Israel is a modern miracle

The existence of Israel is one of the reasons why I believe in the Christian faith.  There are two kinds of reasons to be a believer:  internal and external.  Internal reasons have to do with our own religious experience.  When I pray I can sense a Presence.  Time spent in the Presence has resulted in permanent alterations in my personality and character.  Those are examples of internal reasons to believe.

External reasons have to do with objective facts.  You can argue that my internal reasons are simply mind games that I am playing with myself; but you can't argue against a fact.  You are argue about the meaning of a fact but you can't argue against the fact itself.

The Christian religion teaches quite clearly that everything that exists, including time and space, were created "ex nihilo " (out of nothing).  To the best of my knowledge none of the other ancient religions teach that space and time had a beginning.  We have gotten to the point where almost every educated person believes in the Big Bang Theory.  But this wasn't always accepted and until it became the dominant theory for the origin of the universe Christians were ridiculed for believing in creation.  As our knowledge of the universe expanded it must have seemed more and more ridiculous to believe that any force could have brought all of this into existence out of nothing.  It would be a tremendous act to bring our solar system into existence if that were all there was to the universe, but to bring all of the galaxies into existence and to create the vastness of space and time out of nothing?  What immeasurable power would that require?  Christians on university campuses were mocked for decades because they denied scientific orthodoxy of the day which was called the "Steady State Theory."  That theory taught that the universe had always been here and mocked dolts who were superstitious enough to believe that there could actually be some cosmic Person with enough power to speak everything into existence.

From time to time I have discussions with well educated people who try to explain to me that God is unnecessary because we have now "proven" that all life is the result of natural, evolutionary processes.  I remain profoundly skeptical of the theory of evolution.  Even if it is true, it is impossible to rule out the possibility that God set evolutionary processes in motion in the creation of life.  These people look at me and I can tell what they are thinking.  "This guy seems to be fairly intelligent, so what in the world is wrong with him?  Every educated person 'knows' this is true.  How can he be so ignorant?"  These same people are usually completely ignorant of the fact that the very name of the Big Bang Theory was given to the theory by a leading scientific figure of the day who was mocking the theory.  "Do you really expect us to believe that the universe began in some sort of a big bang?" he asked.  The very name, "Big Bang," is sarcasm and that sarcasm has become scientific orthodoxy.  Matter and energy and time and space didn't exist.  They came into existence "ex nihilo."  So I don't sweat the fact that "everybody" believes in evolution.  I've seen one "universally" accepted theory that contradicted the Bible go down the toilet in my lifetime and I'm not intimidated to be in the minority when it comes to evolution.

Israel is another objective fact.  It exists.  It is a Jewish state.  They practice the same religion they have always practiced.  I believe that the majority of the citizens of Israel are actually agnostics and that only a minority actually go to synagogue, but that's nothing new.  Throughout most of their history only a minority of the Jewish people have been faithful to their religion.  Israel is the only surviving nation from the ancient Middle East/Mediterranean world that I know of.  None of the others still exist, not even the big boys.  They may have the same name, but they aren't the same nations.  Egypt was a superpower throughout most of Biblical history; if any of the ancient nations were to survive with their religion and culture intact you would expect it to be Egypt.  It is true that there is a place called Egypt today, but there are no Egyptians living there.  They speak a different language and follow a different religion.  If someone tried to revive the ancient Egyptian religion the Muslim population would undoubtedly murder them.

They still speak Greek in Greece but they don't practice the same religion.  In Rome they speak a modified version of Latin, the modern Italian language, but they no longer practice the ancient religion.  Persia is now Iran and Babylon and Assyria are now Iraq.  Once again, the religion has changed.  The same thing is true of Syria.  So these once great nations still exist in a sense, but in another sense they do not.  They no longer have the same culture and the same religion they once had.

Now let's look at little Israel and all her little neighbors from the ancient world.  Do you know anyone who proudly proclaims their Philistine heritage?  Have you ever met a Moabite or an Edomite?  These were Israel's immediate neighbors and they have vanished from the pages of history.  Israel itself ceased to exist as a nation in 70 A.D.  What were the odds that this nation would somehow survive with its culture and religion intact?  All of Israel's little neighbors have vanished.  What were the odds that the Jewish people would survive and still have a Jewish identity?

In order for the ancient prophecies to be fulfilled there has to be a Jewish state in the land of Palestine.  There have to be people there who still practice the Jewish religion.  That nation now exists; and that's an objective fact.     

Israel and the Second Coming of Jesus Christ

 

Jesus didn't come back last weekend.  I caught a little of the coverage on Fox News and was pleased with the way they handled it.  They made it clear that the belief that the rapture was going to happen on May 21st, 2011 was a lunatic fringe and not a mainstream Christian belief.  There were also a number of people quoting the passages that say that no man knows the day or the hour of His return.  And they seemed sympathetic to the victims rather than scornful.  So good job, Fox News.

When will Jesus be back? Are there some signs that we should be looking for?  The answer is yes, a resounding yes.  While no man can know the day or the hour, the day of the Lord will not come as a "thief in the night" if you are a believer and if you are paying attention to the signs.  The classic passage dealing with this matter is found in I Thess. 5 where Paul says that "the day of the lord will come just like a thief in the night" (v. 2).  But then he clarifies by adding that the "brethren are not in darkness, that the day would overtake you like a thief" (v. 4).  Clearly believers have "inside information" that outsiders either don't know about or don't believe.  So the question is, what is this inside information?  What are we supposed to be looking for?  The answer can be found in teaching that is well understood but seldom applied.  The information in the next paragraph is accepted as the correct interpretation of prophecy by the overwhelming majority of Bible believing people in North America and probably throughout rest of the world as well.

The second coming of Jesus Christ will be closely related to a seven year period in human history.  This seven year period will begin when the Antichrist signs a treaty with Israel.  In the middle of the seven year period the Antichrist will betray Israel and attempt to take his seat in the temple in Jerusalem and present himself to the world as God.

That paragraph is probably pretty close to being universally accepted by people who believe in a pre-millennial coming of Jesus Christ.  The book of Revelation speaks of a physical return of Christ to the earth where He will form a literal, world-wide government and physically rule for 1,000 years (the Millennium).  Because this passage is in the book of Revelation, which is filled with symbolic language, not all believers accept a literal 1,000 year reign of Christ on earth, but this is the majority position among Bible believing people in North America.

Most believers think that the rapture, where Jesus supernaturally removes His church from the earth, will happen very near to the beginning of the seven year treaty period.  But the actual timing of the rapture has no impact on what I am about to share with you.  It makes sense to me that the one thing we should all be looking for is for the parties to be in place to sign this treaty.  For today's post I am going to focus on the State of Israel.  Next week we will look at the Antichrist. 

Obviously, there is a Jewish state in Palestine that could, in theory, sign a treaty with Antichrist at any time.  This is potentially very exciting news, but only potentially.  They have to survive in order to sign the treaty.  Personally, I believe that this particular group of Jews is back in Palestine by divine appointment and that they will probably survive until the emergence of Antichrist at which time they will sign a treaty with him.  But if something goes wrong, if there is a second holocaust, and if the current nation of Israel gets driven into the sea, it won't create any problems for my understanding of God's working in history.  This would simply mean that the time is not as close as we thought it was and that we will have to continue to wait for God to put things in place for the return of His Son.

I would also like to add that I see no reason why history couldn't continue on its present course for a very, very long time before the second coming whether the current Jewish state is destroyed or not.  The existence of a Jewish state in Palestine simply means that one of the chess pieces in on the board and placed where it needs to be for the treaty to be signed.  I won't start getting too excited until I see the second chess piece appear on the board and that would be the antichrist.  More on him in the next post.   

The Revenge of Osama Bin Ladin

He's dead.  Part of me is glad.  But I dare not hate him.  I dare not hate any of them.  I have been concerned ever since 9/11 about the danger of bitterness to the body of Christ as it relates to Islamic terrorism.  It is possible, in fact likely, that someone will attempt to hurt us as an act of revenge for the killing of Osama Bin Laden.  To the extent to which they succeed they will present a danger to the spiritual health of Christian people that will dwarf any physical damage they are capable of doing.  As we have already established, bitterness and hatred blunt the edge of our most potent spiritual weapon, prayer.  If they manage to pull off another 9/11 the natural response will be for our hearts to be filled with rage and for a fiery desire for revenge to burn in our hearts.

I am not saying that we should not defend ourselves.  I am not saying that killing Bin Laden was wrong.  I am saying that we have to be able to defend ourselves both physically and spiritually.  And the only way we can defend ourselves spiritually is by praying for our enemies.  We have to pray for them until the thought of them no longer raises our blood pressure and fills our hearts with rage.

There was a man named Ted Bundy who became one of the most famous serial killers in American history.  Before He died he professed faith in Christ.  He may in fact be in heaven today.  But I didn't let his professed conversion change my opinion on the necessity for his execution.  Actions have consequences.  Justice must be done.  But all of this can be accomplished without hatred poisoning our hearts.

These are the prayers I am praying for the Muslim world.  I invite you to join in.

• For the destruction of the power of the house of Islam
• For more oil or alternative energy sources to be found so that the financial backing for fundamentalist Islam and terrorism will dry up 
• For Muslims in closed countries, who have no opportunities to hear the gospel, will receive direct communications for God in the forms of dreams and visions that will result in their salvation (I prayed for that for ten years without any results, and since I am told that this has happened 1000's of times)
• For Jesus to build His church in all Muslim nations by bringing Muslims to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ through all possible means
• For some of the leading Christian figures of the 21st Century to come from converted Jihadists, just as the Apostle Paul, a former persecutor of the church, became a great Christian leader

Pray for Muslims.  It is part of praying for God's will to be done on earth as it is in heaven.  It is also an excellent way to guard your heart.  Somebody may hit back at us.  They may blow up a building and kill some people.  But don't let them poison your heart.  That would be Osama's ultimate revenge.

Satan's plan to win big in 2012, part 2

Once again we eavesdrop as the demonic supervisor meets with the evil spirits in charge of ruining your life.  The topic for the day?  More strategy and tactics as we look forward to the 2012 elections in the United States of America.

"Okay troops, good job with implementing the bitterness tactic.  The poor fools seem completely clueless about the spiritual dangers of being spitting mad at their political opponents.  The Enemy told them to love their human enemies and the vast majority of them have never thought to apply this to their politics.  But there is still more work to be done.  Once you've trained them to be bitter, we have to take the next step.  We have to teach them to live in fear."

"If they're liberals we have to teach them to fear what will happen to them without the nanny state taking care of them during every phase of their lives.  If they are conservatives we have to teach them to be afraid that liberals will destroy the economy and drag the entire world into an economic cataclysm that will make the great depression look like a walk in the park on a sunny day."

"It doesn't matter to us what they fear as long as they are afraid.  It doesn't even matter to us if what they fear is in fact perfectly logical!  They can fear something that is never going to happen or they can live in fear of something that will actually come to pass.  Either way we win."

"Here's the thing.  We've managed to have a strong enough impact on their culture so that all the political commentators they listen to are functionally agnostic.  Some of these commentators  may in fact be followers of the Enemy, but their belief almost never enters into their political commentary.  This means they never mention the concept that the Enemy will be there to help them cope with life no matter what happens."

"Let's examine the first idea for a minute.  The Enemy's book says that 'The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.'  The last thing we want them to do is to start applying that to the way they think and how they react to life.  Watch out for thoughts like this:  'You know, millions of Christians went through the great depression and with God helping them every step of the way they were probably just as happy while they were poor as they were before they lost their money in the stock market.'  If you catch anyone thinking anything like that don't try and combat the idea directly; that probably won't work.  Instead just encourage them to turn the radio back on or check the internet 'just to see what's new.'  That way they'll get a new dose of fear without any mention of faith to balance it out and they'll soon be back in the fearful frame of mind we want them to live in."

"Try and convince them that if the bottom falls out and they have to experience severe cut backs in their lifestyles that this will be intolerable, that it will be like the end of the world to them.  The fact of the matter is that if they had fewer toys to distract them they might actually start spending more time on things that truly matter like their spiritual lives and their families.  If the bottom does fall out financially that will actually present us with a new set of challenges.  But for now, the fear that SOME HORRIBLE, INTOLERABLE THING is about to happen to them is a great tool that we can use to mess with their spiritual lives."

"Remember, our goal is to change 'The Lord is my shepherd' into 'The Lord may or may not be my shepherd but one thing for certain is sure and that is that I am doomed if I loose my job (or my government insurance) and they repossess my house!'  They can say they are Christians as much as they want just as long as we can keep them reacting to life like a bunch of sheep without a shepherd.  So here's our slogan for phase two:  "Fear is a demon's best friend!"

[So, how about you?  Is the constant exposure to news and politics creating and deepening anxiety?  Not that long ago people had the morning paper and/or a thirty minute news broadcast to keep them up-to-date on current events.  Now, between cable TV, talk radio, and the internet we have 24 hour a day access.  Are you spending to much time listening to people who are raising your blood pressure?  Maybe you need a new 3 X 5 card to attach to the TV or the computer monitor.  "Fear is a demon's best friend."]

Satan's plan to win big in 2012, part 1

It will be 2012 before you know it, and here in American people are already getting involved in the coming elections.  And not just people!  Fallen angels are also planning for their part in the upcoming elections. 

The Lord brought this topic to my attention by bringing a verse to my mind.  "You husbands in the same way, live with your wives in an understanding way . . . and show her honor as a fellow heir of the grace of life, so that your prayers will not be hindered."  (I Peter 3:7 - all quotes from the NASB)

The phrase that the Holy Spirit seemed to be calling to my attention was "so that your prayers will not be hindered."  If a man did not honor his wife as a spiritual equal ("a fellow heir of the grace of life") and live with her in an "understanding" way, his prayers would be "hindered."  Let's continue to follow Peter's argument.  I've underlined the key words that relate to the 2012 election.

"To sum up, all of you be harmonious, sympathetic, brotherly, kindhearted, and humble in spirit; not returning evil for evil or insult for insult, but giving a blessing instead; for you were called for the very purpose that you might inherit a blessing.  For, 'THE ONE WHO DESIRES LIFE, TO LOVE AND SEE GOOD DAYS, MUST KEEP HIS TONGUE FROM EVIL AND HIS LIPS FROM SPEAKING DECEIT.  HE MUST TURN AWAY FROM EVIL AND DO GOOD; HE MUST SEEK PEACE AND PURSUE IT.  FOR THE EYES OF THE LORD ARE TOWARD THE RIGHTEOUS, AND HIS EARS ATTEND TO THEIR PRAYER, BUT THE FACE OF THE LORD IS AGAINST THOSE WHO DO EVIL.'"  (I Peter 3:8-12)

If I desire life and love and want to see good days, I must keep my tongue from evil.  Specifically I must be kind and humble, blessing those who insult me and seeking peace in my relationships.  If I do this God's ears will be attentive to my prayers.  If I don't, my prayers will be hindered.  I think if you take a few moments to re-read the last three sentences you will agree that this is a really, really big deal.

For my American readers I would suggest that it will be really, really hard to follow this teaching in the midst of the political civil war that is now raging in the United States of America.  You can divide up the American population into three main political groups:  conservatives, liberals, and independents.  The conservatives and the liberals have conflicting visions for the future that are so contradictory that what we are now experiencing is nothing less than a political civil war.  And in the next two years it's going to get really, really ugly.  The 2012 election will be one of the most divisive and bitterly contested elections in American history.  The rhetoric is going to go right through the roof.

This is not a plea that we should all find some way to compromise.  Everyone should make the best arguments they can for the positions that they believe in.  A political civil war is not a bad thing.  I think it's wonderful that we can fight this out without using bullets.  That's what politics is for.  So let's have a really robust debate.  Let's all stand up for what we believe in.  But let's not get carried away so that our prayers are hindered and we have fewer good days and less life and love.

Before we were converted Paul said the we "walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience."  (Eph. 2:2)  When we become Christians we don't automatically escape from all of this.  It requires an understanding of what's at stake and a commitment to live in a different way.  Paul says that we should not "be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind."  (Romans 12:2)  If we don't take intelligent, spiritual action, we are going to be swept away the strong winds of worldly thinking that are already blowing.

The Bible makes it clear that the powers of darkness are organized.  It's a kingdom.  It's a government.  It probably has a bureaucracy.  Somewhere out there is an evil spirit who takes a special interest in you.  You are on his caseload.  He doesn't spend his whole life perched on your shoulder but he comes to visit from time to time to tempt you and generally mess with your soul.  Let's imagine for a minute that you are that evil spirit and that you are attending a team meeting with the other evil spirits.  Your supervisor evil spirit is about to speak.

"Okay, guys, we have a really big election coming up in 2012.  Our opportunities here are virtually limitless.  Both sides probably think that we are going to be using our powers to help the other side win.  That's really great because, basically, the results of the election are not our primary focus.  As always, our main focus is to weaken the spiritual power of the church.  Every year fewer and fewer people go to church and those who do go to church obey less and less.  Spiritually the country is moving in our direction and more and more things are coming under our control.  And the only thing that can stop us is prayer.  If the Enemy doesn't pour our His spirit to revive and renew the church we are eventually going to get our way in this country no matter who wins this next election.  That is why we have to do everything we can to poison and pollute the souls of believers so that their prayers will not be effective."

"So I want everyone to remember our election slogan for this year.  'It's about the bitterness, stupid!'  Encourage both sides to insult one another.  Do everything you can to encourage anger and hatred.  It doesn't matter if millions of church members get involved and become politically active if their political activity poisons their souls and hinders their prayers.  Just keep the poor fools focused on political outcomes and try to keep them from paying attention to spiritual realities and we will be the real winners of this election, no matter who is in the White House or who is in control of their pathetic little House and Senate."

Let me ask you a soul searching question.  If you are a conservative, when was the last time you prayed for Barak Obama?  If you are a liberal, how often did you pray for George Bush?  Paul said that "first of all, then, I urge that entreaties and prayers, petitions and thanksgivings, be made on behalf of all men, for kings and all who are in authority." (1 Timothy 2:1, 2)  Paul wrote these words from a Roman jail.  He was soon to be beheaded by the very Roman emperor he was encouraging people to pray for!

I am telling you the truth!  You can not spend hours and hours of your time reading or listening to political commentators who have bitterness in their hearts and not become like them!  Please understand what I am saying.  It is a good thing to understand what is going on.  If you want to give money, man the phone banks, put up yards signs, or participate in other ways that's perfectly all right.  But understand this very clearly:  the commentary and the campaign materials on both sides will more than likely contain material that will be toxic to your soul.  The only solution is to limit your exposure and the only antidote is to pray.

Every exposure to news and political commentary must be mixed with prayer.  We must pray for our political opponents until the mention of their names or the sight of their faces on the tube no longer raises our blood pressure.

And if the church does not heed this admonition we all know who will really win in 2012.  He doesn't have a birth certificate because he was never born; he was directly created by God.  Back in the good old days he was one of the highest angels and his name was Lucifer, which means "light bearer."  These days we call him Satan, which means "adversary."  In the Four Spiritual Laws Bill Bright wrote that "God loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life."  The opposite is also true.  "Satan hates you and has plans to mess up your life."  In 2012 I believe he has a plan to limit the effectiveness of the payers of the church.  His troops are marching under a banner that says, "It's about the bitterness, stupid!"  Don't get caught in his trap.  Don't let your prayers be hindered.  Don't let Satan win in 2012!

[Here's a good suggestion.  If this spoke to you, if you needed to hear it, write out the campaign slogan on a 3 X 5 card:  "It's about the bitterness, stupid!"  Put it by the TV, radio, computer monitor, or anywhere else you need to put it to remind you to guard your heart and to pray!  And one more little note.  If I wrote this properly, and you don't have any personal knowledge of my political views, you shouldn't be able to get one single hint by reading it that I am a liberal, a conservative, or an independent.  The truths expressed in this piece transcend politics and apply to Christians of all political leanings.]