RECONCILING CHRIST OF THE GOSPELS WITH CHRIST OF THE APOCALYPSE

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We think much of the meek and gentle side of Christ’s character. Perhaps we do not think enough of the strength of it. We do not sufficiently realise the enormous strength that was required to complete that sacrifice. In Him was an iron will, unchanging purpose, strength from consecration, strength from righteousness. In Him was the heroism of prophets and martyrs.

Jesus hanging on the Cross is therein revealed as ‘the power of God’

The contrast between the characteristics of the historical Jesus at His first coming and the rider on the white horse of Revelation at His second coming is difficult to reconcile. The contrast between the suffering servant of the historical Jesus and that of the Divine Warrior, the Man of War, the Conqueror forces us to widen our conceptions if we are ever to understand the greatness of His love or the terribleness of His judgments. ‘The wrath of the Lamb’ sounds like an impossibility, but the righteous Judge is logically and chronologically the completion of the picture of the merciful Saviour. Sadly, the world today does not understand that the consequences of sin are terrible and that divine love must be in irreconcilable antagonism with it and must discipline and smite it. Throughout the Old Testament runs the longing that God would ‘awake’ to smite evil. That is the last and in some sense the greatest act by which He shows Himself ‘mighty to save His redeemed.’

Jesus coming with the saints to defeat the Antichrist army and to liberate Israel. He then begins His Millennial reign on this restored earth. In the same way that Jesus alone provided the atoning sacrifice for our sins, so will Jesus alone tread the winepress of God’s wrath and crush His enemies.

LIFE IS MEANT TO BE JOYFUL

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“Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.” Luke 2:10

Blessed is the one whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered.” Psalms 32:1

“How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him who brings good news, who publishes peace, who brings good news of happiness, who publishes salvation, who says to Zion, “Your God reigns.” Isaiah 52:7

“We are treated as impostors, and yet are true; as unknown, and yet well known; as dying, and behold, we live; as punished, and yet not killed; as sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, yet possessing everything.” 2 Corinthians 6:10

Until Christ cures this world, our happiness in Christ will be punctuated by sorrow. Yet somehow an abiding joy is possible even in suffering. Jesus tells us in one of the Beatitudes: “Blessed are you who weep now, for you shall laugh.” Luke 6:21b

“There is nothing dreary and doubtful about [life]. It is meant to be continually joyful. . . . We are called to a settled happiness in the Lord whose joy is our strength” (Frank Houghton, Amy Carmichael).

Morning Prayer: Pick me up Lord, and hold me in your loving arms. Protect me from the pressures of the day …

Spoken by the missionary Amy Carmichael (1867–1951), who brought the gospel to countless children she rescued from temple prostitution in India. She experienced much physical suffering and didn’t have a furlough in fifty-five years and yet she could say life is meant to be continually joyful.

“Happy people look beyond their difficult circumstances to the One whose grace brings light to the darkness and smiles to our faces in the most unlikely moments“ A.W. Tozer in his book Who Put Jesus on the Cross?

“The people of God ought to be the happiest people in all the wide world! People should be coming to us constantly and asking the source of our joy and delight”

“Blessed are those who mourn; [for] God will comfort them!” (Matthew 5:4) Present happiness is derived from the promise of future comfort. The eternal perspective of God’s children informs them of true and ultimate happiness they can anticipate now (see Psalm 16:11; 21:6; 36:7–10; 37:16, 43:4; 73:28; John 10:10).

“Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me. Cast me not away from your presence, and take not your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and uphold me with a willing spirit.” Psalms 51:10-12

DARWIN HAD NO UNDERSTANDING INFORMATION (DNA) PRECEDED MATTER AND ENERGY

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Biochemist Michael Behe, the author of Darwin’s Black Box, Darwin Devolves, and other books, discusses his new book A Mousetrap for Darwin: Michael J. Behe Answers His Critics with John West, Associate Director of the Center for Science and Culture, and fields questions from an international audience. You can get Behe’s new book here: https://www.amazon.com/Mousetrap-Darw..

The Discovery Science News Channel is the official Youtube channel of Discovery Institute’s Center for Science & Culture. The CSC is the institutional hub for scientists, educators, and inquiring minds who think that nature supplies compelling evidence of intelligent design. The CSC supports research, sponsors educational programs, defends free speech, and produce articles, books, and multimedia content. For more information visit https://www.discovery.org/id/

IS GOD REAL?

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This is probably one of the most important videos I have seen on the arguments for a theistic world view versus an atheistic world view.

John Lennox is always a delight to listen to and I am now a fan of Dr. Stephen Meyer. Both men have Ph.D. qualifications from prestigious universities, Lennox, Oxford, and Meyer, Harvard. What has to be a first, Oxford University Professor Dr. Lennox in Mathematics and Philosophy. Both men exhibit a humility that is only evident in devout Christians.

Intelligent design proponent Stephen Meyer sits down for a conversation with Oxford mathematician, and debater extraordinaire, John Lennox. Both have explored the intersection of science and faith, and challenged the atheistic materialism pushed by many scientists and scholars. Here they discuss the science that leads them to believe in a purpose driven universe from the origin of life to biological evolution to the fine-tuning of nature and the universe. The conversation comes in advance of the forthcoming one night only film “Against the Tide: Finding God in an Age of Science.” The movie stars Oxford University mathematician John Lennox and actor Kevin Sorbo, and highlights debates between Professor Lennox, arguing the case for theism, supported by science, against prominent atheists including Richard Dawkins and the late Christopher Hitchens. You can see it on November 19, for one night only, in theaters across the US. Be sure to reserve your tickets here: https://againstthetide.movie/.

TURKEY’S ROLE IN THE END TIMES

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Under Erdogan, Turkey has put Islam back in place of secularism and is asserting itself once again as the dominant Muslim nation as it was in the days of the Ottoman Empire.

The Ottoman Empire was founded in 1299 by Osman Ghazi and consistently grew from 1299 to 1683. The first 10 rulers of the Ottoman Empire were considered the most successful kings. Of particular note was Suleiman the Magnificent. It was during his reign that the Ottoman Empire rose to its peak of power and domination.

The Ottomans proved their strength in the Battle of Djerba in 1560. During the naval battle the Ottomans inflicted 10-20 times as many casualties as they sustained from the Christian alliance’s navy. The path was open for another attack on Malta.

The Great Siege of Malta was the major turning point for the Ottoman Turks. The Knights of Malta led by Grand Master Jean Parisot de La Valette played the lead role.

Queen Elizabeth I stated, “If the Turks should prevail against the Isle of Malta, it is uncertain what further peril might follow to the rest of Christendom.”

The rulers of numerous Christian realms and military orders soon put aside their differences, partially inspired by the Siege of Malta, and formed the Holy League. The Holy League went on to win a decisive victory against the Ottomans at the Battle of Lepanto six years later. And the Knights Hospitaller, later the Knights of Malta, still have their headquarters on the island to this day.

The Ottoman period spanned more than 600 years and came to an end only in 1922 after WW1 when it was replaced by the Turkish Republic and various successor states in southeastern Europe and the Middle East.

The popular Turkish reaction to the reconversion of Hagia Sophia (known as Aya Sophia in Turkish) cannot be explained without reference to these historical facts. The attempt by the “Christian” allied powers to carve up the Turkish homeland in addition to detaching the non-Turkish portions of the Ottoman Empire and dividing them up among themselves have been strong reminders for the Turks over generations of their loss of greatness. The transformation of Hagia Sophia from a mosque to a museum was perceived as a part of this loss that needed to be remedied.

The mosque of Hagia Sophia was a major symbol of the Ottoman victory over the Byzantine Empire in 1453 and an emblem of Turkish pride. Ataturk’s decision to turn it into a museum to display its dual Byzantine and Islamic heritage was an attempt to demonstrate both a break from what he considered to be the decrepit Ottoman past and to establish Turkey’s credentials as a “civilized” nation in the eyes of the West. But, this decision had been resented by the religiously observant Turkish masses imbued with the combined spirit of Islam and Ottomanism.

Thus, the reconversion of Hagia Sophia into a mosque, which it had been for close to five hundred years, as a move to revive his dwindling popularity appeared an attractive and relatively costless proposition to Erdogan. However, such a move cannot succeed in a vacuum for it would not work if it did not touch a vital chord in Turkish hearts. That the decision would appeal to a large majority of Turks is the gamble that Erdogan has taken and there is sufficient evidence to conclude that it has worked.

THE SEVEN SEALS OF REVELATION

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THE SCROLL SEALED WITH SEVEN SEALS OF REVELATION 5 & 6

“Who is worthy to open the scroll and break its seals?” And no one in heaven or on earth or under the earth was able to open the scroll or to look into it, and I began to weep loudly because no one was found worthy to open the scroll or to look into it. And one of the elders said to me, “Weep no more; behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has conquered so that he can open the scroll and its seven seals.” Revelation 5:3-5

The trumpet blast with the opening of the seventh seal signals the Rapture and the Wrath of God being poured out with the Trumpet and Bowl Judgements.

Only Jesus had the authority to remove the seals from the Scroll and unleash the wrath of God with the Trumpet and Bowl Judgements.

THE MAN OF LAWLESSNESS IS NOT A FRINGE BIBLICAL ISSUE

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Dalton Thomas does a creditable job of unpacking Daniel 11. The exegesis is sound and will help us all understand the events that will lead up to the emergence of the Antichrist on the world stage. Sadly, the church which increasingly is departing from belief in the inerrancy of Scripture stays away from these important Scriptures. Unfortunately, we also have those people who are bound up in “end times” conspiracies and predictions that throws it all into confusion and disrepute. However, the Antichrist is part of God’s plan that will test the body of Christ in the “last days” so we need to know these important Scriptures.

“For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, and never will be. And if those days had not been cut short, no human being would be saved. But for the sake of the elect, those days will be cut short.” Matthew 24:21-22

WORLD UNDER THE POWER OF THE EVIL ONE

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That violent looters and rioters have been given a free pass as the oppressed and the people who bear the brunt of their disdain are looked at as vile is amazing to me. 

Baltimore mayor gives protesters the go ahead to riot, loot, and burn

It is an abomination that the wicked is justified and the righteous are condemned, and yet even many a professing Christian doesn’t even blush in doing so (Proverbs 17:15). It is yet another contradiction of terms in what should be a relatively plain submission to biblical teaching on authority, but we ought not to be surprised to see a rejection of civic authority when there’s a rejection of Scripture’s authority on the matter.

“We know that we are from God, and the whole world lies in the power of the evil one. And we know that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know him who is true; and we are in him who is true, in His Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life.“ 1 John 5:19

The reality is that we do not fight against flesh and blood, but against powers and principalities, even within the church where we find opposition. It is quite literally demonic opposition.

Just like you and I, they are sinners, but they are comfortable in the lap of Satan. The way Scripture talks about the world laying in the lap of the evil one describes a reality much like that of a child, wrapped-up contentedly in the lap of their parent. It’s a sobering depiction, but one I think gives us the reminder that we really do wrestle against these unseen powers and principalities that drive everything. Fortunately, Biblical prophecy reveals the end is in sight. Jesus promised second coming is not too far distant. Both in the O.T. and N.T., we are told every knee will bow and every tongue shall confess Jesus Christ is Lord.

For we will all stand before the judgment seat of God; for it is written,
“As I live, says the Lord, every knee shall bow to me, and every tongue shall confess to God.”
So then each of us will give an account of himself to God. Romans 14:10-12

“Turn to me and be saved, all the ends of the earth! For I am God, and there is no other. by myself I have sworn; from my mouth has gone out in righteousness a word that shall not return: to me every knee shall bow, every tongue shall swear allegiance.” Isaiah 45:22-23

WESTERN SOCIETY EXACTLY AS PROPHESIED

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“In the last days, there will be very difficult times. For people will love only themselves and their money. They will be boastful and proud, scoffing at God, disobedient to parents, and ungrateful. They will consider nothing sacred. They will be unloving and unforgiving; they will slander others and have no self-control. They will be cruel and hate what is good. They will betray their friends, be reckless, be puffed up with pride, and love pleasure rather than God” 2 Timothy 3:1-4 New Living Translation

In particular, American society is plagued by real and worsening darkness. It has drifted farther and farther from God exactly as prophesied in the “last days” before Jesus returns to set up His Kingdom when He will rule with a “rod of iron” and the saints will rule with Him.

Riots on the streets of America

“And the armies of heaven, arrayed in fine linen, white and pure, were following Him (JESUS) on white horses. From His mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations, and He will rule them with a rod of iron. He will tread the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty. On his robe and on his thigh he has a name written, King of kings and Lord of lords.” Revelation 19:14-16

“The one who conquers and who keeps my works until the end, to him I will give authority over the nations, and he will rule them with a rod of iron... even as I (JESUS) myself have received authority from my Father. And I will give him the morning star. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.” Revelation 2:26-28

Saints, finally, we will get an answer to the prayer we have been praying for years, The Lords Prayer – “your Kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.”

KENYA HOUSE CHURCH MOVEMENT

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I recently posted an encouraging email I received from Pastor Charles Otieno of the Kenya House Church Movement (KHC). In it, I issued an invitation to those that read my posts to become supporters with me of the KHC to fund specific projects that will help the leaders expand the ministry particularly to the poorer regions of Kenya. Sadly, I have not had one person respond. I realise that God is our ultimate provider but after seven years and 1,481 LEN posts, it is disappointing I have not established sufficient credibility to the extent one person would want to join me to support our brothers and sisters in Kenya.

As many of you already know, God connected me with Charles Otieno, through LEN, several years ago. We both agree that the church in the last days before Jesus’ return will be like the early church as described in the Book of Acts. It is all about making disciples with no paid pastors or buildings.

The following pictures were taken of the mission trip Charles, Alfred and several other pastors took to a region of Kenya on the border of Uganda. I spoke about it in my last post on the KHC movement.