GROWING CHRISTIANITY IN TIMES OF PERSECUTION

As China’s Christian Persecution Rages, Is Biblical Faith in Decline or Thriving in the Shadows?

David Curry, CEO of Global Christian Relief, an organization that helps Christians under duress around the globe, believes the church in China based on our methodology, is somewhere around 120 million,” Curry said, though definitive numbers are difficult to determine. If true, this would mean some estimates are off by almost 100 million people. One of the challenges, Curry said, is using self-identifying religious data inside a country that openly punishes Christianity and those who choose to publicly align with the faith. “They have self-identifying as one of the factors which make the number incredibly low,” he said. “Historically, the Chinese church has been underground.” While the church came above ground in recent decades, the rise of Chinese President Xi Jinping has created roadblocks and problems, with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) increasingly cracking down on the faithful. The government looks down upon those who attend church regularly, and children cannot be legally aligned with any faith tradition. “[President Xi has] become more like a dictator,” he said. “It’s gone back underground, because of the increased restrictions. So, to be self-identified as a Christian means to put yourself in the crosshairs of a lot of government surveillance and other things, because Christian behaviour is punished in their social score system, and they have a very sophisticated way of monitoring this.”

In this photo taken Sunday, June 3, 2018, the demolished house church is seen in the city of Zhengzhou in central China’s Henan province. Under President Xi Jinping, China’s most powerful leader since Mao Zedong, believers are seeing their freedoms shrink dramatically even as the country undergoes a religious revival. Experts and activists say that as he consolidates his power, Xi is waging the most severe systematic suppression of Christianity in the country since religious freedom was written into the Chinese constitution in 1982. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan)

As CBN News has reported, the CCP is reportedly also attempting to rewrite the Bible in its own image, with officials in one area also testing out a new app demanding citizens pre-register before attending religious services. “When you ask people if they’re Christian, they’re not likely to just raise their hand, wave, and jump up and down, and say, ‘Yeah, count me in your survey,’ because they know what it means,” Curry said. Despite these challenges, Curry believes Christianity is, in all reality, increasing in China, with a healthy underground church continuing to grow.  “It’s under pressure … but the church of China is growing,” he said. “I think it’s healthy, despite a lot of the headwinds it’s facing right now.”

Curry said Chinese Christians could help believers in the West who are “in a mode of retreat” amid the cultural changes that have suddenly made those heralding biblical values persona non grata. “We’re in a defensive position,” he said. “And I think we need to look at the Chinese church and the church that’s under persecution in general as perhaps a model of how a church can grow in difficult times.”

We are fast approaching the Biblical prophesied last seven years before Jesus returns to Earth, to rescue the Saints and to pour out His wrath upon an unrepentant world. Persecution/Tribulation of Christians is prophesied to increase during the time the Antichrist will rule the world. Jesus has told us in advance so we will be prepared for the suffering knowing our redemption is close at hand.

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

Now when these things begin to take place, straighten up and raise your heads because your redemption is drawing near.Luke 21:28

PERSECUTION OF CHRISTIANS RAMPANT AND INCREASING

“We live in a world where the violent persecution of Christians and other religious groups is rampant and increasing,” says Ronald Boyd-MacMillan, GCR’s (Global Christian Relief) Chief of Global Strategy and Research. “This database not only helps us track the violence but helps us better understand what persecuted Christians really need from their brothers and sisters around the world.”

The database will be featured at the International Religious Freedom Summit in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 30-31. It will also contribute to the upcoming GCR Global Religious Freedom Index, a comprehensive tool launching this spring, the group says.

According to Aid to the Church in Need, over 4.9 billion people reside in countries with severe violations of religious freedom. These 4.9 billion people live in 61 countries, where the state of religious freedom, as secured in Article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, looks grim, said an ACN report titled “Religious Freedom in the World Report 2023” that covered the period from January 2021 to December 2022.

It means that 62% of humanity lives in countries where people are not free to practice, express or change their religion,” ACN said. “Culprits of religious freedom violations range from armed terror groups to authoritarian governments, but the rule continues to be one of impunity for attackers who are rarely if ever, brought to justice or criticized by the international community.”

Of the 61 countries, 28 were marked in red, denoting “hot countries” where persecution is rampant, while an additional 33 were marked in orange, indicating high levels of discrimination.

Read what Jesus told his disciples: Persecution Will Come
Behold, I am sending you out as sheep in the midst of wolves, so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves. Beware of men, for they will deliver you over to courts and flog you in their synagogues, and you will be dragged before governors and kings for my sake, to bear witness before them and the Gentiles. When they deliver you over, do not be anxious how you are to speak or what you are to say, for what you are to say will be given to you in that hour. For it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you. Brother will deliver brother over to death, and the father his child, and children will rise against parents and have them put to death, and you will be hated by all for my name’s sake. But the one who endures to the end will be saved. When they persecute you in one town, flee to the next, for truly, I say to you, you will not have gone through all the towns of Israel before the Son of Man comes.
“A disciple is not above his teacher, nor a servant above his master. It is enough for the disciple to be like his teacher and the servant like his master. If they have called the master of the house Beelzebul, how much more will they malign those of his household.
Matthew 10:16-25

Moreover, as we approach the time of Jesus’ return to Earth, Jesus told us it will be a time of great tribulation so that we will not be taken by surprise.

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

GODLESSNESS = LAWLESSNESS

George Washington. In his farewell address, he says, “Of all of the dispositions and habits which lead to political prosperity, religion and morality are indispensable supports.” He continues, “And let us with caution, indulge the supposition that morality can be maintained without religion …” In other words, the very thing the USA needs is being driven out, and that is a recognition of God and religion — allowing people to live out their faith in such a way that it affects the world around them. That is the answer to incivility, lawlessness, and division. What is happening in the USA is the opposite at the highest levels of government.

High-ranking officials like former Attorney General Eric Holder seconded Hillary Clinton’s call for incivility, telling a rowdy crowd to start roughing up conservatives in 2018 — two years before the supposed genesis of all political violence. “Michelle [Obama] always says, ‘When they go low, we go high,’” Holder told the audience. “No. No. When they go low, we kick them!”

This is the same party who told Americans to get up in people’s faces. “You have to be ready to throw a punch,” former Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi said. “Push back on them,” Democrat Maxine Waters (D-Calif.) coached the crowd. “Tell them they’re not welcome anymore, anywhere!” “[We’ll] fight Trump… in the streets,” Congressman Joaquin Castro (D-Texas) vowed. “Get up in their face,” Senator Cory Booker (D-N.J.) demanded. Even the Vice President of the United States, Kamala Harris, encouraged the Left to loot, burn, and torment their opponents. “I support them,” she said.

And what about the hostility toward the newest members of the Supreme Court? Senator Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) openly declared that Justices Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh “will pay a price” for not supporting abortion. “You won’t know what hit you if you go forward with these awful decisions,” he fumed, escalating tensions that were already evident outside the justices’ homes. But sure, it’s Trump supporters who “embrace political violence.”

As God is jettisoned from governments and the lives of the majority of what were previously nations that upheld Judaeo/Christian values, Christians are coming under increased persecution. Thank goodness God told us in advance that this would happen.

When the disciples asked Jesus about the time when He will return, what was His response?

Tell us, when will these things be, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?

Jesus gave the disciples a lot of information about what the world will be like before Jesus’ return.

And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not alarmed, for this must take place, but the end is not yet. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be famines and earthquakes in various places. All these are but the beginning of the birth pains.Matthew 24:6-8

Jesus makes it clear that for Christians it will be a time of intense persecution and great tribulation.

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.Matthew 24:9-11

We are fast approaching this time when lawlessness will abound as it did in Noah’s day before God poured out His wrath upon the Earth for the first time. Let me assure you, God will as prophesied, pour out His wrath a second time on this unrepentant world with the trumpet (Revelation 8) and bowl judgements (Revelation 16).

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 24:12-14

IS THERE STILL A GLIMMER OF HOPE FOR THE USA?

Sadly, we know the end of the story for this era before Jesus returns. Satan, Antichrist, and demons are in power, particularly for the last three and a half years when tribulation will be intense for believers and Jews. In my opinion, we are fast approaching the last Biblical prophesied seven years of Daniel’s 70th-week prophecy. Hence, the answer to the question is no, America as a nation is and will continue to be under God’s judgement. It is no longer the United States and there will be some states like Louisiana that will uphold God’s values but they are in the minority. Note Landry won with a slim majority 52%.

Conservative Jeff Landry was Inaugurated as Louisiana’s 57th Governor – a stalwart conservative Christian dedicated to faith, family, and freedom. On Sunday, Jan. 7th, 2024 former Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry (R) was sworn in as the state’s 57th governor, succeeding Democrat John Bel Edwards. Landry was elected governor in an October primary election, winning with 52% of the vote and averting a runoff election.

Family Research Council President and former member of the Louisiana House of Representatives Tony Perkins delivered an inaugural prayer for Landry Sunday night, praying,

Father, we break with the ways of the past, where we leaned on governmental schemes and political power; today, we declare we look to You and the power of your Holy Spirit!”

He prayed for Landry and all of Louisiana’s elected officials, saying,

Above all, we pray that the words and deeds of our leaders would glorify you so that your blessing upon our state will be so bountiful it will be undeniable to the rest of the nation.”

Speaking on “Washington Watch” Monday night, Perkins explained that when he first moved to Louisiana as a young man, “We didn’t have any Republicans to speak of.” Even when elected to the Louisiana state legislature, Perkins noted that there was only one statewide Republican in office and Republicans “were in the extreme minority in the legislature.” Now, he said, Republicans hold “supermajorities” in both chambers of the legislature. “Every statewide elected official is Republican,” he declared. “But it’s not just Republican. It’s about policy initiatives. It’s about ideology. It’s about commitment.”

As Louisiana’s attorney general, Landry fought hard for pro-life and pro-family values. He supported the state’s 2022 abortion ban, and urged Louisianians to “simply respect the legislature and Louisiana’s constitution,” adding, “And if you don’t like Louisiana’s laws or Louisiana’s constitution, you can go to another state.” He opposed the Biden administration’s COVID-19 vaccine mandates, calling the requirements an “unconstitutional and immoral attack” on Americans.

In 2018, Landry teamed up with now-speaker of the House Mike Johnson (R-La.) to support Christian prayer in public schools, following lawsuits filed by the American Civil Liberties Union and Americans United for Separation of Church and State alleging that school districts were “teaching” Christianity. The attorney general has also been a vociferous opponent of the LGBT agenda, including encouraging the state legislature to override the governor’s veto of a bill banning transgender surgeries for minors.

Landry announced his gubernatorial campaign in 2022 and was endorsed by the Republican Party of Louisiana, former President Donald TrumpMike Johnson, U.S. House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.), U.S. Senator Bill Cassidy (R-La.), and others. In Louisiana, all candidates for governor appear on the ballot, regardless of party affiliation; if no candidate receives a majority of the vote, a runoff election is triggered between the top two contenders. Landry won handily with 52% of the vote, with Democrat Shawn Wilson placing second with about 26%. In his victory speech, Landry declared, “Today’s election says that our state is united.” He continued, “It’s a wake-up call and it’s a message that everyone should hear loud and clear, that we the people in this state are going to expect more out of our government from here on out.”

Speaker of the House Mike Johnson attended Landry’s inauguration on Sunday, saying in a press release, “Governor Landry has been a longtime friend and champion for the people of Louisiana, and he will serve our state with dignity and a steadfast commitment as he tackles the many challenges we face.” He added that he hopes to work with Landry to “restore” Louisiana “as the best place to work, live, and start a family.”

Perkins said that Christian conservative values are core to the new governor, saying, “If you believe it, say it. And if it’s really who you are, you should not, quite frankly, you can’t hold it back. And this is who Jeff is. He spoke it. He was unafraid of it.” The FRC president also noted that mainstream media is not giving much focus to the first governor inaugurated in 2024. “It does not fit the national media’s narrative, it’s not what the Left is telling us America is, it is the total opposite,” he said. “But there’s hope that if all of us will vote, will stand, will pray, we’re going to see these same results across the nation in 2024.” We need to pray but based on Biblical end times prophecy the USA as a nation will not turn back to God.

WHAT DOES THIS SAY ABOUT THE BIDEN ADMINISTRATION?

Despite 52,000 Deaths, Biden’s State Dept. Leaves Nigeria Off Religious Freedom Watch List for 3rd consecutive year.

The Biden administration’s Department of State has left Nigeria off of its list of “Countries of Particular Concern,” a list that catalogues the countries around the world that have perpetrated or tolerated “particularly severe violations of religious freedom.” The move comes even though Nigeria leads the world in the number of Christians that have been killed for publicly practicing their faith.

The latest in a series of seemingly unending atrocities committed by Islamist terrorists in the most populous nation in Africa happened on Christmas Eve, when gunmen attacked as many as 20 villages in the central Plateau region of Nigeria, killing as many as 160 and wounding hundreds more. Islamist Fulani herdsman carried out the attack, burning whole villages to the ground and executing dozens with machetes.

According to a report from Open Doors, 5,621 Christians were killed around the globe in 2023. Distressingly, 90% of those deaths occurred in Nigeria alone. Since 2009, when the Islamist terrorist group Boko Haram began its campaign of violence, approximately 52,250 Nigerians have been murdered for their Christian faith, far and away the largest number of Christians killed in any country in the world.

In 2020, during the Trump administration, in response to the rising anti-Christian violence in Nigeria, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo placed Nigeria on the list of “Countries of Particular Concern” (CPC) for the first time. The CPC list was inaugurated in 1998 as part of the International Religious Freedom Act, which gave the president the ability to declare countries that were egregiously guilty of perpetrating or allowing religious freedom violations as a CPC. This designation was designed to be accompanied by diplomatic and economic penalties. Perennial entries on the list have included countries like North Korea, China, and Iran.

But in 2021, under the Biden administration, Secretary of State Antony Blinken removed Nigeria from the CPC list without explanation. Notably, as observed by Family Research Council’s Arielle Del Turco, “the removal of Nigeria’s CPC status came one day before Blinken went to Nigeria to visit with state leaders, including President Muhammadu Buhari.”

The following year, despite the murder of approximately 5,068 Nigerian Christians and the abduction of over 3,000 more, Biden’s State Department again left the country off of the CPC list. The pattern continued for the 2023 list.

“The Biden administration is where religious freedom goes to die,” FRC President and former U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) Chair Tony Perkins wrote on January 4 following the release of the list. “Unfortunately, thousands of people are dying too.”

Numerous other religious freedom experts have expressed grave alarm at Nigeria’s removal. Abraham Cooper and Frederick A. Davie, current chair and vice chair of the bipartisan USCIRF, stated, “Days before Christmas, hundreds of Christians were killed in Nigeria, along with their Pastor. This is just the latest example of deadly violence against religious communities in Nigeria that even the State Department has condemned. … USCIRF rejects the State Department’s decision to omit Nigeria … as [a] CPC.”

USCIRF, along with religious freedom advocacy group ADF International, have since called for a congressional investigation of the Biden administration’s State Department for the omission. “The United States should increase pressure on Nigeria for the blatant violations of religious freedom occurring in the country,” Sean Nelson, legal counsel for ADF International, argued. “More Christians are being killed in Nigeria for their faith than in all other countries combined.”

Del Turco, FRC’s director of the Center for Religious Liberty, expressed further outrage at Nigeria’s absence on the CPC list. “It is reprehensible that the State Department refused to name Nigeria as a Country of Particular Concern on religious freedom,” she told The Washington Stand. “More innocent Christians are killed in Nigeria than anywhere else in the world. How many more lives have to be lost and how much more suffering has to occur before the Biden administration will condemn religious persecution there? The failure to call Nigeria a Country of Particular Concern is dishonoring to the vulnerable Christians who are suffering there.”

Del Turco continued, “The U.S. is somewhat unique in that Congress legally established a foreign policy apparatus to advance religious freedom around the world, and that includes Country of Particular Concern designations. However, if U.S. leaders are too cowardly to add countries to the list that clearly fit the criteria, then it doesn’t do any good.”

This post is taken from an article by Dan Hart, senior editor at The Washington Stand.

How foolish the Biden Administration is in acting as if God does not exist and does not judge nations. History tells us otherwise. God judged the nation He established for His purposes, Israel, repeatedly and He has judged the nations he has used to judge His own nation many times. They should read Revelation to discover that God is going to pour out His wrath upon the Earth, on a world that has rejected Him and given their worship to the Antichrist.

Then the kings of the earth and the great ones and the generals and the rich and the powerful, and everyone, slave and free, hid themselves in the caves and among the rocks of the mountains, calling to the mountains and rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the face of him who is seated on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb, for the great day of their wrath has come, and who can stand?”Revelation 6:15-17

AN AGE OF CHAOS: NO OTHER WAY TO EXPLAIN THIS MADNESS

The unconscionable, uncontrolled, unmanageable debt the US elected governments have managed to accrue is 34 trillion dollars. It’s a number so big it’s impossible to truly conceive, let alone understand.

Recent data published by the Congressional Budget Office show that last year, “Discretionary Spending” in the Land of the Free totaled 1.7 trillion dollars.

Remember, “Discretionary Spending” is one of the three broad categories of federal spending; the other two are interest on the debt and mandatory spending.

Interest on the debt and mandatory spending (which includes programs like Social Security and Medicare) are like your monthly mortgage payment– they get sucked out of the Treasury Department’s bank account every month. Congress doesn’t even debate or discuss those categories.

All of the haggling and bickering and politicking in Congress is purely over discretionary spending. And it includes almost everything else we think of as ‘government’, i.e. military, national parks, homeland security, embassies around the world, etc. So, here’s what’s remarkable:

Again, discretionary spending totaled $1.7 trillion last year– which includes US military expenditures.

However, the other spending categories– mandatory spending (Social Security, Medicare, etc.) and interest on the debt– were so vast that the federal government still had an enormous deficit for the year. How enormous? $1.7 trillion enormous.

Look at those numbers again: Discretionary spending for the year was $1.7 trillion. The fiscal deficit for the year was also $1.7 trillion.

Conclusion? The government needed to eliminate ALL discretionary spending last year– including the military– to balance the budget.

Think about that. US spending is now so high that nearly everything we think of as government– from the United States Marine Corps to Yosemite National Park– needs to be completely eliminated to make ends meet.

Alarm bells should be ringing everywhere. But they’re not. Hardly anyone in power has even noticed. Moreover, the United States will add another TWENTY TRILLION DOLLARS to the national debt through 2033 and 2033 is a REALLY important date because it also happens to be the year that Social Security’s primary trust fund completely runs out of money. This is madness and it can only end badly.

The above information is largely taken from an article by Simon Black, founder of Sovereign Man.

Thank goodness Jesus Christ is coming back, first to defeat the army of the Antichrist at the battle of Armageddon and then to rule and reign the nations with a rod of iron. Jesus rules with the glorified Saints.

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.Revelation 19:15

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, as when earthen pots are broken in pieces, even as I, myself have received authority from my Father.Revelation 2:26-27

HOW DIFFERENT IS THE MILLENNIAL JERUSALEM FROM THE ETERNAL JERUSALEM

The following chart is taken from the Kress Biblical Resources: Diagram 6—Comparison of Millennial Jerusalem and Eternal Jerusalem. Go to http://www.blueletterbible.org for some excellent Biblical resources.

The eternal Jerusalem is enormous. There will certainly be a place there for all of God’s children. However, first, we have the Millennial Jerusalem. Jesus and the Saints will rule on this Earth for another one thousand years. Jesus must rule and reign over the nations until he has put all of His enemies under His feet.

MILLENNIAL JERUSALEMETERNAL JERUSALEM
CITYCITY
Ezekiel 42:15-20 He measured it on the four sides; it had a wall all around, the length five hundred and the width five hundred, to divide between the holy and the profane. (1 X 1 mile, temple area)
Ezekiel 48:15-17 1.65 X 1.65 miles for the city.
Revelation 21:16 The city is laid out as a square, and its length is as great as the width; and he measured the city with the rod, fifteen hundred miles; its length and width and height are equal.
WALLSWALLS
Isaiah 60:10 “Foreigners will build up your walls, and their kings will minister to you; for in My wrath I struck you, and in My favor I have had compassion on you.
Ezekiel 40:5 875 ft. X 10 ½ ft. high and 10 ½ ft. wide on each side (temple complex)
Revelation 21:17-20 And he measured its wall, seventy-two yards, according to human measurements, which are also angelic measurements. The material of the wall was jasper; and the city was pure gold, like clear glass. The foundation stones of the city wall were adorned with every kind of precious stone.
GATESGATES
Isaiah 60:11-12 “Your gates will be open continually; they will not be closed day or night, so that men may bring to you the wealth of the nations, with their kings led in procession. For the nation and the kingdom which will not serve you will perish, and the nations will be utterly ruined.”
Ezekiel 48:30-34 Gates have names of 12 tribes.
Revelation 21:21 “And the twelve gates were twelve pearls; each one of the gates was a single pearl. And the street of the city was pure gold, like transparent glass.”
Revelation 21:25-26 “In the daytime (for there will be no night there) its gates will never be closed, and they will bring the glory and the honor of the nations into it;…”
Rev 21:12-14 Gates have names of 12 tribes & and each gate was one pearl.
TEMPLETEMPLE
Revelation 21:4 “… and He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passedRev 21:22 “I saw no temple in it, for the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb are its temple.”
DEATHDEATH
Isaiah 65:20 “No longer will there be in it an infant who lives but a few days, or an old man who does not live out his days; for the youth will die at the age of one hundred and the one who does not reach the age of one hundred will be thought accursed.”Revelation 21:4 “… and He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passed
RIVERRIVER
Ezekiel 47:1 “Then he brought me back to the door of the house; and behold, water was flowing from under the threshold of the house toward the east, for the house faced east.”
Zechariah 14:8 “In that day living waters will flow out of Jerusalem, half of them toward the eastern sea and the other half toward the western sea.”
Revelation 22:1-2 “Then he showed me a river of the water of life, clear as crystal, coming from the throne of God and of the Lamb, 2 in the middle of the street…”
TREESTREES
Ezekiel 47:7 “Now when I had returned, behold, on the bank of the river there were very many trees on the one side and on the other.”
Zechariah 14:8 “In that day living waters will flow out of Jerusalem, half of them toward the eastern sea and the other half toward the western sea.”
Revelation 22:2 in the middle of its street. On either side of the river was the tree of life, bearing twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit every month; and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.
LIGHTSLIGHTS
Isaiah 30:26 “The light of the moon will be as the light of the sun, and the light of the sun will be seven times brighter, like the light of seven days, on the day the LORD binds up the fracture of His people and heals the bruise He has inflicted.”Isaiah 60:19-20 “No longer will you have the sun for light by day, Nor for brightness will the moon give you light; but you will have the LORD for an everlasting light, and your God for your glory. 20 “Your sun will no longer set, nor will your moon wane; for you will have the LORD for an everlasting light, and the days of your mourning will be over.
Revelation 21:22 “I saw no temple in it, for the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. 23 And the city has no need of the sun or of the moon to shine on it, for the glory of did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof.

JERUSALEM REVEALS THE TRUTH OF THE SPIRITUAL BATTLE THAT IS RAGING

Satan has done his utmost to destroy Jerusalem as it was established by God for His purposes. We know from Biblical prophecy that when Satan is cast down to Earth he will take possession of the Antichrist’s body and declare himself to be God in the temple in Jerusalem

ETERNAL JERUSALEM

And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God. And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.Revelation 21:2-4

However, before the Eternal Jerusalem, there will be a Jerusalem in Jesus’ Millennial Kingdom. It is very different from the Eternal Jerusalem. In the next post, I will show the Biblical differences. They are many and they are glorious.

THE GENERATION THAT DID NOT KNOW GOD OR HIS WORD

How quickly one generation can depart from knowing God and His Word. We should not be surprised; look what happened when Joshua died after leading the people of Israel into the promised land defeating 30-plus armies.

And Joshua the son of Nun, the servant of the Lord, died, being a hundred and ten years old. And they buried him in the border of his inheritance in Timnathheres, in the mount of Ephraim, on the north side of the hill Gaash. And also all that generation were gathered unto their fathers: and there arose another generation after them, which knew not the Lord, nor yet the works which he had done for Israel.Judges 2:8-10

And just as the Lord judged and punished the generation following Joshua so will God shortly come against this rebellious generation when He pours out His wrath with the Trumpet and Bowl judgements

And the anger of the Lord was hot against Israel, and he delivered them into the hands of spoilers that spoiled them, and he sold them into the hands of their enemies round about, so that they could not any longer stand before their enemies. Whithersoever they went out, the hand of the Lord was against them for evil, as the Lord had said, and as the Lord had sworn unto them: and they were greatly distressed.Judges 2:14-15

The prominent online dating service eHarmony is facing backlash from the conservative Christian group One Million Moms for its recent LGBT-inclusive advertisement featuring a lesbian couple in a domestic setting.

The commercial is part of eHarmony’s “Get Who Gets You: Warm Laundry” campaign, which, One Million Moms says, is “normalizing and glamorizing the LGBTQ lifestyle.”  

In the commercial, a lesbian couple is shown intimately lounging on a couch, their legs entwined and heads close together. As the laundry cycle completes, one of the women stands to collect the clothes while her partner sprawls on the bed. The scene continues with the first woman carrying the warm laundry to the bedroom. Standing next to the bed, she playfully cascades the laundry over her partner, then bends down for a kiss, hidden amid the clothes.

“Lost in Love” by Toodlum Barker & Emil Lomax sets a romantic tone in the background. The commercial wraps up with eHarmony’s slogan, “Get Who Gets You.”

How times have changed 17 years ago in 2007, eHarmony was sued for not offering services to gays, lesbians, and bisexuals. The lawsuit, filed in Los Angeles Superior Court on behalf of Linda Carlson, accused eHarmony of discrimination based on sexual orientation. Carlson denied access to the dating service due to her sexual orientation, and alleged discrimination in eHarmony’s policies.

The company, founded in 2000 by Evangelical Christian Dr. Neil Clark Warren, had strong ties with the religious conservative group Focus on the Family at the time. Warren, CEO of eHarmony, has publicly addressed the impact of the same-sex marriage debate on his company.

In an interview with Yahoo! Finance, Warren, a self-described “passionate follower of Jesus,” expressed his exhaustion with the controversy and its detrimental effects on eHarmony. He recounted the backlash from the Christian community following the launch of Compatible Partners, a service catering to same-sex couples, as part of a settlement in a 2008 New Jersey discrimination case. Warren compromised with the world to save his company. Just as the church is compromising with the world over homosexuality, gay marriage, and transgenderism. Thank goodness God has told us in advance that this would happen before Jesus returns to rescue His Saints and God pours out His wrath upon an unrepentant world.

And the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig tree casteth her untimely figs when she is shaken of a mighty wind. And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together, and every mountain and island were moved out of their places. And the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men, and every bondman, and every free man, hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains; And said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb: For the great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand? Revelation 6:13-17

PRIEST EXCOMMUNICATED FOR CALLING POPE FRANCIS ‘USURPER,’ ‘JESUIT FREEMASON’

Father Ramon Guidetti, 48, of the Diocese of Livorno in Tuscany, marked the first anniversary of Pope Benedict XVI’s death by claiming that his successor is “a Jesuit Freemason,” which prompted applause from his congregation at his Church of San Ranieri in Guasticce, according to The Pillar.

During his homily, Guidetti referenced reports of lightning striking a statue of St. Peter on Dec. 17 at the Shrine of Our Lady of the Rosary of St. Nicolás in the pope’s home province of Buenos Aires, Argentina.

Earlier this week, a local journalist confirmed the unusual lightning strike to CatholicVote.org, noting that the bolt obliterated both the statue’s halo and the keys in its hand, despite the shrine’s many lightning rods.

The outlet said it “confirmed that the lightning episode has sparked concern and speculation in San Nicolás and Buenos Aires, especially since the shrine was turning 40 years old and many thought of 2023 as an emblematic year.”

Dec. 17 was Pope Francis’ 87th birthday and one day before the Vatican released “Fiducia supplicans,” which has caused an eruption of controversy among Catholic prelates worldwide for allowing “spontaneous pastoral blessing” for “same-sex couples” and other couples in “irregular situations.” The guidance noted that the blessing is not akin to marriage and that such relationships are still sinful.

“And what did [the lightning] go on to incinerate?” Guidetti asked during his homily. “The halo and the keys. The halo because Peter is no longer holy because there is a Jesuit Freemason linked to world powers, an antipope usurper. And the keys because the good Benedict kept those.”

Guidetti went on to claim that Pope Francis has not been the legitimate pope for the past decade, according to Catholic News Agency.

Jesus warned us that before His second coming one of the significant signs would be apostasy and a great falling away in the church. This Pope along with most of the Denominational churches have compromised with the world on gay marriage and acceptance of homosexual pastors and church leaders.