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IN TODAY'S NEWSLETTER...
Emmanuel Macron
- By Matt Ward - http://www.raptureready.com/2017/07/06/emmanuel-macron/ Emmanuel Macron is a remarkable man. Beyond this simple statement, there is little else we can know for sure about him. This is because a complete enigma has won the French presidency and is now taking Europe by storm. Macron is such a new, unknown entity that until very recently there was not even a visible record of his political commitments. A little over a year ago, running for office was just a dream for Macron, yet now he sits enthroned in the Elysian Palace as king over all he surveys and the sheer speed of the process has left France, and the rest of Europe-rather dizzied by it. He has come from nowhere. One year ago, Emmanuel Macron's political party, "La Republique En Marche" did not even exist. Now, after recent Parliamentary elections, it holds an unbelievable 449 of the 577 districts available. Macron's fledgling political party are going to dominate the more powerful French Lower House, the National Assembly. So knew and fresh faced are many of these 449 En Marche representatives that they are actually going to need training on how to do their jobs. Macron's rise has been nothing short of meteoric. It is in fact unprecedented. He is the youngest President France has ever had and not since 1958 and Charles de Gaulle has a French President ever won such a powerful majority. More than any French president of recent times, Emmanuel Macron can rely on the personal loyalty of each and every one of his Parliamentary representatives, as they all uniquely owe their new found positions of power and influence to Macron personally. Their loyalty is not to the party, but to the man who created the party to fulfil his presidential ambitions. Hugely powerful domestically, Macron has also become highly influential on a wider European level and is now arguably the most important political leader in Europe today, aside from Angela Merkel. Macron is the total antithesis of the Brexit mentality that has so powerfully swept Europe recently. Emmanuel Macron is the darling of globalism, he is its very embodiment. A sizeable majority of the French electorate love him too, as do many in Europe. Many, in light of his dramatic electoral victories, have declared Macron to be nothing less than "the new Louis XIV." [1] Some, again in reference to Louis XIV's nickname, have even gone so far as to refer to him as the "Sun King" reborn. In open reference to this, Macrons own nickname in France now is "Jupiter." This is a reference to the Roman god of the sky and thunder, and interestingly, the king of all the gods in ancient roman religions. Macron seems to adore the attention, even (jestingly?) allowing people to draw attention to the origin of his own name "Emmanuel," which of course means in Hebrew "God is with us." This powerful self-belief and utter conviction in his own purpose is demonstrated in Macrons first official state portrait as head of state. In this first presidential portrait, Macron can be seen pictured in his office in the Élysée Palace, perched on his desk in front of an open window, framed on either side by two flags. One is the mandatory French Tricolour and the other the EU flag. Both share equal status, both share equal importance. The message is clear. Macron is a pro-EU politician who is a globalist to the core. On the desk behind Macron are three books, one laying open. The first is André Gide's The Fruits of the Earth, published in 1897. The second is a book of Charles De Gaulle's memoirs, a powerful account of the French leaders World War II exploits, a man who truly did lead France into a "new era." The final book is Stendhal's The Red and the Black, a 19th-century novel that deals with an ambitious but provincial young man during a time of great political tension. In the book, this political tension and the young male protagonist, ultimately are witness to a revolution in the country in the 1830's. [2] Even more telling, yet subtle, is the presence on the desk of one other item lying next to the books. It is a clock. This has high symbolism for Macron as it reflects his previously spoken desire for him to become the "Master of Clock." Macron has expressed a clear desire to change the rules of the game; he intends to set his own agenda, his own schedule and even his own times for doing things, especially against convention and traditional wisdom. This boundary breaking attitude has been very much evident in his personal life from the beginning. Meeting his future wife as a school child of 15 years of age, he determined then that he was going to marry his drama teacher, Brigitte Trogneux. Despite bucking the convention of the time, despite her initial rejection of him, despite the fact that she was already a married mother, and despite the very best efforts of his family to prevent the union, Macron did as he pleased and began an affair with Trogneux as a teenage boy nevertheless. Even his parents exiling him to Paris as a seventeen year old, desperate to put an end to the affair, could not stop him. Emmanuel Macron and Brigitte Trogneux married in 2007. It is exactly that attitude that has concerned many. Macron's consistently scornful approach to the normal rules and boundaries of life has led leading European psychiatrist Adriano Sagatori, who has studied Macron extensively, to declare him as a potential psychopath. Sagatori states, "Like all psychopaths, he believes in his higher purpose. Macron does not love France and will not fight for the French people." [3] Sagatori continued, "Macron loves only himself..." The leading European psychiatrist and psychotherapist continues by explaining why he now believes Macron to be something other than merely another outwardly charismatic politician, and believes it is all linked back to his childhood experiences with his former teacher, Brigitte Trogneux. Sagatori has further stated: Young Emmanuel Macron experienced at age 15 a serious sexual aggression via his teacher, Brigitte, who at the time was 39... the development of Emmanuel Macron was blocked prematurely in his adolescence because of an act of seduction that was both psychic and physical. What happened was that both a taboo and a limit were transgressed, the very limit that the taboo sets. So the first transgression was the conviction that anything is permissible. Once the limits of the taboo were transgressed, the idea of omnipotence common to all children was then encouraged. Until he went beyond a proper grasp of reality, and strengthened by his intellectual gifts, he extrapolated his personal limitations. The paradox is that he appears normal, but we have a case of full-blown narcissism. Since his youth Macron has nurtured an ambition that is beyond normal. He needs the attention and admiration of others to compensate for his inferiority complex. [4] Sagatori concludes, ominously, by summing up who he believes Macron really is clinically, in view of his psycho-social profile: "So we are confronted with three paradigms that define a certain type of personality; 1) the idea that there exist no limits; 2) a feeling of omnipotence from childhood, but even more so in adulthood; 3) a narcissism that can accurately be defined as malevolent." One could easily conclude that this is perhaps just the opinion of a single mental health professional, and that it therefore really means nothing. However, this impression of Macron is one that seems to be echoed by other people, especially those close to him. It seems to be echoed by those who have worked with Macron, observed Macron up close and personal, and who have even been friends with him. The Financial Times, quoting a source who has known Macron well for years, detailed how, "...he seduces everyone. And then he kills." [5] This friend describes how the new French president is a "grand séducteur," a man who uses his prodigious gifts to get whatever he wants. Macron, he explains, is a polymath, a person who is able to acquire significant expertise in a variety of different subjects to quickly become an expert in them, and that he uses this ability to ingratiate himself with others. Many around Macron firmly believe that he is a genius. His meteoric rise to power reflects this. After concluding his university education by writing a Master's thesis, on Machiavelli of all people, the father of modern political science who is known most widely for his infamous seminal work of political scheming and manipulation, the prince, Macron went into the world of banking. In banking, Macron then became very rich, very quickly. His understanding of economics by this point had become so developed and sophisticated that he was subsequently named as a government economics minister. And from there to president of the French Republic. Macron, so the FT source says, is always charming, especially with enemies and those hostile to him. During the election, for example, Macron took particular pleasure in always trying to meet his opponents, even the most hostile, face to face. He did this, so the source says, because he was and is so confident of his own charm, and in his ability to "win people over." A famous example of this is when he travelled to meet an entire factory of men and women who were ardent supporters of his opponent, Marine Le Pen. By the end of the forum, though not all were won over to vote for him, almost all accepted that they actually liked him and could see themselves perhaps voting for him in the future. He is also renowned for his relentless energy, being the only person in the room, for example, to retain his good humour at 5 a.m. when a sequence of all-night economics negotiations drew to a close during his time as economics minister. Yet, all is potentially not quite as it seems. If one looks closely, there are clear undertones of something more sinister lurking just under the surface with Macron. There seems to be a distinct chill behind Macron's "charm." He is clearly politically ruthless and deeply cunning, as all politicians are, but Macron seems to be particularly adept. President Francois Hollande made Macron a government minister, until Macron abandoned Hollande and ultimately took his job. French Prime Minister, Manuel Valls, pulls no punches at all regarding Macron. After realizing that the new president had abandoned him, Prime Minister Valls said, "Hollande is mean, but within a framework...Macron is mean, but he has no codes and therefore no limits." [6] Macron's leadership style is beginning to emerge, and it is ruthless. Having purged three well-established and senior ministers in the first few days of his administration, Macron has wasted no time in also lecturing, and greatly offending eastern and central European leaders on what he perceives as their collective failure to accept adequate amounts of refugees from the Middle East into their nations. Viktor Orban, Hungary's prime minister, called the president a "new boy" in European politics and urged him not "to aim a kick at central European nations" in response. So at this point, what do we really know about Emmanuel Macron? Not very much is the concise answer. He is an almost complete unknown-as is therefore, the direction he will lead France and possibly Europe in the future. He is an enigma. As this article nears its conclusion, I should perhaps be honest about why I am writing this piece on Emmanuel Macron; specifically about whether or not I am suggesting or hinting that Emmanuel Macron is the biblically prophesied Antichrist. I am not, because quite frankly, I have absolutely no idea who that man will be. I believe that the Bible clearly teaches that we Christians, the bride of Christ, will be raptured to heaven before the man of sin will be firmly identified by signing the covenant with Israel. I do not think any person alive today can say with any degree of reasonable certainty that any man is the Antichrist. However, what I do know is this: We are definitely in the general season of the Lord's return, and have been for quite some time. As Jesus taught in the gospels, the prophetic birth pangs that are so evident all around us right now, in so many different prophetic spheres, are becoming more pronounced and stronger with each passing day. This is the season of the Lord's return. It would make sense to me, as we approach the end, for all the prophetic pieces to begin falling into their biblically ordained end-time places and this is exactly what we are witness to in all other areas of biblical end-time prophecy. Would it not also, therefore, make sense for the biblical man of sin, if these are in fact the last days of the end times, to also be positioned prominently in preparation for the end? Satan does not know "the day or the hour," but he does know the "times and the seasons," just as we do. Right now, as the time of the end approaches, in Europe a very powerful, dynamic, charismatic and many say genius of a man-has risen to power. He has come from nowhere and has revolutionised French politics. He is a boundary breaker in every sense of the word, immensely powerful and influential. And he is going to have a significant long term impact not just on French politics, but on European and world wide politics over the next few years. The question is whether Emmanuel Macron's conquest is now complete? As to if Emmanuel Macron is the Antichrist? I have no idea, but he certainly is a remarkable man. Endnotes [1] http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/06/25/emmanuel-macron-channels-louis-xiv-plans-address-parliament/ [2] https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2017/06/29/the-subtle-messages-in-emmanuel-macrons-official-portrait/?utm_term=.abd4c794d21e [3] http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/russian-media-emmanuel-macron-french-president-general-election-2017-gay-psychopath-hates-france-a7723531.html [4] http://yournewswire.com/macron-psychopath-psychiatrist/ [5]https://www.ft.com/content/464df34e-3a48-11e7-ac89-b01cc67cfeec?mhq5j=e3 [6]https://www.ft.com/content/464df34e-3a48-11e7-ac89-b01cc67cfeec?mhq5j=e1 [email protected] UNESCO Recognizes Hebron's Tomb of the Patriarchs - Judaism's Second Holiest Place - as Palestinian Heritage Site - Aaron Klein - http://www.breitbart.com/jerusalem/2017/07/07/unesco-recognizes-hebrons-tomb-of-the-patriarchs-judaisms-second-holiest-place-as-palestinian-heritage-site/ The United Nations Educational, Scientific, Cultural Organization (UNESCO) on Friday declared the Tomb of the Patriarchs - considered the second holiest site in Judaism after the Temple Mount - to be a Palestinian world heritage site in danger. Besides the tomb, UNESCO's World Heritage List also declared the City of Hebron to be a danger site located in the "State of Palestine," even though no such state exists. Haaretz reported on the resolution: The resolution that was proposed by the Palestinians includes two main clauses. The first asserts that Hebron's Old City and the Tomb of the Patriarchs are Palestinian heritage sites, and will be registered as such in UNESCO's World Heritage List. The second asserts that the two sites are to be recognized as being in danger, meaning that each year UNESCO's World Heritage Committee will convene to discuss their case The Times of Israel reported on the vote: Twelve countries voted in favor of the move, while three opposed it. Six countries abstained. Votes to inscribe sites onto UNESCO's World Heritage List are usually done by a show of hands among all the member states. But three countries - Poland, Croatia and Jamaica - requested a secret ballot. Several states objected, leading to a shouting match between delegates, and Israeli Ambassador Carmel Shama-Hacohen storming to the desk of the session's chairman to make Israel's case. The kerfuffle ended after the chairman, a Polish diplomat, called in security. ...The membership of this year's Heritage committee includes five countries with which Israel does not have diplomatic ties, and a number of others that routinely support pro-Palestinian resolutions. The 21 member states are Angola, Azerbaijan, Burkina Faso, Croatia, Cuba, Finland, Indonesia, Jamaica, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, South Korea, Tunisia, Turkey, Tanzania, Vietnam and Zimbabwe. Danny Danon, Israel's Ambassador to the United Nation, stated: "This attempt to sever the ties between Israel and Hebron is shameful and offensive, and eliminates UNESCO's last remaining shred of credibility. To disassociate Israel from the burial grounds of the patriarchs and matriarchs of our nation is an ugly display of discrimination, and an act of aggression against the Jewish people." In a statement sent to Breitbart Jerusalem and other media outlets, Education Minister Naftali Bennett slammed the UNESCO decision as "disappointing and disgraceful," and said UNESCO "denies history and distorts reality, knowingly serving those attempting to erase the Jewish state." Bennett, who also heads Israel's national UNESCO Committee, added, "Israel will not resume its cooperation with UNESCO so long as it remains a political tool, rather than professional organization." Bennet outlined the Jewish history in Hebron: The Jewish connection to Hebron goes back thousands of years. Hebron, the birthplace of King David's kingdom, and the Tomb of the Patriarchs, the first Jewish purchase in Israel and resting place of our forefathers - are our People's oldest heritage sites. UNESCO's resolution must be rejected, and we our efforts to strengthen the city of our fathers increased Our presence in Hebron was continuous until 1929 when Arabs massacred dozens of Jews. That brutal murder failed to sever our ties to the city and Tomb of the Patriarchs, which has been a Jewish site since biblical times. No vote will change these simple truths. Emmanuel Nahshon, a spokesman for Israel's Foreign Ministry, called the motion "fake news." "They are trying to rewrite Jewish history and the history of the region," he said. Yishai Fleisher, international spokesman for the Hebron Jewish community, stated, "Clearly, this was yet another politicized, anti-Israel maneuver manufactured by the Palestinian Authority and it's purpose is clear: to delegitimize the ancient Jewish presence in Hebron in particular, and thereby, undermine the historical ties of Jewish people to the land of Israel in general." Hebron's Tomb of the Patriarchs is believed to be the resting place of the biblical patriarchs and matriarchs Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Sarah, Rebecca and Leah. Rachel is believed to be buried in Bethlehem. This reporter previously documented the Jewish ties to Hebron: Hebron is the oldest Jewish community in the world, with Jews having lived there almost continuously for over 2,500 years. There are accounts of the trials of the city's Jewish community throughout the Byzantine, Arab, Mameluke and Ottoman periods. In 1929, as a result of an Arab pogrom in which 67 Jews were murdered, the entire Jewish community fled the city, with Hebron becoming temporarily devoid of Jews. Jews returned when Israel recaptured the area in 1967. King David was anointed in Hebron, where he reigned for seven years. A thousand years later, during the first Jewish revolt against the Romans, the city was the scene of extensive fighting in which many Jews were killed. Friday's vote followed a vote earlier this week in which UNESCO passed an anti-Israel resolution disavowing Israel's ties to Jerusalem's Old City and its ancient walls. Column One: Hezbollah's missiles will not rust - Caroline B. Glick - http://www.jpost.com/Opinion/Column-One-Hezbollahs-missiles-will-not-rust-499027 If we aren't indifferent to Hezbollah's expansion of its capabilities, what are we planning to do about it? Last month IDF Military Intelligence chief Maj.-Gen. Herzl Halevi made a stunning revelation. Hezbollah and Iran are transforming the terrorist group into a military force capable of independently producing its own precision weapons. Speaking at the Herzliya Conference, Halevi reported, "We are seeing Hezbollah building a domestic military industry on Lebanese soil based on Iranian know-how. Hezbollah is producing weapons systems and transporting them to southern Lebanon." Halevi added, "Over the past year, Iran is working to establish infrastructure for the independent production of precision weapons in Lebanon and Yemen. We cannot be indifferent to this development. And we aren't." Not only is Hezbollah building a missile industry. It is deploying its forces directly across the border with Israel - in material breach of UN Security Council Resolution 1701 from 2006, which set the terms of the ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah at the end of the Second Lebanon War. Under the terms of 1701, Hezbollah is prohibited from operating south of the Litani River. Only the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) and UNIFIL - the UN's peacekeeping force - are supposed to be deployed in southern Lebanon. According to Halevi, operating under the cover of a phony environmental NGO called "Green Without Borders," Hezbollah has set up observation posts manned with its fighters along the border with Israel. In Halevi's words, with these posts, "Hezbollah is now able to operate a stone's throw from the border." In a media briefing on Sunday, Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman discussed Halevi's revelations. Liberman said that the security community "is absolutely aware [of the missile plants] and is taking the necessary action." "This is a significant phenomenon," Liberman warned. "We must under no circumstances ignore it." Perhaps in a jab at his predecessor, Moshe Ya'alon, who years ago argued notoriously that Hezbollah's missiles would "rust" in their storage facilities, perhaps in warning to Hezbollah, Liberman added, "The factories won't rust and the missiles won't rust." So if we aren't indifferent to Hezbollah's expansion of its capabilities, what are we planning to do about it? Whatever answer the IDF decides upon, Israel is already taking diplomatic steps to prepare for the next round - whoever opens it. Last month Israel filed a formal complaint with the UN Security Council against Hezbollah for setting up observation towers along the border and manning them with its fighters. Not surprisingly, UNIFIL and the Security Council rejected Israel's complaint. Ever since six UNIFIL soldiers were killed in a roadside bomb in 2007, UNIFIL has turned a blind eye to all of Hezbollah's operations in southern Lebanon. As to the strike for which the complaint to the Security Council began setting the conditions, what purpose would it serve? In a future war, Israel shouldn't aspire, for instance, to destroy Hezbollah as a fighting force. The goal, in my opinion, should be to destroy or neutralize as much of Hezbollah's missile arsenal and its missile assembly plants as possible. If possible, Israel should also seek to destroy Hezbollah's tunnel infrastructure along its border. The first question is whether the threat justifies action. The answer, in my opinion, is clear enough. Over the past 11 years, Hezbollah's missile arsenal has become an unacceptable and ever-growing strategic threat to Israel. Whereas in 2006 Hezbollah's missile arsenal numbered some 15,000 rockets, today it fields approximately 150,000. In 2006, at the height of its missile offensive against Israel, Hezbollah lobbed some 120 missiles a day at Israeli territory. Today it can shoot some 1,000 to 1,200 missile a day at Israel. And it isn't only the quantity of missiles that make them an insufferable threat. It's also their quality. Whereas in 2006 Hezbollah attacked Israel with imprecise projectiles with low payloads, today Hezbollah reportedly fields precision guided, long-range missiles like the Yakhont and Fatah-110. The Yakhont missiles can imperil Israel's interests in the Mediterranean, including its offshore natural gas installations. The Fatah-110s, with a range of some 300 kilometers, threaten metropolitan Tel Aviv and key military installations. Both missile types are capable of carrying payloads of hundreds of kilograms of explosives. To be sure, in the 11 years since the Second Lebanon War Israel has also massively upgraded its military capabilities. Last week air force chief Maj.-Gen. Amir Eshel said the force today can inflict a level of damage on Hezbollah in two days that it took it weeks to inflict in 2006. The question is not whether Israel has the ability to respond to a Hezbollah assault. Given the lethality of Hezbollah's arsenal, it would be reckless to assume that Israel can easily absorb an opening volley of missiles. But battle losses aren't the only consideration Israel needs to take into account. For instance, there is the US. How would the US respond to a war? As far as the Trump administration is concerned, the picture is mixed. On the one hand, President Donald Trump and his advisers are much more supportive of Israel than predecessor Barack Obama and Obama's advisers were. Under Obama, not only could Israel have expected the US to oppose an attack against Hezbollah's missiles, but there is reason to believe that the Obama administration would have supported Hezbollah against Israel. This is the case for two reasons. First, Obama's team made clear that his most important foreign policy goal was to develop an alliance with Iran. Second, and in support of Obama's goal of courting the Iranians, his administration repeatedly leaked details about IDF strikes against Hezbollah weapons convoys traversing Syria en route to Lebanon. These leaks worked to Israel's detriment and to Hezbollah's advantage by ratcheting up the danger that Israel's strikes at Hezbollah convoys would lead to an undesired escalation of hostilities. At a minimum, Israel can expect that the Trump administration's response to a war with Hezbollah in Lebanon to be as tolerant as then president George W. Bush's administration's response was to Israel's military actions in the 2006 war. Bush and then-secretary of state Condoleezza Rice immediately called for a ceasefire. But in the early stages of the war, they also supported Israel and blocked anti-Israel resolutions from being brought before the Security Council. Their support for Israel began to weaken as the war dragged on and the IDF ran into trouble achieving significant battlefield gains. Today, the Trump administration is divided on issues surrounding Israel. Trump's White House advisers, led by Steve Bannon as well as Vice President Mike Pence and UN Ambassador Nikki Haley, are likely to support a war with Hezbollah. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and Secretary of Defense James Mattis are likely to demand that Israel stand down. One way to diminish opposition within the administration to a war is to highlight the depths of Hezbollah's control of the Lebanese government and of the Lebanese military. The latter is particularly significant. The foreign and defense policy establishment in Washington, with which Tillerson and Mattis are aligned, insistently continue to back the Lebanese Armed Forces, despite the fact that it is demonstrably subservient to Hezbollah. As recently as May, the US sent assault rifles to the LAF, in its latest batch of military assistance. The strategic recklessness of continued US weapons transfers to the LAF was laid bare last November. US-made armored personnel carriers, identical to the type the US has provided the LAF, participated in a Hezbollah military parade in Syria. Indeed, barely a week goes by without new evidence of the LAF's subservient position to Hezbollah. This week, for instance, 150 LAF cadets toured Hezbollah's military museum with Lt.-Col. Ali Ismail, who serves as the head of the LAF's intelligence directorate in Nabatiya. As for Iran, it is hard to know how it would respond. There is a low likelihood that Iran would strike Israel directly with ballistic missiles in the event of a war with Hezbollah. Iran views Hezbollah's missiles as a means to deter Israel from attacking Iran - not the other way around. Iran's most likely immediate response to a war would be to deploy its foreign militia to Hezbollah's side in Lebanon. Last month, Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah publicly asked Iran to send him foreign fighters from Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iraq, Yemen and Iran. Nasrallah's request, and the likelihood that Iran will grant it in short order, are another reason why war will eventually happen. Israel shouldn't stand around while Iran sends thousands of fighters to Lebanon to join the next war against it. As for the Saudis and Egyptians and their allies, they have been clear that they view Iran and Hezbollah as a greater threat than Israel. Indeed, last year they declared Hezbollah a terrorist group. In 2006, they supported Israel until it began getting bogged down. In a future war, if Israel is able to quickly deliver a serious blow against Hezbollah, the Sunnis would likely applaud it. So it boils down to capacity. If the IDF can conduct a quick, effective operation against Hezbollah that would destroy, degrade or neutralize a large portion of its missile arsenal and its missile assembly plants, then the benefits of moving forward, in my opinion, outweigh the costs. Construction Under Temple Mount Preparing for Third Temple - By Adam Eliyahu Berkowitz - https://www.breakingisraelnews.com "A Song of Ascents. When Hashem brought back those that returned to Tzion, we were like unto them that dream. Then was our mouth filled with laughter, and our tongue with singing; then said they among the nations: 'Hashem hath done great things with these.'" Psalms 126:1-2 (The Israel Bible™) When Philip Gilchrist, a non-Jewish architect from New Zealand, visited Jerusalem on Tuesday, he was shocked to see what he was sure were the beginnings of construction of the Third Temple. Gilchrist mistook simple maintenance, shoring up of the bases of the walls, for pre-Messianic construction, but his innocent mistake bears a powerfully inspirational message. Gilchrist, who prefers to be called Yochanan Ben Yosef Gil Yisrael, has had his own architectural firm in Dunedin New Zealand for over 15 years. He was physically distant from the Holy Land and has no family connection with Judaism, though he is investigating his genealogy. When he was studying architecture at Auckland University, his father, a devout Christian, asked him to do an illustrated study of the Tabernacle. Gilchrist complied, later adapting his labor-of-love to be submitted as his final thesis. His study included the Temple and its utensils. After arriving in Jerusalem and touring the Temple Mount Compound, Gilchrist toured the tunnel complex that runs adjacent to the retaining walls of the Temple Mount. The tunnel complex is open to the public and is undergoing renovations intended to strengthen the ancient walls supporting the structure above. At the same time, archaeologists are weaving through a political minefield in order to study the unique site. When Gilchrist viewed the construction he was shocked. "I was sure that what I was seeing was the beginning of construction on the Third Temple," Gilchrist told Breaking Israel News. "As an architect, I know that if I was charged with the project, that is precisely the way I would have set about doing it. You don't start at the top; you begin with making the foundations strong." Perhaps more amazing was that the work was being carried out by Muslims who seemed quite happy to be working on the Jewish Temple. Perplexed by what he had seen, Gilchrist consulted with Rabbi Chaim Clorfene, who has written authoritative books on the Third Temple. Rabbi Clorfene assured Gilchrist that the construction had not been contracted by any authority higher than the Israeli government, but the conversation had a powerful impact. "Unless there is some fantastic hidden plan, this isn't construction for the Temple," Rabbi Clorfene said to Breaking Israel News. "The Arabs would be screaming about that." But Gilchrist's enthusiasm and refreshingly simple perspective had Rabbi Clorfene reconsidering. "It is significant that in the workers are Arab Muslims," he said. "We have an oral tradition that the Arabs are going to be the first ones to accept the Noahide Laws." Rabbi Clorfene Cited Rabbi Shalom Mashash, former chief rabbi of Haifa, who said that Temple will be built when the Arabs beg us to build it. Temple Movement chairman Yaakov Hayman would have preferred Gilchrist's conclusion to be accurate. He knew that the construction surrounding the Temple Mount was ongoing and not connected to any greater Messianic vision, but as a professional building project manager, he understood Gilchrist's confusion. "They are always digging there for archaeological reasons, and occasionally for preservative construction," Hayman said to Breaking Israel News. "It is frequently the cause of controversy. It is true that if construction for the Third Temple were to begin, it would probably look something like this; shoring up the foundation." "The first phase of building the Temple would be minor construction, creating spaces for Jews and Christians to worship," Hayman said. "That wouldn't disturb anything that already exists. It is possible that there won't be any controversy surrounding that." "The next step, as the Jewish sources describe, is when the other nations, including Islam, beg us to make the Third Temple," Hayman noted. Gilchrist is continuing his tour of the Holy Land, and there may be more surprise observations in store. "Why does it take an architect from New Zealand to see this?" Gilchrist asked. "Someday, this is going to happen. Millions of people are praying for this. But if you are here, you won't notice it, even when it's happening in front of your eyes." Technology Echoing Satan's Lie: 'You Shall Not Die' - http://www.prophecynewswatch.com/article.cfm?recent_news_id=1361 A biotech company promising to resurrect the dead through the use of stem-cell technology recently was criticized by a rabbi for violating divine law with its plan. Now an American pastor is adding his voice to the condemnation, claiming medical science is coming close to replicating the first deception of Satan in the Garden of Eden. He cites Genesis 3:4, "And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die." Pastor Carl Gallups, author of "When the Lion Roars: Understanding the Implications of Ancient Prophecies for Our Time," said there is a clear pattern by modern scientists and entrepreneurs of pursuing what is essentially godhood. "Here is the dirty little secret that few are discussing - all of this goes directly to the deception first implanted in the Garden of Eden - by Satan himself," warned the pastor. "Think of the elements of that anthropic disaster. Adam and Eve were promised, 'You surely shall not die.' They were told that if they would just follow the 'promise' that Satan offered that they could be 'like gods.' They were told that death would not be a hindrance and that the knowledge they would gain would give them everything their hearts desired. Of course, every bit of Satan's salesmanship was a lie. "But do an Internet search on these topics today. Observe how many of today's godless, arrogant elite are talking about 'becoming gods,' or 'we're on the verge of eternal life technologies,' or our 'knowledge growth rate is becoming almost supernatural.' Those who do not have a biblical worldview are missing what is actually happening right before our eyes. We are actually on the cusp of being in the 'days of Noah,' and the 'days of Lot' that Jesus warned would mark the days just before His return in Luke 17." Scientists have received permission from ethical watchdogs to attempt to stimulate the regrowth of neurons in clinically dead patients. Trials are expected to begin this year. However, as Gallups notes, there is a difference between using medical technology to help someone who has just died and sensational claims that companies will soon be "raising the dead." As the pastor observes, there is not even true agreement on when a person is completely "dead." "With the modern advancements in medical technologies regarding life-sustaining capabilities, all manner of theological and ethical questions have arisen," he explained. "Is brain-dead really 'dead?' We can now keep a body 'alive' on machines that do the breathing, blood circulation, and keep the heart beating artificially for the comatose patient - but is that artificial existence really 'life?' To make matters more difficult, there have been those extremely rare cases where a patient makes a recovery from such a state, causing even more questions and controversy." Similar questions arose this week when President Trump suggested he would help Charlie Gard, a 10-month-old baby in London with a rare genetic disease who has been barred by the European Court of Human Rights from traveling to the United States for experimental treatment. The controversy over Terri Schiavo roiled the country during the George W. Bush administration. While neither Gard nor Schiavo was "brain dead," it's possible new treatments could create new controversies about whether medical care should be mandated for people who have clinically "died." Mark Biltz, author of "God's Day Timer," suggests these kinds of treatments are not necessarily sinful. "We are to do everything possible to bring life," he told WND. "People become clinically dead after a heart attack and are brought back to life and there is no argument of that medical procedure. If this is a new medical procedure where now the brain can be brought back to life after being declared clinically dead, that is great!" Biltz also suggested those "brought back from the dead" would not be soulless or something unnatural, as the treatment described would be immediately following clinical death. He suggested there is nothing inherently evil about any form of technology. "Technology is a tool that can be used for good or evil and based on the motivation and the intent of the user will determine the morality," the pastor told WND. However, Biltz did suggest the acceleration of technological change suggests those who believe the Second Coming are on to something. "In [the book of] Daniel, it does mention that in the last days knowledge would be increased," he told WND. "This is a clear indicator of just how close we are to the coming of the Messiah!" Jan Markell of Olive Tree Ministries also believes such efforts are a sign of the end times, but she has a far more hostile view of the technology. "This is a 'last days' type of perversion with thinking that was likely going on in the days of Noah," she told WND. "The very idea is an affront to God, who alone gives and takes life. Mankind today wants to be godlike and do away with the one true God. He is an inconvenience. If they are trying to compete with the resurrection, they are really competing with the Rapture and even eternal life. Their efforts will not be successful." Markell believes the effort is just the latest attempt by mankind to try to supplant God, an impulse, as Gallups suggested, that ultimately comes from Satan. "Satan states in Isaiah 14 that he will ascend and be like God," Markell told WND. "He is putting ideas into the minds of men to challenge God. It won't work. But mortal men have always challenged God or wanted to be like God. He has the final say. I suspect He is sitting in the Heavens and laughing at them - Psalm 2:4." Gallups takes a more nuanced view, suggesting commentators should be precise and cautious when analyzing new technology. "There are two related issues in this matter: the science problem and the theological problem," he said. "The science problem arises from the fact that most of the headlines regarding 'resurrection of the dead' are more hysteria than fact. What we are really talking about, thus far, is resuscitation technology and not true 'resurrection' technology. Up to this point, the potentiality of the theorized process is limited to patients who are clinically brain dead and have been kept 'alive' on life support. "The problem, so far, is that the process is untested and is largely theoretical, not to mention the number of detractors within the scientific community itself who are skeptical of the actual success of such a quest. The theoretical side of this potential technology has been discussed for years. The last five years or so has seen the discussion explode into international headlines." However, Gallups also says many are now making un-ironic and expansive claims about defeating death entirely. "There are now sincere discussions among some in the scientific community regarding the possibility of true 'eternal life' technologies eventually arising out of successful trials of the upcoming resuscitation experiments," he said. "Most legitimate scientific resources estimate that we are still decades away from even coming close to real eternal life potentiality achieved through technological processes." Gallups said Christians should not be opposed to the advance of technology. But he also warns the perverted quest for godhood is a constant in human history. "I am absolutely in favor of technologies that bring comfort, healing and restoration of the quality of life to hurting people," Gallups told WND. "I believe these technologies and knowledge-sets are gifts from Yahweh himself - and I am grateful for them. However, like with any other gift from God, there is always the process of the corruption of that knowledge, instituted by the demonic. "I believe we are watching humankind's God-denying lust for the ultimate conquering of death in an attempt to thwart the curse that Yahweh has decreed upon a fallen creation. Of course, Yahweh will not be thwarted. He will not be mocked. To create and to give life - real life - is the glory of Yahweh himself. That glory will not be shared with fallen man." The worst part, says Gallups, is mankind already has the key to eternal life. "The saddest thing in all this to me is that while fallen humanity so disparately looks for the gift of eternal life - Yahweh has already graciously provided it through Jesus Christ." "My Thoughts Are Not Your Thoughts" - By Grant Phillips - http://www.raptureready.com/2017/07/04/my-thoughts-are-not-your-thoughts/ "For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD." (Isaiah 55:8) In 1709 Alexander Pope (1688-1744) wrote in his, "An Essay on Criticism" the following words. "A little learning is a dangerous thing; drink deep, or taste not the Pierian spring: there shallow draughts intoxicate the brain, and drinking largely sobers us again." An explanation was provided for this essay as follows: "The modern meaning translates to mean that people with a small amount of knowledge often think that they have more 'expertise' than they really do. Sometimes, when this perceived 'expertise' translates into action, it can result in unpredictable or even tragic consequences." I wonder how many teachers who have spent years studying in their field of expertise have experienced a student who thinks they now know more than the teacher. Maybe a first year med student thinking they can practice medicine or a first year law student who thinks they're ready to hang their shingle out. I've seen this so often from new Christians. They're still drinking milk, but think they're ready for meat. Maybe this is why Paul told Timothy to not permit a novice to hold the office of pastor. "Not a novice, lest being lifted up with pride he fall into the condemnation of the devil." (1Timothy 3:6) There's one thing a Christian needs to be very careful about in studying the Bible. It is imperative that he/she not allow "head knowledge" to over-ride the teaching of the Holy Spirit. For example: I may have the mechanics down in playing checkers, but if I don't understand the game of checkers, I really don't know what I'm doing. I'm just moving pieces around, hoping something will work. I've seen some people give the Hebrew or Greek word for a Scripture passage, quote from their favorite Bible teacher, supply several supportive verses and still not get the point. None of these things are necessarily wrong, so what's the problem? The problem is sometimes we forget that God the Holy Spirit is our teacher. We forget that we need to honestly ask His guidance in understanding what He wants us to know at that point in time. We need to ask for humility and shy away from pride that does nothing more than puff up our ego. We need to accept that the Lord will lead us in knowing His Word at His pleasure. After submitting our will to the Teacher, the Holy Spirit, we should keep an open mind, and wait for His revealing of the "whole picture." What do I mean by the "whole picture?" I've given this example before, but this explains what I'm saying: A painting is hanging on the wall. We are blindfolded and led up to it and told to place our face right up against it. The blindfold is removed. Then we are told to state what is in the painting. All we can see, being so close, is a leaf on a tree, so we conclude the painting is about trees. However, when we step back we can see that the painting is of a town with many buildings, a park, a lake and people. All we saw though was one tree in the park, so we concluded it was about trees. We didn't see the "whole picture." Understanding the Bible is like that. As God the Holy Spirit walks through the Scriptures with us each day, we see a little more and a little more and a little more. We'll never see the "whole picture" though, because only God knows what is in the "whole picture." Remember the verse above? "For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD." (Isaiah 55:8) As we say in the country, here is where we should not "get above our raising" or "get too big for our britches." It's very tempting to "get on our high horse," but that is not advisable. Believe me, the Lord knows how to keep us humble, so why not just try to remain humble? (Remember the "woodshed.") I wrote an article recently called "Does God Pick And Choose?" It mentioned the Arminian view and Calvinist view of Scripture. My conclusion was that there are some things that only God understands. In other words, only God can see the "whole picture" of some things we just aren't capable of understanding in this life. This is where we need to be in our spiritual life as a Christian. We want to learn as much as the Lord will teach us, but only in His time. He spent forty years training Moses before He sent him to Egypt to free His people. The Apostle Paul, as Saul, was trained by the greatest teacher of his time, Gamaliel, but Jesus still had to spend three years personally training him as God's missionary to the Gentiles. God will train us in His time, in His way and when we're ready, He will lead us into our work for Him. But let us never forget, He is the teacher and we are the student. Never be argumentative about God's word, the Bible. This never accomplishes anything and only shows the immaturity of the one who chooses to argue. Yes, I get this occasionally, but I will not be drawn into some else's chicken fight. It just goes to "file 13" and is never thought of again. I find in my own life that I am constantly learning from others, and that is good. We need to learn from each other, but search the Scriptures as the Bereans did (Acts 17:11) to see if what is being taught is true. Only the Lord has all the answers. Ask Him to show us the Truth, and be humble when understanding it. We live in a time when those with a little knowledge become quite arrogant and sometimes militant in their attitude toward others. Even some Christians are guilty of this. That is most unfortunate. Why? Because it shows immaturity. It shows a believer not in fellowship with the Lord as he/she should be. It shows someone who needs prayer because they're allowing pride to delay real spiritual growth. None of us should pride ourselves on what little Bible we think we know. If we allow ourselves to get to that point, we are not growing as a Christian should. To the contrary, the more we learn, the more humble we should become. As the greatness of our God becomes more clear so does our unworthiness before Him. If you've never read the book of Job please do so. Most of us know the story, and it is a true story by the way. Job was a good man. He feared God, had complete integrity, and was the finest man in all the earth. We all know about Satan coming before God and God allowing Satan to test Job, but notice the very beginning of God and Satan's conversion. God said, "Where have you come from?" Satan replied, "I have been going back and forth across the earth, watching everything that's going on." Then God says to Satan, "Have you noticed my servant Job ...?" God is the one who first brought up the subject of Job. Now why did God do that? Was it really because Job was such a great guy, or was there another reason? In my opinion, after considering the entire book of Job, I believe God not only had a point to prove to Satan, but also to Job. Job had a "pride" problem. Now he most certainly was a great man and feared God, but he also was proud of his being such a good guy. I picture him somewhat like the Ephesian church Jesus addresses in Revelation 2:1-7. All throughout the book, Job is calling upon God to defend his good stand before God to his three friends. God does vindicate Job in the end, but first of all He must address Job's pride. Take particular note of chapters 38-42, the conversation between God and Job. "Then the LORD answered Job from the whirlwind: "Who is this that questions my wisdom with such ignorant words? Brace yourself like a man, because I have some questions for you, and you must answer them. "Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth? Tell me, if you know so much. Who determined its dimensions and stretched out the surveying line? What supports its foundations, and who laid its cornerstone as the morning stars sang together and all the angels shouted for joy? (Job 38:1-7 NLT) "Where does light come from, and where does darkness go? Can you take each to its home? Do you know how to get there? But of course you know all this! For you were born before it was all created, and you are so very experienced!" (Job 38:19-21 NLT) "Then the LORD said to Job, "Do you still want to argue with the Almighty? You are God's critic, but do you have the answers?" (Job 40:1 NLT) None of us have all the answers. Only God is all knowing and all powerful. We demean ourselves when we think we are so important we argue over the very words of God, the Bible. The silver bullet that kills this kind of pride is found in 1 Corinthians 13:13. "And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love." I think of the verse we started with (Isaiah 55:8 above) and I am reminded of the ants. I sit on a rock and watch the ants scurry along the ground just working away. I can see everything all around them, but they are only aware of the exact spot they are in and what they are doing at that moment. They are not aware of, and certainly do not understand the complexities of my world. The same is true with us. We are like the ants. As God looks down upon us, we only understand our little world, but never all the complexities of His. He gives us a glimpse now and then, but only when we see Him face to face will we understand, but even then, not all. "For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD." (Isaiah 55:8) Grant Phillips Email: [email protected] Pre-Rapture Commentary: http://grant-phillips.blogspot.com Rapture Ready: http://www.raptureready.com/featured/phillips/phillips.html Daily Jot: Threat to the First Amendment - Bill Wilson - www.dailyjot.com The leftist media is saying that the President calling them out about reporting lies and mistruth is undermining the First Amendment of the Constitution. The First Amendment reads: "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances." The First Amendment is actually threatened in several ways. One is if the news media abrogates its responsibility as a trusted watchdog of the government; another is if the government threatens its guaranteed freedoms; and another is if citizens don't hold accountability. The leftist news media has abrogated its responsibility as a watchdog. As a collective group, it is crying like spoiled children because a President dare expose its heretofore monopoly on reporting whatever it can to support a narrative of a political agenda that is poisonous to the Republic's form of government. This is very real. It appears that the mainstream of the leftist media is conspiring with the leftists in the Democratic Party to undermine duly elected officials and prevent them from governing as the people have so instructed. This is proven repeatedly by the fake news, the visceral participation in dividing the nation, inflaming the populace and reporting the news from a slanted point of view, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. The previous Administration and the leftist news media worked together for eight years in painting a picture of America that was and is counter to the Constitution. Laws were broken. Laws went unenforced. Conservatives were singled out and punished or silenced. In his parting address to the news correspondents dinner on April 30, 2016, the former "president" said, "But we've always shared the same goal--to root our public discourse in the truth; to open the doors of this democracy; to do whatever we can to make our country and our world more free and more just. And I've always appreciated the role that you have all played as equal partners in reaching these goals." His words were never truer or more revealing of this relationship. His truth remains a globalist socialism that is counter to and incompatible with the American ideal. When the media supports a particular political agenda (surveys indicate the media votes about 90% for Democrats) it has lost all objectivity resulting in the public receiving mass weaponized deception. It is up to the people, therefore, to stand for their First Amendment rights. It starts by boycotting leftist media because it is dependent on your viewership/readership. Then we must vocalize our distrust. Above all we must stand for the truth-not facts as they are presented-but the truth. Jesus said in John 8:32, "And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free." In John 14:6, Jesus said, "I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man comes unto the Father, but by me." Galatians 5:1 says, "Stand fast therefore in the liberty with which Christ has made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage." Let us do so with vigor. Daily Devotion: Eagerly Waiting - By Greg Laurie - www.harvest.org "So you, too, must keep watch! For you don't know what day your Lord is coming." -Matthew 24:42 One night my wife and I were lying in bed discussing the Rapture. We were talking about how wonderful it will be when the Lord returns for us. As Cathe was talking about how it could even happen when we're asleep, a devious thought crept through my mind. I quietly slipped off the bed and onto the floor, snickering a little. She said, "The Lord will come for us, and it's going to be great, isn't it, Greg? . . . Greg?" She reached over, and I wasn't there. I was lying on the floor, laughing. That's a humorous story, but tragically for many, it will be an actual scenario. One person will be taken, and the other will be left. Jesus said, "Two men will be working together in the field; one will be taken, the other left. Two women will be grinding flour at the mill; one will be taken, the other left. So you, too, must keep watch! For you don't know what day your Lord is coming" (Matthew 24:40-42). What will happen to you? Are you ready for His return? Hebrews 9:28 tells us, "Christ was offered once for all time as a sacrifice to take away the sins of many people. He will come again, not to deal with our sins, but to bring salvation to all who are eagerly waiting for him." Are you looking for His return? To look for Christ's return means to live your life in anticipation of that event. It means being ready to meet Him. It also means you shouldn't be doing anything that could hinder your spiritual life. If there is anything in your life that should be changed, anything in your life that is not right with God, I urge you to deal with it now. 
FROM THE HEART
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