Prophecy Update Newsletter
IN TODAY'S NEWSLETTER...
Tribulation Chronicles Part 3: War, Famine, Death & Hell - By Alice Childs -
http://www.raptureready.com/2017/11/12/tribulation-chronicles-part-3-war-famine-death-hell-alice-childs/ In my last letter, I warned you to be aware of any variation on "the lie" that will be put forth to try to explain away the disappearances of what could conceivably be upwards of one billion people worldwide, including pre- and post-born babies, all young children, and all those who are mentally incompetent and unable to comprehend their sin guilt, thus their need of a Savior. "For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God" (Romans 3:23). All of us are guilty sinners; however, the people groups who are not held accountable for their sin because of their inability to understand their sin guilt are covered by God's grace, since one must be able to understand one's guilt before a holy God and one's need of a Savior. Only God knows the age of accountability, depending on each individual's understanding; and only He knows those who, for whatever reason, do not have the mental capacity to understand and appreciate the sinful guilt under which we are all born and which infects us all since Adam's rebellion. Only God knows the exact number of those who will have been taken in the rapture, but what you must know is this: all of the taken ones were either among the first group I mentioned; guilty sinners but safe because of their inability to be accountable, or those who are guilty sinners but saved (made justified before God) because they believed in Christ alone for salvation according to the scriptures. Those who are a part of the second group consist of all adults (young and old) and all older children who came to an understanding of sin and salvation - all who had at some prior time placed their belief, their faith and trust in the sinless life, crucified and atoning death, and bodily resurrection of the Son of God - Jesus Christ. Each and every older child and adult taken via the rapture were genuine believers in Christ, and as such were a part of His true Church. There will be many left behind who may have claimed to be part of this or that church or religion, and there will be many so-called "pastors" or other "religious leaders" who will be among the "left-behind ones," but you must know this: all who were left behind, regardless of who they are, were never genuine believers in the first place; for had they been, then they too would have been taken in the rapture when Jesus called to Heaven His Church (both the living believers and those who had died "in Christ") . You have now been made fully aware of these things: (1) WHO has been taken: the safe and the saved - all those whom the Bible describes as being "in Christ" (both the living and the dead who died "in Christ"). (2) WHAT has happened: the resurrection of all the "dead in Christ" - believers who have died from Jesus' resurrection up through the day of the rapture, along with all living believers alive and instantaneously changed from mortal to immortal at the instant the rapture occurred. (3) WHERE THE TAKEN ONES ARE NOW: in Heaven in the Father's House with the Lord Jesus Christ. Now that you understand the truth of who was taken and the why regarding those of you who were not taken, let me move on to explain to you exactly what you need to know regarding that which will now begin to take place for those of you left here on Earth. Again, I repeat, it is no longer your physical life that matters. You will almost certainly not live through these last seven years. That is the plain, unvarnished truth. You need to come to terms with this and accept it. All that matters now is where your immortal soul will spend eternity after the death of your physical body. This last seven years will be divided into two halves of 3 ½ years each. The first 3 ½ years will be horrific. The last 3 ½ years will be unprecedented and will make the first half pale in comparison. The entirety of this seven-year time period is usually referred to as "The Tribulation;" however, the latter half was designated by Jesus Himself as being "GREAT tribulation." In fact, Jesus stated that if He personally did not return to intervene, then no flesh (no living thing) would be left alive. Very sobering words. For now, let's look at the first 3 ½ years of what you, who have been left behind, are going to have to endure, according to God's Word. Keep this truth front and center in your mind and heart, though: Jesus loves you. He shed His blood for you just as He did for all sinners. He wants you to be with Him for all eternity. Even in the midst of His terrible judgment coming upon this wicked world, God is continuing to extend His mercy and grace to you - to all who will come to Him by faith - even during this awful time of the Tribulation. "For God is not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance" (2 Peter 3:9). Everything that is waiting for believers in our eternal Home is beyond our ability to comprehend in our fallen, sinful state. Those of you who become Tribulation believers will receive your new and glorified bodies at the end of these last seven years. Therefore, upon any Tribulation believer's death, his/her spirit will go immediately to Heaven to await their new and glorified, immortal bodies. So, again I tell you, do not fear what will happen to your physical body. It only houses your immortal soul, and God has reserved for you a brand new body just like the ones we of the Church Age, post rapture, now have - an immortal body that will never hunger, never grow old, never tire, and which can never be hurt again. Those of you who become believers during this last seven years are called Tribulation saints. You are the "saints" referred to in chapters 6-19 of Revelation. If you remain faithful "even unto death," all of Heaven awaits you once your soul leaves your body. Be encouraged and remain faithful to Jesus no matter what. What is coming upon Earth is this: There will arise from somewhere within the confines of what was once the Old Roman Empire, a man of unusual charisma, superb military cunning, and unequaled, political brilliance. This man will come via peaceful means (or what will appear to be peaceful means). Most likely, this man will appear on the scene after two events that I will mention only in passing here, but will detail in a later chronicle. These two precursor events to this man's appearance on the global scene will be: (1) the complete, overnight destruction of the city of Damascus (Isaiah 17). (2) the invasion of Israel by a coalition of nations led by Russia (named Magog in the Bible), Iran (called Persia in the Bible), and Turkey (called Togarmah in the Bible) along with a few other countries such as Libya (Put) and Sudan. You can read about this invasion in the Old Testament book of Ezekiel, chapters 38-39. This invasion will most likely not be WWIII, but will eventually trigger what will become WWIII. The main aftermath of this Russian-led invasion will be the utter destruction of the Russian-led coalition, and the rise to power of this new charismatic world leader about whom I will now tell you. As a result of the destruction of this Russo/Iranian/Turkish led invasion of Israel (which God Himself will destroy on the mountains of Israel), this new global leader will "confirm a covenant with many" between Israel and those surrounding her. (See the Old Testament book of Daniel in chapter 9, verse 27). Watch out for this man and for this event. I cannot give you the name of this man because none of us on this side of the rapture know who he will be. You, however, will be able to identify him because it will be he who will "confirm" a covenant between Israel and many others. His brokered arrangement will allow Israel to rebuild her Temple on its ancient site. The man who accomplishes these things will be the Antichrist. His negotiating skills will be astounding and his rhetoric powerful (reminiscent of the oratorical skills of Adolph Hitler, but much more powerful and persuasive). He will use craft and deception to attain his goals. This man will accomplish what no other global leader will have ever been able to do; he will bring peace (or what appears to be) "peace" to the seething cauldron that is the Middle East through this "Peace Initiative." He "confirms this "covenant with "many" for seven years (what the Old Testament book of Daniel chapter 9 calls a "week" of years, ie., seven years). It is the confirmation of this covenant (not the rapture) that will be the event that begins the final seven-year countdown. All events count down from this one event. Either simultaneously, or not long afterward, war will erupt. This war will be a global conflict, and its aftermath will be horrendous. Keep your eyes on Israel, for she is the key to everything that will happen. The conflicts recorded in Isaiah 17 and Ezekiel 38 will take place very soon, possibly before the rapture occurs, but most probably just after or simultaneously with the rapture. But this I cannot say with certainty. The overarching events taking place during this first half of the last seven years are these: (1) Damascus will be utterly destroyed (Isaiah 17). (2) A Russian/Iranian/Turkish led coalition will invade the land of Israel on the Golan Heights (Ezekiel 38-39). (3) Somewhere around this time, either just before, during, or simultaneously with the destruction of Damascus, Syria and/or the Russian led-invasion of Israel, the rapture will occur (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18; 2 Thessalonians 2: 1-17; 1 Corinthians 15:50-54; Revelation 3:10 & 4:1). (4) A charismatic leader will arise and will confirm a covenant with Israel. This covenant confirmation will begin the countdown to the last seven years. (5) A global war will begin, WWIII if you want to call it that. It will be massive in scale and devastating in its consequences. (6) In the wake of this global war, famine on a global scale will quickly ensue. No country will be spared. (7) The death toll from this war and its aftermath will be staggering. Diseases and pestilences will be especially overwhelming: pathogens such as typhus, cholera, along with all manner of both known and new and unknown diseases will run rampant and unchecked. They will be pandemic (global instead of regional) in scope and severity. (8) On the heels of this will be attacks by both wild and domesticated animals who, as a result of the severity of this war and its aftermath, will also be starving. All manner of animals, both wild and domesticated will have lost all fear of man and will attack, both alone and in packs. (9) In addition to all of this, there will be unprecedentedly strong and frequent earthquakes, much stronger than any heretofore experienced. These quakes will occur all over the earth, along with increasing volcanic activity and ensuing tsunamis spawned from them, as the very earth itself is rocked on its foundations with the ferocity of the armed conflicts that most likely will involve nuclear events. (10) Murder and unrestrained violence will become the norm, even as this coldness of heart is beginning now. Unprecedented violence and brutality will be loosed on a global scale never known before. Very little law and order will be left intact anywhere in the world. Love and natural affection among people, including family members, will continue to erode to the point of non-existence. (11) Those who do become believers during this time will be hated, hunted, and executed en masse because of their faith. The overwhelming majority of people left behind will be God-haters, who hate and despise all those who follow Christ. Murder and violence will be exponentially greater than it is right now as I write this pre-rapture. Just how great will the death toll be from war, famine, pandemic diseases, murder, animal attacks, earthquakes, and a world gone mad? The world's population, as I write this pre-rapture, stands at 7.4 billion people (according to the World Population Clock as calculated in August 2016). Estimating conservatively that roughly one billion or so worldwide leave in the rapture, this will leave around six billion people after the Church is gone. One fourth of those will die during the first half of the Tribulation. That equals to 1-1½ billion people. (Read chapter 6 of Revelation up through the 5th "seal judgment," and on to the 2nd of the three "woes." These passages chronicle the 1st half of the Tribulation). This number is merely a drop in the bucket compared to those who will die during the last 3 ½ years. Please, do not make the grave mistake of thinking that you will be safe because you live in America, Europe, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, or any one of the more modern or "first world" countries. Every single nation on every single continent will be affected by these trans- global catastrophes. It may very well be that America, which was once a God-fearing and blessed nation, will suffer the most loss of life as a judgment for the vast amounts of every conceivable sin that this nation has embraced and eagerly committed in these last days in the sight of Almighty God. Do not think for one second that God will not avenge the blood of the 60 million babies who have been slaughtered within the wombs of their mothers, or the millions of children and mentally handicapped individuals who have been abandoned, neglected, abused, tortured, molested, brainwashed, and thrown aside like garbage; or the myriads of women and children worldwide who have been abducted and sold as sex slaves; or the plethora of sexual perversions including homosexuality, pedophilia, and even bestiality that have been openly embraced flaunted, celebrated, and forced upon society, along with thousands upon thousands of wanton murders, thefts, deceptions, lies, rampant drug abuse, unmitigated narcissism, and the utter and absolute vileness and outright evil that has been flaunted in defiance and contempt in the face of Almighty God and those who belong to Him. I implore you - come to the only one who can save your immortal soul. Place your complete faith and trust in Jesus Christ alone for your salvation. Accept that you are a justly condemned sinner. Believe that Jesus Christ is God come to earth in human flesh; that He lived a perfect, sinless life which qualified Him alone to offer His life up in our place to satisfy God's infinite justice. Believe that Jesus' death on the cross atoned for/paid in full man's sin debt; that He was buried and that He arose bodily from the grave on the third day, so that all who are willing to call upon the name of the Lord might be saved (1 Corinthians 15:1-4). Do this before it is eternally too late. Once your last breath is taken and your last heartbeat is stilled, then your eternal destiny is forever set; and if you should die in your sins, you will spend all eternity in a literal place called the Lake of Fire-forever separated from God in eternal torment. Remember, you do not have to go there. The choice is yours to make. Keep reading. In the next chronicle I will tell you of the importance that tiny Israel and her people, the Jews, will play and of the most dreadful time that is still to come. The U.S. Middle East Peace Plan? - By Bassam Tawil - http://www.prophecynewswatch.com/article.cfm?recent_news_id=1779 Who said that Palestinians have no respect for Saudi Arabia and the rest of the Arab countries? They do. Palestinians have respect for the money of their Arab brethren. The respect they lack is for the heads of the Arab states, and the regimes and royal families there. It is important to take this into consideration in light of the growing talk about Saudi Arabia's effort to help the Trump Administration market a comprehensive peace plan for the Middle East, the details of which remain intriguingly mysterious. Last week, the Saudis unexpectedly summoned Palestinian Authority (PA) President Mahmoud Abbas to Riyadh for talks on Trump's "ultimate solution" for the Israeli-Arab conflict, reportedly being promoted by Jared Kushner. According to unconfirmed reports, the Saudis pressured Abbas to endorse the Trump Administration's "peace plan." Abbas was reportedly told that he had no choice but to accept the plan or resign. At this stage, it remains unclear how Abbas responded to the Saudi "ultimatum." If true, the Saudi "ultimatum" to Abbas is tantamount to asking him to sign his death warrant. Abbas cannot afford to be seen by his people as being in collusion with an American "peace plan" that does not comply completely with their demands. Abbas has repeatedly made it clear that he will not accept anything less than a sovereign Palestinian state on all the pre-1967 lands, including east Jerusalem. He has also emphasized that the Palestinians will never give up the "right of return" for millions of "refugees" to their former homes inside Israel. Moreover, Abbas has clarified that the Palestinians will not accept the presence of any Israeli in their future Palestinian state. Abbas has done his dirty work well. He knows that he cannot come back to his people with anything less than what he promised them. He knows that his people have been radicalized to the point that they will not agree to any concessions or compromise with Israel. And who is responsible for this radicalization? Abbas and other Palestinian leaders, who continue unendingly to tell their people through the media, discourse and mosques that any concession to Israel constitutes treason, pure and simple. So it would be naïve to think that Saudi Arabia or any other Arab country would be able to strong-arm any Palestinian leader to accept a "peace plan" that requires the Palestinians to make concessions to Israel. Abbas may have much respect for the ambitious and savvy young crown prince of Saudi Arabia, Mohammed bin Salman. This respect, however, certainly stops at the border of the political suicide - and extreme personal risk -- from Abbas's point of view. Abbas is now caught between two choices, both disastrous: On the one hand, he needs the political backing of his Arab brothers. This is the most he can expect from the Arab countries, most of whom do not give the Palestinians a penny. It is worth noting that, by and large, the Arab countries discarded the Palestinians after the PLO and Yasser Arafat openly supported Saddam Hussein's invasion of Kuwait in 1990. Kuwait was one of several Gulf countries that used to provide the Palestinians with billions of dollars a year. No more. Since then, the Palestinians have been almost entirely dependent on American and European financial aid. It is safe to assume, then, that the US and EU have more leverage with the Palestinians than most Arab countries. Nevertheless, no American or European on the face of this Earth could force a Palestinian leader to sign a peace treaty with Israel that would be rejected by an overwhelming majority of his people. Trump's "ultimate solution" may result in some Arab countries signing peace treaties with Israel. These countries anyway have no real conflict with Israel. Why should there not be peace between Israel and Kuwait? Why should there not be peace between Israel and Oman? Do any of the Arab countries have a territorial dispute with Israel? The only "problem" the Arab countries have with Israel is the one concerning the Palestinians. For now, it appears that the vast majority of Arab regimes no longer care about the Palestinians and their leaders. The Palestinians despise the Arab leaders as much as they despise each other. It is a mutual feeling. The Palestinians particularly despise any Arab leader who is aligned with the US. They do not consider the US an honest broker in the Israeli-Arab conflict. The Palestinians, in fact, view the US as being "biased" in favor of Israel, regardless of whether the man sitting in the Oval Office is a Democrat or Republican. The Saudi crown prince is viewed by Palestinians as a US ally. His close relations with Jared Kushner are seen with suspicion not only by Palestinians, but by many other Arabs as well. Palestinian political analysts such as Faisal Abu Khadra believe that the Palestinian leadership should prepare itself to face the "mysterious" Trump "peace plan." They are skeptical that the plan would meet the demands of the Palestinians. The Palestinians appear to be united in rejecting the Trump Administration's effort to "impose" a solution on them. They are convinced that the Americans, with the help of Saudi Arabia and some Arab countries, are working towards "liquidating" the Palestinian cause. Abbas and his rivals in Hamas now find themselves dreading the US administration's "peace plan." Like lemmings drawn to the sea, the Palestinians seem to be marching towards yet another scenario where they "never miss an opportunity to miss an opportunity." The question remains: how will the Saudis and the rest of the international community respond to ongoing Palestinian rejectionism and intransigence? Netanyahu vows Israel will act alone against Iran if given no choice - Tovah Lazaroff - http://www.jpost.com/Middle-East/Iran-News/WATCH-Netanyahu-vows-Israel-will-act-alone-against-Iran-if-given-no-choice-514265 Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told the Jewish Federation of North America's General Assembly that "if we have to we'll stand alone" in front of Tehran. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu promised on Tuesday that Iran would not gain a foothold in Syria by which to attack Israel. The premier spoke via video to American Jewish leaders just hours after Russia clarified the it had no intention of pushing Tehran's military forces out of the country. "Iran is scheming to entrench itself militarily in Syria. They want to create a permanent air, land and sea military presence, with the declared intent of using Syria as a base from which to destroy Israel. We are not going to agree to that. I have said very clearly that Israel will work to stop this," Netanyahu told the Jewish Federation of North America's General Assembly which is meeting in Los Angeles. "We must all work together to stop Iran's aggression and its pursuit of nuclear weapons. If we stand together we will achieve it. But if we have to we'll stand alone. Iran will not get nuclear weapons. It will not turn Syria into a military base against Israel," the premier asserted. Further stressing Israel's dismay over the Iran nuclear deal, Netanyahu said: "We must ensure that Iran never gets a nuclear weapon. That is the bottom line and the most important. The Iran nuclear deal does not achieve that. On the contrary, after about a decade, it will leave Iran able to produce hundreds of nuclear weapons in a very short time, because the deal rescinds all the limitations on Iran's enrichment capacity. They can have hundreds of thousands of centrifuges and they plan to." Both Israel and the United States believe that the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, designed to limit Iran's nuclear capacity, is dangerous because it leaves Tehran with the ability to create nuclear weapons. Outside of the US, Russia, China, Great Britain, Germany and France signed the document, but none of those five countries have expressed interest in changing the document. Netanyahu has said that safeguards against Iran can be put in place, without changing the text. US President Donald Trump has created an opportunity for the the five world powers to address the flaws in the document, the prime minister said. "You have to correct it [the Iran deal], either by fixing it or nixing it," Netanyahu continued, adding that he has previously encouraged world leaders to take action to improve the document. "Iran is dangerous because of its fanatic ideology of global conquest, its growing power, its unflagging commitment to destroy Israel [and] its unvarnished aggression. "Iran has already spread conflict around the Middle East, in Yemen, in Iraq and Syria and Lebanon. We are far from alone in recognizing the Iranian threat to the Middle East. The leading Arab countries, Saudi Arabia, see things exactly as we do. They are right," Netanyahu concluded. Why Palestinian Delusions Persist - By Daniel Pipes - https://www.breakingisraelnews.com/97829/palestinian-delusions-persist-opinion/#/#QAivOv5TqGKDZMwL.97 In 1974, Second Lt. Hiroo Onoda of the Imperial Japanese Army was still fighting for his emperor, hiding in a Philippine jungle. He had rejected many attempts to inform him of Japan's surrender 29 years earlier. During those long years, he senselessly murdered about one Filipino and injured three others per year. Only a concerted effort by his former commander finally convinced Onoda that the emperor had accepted defeat in 1945 and therefore he too must lay down arms. The Palestinians of the West Bank and Gaza are Onoda writ large. They formally acknowledged defeat by Israel 24 years ago, when Yasir Arafat stood on the White House lawn and recognized "the right of the State of Israel to exist in peace and security." Trouble was, Arafat himself did not sincerely offer this act of surrender and most Palestinians rejected it. Accordingly, the war continues, with Palestinians emulating that grizzled, vicious Japanese soldier: they too battle on for a failed cause, murder senselessly, and ignore repeated calls to surrender. Just as Onoda insisted on believing in a divine emperor, Palestinians inhabit a fantasy world in which, for example, Jesus was a Palestinian, Jerusalem was always exclusively Islamic, and Israel is the new Crusader state on the verge of collapse. (In this spirit, Iranian dictator Ali Khamene'i has helpfully provided the precise date of Sep. 9, 2040, when Israel will vaporize, and his acolytes built a large doomsday clock to count down the days.) Some imagine Israel already gone, with nearly every Arabic map of "Palestine" showing it replacing the Jewish state. How do Palestinians ignore reality and persist in these illusions? Due to three main factors: Islamic doctrine, international succor, and the wariness of the Israeli security services. (The Israeli Left was once a major factor but it barely counts anymore.) First, Islam carries the expectation that a land once under Muslim control (Dar al-Islam) is an endowment (waqf) that inevitably must revert to Muslim rule. Bernard Lewis notes that Muslims historically responded to the loss of territories in Europe with the expectation that these were "Islamic lands, wrongfully taken from Islam and destined ultimately to be restored." This assumption of righteousness and inevitability has abiding power as shown by such aggressions as Turkey's in Cyprus and Syria's in Lebanon. Jerusalem especially arouses intense Islamic sentiments. First exploited at a pan-Islamic conference in 1931 hosted by the mufti of Jerusalem, Amin al-Husseini, many others since then - including Yasir Arafat, Ayatollah Khomeini, and Recep Tayyip Erdoğan - have picked up this rallying cry. July's Temple Mount fracas over metal detectors revealed the city's atavistic power, prompting such varied powers as Muslim Brotherhood theorist Yusuf al-Qaradawi, Jordan's monarch, the Arab League, and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation loudly to support the Palestinian position, no questions asked, as though it was still the 1950s with its shriek of unthinking rhetoric. Second, assorted governments, Leftists, do-gooders, and other internationals encourage Palestinians to sustain the reverie of victory through a combination of obsessive anti-Zionism and the pretense that a "Palestine" exists. Athletes have represented the sham state of "Palestine" at the Olympics since 1996. Israel maintains diplomatic missions in just 78 countries compared to 95 for the Palestinian Authority. With a solitary exception in 2013, every critical UNESCO country-specific resolution in recent years has focused on Israel. This international support encourages Palestinian delusion. Third, despite recent polling that shows how a large majority of Israelis want to push Palestinians into recognizing that the conflict is over and Israel won, no Israeli government since 1993 has taken such steps. Why this persistent discrepancy? Because of Israel's security services, which usually have the last word on policy, resist any steps that could possibly provoke Palestinian violence. "Things now are about as good as possible," they imply, "so please stay away with any hare-brained ideas about our getting tougher." This reluctance explains why Jerusalem tolerates massive illegal housing, releases murderers from prison, provides water and electricity to Palestinians at advantageous terms, and urges international donors not just to subsidize the Palestinian Authority but to fund mega-projects of Israeli devising (such as an artificial island off Gaza). Contrarily, Israel's wizened security types nix any initiative that deprives the Palestinians of funds, punishes them more severely, or infringes on their existing prerogatives (such as control of the Temple Mount). Palestinian delusion results, then, from a toxic mix of Islamic doctrine, international succor, and Israeli timidity. News from Hal Lindsey Media Ministries - Hal Lindsey - www.hallindsey.com It seems like recently we reel from one tragedy to the next. We barely have time to collect our breath before we get the next "breaking news" alert on our cell phones that something else unthinkable has happened. Here in the United States, high-profile deadly incidents have come fast and furiously lately -- and we usually never hear about the smaller ones. Just this year, Fort Lauderdale, Alexandria, Charlottesville, Antioch, Las Vegas, New York, and now Sutherland Springs. Each one is frightening, senseless, and heartbreaking. It is sometimes difficult to nail down a motive. Some are obvious. Religious hatred, politics, domestic revenge, and mental illness have all come into play in recent attacks. Some, we may never know why the perpetrators did what they did. Though mass shootings in a house of worship are not as rare as we wish, houses of worship are still one of the safest places to be. That's why when one happens, it is even more shocking and unsettling. And when the act is as overtly horrific as Sutherland Springs, it is even more so. To repeatedly and calmly target small children and babies goes beyond hatred and vitriol, it is demonic and flows from a Satanic evil that is beyond our understanding. To me, it signals that Satan is more than just alive and well on planet earth, he is in a rage -- maybe a last-ditch, desperate effort to discourage as many believers as he can before Jesus returns for his Church. It is almost impossible to know the words to say in moments like these. Most of us will never experience such sudden and devastating tragedy. Though unbelievers may think these words are trite and pat, the believer understands when I say this: At these times, the only thing we can do is trust God and believe that there is a greater purpose for the things -- even the tragic and painful -- that happen in our lives. We will never be able to fully understand them or satisfactorily explain them. The Bible tells us that in the time just before Jesus returns to catch away all true believers in the Rapture, evil will grow worse and worse. Men will do horrible things that are inexplicable. It says that whole societies will forget God. Right will be called wrong and wrong will be called right. I think we are in those final days. And the fact that we are seeing so many acts of terrorism and so many acts of pure evil - like this one - just tells us that Jesus' return is near. You know, it's often said that hindsight is 20/20. In another way, I think that looking back at yesterday can sometimes bring today into sharper relief. I know it can bring greater understanding. Like many churches across America, First Baptist Church in Sutherland Springs, Texas, posts videos of some of its regular services. The video of the previous week's Sunday morning service is available online. To watch it in light of what happened in that same sanctuary the following Sunday is both heartbreaking and incredibly uplifting. The pastor is Frank Pomeroy. He and his wife survived the massacre because they were traveling. Their 14 year-old daughter Annabelle remained home with family friends. She was in the service and died. The week before the unspeakable horror unfolded in that place, Pastor Frank preached on Proverbs 3:5, "Do not lean on your own understanding... Trust in the Lord with all your heart." The worship team led the congregation in singing, "Forever God is faithful... His love endures forever. And by the grace of God, we will carry on." They sang, "And on that day, when my strength is failing, the end draws near and my time has come, still my soul will sing Your praise unending, ten thousand years, and then forevermore." Today, some of those precious people are now in God's presence, truly singing His praise forevermore. We should follow their testimony and make certain we are ready to stand before Him, too. Because we do not know when it will be our turn to enter into His glory. Our thoughts and prayers are with those who survived and are suffering physically and emotionally. Remember the families and friends of those who died and those whose lives and bodies are forever changed. Pray that God will comfort them and hold them in His hands forever. And pray, too, for those who are charged with caring for them and those who must re-live that awful day every day now because of their law enforcement and investigative duties. Pray that God will protect their minds, their hearts, and their spirits. They are dealing with an evil foe -- Satan himself. I'll discuss Sutherland Springs further on this week's program. I'll also report on the New York terror attack, developments in Lebanon, and the 100th celebration of The Balfour Declaration. Don't miss this week's Report on TBN, Daystar, CPM Network, various local stations, www.hallindsey.com or www.hischannel.com . Check your local listings. The Dominoes Keep Falling - By Grant Phillips - http://www.raptureready.com/2017/11/03/paid-in-full-2/ I was reading our state (commonwealth actually) news this morning and noticed that one of our senators wants to introduce a bill to legalize marijuana in Kentucky. This got me thinking about Satan's battle plan, i.e. just keep knocking over the dominoes. Allow me to list just a few observations. We've had alcohol in the large cities for many years. However, I can remember when Lexington, KY used to "close down the sidewalks" in the days of the Blue laws (Sunday laws). Not so now. The wild nightlife can now be found just about anywhere in this city any day of the week. The Kentucky lottery began in April 1989. The excuse was to use the money for education; schools, class rooms, teachers, etc. [Update: didn't happen. Teachers are using their own money for the classroom, haven't received a decent raise in years and their pensions are going down the tubes.] Over the last few years or so, most all of the smaller communities have practically outlawed smoking, BUT, not to worry, it has been replaced with ... that's right ... you got it ... ALCOHOL! And now, as I said earlier, we may be considering the legalization of marijuana. It is true that smoking is not good for us, but when did you ever hear of smoking causing anyone to be a loud-mouth jerk, or inflict harm on another person? The answer ... never, but alcohol and drugs are destroying lives and families, taking lives and destroying minds. Something's wrong with this picture. I'm just speaking for good ole Kentucky for now, but to me, this isn't progress. We're regressing, not progressing. Let's consider a few more dominoes. From 1962-1980; prayer, the Bible and the Ten Commandments were removed from the public schools. Corporal punishment is now practically nonexistent. No wonder, generally speaking, our children are little spoiled, self-centered brats. I don't know the exact year for Kentucky, but no fault divorce began in the 70s. Is it any wonder why there are so many divorces and so many folks just shacking up? In the 60s movie ratings began. The things seen and heard at the movies and on television today could gag a maggot. Prior to the 60s we would not worry about decent people and children watching a movie or the television, but today? Of course we can't forget June of 2015 when the Supreme Court ruled 5-4 to legalize homosexual marriages. It probably won't be long until the Supremes also force the acceptance of transsexual lifestyles upon every state and commonwealth. The Bible clearly and definitively calls homosexuality a sin. Also, the Bible makes it clear that we are born male or female. We are either one or the other. Science agrees. Males are born with one Y chromosome and one X chromosome. Females are born with two X chromosomes. If you have one Y chromosome and one X chromosome, you are a male. If you have two X chromosomes, you are a female. We are either male or female when we are born. That cannot be debated. Capital punishment, for all practical purposes, is also nearly non-existent. And we wonder why capital crime is through the roof. A mistreated dog can get more justice than an innocent human being. All these brilliant moves (and many I haven't listed) have resulted in a society that has become more and more corrupted, and that is exactly what Satan wants. Man cannot make society better, especially those in the political arena. As can been seen by the dates, these things did not happen overnight, but the more dominoes that fall increases the speed of the remaining dominoes falling. Every year I think, "Surely, we've sunk about as far as we can go," but each year proves me wrong. I shudder to think what our society will look like in a few more years. Our society and even many professing Christians have the mistaken idea that the majority must be right. If most of the people say it's okay, then it must be okay. That isn't what Jesus said, and I'm going with His words. "Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it." (Matthew 7:13-14) I suppose based on the world's conclusion of the "majority" is where we also get the misconception that there will be far more people in Heaven than in hell. Again, based on what Jesus said in the Scripture verses above, there will be far fewer people in Heaven than in hell. Let me make it real clear. Most people will leave this earth and spend eternity in hell. Hell will have an overflowing abundance of human beings that stayed on the "broad road to destruction." The only exception that could, maybe, alter this is the millions or billions who will be in Heaven because they were under the age of accountability when they died, or were not mentally competent. I've never been one to follow the majority. The majority is most always a losing cause. Let me give one example. In 1 Kings 18:17-40 we're told about an incident that happened between Elijah and Ahab's prophets. Now keep in mind, there were 450 prophets of Baal and 400 prophets of the Asherah in the majority, not including Ahab and all the other followers of these false gods. There were two in the minority, Elijah and God. Over 850 to 2! Read the account and see who was right and who was wrong. By the way, what happened to the false prophets? Elijah's secret weapon was God. If we are on God's side, we are always correct in our position with whatever circumstance is at hand. With that said, the Bible assures us that God is not on the side of any of the actions I mentioned earlier that our society has so willingly accepted. While writing this article, a dear sister in Christ wrote to me, informing me of California adopting what is known as the 'bordello' law for long-term care centers. The article is entitled "California adopts 'bordello' plan for long-term care centers" and was posted by Bob Unruh on October 5th, 2017 at the WND website (www.wnd.com). Please take the time to read the article. It is eye-opening to the continued degradation of our society. In part this new California law, which takes effect January 1st, states that males may room with females and share shower facilities with females. Also, employees can be punished criminally via a criminal fine and be imprisoned for up to a year. A care facility can suffer heavy fines and have their license revoked by the Department of Public Health and even be fined up to $150,000 under the state Fair Employment and Housing Act. It will be a criminal offense for any private-care facility to "move or evict a transsexual resident for acting out their transsexual behavior, even if other residents are disturbed by it." The employees will be committing a criminal offense if they do not address the transsexual residents as "he" or "she", no matter their biological sex. They are also required to dress the transsexual resident in women's clothes (or vice versa), including underclothing, cosmetics, etc. This law applies to senior homes, convalescent homes, skilled nursing facilities, the developmentally disabled, pediatric day health and respite care. Surely, "The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?" (Jeremiah 17:9) I stand convinced that we are quickly approaching God's judgment. Our hearts have become blackened and our rebellion against God is frightening. As the dominoes fall, true Christians need to take a stand. Satan knows his time is short and he also knows the heart of man. Many dominoes have fallen since the early sixties and even earlier, and they continue to fall. I repeat that all the dominoes have not fallen at once, just one at a time, but now we live in a world that couldn't even be imagined in the forties and fifties. What society accepts as normal today would have caused a nationwide rebellion when I was a child. Isn't it amazing how things can change in just one lifetime, just one domino at a time? The sad conclusion is that for each generation it will continue to get worse and worse, but for each younger generation, it will seem more and more acceptable. 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: Sexual assault and harassment epidemic - Bill Wilson - www.dailyjot.com Literally hundreds of women are claiming sexual harassment, sexual assault, rape and groping as commonplace in the culture of Hollywood. Likewise, the political culture has been saturated with stories of accusations by women of a similar nature. For example, California Democratic Congresswoman Jackie Speier told NBC that $15 million of taxpayer money has been paid out over the past decade to settle sexual harassment lawsuits against Congressmen. Many are familiar with the claims against Republican Alabama Senatorial candidate Roy Moore. While people are supposed to be innocent until proven guilty, just the claim of anything sexually improper takes on a particular stigma. This appears epidemic in both entertainment and politics. People's lives are ruined by it. If someone is falsely accused, their life forever carries that mark. For those who are assaulted, abused, harassed, or raped, they carry an often insurmountable burden with them the rest of their lives. This is an issue that is coming to light. The perverse way that it is seemingly imbedded in the culture of politics and entertainment should be a wake up call to each of us. You may not be aware how domestic violence or sexual assault impacts your community. It is often the hidden issue. The facts, however, demonstrate just how widespread it is. In the US, every 9 seconds a woman is assaulted or beaten; one in every three women is abused during her lifetime; Domestic violence is the leading cause of injury to women-more than car accidents, muggings, and rapes combined; 10 million children witness some form of domestic violence every year; Nearly one in five teenage girls say a boyfriend has threatened violence or self-harm if presented with a breakup; Everyday more than three women are murdered by their husbands or boyfriends; Men are twice as likely to abuse their wives if they witnessed domestic violence as children. These are unbelievable, but they are real. So when we see accusations in Hollywood and among politicians, there may be more fire than smoke. This scenario needs a lot of prayer. It is a very difficult and often taboo topic. But it is real to many people. It is a sad state of affairs for our nation and our people. Elected people should know how to behave themselves. Entertainers are not exempt from the law or doing the right thing. In all things, we should hold accountability where we can on this issue. If we hear of it and can stop it, we should speak up. Teach our children the right way. Be an example to others. Plead the cause of those who have no voice in the matter. Victims come in many forms with such things. As Jesus said in Matthew 7:12, "Therefore all things whatsoever you would that men should do to you, do you even to them: for this is the law and the prophets." Daily Devotion: But Our Eyes Are on You - By Greg Laurie - www.harvest.org "O our God, will You not judge them? For we have no power against this great multitude that is coming against us; nor do we know what to do, but our eyes are upon You." -2 Chronicles 20:12 Have you ever been in one of those impossible situations with no apparent way out? Have you ever desperately needed something or wanted something, but it seemed as though there was no way you would ever have it? Have you ever thought there was no future for you, that it was just too late? If so, then you need to know more about the power of God that can take place through prayer. We find an example of this in 2 Chronicles 20, where the bottom had suddenly dropped out for Jehoshaphat, the king of Judah. He received a frightening report saying that a vast army was coming against them. So what did Jehoshaphat do? He prayed. He said, "O our God, will You not judge them? For we have no power against this great multitude that is coming against us; nor do we know what to do, but our eyes are upon You" (verse 12). Then we read, "Now all Judah, with their little ones, their wives, and their children, stood before the Lord" (verse 13). That is such a powerful scene. Here was a multitude of vulnerable people with an invading army coming against them, and King Jehoshaphat was saying, "Lord, we are depending upon You. We don't know what to do, but our eyes are on You." Many times we think of prayer as a last resort. After we have exhausted every other possibility, all we can do is pray. But that is what we should have done in the first place. It has been said that if you are swept off your feet, it is time to get on your knees. God answers the prayers of His people and can turn around radical, hopeless situations when His people go to Him in prayer. FROM THE HEART
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