Prophecy Update Newsletter
IN TODAY'S NEWSLETTER...
Israel Trespassing? - By Dennis Huebshman - https://www.raptureready.com/2019/06/15/israel-trespassing-dennis-huebshman/
We hear from the Muslim population of the world that Israel is "occupying" the land that belongs to Palestine, which never was a nation to begin with. Sad part is, the rest of the world is going along with this just as the Bible said they would. How about all the different so-called "Christian" churches that are saying Israel lost its right to the claim of the covenant God made with Abraham in favor of the covenant of the Cross which Jesus paid for with His blood at Calvary. First, let's go to Genesis 12:2-3-7; "And I (God) will make you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you, I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed. Then the Lord appeared to Abraham and said, to your offspring, I will give this land. So he built there an altar to the Lord who appeared to him there." (emphasis mine) To be perfectly clear, when God says, "I will," it's a covenant that He will not break - ever! It's forever as far as He is concerned. If He says, "I will, if you..." then it's a conditional covenant with the person receiving it having to do something to make it complete. So, what's a conditional covenant example? Let's go to Romans 10:9, "because if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved." Going to verse 13, "For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved." In these verses, we have the perfect illustration that our eternal destiny is in our hands. We rely on the Father to keep His covenant, that if we do these "simple" things, we receive the benefit of His Son's sacrifice for our sins for which we deserve the punishment that Jesus endured for us. God does not lie (Titus 1:2) as this is impossible for Him. Also, He can tolerate no sin whatsoever, no matter how great or small. The only way we can ever be free from our sin is to accept the "free gift" that Jesus gave for us at Calvary. Once we are His, and we have the Holy Spirit within us, God sees His Son in us and can and will forgive us our sins. To try to attain forgiveness without Jesus is totally futile. Now, for all those people: Muslims, Christians, and everyone else who believes Israel is "occupying" Palestinian land; get ready for some reference verses from God's word. I've already given Genesis 12:7, so we'll go through a number of other verses that refers to them getting "back in their land": Deuteronomy 30:3-5; Isaiah 11:11-12; Isaiah 60:18-25; Jeremiah 23:3-8; Jeremiah 24:5-6; Jeremiah 30:18; Jeremiah 31:10, 31-34; Jeremiah 32:37-40; Jeremiah 33:6-9; Ezekiel 28:25-26; Ezekiel 34:11-13; Ezekiel 36:24-26; Ezekiel 37:21-25; Ezekiel 39:28; Hosea 3:4-5; Joel 2:18-29; Amos 9:14-15; Micah 2:12; Micah 4:6-7; Zephaniah 3:19-20; Zechariah 8:7-8; Zechariah 13:8-9, to name a few. I have made the statement in the past that if God says something, it's worth taking note of. If He repeats something, we should definitely pay attention. All the above verses tell of Israel being gathered back in their land. The first time that took place completely and they were declared a sovereign nation was May 14, 1948, or 71 years ago. How about another "I will" covenant? Amos 9:15, "I will plant them on their land, and they shall never again be uprooted out of the land that I have given them, says the Lord your God." That sounds pretty definite to me, and if we go further: at this time, Israel doesn't possess all the land given to them. For now, it's about the size of New Jersey; however, when the tribulation is over and the Millennial reign of Jesus takes place, God will honor them with the territory that was originally theirs. In fact, people from all over the world will travel to Jerusalem to worship the Lord in person. There is one point that does have to be made: most of the problems Israel has had was their own disobedience to God's will. They are His people, and He has prevented them from being totally exterminated. However, when they repented and truly called out to Him, He would bless them. For today, they have the same promise that all believers have. Those who accept Yeshua (Jesus) as their Messiah will be saved. Those who don't will go into the Lake of Fire along with all the unbelievers from the beginning of time. Jesus told the Jews that He came to be their Savior, but was here for "others" as well (John 10:14-16). He went on to say in verse 16 there would be one shepherd, one flock. The Jews were again given first chance; but when they rejected Paul, he went to the Gentiles, and the word has not stopped spreading yet. The time is coming when the world will turn against Jerusalem, and by extension all of Israel (Zechariah 12:3). To say God has turned against them is to ignore the miracles already done there, just in our lifetime. By all rights, when the May 14, 1948, declaration was made, Israel should have been annihilated. They were viciously attacked from all sides; but with limited weaponry, and armed forces, they defeated the attackers. Luck, you say? I say God's hand was very visible. How about the famous 6-day war in June, 1967? Again, Israel was attacked but fought back with such aggression that they once again took the city of Jerusalem. There have been other conflicts, and Israel has always come out on top. Yes, even today, they are being attacked by terrorists, but overall are living in relative safety. They have a military that ranks with the greatest nations. Their knowledge is increasing rapidly as given in Daniel 12:4. Once a wasteland that Samuel Clements (Mark Twain) said wouldn't support any agriculture, Israel now exports fruits and vegetables to other countries. To say God has not had a hand in this would be to declare oneself blind. Israel will face a 7-year period of tribulation right after signing a peace treaty with the antichrist. The number of Jews worldwide that will go with Jesus in the Rapture is estimated to only be 1% - 2% of their total population. They will be attacked again (Ezekiel 38-39), and God will protect them. Approximately 2/3 will die during the wrath years, but all who are here for the touch-earth coming of Jesus will believe in Him. So, for all who speak evil against Israel, I invite you to re-read Genesis 12:3. It still applies. For all - Jews and Gentiles - who wish to avoid the wrath, follow Romans 10:9-13; it's the only way (John 14:6) to salvation. Also, pray for the peace of Jerusalem (Psalm 122:6) Ahava b'Shem Yeshua (Love in the name of Jesus) [email protected] Iran is dragging the Middle East into a dangerous standoff - By Yaakov Lappin - https://www.jns.org/iran-is-dragging-the-middle-east-into-a-dangerous-standoff/ Tehran has been threatening its Arab neighbors, the international oil market and Israel as it attempts to squeeze out of the choke-hold of U.S. sanctions. In recent weeks, Iran and its proxies have begun operating under a new directive best described as a policy of controlled escalation. Still, the potential for miscalculation and region-wide conflict has grown considerably. Responding to the choke-hold of U.S. sanctions put in place by the Trump administration, Tehran, together with its non-state militias and terrorist entities, initiated a series of aggressive acts throughout the Middle East. These include the targeting of oil tankers in the Gulf of Oman with mines by a naval Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) squad, and last month, the targeting of oil tankers docked at a United Arab Emirates' port in the Strait of Hormuz. Such attacks are a clear threat, aimed at showing off Iran's ability to disrupt international oil-shipping traffic. In addition, IRGC forces fired a missile at a U.S. intelligence drone. Meanwhile, Iranian proxy militias in Iraq and Syria were likely behind the firing of rockets recently at the U.S. embassy in Baghdad and at Israel's Golan Heights. In addition, the Iranian-backed Houthis in Yemen launched cruise-missile and explosive drone attacks against sensitive targets in Saudi Arabia, hitting airports and oil facilities. Behind all of the actions is a single message. If U.S. sanctions continue to damage the Iranian economy, the Islamic Republic is prepared to wreak havoc in response. Iran is demonstrating its ability to threaten oil exports by Washington's Arab allies. It is effectively holding the global oil market hostage, in addition to implicitly threatening to step up attacks on Israel. According to a Hebrew-language report published on Sunday by the Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI), Iran has used terror factions in Gaza to send threatening messages in response to its standoff with America. Examples include speeches delivered by Hamas chief Yahya Sinwar and Palestinian Islamic Jihad secretary-general Ziad Al-Nakhleh. Both released threatening statements outlining what the next conflict with Israel would look like and boasted about growing rocket arsenals at their disposals. Both terrorist leaders praised Iranian support for their respective organizations. Sinwar and Al-Nakhleh delivered their speeches in a manner designed to line up with Iran's Quds Day, held on the last Friday of Ramadan, in which the regime in Tehran organizes rallies to call for Israel's destruction. MEMRI interpreted the speeches by Sinwar and Al-Nakhleh as "a threatening message from Iran, via its proxies, against the U.S. and its allies, after the failure of indirect talks between Iran and the U.S. over the Iranian nuclear program." The statements echoed similar statements that came out of Iran itself on Quds Day, in what looks to be a coordinated influence campaign. Planning to increase uranium enrichment The Iranians are not rushing into war and are aware of America's superior military might. The Iranians have also tasted Israel's advanced capabilities in the form of large numbers of precision airstrikes in Syria that have destroyed many of their assets. Instead, Iran wishes to frighten the international community, divide it and intimidate Europe into finding ways for protection from American sanctions. The European Union has already tried (and failed) to set up a special financial mechanism to allow companies to bypass the sanctions; however, the threat of U.S. penalties has been overwhelming, and this effort failed. European countries still have time to defend Iran from American sanctions, but they must act immediately, the spokesman for Iran's nuclear agency, Behrouz Kamalvandi, warned on Monday. His statement is an indication of Iran's short-term end game. Iran has given Europe until July 7 to do this. After that, more severe Iranian violations of the nuclear agreement should be expected. A longer-term objective for Iran seems to rest on waiting to see whether U.S. President Trump is re-elected in 2020 before taking any truly irreversible decisions. In the meantime, the Iranians are preparing the option of leaving the nuclear agreement and restarting its nuclear program. On Monday, Iran warned that it could begin enriching uranium to 20 percent, significantly higher than the 3 percent it is allowed under the terms of the 2015 nuclear deal. Tehran also increased the rate of uranium enrichment and stopped shipping excess uranium abroad, as it is obligated to do. Between the lines, Iran's warning seems stark. If a strained economy causes instability at home, the Islamic Republic could prefer plunging the region into war in order to save itself, and in doing so rally Iranians around the flag. The calculation behind such a move is that the Iranian regime would likely survive a U.S. air campaign, despite the massive damage it would incur. But it might not survive an uprising at home. This, then, is Iran's response to the massive economic pressure it is under. After America cancelled waivers to countries that import Iranian oil, Tehran took the decision to embark on a policy of controlled escalation. Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei and the IRGC seem to be controlling Iran's posture, rather than the reformist camp and President Hassan Rouhani. The reformist camp's proposal to rescue the Iranian economy from sanctions and isolation by signing a nuclear deal with the international community in 2015 has been discredited in the eyes of Khamenei and the IRGC. As tensions in the Persian Gulf rise, they also project outwards, to other areas of the Middle East. Iran controls powerful, heavily armed proxies, and it could activate any number of them as part of a new escalation. Israel, for its part, has made it clear that it will not tolerate a situation in which Iran restarts its nuclear program. Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu said should that happen, the international community will have to immediately activate snap-back sanctions, and "in any case, Israel will not allow Iran to obtain nuclear weapons." Nearing Midnight: God's Strange Name for Jerusalem - Terry James - https://www.raptureready.com/category/nearing-midnight/ Jerusalem and Israel are the "apple of my eye" according to the Lord of Heaven. It is the very center of the earth so far as God's dealings with mankind are concerned. All reference points given in the Bible most often radiate in different directions from the "holy city." It is the city where Jesus Christ will reign and rule during the time of the millennial earth. Jerusalem is the place where the Shekinah Glory-God, Himself, dwelt. His presence was there in the Holy of Holies, resident within the Ark of the Covenant. The fifteen-foot cubed area was so powerful in its prominence that the Temple priest who went into it had a rope tied around one leg so his body could be pulled from beneath the veil if he made a mistake in his duties. No man could go in there and live, save that divinely appointed priest. That priest had to be very careful not to touch the Ark and possibly other things in that chamber, lest he suffer instant death. The veil itself separated God from mankind until Jesus Christ said "It is finished" at the moment He gave up His spirit to death. When Jesus died on the cross, that thick veil tore from top to bottom, indicating that the rent came from God in Heaven. From that moment, following Christ's resurrection three days later, mankind could have direct access to God through Christ, who died for the sins of the world that had separated God from man before the death, burial, and resurrection of God's Son as once-and-for-all sacrifice. So why is Jerusalem, the center of man's only hope for salvation from sin and death, mysteriously called terrible names by God Himself? The conjecture over this reference has been wide and varied, and perhaps unable to be known-that is, until the unfolding of prophetic stage-setting for the second coming of Christ. The scriptural reference in question covers the deaths of the two witnesses who will preach during the Tribulation era. Antichrist will have finally managed to kill these two Heaven-sent men. At this point, they lay in the streets of Jerusalem, while the rebellious world of earth-dwellers mock and send each other gifts. "Good riddance," the rebels will be saying. And their dead bodies shall lie in the street of the great city, which spiritually is called Sodom and Egypt, where also our Lord was crucified. (Revelation 11:8) Egypt is the horrible regime that enslaved God's chosen people-not a very nice name to give to this city God has previously called "the apple of my eye." But then, the name given is even worse. God's Word calls it "Sodom." Many, including myself, have wondered over the years why this city so esteemed by God would be termed "Sodom" in the spiritual sense. We know that many wicked things happened there over the eons of time. The wickedness seemed to rise to the level of ultimate evil when the beating and crucifixion of Israel's Messiah took place. Because the above naming of Jerusalem as "Egypt" and "Sodom" are given in the Revelation, I would like to propose that the meaning behind such horrid names might be now somewhat more understandable. This present world of people is, as any student of God's Word with discernment knows, becoming ever more wicked. Here are a few headlines from Rapture Ready News that attest to what is going on. (These were taken from only one day's headlines on June 8.)
There are many more such headlines-and some much more egregious-that tell of the world moving toward Sodom-like comportment. But what about Jerusalem and our quandary? Why does God's Word call His beloved city "Sodom" in His most profound book of prophecy yet future? I think perhaps the answer might be framed, at least to some extent, in consideration of these excerpts from the following story. Some 15,000 people turned out Thursday in the capital as part of the 18th annual Jerusalem Gay Pride Parade. The event got underway under increased security measures implemented by the police, with at least 2,600 police officers deployed to secure the march, nearly 100 more than last year... Israel's first openly gay minister Amir Ohana from Likud, who was assigned the justice portfolio by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday, arrived at the Liberty Bell Park in Jerusalem - where the pride parade was to kick-off - was booed by the crowd assembled at the location, with some shouting 'Shame, Shame' and 'What have you done for our community?' at the new minister. "It's important that all of you are here, despite demonstrating against me," Ohana said to the crowd before leaving the event shortly after... Later in the evening an event was to take place at Jerusalem's Independence Park, accompanied by performances from various musical artists and speeches from pro-LGBTQ activists. ("Jerusalem's Gay Pride Parade Kicks Off Amid at Least 49 Arrests," Ynetnews, June 6, 2019) Like many American city officials these days, apparently the ones in Jerusalem want Sodom-like activity at the center of culture and society. Is it any wonder that the King of all Kings will have to cleanse that city from which He is prophetically scheduled to reign and rule for a thousand years? Two Days in June - By Hal Lindsey - https://www.hallindsey.com/6-17-2019/ On June 12th, Rush Limbaugh went to a commercial break and came back with some sobering words. "I was perusing the Drudge page over the top of the hour break. Man, the Drudge page - depending on the time you look at it - I mean, it makes it look like this country's finished. We're done. It's over. You may as well forget about it and just enjoy your life." He went on to cite some examples that were on Drudge at the time. "US Cities Overwhelmed with Illegals from Ebola Countries." The headline that followed said, "Not Being Screened, Not Being Quarantined." Then he read a Drudge link to the Los Angeles Times, "California Desert Town Sees Migrant Surge as Crisis Worsens." He read a headline I won't repeat here about the unprecedented level of debauchery in a new teen drama on HBO. He followed that with, "CEO Confidence Drops to Lowest Level of Trump Presidency." "Advertisers Reconsider Targeting Millennials Because They're Broke." "USA Ranked 128th Most Peaceful Nation." "Tech Insider Blows Whistle on How Pinterest Listed Top Pro-Life Site..." He explained that the whistle-blower from inside Pinterest said they were "listing the top pro-life site as pornography and not allowing people to access it." You could do the same thing on almost any day. For instance, on June 14th, the main Drudge headline said, "War Drums" There were several stories on Iran attacking oil tankers in the Strait of Hormuz. CNN says, "Roughly 30% of the world's sea-borne crude oil passes through the strategic choke point, making it a flashpoint for political and economic friction." There was a Wall Street Journal story with the headline, "US, NATO Moves in Baltics Raise Russian Fears." The story said, "The US and its NATO allies flexed their muscles along Russia's western border this week with military exercises and a pledge of new troops that have deepened Moscow's fears of US intentions in the region." Here are some more Drudge headlines from the 14th. "Bond king rings alarm bell" ... "Chinese making parts for top-secret F-35 fighters" ... "Israeli jets hit Gaza after rocket fire into Israel" ... "California moves to let felons serve on juries" ... "SCIENTISTS: Fast food could cause dementia" ... "New York becomes first city to fund abortions directly" ... "State ends religious exemption to vaccine mandates" ... "Tens of thousands join Mideast's biggest gay pride fest" ... "Software Allows Anyone To Edit Anything Anyone Says On Video" ... "Plans to 'hack Earth's weather' could start WW3, scientists warn." All these headlines come from one news accumulation website. The ones Rush Limbaugh reported were a fraction of the headlines from June 12th. The rest were a few of the ones listed on June 14th. These are not unusual. These are headlines of the last days. They show financial unrest, wars and rumors of war mostly centered in the Middle East, various kinds of pestilence, technology run amuck, the kings of the east gaining more power, and sin and debauchery similar to the days of Noah and the days of Lot. These are not times for playing at being a Christian. These are not times for "drawing back" or "wavering." These are days to "press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus" (Philippians 3:14). These are days to "Fight the good fight of faith" (1 Timothy 6:12) remembering that, "Our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places" (Ephesians 6:12). But it also time to lift our heads. Jesus is coming soon! Daily Jot: The prophetic implications of Iran's aggression - Bill Wilson - www.dailyjot.com Last week, two oil tankers were attacked in the Gulf of Oman and Iran is thought to be the culprit. This has prompted President Donald Trump to send an additional 1,000 troops to the Middle East and put American military resources in the area on even higher alert. Meanwhile, Iran is using the tanker incident as a propaganda tool to gin up its population against America, by saying it destroyed the tankers and drowned everyone aboard them. In addition, Iran is contemplating pulling out of the nuclear accord that the previous US president gave them billions in cash on pallets for its participation. It hasn't adhered to the agreement anyway. These events may have serious prophetic implications toward the end times. In the end of days, Iran will need to be in submission to Gog of Magog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal (all in Turkey), for the fulfillment of the Ezekiel 38 prophecy of Gog leading a coalition of Persia (Iran), Libya; and Ethiopia (Sudan) against Israel. When we see Iran being brought into such a coalition with Turkey and these prophetic nations aligning against Israel, we know this time is near. One question is how Iran, which competes for supremacy in the region with Saudi Arabia and Turkey, comes into submission to the end time beast figure, Gog, emanating from Turkey. There are several scenarios that could be played out based on the current situation. Iran is conducting a proxy war in Syria. Major terrorist actors are involved such as Hamas, Hezbollah, what's left of the Islamic State, and several lessor groups. Major end time players also are involved-Turkey, Iran, Syria-in addition to the United States and Russia. It is a complex cluster of competing interests, ultimately aimed at Iran trying to control the region and positioning to eliminate Israel from the face of the earth (Iran's stated intentions). Now Iran is not only fighting in Syria, but also thumping the US on the chest in a dangerous multinational chess match over supremacy. We know through prophecy, however, that Iran must come into league with Turkey for the end time battle led by Gog. We understand a few things about these prophecies. Isaiah 17:1 says, "Behold, Damascus is taken away from being a city, and it shall be a ruinous heap." Verse 17:7 says, "At that day shall a man look to his Maker, and his eyes shall have respect to the Holy One of Israel." Phrases like "at that day" in the context of end time prophecy usually refers to the Day of the Lord. We see a similar verse in the chapter explaining the Gog of Magog attack on Israel. Ezekiel 38:23 says, "Thus will I magnify myself, and sanctify myself; and I will be known in the eyes of many nations, and they shall know that I am the Lord." The rumblings in Iran, especially with so many end time nations impacted, likely accelerates the prophecy clock. Watch and pray. Daily Devotion: What It Means to Walk with God - by Greg Laurie - www.harvest.org He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked. - 1 John 2:6 I have heard that if you walk three times a day at a brisk pace, it can help keep you in good shape physically. You won't move as quickly as you move when you are running. Walking is a regulated motion, but as you do it, you make progress. You move forward gradually. If we want to abide in Jesus, we must walk as He walked. The Bible says, "He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked" (1 John 2:6). Walking with God is a picture the Bible often uses to describe the Christian life. Galatians 5:16 says, "Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh." Colossians 2:6 tells us, "As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him." And in Micah 6:8 we read, "He has shown you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God?" Again and again the Bible tells us that we need to walk with God. It's something we need to commit ourselves to. An interesting verse in Amos 3 gives us an important aspect of walking with God: "Can two walk together, unless they are agreed?" (verse 3). In the original language, the term together carries the concept of two people moving as a single unit. To walk with God means moving together as a single unit. We are united toward the same goal. We are putting our strength toward the same end. We are moving together at the same pace. To walk with God means that we are moving in harmony with Him. We are staying close to Him. It is the same concept as abiding. 
FROM THE HEART
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