Nakba is always a good idea for the enemies of Israel, especially at a time when facts are ignored. Maybe this is why US Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib recently proposed a congressional resolution to make the United States commemorate the Nakba that coincides with Israel Yom Ha’atzmaut (Israel’s Independence Day.) She was joined by other members of the “squad” Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Ilhan Omar. Ms. Tlaib tweeted “Today, I introduced a resolution recognizing the Nakba (catastrophe), where 400 Palestinian towns and villages were destroyed, over 700,000 Palestinians uprooted from their homes, and made refugees.”
 
The resolution will most likely receive very few votes if any, but it is a symptom of the longest hatred; the pandemic of anti-Semitism. It doesn’t matter if it is not moving forward because the narrative continues regardless as Institute for Middle East Understanding explains, “the Nakba (“catastrophe” in Arabic) refers to the mass expulsion of Palestinian Arabs from British Mandate Palestine during Israel’s creation (1947-49). The Nakba did not end in 1948 and continues to this day in the form of Israel’s ongoing theft of Palestinian land for illegal settlements and segregated communities in the Palestinian West Bank, including East Jerusalem, its destruction of Palestinian homes and agricultural land, revocation of residency rights, deportations, periodic brutal military assaults that result in mass civilian casualties such as the one that took place in Gaza in the summer of 2014 and spring of 2021, and the denial of the internationally-recognized legal right of return of millions of stateless Palestinian refugees.”
 
Where is Ms. Tlaib’s rejection of terrorism? Why is she not mentioning what really takes place in Gaza with the hiding of weapons and shooting of missiles from hospitals, schools and civilian areas?
 
All of this also takes place after the tragic death of an Al-Jazeera journalist in Jenin. The Israeli authorities think that they have acquired the weapon that was used and they have been asking the Palestinian authority for the recovered bullet for ballistics. The Palestinian Authority is refusing to turn in the bullet. With both items, it would be very simple to determine where the lethal shot came from. What is taking so long? Ms. Tlaib is also capitalizing on the death of the journalist, connecting it to the supposed long thread of murders and other crimes committed by Israel since the start of the Nakba. At the same time, Ms. Tlaib completely ignores the 19 Israelis killed in several terrorist attacks in Israel during the Muslim month of Ramadan.
 
I am certain that the 1948 declaration of independence and the subsequent war of the same name were not without casualties for all sides. War always brings damage and unnecessary deaths, but since 1948, Israel has never started a war, but only responded to attacks.
 
The Nakba is simply more anti-Semitic propaganda to turn the world against the only democracy in the Middle East, because, from a biblical standpoint, Satan has always had the Jews in his crosshair. He wants to completely destroy those whom God loves (Zechariah 2:8) and, towards that goal, he is the creator of anti-Semitism. I could almost hear God speaking to the Jewish people and saying:” I have good news and bad news. The good news is that you are my favorite people and the bad news is that you are my favorite people!”
 
So, let’s recognize that history continues to be re-written by Israel’s enemies and that nobody on that side cares to check for facts. Where are the Israeli/Palestinian conflict “fact-checkers” when we need them?



 


 
Nearing Midnight: The Baby Formula Nightmare – Todd Strandberg - https://www.raptureready.com/category/nearing-midnight/
 
I first noticed there was something odd about baby formula when Walmart installed cameras to constantly monitor the shelves holding the product. It struck me as odd that this item would be a high theft risk. About half the sales of baby formula come from government-provided funds. I learned that you should never doubt Washington’s ability to turn a simple positive plan into a disaster.
 
The Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) was established as a permanent program in 1974 to safeguard the health of low-income women, infants, and children up to age 5 who are at nutritional risk. This mission is carried out by providing nutritious foods to supplement diets, nutrition education (including breastfeeding promotion and support), and referrals to health and other social services.
 
There is a major crisis in the feeding of America’s babies right now because parents in some areas can’t get baby formula. A few months ago, a major producer of formula – Abbott Labs – shut down its main production facilities in Sturgis, Michigan, which had been contaminated with the bacteria Cronobacter sakazakii, killing two babies and injuring two others.
 
If you thought the contamination at the Sturgis plant would send Abbott Labs into panic mode, you would be wrong. The CEO of Abbott Labs has only made a few general statements about the incident.
 
Abbott has denied its formula is to blame, with the company telling Bloomberg that “There is no evidence to link our formulas to these infant illnesses.”
 
“Abbott called the recall a “short-term hindrance” and said it was working closely with the regulator and has begun implementing corrective actions and enhancements to the facility.
 
Abbott shares rose 2.4% to $122.90 in morning trade as some analysts said the comments during the conference call allayed worries over the recall. Despite the recall and supply chain issues, Abbott beat quarterly profit and revenue estimates in the first quarter.
 
Abbott Labs, Mead Johnson, and Nestle produce 98% of the formula in the U.S. This monopoly is why Abbott Labs doesn’t need to worry about losing any market share. The country has been carved up where one of the three firms will dominate a region. Most states only allow women to buy baby formula from one company, though each company offers a bunch of different brands.
 
To save money, the government requires states to hold auctions to get the lowest price for formula. The problem is that state agencies use a complex rebating system to give the contract for the entire state to one manufacturer, and that contract can only be changed once every four years.
 
This rebate system distorts the entire market in a state because it’s just not worth having alternative formulas on a retail shelf if half of the buyers simply cannot purchase those formulas. As a result, the market tips to the WIC supplier, and that supplier raises prices on non-WIC recipients and does so by between 26-35%.
 
Abbott Labs, Mead Johnson, and Nestle use lobbyists that work with the FDA to keep out any newcomers. Even though baby formula from Europe is much cheaper, no Congress member has any incentive to change the rules.
 
Baby Formula made in a third-world nation may actually be safer. According to Healthy Babies Bright Futures, baby formula made by the big guys in the U.S. is full of dangerous brain-altering heavy metals. HBBF tested thirteen different baby formulas, and every single one had “detectable levels of arsenic, cadmium, lead and/or mercury,” which are all considered to be neurotoxic, interfering with brain development and “causing permanent IQ reductions in children.”
 
Moreover, FDA inspections of Abbott plants are obviously a disaster. Abbott had old and dirty equipment making formula, falsified records, deceived regulators, had a bad product tracing, and did not fix problems after discovery. FDA inspectors noticed problems with the plant in September but ignored them. Then, a whistleblower told the FDA of these problems in October, but regulators didn’t even bother to interview him/her until December.
 
What is taking place in the baby formula trade is certainly occurring in a hundred other industries. If America had a greater moral foundation, this crisis would not be taking place. It stands as one more indication of why judgment is coming to our nation.
 
“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the holy is understanding. For by me thy days shall be multiplied, and the years of thy life shall be increased. If thou be wise, thou shalt be wise for thyself: but if thou scornest, thou alone shalt bear it” (Proverbs 9:10-12).
 

 


 
Does Amos' 2700-year-old prophecy have a direct bearing on the USA? – Bill Perkins - https://compass.org/luxury-wickedness/
 
…when you see all these things, recognize that He is near, right at the door. Matt. 24:33
 
Amos was a humble sheep breeder who lived just south of Bethlehem in the 8th century BC when God called him to prophesy to Israel.
 
The Northern Kingdom had split from the Southern Kingdom, but both had been living for decades in peace and prosperity.
 
Satan used this prosperity to get their eyes off justice, and their hearts were not fully God’s. Most Israelis gave lip service to the worship of Jehovah God as their hearts were far from Him.
 
With no spiritual rudder to guide them, rampant corruption and moral decay waxed worse and worse. From the top leadership down, lying and bribery prevailed over truth and honor.
 
The eyes of the LORD are in every place, watching the evil and the good. Prov. 15:3 
 
So the Lord sent Amos to tell them to turn from their wicked ways or He would not let them go unpunished any longer.
 
Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; Is. 5:20 
 
Do wickedness and corruption during prosperous times sound familiar? Yep, we’re where Israel was when Amos began his warnings about God’s impending wrath. It didn't end well for Israel and it won't end well for the USA, but we appear to fall post-Rapture.(2)
 
But what’s amazing is that in the midst of Amos’ warnings, he makes a remarkable statement regarding the timing of God's wrath. He said God does nothing unless He first reveals it to His prophets to warn people what was coming.
 
Surely the Lord GOD does nothing unless He reveals His secret counsel to His servants the prophets. Amos 3:7
 
This was the prophet’s main job—being a mouthpiece for God. It wasn’t easy being a prophet. Often the prophets were killed when people didn’t like what was being prophesied.
 
O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those sent to her! … Luke 13:34a
 
Zechariah (2Chron. 24:20-21) and John the Baptist (Matt. 14:10) are two examples of prophets being killed. And Jonah was so afraid of delivering God’s message to Nineveh that he would rather have died in the ocean.
 
So Amos was sort of defending himself, basically saying that if you didn’t like what he was prophesying, take it up with God… because He always warns His people before unleashing His wrath. Noah preached for 120 years warning people to repent.
 
But since Amos was warning Israel pre-Cross, what does it matter to us? Is there a Church Age application today? And if so, what is it?
 
In the Church Age the Lord doesn’t talk to us through prophets. We have the Word of God and He warns us not to add anything to scripture or we’re in big trouble.
 
I testify to everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: if anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues which are written in this book; Rev. 22:18
 
In the Church Age God speaks to us via the Holy Spirit Who illuminates His scriptural guidelines, warnings and admonitions as we read and study our Bibles. The more we dive in, the more God reveals Himself to us.
 
So by applying Amos 3:7 to us today, the Lord illuminates scriptural warnings to His people, the Believers, before imposing His wrath.
 
Do we have warnings today?
 
This is what is remarkable about the time in which we live (the time period just before the Rapture). First, He says, unlike unbelievers who will be surprised and caught off guard at the Rapture, we should be expecting it because we have Light.
 
But you, brethren, are not in darkness, that the day would overtake you like a thief; 1Th. 5:4
 
Scripture teaches there will be an economy right up to the last minute because it's post-Rapture when the music stops.
 
I heard another voice from heaven, saying, “Come out of her, my people, [via the Rapture] so that you will not participate in her sins and receive of her plagues; for her sins have piled up as high as heaven, and God has remembered her iniquities. Rev. 18:4,5
 
…in one day her plagues will come, pestilence and morning and famine… Rev. 18:8
 
…For in one hour your judgment has come. Rev 18:10
 
That’s quite sudden. One day non-Christians are enjoying their prosperity and then in the twinkle of the eye, things change forever.
 
“The fruit you long for has gone from you, and all things that were luxurious and splendid have passed away from you and men will no longer find them.” Rev. 18:14
 
Up until the last second, people are having dinners, parties and concerts. Electricity is working, people are working and social events are taking place like always.
 
Then, without warning for non-Believers, things suddenly change.
 
And the sound of harpists and musicians and flute-players and trumpeters will not be heard in you any longer; and no craftsman of any craft will be found in you any longer; and the sound of a mill will not be heard in you any longer; and the light of a lamp will not shine in you any longer; and the voice of the bridegroom and bride will not be heard in you any longer; for your merchants were the great men of the earth, because all the nations were deceived by your sorcery [drugs]. Rev. 18:22-23
 
This fits like a glove with Matthew 24 and Luke 17.
 
In these passages we see the Rapture causes electricity to cease and the mill to stop.(1) The Holy Spirit's departure causes one person to disappear, but the person sitting next to them is left behind.
 
Right up to the end people are working, eating, drinking, building, buying and selling. Life was normal, nothing out of the ordinary. People certainly weren't starving.
 
And it’s worth mentioning the reference to drugs—apparently the whole earth (all the nations) were tricked into taking drugs. Since this is past tense, it means drugs that were taken before the Rapture. Well, that’s interesting!!!
 
So what we get out of all this is that God says He’ll open our eyes if we’re living close to the Rapture so that moment doesn’t overtake us like a thief.
 
We also can rest in the fact that Believers are not destined for God’s wrath.
 
For God has not destined us for wrath, 1Th. 5:9
 
But you can’t confuse persecution with wrath. Imagine trying to tell a man and his family living in the first century, who are about to be eaten by lions, not to worry because before God’s wrath comes they’ll be Raptured away.
 
In fact, God says just the opposite:
 
Indeed, all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted. 2Tim. 3:12
 
Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. James 1:2-3
 
So God's wrath and Satan's persecution are totally different. Just like the guy with his family about to be torn apart limb-by-limb as a Colosseum full of spectators looked on, many Believers all over the earth face persecution daily, some as horrible as being eaten by lions.
 
But overall, and even in persecution, we’re looking up for the rescue, not down at things that seem certain to be coming soon.
 
and to await for His Son from heaven, whom He raised from the dead, that is Jesus, who rescues us from the wrath to come. 1Th. 1:10
 
So keep your eyes up not down as we move closer to our day of rescue.
 
Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth. Col. 3:2
 
CQLJ!
 
BP
 
References:
1) https://compass.org/one-second-before-the-rapture/
 
2) https://compass.org/article-the-united-states-in-bible-prophecy/

 


 
Daily Jot: It’s a character issue - Bill Wilson – www.dailyjot.com
 
The parade of politicians using the tragic deaths of school children in Texas to grandstand about gun control is disgusting. Both Joe Biden and Barack Obama called for gun control. Rep. Ruben Gallego (D-AZ) tweeted at Rep Darrell Issa (R-CA), “F— your prayers. They haven’t worked for the last 20 mass shootings how about passing laws that will stop these killings.” Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) tweeted, “There is no such thing as being ‘pro-life’ while supporting laws that let children be shot in their schools, elders in grocery stores, worshippers in their houses of faith, survivors by abusers, or anyone in a crowded place.” Then there is a ridiculous comment from one of the most gun-controlled places in the nation.
 
Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot took center stage by issuing a statement saying, “As a nation, we simply cannot allow this to continue. Every single day, children and young people are losing their lives to people who do not value the sanctity of life and take advantage of the unabated presence of firearms in our communities. Now more than ever, we must push our legislators to pass sweeping and effective gun control measures. Our children’s lives depend on it.” Illinois, and Chicago in particular, is one of the most restrictive states in America when it comes to gun control. Lightfoot’s hypocrisy is underscored by 87 people shot and 18 dead in just the last three weekends, which is pretty much the norm every weekend.
 
These people refuse to recognize that no law is going to stop criminals from obtaining guns and using them. The laws already are on the books. Murder is murder. Assault is assault, and on down the legal line. In a nation where a third of the population, some 81 million Americans, admit to owning guns, only a small portion of those use them illegally. In fact, I’d be willing to bet that most of those politicians who are the loudest own guns or are protected by someone who has a gun. Fact is, millions of people own guns and have never used them for crime. Why? Because they were taught to have good character and value life. People who do mass shootings are mentally ill and/or have bad character. A gun has no emotion or political leaning one way or the other. It is the person using that gun who decides whether it is used for good or evil.
 
People and their choices are the problem. Every one of these politicians clamoring about more gun control, also are part and parcel to the use of the public school system to advance political agendas by brainwashing kids. They say that once your drop your child off at the public school, you no longer have a say over them for the rest of the day. Yet, they cannot protect kid’s minds or bodies. Their minds are filled with leftist social engineering and sexual grooming. And their bodies are also unprotected. The politicians blame everyone but themselves for the terrible results. As a parent and coach, my experience confirms Proverbs 22:6, “Train up a child in the way he should go, And when he is old he will not depart from it.” With few exceptions, it generally works. Are public schools training up children to make good choices?
 
Politicians and leftist public school administrators are not going to protect your children. They will blame guns or people who pray, but at the end of the day, their only solution is their agenda. Your children are your responsibility, not the public school’s or the church’s or anyone else’s. You need to raise them. Take that responsibility seriously, even if one parent has to sacrifice their precious career to do the right thing by their kids. No amount of gun control will stop mass killings. No amount of hypocrisy will change things. If you want to ensure the safety and well-being of your children, take them out of the public cesschools, homeschool them, and train them up to have good character and make good choices. They are your children, not the public’s. My heart mourns for all the victims of gun violence and public schools. 

 


 
Daily Devotion: God Keeps His Promises - by Greg Laurie – www.harvest.org
 
Now I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse. And He who sat on him was called Faithful and True. —Revelation 19:11
 
https://harvest.org/resources/devotion/god-keeps-his-promises/ - Listen
 
We all have our happy places; things we like to do.
 
Some people think that judgment is God’s happy place. In the nonbeliever’s mind, God is never fair in what He does. When people go out and break the laws that God gave us for our own protection and then face the inevitable consequences, they shake a fist in His face and blame Him.
 
But the fact is that He is faithful and true. The Bible says, “Now I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse. And He who sat on him was called Faithful and True” (Revelation 19:11 NKJV).
 
And God keeps His promises. Jesus said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you” (Hebrews 13:5 nkjv). He said, “Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid” (John 14:27 NKJV).
 
Has the Lord not kept His promises to you? He will keep all His promises, including His promise to come again (see John 14:2–3).
 
This is in contrast to the Devil, who lies. As Jesus said to the Pharisees, “For you are the children of your father the devil, and you love to do the evil things he does. He was a murderer from the beginning. He has always hated the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, it is consistent with his character; for he is a liar and the father of lies” (John 8:44 NLT).
 
We read in Scripture that God is “not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance” (2 Peter 3:9 NKJV) and that He has “no pleasure in the death of the wicked” (Ezekiel 33:11 NKJV).
 
Our Lord is faithful and true. 

 


 


 
FROM THE HEART
    
Let Us Make the Short Time We have Left,
Count for ALL of Eternity!

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