International ICCC Conference in Jerusalem March 3rd to 6th, 2013.

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All of the Aussie delegates to the ICCC (International Christian Chamber of Commerce) Conference were expectant that God would speak to them through the experience and I don’t believe any are disappointed.
Of the many delegates that I spoke to, all are challenged to a deeper walk with the Lord by the main speaker, Dale Fife the author of “The Secret Place”. A yearning for a deeper intimacy with the Lord is growing amongst God’s people as things (governments, economy, morality) around them start to crumble. HE is driving us to a place of desperation where we realise that unless HE shows up we are in deep trouble.
Fortunately I had already come to the realisation that our walk with the Lord is a daily affair, still I realised from Dale’s walk that a far deeper level of intimacy is available to us IF only we will spend the time with HIM in the “Secret Place”. Get/Download his book, you will be inspired.
There were 36 nations represented at the conference with 360 members. Regardless of whom I spoke to, ALL believed that we are in the latter days/end times, with events unfolding with ever-increasing speed as if we are in “fast forward”. For those that are listening “time is short” but the harvest is ripe and the Lord is looking for workers who will go where HE calls/sends. Will we be one of those that obeys? It is an exciting time, persecution comes with the territory but victory is assured and the rewards in heaven great and everlasting.
With the unexpected and sudden passing of the President and VP last year we all understood that it is a new season at ICCC. The conference theme was appropriate “Beyond the Barriers”. The new Board elected on the last day of the conference seems appropriate for the new season and includes Paul McConnell (Australia) as the head of the ICCC Business Development Centre (BDC) in Israel. One of the major projects initiated by the BDC is a hydro power plant in Burundi. With Paul relocating to Rwanda in August he will be well positioned to oversee this project.
After starting my report on the conference I received the following report on the conference from Ntiense. He is on the new International Board and in charge of the Prayer Domain.
His report says it all.
Global Prayer Watch
As the deer pants for the water brooks, so pants my soul for You, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When shall I come and appear before God?
Psalm 42 vs. 1-2.

One thing I have desired of the LORD, that will I seek; that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the LORD , and to inquire in His temple. For in the time of trouble He shall hide me in His pavilion; in the secret place of His tabernacle He shall hide me; He shall set me high upon a rock.

Psalm 27 vs. 4-5.

I wish to give a brief summary of the highlights of the just concluded ICCC international conference and IGM held in Jerusalem March 3rd to 6th. 2-13.
The conference marked the beginning of a “new season” given that we in ICCC have been in transition in the last few years. This was marked by the opening night when the trumpets (shofars) were blown in consonance with the instruction of Numbers 10 vs. 10 “at the beginning of your months..” We consecrated the conference and ourselves to the Lord so that His glory can be tangibly manifested in the marketplace in fulfilment of the claim that the Lord has made over the marketplace when He led J Gunnar Olson (Founder) to proclaim the vision of ICCC. This claim of God over the world is absolute!!

The timing of our conference is also significant because when the decision was made by the international board in 2011 to hold the conference and IGM in March 2013 we were actually being led by the Lord to a unique season of a shift. Certain events like the resignation of Pope Benedict XVI, the elections in Israel and even the pending visit of President Barak Obama to Israel all point to the fact that there is indeed a shift of season! We therefore sense that this conference was positioned to accelerate the shift of seasons so that we can experience a real manifestation of the power of God and the gradual close of the age. This will be accompanied by the unprecedented harvest of souls as well as the manifestation of the glory of God. Our Speakers made certain declarations to this effect. While Dr. Dale Fife declared; “This is our day!” Dr. Mark Kauffman proclaimed; “God says this is your Kairos time ICCC!”.

A major theme that came through during the conference whose theme was “Going beyond Boundaries” was the imperative of intimacy with God. The two Scriptures quoted above give light to the critical need to find the “secret place” and dwell there as a way of life so that we can become more of those who “be” rather than those who “do”. This will require a life of worship, prayer and indeed a desperate passion for God! Some delegates shared how they are practically seeking to implement this in their workplace. Gunnar said something that is remarkable. He said “You do not have to build the Kingdom. God says believe in me and I will build the Kingdom. Therefore we need to seek the Kingdom of God and walk in faith which will cause God to manifest on the earth”. What lies ahead of us is impossible with man’s effort, so like God told Moses, “I have come down”. This becomes more relevant in view of the coming industrial revolution as well as key areas of scarcity namely; energy, water and food. This certainly requires a walk of faith like never before.

Again let me quote something else that Gunnar said, “When God called Abraham, he made Himself dependent on the faithfulness of one man! Abraham did not settle for anything else as he held the yardstick of the “Holy City” he saw and therefore remained faithful waiting for God to manifest His promises. Upon this faithfulness the redemption of the entire world depended” This in my view is incredible that God’s purpose could be tied so delicately to the faithfulness of man. Therefore the call of God upon us is far more significant than our personal wellbeing or “blessing”. We are called like Israel was to be God’s servants! Again Gunnar declared, “You were born with a purpose, you are not here for yourself”!

Dr. Dale Fife, our main speaker, challenged us to go deeper in our walk with God by declaring “There is more”! He shared from Abraham’s experience; “he journeyed going on still” Gen 12 vs.9. He indicated that all the patriarchs journeyed. We tend to be comfortable with our present locations but God want us to journey! We can mark our journeys with God through divine encounters. There are dimensions that we have never known before that God wants us to encounter. Sometimes in our journey we come to a “roadblock”. It is the key of faith that will enable us to wait upon the Lord when we come to the roadblock. There are various levels of intimacy. Unless you are desperate you will not find the “secret place”. Sometimes God takes us into the wilderness so we can really be thirsty for Him. The mind of Christ comes through intimacy with God. Dr Fife ended with a long list of distractions that can hinder our intimacy with God. These include material possession, health, sex, people, work, ministry, entertainment, etc

One inspiring input to the conference were the panel discussions particularly the session presented by the “young professionals”. They shared on the topic “What do you have in your hand? – Your calling in Business as a Divine instrument for God” We felt that the young professionals are a key constituent for the future relevance of ICCC. We prayed for and dedicated this track of young professionals for the release of the needed strategy and unction to harness their gifting and callings for the furtherance of God’s purpose in the marketplace. Contact with this group for now will be through the international office.

A new international board was elected during the IGM. The composition of the board is also another sign of a new season.

The above are just my recollection and some of the notes I took during the conference. You can always order the full recording of the conference from the ICCC international office in Sweden.

PRAYER THEMES
  • Give thanks and Praise for the success of the Conference and IGM
  • Pray for the new international board to receive clearly the mandate for the new season
  • Pray for Israel particularly the need to form a new government following the last election. Also pray for the peace of Jerusalem.

Where to and what to do from here on?

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In my last blog I mentioned a prophecy I received from a Canadian pastor, Ron Sawka (Christian International Asia) who has been ministering in Japan for 25 years.

Ron prophesied over all of the Australian delegates that attended the ICCC (International Christian Chamber of Commerce) Conference in Bangkok April 2012. I am on the Board of the Australian chapter so know the Board Members well. Ron’s prophecies to all 14 delegates were “spot on” particularly those given to the Board Members. It was mind blowing that a man who knew none of us could know what he knew about each of us. It could only be GOD. The prophecy I received has proved to be life changing for me.

When Ron said, “I see an open book but the book needs to be closed. God wants to begin a new book but the old book needs to be closed first”. I had been procrastinating about handing over control of Care & Share Products to my sons even though I knew it was God’s succession plan for the company. This word touched a raw nerve but I knew in my heart what I had to do. I have now extricated myself totally from Care & Share Products www.careandshare.com.au. The rest of Ron’s prophecy was about what God wants me to do.

“God is going to use you to train up marketplace Kingdom warriors. So the Lord says you will activate and teach many, many people. Of course this may have to do with ICCC Australia right?” I believe it does have a lot to do with ICCC and their training materials particularly the series Transformed Working Life but also How to Start a (Kingdom) Business and How to Develop a Kingdom Business.

Please help me get the word around that I am available to train business people to develop Kingdom businesses with JESUS at the head (Lord of All).

I am presently producing a video which I will post on YOU TUBE and FACEBOOK to connect with people who want to start or grow a successful Kingdom business. Watch out for it.

Why call my post – LIVING ETERNAL NOW?

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Eternal Life is so much more than a theological concept.

It is tangible, it is REAL. You can experience it now. Why would you not want this life?

“And this is the testimony, that GOD gave us Eternal Life and this life is in HIS son JESUS.“ 1 John 5:11

“I write these things to you who believe in the name of the son of GOD, JESUS that you may know you have Eternal Life.“ 1 John 5:13

“I (JESUS) came that they may have life and have it abundantly.” John 10:10

JESUS promises abundant life which begins already in the here and now, a rich, full, joyful life, one overflowing in meaningful activities under the personal favour and blessing of GOD and in continual fellowship with His people.

I started this life at age 47, I am now 76 and just starting “a new book”.

For any unbeliever reading this blog, when I became a Christian in 1982, I was born again, the HOLY SPIRIT (GOD) came to indwell my spirit. It’s His role to be our counsellor, comforter, teacher and even healer. You don’t live the Christian life on your own, without help. A Christian knows GOD is real because of the self authenticating witness of the HOLY SPIRIT. I need to say here, that sadly, though all Christians are indwelt by the spirit not all are filled with the Spirit. The Bible teaches that we can grieve the HOLY SPIRIT by sin and quench the HOLY SPIRIT by repressing His work in our lives. The carnal Christian will have doubts about his faith. When I am walking in the SPIRIT my faith is vital when I am not the opposite is true.

I mentioned above that I am just starting “a new book” or if you like chapter in my life. It all started with a PROPHECY I received in April, 2011 which caused me to close “the old book”. It was wonderful to learn that GOD wants to open (start) a new book with me at age 75.

I will share more on this “new book” in the next blog but let me share here that my doctors and optometrist recently confirmed for me that GOD has maintained my physical health in preparation for what’s ahead. At 75 you need to get a comprehensive health certificate completed by your doctor to renew your driver’s licence. My doctor decided it was time for me to get ALL of the blood tests done seeing I could not remember when I had any done in the past. When I dropped in to pick up the certificate for the RTA, my 50 year old doctor not only said that the blood test results were great but he wished they were his. I also had to see the optometrist. I had prescription glasses for reading but not driving given to me two years previously. The optometrist said that my sight had improved from the previous test and that she has never had to say that to anyone before. She was a young Chinese optometrist who was clearly taken back by the results.

For me these test results from two health practitioners was the confirmation I needed to know that I was obeying GOD by “closing the book” on the company (www.careandshare.com.au) I had founded and managed for over 25 years.

More on “the new book” in the next blog.

Decline of the ANGLICAN CHURCH in the UK: comment by Dr Albert Mohler President of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary.

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As valid as the institutional question of establishment may be, the more important factor in this pattern of decline is theological. Churches and denominations decline when they lose or forfeit their passion for the Gospel of Jesus Christ and for the Bible as the enduring, authoritative, and totally truthful Word of God. If life and death are no longer understood to hang in the balance, there is little reason for the British people to worry about anything related to Christianity. If a church is not passionate about seeing sinners come to faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, if there is no powerful biblical message from its pulpits, then it is destined for decline and eventual disappearance.

When a church forfeits its doctrinal convictions and then embraces ambiguity and tolerates heresy, it undermines its own credibility and embraces its own destruction.

What are your plans for 2013

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If you want to be challenged about how you are living your life then I suggest you read LOVE DOES by Bob Goff. I was given the book for Christmas by my eldest son, Brett and he said as he gave it to me, “you need to read this dad”.
I finished the book yesterday.
Bob Goff doesn’t go to Bible Studies, each week he goes to Bible Doings with a bunch of guys. I like his answer for not calling it a Bible Study. “Wouldn’t it be a horrible thing if we studied the ones we love instead of bonding in deeper ways by doing things with them”.
At their Bible Doing meetings the group study God’s word. “We read what God has to say then focus all of our attention on what we are going to do about it”.
What Bob has achieved with God over his lifetime is mind boggling. Like my son said, “you need to read this”.
It was a New York Times best seller in 2012.

JESUS birth prophesied by Micah

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“But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of you shall come forth to ME the ONE to be Ruler in Israel, whose goings forth are from of old, from everlasting” Micah 5:2 NKJV

This prophecy impacted history in a powerful and tragic way. In Matthew 2:1,2 we read “After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem and asked “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw His star in the east and have come to worship Him”. The next verse says “When King Herod heard this he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him”. He called together his chief priests and teachers of the law and asked them where the Christ was to be born. They of course searched the OT scrolls and found this verse in Micah . The prophecy is very specific. It said the baby must be born in Bethlehem Ephrathah. Since there were two towns called Bethlehem, one near Nazareth and another south of Jersualem in the region Ephrathah, the distinction was important. What else did the prophecy reveal that shook Herod to the core? It clearly said that the one to be born had lived from everlasting. Even secular history records the following event: Herod ordered the death of all male children under the age of two. Satan through Herod did his utmost to kill Jesus.

As I mentioned in an earlier post on PROPHECY, it is one of the most powerful evidences of the TRUTH of the BIBLE. We have 300 more prophecies of Jesus birth, life, ministry, death and RESURRECTION in the OT which clearly reveals it is GOD breathed. The authors were led by the Holy Spirit to write the TRUTH.

The Nativity Scene pictured is up on top of “The Place” in Evergreen, Colorado. It is 30m x 12 m high with 2,600 light bulbs. It was an effort by my son Brett to put Christ back into Christmas.

Sitting on the Fence

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I have just finished reading the banter back and forth between John L, USA and Don Batten, AUS http://www.creation.com. John is living as an atheist but does not want the label atheist. I love the way Don handles John’s arguments for why he won”t accept the authority of the Bible and whilst John L acknowledges Jesus as a real person he was no more than “a social activist – not a god-man”.
Don does a great job and I would encourage you to read this article “Sitting on the Fence” on the website I gave for Don Batten.

Evidence to support the bible: PROPHECY

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What the apostle Peter says in 2 Peter 1:19 is very significant. He says that we have something more sure to the truth of the Bible than them being eye witnesses to the events and that is the PROPHETIC WORD.

2 Peter 1:19 ESV

“And we have something more sure, the prophetic word, to which you will do well to pay attention as a lamp shining in a dark place ………. , knowing this first of all, that no prophecy of scriptures comes from someone’s own interpretation. For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but from men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit”.

Note well; there are 300 plus prophecies in the old testament that have come to pass in amazing detail concerning the birth, life, death and resurrection of JESUS.

A number of very significant prophecies are in Isaiah 53, written some 700 years before Christ. A complete manuscript of Isaiah was found with the Dead Sea Scrolls (dated between 100BC – 335BC) which authenticates without doubt these prophecies.

There are about 3,000 prophecies in the OT, most have come to pass in the NT enough to understand why Jesus said in Matthew 5: 17-18

“Do not think I have come to abolish the Law (first five books of the OT) or the Prophets (rest of the OT): I have not come to abolish them but fulfill them”.

THE GREATEST BOOK IN THE WORLD

In the Bible we have a book that defies belief: 66 books penned by 40 very different, divinely guided authors over 1,500 years, to narrate a skilfully designed inspired story of the Creator and His creation from its beginning to prophesied fiery end. It reveals our Creator is omniscient (all knowing), omnipotent (all powerfull) and omniprescent (present everywhere at the same time). He knew the outcome of His Story before the beginning.

Revelation 1:8

“I am the Alpha and the Omega”, says the Lord God, who is, who was and is to come, the Almighty.”

It relates the greatest drama of all time and the world should recognize its hero as He divided history into BC and AD.

It tells the miracle of our origins and the mystery of our destiny.

It has survived all attempts to destroy it and many people have sacrificed their life to defend it. It tells us of unseen realms and beings, of a cosmic battle that is going on, of which we are the major players.

It talks of the timeless past and an eternal future.

It tells us of time travellers – Elijah departed this planet in 900BC, returned at the time of Christ on Mt Transfiguration and is scheduled to return again in the near future.

It reveals that there are other than our visible space dimensions – King Belshazzar sees “a human hand writing on the palace wall”.

It tells of a time past when the world/universe was perfect, no death, animals ate grass fruit and herbs.

Man was made in the image of His Creator to be friends with God and to rule over the earth but also to OBEY and TRUST GOD.

Enter God’s adversary Satan (also created by God), deception and rebellion follow causing God’s promised judgment – The Fall.

Adam and Eve are banished from Eden and it appears they lost the ability to operate in another dimension where they could walk and commune with God.

Death, pain and suffering are now part of life but at least the first 10 generations from Adam all lived 900 years or more, giving us a glimpse of what was meant to be.

The Cosmic Battle heats up with the appearance of Nephilim (hybrid angel/man) to thwart God’s Plan of Redemption. Corruption and evil are rampant.

God sends a world wide catastrophic flood but with Noah’s Ark God provided a way out for one family along with the animals (fossil fuels and remains of dead things buried in rocks all over the world is ample evidence for Noah’s Flood but for the majority, evolution and billions of years is a preferred option rather than face the fact our Creator judged and destroyed all mankind other than Noah and his family).

Just two generations on and mankind again rebels against God, building the Tower of Babel. God confuses their languages (at least 12 new languages at that time), scatters the people and the nations are formed. (Anthropologists have no explanation for the origin of languages and therefore the nations).

God next creates a nation with whom He makes an eternal covenant. This nation will be His witness to the other nations of the world – enter Abraham and the nation of Israel. He will bless it as long as they keep His commandments and follow Him. They learn from the Sacrificial Sysytem that God set up, that forgiveness of sin can only be achieved through the shedding of blood. Sadly they don’t obey God and we know their chequered history including the Dispersion, the Holocaust but also their New Beginnings. God has not finished with Israel. It is amazing how this little nation is still at the centre of world events. Satan is still doing his best to wipe them off the face of the earth.

The rest of the BC part of His Story is of God’s dealing with the nation of Israel, its Judges, Kings and Prophets. We are introduced to many wonderful, memorable characters and their amazing stories.

Wonderfully woven throughout the story are many prophecies  of a coming Messiah (Saviour, Liberator, King).

Finally our HERO emerges as predicted – JESUS, the MESSIAH – IMMANUEL (GOD with US).

In the NT, His followers (disciples) tell of His birth, life, death and RESURRECTION.

All that He taught is documented so everyone can be told the GOOD NEWS that leads to Eternal Life. God himself, JESUS, shed His blood to offer forgiveness of sins to all who would acknowledge Him as Lord and repent of their sin (rebellion against God and His ways).

By His death, Jesus provides the way back into a relationship with God (Father, Son and Holy Spirit). We are born again in the Spirit.

The foundations of our Lord’s church are established and its amazing growth but also its struggles are documented.

Jesus sits on the throne in heaven alongside the Father and has been given all authority over heaven and earth.

He will return to the earth in the not too distant future as King of Kings, Lord of Lords and we know that every knee will bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord whether they want to or not.

We will all face judgment before the Great White Throne of God where our eternal destiny is determined. For all those who repented of their evil ways when on earth,  and accepted JESUS as their Lord and Saviour there will be a new heaven and a new earth – paradise with no pain, death or suffering. What a great ending but not for everybody.

  • It is no wonder this book is the best selling book in the world.
  • It is a literary masterpiece: it tells the greatest drama, the greatest evils, the greatest good, the greatest mysteries and even the greatest romances.
  • It has influenced cultures and nations for good like no other. It contains the words of LIFE – God breathed.
  • It reveals the true HISTORY of the Universe. It tells us who we are and how much our Creator loves us. It tells us what went wrong and the extent God went, to put it right.
  • It reveals our purpose and gives our lives meaning.

Above all it reveals the awesome nature and character of our GOD.

Evidence to support the Bible: Archaeology

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We have looked at evidence/arguments to support the existence for GOD. Let’s now take a look at the evidence to support God’s revelation to us of HIS STORY as revealed in the BIBLE (derived from the Greek meaning simply”The Books”).

The Bible is a historical document so let’s first look at the archaeological evidence, does it support the history presented in the Bible concerning its characters and places?

It can be stated categorically that no archaeological discovery has ever controverted a single bible reference.

When compared against secular accounts of history the bible always demonstrates amazing superiority.

Biblical scholar R.D.Wilson (author of A Scientific Investigation of the Old Testament circa 1919)  meticulously analysed 29 kings from 10 different nations each of which had corroborating archaeological artefacts. Each king was mentioned in the bible as well as documented by secular historians thus offering a means of comparison.

Wilson showed that the kings names as recorded in the bible matched the artefacts perfectly, down to the last jot and tittle. The bible was also accurate in the chronological order of the kings. The secular accounts were often inaccurate and therefore unreliable.

Famous historian and archaeologist Sir William Ramsay offers one of the most amazing testimonies regarding the depth of archaeological evidence for the New Testament.

Initially Ramsay was very sceptical of the accuracy of the NT and he set out to refute its historicity. He especially took interest in Luke’s accounts in the Gospel of Luke and the Book of Acts which contain numerous geographical and historical references.

Dig after dig, the evidence without fail supported Luke’s accounts. Governors mentioned by Luke that many historians never believed existed were confirmed by the evidence excavated by Ramsay’s team.

Without a single error Luke was accurate in naming 32 countries, 54 cities and 9 islands.

Ramsay became so overwhelmed with the evidence he eventually converted to Christianity.

“I began with a mind unfavourable to it but more recently I found myself brought into contact with the Book of Acts as an authority for the topography, antiquities and society of Asia Minor. It was gradually borne upon me that in detail the narrative showed marvellous truth.

Luke is a historian of the first rank, not merely are his statements of fact trustworthy .. this author should be placed along with the great historians.”
Discoveries ranging from the evidence for the Tower of Babel, to Exodus, to the walls of Jericho, all the way to tombs of contemporaries of St Paul have greatly enhanced the believability of the Bible. Though this vast archaeological evidence does not prove God wrote the Bible, it surely must compel the honest skeptic to at least acknowledge its historical veracity.
For more in depth study go to http://www.BibleEvidences.com/Archaeological Evidence.