Prophecy Update Newsletter
IN TODAY'S NEWSLETTER...
Lining Up - By Daymond Duck -
https://www.raptureready.com/2019/12/08/lining-daymond-duck/ This week, Breaking Israel News published an interesting article about Israel's stalemated election and Prime Min. Netanyahu's legal problems. It is just one man's opinion, and there may be political motivations behind it, but some readers might find what the rabbi is saying to be interesting. The original article can be found at: https://www.breakingisraelnews.com/140704/rabbi-whats-happening-netanyahu-gods-judgement-not-accident/?goal=0_bb2894f273-d50a37fea6-61167281&mc_cid=d50a37fea6&mc_eid=85b73fe6f2 Mendel Kessin, an orthodox rabbinic scholar, keeps delivering a speech titled "The Worldwide Reduction of Evil and Netanyahu's Downfall." The rabbi is making four points that, in my words, are: 1) Many world leaders are having problems; 2) Israel will get a different kind of government; 3) The judgment of God is falling on Prime Min. Netanyahu; and, 4) Israel will go in a better direction. I want to expand on my understanding of these four points. One, according to the rabbi, God doesn't have to drag nations into war to weaken them. God can weaken nations internally with riots and demonstrations, and that is what God is currently doing to Israel's enemies and the Arab nations. God is weakening the nations because He intends to change the world. Two, in the past, non-religious Jews formed coalitions to rule Israel. Israel's two failed elections mean that God is rejecting the process that allows non-religious Jews to rule over Israel. God wants Israel to establish a procedure that will produce a different kind of government. Three, there is no doubt that Prime Min. Netanyahu is one of the world's greatest leaders and he has done a great work in Israel, but God has allowed him to suffer humiliation (be indicted) and great financial expense (years of paying high-priced lawyers) because he has refused to destroy the Islamic terrorists that are humiliating Israel and causing Israeli citizens to lose crops, property, money, etc. The rabbi is saying, Prime Min. Netanyahu is reaping what he has sown. He is saying, the Prime Minister's most important responsibility is to protect the Israeli people and their assets, but Mr. Netanyahu has failed to do that for the Jews that live near Gaza, so God is not protecting Mr. Netanyahu and his assets. Four, the rabbi is saying Israel's new kind of government will be a religious leader that will give Israel a bright future. This writer does not know whether the rabbi is right or wrong, but Israel's future includes government approval to rebuild the Temple and resume the animal sacrifices, and eventually, to accept the reign of the King of kings and Lord of lords. Moving on to another subject: On Nov. 23, 2019, the U.S. Commander of Centcom visited Bahrain, the U.S. Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff visited Israel, and Vice Pres. Mike Pence visited the Kurds in Iraq to discuss the situation in Iran. The U.S. sanctions against Iran are working, Iran is in financial trouble, and the Iranian people are rioting and demonstrating. Iran has two choices: Change her ways so the U.S. will drop the sanctions, or risk starting a war. The U.S. believes Iran will risk starting a war by attacking a major target in the Middle East, but the location and details are anyone's guess. Two days later, DEBKAfile reported that their sources believe that Iran is ready to move forward (on the risk of starting a war). Five days later, Pres. Trump and Prime Min. Netanyahu discussed the situation over the phone and finalized their plans on how to deal with Iran. Moving on one more time, it has occurred that God helped Joshua capture Jericho with trumpets in just seven days (Josh. 6:1-20) and He helped Gideon and 300 men defeat the Midianites with trumpets, pitchers and lamps in one day (Judg. 7:10-22). What an amazing God! But in 1948, God helped a poorly armed Israel win the War of Independence in twenty months; in 1956, God helped Israel win the Suez Canal War in eight days; in 1967, God helped Israel win the Six-Day War in six days; and in 1973, God helped Israel win the Yom Kippur War in eighteen days. I would say that the same God that helped Joshua and Gideon in Old Testament times is still on the throne, and many prophetic events are lining up. God said He will regather Israel and "No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD, and their righteousness is of me, saith the LORD" (Isa. 54:17). Prophecy Plus Ministries, Inc. Daymond & Rachel Duck [email protected] Who Dares, Wins - By Pete Garcia - https://rev310.com/2019/12/who-dares-wins In this drama we call life, there are Winners and Losers. According to the world's standards, he who dies with the most toys wins. It is about being the best, pulling yourself up by your own bootstraps, and attaining fame and fortune. The world certainly has their favorites and for a season, they are celebrated. The losers are everyone else. The Losers are those who don't get invited, don't have the good seats or have legions of paparazzi who capture their every waking moment. The 'losers' are generally considered that great 'unwashed mass' in the center of the country, who the movie stars, politicians, and the rich and famous generally try to avoid. But popularity, like the weather, are often fickle companions. They continually feed on change to keep things fresh and exciting. The rich and famous of the forties and fifties are the elderly today. Today's generation doesn't know or doesn't care who and what they used to do. The rebels of the sixties are considered rather mild-mannered compared to today's rabble-rousers. Those who were considered daring and radical back then, star in Infomercials today. All the while, that great 'unwashed' mass of men and women raise families, coach Little League teams, and get the bills paid. Imagine if you will, the world as an open-air market, and you are on the conveyor belt (time) that takes you through it. You can't get off or go backward, but always forward. The market is full of gadgets and goodies, distractions and intrigue, and every sort of feast for the senses. It matters not what you're into, because there is a niche for it. This market's main goal is to keep you preoccupied with what's in front of you. Everyone has their own 'thing', that if they could only master or possess, they will have 'won' by the world's standard. Heaven forbid if you die doing what you love, that only adds to the lore. But for normal folks, maybe it's a job promotion to a position you've long sought after. Maybe it's the best golf score down at the country club or marrying that beauty queen you pursued all those years. Some people will have spent their whole lives trying to obtain whatever it is that makes them feel 'complete'. Some will spend the whole of their lives searching for that mystery that eludes them. As if unraveling it will make the jigsaw pieces of their life somehow magically fit together. The losers usually don't get the luxury of pursuing all the frivolities this world has to offer. So what they can't get in luxury, they'll take in pride. They work, supporting families, going to war, working the middle to low-end jobs. In other words, just trying to survive. But Winners and Losers alike must all ride this ride. And whether you're on the top, bottom, or just somewhere in the middle, ultimately, you will reach the same destination. That destination is the same for every man and woman. Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me. Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. Philippians 3:12-14 For those who receive Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior, it doesn't matter what station you find yourself in life. You could be wealthy and attractive, or dirt poor and ugly. You could command a six-figure salary, or almost entirely relying on food stamps and government subsistence to stay afloat. You could be a football star or that guy who couldn't even afford the tickets. It matters not, because if you have Jesus Christ in your heart, you've already won. We have not won because of who we are, but who Christ is. We have won because that victory was obtained by a God-Man two thousand years ago on Calvary's Cross. So many people seek the small, irrelevant victories in this temporary life and completely overlook the one victory we can carry with us for all eternity, that being salvation by grace through faith in Christ Jesus. The original painting of the "Mona Lisa" is considered to be priceless since no monetary value has been assigned to it. It is insured by the country of France and is held at the Louvre in its own 7.5 million dollar room. But how much is a copy of the Mona Lisa worth? Probably not much. In a strange sense of irony, a world that so reveres and holds the 'original' up as a masterpiece, has rejected humanity's Magnum Opus. It has rejected the archetype, for a facade. It gladly would trade the truth, for a lie. Men and women have been bought and sold a lie over and over, that salvation can't be free, that it must be earned. The world will gladly take a Joseph Smith, Charles Taze Russell, Buddha, or L. Ron Hubbard, over the Creator-in-flesh, Jesus Christ. Being Christ-like in this time and place, and you are hated with hatred only those who dare to live it out, can fully know. People have been told that they must maintain their righteousness. People have been taught that they must strive to unravel the mysteries in order to be 'enlightened', and only then, can they be free. People have been told money, things, and prestige are all you need in this life. It is these lies that have kept a torrent of souls pouring into hell for the last 2,000 years. For many walk, of whom I have told you often, and now tell you even weeping, that they are the enemies of the cross of Christ: whose end is destruction, whose god is their belly, and whose glory is in their shame-who set their mind on earthly things. Philippians 3:18-19 When a brother or sister in Christ departs from this dying and fallen world, we don't mourn them like those who die without Christ. We miss them for sure, but only in the sense that we have to spend the rest of our days here without them. Those in Christ know that our common salvation will reunite us again in the next life. We will know, as we are known, and we will spend eternity wrapped in the light and glory of Jesus Christ. For our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body that it may be conformed to His glorious body, according to the working by which He is able even to subdue all things to Himself. Philippians 3:20-21 We recently lost a long-time member, Lou Talley. A friend, Vietnam Veteran, and most importantly, a brother in the body of Christ who dared to live out his faith. To my limited knowledge, Lou never made it on the 'who's who' of important busybodies in this world. As far as I know, he never won the Nobel Peace Prize or an Emmy award. He never won the Heisman Trophy or a Grammy. But he knew Jesus as his Lord and Savior and has won eternity in glory. (Makes all those little metal trophies seem rather insignificant doesn't it?) We know we will see him again, and that now he is living out the hope he so long placed his faith in, on this side of life. Israel: Preserving The Peace With Jordan - By Caroline Glick/JNS.org - https://www.prophecynewswatch.com/article.cfm?recent_news_id=3669 In recent remarks before a Knesset meeting marking the 25th anniversary of the signing of Israel's peace treaty with Jordan, Netanyahu explained that the basis of Israel's peaceful relations with Egypt and Jordan is not emotional. The Egyptians and Jordanians haven't embraced Israel as a neighbor and friend. Rather, Israel's peace treaties are the products of its deterrent power. In his words, "As long as we are stronger--they are with us. If we become weaker, then the peace agreements will hang by a thread." That means that practically speaking there is little substantive difference between Israel's ties with, say, the UAE, and its ties with Egypt. So long as both perceive Israel as strong and helpful, and impossible to destroy, they will have good relations with it. If Israel becomes a strategic basket case on the other hand, then those relations will rapidly deteriorate. In Egypt's case, the combination of Israeli strength and shared interests in combating Iran and the Muslim Brotherhood improved relations to an unprecedented degree. Acting on these shared interests and his recognition of Israeli power, Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi played a significant role in cultivating ties between the Sunni Gulf states and Israel. 'As long as we are stronger--they are with us' Jordan is a different story. While Israel's relations with Egypt have never been better, its relations with Jordan have never been worse. Indeed, Israel's informal ties with Saudi Arabia today are arguably better than its formal ties with Jordan. So what is going on? Is Israel doing something wrong? What does it get out of its ties with Jordan to begin with? The most important advantage Israel gains from its ties with Jordan is a peaceful eastern frontier. But that peaceful border, which is a function of Israel's control of the Jordan Valley on the one hand and of Jordan's actions to secure its border with Israel on the other, predates the peace treaty by more than 20 years. Moreover, given the downward trajectory of bilateral ties, it's hard to know how long Jordan will remain committed to securing the border. From week to week, Jordan's growing hostility towards Israel becomes more difficult to countenance or explain away. Consider the events of the past three weeks. A week ago, the Jordanian armed forces conducted a military exercise led by the elite Royal Guard 1st Mechanized Battalion. It was code-named "Swords of Karameh" after a 1968 battle by the Jordanian town of Karameh between Israel and Fatah terrorists. Jordanian military forces fought alongside Fatah. Jordanian King Abdullah II oversaw the two-day exercise, which included infantry and armor forces along with fighter jets and helicopters. Jordanian Prime Minister Omar Razzazz, government ministers, senior military commanders as well as foreign military attaches also attended the exercise. The "Swords of Karameh" exercise reportedly simulated a battle between Jordanian forces and an invasion force "from the west" which involved defeating the foreign invaders and destroying the bridges they used to cross into Jordan. In other words, it simulated a battle against Israel. It bears noting that on the face of it, the "Swords of Karameh" exercise constituted a material breach of the terms of the peace treaty. The treaty bars the parties from carrying out belligerent acts against one another. Simulating war with Israel, and rushing to publicize the simulation, certainly feels like a belligerent act. Two weeks ago, in remarks to a fawning audience of American Jews in New York, Abdullah said that Jordan's bilateral relations with Israel had reached "an all-time low." He laid the blame for the state of affairs squarely on Israel's shoulders. Three weeks ago, Abdullah and his son prayed at the Tzofar and Naharayim enclaves to celebrate their transfer to Jordan from Israel. Israel was compelled to transfer the enclaves to Jordan after Abdullah breached the spirit of the peace agreement and refused to renew the lease of the lands to the Israeli farmers who own them for an additional 25 years, as the peace treaty presumed he would. This week, the Jordanian State Security Court opened its trial of Israeli national Konstantin Kotov. Kotov is being tried for illegally crossing the border to Jordan on Oct. 29, and for drug possession. Israel expected Jordan to return Kotov to Israel last month parallel to Israel's transfer of two Jordanian nationals it was holding on terrorism charges. That didn't happen. As Jordan has undertaken these hostile actions against Israel, Israel reportedly concluded a new water deal with Jordan. In the 1994 peace treaty, Israel agreed to supply Jordan 50 million metric cubes of water each year. The amount was doubled to 100 million metric cubes a year in 2016. Details of the latest agreement are being kept secret, but it is widely assumed that Israel agreed to increase the amount of water it is supplying to Jordan annually both from its desalination plants and from the Sea of Galilee, yet again. It's easy to understand Israel's seemingly masochistic behavior. Israel wants to preserve peace with Jordan. Peace goes through the Hashemite monarchy, which itself is under constant threat from the Jordanian public. Last year hundreds of thousands of Jordanians participated in anti-regime protests precipitated by the kingdom's poor economic conditions. The protesters compelled King Abdullah to fire his prime minister. Last year's protests terrified the monarchy because they marked the first time that the Bedouin tribes--the backbone of the regime--joined the traditionally anti-regime forces in the Muslim Brotherhood and trade unions to participate in anti-regime demonstrations. Out of genuine concern for the welfare of the regime, Israel is turning the other cheek in the face of repeated abuse and humiliation to help Abdullah and the Hashemite Kingdom survive. While the rationale for Israel's obsequious behavior is clear, the time has come to consider whether it makes sense to continue on this road, or if there are better ways to maintain our ties and perhaps better advance our interests with Jordan. The fact is that Jordan doesn't have much leverage against Israel. It has no economic leverage against it. And with President Trump in the White House and Ambassador Kelly Craft at the United Nations, Jordan has little diplomatic leverage against Israel. The only card it can really play is the perennial "nuclear option"--the threat to abrogate the peace treaty. Israel, on the other hand, has significant leverage against Jordan, and using it doesn't require threatening the peace treaty. On Tuesday, we saw an Israeli politician make rare and effective use of that leverage. On Tuesday morning, a delegation of deputy mayors attending a conference in Eilat tried to cross the border to Jordan for a day trip to Petra. They were stopped at the border by Jordanian authorities. After humiliating them, the Jordanian border guards prohibited the Israeli officials from entering the kingdom because several deputy mayors were wearing tzitzit, a religious garment with ritual fringes that Jewish law requires Jewish males to wear. Recently Jordan instituted a regulation barring Jews wearing or carrying religious attire or articles from entering the kingdom. The men had already hidden their kippot under hats. So the Jordanians stopped them for their tzitzit. After the incident was reported, Israeli Interior Minister Aryeh Deri had the Foreign Ministry inform the Jordanian government that in retaliation for the anti-Semitic policy, he intended to bar Jordanian workers from receiving permits to work in Israel. The Jordanians canceled their anti-Jewish regulation. The fact is that Israel is the guarantor of Jordan's economic survival. The government needs to recognize the power that comes with that distinction. Consider the following. Long-standing water shortages have compelled Israel to use desalinated water as its primary source of both potable and irrigation water. Given the continued water crisis, and its impact on the viability of Israeli agriculture, Israel should reevaluate the quantities of water it is capable of supplying Jordan beyond the 50 million metric cubes it is required to provide under the peace treaty. Under the gas deal Israel concluded with Jordan, Israel agreed to supply Jordan with natural gas nearly at cost. Israel may need to reassess the price given Turkish and Hezbollah threats to its offshore gas fields. Security is expensive. Whereas the Jordanians automatically support every Palestinian provocation, in recent years the Saudis have soured on the Palestinians and have supported Israel against them repeatedly. Given this new state of affairs, it makes sense for Israel to revisit the privileged position Jordanian officials enjoy on the Temple Mount. In light of the region's strategic instability, the Israeli Defense Ministry should have carried out a serious study of the IDF's force size with an eye towards enlarging it years ago. And in light of Jordan's simulation of war with Israel last week, it would be irresponsible to put off conducting such a study any longer. See how leverage works? By all accounts, the peace with Jordan, and the survival of the Hashemite monarchy, are among Israel's key strategic interests. But as Netanyahu rightly noted in his remarks at the Knesset, that peace is not a function of Israel's popularity among the Jordanians. It is predicated on Israel's deterrent power. Jordan's actions over the past several weeks reinforce what has been clear for some time: In its rush to protect Abdullah and the peace, Israel has forgotten to deter Abdullah to preserve the peace. The time has come for Israel to correct its behavior. Russia, UN, Syria Rebuild Pagan Temple of Baal in Palmyra: Third Pre-Messiah Gateway - By Adam Eliyahu Berkowitz - www.breakingisraelnews.com "Go cry to the gods you have chosen; let them deliver you in your time of distress!" Judges 10:14 (The Israel Bible™) The Russian government recently announced that it will partner with the Syrian government in reconstructing the ancient temple to the pagan god Ba'al in Palmyra. If successful, the project will necessarily mark the third incarnation of the Roman Victory Arch of Palmyra which an ancient Jewish source states must fall and be rebuilt three times before the arrival of the Messiah. The site, once a vital point on the Silk Road caravan route, contains archaeological remains dating back to the neolithic period. As such, it hosted many monumental projects including the Temple of Bel (or Ba'al). The temple was built on the site of a prior pagan temple dating back to the third millennium BCE. The most recent of the temples were dedicated in 32 CE. Converted into a Christian church during the Byzantine Era, parts of the structure were modified into a mosque by Muslims in 1132. It remained in use as a mosque until the 1920s. Its ruins were considered among the best-preserved at Palmyra, serving as a major tourist attraction. Before the outbreak of the Syrian Civil War in 2011, Palmyra was a popular tourist attraction, drawing 105,000 visitors a year. The temple and much of the site was destroyed by the Islamic State (ISIS) in 2015. Mentioned more than 90 times in the Bible, most notably when Elijah defeated the priests of Ba'al, also known as Moloch, in a contest to bring down fire from heaven to burn a sacrifice, Ba'al became the archetypical form of idol worship. Pantheistic, his adherents worshipped Mother Nature while denying the existence of a creator. Followers of Ba'al engaged in bisexual orgies and sacrificed human infants, burning them alive. Anthropologists conjecture that the child sacrifice was to cull the population after the inevitable outcome of wanton sexuality Mikhail Piotrovsky, the director of the State Hermitage Museum in Saint Petersburg, announced last week that his institution and the Institute of the History of Material Culture of the Russian Academy of Sciences signed agreements in Damascus with Syria's Directorate General of Antiquities and Museums (DGAM) will begin restoring the ancient site. The Hermitage posted a statement on its website ten days ago saying, "Both agreements are a tangible step in the significant development of museum and research ties between Russia and Syria." The project will also be under the auspices of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). UNESCO was involved in previous Palmyra projects that focused on idolatry. In November 2017, UNESCO teamed with the Institute for Digital Archaeology (IDA) in the reconstruction of a statue of the pagan goddess Athena. The statue was presented at an exhibit "The Spirit in the Stone," at the United Nations' headquarters in New York City. The exhibit described Athena as "synonymous with reason, refuge and the rule of law, all of the same values on which that historic institution was built," but the spear lying at the statue's feet belied her more common association as the goddess of war. Some scholars believe the Greek goddess was based on the Mesopotamian goddess al-Lat. In 2016, the IDA used 3-D printing technology to reproduce a 20-foot full-scale replica of the Arch of Palmyra, a Roman victory arch that stood in front of the temple for 1,800 years. The first modern reappearance of the Arch of Palmyra was in London's Trafalgar Square in 2016, when it was erected for UNESCO World Heritage Week. The unveiling coincided with the beginning of a 13-day period known in the occult as "the Blood Sacrifice to the Beast," the most important holiday for those who worship the god Ba'al, celebrated with child sacrifice and bisexual orgies. The arch was unveiled on April 19th, the holiday of Beltane, the culmination of the 13-day period. Also known as May Day, Beltane is an Anglicized reference to the god "Ba'al." An annual Beltane Fire Festival is held in Edinburgh and in other parts around the globe as part of ancient Gaelic culture. In an unfortunate misunderstanding of the festival's roots, they are frequently billed as family events, with children being given special discounts. In Jewish tradition, the Arch of Palmyra may be alluded to as a harbinger of the Messianic era. An arch that is repeatedly built up and destroyed is described in the Talmud (Tractate Sanhedrin 78a). The disciples of Rabbi Yossi the son of Kisma questioned him, asking when the son of David (the Messiah) will appear. And he answered: I am afraid you will request me a sign as well. And they assured him that they would not. He then said to them: When this gate will fall, be rebuilt and fall again, be rebuilt again and fall again. And before it will be rebuilt for the third time the Messiah will appear. Rabbi Shlomo Yitzchaki, a preeminent medieval rabbi known by the acronym Rashi, explained this section of the Talmud, stating that the arch described by Rabbi Yossi was "a Roman arch in a Roman city." The arch in Palmyra was indeed a Roman victory arch built when Palmyra was a Roman city. If the Russian-UN-Syrian triumvirate succeeds in recreating the Roman Victory Arch in Palmyra, this will mark the third incarnation of the arch; the original being the first, the IDA digital recreation being the second, and the soon-to-be creation being the third. The arch also appeared in Washington D.C.during the Brett Kavanaugh hearings. It is interesting to note that one of the methods of serving Ba'al was by sacrificing infants and one of the major objections to Kavanaugh's appointment to the Supreme Court was his anti-abortion stance. The recreated Arch of Palmyra has appeared at several occasions connected with world government gathering. By advocating for reconstructing a temple of Ba'al, the UN is violating its Biblical mandate since the third Noahide law is a prohibition against idolatry. Palmyra was listed as a world heritage site by UNESCO in 1980, which described the temple as "one of the best-preserved and most important religious edifices of the first century in the Middle East." Palmyra is approximately 370 miles away from two other UNESCO Heritage sites listed as having Muslim significance: Jerusalem and Hebron. Daily Jot: Officials looking for terror "link" in Pensacola shootings, what? - Bill Wilson - www.dailyjot.com FOX News reports that "the gunman who opened fire Friday morning at the Naval Air Station in Pensacola Florida...has been identified as an aviation student from Saudi Arabia as investigators are looking into whether the attack is terrorism-related." Ask anybody involved whether the shooting that left three dead and seven others injured possibly could be terror-related. It was obviously a terrorist act. In this politically correct world, officials-and news organizations for that matter-are strongly discouraged from looking at the facts and using them to draw reasonable conclusions, yet they are quick to place blame on others. Let's look at what we know. Mohammed Alshamrani, a 21-year-old second lieutenant in the Saudi Royal Air Force, was reported to have posted a manifesto on Twitter before the shooting denouncing America as "a nation of evil." It also has been confirmed that several Saudis had been detained, including "one or two" who filmed the shooting on their cellphones. The FBI says it is investigating whether the attack was an act of terrorism. And the blame game from politicians is amazing. Democratic Presidential candidate Corey Booker (NJ), alluding to the current president, says the Saudi-US relationship "has serious problems." Congressman Adam Schiff (D-CA) said on Face the Nation that he wishes the President would press the Saudi government for answers rather than trying to speak for the Saudi government-anything to politicize a terrible ordeal. The link to terror is obvious. Saudi Arabia a strong clue. Social media posts are another clue. That there were Saudis filming the shooting is yet another. But a huge clue is something that links together the vast majority of terrorists and terrorism: The perpetrator is an Islamist. Most "links" to terror in this day and age, can be reasonably drawn to Islam, traced from there and then confirmed or rejected. The Koran specifically states in Sura 9:5 "...slay the infidels wherever ye find them, and take them (captive), and besiege them, and prepare for them each ambush." Sura 8:12 says, "Verily, I am with you, so keep firm those who have believed. I will cast terror into the hearts of those who have disbelieved, so strike them over the necks, and smite over all their fingers and toes." These are just two of many such commands. Not all Muslims are terrorists. I want to make that clear. Many reject the hostile and deadly tenets of the Islamic faith-Just like there are "Christians" who reject many tenets of the Christian faith. Notwithstanding, most of the terrorism, kidnapping, human trafficking, modern slavery, and persecution worldwide is done by Muslims using the Koran to justify their evil deeds. So let's not tip-toe around the obvious. The brutal hostility toward humankind throughout much of history has been done by the Ishmaelites as prophesied in Genesis 16:11-12, "Behold, thou art with child, and shall bear a son, and shall call his name Ishmael...And he will be a wild man; his hand will be against every man, and every man's hand against him"--A far cry from Christ's command of love your neighbor as yourself, and an undeniable prophetic link that the world tries to ignore. Daily Devotion: The Why of Christmas - by Greg Laurie - www.harvest.org For the Son of Man came to seek and save those who are lost.-Luke 19:10 All around us are reminders that Christmas is here. Frankly, it seems to get earlier every year. I think I maybe even saw Christmas decorations for sale in August. Even so, I love to hear those great Christian Christmas songs being played wherever I go. Suddenly I'm hearing the name of Jesus in public, and there's something very special about that. This month we talk a lot about the where and the what surrounding Jesus' birth. But I want to focus for a moment on the why. Jesus was born in a stable in Bethlehem to save us from our sins. In fact, Jesus revealed to a man named Zacchaeus the reason He came to this earth. When Jesus showed up in Jericho, it was a big deal. Zacchaeus couldn't see above the crowd, but no one wanted anything to do with him because he was a tax collector. That means he took advantage of people. He effectively ripped them off. Therefore, he didn't have a friend in town. So Zacchaeus climbed a tree to get a view of Jesus. Imagine his shock when Jesus stopped, looked up, and called him by name. Jesus said, "Quick, come down! I must be a guest in your home today" (Luke 19:5 NLT). After all, how can you reach a sinner if you don't spend some time with him? That day Zacchaeus walked into his home a sinner, and he walked out a saint. And that is what spending time with Jesus will do. There in the home of Zacchaeus, Jesus revealed the reason He came. He said, "Salvation has come to this home today. . . . For the Son of Man came to seek and save those who are lost" (verses 9-10 NLT). That's why Jesus came-to seek and save lost people. 
FROM THE HEART
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