Prophecy Update Newsletter
May 9, 2017
IN TODAY'S NEWSLETTER...
Misunderstanding The ''Great Escape'' - Jack Kinsella - www.omegaletter.com
One of the principle misunderstandings concerning the Rapture revolves around its purpose. Critics of a pre-Tribulation Rapture deride it as some pie-in-the-sky 'Great Escape' for Christians living in the last days. There is no such promise of 'escape' from tribulation, they argue, and (correctly) point out the Bible's promise that 'in this world ye shall have tribulation' so the pretribulational hope of a 'Great Escape' is not only delusional, it is unscriptural. The fact is, if the pretribulational hope WAS for a 'Great Escape' from tribulation, they would be correct. There is NO promise that the Church will escape tribulation, but there is an iron-clad promise that the Church will not go through the seven years of tribulation described by Jeremiah as the 'Time of Jacob's Trouble' or outlined by Daniel as Israel's '70th Week.' There are several reasons for a pretribulational Rapture, not the least of which is the purpose of the Tribulation in God's unfolding Plan for the ages. The purpose of the seven year Tribulation Period is two-fold. The first reason is to fulfill Daniel's prophecy of the 70 Weeks. The angel told Daniel that: "Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people and upon thy holy city, to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal up the vision and prophecy, and to anoint the most Holy." (Daniel 9:24) Note there are six elements to the fulfillment of this prophecy. First, to finish Israel's sin - the rejection of the Messiah at the First Advent. Then there is a skip forward in time to His Second Advent, at which time, an end will be made of sin, reconciliation will be made for Israel's iniquity, everlasting righteousness will introduced to Israel, Israel's Scriptures will be vindicated by the fulfillment of all prophecy and finally, the return of Christ at the conclusion of the war of Armageddon, at which time He will be anointed and will take His seat at the Throne of David. Between the First and Second Advents there is the Church Age, a 'mystery' unrevealed to the Hebrew prophets. That is why Daniel's outline of 490 years of Israeli history doesn't anticipate a gap between the 'cutting off of the Messiah' at the end of the sixty-nine weeks of years and the confirmation of the covenant by the antichrist at the onset of the 70th. (Daniel 9:27) From Daniel's perspective, it is an unbroken narrative of what would befall 'his people' (the Jews) and 'his holy city' (Jerusalem), culminating with the 'anointing of the Most Holy' at the conclusion of the 70th week and the ushering in of Isaiah's Millennial Kingdom. There is no role set aside for the Church in prophecy during the 70th Week, since it is reserved for Israel's national redemption and their acceptance of the Messiah. The Church has, by definition, already accepted the Messiah and was redeemed at the Cross. The second purpose Scripture gives for the Tribulation Period is that it is a period of judgment against those who reject Christ and embrace the antichrist. Since Christians who accept Christ were already judged at the Cross, there is no role set aside for the Church in the judgments pronounced because, "Neither repented they of their murders, nor of their sorceries, nor of their fornication, nor of their thefts." (Revelation 9:21) Repentance is a necessary condition of salvation, it is that repentance that causes us to seek forgiveness at the Cross in the first place. Since believers in the Church Age became believers by repenting, there is no purpose for bringing the judgment of an unrepentant world on the Church. The Rapture isn't a 'Great Escape', contrary to popular belief. The Rapture occurs when the restraining influence of the Holy Spirit is removed with the Church to allow the onset of the 7 year period of unrestrained evil that occurs during the Tribulation. (2nd Thessalonians 2:7) The Rapture is the Blessed Hope of the Church, but it's primary purpose is not so much a 'rescue mission' as it is a necessary function of the withdrawal of the Holy Spirit's ministry of restraining evil. Since we are indwelt by the Holy Spirit, when the Restrainer is withdrawn, so are we, since we are His vessels. Therefore, it is certain to conclude that the Church won't be here for the Tribulation itself, since withdrawing the indwelling of the Holy Spirit from the believing Church would leave them spiritually defenseless at a time of maximum need, something Jesus promised He would never do. Jesus said we could trust Him that He would never forsake His Church, and His Church is defined as being composed of believers who are indwelt by the Holy Spirit. "And I will pray the Father, and He shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you FOREVER. Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth Him: but ye know Him; for He dwelleth with you, and shall be in you." But there is no reason to conclude the Church will be Raptured for the purpose of providing a 'Great Escape' for, as I said, the Rapture is necessary to withdrawal of the Restrainer, rather than a rescue mission to the Church. "I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you." (John 14:16-18) Christians have suffered in every generation, and continue to suffer persecution and death for their faith today in places like Vietnam, China, Sudan and most of the Islamic world. There is no promise to the Church of the last days for a 'rescue' but rather, the Rapture is the fulfilment of an EXISTING Promise Jesus made that the Holy Spirit would Personally indwell believers and guide us in all truth 'forever'. "In My Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also." (John 14:2-3) For believers, our finite understanding of 'forever' begins with Pentecost and continues to the Rapture, at which point 'forever' takes on its eternal meaning for all believers covered under the Covenant between Jesus and the Church. "Wherefore comfort one another with these words." (1 Thessalonians 4:18) 
2,000 Years Ago, Prophet Nehemiah Performed This Temple Rite to Revive Sacrifices. Now, Sanhedrin Is Reviving It - By Adam Eliyahu Berkowitz - https://www.breakingisraelnews.com/87807/sanhedrin-revives-2000-year-old-temple-rite-reestablishing-jerusalems-borders/#ffgt3eIlrde5zSzw.99
"But if ye return unto Me, and keep My commandments and do them, though your dispersed were in the uttermost part of the heaven, yet will I gather them from thence, and will bring them unto the place that I have chosen to cause My name to dwell there." Nehemiah 1:9 (The Israel Bible™) On the day after the Feast of Shavuot (Weeks), the Sanhedrin will reenact a ceremony officially establishing the borders of Jerusalem for purposes of reinstating the Temple service. Last performed by Nehemiah in the sixth century BCE, this was the final step before beginning the sacrifices, but today, it is also meant as a powerful and timely political statement. Rabbi Hillel Weiss, spokesman for the nascent Sanhedrin, said that establishing these borders is perhaps the final step in reinstating the Temple service, noting that directly after Nehemiah reestablished the boundaries of Jerusalem the sacrifices began anew. "The only thing lacking today to begin bringing sacrifices is the altar," Rabbi Weiss explained to Breaking Israel News. "When that is ready, we will need to have these borders firmly established." Sacrifices that are required to be eaten in Jerusalem, such as Peace Offerings, the first fruits and the Paschal lamb, must be eaten inside the boundaries of the city. Establishing these boundaries designates the area of holiness. Rabbi Weiss explained that according to Torah law, an acquisition of land must be accompanied by a physical act. A person who purchases or inherits the land must walk the borders or have a meal on the land. In three weeks, on the day after the Feast of Shavuot, the Sanhedrin will mark points along the border and attempt to walk as much of it as possible. They are still in the process of receiving permission from the Jerusalem Police but in the past, many Temple-oriented activities have been delayed or diverted due to police restrictions. Rabbi Weiss admitted that the move had a strong political motive. "Jerusalem's Jubilee is the time to re-establish the holiness of Jerusalem," Rabbi Weiss explained, referring to the upcoming 50th anniversary of the unification of Jerusalem during the Six-Day War. "President Trump is coming on his first official visit. We have to make clear to him, as a leader of a nation friendly to Israel, that the eternal Jewish capital is once again ready to fulfill its Biblical role. This is also in direct response to the absurd UNESCO proclamations, which come to prevent the Jews from performing their Biblically mandated purpose." Last Tuesday, on Israel's 69th Independence Day, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization's (UNESCO) Executive Board passed a resolution in Paris declaring Jewish sovereignty in all of Jerusalem to be illegal. The resolution declared the Jerusalem Law, designating the city as Israel's capital and passed by the Knesset in 1980, to be "null and void". The resolution expanded on previous UNESCO resolutions which ceded a religious monopoly over the Temple Mount to Islam. As the first step in the process of establishing borders for Jerusalem in for the Third Temple, the Sanhedrin heard the testimony of Dr. Daniel Michelson, a professor from the Weizmann Institute who has made an exhaustive study concerning the borders of Jerusalem and the Second Temple as established by Nehemiah. In order to begin offering sacrifices, Nehemiah rebuilt the walls of Jerusalem based on the borders for the First Temple established by King Solomon and King David. The remains of these walls were discovered by archaeologists Bliss and Dickie in the 1890's. Rabbi Michelson based his measurements and maps on their findings and on detailed descriptions in chapter three in the Book of Nehemiah. So we built the wall; and all the wall was joined together unto half the height thereof; for the people had a mind to work. Nehemiah 3:38 After designating the borders, the Sanhedrin will reenact Nehemiah's Thanksgiving Offering of twenty loaves of bread. The Sanhedrin also began deliberations on establishing the borders of Jerusalem for the Third Temple. Though the Sanhedrin has yet to come to a consensus about the precise boundaries, the borders of Jerusalem in the Third Temple will be substantially larger than those in the time of the Second Temple. According to Professor Michelson's study based on descriptions in the Book of Ezekiel, the boundaries of Jerusalem for the purposes of the Temple will be over seven miles on each side.The Sanhedrin will perform a conditional acquisition, so that when the sacrifices are renewed in the Third Temple, the acquisition will take effect. 
Turkey's Erdogan lashes 'racist' Israel, calls for Muslims to flood Temple Mount -
http://www.timesofisrael.com/erdogan-lashes-racist-israel-calls-for-muslims-to-flood-temple-mount/ Turkish president warns against moving US embassy to Jerusalem; slams mosque-muffling bill; Israel rejects his 'baseless slander' Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Monday urged Muslims to throng to the Temple Mount in a show of solidarity with Palestinians as he issued a string of challenges to Israel, which he called "racist and discriminatory." "We, as Muslims, should be visiting Al-Quds more often," he said, referring to Jerusalem by its Arabic name. "Each day that Jerusalem is under occupation is an insult to us," he added, at the opening ceremony of the International Forum on al-Quds Waqf in Istanbul, Turkey's Hurriyet news reported. Erdogan said increased Muslim visits to the Jerusalem holy site "would be the greatest support to our brothers there." "Both in terms of our religion and historical responsibility, Al-Quds and the fight of our Palestinian brothers for rights and justice is of great importance to us. We will keep making efforts for Quds to turn into a city of peace," Erdogan said. In the blistering speech, which also criticized Israeli legislation and US plans to move their embassy to Jerusalem, Erdogan also called Israel's treatment of the Palestinians "racist and discriminatory" and said the Israeli-Egyptian blockade of the Gaza Strip "has no place in humanity." Israel blockades the Strip in an attempt to keep weapons from reaching the Strip's Hamas terrorist rulers. Israel reacted quickly and angrily to Erdogan's comments, calling them "baseless slander." "Anyone who systemically violates human rights in their own country, should not preach about morality to the only democracy in the region," the Foreign Ministry said in a statement. "Israel strictly adheres to protecting full freedom of worship for Jews, Muslims and Christians - and will continue to do so despite this baseless slander," the statement said. Erdogan also warned Israel against the planned Muezzin Bill meant to limit the volume on Muslim calls to prayer, saying he would not allow mosque loudspeakers to be silenced. "The fact that such an issue is even coming to the agenda is shameful," he said. "The fact that those who talk about freedom of thought and faith at every opportunity actually approve this step by remaining silent is noteworthy. Inshallah, we will not allow the silencing of prayers from the heavens of Jerusalem," Erdogan said. Israel is pushing a bill that would ban religious institutions from using loudspeakers at certain hours, a move seen as targeting Muslim mosques who issue a pre-dawn call to prayer. Critics say the bill is anti-Muslim, but proponents say it is about noise control and quality of life for people who live near mosques. But Erdogan issued a challenge to Israel, saying that to move against the mosques would be a strike against freedom of religion. "Why are you afraid of the freedom of faith if you believe in your faith? I am now reminding Israeli administrators: If you believe in your faith, then why are you afraid of the sound of our prayers?" he said. Erdogan also spoke about the debates over the possibility of moving the US embassy In Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, saying they are "extremely wrong" and should be dropped. US President Donald Trump had promised during his campaign to move the American embassy to Jerusalem, whose status is one of the thorniest issues of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Erdogan said everyone should be careful on issues that concerned the status of Jerusalem, warning that even "relocating a stone" in the city could have serious implications. "The debates over the possibility of US moving its Israel embassy to Jerusalem are extremely wrong and should certainly drop from the agenda," the Turkish president said. 
Fatah Official to Hamas: We're A Bigger Enemy Of Israel - by Ali Waked -
http://www.breitbart.com/jerusalem/2017/05/07/fatah-official-hamas-bigger-enemy-israel/ Jibril Rajoub, a member of the central committee of Fatah, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas' movement, lashed out at Hamas in a television interview with the al-Quds network, saying that Fatah is Israel's greatest enemy and not Hamas. "Don't preach to us for recognizing Israel and that your weapon is a weapon of resistance," said Rajoub. "We care more about you and your pride than what you think. We are patriots." Rajoub, who also serves as chief of the Palestinian Football Association and the Palestine Olympic Committee, continued his criticism of Hamas, saying, "You are in no situation to teach Abu Mazen (PA President Mahmoud Abbas) or the Fatah movement." The Palestinian official addressed the ultimatum delivered to Israel by Abu Obaida, a spokesperson for Hamas' military wing, regarding the demands of Palestinian prisoners on hunger strike. The ultimatum threatened that Hamas would expand by 30 the list of Palestinian prisoners for whom it demands release - one prisoner for every day Israel refuses to accept the demands of the hunger strikers. Rajoub smirked at the ultimatum and said, "What happened that the Al Qassam Brigades threatened Israel? Unfortunately, we're seeing that they're harsh with us and merciful (with the Israelis). The Fatah movement is the one that taught you what struggle means and what political maturity is. Who are you? Who are you?" "In everything regarding the struggle, we are your superiors. Don't forget your history. From '67 until '87 you were running in chains after the students," continued Rajoub, criticizing Hamas' leadership for refusing to support and even working to thwart a strike at schools and universities announced by Fatah in the 1980s, before the first Intifada of 1987. Rajoub continued to preach to Hamas about the struggle against Israel, reminding Hamas that "Israel's greatest enemy is the Fatah movement. Some of you didn't even pray before 1989." Tensions between Fatah and Hamas have been on the rise over the last few weeks due to the PA's decision to stop transferring funds to pay its employees living in the Gaza Strip, who haven't been performing their duties since Hamas took control of the area in 2007. The move was made as part of the PA's campaign to put pressure on Hamas to return control of the Strip. In addition, the PA announced that it would stop transferring payments for the electricity provided by the Israeli electric corporation to the Gaza Strip, claiming that Hamas hasn't been handing over payments made by Gaza residents, worsening the electric crisis in the enclave. The PA's decisions led to the two sides blaming each other for the situation, with Hamas accusing the PA of treating Gaza residents like hostages. As part of the escalation between the two sides, Hamas responded to Abbas' meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump last week with the claim that Abbas has no authority to represent the Palestinian people or negotiate on its behalf. Hamas spokesperson Dr. Sami Abu Zuhri promised that the movement would reject all of Abbas' proposals. 
Nearing Midnight: Zechariah's Voice Echoing - Terry James -
http://www.raptureready.com/category/nearing-midnight/ Zechariah the prophet's voice is echoing down through the canyons of millennia long past. Actions by nations of today's world make plain that God's prophetic timeline is on the cusp of fulfillment. The burden of the word of the LORD for Israel, saith the LORD, which stretcheth forth the heavens, and layeth the foundation of the earth, and formeth the spirit of man within him.Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of trembling unto all the people round about, when they shall be in the siege both against Judah and against Jerusalem. And in that day will I make Jerusalem a burdensome stone for all people: all that burden themselves with it shall be cut in pieces, though all the people of the earth be gathered together against it. (Zechariah 12: 1-3) The prophecy becomes more manifest by the hour. The nations of the world's diplomatic community are arraying against Israel. Jerusalem is their primary target. The "occupier" must be dealt with is the mantra. A most recent indicator that Zechariah's prophecy is nearing fulfillment is in our headlines. Globalist forces are ramping up efforts to wrest God's touchstone city -"the apple of His Eye"-from His chosen nation. Israel is angry at Germany for the anticipated European support for the resolution attacking Israeli sovereignty in Jerusalem, which UNESCO's Executive Board in Paris is scheduled to approve this Tuesday, diplomatic sources told The Jerusalem Post. The behind-the-scenes conflict preceded the public argument between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and German Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel over his meeting with the left-wing group Breaking the Silence during his visit to Israel last week... A March draft asked the UNESCO Executive Board to deny Israel sovereignty over all of Jerusalem, including the western party of the city. The resolution's text stated: "Any action taken by Israel, the occupying power, to impose its laws, jurisdiction, and administration on the city of Jerusalem, are illegal and therefore null and void and have no validity whatsoever." ("Israel Blames Germany for EU Support of UNESCO Anti-Israel Resolution," Tovah Lazaroff, Jerusalem Post, April 30, 2017) The European Union has over the past years voted against the proposal, which has always been supported by all of Israel's Arab antagonists. The Arabs have refused to recognize Israel as a state, but rather, like in all instances involving Israel, declares it an illegal occupier of Palestine and of Jerusalem. This refusal to acknowledge Israel as a nation, rather call it an occupier, has apparently been the sticking point on Germany's voting against the resolution each time it comes up. Behind the scenes, German operatives managed to have the "occupier" language removed to soften the opposition so it could convince the EU to vote in favor of lessening Israel's authority over the city-especially over East Jerusalem. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is livid over this treachery by Germany. The resolution, if adopted fully, would in effect-in the eyes of the international community of nations-take away the right of the Jewish state to govern Jerusalem. The action would negate rights won by Israel as a result of victory in the 1967 Six-Day War. The controversy comes at an interesting time. American President Donald Trump will visit Israel soon. There is conjecture about whether he will announce movement of the American embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. The United States is certain, under this administration, to vote against the UNESCO resolution. The tensions in the middle East continue to build. But, now the focus of the angers, frustrations, and intrigues are narrowing. Jerusalem is the obvious center of the satanic rage. The Temple Mount is sure to eventually be the hottest of the hot spots of the three-thousand-year family feud. The entire world will, according to Zechariah, Joel, and other prophets, intentionally become entangled in that feud. The EU, most of us who believe in the Pre-Trib, pre-Millennial view of Bible prophecy hold, will be at the heart of that Zechariah 12:1-3 assembly of nations. While the globalists are foaming at the mouth, wanting to rid the world of America's new president, the Gog-Magog forces continue to gather directly north of Israel. Jerusalem is at the center of world controversy and the ancient prophet's words can be heard loudly by spiritually-attuned ears. And it shall come to pass in that day, that I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem. 1And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplications: and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn. (Zechariah 12:9-10) 
Speculations on Biblical End Times Rise Anew Amid Nuclear War Fears, Natural Disasters - By Jay Gotera -
http://www.christianpost.com/news/speculations-on-biblical-end-times-rise-anew-amid-nuclear-war-fears-natural-disasters-182687/ With the likelihood of a major military conflict-if not a nuclear World War 3-involving North Korea and the United States looming larger by the day, speculations about the biblical end times appear to be mounting once again. Further stoking the fire, the U.S. House of Representatives overwhelmingly voted Thursday to impose new sanctions on North Korea amid heightened tensions over that pariah nation's nuclear and ballistic missile programs, according to Fox News. The same news outlet reported that Pentagon officials are seeing more evidence of a North Korean military connection with Iran, another country that poses a security challenge to the U.S. Early this week, PRRI, a well-known public polling firm, circulated a press release underscoring some of its past findings on Americans' end times views, Faithwire reported. Although the findings were gathered more than four years ago, PRRI's Research Director Dan Cox told the news outlet this week that those views haven't changed all that much. In its December 2012 survey, PRRI found out that nearly half of the American people, 49 percent to be exact, believe that severe natural disasters are another evidence of the biblical end times. The most recent natural disasters in the U.S. were the flooding and tornadoes that killed at least 20 people in Missouri, Arkansas, Texas last weekend, according to Weather.com. One of the largest tornado outbreaks in the U.S. also struck the Southeast on Jan. 21-23, 2017. The storms killed at least 20 people, most of them in Georgia. According to Billy Hallowell, author of "The Armageddon Code," the end times concept is deeply embedded in Christian theology. "In fact, many contemporary theologians and pastors believe they're observing numerous signs in the current culture that mirror the supposedly prophetic contents of scriptures in Old and New Testament books like Ezekiel, Daniel and Revelation," he said in an article he wrote for Faithwire last February. He said he interviewed 20 of these eschatology experts, many of whom cited the "sweeping moral decay, biblical disconnectedness and ongoing violence in the Middle East" as the very signs that were foretold thousands of years ago in both the Old and New Testaments. Hallowell said Jesus himself foretold of his future Second Coming in Matthew 24:6-8: "You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed ... Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. All these are the beginning of birth pains." But then in Matthew 24:36 Jesus also said that "no one knows" the day or the hour of his return. 
Daily Jot: The US Courts and the Marxist revolution - Bill Wilson - www.dailyjot.com One of the reasons the Marxist revolution is taking hold in the United States is the leftist who have been appointed into the federal court system. Radical organizations such as the American Civil Liberties Union and extremist partners like Southern Poverty Law Center and the Council on American Islamic Relations (and all of their offshoots) know exactly the favorable courts in which to file their complaints to advance their Constitutionally hostile agendas. More and more we have seen liberal appointed judges twist the language of the law and bend it into something it was never intended. These unelected oligarchs have had a profound effect in undermining the Constitution and ripping the fabric of our society. It is cautiously welcome news that President Donald Trump is fulfilling a campaign promise by nominating 10 conservative judges and other law professionals to the federal courts. The judges have been nominated to fill court of appeals positions in the Sixth Circuit, Seventh Circuit, Eighth Circuit Eleventh Circuit, and district courts in Idaho and Western Oklahoma as well as the Court of Federal Claims. These are in addition to the appointment of Neil Gorsuch to the Supreme Court and the nomination of Amul Thapar of Kentucky to serve as a judge on the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals. White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer says these judges were chosen for their "commitment to upholding Constitutional principles." These nominees need to be approved by the Senate, which will likely be no small task. In the past when Democrats controlled the Senate, leftist court appointees often sailed through the confirmation process with little or token opposition. In this divisive political environment, the minority party, the Democrats, will likely put up a fight on each nominee because the courts are where they get the laws they don't like changed. We have witnessed this first hand in recent months with the brakes put on Trump's immigration executive orders by leftist judges. Despite the law clearly allowing his immigration policies, and other presidents doing the same things without court opposition, these judges hold to the extreme left's political beliefs and legislate from the bench. But the left doesn't see it that way. The first volley in the Senate opposition comes from Senator Charles Schumer (D-NY), saying, "the president is intent on continuing to outsource the judicial selection process to hard right, special interest groups...the president should work with members of both parties to pick judges from within the judicial mainstream, who will interpret the law rather than make it." Many woes of this nation come from an agenda-driven court system where law is supposed to be weighed rightly on the scales of justice. Proverbs 11:1 says, "A false balance is abomination to the LORD: but a just weight is his delight." Trump is trying to balance the wicked scales and deceptive weights of judges who twist the law against itself to advance an agenda. 
Daily Devotion: A Walk of Faith - Greg Laurie -
www.harvest.org And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation; but be filled with the Spirit. -Ephesians 5:18 The Bible tells us to be filled with the Spirit, but have you ever wondered what that actually means? Some people surmise that to be filled with the Spirit is to have an emotional experience, and it can include that. But it doesn't always include that. Which means you can be filled with the Spirit and not have any emotional response whatsoever. Then again, you can be filled with the Spirit and feel a lot of emotion. But here is the problem: All too often, some of the most bizarre, aberrant things we see happening in the church today are attributed to the Holy Spirit. People are saying the Spirit is telling them to do these things. But do we find these things in the Bible? The answer is no. So are these things from the Holy Spirit? I don't think they really are. So what does it mean to be filled with the Spirit? We could compare it to driving a car. We read in Acts 2 about the day of Pentecost, the story of the explosion of the Holy Spirit that set the church in motion. In the same way, when you get into your car and put your key into the ignition and turn it over, there is an explosion, if you will, that fires up the car. You don't need to keep turning your car on again and again once you're driving. You just need that initial explosion, and then you drive the car. It is great when you have an emotional experience. But we must remember that the Bible says, "The just shall live by faith" (Romans 1:17). By and large, the Christian life is a walk of faith, not a walk of feeling. Feelings will come and go. But the just shall live by faith. 
FROM THE HEART
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