As the conflict between Israel and Iran’s terrorist proxy group Hezbollah in Lebanon widens, reports continue to surface of a growing division between the Iranian people and the Islamist regime of Ali Khamenei. Even as anti-Israel and anti-America protests get most of the attention in Iran, a burgeoning Christian movement is occurring under the surface, an expert on Iranian Christians says.
In Iran, Christianity is intensely persecuted, except small historical Armenian and Assyrian communities. Conversion from Islam to Christianity is considered apostasy and can be punished with death. Still, some reports suggest that conversions to Christianity and support for democracy are on the rise, with as many as 80% of Iranian citizens anonymously supporting a democratic government. In addition, some outlets have reported that hundreds of mosques have closed due to the rising number of Iranians leaving Islam.
Hormoz Shariat is the president of Iran Alive Ministries. It broadcasts the gospel message via satellite TV programs in the Farsi language in predominantly Muslim countries like Iran, Tajikistan, Afghanistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. On Monday, he joined “Washington Watch with Tony Perkins” to discuss how an increasing number of Iranians do not support the Islamist regime’s attacks on Israel and are converting to Christianity.
“[Iranians] have experienced Islam and Islamic rule firsthand for over 40 years,” he noted. “And they’ve come to the conclusion, if the problem is not just the government, the problem is Islam itself. That’s why we see a high number of Iranian Muslims come to Christ because they have not just rejected the government, they have rejected Islam. There is such a gap … between the government and the people. So when the government puts on these rallies saying, ‘Death to Israel, death to America,’ the people of Iran say, ‘We love Israel, we love America.’ And that’s the trend.”
Shariat also pointed out that there were also many Iranian Americans who came out in support of Israel after the October 7 Hamas attack.
“We know that the media covered … the pro-Palestine, pro-Hamas demonstrations in America,” he noted. “You saw it everywhere. You saw it on campuses. You saw it on the street. You saw it in Washington, D.C. But you did not see all the Iranians who came on the streets even in America, Los Angeles, Washington, D.C., and San Diego, everywhere. Iranians came out pro-Israel. Not even one Iranian rally was pro-Palestine, and the media did not cover that. Iranians are pro-Israel.”
Shariat further described how his ministry has spread. “[W]e … have a 24/7 satellite broadcast going over the heads of the mullahs — they cannot stop the signal from the sky. We go into people’s homes, millions of homes. [A]n independent survey [found] that we have seven million viewers daily. So we go into people’s homes, tell them about God’s love, and guess what? They are ready. Iranians are rejecting Islam. They’re ready for the message of the gospel.”
According to Shariat, a spiritual awakening is currently occurring in Iran. “It’s a move of God, and God uses suffering, and Iranians have suffered for 40-some years. … So there is an openness among Iranians. … God has used [suffering] to open their minds, open their eyes towards Islam. They … have rejected Islam [but] not [out] of emotion and [not from making an] overnight decision.”
Shariat asked for continued prayers for his ministry and Christians in Iran.
New York – Summit of the Future, 22-23 September, 2024
Jacob Nordangård: UN Leaders Pact for the Future – A Pact with Who?
Jacob Nordangard’s lecture (video) uncovers the true intention behind this year’s United Nations Summit of the Future, which will result in the outcome document, Leaders Pact for the Future. The plan is to turn the pact recommendations into concrete measures and turbocharge the implementation of Agenda 2030. If the pact gets signed, it will result in a new automated global management system severely affecting our freedoms. Who will benefit from and ultimately lead the transformation?
The Bible, GOD’S WORD is largely prophecy and a large part of the prophecy is devoted to the end times before Jesus returns to fulfill the destiny of the nation God established for His purposes: ISRAEL. Jesus will usher in His Millennial Kingdom ruling and reigning over the nations from a magnificent new Jerusalem.
Amazingly, the Bible tells us that a one-world government is coming and we know who will lead it: the Antichrist with his False Prophet. We also know it will be a time of tribulation for Jews and Christians
“Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and put you to death, and you will be hated by all nations for my name’s sake. And then many will fall away and betray one another and hate one another. And many false prophets will arise and lead many astray. And because lawlessness will be increased, the love of many will grow cold.” Matthew 24: 9-12
Jesus told us in advance that intense persecution is coming but we can be confident that Jesus will be with us in the most trying circumstances just as He was with Stephen when he was being stoned to death.
“As Stephen was being stoned to death, he called out, “Lord Jesus, please welcome me!” He knelt down and shouted, “Lord, don’t blame them for what they have done.” Then he died.” Matthew 24:59-60
God gave Stephen a wonderful vision. What did he see?
“But Stephen was filled with the Holy Spirit. He looked toward heaven, where he saw our glorious God and Jesus standing at his right side.Then Stephen said, “I see heaven open and the Son of Man standing at the right side of God!” Matthew 24:55-56
The Paris Olympic opening ceremony “is a sign of the spirit of the age” and a stark reminder of Romans 1:24-25, which says: “Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever!“
The blasphemous depiction of drag queens mimicking the Last Supper was a bold statement by the Olympic producers, in collaboration with Euro Globalists, signaling their intent to reshape the world in their distorted image. This act symbolically declares that the new world order they envision seeks to systematically dismantle the Judeo-Christian values that have underpinned Western civilization for over a millennium. This strategic move highlights their agenda to overturn the moral and cultural foundations that have shaped Europe and the Western nations for centuries.
French lesbian DJ Barbara Butch poses as Jesus in a parody of “The Last Supper” featuring men in drag. The scene offended Christians worldwide when the opening ceremony of the Paris Olympics aired on July 26, 2024. |
In the first 600 years of the Church, Christians infiltrated every facet of society, ultimately dismantling the pagan gods of the Roman and Greco cultures. Apostolic pioneers like Saint Patrick and Saint Boniface ventured into pagan strongholds such as Ireland and Germany. They challenged the reigning deities and demonstrated the supremacy of Jesus Christ by triumphing over demonically inspired priests and pagan clergy in power encounters.
Regrettably, many in the West today are unwittingly inviting the return of these ancient pagan gods to once again preside over their societies. This resurgence threatens to undo the profound spiritual and cultural victories achieved by early Christians, reintroducing paganism where the light of Christ once shone brightest.
Jesus told us that before His return to Earth, the world would be like it was before Noah’s day, lawless, and Christians would not only be hated and persecuted, but put to death. “Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and put you to death, and you will be hated by all nations for my name’s sake.” Matthew 24:9
“You should remember the predictions of the holy prophets and the commandment of the Lord and Savior through your apostles, knowing this first of all, that scoffers will come in the last days with scoffing, following their own sinful desires.” 2 Peter 3:2-3
Progressive Crusade to Bend Arc of History by Chris Uhlmann in The Weekend Australian 11th May, 2024
Uhlmann contends that what is at stake is whether the ascendant state morality will drive deeper into the ancient institutions of faith and force believers to submit to its temporal commandments. Nationally, the Australian Law Reform Commission’s final report on religious exemptions from anti-discrimination law is just another sortie in a long campaign over what the state will allow you to believe and how far it is prepared to go to force apostates to heel.
Queensland’s proposed anti-discrimination bill seeks to narrow the rights of the faithful. Alex Deagon, from the Queensland University of Technology, argues it will “significantly undermine the ability of religious organisations to employ persons following their faith”.
When you lose the freedom to manifest your faith, abide by your beliefs and the liberty to ensure your children are educated in your creed, what is left? The commission is erasing the right of a religious school to organise around its own ethos.
This is an extreme form of laicism, driven by a fierce “progressive” crusade against Christianity. In a multifaith society that means all believers are on this battlefield, as the institutions of government are mobilised against them. Like many things dubbed progressive, it is the latest incarnation of the despotic tendencies of the Bureautoracy (n): the ubiquitous, unelected technocratic blob bent on imposing its notion of utopia on the mob. Its relentlessly mutating dogma has spread like Paterson’s curse through all the institutions.
In a profound irony, we are witnessing the final metamorphosis of Christianity as zealots torch the last idol: belief in a power that transcends the state.
The child has turned on a parent it does not recognise because the source code of this secular faith is the notion of universal human rights. That idea was born with the belief that each individual is valued by God, an avowedly Christian concept and part of a set of revolutionary beliefs that the early faithful simply called “The Way”.
Another epoch-changing idea rings from the first sentences of John’s Gospel: “In the beginning was the word (logos). And the word was with God. And the word was God.”
The New Testament was written in Greek and logos means both word and reason. So, in the Christian tradition, God is reason itself. Christianity is the singular encounter between Greek philosophy and Jewish mysticism, the marriage of reason and faith. The theology that evolved was a thoroughly different way of thinking. Let’s call it wisdom.
This wisdom elevated the poor, the meek, the righteous, the merciful, and peacemakers. Faith in God demands you “treat others as you would like them to treat you”, and not to act with reason is contrary to the nature of God.
Christianity was born in the East, informed by the West, and takes on its historically decisive character in Europe. Europe is defined by its faith and its faith is defined by reason. Faith and reason set Europe on the road to liberal democracy.
Through all its failures, and its many crimes, reason pushes the West forward and demands that it learn and evolve. And the excesses of both church and state always had to contend with its Christian conscience.
The savage colonisation of the Americas was fiercely denounced by Dominican friar Bartolome de Las Casas, and the evil of slavery collapsed when it confronted the faith of William Wilberforce. Despite often spectacularly failing to abide by its ideals, Christianity demanded the West slowly bend towards realising the radical demand of the central tenet of its faith. The new commandment to “love one another” excludes no one.
As historian Tom Holland demonstrates in his epic work Dominion: The Making of the Western Mind, “To live in a Western country is to live in a society that is utterly saturated by Christian concepts and assumptions.”
It is, of course, a heritage that the zealots of the New Way deny. To them, their belief system is self-evident because it just is. It is neutral. It is agnostic. That is a delusion. The New Way exhibits some of the best and all the worst features of a proselytising religion. It looks to uplift, to guide, to build a better, more just world. It is also deeply intolerant of dissent and has established the institutions of inquisition to police heresy, in state and federal human rights commissions.
It’s hard to criticise anti-discrimination laws but the growth of objective penalties for subjective crimes should trouble those who care about liberal democracy. Such penalties are how American journalist Robert Wargas defines totalitarianism.
What standards will be applied? The notion of transgender identity, for example, is a rapidly moving target. Even the Australian Human Rights Commission’s website admits the “terminology is strongly contested”.
So, this latest assault by the state on the faithful is a battle of competing theologies, as the disciples of Caesar seek to mount his image in every temple. And the insurgents know nothing of faith because, as anyone who has any dealings with religious schools knows, most have no desire to discriminate and are far more tolerant of difference than “progressives”.
What religious institutions don’t want is to be forced to submit to state diktats that deliberately undermine the ethos of their institution. Here let’s recall that the Labor Party pledge demands its members not be a part of any other organisation that is inimical to its ideals. Why shouldn’t religious schools enjoy the same rights?
The arc of history has bent out of shape. Those who claim the heritage of reason have discounted the role of faith in their enlightenment. They discriminate and call it equality. They unreasonably seek to force the faithful to heel. This is foolishness. Fortunately, Biblical prophecy reveals that this godless persecution of Christians precedes Jesus’ return to Earth first to rapture the Saints and then to pour out His wrath upon an unrepentant rebellious world. Christians need to heed Jesus warning that it will even get much worse.
“Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and put you to death, and you will be hated by all nations for my name’s sake. And then many will fall away and betray one another and hate one another. And many false prophets will arise and lead many astray. And because lawlessness will be increased, the love of many will grow cold. But the one who endures to the end will be saved. And this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.” Matthew 24:9-14
WASHINGTON — Religious freedom activists are encouraging Americans to learn from Christians who live in countries where they face persecution or death for their faith and develop a willingness to “follow Jesus no matter the cost.”
The fourth annual March for the Martyrs was held in the nation’s capital on Saturday. The event, which drew hundreds of people to the National Mall, seeks to raise awareness of the plight of persecuted Christians worldwide. Following a rally featuring worship music and speeches from religious freedom activists, participants marched through the streets to the Museum of the Bible.
“What we’re really excited about is how many Christians from all denominations come together,” For the Martyrs founder Gia Chacón said in an interview with The Christian Post shortly before the event kicked off. “This is not just an event for Evangelicals or Baptists; this is an event for everyone who professes Jesus Christ as Lord, and that’s what we’re most excited about.”
“Christian persecution is a human rights issue, so not only are we coming together in prayer as the Body of Christ, but we hope to bring this … crisis to the forefront of the fight for human rights and demand action from the United States government in protecting Christians all over the world,” she added. “The spiritual component of the March for the Martyrs should not be underestimated. It is so powerful when Christians come together as one voice in prayer and to uplift human dignity and advocate for human rights.”
Chacón said March for the Martyrs is one way to advocate for “religious freedom and the protection of our brothers and sisters who are suffering for their faith in Christ.” During remarks delivered on stage, she elaborated on the hostile atmosphere Christians face in other parts of the world: “In places throughout the Middle East, Christians are suffering every day for their faith. Laying down their life is normal, not a rare occurrence.”
“Christian persecution has increased by 100 million people” since the first March for the Martyrs took place in 2020, Chacón lamented. “There are now over 365 million Christians around the world who are facing persecution because of their faith in Christ.”
During her speech, Chacón recalled a conversation she had with Egyptian Christians who lost loved ones as a result of Christian persecution: “They said, ‘We’re so proud of them, we’re so proud of them that Jesus meant everything to them.’”
“We need that witness here in the United States,” Chacón asserted. “We need the courage to lay down our life, to follow Jesus no matter the cost.”
A dust storm of political madness is brewing in Phoenix, Arizona as Grand Canyon University faces the continued threats of Department of Education Secretary Miguel Cardona. Christians have watched as the Biden administration attacks biblical views left and right, with a particularly vehement disregard for the sanctity of life and marriage. As such, it can’t be too surprising that Cardona, a part of this leftist administration, has “vowed” to shut down America’s largest Christian university.
In late October, GCU was hit with “a $37.7 million fine brought by the federal government over allegations that it lied to students about the cost of its programs,” AP News reported — an accusation GCU President Brian Mueller described as “ridiculous.
Supporters of GCU agree the fine seems unprecedented and motivated by ideological bias, including American Principles Project Policy Director Jon Schweppe, who said, “The federal government’s education agenda is punishing schools that do not conform to their progressive ideology. It’s time we stand against this egregious abuse of power.” Another conservative think tank, the Goldwater Institute (GI), sued the Department of Education for “refusing to turn over” public “documents that explain why” they’re fining GCU. The goal of their lawsuit is to unmask the reason behind the fine.
Around the same time, Liberty University, America’s second-largest Christian university, was fined $37 million “over alleged underreporting of crimes.” GCU appealed its fine in November even though a hearing is not expected until January 2025. But the question Mueller has is one of integrity. Is this genuine consideration for the well-being of students, or is this a targeted attack against religious institutions?
“It’s interesting, isn’t it, that the two largest Christian universities in the country, this one, and Liberty University, are both being fined almost the identical amount at almost the identical time?” the college president speculated in a speech. “Now is there a cause and effect there? I don’t know. But it’s a fact.”
Mueller emphasized that GCU has faced various issues over the years. But despite the government’s action, he wanted people to know that “interestingly enough, “it has had zero impact on anything that we’re doing.”
He continued, “The enrollments are just continuing to grow … [and] the morale is very high in terms of our faculty and staff. The campus is extremely vibrant. I mean, the students absolutely love this place. They’re extremely loyal to it, and so we just keep marching through it.” And while the fine they’re being dealt by the Department of Education is “a problem,” Mueller is just thankful that GCU remains optimistic. The Christian “mission, not politics, is our motivation and it is our hope,” he told TWS.
In the USA three congressmen have quit in the past four months… and over 50 members of Congress and senators have decided to not seek reelection.
It’s not normal for a congressman to quit in the middle of his term… particularly when his party has a razor-thin majority and every vote counts. And yet… Wisconsin Representative Mike Gallagher – chairman of the Select Committee investigating the Chinese Communist Party – recently announced he’ll be stepping down later this month.
This follows Colorado Representative Ken Buck, who abruptly retired last month… and, of course, former Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy called it quits at the end of last year.
None of these gentlemen considered it worth their time to finish out their terms, quitting roughly halfway through. And frankly… can you blame them? The current, 118th Congress is measurably the least productive in modern history, passing only 34 bills last year, the lowest annual number in decades.
Despite having virtually no legislative accomplishments, this Congress has – by some miracle – managed to add about $2.5 trillion to the national debt over the past year while throwing on another trillion every 100 days. Total spending over the past year has reached about $6.5 trillion.
A country in chaos, a world in chaos. Thank goodness, God told us in advance that this would precede Jesus’ second coming to Earth. For Christians, persecution will only escalate as the following Scripture indicates. But note how it ends: “but for the elect, those days will be cut short“.
“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
Christians are at risk of being branded “extremists” under the UK government’s new definition of extremism published this week, a campaign group has warned.
The new definition says that “extremism is the promotion or advancement of an ideology based on violence, hatred or intolerance, that aims to” among other things “negate or destroy the fundamental rights and freedoms of others.”
Christian Concern said that Christians who are pro-life, gender-critical, or have traditionalist beliefs about marriage might fall foul of the new definition.
Christians who are pro-life could be seen as being opposed to an ‘assumed fundamental right’ to abortion and thus to be intolerant and hence extremist. It is already the case that being anti-abortion is on a Prevent list of ideologies.
Prevent is a national program “that aims to stop people from becoming terrorists or supporting terrorism seen as potential extremism”, the organisation said.
Christian Concern said that the new extremism definition was “vague” and could lead to Christians being excluded from influencing government policy.
Andrea Williams, chief executive of Christian Concern, said the definition was “not fit for purpose” and that she expected to see more Christians being reported to Prevent.
“It is absurd that Christians could be deemed ‘extremist’ for believing in real marriage or for being pro-life,” she said.
“Christian Concern has supported Christians referred to Prevent for expressing their Christian beliefs. The new definition of extremism should have ensured this would not happen again.
“Sadly, I now expect to see more referrals of Christians to Prevent, not less.”
She called on the government to clarify that ‘fundamental rights’ do not include abortion, same-sex marriage, or identifying as the opposite sex.
“Without this clarification, Christians who express their legitimate belief that marriage is between a man and a woman would risk being deemed ‘extremist’ by the government,” she said.
Over the eight years, I have been posting on Living Eternal Now persecution of Christians has been escalating and many other end times prophecies are being fulfilled. Thank goodness, God has told us what will unfold as we approach the time of Jesus second coming. Jesus told us it would be like the days of Noah when God poured out His wrath upon the earth for the first time; godlessness and lawlessness will abound.
God has warned us that before Jesus returns to put things right the world will be like it was during the days of Noah, Godlessness, violence, and lawlessness will abound. He has given us 2000 prophecies that tell us about the events that precede Jesus’ second coming.
Religious persecution against Christians in the Western world is rising at an alarming rate, according to a new report from Family Research Council’s Center for Religious Liberty. The report states, “As the mainstream culture moves further and further away from a Christian worldview, Christian beliefs that contradict progressive secular values are increasingly denounced by the culture and wrongly portrayed as being hateful or bigoted.”
“This report is a warning call,” wrote FRC President Tony Perkins in a letter attached to the report. “It is shocking to see Western countries — the same ones we think of as free and open societies — take authoritarian measures against Christians simply trying to live out their faith. Hostility toward Bible-believing Christians is clearly and steadily rising in the West.” Perkins, former commissioner of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, added, “Religious freedom is the foundation for the human rights that Western democracies seek to promote abroad. Yet, the ability to promote this fundamental human right will be lost if we do not protect it within our borders.”
In the United Kingdom, two town councilors were penalized (one was even arrested) for speaking out against a local Pride parade, a school chaplain was fired for telling students they don’t “have to accept the ideas of LGBT activists,” and at least six people were arrested or fined for praying outside abortion facilities or holding pro-life signs.
In Canada, a pastor was arrested twice for praying outside a library drag queen story hour, a church was fined for hosting in-person services in 2020, and a teen at a Catholic school was arrested for organizing a protest against biological men using women’s bathrooms. A Christian hybrid school was shut down in Germany, a Maltese health care worker was charged with a crime for sharing in an interview how he left the homosexual lifestyle, a Norwegian city denied Christian organizations community grant funding due to their biblical views on sex and gender, a woman was arrested in Spain for praying the rosary, and a Swedish bakery was investigated for refusing to bake a same-sex wedding cake.
Perkins noted, “This report is merely a sampling of the rise of actions by Western governmental officials that target Christians’ ability to practice and express their faith, especially in the public square.” He explained that the report “is a call to individuals to vigorously exercise their religious freedom while at the same time calling upon government officials to recognize and prioritize the protection of this fundamental human right so that religious freedom can continue to be promoted around the world.”
Fortunately, Jesus told us that the world would persecute Christians and even put us to death in the last days before He returns; first to rescue the Saints and then to pour out His wrath upon an unrepentant world. Sadly, Jesus tells us that many will fall away from faith, betray one another, and hate one another at this time. Patient endurance will be needed, and total trust in God regardless of the outcome knowing He is sovereign.
“Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and put you to death, and you will be hated by all nations for my name’s sake. And then many will fall away and betray one another and hate one another. And many false prophets will arise and lead many astray. And because lawlessness will be increased, the love of many will grow cold. But the one who endures to the end will be saved. And this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.” Matthew 24:9-14
The founder of the Salvation Army, William Booth made this mission statement: “MAKING HEAVEN ON EARTH IS OUR BUSINESS”.
“When we consider that the only prayer Jesus taught us to pray includes up-front “Your Kingdom come, your will be done on Earth as it is done in heaven”Matthew 6:8-10, Booth got it right, and look what he achieved. Making disciples who were totally committed to praying and doing as Jesus commanded.
Sadly, now, like most institutions the Salvation Army has watered down God’s command and has compromised with the world. What is the lead statement on their website?
At the Salvos, we believe in good.
What does good mean to The Salvation Army? “Good is a unique word — a simple yet profound term that takes on different faces and meanings for all of us.
For the Salvos, it is more than a word – it’s a belief. It is helping someone at their point of need, walking alongside a community through and after a crisis, and lending a kind and caring space for someone feeling isolated. And a whole lot more.
At the Salvos, we believe in good for everyone. It is this belief that drives us to find new ways and places where we can make a difference. From times of personal crisis to moments of national grief, we are at work each day, providing support, safety, community, and opportunity.”
God does not get a mention up front and this mission statement is not Booth’s mission statement: MAKING HEAVEN ON EARTH IS OUR BUSINESS but the Mission Statement does get to God.
Why good?
“The meaning of good has been diluted over the years. But at the Salvos, we’ve always believed in the power of good. It reflects our belief in our good God and our calling to share the goodness of God with others. Through our decades of work, we know people can find themselves in hardship anywhere, at any time — be it homelessness or housing stress, drug or alcohol addiction, family and domestic violence, unemployment, financial stress, natural disaster, or another crisis.“
Sydney, Australia church spokesman Major Bruce Harmer says the Salvos offer services to all who are in need, regardless of sexual orientation. “The Salvation Army has worked for many years with gay and lesbian people through their treatment centres and welfare agencies, we have employees who are gay and members of our church who are gay,” he said. “So it’s easy to take one phrase and run with it, but in reality, the Salvation Army is not homophobic.“
In the end times, Jesus told us there would be a great falling away in the church, apostasy, and the love of many will grow cold. Christians need to be prepared for the coming tribulation and be totally committed to God’s agenda for their lives.
“Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day (The Day of the Lord) shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;” 2 Thessalonians 2:3
“Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and you shall be hated of all nations for my name’s sake. And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another. And many false prophets shall rise and shall deceive many. And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold.” Matthew 24:9-12
Biblical prophecy gives us a picture of the church which God raptures to heaven before pouring out His wrath upon an unrepentant world.
To the Church in Philadelphia (Philadelphus the “love for a brother” What remains of the faithful Church will be bound in brotherly love by the persecution of earth-shaking proportions.
“‘I know your works. Behold, I have set before you an open door, which no one is able to shut. I know that you have but little power, and yet you have kept my word and have not denied my name… Because you have kept my word about patient endurance, I will keep you from the hour of trial that is coming on the whole world, to try those who dwell on the earth. I am coming soon. Hold fast to what you have, so that no one may seize your crown.” Revelation 3:8,10-11
Biblical prophecy also gives us a picture of the church that will be left behind to face the coming judgement.
To the Church in Laodicea(Laodicea is a combination of two Greek words (LAO, meaning “God’s people”; and DIKE, meaning “justice or judgment”)Judgement of God’s people
“‘I know your works: you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were either cold or hot! So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth. For you say, I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing, not realizing that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked. I counsel you to buy from me gold refined by fire, so that you may be rich, and white garments so that you may clothe yourself and the shame of your nakedness may not be seen, and salve to anoint your eyes, so that you may see. Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline, so be zealous and repent.” Revelation 3:15-19
LIVING ETERNAL NOW 