Prophecy Update Newsletter
IN TODAY'S NEWSLETTER...
Riots and Rumors of Riots - By Daniel Payne - https://www.raptureready.com/2020/06/06/riots-and-rumors-of-riots-by-daniel-payne/
What we're currently witnessing in America is nothing short of lawlessness. It's quite obvious that the goal of the powers of darkness is to castrate the rule of law in America, through any and all of their willing puppets. It is only then that true lawlessness will follow. Matthew 24:12, "And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold." The liberal news media is either complicit or insane. They only seem to serve to exacerbate any crisis situation, like COVID-19, or now the current riots. There is an order to everything in nature: for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. There is an ebb and a flow. Think of the tides rolling in and out of a bay. The incoming tide flows in, followed by the outgoing tide flowing out. That's just the way of nature. If there's bad news that points toward things against opening up our economy, there's also good news that points in favor of opening up our economy. Why then does the liberal media always seem to only report "news" that leads against opening up the American economy? Why must they always dwell on the negative without dwelling on the positive? The only thing positive they dwell on are COVID-19 test results. Even if they do happen to mention something that could be construed as a positive toward opening our economy, they always add an additional negative comment that extinguishes any hope. Why? Do they not understand the natural order of things? It's not possible for every thing to be negative as it relates to people getting their freedom back. It's as if they're not letting the incoming tide follow the natural flow back into the bay. They're like a giant face continuously blowing their enormous breath of putrid wind against the ocean, in order to keep the bay and inland waters from being refreshed by its plentiful waters. To a reasonable person, it's as if they're trying to ensure that the COVID-19 crisis lasts as long as possible. How can that be? Is the media responsible for how many people get sick? Of course not, and that's the point. People are gonna get sick, most people are gonna get better, and some people will not. That's just the way of things. However, the media can and does control the response to the crisis, and they certainly know that. Nothing will stop them from laying out the red carpet for the man of sin. Jesus warned us of these exact days that we're currently living in: Matthew 24:6-8, "And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not troubled; for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be famines, pestilences, and earthquakes in various places. All these are the beginning of sorrows." The same Greek word translated as "wars" above is also used by James to describe quarrels: James 4:1, "Where do wars and fights come from among you? Do they not come from your desires for pleasure that war in your members?" It's as if Jesus was warning us of the mobs and riots we're seeing more and more now around the world. The word Jesus used for "wars" can also mean "battles," and no one can deny that what we're currently seeing around American cities today is nothing short of battles. Then, in the next verse, Jesus described nations rising against nations. The Greek word that Jesus used for "nation" means "nationality," "ethnicity," or "race." In other words, the warning given by Jesus as to what the last generation would witness right before the Tribulation "could" rightly be translated as: And you will hear of riots and rumors of riots. See that you are not troubled; for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. For race will rise against race, and country against country. And there will be famines, viruses, and earthquakes in various places. All these are the beginning of sorrows. With social media, information spreads at light speed, both true and false information. What's really happening, and what's rumored to happen. With mobs tearing down statues, stores, monuments, police stations, and anything they can get their hands on, the words "wars" and "battles" seem very appropriate. It's obvious that the raging lunatics have no real cause except to hate all righteous authority. Psalm 2:1-2, "Why do the heathen rage, and the people imagine a vain thing? The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the LORD, and against His Anointed." Based upon Christ's warnings, it seems very likely that we'll be witnessing wars between countries very soon. Of course, earthquakes can strike at any place, anytime; but with the fear of COVID-19, a brand-new Ebola virus outbreak in the Congo, and the pestilences of locusts and other factors causing severe famine in certain parts of the world already happening, military warfare seems next on the horizon. Not to mention, this hurricane season is forecast to be yet another one for the record books. Exactly when the true, faithful, watching, waiting, and warning church will be caught up to meet Jesus, will determine just how much more trouble we are going to witness. However, nothing that is happening is outside God's knowledge, power, and ability to protect His own. He has an exact date picked out already when we will be brought to stand before Jesus while the rest of the world stands before Antichrist. Luke 21:36, "Watch therefore, and pray always that you may be counted worthy to escape all these things that will come to pass, and to stand before the Son of Man." A Nation Divided... - By Terry James - https://www.raptureready.com/2020/06/11/a-nation-divided-by-terry-james/ Never have the words spoken by Jesus been more relevant than at this moment in the history of America: And if a kingdom be divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. And if a house be divided against itself, that house cannot stand. (Mark 3: 24-25) We watched this past week policemen and even members of the National Guard kneeling before the protesters in cities they were supposed to protect and govern. Amongst the protesters were the vilest of people determined to tear America down. The police and military governing officials actually were kneeling before these people as well as before the peaceful, lawful protesters. Such entities as Black Lives Matter, supposedly an organization to champion the rights of African-Americans in particular, were, meantime, joining with the communist-backed thugs called Antifa in destroying infrastructure of cities and injuring police officers sent to assure the safety of citizens. Still, the police and even some National Guard members knelt in "solidarity" with those who perpetrated outrageous, unlawful acts of violence. This, Jesus said, is what happens when a nation or a household is divided in loyalty and purpose. America certainly is divided. It is divided at its very core. It is divided along a number of lines-politically, ideologically, racially, and one other, the most important divide of all, spiritually. The political-ideological divide is so obvious as to need no explanation. However, mention it I will. We have witnessed the assaults from the politically leaning left ramp up hatred against the current president. It is joined by mainstream news and entertainment media in its hatred for the president and his determination to rebuild America toward its former, founding structure-based upon constitutional authority steeped in Judeo-Christian principles. Most all of social media join in the effort to further divide America, censoring conservative thought, which wants an America as founded. More and more, only "progressive" thinking that declares there is no desire for governance that includes godly morality dominates the likes of Twitter, Facebook, and others. Proponents who embrace tearing America down and making it an internationalist rather than national entity, through open borders and every other globalist-engendered way, kneel before the god of this world. That god of this world is Satan, the father of lies, who knows that the way to achieve his own determination to produce his Antichrist regime is to remove the roadblock of nationalism. Particularly, he wants such a powerful roadblock to his goal as the United States removed as quickly as possible and in whatever way necessary. The devil seems to be having his way lately. The media does its bidding in reporting the dividing of America-or seemingly so. Every night, the cameras and media voices portray this nation as tearing itself apart. The division, they imply, is rightfully destroying America's unfair structure of law and order. Current structures of law and order, they want us to infer, needs defunding or whatsoever else necessary in order to show how much we agree with the likes of Black Lives Matter. Media relish the scenes of some among that law-and-order establishment kneeling before the protesters who have been taken over by the violent, anti-American anarchists. Satan, too, relishes the scenes, no doubt. He knows Jesus' words are true: "A kingdom or house divided against itself cannot stand." The devil has half the country agreeing with having those assigned to protect us against the deadly destructiveness of anarchy kneeling before the anarchists. The divide is there at every juncture of American life. We are divided right down the middle politically, ideologically, and racially, it seems. But it is the spiritual divide that's most virulent. It seems that fully half the nation, including most of the Millennials, has been deluded through decades of anti-American, anti-God inculcation. The education system has been corrupted so that most every higher educational administration has avowed communist or atheist teachers and professors at its core. This is considered a good thing by those on the left, because Thomas Jefferson said there must be separation of church and state. Only Jefferson meant no such thing, as anyone who sincerely examines his statement to the minister in his letter will conclude. So much of America today, rather than standing, is kneeling before the anti-God forces of Satan's planning for the globalist regime to come. There is a remedy. God always provides a way out of a sin-strapped predicament. Let's look at Jesus' words in totality in the matter of a house divided. And if a kingdom be divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. And if a house be divided against itself, that house cannot stand. And if Satan rise up against himself, and be divided, he cannot stand, but hath an end. No man can enter into a strong man's house, and spoil his goods, except he will first bind the strong man; and then he will spoil his house. (Mark 3: 24-27) America is in a state of division. Satan has all of his agencies, both human and demonic, working in one direction to bring the nation down so he can complete his one-world order. He must disarm the nation by defunding the protective services through doing away with the Second Amendment and the right to bear arms. Half the nation, it seems, is kneeling before these forces of evil. The answer to our dire predicament is to do the same. We, who call upon the name of Jesus Christ, must kneel also. We must kneel before our Lord and invoke again the prayer as instructed by the Heavenly Father. As we approach election this November, it is imperative that we heed and do as instructed. If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land. (2 Chronicles 7:14) We are not naïve. Our beloved nation and the world of nations will eventually fall to the global scheme Satan and his minions are working day and night to bring into being. The satanic, global order is there in Bible prophecy. But our prayers and efforts at the voting booth and in other ways can delay the devil's implementation of his hellish scheme. When the Church is called by Christ (Revelation 4:1) in the Rapture (1 Corinthians 15:51-55 and 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18), the world of rebels, sadly, will get their abominable New World Order. Let us be salt and light to the world until that glorious moment. A Brief History of Antifa: Part I - by Soeren Kern - https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/16104/antifa-history U.S. Attorney General William Barr has blamed Antifa - a militant "anti-fascist" movement - for the violence that has erupted at George Floyd protests across the United States. "The violence instigated and carried out by Antifa and other similar groups in connection with the rioting is domestic terrorism and will be treated accordingly," he said. Barr also said that the federal government has evidence that Antifa "hijacked" legitimate protests around the country to "engage in lawlessness, violent rioting, arson, looting of businesses, and public property assaults on law enforcement officers and innocent people, and even the murder of a federal agent." Earlier, U.S. President Donald J. Trump had instructed the U.S. Justice Department to designate Antifa as a terrorist organization. Academics and media outlets sympathetic to Antifa have argued that the group cannot be classified as a terrorist organization because, they claim, it is a vaguely-defined protest movement that lacks a centralized structure. Mark Bray, a vocal apologist for Antifa in America and author of the book "Antifa: The Anti-Fascist Handbook," asserts that Antifa "is not an overarching organization with a chain of command." Empirical and anecdotal evidence shows that Antifa is, in fact, highly networked, well-funded and has a global presence. It has a flat organizational structure with dozens and possibly hundreds of local groups. Not surprisingly, the U.S. Department of Justice is currently investigating individuals linked to Antifa as a step to unmasking the broader organization. In the United States, Antifa's ideology, tactics and goals, far from being novel, are borrowed almost entirely from Antifa groups in Europe, where so-called anti-fascist groups, in one form or another, have been active, almost without interruption, for a century. What is Antifa? Antifa can be described as a transnational insurgency movement that endeavors, often with extreme violence, to subvert liberal democracy, with the aim of replacing global capitalism with communism. Antifa's stated long-term objective, both in America and abroad, is to establish a communist world order. In the United States, Antifa's immediate aim is to bring about the demise of the Trump administration. Antifa's nemeses include law enforcement, which is viewed as enforcing the established order. A common tactic used by Antifa in the United States and Europe is to employ extreme violence and destruction of public and private property to goad the police into a reaction, which then "proves" Antifa's claim that the government is "fascist." Antifa claims to oppose "fascism," a term it often uses as a broad-brush pejorative to discredit those who hold opposing political beliefs. The traditional meaning of "fascism" as defined by Webster's Dictionary is "a totalitarian governmental system led by a dictator and emphasizing an aggressive nationalism, militarism, and often racism." Antifa holds the Marxist-Leninist definition of fascism which equates it with capitalism. "The fight against fascism is only won when the capitalist system has been shattered and a classless society has been achieved," according to the German Antifa group, Antifaschistischer Aufbau München. Germany's BfV domestic intelligence agency, in a special report on left-wing extremism, noted: "Antifa's fight against right-wing extremists is a smokescreen. The real goal remains the 'bourgeois-democratic state,' which, in the reading of left-wing extremists, accepts and promotes 'fascism' as a possible form of rule and therefore does not fight it sufficiently. Ultimately, it is argued, 'fascism' is rooted in the social and political structures of 'capitalism.' Accordingly, left-wing extremists, in their 'antifascist' activities, focus above all on the elimination of the 'capitalist system.'" Matthew Knouff, author of An Outsider's Guide to Antifa: Volume II, explained Antifa's ideology this way: "The basic philosophy of Antifa focuses on the battle between three basic forces: fascism, racism and capitalism - all three of which are interrelated according to Antifa.... with fascism being considered the final expression or stage of capitalism, capitalism being a means to oppress, and racism being an oppressive mechanism related to fascism." In an essay, "What Antifa and the Original Fascists Have In Common," Antony Mueller, a German professor of economics who currently teaches in Brazil, described how Antifa's militant anti-capitalism masquerading as anti-fascism reveals its own fascism: "After the left has pocketed the concept of liberalism and turned the word into the opposite of its original meaning, the Antifa-movement uses a false terminology to hide its true agenda. While calling themselves 'antifascist' and declaring fascism the enemy, the Antifa itself is a foremost fascist movement. "The members of Antifa are not opponents to fascism but themselves its genuine representatives. Communism, Socialism and Fascism are united by the common band of anti-capitalism and anti-liberalism. "The Antifa movement is a fascist movement. The enemy of this movement is not fascism but liberty, peace and prosperity." Antifa's Ideological Origins The ideological origins of Antifa can be traced back to the Soviet Union roughly a century ago. In 1921 and 1922, the Communist International (Comintern) developed the so-called united front tactic to "unify the working masses through agitation and organization" ... "at the international level and in each individual country" against "capitalism" and "fascism" - two terms that often were used interchangeably. The world's first anti-fascist group, Arditi del Popolo (People's Courageous Militia), was founded in Italy in June 1921 to resist the rise of Benito Mussolini's National Fascist Party, which itself was established to prevent the possibility of a Bolshevik revolution on the Italian Peninsula. Many of the group's 20,000 members, consisting of communists and anarchists, later joined the International Brigades during the Spanish Civil War (1936-39). In Germany, the Communist Party of Germany established the paramilitary group Roter Frontkämpferbund (Red Front Fighters League) in July 1924. The group was banned due to its extreme violence. Many of its 130,000 members continued their activities underground or in local successor organizations such as the Kampfbund gegen den Faschismus (Fighting-Alliance Against Fascism). In Slovenia, the militant anti-fascist movement TIGR was established in 1927 to oppose the Italianization of Slovene ethnic areas after the collapse of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. The group, which was disbanded in 1941, specialized in assassinating Italian police and military personnel. In Spain, the Communist Party established the Milicias Antifascistas Obreras y Campesinas (Antifascist Worker and Peasant Militias), which were active in the 1930s. The modern Antifa movement derives its name from a group called Antifaschistische Aktion, founded in May 1932 by Stalinist leaders of the Communist Party of Germany. The group was established to fight fascists, a term the party used to describe all of the other pro-capitalist political parties in Germany. The primary objective of Antifaschistische Aktion was to abolish capitalism, according to a detailed history of the group. The group, which had more than 1,500 founding members, went underground after Nazis seized power in 1933. A German-language pamphlet - "80 Years of Anti-Fascist Actions" (80 Jahre Antifaschistische Aktion)" - describes in minute detail the continuous historical thread of the Antifa movement from its ideological origins in the 1920s to the present day. The document states: "Antifascism has always fundamentally been an anti-capitalist strategy. This is why the symbol of the Antifaschistische Aktion has never lost its inspirational power.... Anti-fascism is more of a strategy than an ideology." During the post-war period, Germany's Antifa movement reappeared in various manifestations, including the radical student protest movement of the 1960s, and the leftist insurgency groups that were active throughout the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s. The Red Army Faction (RAF), also known as the Baader-Meinhof Gang, was a Marxist urban guerrilla group that carried out assassinations, bombings and kidnappings aimed at bringing revolution to West Germany, which the group characterized as a fascist holdover of the Nazi era. Over the course of three decades, the RAF murdered more than 30 people and injured over 200. After the collapse of the communist government in East Germany in 1989-90, it was discovered that the RAF had been given training, shelter, and supplies by the Stasi, the secret police of the former communist regime. John Philip Jenkins, Distinguished Professor of History at Baylor University, described the group's tactics, which are similar to those used by Antifa today: "The goal of their terrorist campaign was to trigger an aggressive response from the government, which group members believed would spark a broader revolutionary movement." RAF founder Ulrike Meinhof explained the relationship between violent left-wing extremism and the police: "The guy in uniform is a pig, not a human being. That means we don't have to talk to him and it is wrong to talk to these people at all. And of course, you can shoot." Bettina Röhl, a German journalist and daughter of Meinhof, argues that the modern Antifa movement is a continuation of the Red Army Faction. The main difference is that, unlike the RAF, Antifa's members are afraid to reveal their identities. In a June 2020 essay published by the Swiss newspaper Neue Zürcher Zeitung, Röhl also drew attention to the fact that Antifa is not only officially tolerated, but is being paid by the German government to fight the far right: "The RAF idolized the communist dictatorships in China, North Korea, North Vietnam, in Cuba, which were transfigured by the New Left as better countries on the right path to the best communism.... "The flourishing left-wing radicalism in the West, which brutally strikes at the opening of the European Central Bank headquarters in Frankfurt, at every G-20 summit or every year on May 1 in Berlin, has achieved the highest level of establishment in the state, not least thanks to the support by quite a few MPs from political parties, journalists and relevant experts. "Compared to the RAF, the militant Antifa only lacks prominent faces. Out of cowardice, its members cover their faces and keep their names secret. Antifa constantly threatens violence and attacks against politicians and police officers. It promotes senseless damage to property amounting to vast sums. Nevertheless, MP Renate Künast (Greens) recently complained in the Bundestag that Antifa groups had not been adequately funded by the state in recent decades. She was concerned that 'NGOs and Antifa groups do not always have to struggle to raise money and can only conclude short-term employment contracts from year to year.' There was applause for this from Alliance 90 / The Greens, from the left and from SPD deputies. "One may ask the question of whether Antifa is something like an official RAF, a terrorist group with money from the state under the guise of 'fighting against the right.'" Germany's BfV domestic intelligence agency explains Antifa's glorification of violence: "For left-wing extremists, 'Capitalism' is interpreted as triggering wars, racism, ecological disasters, social inequality and gentrification. 'Capitalism' is therefore more than just a mere economic order. In left-wing extremist discourse, it determines the social and political form as well as the vision of a radical social and political reorganization. Whether anarchist or communist: Parliamentary democracy as a so-called bourgeois form of rule should be 'overcome' in any case. "For this reason, left-wing extremists usually ignore or legitimize human rights violations in socialist or communist dictatorships or in states that they allegedly see threatened by the 'West.' To this day, both orthodox communists and autonomous activists justify, praise and celebrate the left-wing terrorist Red Army Faction or foreign left-wing terrorists as alleged 'liberation movements' or even 'resistance fighters.'" Meanwhile, in Britain, Anti-Fascist Action (AFA), a militant anti-fascist group founded in 1985, gave birth to the Antifa movement in the United States. In Germany, the Antifaschistische Aktion-Bundesweite Organisation (AABO) was founded in 1992 to combine the efforts of smaller Antifa groups scattered around the country. In Sweden, Antifascistisk Aktion (AFA), a militant Antifa group founded in 1993, established a three-decade track record for using extreme violence against its opponents. In France, the Antifa group L'Action antifasciste, is known for its fierce opposition to the State of Israel. After the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989 and the collapse of communism in 1990, the Antifa movement opened a new front against neoliberal globalization. Attac, established in France in 1989 to promote a global tax on financial transactions, now leads the so-called alter-globalization movement, which, like the Global Justice Movement, is opposed to capitalism. In 1999, Attac was present in Seattle during violent demonstrations that led to the failure of WTO negotiations. Attac also participated in anti-capitalist demonstrations against the G7, the G20, the WTO, and the war in Iraq. Today, the association is active in 40 countries, with more than a thousand local groups and hundreds of organizations supporting the network. Attac's decentralized and non-hierarchical organizational structure appears to be the model being used by Antifa. In February 2016, the International Committee of the Fourth International advanced the political foundations of the global anti-war movement, which, like Antifa, blames capitalism and neoliberal globalism for the existence of military conflict: "The new anti-war movement must be anti-capitalist and socialist, since there can be no serious struggle against war except in the fight to end the dictatorship of finance capital and the economic system that is the fundamental cause of militarism and war." In July 2017, more than 100,000 anti-globalization and Antifa protesters converged on the German city of Hamburg to protest the G20 summit. Leftist mobs laid waste to the city center. An Antifa group called "G20 Welcome to Hell" bragged about how it was able to mobilize Antifa groups from across the world: "The summit mobilizations have been precious moments of meeting and co-operation of left-wing and anti-capitalist groups and networks from all over Europe and world-wide. We have been sharing experiences and fighting together, attending international meetings, being attacked by cops supported by the military, re-organizing our forces and fighting back. Anti-globalization movement has changed, but our networks endure. We are active locally in our regions, cities, villages and forests. But we are also fighting trans-nationally." Germany's domestic security service, in an annual report, added: "Left-wing extremist structures tried to shift the public debate about the violent G20 summit protests in their favor. With the distribution of photos and reports of allegedly disproportionate police measures during the summit protests, they promoted an image of a state that denounced legitimate protests and put them down with police violence. Against such a state, they said, 'militant resistance' is not only legitimate, but also necessary." Part II of this series will examine the activities of Antifa in Germany and the United States. 5 Books In Heaven You May Not Have Known About - Ricky Scaparo - https://endtimeheadlines.org/2020/06/5-books-in-heaven-you-may-not-have-known-about/ Did you know that there are books that exist in Heaven that contain everything from details about your life to even tears that you have shed on Earth? I want to reveal to you five books that are in Heaven that are found in the Bible. 1- The Book of the Living Our first book on the list is called the "Book of the Living" and many believe this book is the same as another book mentioned in the Word of God called the "Book of Life", which contains the names of the righteous. However, this Book of the Living appears to be a book revealing the destinies of all humans born on Earth. God revealed more details concerning this book to the prophet Jeremiah: Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations. - Jeremiah 1:5 More about this book was revealed to David, he wrote the following: "Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed. And in Your book they all were written, The days fashioned for me, When as yet there were none of them". - Psalm 139 Before the physical birth of every human, there appears to be information recorded in heaven concerning the details of each living person. This is the Book of the Living, and the details for each infant were written before the infant was formed in the womb. God not only knew you before you were born, but he knows the very number of days you will live! God, Himself has a specific name that He has given to each person, and when we enter the heavenly kingdom, He will reveal to us our new name. "For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren. Moreover whom He predestined, these He also called; whom He called, these He also justified; and whom He justified, these He also glorified". - Romans 8:29-30 "For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them." - Ephesians 2:10 " Just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved." - Ephesians 1:4-6 "He who overcomes, I will make him a pillar in the temple of My God, and he shall go out no more. I will write on him the name of My God and the name of the city of My God, the New Jerusalem, which comes down out of heaven from My God. And I will write on him My new name'. - Revelation 3:12 2- The Book of Tears The next book I want to mention is the "Book of Tears" and this book can be found in the following passage of scripture: You number my wanderings; Put my tears into Your bottle; Are they not in Your book? - Psalm 56:8 In the time of Christ, there were small tear bottles that used to collect the tears of men and women at funerals. These bottles of tears were sealed and collected. The imagery of this is that God watches over us and knows every tear that we shed. We also know that God is moved by broken hearts and contrite spirits according to (Psalm 34:18). Another story in the Bible that gives credence to this, is the story of Hezekiah found in 2 Kings 20, who was sick and near death. He then received a message from Isaiah the prophet who went to him and said to him, "Thus says the Lord: 'Set your house in order, for you shall die, and not live.' " 2 Then he turned his face toward the wall, and prayed to the Lord, saying, 3 "Remember now, O Lord, I pray, how I have walked before You in truth and with a loyal heart, and have done what was good in Your sight." And Hezekiah wept bitterly. 4 And it happened before Isaiah had gone out into the middle court, that the word of the Lord came to him, saying, 5 "Return and tell Hezekiah the leader of My people, 'Thus says the Lord, the God of David your father: "I have heard your prayer, I have seen your tears; surely I will heal you. How wonderful to know that God not only knows the number of hairs on our heads but somehow, supernaturally knows the number of tears that fall from our eyes through every disappointment, every trial, pain, and heartbreak we face in this life. 3- The Book of Remembrance This Book is an amazing book referenced in the Old Testament in the Book of Malachi: Then those who feared the Lord spoke to one another, And the Lord listened and heard them; So a book of remembrance was written before Him For those who fear the Lord And who meditate on His name."They shall be Mine," says the Lord of hosts, "On the day that I make them My jewels. And I will spare them As a man spares his own son who serves him." Then you shall again discern Between the righteous and the wicked, Between one who serves God And one who does not serve Him. Malachi 3:16-18 In the opening of Malachi 3 the prophet was dealing with Israel's disobedience in giving their tithes and offerings at the temple in Jerusalem and he informed them of this mysterious book in heaven that possessed the names of those who feared the Lord, gave their tithes and offerings and witnessed to others about the Lord and His name. Interestingly, the Hebrew word for remembrance in this passage is "zikrown" and alludes to something done as a memorial. Another powerful example of this Book or Remembrance being referenced is found in the New Testament in the Book of Acts 10:1-4: "There was a certain man in Caesarea called Cornelius, a centurion of the band called the Italian band, A devout man, and one that feared God with all his house, which gave much alms to the people, and prayed to God always. He saw in a vision evidently about the ninth hour of the day an angel of God coming into him and saying unto him, Cornelius. And when he looked on him he was afraid, and said, What is it, Lord? And he said unto him, Thy prayers and thine alms are come up for a memorial before God. " In this passage, we discover that there were four things about Cornelius that captured the attention of heaven and became a "Memorial" before God. Cornelius was a devout or (devoted) man, This included fasting as it is revealed in verse 30 of Acts chapter 10, Cornelius was one who feared God with all of his household, He gave alms generously to the people, In other-wards Cornelius was a persistent giver and understood the blessing of "Giving and Receiving" and lastly, Cornelius prayed to God always and had a consistent prayer and devotional life. What we need to learn from this is that God sees and remembers our private and public devotion to him. 4- The Book of Works and Deeds This next Book is because it addresses the rewards of the believer. The Bible indicates that there are records in heaven of our deeds and works that are done while we live on Earth. Remember we are NOT saved by works, but saved people work for God. These books are referenced in both the Old and New Testament below: A fiery stream issued and came forth from before him: thousands ministered unto him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him: the judgment was set, and the books were opened. - Daniel 7 "And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened. And another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to their works, by the things which were written in the books". - Revelation 20:12 "Each one's work will become clear; for the Day will declare it, because it will be revealed by fire; and the fire will test each one's work, of what sort it is. If anyone's work which he has built on it endures, he will receive a reward. If anyone's work is burned, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire." 1 Corinthians 3:13-15 "Take heed that ye do not your alms before men, to be seen of them: otherwise, ye have no reward of your Father which is in heaven". - Matthew 6 5 - The Book of Life (Lamb's Book of Life) This fifth, final, and most important book is a unique book that contains the names of those who repent of their sins and have placed their trust in God for their salvation. Moses had knowledge that names could be added to or blotted out of this book in Heaven. When Jesus Christ became the High Priest of the heavenly temple and was positioned as the mediator between God and man, this book would later be renamed the "Lamb's Book of Life" after Christ, who was called the Lamb of God in (John 1:29, 36). The Bible reveals that names are inscribed or recorded in the Book of Life in heaven according to (Luke 10:20) and in order to be granted entry to our eternal kingdom of heaven, our name must be found in this book: "Yet now, if You will forgive their sin-but if not, I pray, blot me out of Your book which You have written." And the Lord said to Moses, "Whoever has sinned against Me, I will blot him out of My book. " - Exodus 32:32-33 "At that time Michael shall stand up, The great prince who stands watch over the sons of your people; And there shall be a time of trouble, Such as never was since there was a nation, Even to that time. And at that time your people shall be delivered, Everyone who is found written in the book. Daniel 12:1 "Behold, I give you the authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you. Nevertheless do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rather rejoice because your names are written in heaven." - Luke 10:19-21 "And I urge you also, true companion, help these women who labored with me in the gospel, with Clement also, and the rest of my fellow workers, whose names are in the Book of Life". Philippians 4:3 "He that overcometh, the same shall be clothed in white raiment, and I will not blot out his name out of the book of life, but I will confess his name before my Father, and before his angels". - Revelation 3 "For I testify to everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: If anyone adds to these things, God will add to him the plagues that are written in this book; and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part from the Book of Life, from the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book'. - Revelation 22:18-19 "Then I saw a great white throne and Him who sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away. And there was found no place for them. And I saw the dead, small and great, standing before God, and books were opened. And another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to their works, by the things which were written in the books. The sea gave up the dead who were in it, and Death and Hades delivered up the dead who were in them. And they were judged, each one according to his works. Then Death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. And anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire." - Revelation 20:11-15 Daily Jot: The Farm Chronicles: Round up - Bill Wilson - www.dailyjot.com Note: The Farm Chronicles is a weekly feature documenting life as a result of growing up on a farm in rural Ohio. Some subscribers unsubscribe apparently because they do not understand this retreat from normal news analysis. Hang with us, it's only a once a week departure to a time when America was different than it is today. It was that time of year again-the early spring. It's when Dad would go to Oscar McWilliam's ranch outside Sedalia, Missouri, to buy horses. Since school was still in session, I went through my annual beg-a-thon to go along. I loved these journeys to buy horses. It was fascinating to see how my Dad and Oscar wrangled each other for days about horses and prices, never having a cross word, but negotiating, nonetheless. Oscar was this old-time cowboy. He was over six ft tall, and a bit leaned over from age. He wore an old beat up straw cowboy hat and when he talked, he hardly moved his lips. He was a frame right out of a movie, only real life-with real life lessons and old cowboy wisdom. I was probably about 14 for this trip. And Dad said it was OK with him if it was OK with Mom. She couldn't resist my charm, so the answer was "yes" if I got all my homework done and had my assignments from school. No problem. Oscar and his wife Mary, a handsome woman of Native American descent, greeted us at the ranch. We got caught up on all the family news, and on to the business of selecting horses. Oscar had several penned up in the back part of the barn. There was one he wanted me to ride, a nice bay Quarter Horse mare. She worked out pretty well in the barn, but Oscar wanted me to take her on a trail ride the next morning-to gather up some cattle in one of the back pastures. I was excited, for sure. After a hearty breakfast (Mary was an excellent cook), I saddled up the mare and Oscar said there were four Hereford cows he wanted me to bring back. And he pointed me in the direction. Well, Oscar had over 800 acres, but I went in the general direction he told me. That mare and I walked for hours looking for those cattle. We entered a scenic valley with a spring stream flowing gently through a green meadow. I dismounted and walked along the stream where I found the biggest tadpoles I had ever seen-they were probably as large as silver dollars. Soon, we came to an old abandoned homestead. Inside the old one-story cabin along-side the stream were eight Hereford cows. I didn't know which ones were the four Oscar wanted and it was getting late in the day-we must have been 10 or more miles from the barn. So I rounded all of them up and started herding them back in the direction I came. Nothing looked the same. I was headed in another direction all together. I found a fence-line which was rare in open range, and followed it. Hours later near dusk, thinking I could be lost, my prayers were answered. I spotted a familiar clearing ahead. 20 minutes later, I proudly guided the cows into the barnyard. Oscar and Dad were waiting for me, trying to appear that they weren't worried. Oscar, through a wry smile, said, "Well, Billy, you did a good job here, but you brought back four cows that aren't mine. I think they are the ones my neighbor said he lost." I was thinking to myself, "I could have been among the lost, too." As the Lord said in Ezekiel 34:16, "I will seek the lost, bring back the strays." He does, even when we are supposed to know where we are headed. Daily Devotion: A Step Away Is a Step Down - by Greg Laurie - www.harvest.org So, they arrested him and led him to the high priest's home. And Peter followed at a distance. -Luke 22:54 After Jesus was arrested in the Garden of Gethsemane, Peter kept his distance. Yes, Peter followed the Lord, but he followed at a distance. And distance from the Lord in closeness and fellowship always will be at the foundation of all spiritual regression. So, if you can't be happy in your sin, that's a good sign. True believers are never happy when they're out of fellowship with God. And if you're out of fellowship with God, if you've sinned against the Lord, then you'll be an unhappy person. For instance, we see this in the life of David, the man after God's own heart. He sinned big time. Then in Psalm 32, he described the way he felt: "When I refused to confess my sin, my body wasted away, and I groaned all day long. Day and night your hand of discipline was heavy on me. My strength evaporated like water in the summer heat" (verses 3-4 NLT). David had been following at a distance. When the Devil looks for a Christian to take down, he looks for the one who's following at a distance. He looks for the person who says, "Do we have to go to church again? Didn't we do that last week? Read the Bible? Really? Again?" Children of God hunger for these things. Compromisers on the other hand, only do them out of duty. And if no one is encouraging them to do these things, then they don't do them. If you're following the Lord at a distance, you will end up in the miserable no-man's-land of compromise. And in that dismal place you will have too much of the Lord to be happy in the world, and too much of the world to be happy in the Lord. Don't be that person. 
FROM THE HEART
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