Monthly Archives: January 2011

Recent Newsworthy Events Happening in Egypt

31 Monday Jan 2011

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Fear not! The recent protestsin Egypt that now have the world’s eyes focused on the Muslim Brotherhood only verify the accuracy of God’s end-time prophecies, which are unfolding in front of our eyes. Modern-day Egypt is one of the enemies of God mentioned in Psalm 83 that will become a member of the last days’ 10-nation confederacy, which is referred to in Daniel and Revelation as the ten horns! Specifically, these referred to enemies of God are those nations/populations that have been His people’s enemies—those nations/kingdoms/kings who have tried to annihilate Israel.

While most Bible prophecy scholars believe the prophesied feet and 10 toes on King Nebuchadnezzar’s statue will be a Revived Roman Empire, the Scriptures in Revelation do not point to a Revived Roman Empire. In fact, only the iron legs on King Nebuchadnezzar’s statue represent the Roman Empire. This truth is why the Apostle John’s 6th head/kingdom/king, the one that IS ruling in his day, is NOT the kingdom that becomes the 7th and 8th heads/kingdoms/kings, or else that would mean that the Roman Empire will be revived not once, but twice!

Since there is nothing that indicates the old Roman Empire will have two restorations, the Scriptures in chapters 13 and 17 of Revelation that mention the seven heads and 10 horns are all about the Revived 8th head, which comes out of the 7 heads, meaning, there is an empire that follows the Roman Empire. From history, we know that the empire that follows the Roman Empire is the Ottoman/Turkish/Islamic Empire. It is this successive empire, number 7 of consecutive 7 prophesied heads/kingdoms, whose kings also persecuted Israel and tried to wipe the Jewish people off this earth. This 7th empire, thus, is the feet and toes on Nebuchadnezzar’s statue that are mixed with iron and clay. In fact, these 10 toes also represent Daniel’s 4th beast, for Apostle John prophesies:

…The seven heads are seven hills on which the woman sits. They are also seven kings. Five have fallen, one is, the other has not yet come; but when he does come, he must remain for only a little while. The beast who once was, and now is not, is an eighth king. He belongs to the seven and is going to his destruction. The ten horns you saw are ten kings who have not yet received a kingdom, but who for one hour will receive authority as kings along with the beast. They have one purpose and will give their power and authority to the beast ~ Revelation 17:9b-13, NIV

And

…And I saw a beast coming out of the sea. It had ten horns and seven heads, with ten crowns on its horns, and on each head a blasphemous name. The beast I saw resembled a leopard, but had feet like those of a bear and a mouth like that of a lion. The dragon gave the beast his power and his throne and great authority. One of the heads of the beast seemed to have had a fatal wound, but the fatal wound had been healed. The whole world was filled with wonder and followed the beast. ~ Revelation 13:1b-3, NIV

In comparison, the Prophet Daniel writes the following about his four beasts:

Four great beasts, each different from the others, came up out of the sea. ‘The first was like a lion, and it had the wings of an eagle. I watched until its wings were torn off and it was lifted from the ground so that it stood on two feet like a human being, and the mind of a human was given to it. And there before me was a second beast, which looked  like a bear. It was raised up on one of its sides, and it had three ribs in its mouth between its teeth. It was told, ‘Get up and eat your fill of flesh!’ After that, I looked, and there before me was another beast, one that looked like a leopard. And on its back it had four wings like those of a bird. This beast had four heads, and it was given authority to rule. After that, in my vision at night I looked, and there before me was a fourth beast—terrifying and frightening and very powerful. It had large iron teeth; it crushed and devoured its victims and trampled underfoot whatever was left. It was different from all the former beasts, and it had ten horns. While I was thinking about the horns, there before me was another horn, a little one, which came up among them; and three of the first horns were uprooted before it. This horn had eyes like the eyes of a human being and a mouth that spoke boastfully. ~ Daniel 7:3-8, NIV

There can be no doubt that Prophet Daniel’s fourth Beast is Apostle John’s 8th head/kingdom/king that comes out of all of the world’s nations—the Beast that once was, now is not, and yet will come (cf. Revelation 13:1b; Revelation 17:8b; and Revelation 17:11). It, then, is obvious to the observant individual that the 4th Beast empire predicted to rule in the end times is the one that is rising right now before this modern generation’s eyes, and this Beast empire, which again is head number eight, will be the last and most monstrous empire to come against Israel, for Jesus the Christ Himself is the prophesied stone that will destroy this empire and its Antichrist ruler (cf. Daniel 2:35-36; Revelation17:11, 14).

This rising world empire is true to form. Like those that came before it, this last empire also has that satanic, anti-Semitic, and antichrist spirit, it also has established corrupt laws, it also has idol worshippers, and it also has haters of Christians in it. This last days and end time’ empire is the Islamic Empire, the revived seventh head or seventh empire (cf. Revelation 17:10-11).

Prophet Daniel’s 4th Beast and Apostle John’s Beast that rises from the sea both represent a group of people who follow a false religion. Moreover, Daniel 7:23 and Daniel 11:4 both make mention of an empire thatdevours the populations left over from the kingdoms of Babylonia (the Lion), Persia (the Bear), and Greece (the Leopard). In Daniel 7:23, the prophet writes that “The fourth beast is a fourth kingdom that will appear on earth. It will be different from all the other kingdoms and will devour the whole earth, trampling it down and crushing it” NIV. And in Daniel 11:4, the prophet says that the fourth ruler of the Persian Empire is the richest and most powerful Persian king in succession, but his “…empire will be broken up and parceled out toward the four winds of heaven. It will not go to his descendants, nor will it have the power he exercised, because his empire will be uprooted and given to others” NIV.

Now, history tells us that Alexander the Great, who defeats the Persians, had four top generals, and after his death his Grecian Empire (Daniel’s Leopard) is divided up between these four generals. History also tells us that it wasn’t until B.C. 30, when the Romans’ finally defeated the last of the Ptolemaic kings and annexed the Ptolemaic Dynasty of Egypt to the Roman Empire, that the Romans now have all of the lands and the people once ruled by Greece. However, the Roman Empire’s rule over these areas once dominated by the Grecian Empire (Leopard), which once again is first divided into four kingdoms ruled by Alexander’s four top generals but then three of these kingdoms ultimately are annexed by the Ptolemaic Dynasty of Egypt, indicates that the Roman Empire’s Egypt conquest includes Babylonia (Lion) and Persia (Bear).

The point here is that the Roman Empire is not the Prophet Daniel’s Beast with iron teeth who crushes and devours the remnant of the territories and indigenous cultures conquered by Babylonia (Daniel’s Lion), Persia (Daniel’s Bear), and Greece (Daniel’s Leopard). For sure, the only empire that fits Daniel 7:7, 7:23 and 11:4’s descriptions is the Ottoman Empire, for this kingdom did everything it could do to sustain Islamic civilization by erasing any residue from the Roman Empire, in particular the empire’s presence in the Holy Land, which was accomplished in the early 16th century with the Ottoman/Islamic Empire’s conquest of the Holy Land, the last imperial throne of Rome. What’s more, the Ottoman/Islamic Empire’s rule lasted in the Holy Land until the end of World War I, or around 1922. Over time, the Ottoman Empire also erased the residue of Babylonian (Lion), Persian (Bear), and Grecian (Leopard) cultures and languages. Case in point, today, there are Palestinian Arabs, and Iraq (Babylonia) and Iran (Persia) are currently Arabic nations!

It now should be evident that the Prophet Daniel is predicting that the Ottoman Empire is the kingdom that crushes its predecessors’ people and divides up the lands that were once part of the Babylonian, Persian and Grecian Empires, which the Roman Empire annexed. The Ottoman Empire, by the way, began as a heterogeneous mixture of ethnic groups and religious creeds. However, when the Ottoman Empire tried to untangle itself—free itself from its mixed populations’ conflicting interests, rival groups, and antagonistic faith—this also is when the iron mixed with clay toes’ prophesied significance becomes crystal clear. For sure, just like iron and clay really don’t mix, Islam (both the political and the religious systems) and any other world religion or global political government don’t mix, either!

For these reasons, it should be understood that the last earthly empire is both the fourth Beast of Daniel 7:7 and the Beast in Revelation 13:3, having seven heads and ten horns. This Beast is the one that is waiting for its seventh head to heal from its fatal wound so that the little horn of Daniel 7:8 can push between the larger horns and finally give these ten horns their authority. Indeed, in order for the Jewish people to come back to their land, as prophesied, head number 7, and not head number 6, had to receive a great wound! This fatal wound happens when the office of Caliphate is abolished in 1924.

Therefore, head number 8 will become the Beast world empire once the office of the Caliphate is renewed (as a Caliph is the political and religious ruler of Islamdom who usually is Prophet Muhammad’s successor or substitute). At that time, the eighth empire will follow in its predecessor’s, empire 7’s, footsteps. Furthermore, it should be evident that the little horn that comes up among the 10 horns also relates to the Muslims’ Mahdi—the political and religious person Muslims are waiting for so that he can follow in the footsteps of his predecessor, the Prophet Muhammad.

World Empire number 8 (Apostle John’s 8th head, the revived 7th head) will be the empire that gives power to this ten-nation coalition. Furthermore, this 10-nation coalition (the ten horns on the seven heads) is found in Psalm 83:6-8. Psalm 83:2-8 reads:

See how your enemies growl, how your foes rear their heads. With cunning they conspire against your people; they plot against those you cherish. ‘Come,’ they say, ‘let us destroy them as a nation, so that Israel’s name is remembered no more.’ With one mind they plot together; they form an alliance against you—the tents of Edom and the Ishmaelites, of Moab and the Hagrites, Byblos, Ammon and Amalek, Philistia, with the people of Tyre. Even Assyria has joined them to reinforce Lot’s descendants. (NIV)

Ancient biblical populations = Modern populations/nations:

1.  Tents of EDOM = [descendants of Esau], who today are Palestinian Refugees and Southern Jordanians

2.  ISHMAELITES = [descendants of Abraham and Hagar], who today are Lebanese, Syrians, Jordanians, Iraqis, North Africans (Libyans and Northern Sudanese), and Saudi Arabians, who, as Arabs, are said to be the only remaining peoples with Ishmaelite blood in them

3.  MOAB = [descendants of Lot], who today are Palestinian Refugees and Central Jordanians

4.  HAGRITES = [descendants of Abraham and Hagar], who today live in northern Jordan, east of Gilead; Hagar is the matriarch of the Hagrites/Hagarenes

5.  BYBLOS/GEBAL = today’s Hezbollah and Northern Lebanese

6.  AMMON = [descendants of Lot], who today are Palestinian Refugees and Northern Jordanians

7.  AMALEK = today’s Arabs in Sinai Peninsula

8.  PHILISTIA/PHILLISTINES = today’s Palestinian Refugees and Hamas of Gaza Strip

9.  Inhabitants of TYRE = today’s Hezbollah and Southern Lebanese

10.  ASSYRIA = today’s Syrians, Turks, and Northern Iraqis

        —Children of Lot = MOAB and AMMON

An observant person will notice that these 10 enemies of God and Israel are currently Arabic nations/populations, and God’s Word makes it clear that the end-time prophecies have to do with Jesus the Christ’s return to Jerusalem (as Jerusalem, and not Rome, is the biblical center of the world). The Lord returns as the Jewish peoples’ king who has come to destroy the enemies of God and Israel; therefore, it should be evident that the world’s belief in the Antichrist coming out of and ruling over the United Nations 10 World Regions and Continental Regions is way off, as is the belief in a Revived Roman Empire.

Indeed, based on Psalm 83’s listed 10 enemies of God, Saudi Arabia, and not Rome,betterfits Revelation 17’s descriptions of the Beast with 7 heads out of which comes the 8th head, which gives power to 10 horns. Clearly, Saudi Arabia, not Rome, has used oil to advance its influence over the “kings” of the earth (cf. Revelation 17:18). Saudi Arabia, not Rome, has corrupted the world with its Islamic religion (cf. Revelation 17:2; 18:3; and 19:2).Today, Saudi Arabia’s Mecca, the city that gave birth to the strongest Antichrist to date (Prophet Muhammad), and gave birth to the religion of Islam, is called “the city of seven hills,” as seven hills surround Mecca. What’s more, today, Saudi Arabia, not Rome, persecutes and beheads the saints (cf. Revelation 17:6; and 20:4).

As a final point, the lesson to be learned from the utter defeat of the 10 nations/populations mentioned in Psalm 83 is that God keeps His blessing and cursing promises found in Genesis 12:3. Thus, if Esau and his descendants can’t escape this curse clause, then God will not spare any of the Gentile populations that have sought or still seek to curse Israel by attempting to annihilate God’s chosen people!

My Response to Dr. Cornel West’s “At Risk” Definition

26 Wednesday Jan 2011

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On January 25, 2011, Dr. Cornel West posted the following status on his Facebook page:

I don’t care too much for the term “at-risk” when it comes to our precious children. I’m “at-risk” if that’s the case. Anyone who suffers from spiritual malnutrition with moral constipation inherit in it…they are really “at risk.” Those young educated gangsters in “The Social Network” are “at risk” – consumed by hubris, arrogance & greed, missing out on love & life.

Now, I have not seen The Social Network movie, so I do not know if the characters in this movie made it clear about their standing in God. Likewise, I also cannot say with any amount of certainty whether or not Dr. West’s status is a comment on how much “at risk,” spiritually speaking, the real-life people that The Social Network characters represent actually are. My take on Dr. West’s “at risk” definition, however, is that most of today’s ambitious success-driven individuals are unsaved individuals. This is the point of my response to Dr. West’s status.

The following paragraphs, with a few minor changes, are what I also posted on January 25, 2011:

For me, SPIRITUALLY MALNOURISHED “AT-RISK” PERSONS are “at risk” primarily because they reject Christ. In fact, Jesus says that the person who “…does not believe (cleave to, rely on, trust in Him) is judged already […has already been convicted and has already received his/her sentence] because he [or she] has not believed in and trusted in the name of the only begotten Son of God. [He/she is condemned for refusing to let his/her trust rest in Christ’s name.]: ~ John 3:18b, AMP (with some inserted feminine pronouns).

Consequently, because individuals have rejected not only Christ but also the major source of their strength, which is the Word of God (the Bread of Life), they are “at risk” to remain spiritually dead (spiritually separated from God). Spiritual separation will ensure that unsaved individuals will be spiritually malnourished, for they only can eat food that nourishes their body. They will not be able to eat the Bread of Life, which nourishes their spirit and their soul. For this reason, Jesus declares that humans cannot live off of ONLY earthly bread, but that people also must feed on God’s Word (cf. Matthew 4:4; see also Deuteronomy 8:3b). Jesus also declares that He is the “true manna” – the Bread of Life that comes from Heaven and gives the world a spiritually and an eternally free life (cf. John 6:33), a supernatural existence that far exceeds their physical existence.

Then too, for me, MORALLY CONSTIPATED “AT-RISK” PERSONS are “at risk” because their spiritual taste buds have been perverted by all that is in this world – “…the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life…” (1 John 2:16). The end result is that they have become what they do eat . . . in other words, as Dr. West says, they are “consumed by hubris, arrogance & greed.”

Thus, these individuals’ love for the “things” of this world often makes them morally constipated—often makes them “at risk” to fail to do the good deeds for others that they know they should do. Indeed, the Bible says this knowing how to do right by others yet not being willing to do it (this moral constipation) is sin to the knowers who won’t do the right thing (cf. James 4:17). Moreover, both the fact that these morally constipated people also worship the new god of this world – SUCCESS – and the fact that their willingness to do whatever it takes to obtain that success are what keeps them from being able to relieve themselves of that which they are so full of – that which keeps them from doing right by others. In short, what they are full of is their selfishness, which is demonstrated by their “me, me, me” attitude!

My prayer is that those of us who are saved will make a real effort to do the work of evangelism—to come together as one Body in Christ—so that we can reach all of this world’s unsaved people and lead as many of them who are willing to Jesus the Christ. Our Lord, who is the Master teacher, says Father God does not wish for anyone to perish, and this Divine Truth is why we must reach out to those individuals who are “at risk” to remain spiritually malnourished and “at risk” to be morally constipated. AMEN.

Is The Love Of Christ Really In Us?

23 Sunday Jan 2011

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Jesus the Christ says: “Let me give you a new command: Love one another. In the same way I loved you, you love one another. This is how everyone will recognize that you are my disciples—when they see the love you have for each other” (John 13:34-35, MSG).

While we are very familiar with these verses, we often fail to do as our Lord, via His Word, has commanded us to do. Nevertheless, if we truly have the love of Christ in us, then there is NO WAY that any of us could ever think that, or behave like, we are BETTER or GREATER than any other disciple of the Lord, to the point that we refuse to humble ourselves by serving those individuals we believe we are BETTER or GREATER than (cf. Luke 22:24-30 and John 13:1-17). For sure, we never will be able to serve others authentically, if we do not have the authentic LOVE of God in us. Furthermore, we never will be able to treat, authentically, every man and woman as our brother and sister in Christ, if we do not have the authentic LOVE of God in us.

It, thus, is time for us to move beyond our lip service and truly begin to love and serve one another the same way that Jesus the Christ loved and served His disciples, for His life is the BEST and GREATEST example of how to fulfill His “new command.” His life shows us how authentic godly love and authentic service to others should look! Therefore, if any one of us ever hopes to be the best that we can be, and if any one of us ever hopes to develop the greatness that God has put in us, then we must get real, now! Our “realness” will be apparent when we show others the same authentic love of God that Christ, who is in us, has. Then too, we only can demonstrate this godly love by authentically serving others like Christ did, and He served others without displaying any feigned emotions, or any partiality, or any superiority!

Celebrity Christians vs. Obscure Christians

21 Friday Jan 2011

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My dear friends, don’t let public opinion influence how you live out our glorious, Christ-originated faith. If a man enters your church wearing an expensive suit, and a street person wearing rags comes in right after him, and you say to the man in the suit, ‘Sit here, sir; this is the best seat in the house!’ and either ignore the street person or say, ‘Better sit here in the back row,’ haven’t you segregated God’s children and proved that you are judges who can’t be trusted? ~ James 2:1-4, MSG

In the above verses, it is evident that James the brother of Jesus the Christ is warning believers about showing the shabby dressed, obscure, perhaps even indigent men and women of God less consideration than they show the well-dressed, well-polished, and well-liked wealthy Christian celebrities, or the highly visible, popular, and affluent “spiritual leaders” (some who have been elevated to celebrity status by both the “institutional” church and the world). In another scriptural passage, the Apostle Paul also warns believers against picking sides and favoring a specific minister/preacher/Bible teacher over another (cf. 1 Corinthians 1:10-12).

Yet, if we have watched many of the programs on any of our 21st century’s Christian television networks, then we might have noticed a disturbing trend. For sure, the majority of today’s Christian television network owners seem to be very interested in portraying their dysfunctional need to express the jubilation they have for numerous Christian celebrities and several notable leading pastors.

As a result, we rarely see believers who are rejoicing with God’s angels over lost celebrities who have come to Jesus the Christ (cf. Luke 15:10). Then too, we rarely understand that God already has decided on the people He will use, for He foreknew who would do great works in His kingdom.

Instead, on these aforesaid Christian television networks, most children of God usually witness some believers making an ungodly comparison between “superior” Christian celebrities and “inferior” obscure believers—the unheard-of men and women of God. Furthermore, on these Christian television networks, God’s children also often witness the institutional “church” claiming credit for notable celebrities’ conversions, and/or credit for the rise of influentially powerful rich-and-famous pastors, evangelists, prophets, and so forth.

The problem that all of these images cause is that too many Christians in broadcast media, in this case, television, are violating the Word of God, which is crystal clear about not esteeming any person who is in the Lord’s service above another co-laborer! While it is true that we don’t all have the same function in the Body Christ, this Divine Truth, for example, neither means that a pastor is more important than an usher, nor does it mean that Christian celebrities are more important than the not so widely known average believers.

Now, it is understandable why many of these Christian television network owners create so much ballyhoo whenever they get the chance to have famous actors, singers, musicians, athletes, even pastors, and the like, on their programs. The sensational publicity and often pretentious observations of celebrities’ conversion, as well as the hoopla that mega-church pastors, renowned preachers, and respected Bible teachers receive often is blown so far out of proportion for one purpose—Christian television network owners know that the notable people they have on their programs either will influence countless viewers to give more money to these networks, or to give directly to those churches and ministries that air on these networks.

The ugly truth about this matter is that believers, like the world, have become so enamored with the lives of rich-and-famous actors, singers, musicians, athletes,  and etcetera, that believers tend to think Christian “celebrities” will be more powerful and more influential as joint-heirs with Jesus the Christ than they were as unsaved “stars.” Believers also tend to think that converted “celebrities” will contribute more of their own money, time, talents, and so forth, to the advancement of the Kingdom of God than they gave to the advancement of worldly systems.

Likewise, where celebrated pastors, evangelists, prophets, and so forth, are concerned, the truth is that we tend to think that these notable men and women of God are contributing more to the Kingdom of God than those men and women of God who have not made a name for themselves. Indeed, we tend to rationalize that if what the less important even obscure men and women were saying was all that vital, then they would charge people to listen to them, or write best sellers for people to purchase, and etcetera. That is right! Far too many of today’s believers think that by putting a price tag on the Truth God has called apostles, prophets, evangelists, teachers and/or pastors to impart will make the little-known men and women of God, and what they have to share, more influential and powerful.

What really is happening throughout the global institutional “church” is that many of us who profess to be Christians either are ignorant about The Holy Bible‘s instructions, especially where partiality (favorable prejudice . . . bias) is concerned, or we just don’t care about The Holy Bible’s warnings. If we were not uninformed about or indifferent to what is in God’s Word, then we wouldn’t be so hellbent on believing what we want and/or so hellbent on doing things our way.

Moreover, because the global institutional “church’s” paradigm (the pattern or model) is now the business world, it currently is more natural for many believers to rejoice over a converted professional rocker than it is for them to rejoice over a converted typical pauper. Then too, it is now more natural for many believers to discount God’s Truth when it is coming from any not so widely known or any disliked “ordinary” men and women of God. In fact, most churchgoers often won’t even bother to listen to anyone who is not their beloved pastor or their adored television superstars—their Archbishop, Bishop, Honorable Patriarch, Reverend Doctor, and so forth—who just happen to be well educated, well liked, well polished, and well published. Yet, the Word of God says that children of God are NOT supposed to demonstrate this kind of discriminatory behavior.

Consider what James the Just is saying in the following verses:

Listen, dear friends. Isn’t it clear by now that God operates quite differently? He chose the world’s down-and-out as the kingdom’s first citizens, with full rights and privileges. This kingdom is promised to anyone who loves God. And here you are abusing these same citizens! Isn’t it the high and mighty who exploit you, who use the courts to rob you blind? Aren’t they the ones who scorn the new name ‘Christian’—used in your baptisms? ~ James 2:5-7, MSG

Concerning the divisions in the institutional “church,” which often happen as a result of believers favoring one man or woman of God over other “spiritual” leaders, teachers, and so forth, and because these believers think that their choice is someone who is the best thing since sliced bread, Apostle Paul writes:

I have a serious concern to bring up with you, my friends, using the authority of Jesus, our Master. I’ll put it as urgently as I can: You must get along with each other. You must learn to be considerate of one another, cultivating a life in common. I bring this up because some from Chloe’s family brought a most disturbing report to my attention—that you’re fighting among yourselves! I’ll tell you exactly what I was told: You’re all picking sides, going around saying, ‘I’m on Paul’s side,’ or ‘I’m for Apollos,’ or ‘Peter is my man,’ or ‘I’m in the Messiah group.’ …Take a good look, friends, at who you were when you got called into this life. I don’t see many of ‘the brightest and the best’ among you, not many influential, not many from high-society families. Isn’t it obvious that God deliberately chose men and women that the culture overlooks and exploits and abuses, chose these ‘nobodies’ to expose the hollow pretensions of the ‘somebodies’? That makes it quite clear that none of you can get by with blowing your own horn before God. Everything that we have—right thinking and right living, a clean slate and a fresh start—comes from God by way of Jesus Christ. That’s why we have the saying, ‘If you’re going to blow a horn, blow a trumpet for God.’  ~ 1 Corinthians 1:10-12 and 26-31, MSG

The latter portion of the above quotation (verses 29-31) specifically deals with those of us who tend to boast about ourselves, by claiming to be autonomous, when referring to our own lives, for we labor under the illusion that we live and are saved by our own resources. The Apostle Paul declares that instead of boasting about ourselves, we should be “boasting in the Lord.”

Similarly, none of us can say that we absolutely know why God mostly chooses “men and women that the culture overlooks and exploits and abuses” (v. 28). What we can be certain about, however, is that God is NOT racking His brain for the ways He can convince the influential and powerful, celebrated, unsaved millionaires and billionaires of this world to accept Jesus the Christ as their Lord and Savior so that God can get His CHURCH moving in the direction He has purposed that it should go. We also can be certain that God does not command us to be impressed by famous people who have become Christians, or by popular pastors who have become celebrities, nor does He want us to be jealous or envious of them to the point that we copy them.

Along those just mentioned lines, we, thus, should not allow ourselves to become so blown away by Christian celebrities that we end up doing “anything” just to get these people to speak in “our” churches, or so blown away that we will spend big bucks to be in attendance at their seminars, conferences, or retreats. Furthermore, we should not devote so much of our time, energy, or money toward putting our celebrities up on the very pedestals that, over time, they very well might fall off of the moment they fail to live a totally Christian lifestyle.

Why shouldn’t we be impressed or blown away by Christian celebrities? Well, more often than not, Christian “celebrities’” venerable worldly status will cause their Christian public to pay more attention to what these notable people have to say and/or what they do, until many “ordinary” believers begin to think that these famous people are more mature in the faith than they really are. It doesn’t help any of their Christian public, either, when Christian celebrities are expressing, for example, a belief in false biblical doctrines or New Age spiritualism. This observation, however, does not mean that there are no Christian celebrities who become mature believers in Christ, or that none of them can discern true biblical doctrines from the false, or that none of them can recognize genuine godly spirituality from New Age.  The stated observation also does not mean that Christ didn’t die for Christian celebrities, too. For sure, Christ died for everyone who will believe and receive Him as Lord.

The truth is that God can and He will use anyone . . . not just the poor and obscure but also the rich and famous. However, the point here is that where Christian celebrities are concerned, their Christian public tends to praise and lift them up more than they tend to praise and lift up God. The most important point is that believers often make idols of famous people, and whomever or whatever is esteemed to be more important than a relationship with God is an idol!

Then too, the absolutely Divine Truth is that most celebrities never give up the “god” that they were serving (money, fame, celebrity status, and so forth) before they accepted Christ as their Lord and Savior. The Word of God is very clear about this absolutely Divine Truth:

You can’t worship two gods at once. Loving one god, you’ll end up hating the other. Adoration of one feeds contempt for the other. You can’t worship God and Money both. (Matthew 6:24, MSG; see also Luke 16:13)

God will not share the stage with anyone—celebrity or not. Thus, the Rich Young Ruler parable (cf. Luke 18:18-27), in which the camel going through the eye of a needle hyperbole is given, teaches us that often the possession of wealth (or fame, status, material possessions, and so forth) can cause many who seek eternal life the very thing that they seek. Yes, the wealthy young ruler came to Jesus, but because the money and material things that he possessed had such a strong hold on him, he willingly walked away from an eternal life with God! This rich man’s behavior is why the Lord says that it is easier for a camel to go through a needle’s eye than it is for a wealthy person to enter into the Kingdom of God.

Therefore, the real issue with Christian celebrities, as well as with non-famous people, is whether or not they truly have been born again—whether they really were born again from above by the Grace of God and His Holy Spirit, or if they just think that they were. Moreover, to God, the persons who are called to Him for salvation and by Him to be the ones He has chosen to preach, teach, speak and/or write about, or even sing His Gospel message have to do with the Holy Spirit’s potential that is in them rather than their social position.

Additionally, where most Christian celebrities are concerned, especially those who happen to be political or evangelical leaders, many of these famous people always seem to be tempted to overlook the existing problem of sin. As a result, so many of these Christian superstars are very good at smiling at their crowds, and their smiles always seem to reassure their Christian public that their beloved superstars don’t like to talk about sin, either. In fact, it is ironic that most Christian celebrities are thought to be courageous fighters in the war between traditional/conservative and progressive/liberal values, when these celebrities intentionally refuse to address the sins that are most prevalent in the lives of the people who finance their side of the culture war.

Having said all that, the bottom line is this: Just because a Christian celebrity is in the limelight and therefore in a position to be a powerful influence doesn’t mean that he or she automatically should be considered to be a mature “spiritual leader” who can lead others to Jesus the Christ, nor a “spiritual leader” who can disciple new converts. Furthermore, no Christian celebrity should ever be considered to be more important, more powerful and/or more influential in the Kingdom of God than any not so well-known believer who doesn’t have an impressive testimony, or the money and visibility that come with a celebrity status.  Without a doubt, with God, the faithfulness of believers’ witness is more important to Him than their prominence, which is why the Scriptures focus on the lifestyle of faithful and obedient saints rather than the lifestyles of rich-and-famous celebrities—whether they are Christians or non-Christians! Therefore, children of God should have the same focus, and they totally should trust that God not only will raise them up in their due season but also trust that He will provide for their every ministry need, even the often frightening financial need….

When Will People Understand Which Nations Are the Prophesied 10-Nation Confederation?

17 Monday Jan 2011

Posted by in Bible Prophecy

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“Edom and the Ishmaelites,
Moab and the Hagrites,
Gebal and Ammon and Amalek,
Philistia and the Tyrians,
And now Assyria has joined up,
Giving muscle to the gang of Lot.” ~ Psalm 83:6-8, MSG


 

 

Bible prophecy “scholars” my foot! How is it that the majority of these so-called “scholars” are getting away with their widely propagated lies about a Revived Roman Empire, when their lies are merely their way of fitting God’s end-time prophecies into their own misguided interpretations? In essence, they have bamboozled people with their version of “New Math.”

The truth is that Nebuchadnezzar’s statue had 2 legs, with 5 toes on EACH leg! Now, if these 2 legs really represent the western AND eastern portions of the Roman Empire, then how is it that the majority of today’s so-called competent Bible prophecy “scholars” ONLY focus on ONE leg—the western leg? Then too, how is it that these “scholars” continue to get away with combining the 10 toes on  Nebuchadnezzar’s statue on ONE leg—the western leg?

The answer is simple: ONLY the western leg of the Roman Empire fits these so-called Bible prophecy scholars’ belief in a Revived Roman Empire’s 10-nation confederation, which is primarily their view because the 5 toes on the western leg consisted of the so-called “strong” European nations:  Britain, France, Spain, Italy, and Germany. However, the 5 toes of the eastern leg of the Roman Empire, the so-called strongest nations being Turkey, Egypt, Babylon, Syria and Greece, were NOT ALL European nations! This fact, however, seems to escape most of the astute scholars, as well as many believers who say they are Holy Spirit led.

Be that as it may, since the 1957 creation of the EU, the majority of 20th century’s so-called Bible prophecy “scholars” soon thereafter began to propagate their lies about the 10 toes of Nebuchadnezzar’s statue representing the end-time confederation of 10 specific EU nations, and they continued to do so, at least up until those EU nations exceeded 10 in number, which happened after Greece joined the European Economic Community in 1981. At this point in time, “scholars” had their ten specific European nations. However, once the number of EU states grew to the current 27 nations, these so-called “scholars” had to re-visit their interpretations and then re-calculate their analysis. The end result is that the 10 EU nations are now represented as the United Nations 10 World Regions and Continental Regions: North America, Caribbean, Middle East and North Africa, Eastern Europe and Central Asia, Pacific, South Asia, Latin America, Sub-Saharan Africa, East Asia, and Western Europe.

Even though this result means that more than a total of 10 specific nations are in these regions, it appears that it doesn’t matter to those who believe that God’s prophecies are EXACT and TRUE. What only seems to matter is that these regions represent the magical number 10, and the number 10 means that the predicted Revived Roman Empire manifesting through the EU 10-nation confederation has been proven to be true!

Finally, the EU 10-nation confederation not only is a version of “New Math” but also some hogwash, for sure. God, Himself, tells believers in Psalm 83:6-8 who EXACTLY will be the members of the prophesied 10-nation confederation! Believers have read these 10 nations in the verses that are quoted at the beginning of this piece! Thus, believers should research these nations’ current names to see who they are today!