EVANGELICAL LUTHERAN CHURCH OF AMERICA PROMOTES GODDESS WORSHIP

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A Lutheran church in San Francisco that was founded nearly 150 years ago now worships a “goddess” and has a “resident witch” on staff. Formerly known as Ebenezer Lutheran Church, “herchurch” is a congregation within the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), and is part of the progressive denomination’s Sierra Pacific Synod, which consists of approximately 180 “worshipping communities” across Northern California and Northern Nevada, according to its website.

The staff, which is led by “pastor and priestess of ritual” Stacy Boorn, includes over a half dozen “priestesses” and a “priestexx” Thom Longino, who is listed as “adjunct pastor” and “spiritual director.” A CP review of Longino’s LinkedIn profile also revealed that he is an employee of Catholic Charities San Francisco. 

A video of Longino discussing his work with homeless LGB-identified youth at San Francisco Night Ministry is featured on the YouTube page of Megan Rohrer, who made headlines in 2021 as the first openly trans-identified bishop to serve in a major denomination. Rohrer was later suspended after allegedly using “racist” language.

One of “herchurch” priestesses, Christine Konkol, identifies as a “resident witch” and is seen in a photo on the church website wearing a traditional witch’s hat. 

Described as an “open and affirming community” where all are “loved in the love of Christ-Sophia and the Great Mother of us All,” the church’s website calls “all expressions of gender identity…a blessing.” As part of its about section, its website calls “herchurch” an “emerging, liberating feminist congregation” which is “hoping to be a part of the prophetic voice of the divine feminine that will deconstruct Christianity and other patriarchal religions.”

What more evidence do Christians need to realise we are in the Biblical prophesied time of a great falling away in the church (apostasy) (2 Thessalonians 2:3). The time before Jesus returns to rapture His church and pour out His wrath upon an unrepentant world. Jesus then returns to Earth to defeat the Antichrist army at the battle of Armageddon and usher in His Millennial Kingdom.

For more on Jesus’ Millennial Kingdom, go to http://www.millennialkingdom.net. This Earth has 1000 more years before God destroys it with fire. The second resurrection and the White Throne judgement follow before God creates a new Heaven and new Earth where only the righteous dwell.

The purpose of the thousand-year reign is to allow God to fulfil the promises He made with Jesus, Israel, the Saints, and the Creation to vindicate His Holy name.

“Then the end will come when He hands over the kingdom to God the Father after He has destroyed all dominion, authority, and power. For He must reign until He has put all of His enemies under His feet..” 1 Corinthians 15:24-25.

The Millennium is the 1,000-year period in which Jesus will rule this world in partnership with resurrected saints (Rev. 20:4-6). Understanding the Millennium gives us insight into what the Lord is preparing His people for.

“I saw thrones, and they [saints from Rev. 19:14] sat on them, and judgment [decision making] was committed to them…and they lived and reigned with Christ for a thousand years. 6…but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with Him a thousand years.” Revelation 20:4-6

JESUS WILL BE KING OF ALL NATIONS IN THE MILLENNIUM

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“The Head over every ruler and authority.” Colossians 2:10

Not many denominations hold to Jesus ruling and reigning on this Earth for 1000 years before God destroys this Earth with fire, and yet many great historians and churchmen can be cited in affirming the early dominance of Premillennialism. Among them is the celebrated church historian Philip Schaff. He penned this oft-quoted passage:

“The most striking point in the eschatology of the ante-Nicene age is the prominent chiliasm or millenarianism, that is the belief of a visible reign of Christ in glory on earth with the risen saints for a thousand years, before the general resurrection and judgment. It was indeed not the doctrine of the church embodied in any creed or form of devotion, but a widely current opinion of distinguished teachers, such as Barnabas, Papias, Justin Martyr, Irenaeus, Tertullian, Methodius, and Lactantius” History of the Christian Church Vol 11, p. 614 Philip Schaff.

Justin Martyr was an overtly premillennial ante-Nicene church father. Justin gave his most famous statement on the Millennium: “For if you have fallen in with some who are called Christians, but who do not admit this [truth] and venture to blaspheme the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob; who say there is no resurrection of the dead, and that their souls, when they die, are taken to heaven; do not imagine that they are Christians . . . But I and others, who are right-minded Christians on all points, are assured that there will be a resurrection of the dead, and a thousand years in Jerusalem, which will then be built, adorned, and enlarged, [as] the prophets Ezekiel and Isaiah and others declare.” Dialogue with Trypho LXXX, p.239

Two of the greatest ante-Nicene fathers were Irenaeus and Tertullian (AD 160-230). Irenaeus grew up in Asia Minor and was discipled by Polycarp, who knew the Apostle John.

Irenaeus had a very extensive view of Bible prophecy in his last five chapters of Against Heresies, which were suppressed throughout the Middle Ages by anti-premillennialists and rediscovered in 1571. The restoration of a more literal interpretation and reading of the early church fathers by many post-reformationists led to a revival of premillennialism in the early 1600s. Irenaeus’ writings played a key role because of their clear premillennial statements. “John, therefore, did distinctly foresee the first ‘resurrection of the just,’ and the inheritance in the kingdom of the earth,” he says, “and what the prophets have prophesied concerning it harmonize [with his vision].” Again, Irenaeus declares, “But when this Antichrist shall have devastated all things in this world, he will reign for three years and six months, and sit in the temple at Jerusalem; and then the Lord will come from heaven in the clouds, in the glory of the Father, sending this man and those who follow him into the lake of fire; but bringing in for the righteous the times of the kingdom.”

Tertullian, who gave us the Latin word “Trinity” was also a strong premillennialist. He makes his premillennialism clear when he says the following: “But we do confess that a kingdom is promised to us upon the earth, although before heaven, only in another state of existence; inasmuch as it will be after the resurrection for a thousand years in the divinely-built city of Jerusalem, ‘letdown from heaven,’ which the apostle also calls ‘our mother from above;’ and, while declaring that our citizenship is in heaven, he predicts of it that it is really a city in heaven.’’ This both Ezekiel had knowledge of, and the Apostle John beheld.”

Another outstanding premillennialist of the early church was Lactantius (AD 250-330) of North Africa. He wrote an important defence of Christianity that was the first systematic expression of Christianity called The Divine Institutes, which included a section on prophecy. Lactantius said: “But when the thousand years shall be completed, the world shall he renewed by God, and the heavens shall be folded together, and the earth shall be changed, and God shall transform men into the similitude of angels, and they shall be white as snow; and they shall always be employed in the sight of the Almighty, and shall make offerings to their Lord, and serve Him for ever.”

The death of Lactantius in AD 325 marked the end of Premillennialism as a commonly held belief in the church until after the Reformation of the 16th century. No doubt there were some saints that read the Scriptures and believed what they said about the Messianic Age, though their teachings on the matter are few.

Origen and Allegory: It is difficult to overestimate the level of influence Origen and his allegorical hermeneutic had in shaping much of the Christian world’s approach to Scripture. One of his students, Dionysius, strongly opposed the promotion of Premillennialism through exegesis by the Egyptian church bishop Nepos. On what followed, German Lutheran Theologian, Adolf von Harnack (1851-1930) recounted: “Dionysius became convinced that the victory of mystical theology over “Jewish” chiliasm would never be secure so long as the Apocalypse of John passed for apostolic writing and kept its place among the homologoumena (those considered authoritative) of the canon . . . During the 4th century, it was removed from the Greek canon, and thus the troublesome foundation on which chiliasm might have continued to build was got rid of . . . late in the Middle Ages, (God ensured) the Book of Revelation did recover its authority; however, the church was by that time so hopelessly entangled by a magical cultus as to be incapable of fresh developments.” Harnack’s explanation reveals that Dionysius was also motivated by a distaste for Judaism.

Theologian Renald Showers elaborated on the influence of antisemitism of the time. “Gentiles who professed to be Christians increasingly called Jews “Christ-killers” and developed a strong bias against anything Jewish. Because the premillennial belief in the earthly, political Kingdom rule of Messiah in the future was the same hope which had motivated the Jews for centuries, that belief was increasingly “stigmatized as ‘Jewish’ and consequently ‘heretical’” by eastern Gentile Christians.”

Some of the same people who claimed to worship a Jew as God in the flesh and hold up the Scriptures that were written by Jews (cf. Rom 3:1–2), were at the same time eager to separate themselves from what was Jewish. What absurdity! Unfortunately, this attitude is still commonplace in much of the Christian world to various degrees today.

For more on Jesus’ Millennial Kingdom go to my website http://www.millennialkingdom.net

UN PACT FOR THE FUTURE

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At the UN, World leaders on Sunday, October 6th, adopted the Pact for the Future, a landmark declaration pledging concrete actions towards a safer, more peaceful, sustainable, and inclusive world for tomorrow’s generations.

The Pact’s five broad focus areas include sustainable development; international peace and security; science and technology; youth and future generations and transforming global governance.

This has become an urgent pivot, as multilateral financial institutions and even the United Nations itself have come up short on seeking solutions to 21st-century problems, the pact lays out.

By endorsing the Pact, UN Member States pledged, among other things, to:

  • Turbocharge the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the Paris Agreement on climate change, two landmark 2015 agreements that have seen halting progress and missed milestones
  • Listen to young people and include them in decision-making, at the national and global levels
  • Build stronger partnerships with civil society, the private sector, local and regional authorities, and more
  • Redouble efforts to build and sustain peaceful, inclusive, and just societies and address the root causes of conflicts.
  • Protect all civilians in armed conflict.
  • Accelerate the implementation of our commitments on women, peace, and security

Global Digital Compact

The Global Digital Compact marks the first truly worldwide agreement on the international regulation of artificial intelligence (AI) and is founded on the idea that technology should benefit everyone.

It outlines commitments to ensure that digital technologies contribute to sustainable development and human rights while addressing risks like digital divides, cybersecurity, and misuse of technology.

The Compact aims to bridge the digital divide and ensure AI technologies are used responsibly, fostering global cooperation on both AI capabilities and security threats. Governments are also obligated to form an impartial worldwide Scientific Panel on AI and start an international conversation about AI governance inside the UN.

Declaration on Future Generations

The Declaration on Future Generations focuses on securing the well-being of future generations, also highlighting the need to include their interests in decision-making processes.

It also underlines the importance of protecting the environment, promoting intergenerational equity, and ensuring that long-term consequences of today’s actions are considered.

The Bible declares that at the end of this age before Jesus returns to Earth there will be a one-world government with a demonically empowered leader, the Antichrist (the Beast from the sea), and his False Prophet (the Beast from the earth), ruling the nations. What we see unfolding at the UN is a move towards governments giving up their sovereignty to a one world power. The following Scripture from Revelation reveals what the Antichrist will do.

“Then I saw another beast rising out of the earth. It had two horns like a lamb and it spoke like a dragon. It exercises all the authority of the first beast in its presence and makes the earth and its inhabitants worship the first beast, whose mortal wound was healed. It performs great signs, even making fire come down from heaven to earth in front of people, and by the signs that it is allowed to work in the presence of the Beast, it deceives those who dwell on the earth, telling them to make an image for the beast that was wounded by the sword and yet lived. And it was allowed to give breath to the image of the beast so that the image of the beast might even speak and might cause those who would not worship the image of the beast to be slain. Also, it causes all, both small and great, both rich and poor, both free and slave, to be marked on the right hand or the forehead, so that no one can buy or sell unless he has the mark, that is, the name of the beast or the number of its name.” Revelation 13:11-17

The Bible declares that at the end of this age when Jesus defeats the Antichrist and the nations that come against Him. Israel will finally fulfill its destiny of being God’s nation with Jesus ruling the nations from a new Jerusalem. We are told four times in Revelation that Jesus and the glorified Saints rule with a rod of iron. Jesus’ Millennial Kingdom is a transition period. The world has had 6,000 years of Satan ruling the world. It will now have 1,000 years with Jesus’ rule. Whilst Satan is bound in the Abyss, the curse has not been lifted from the Cosmos so people are still being born and people still die. We know that not all people will submit to Jesus because at the end of the thousand years, Satan is released and he is still able to raise an army whose number is like the sand of the sea to come against Jesus and the Saints. He and his army are quickly disposed of and God finally destroys this world. The second resurrection and Jesus White Throne’s judgment follow. After which, John sees a new Heaven and a new Earth where only the righteous dwell.

How many churches are teaching that next on God’s agenda for this world is Jesus and the Saints ruling on this fallen world for 1000 years.

“Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God.” Revelation 21:1-3

I have set up the website http://www.millennialkingdom.net for the purpose of preparing the church to rule and reign with Jesus in a fallen world.

TIMING OF THE END OF THE AGE

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Nelson Walters suggested I take a look at this website Counting from Caleb. This is a short (18 minutes) video by Ryan who presents evidence that Daniels 70 weeks prophecy can also be seen as 70 weeks of Jubilees (Shavuot) 70 x 7 x 7 = 3430 from the time of Caleb’s inheritance of the land in 1400 BC. This would mean that the final seven years (Daniel’s 70th week of years) would start on 4th October 28th, 2024, and end on 28th September 2031. This would be the end of the age and the start of Jesus’ Millennial Kingdom.

Ryan could be wrong but I believe we are in the Biblical prophesied end times before Jesus returns to Earth to rule and reign on Earth for 1000 years. Jesus Millennial Kingdom (http://www.millennialkingdom.net).

THE COMING MILLENNIAL KINGDOM WHEN JESUS WILL RULE THE NATIONS

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Australia’s Federal Parliament opens with prayer but God is then excluded from any discussion. It is time to put God back in His rightful place as sovereign over His Cosmos. Sadly, that will not happen until Jesus returns to restore righteousness. Fortunately, God has given us incredible detail on the last seven years before Jesus returns to Earth to rule and reign the nations from a new Jerusalem. When this happens the nation God established for His purposes, Israel will finally fulfill its destiny. The miracle of Israel being reborn as a nation in 1948 was the first and the major Biblical end-times prophecy fulfilled.

The purpose of the thousand-year reign is to allow for the fulfillment of the promises God made with Jesus, Israel, the Saints, and His Creation to vindicate His Holy name.

“Thus says the Lord God: It is not for your sake, O house of Israel, that I am about to act, but for the sake of my holy name, which you have profaned among the nations to which you came. And I will vindicate the holiness of my great name, which has been profaned among the nations, and which you have profaned among them. And the nations will know that I am the Lord, declares the Lord God, when through you I vindicate my holiness before their eyes.“ Ezekiel 36:22-24

“So, when they (disciples) had come together, they asked him, “Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by his own authority.” Acts 1:6–7

This verse clearly indicates that Jesus is yet to come and restore the Kingdom to Israel. The Millennium is the prophetic climax of God’s overarching redemptive agenda. His completed promises to Israel, found in the unconditional covenants, will be on full display before a world of believers and unbelievers alike.

Soon after the birth of the Body of Christ at Pentecost (Acts 2), Peter spoke these words to his fellow Jews from Solomon’s Portico

“Repent, therefore, and turn back, that your sins may be blotted out, that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord, and that He may send the Christ appointed for you, Jesus, whom heaven must receive until the time for restoring all the things about which God spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets long ago.” Acts 3:10-21

“But each in his own order: Christ the first fruits, then at His coming those who belong to Christ. Then comes the end, when He delivers the kingdom to God the Father after destroying every rule and every authority and power. For He must reign until He has put all His enemies under His feet.” 1 Corinthians 15:23-25

The Messiah must reign over his kingdom until he has defeated all his enemies. Once this is accomplished only then will this Earth be destroyed by fire. The second resurrection and the White Throne judgement follow. John then sees a new heaven and a new earth where only the righteous dwell. Jesus hands over the kingdom to the Father. When the Kingdom of God is handed over to the Father, it will be free of sin and death, identifying it as the Eternal State (Revelation 21:4, 8).

“Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away… And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God,” Revelation 21:1-2

THE FUTURE NEW HEAVEN & NEW EARTH

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At the end of this life, most Christians want to go to Heaven. But what does the Bible tell us about the place where Christians will spend eternity? It is a concept far beyond our imagination.

In this video, Impact Vision Ministries do a great job of reproducing the Scriptures that provide the incredible details God gives us of the new Heaven and the new Earth where believers will live with God the Father and Jesus for eternity.

It is important to remember that the Bible tells us that Jesus’ Millennial Kingdom precedes the second resurrection and the White Throne judgement (http://www.millennialkingdom.net). It is only after the White Throne judgement and unbelievers are thrown into the Lake of Fire that John sees the Holy City, the new Jerusalem coming down out of heaven onto the new Earth.

“And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God.” Revelation 21:2-3

This fallen Earth still has another 1,000 years before it is destroyed by fire. Raptured, resurrected believers will return to Earth with Jesus to rule and reign with a rod of iron on this Earth. People will still marry and have children and die. They will still need to make a decision to repent and want Jesus Christ as their Saviour and Lord. We know this because, at the end of the 1000 years, Satan is released from that Abyss and is still able to raise an army of rebellious people to come against Jesus and the Saints.

“And when the thousand years are ended, Satan will be released from his prison and will come out to deceive the nations that are at the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them for battle; their number is like the sand of the sea.” Revelation 20:7-8

TRUE HISTORY OF THE COSMOS

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The slide below is taken from a FREE PowerPoint presentation available from http://www.answersingenesis.org which addresses the issue of the decline in Christianity in the Western World due to the teaching of evolution and billions of years in our schools and universities.

Ken Ham calls it the Seven C’s of History: Creation – Perfect at the beginning. Corruption: Sin and death entered the world because Adam and Eve disobeyed God due to deception by an evil spirit being, Satan. Catastrophe: God judges an evil world with the worldwide flood of Noah’s day. Confusion: God confuses the language of the post-flood population resulting in the nations of the world speaking different languages. Christ: God’s Son steps into history as the Saviour of mankind. Cross: Jesus was prepared to pay the price for our rebellion against God. He rose from the dead and promised to raise to eternal life all of those who believe and submit to Him as Lord. Consummation: Jesus will return to earth to fulfill the covenants He made with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob for God’s nation, Israel to rule and reign over the nations of the world for 1000 years: Jesus Millennial Kingdom (www.millennialkingdom.net).

God has allowed Satan to rule this world for 6,000 years. When Jesus returns to Earth, Satan is bound in the Abyss for most of the 1000 years that Jesus rules the nations with the resurrected Saints. At the end of the 1000 years, Satan is released and he raises an enormous army to come against Jesus and the Saints. “And fire came down from God out of heaven and devoured them.” Revelation 20:9. God then destroys this world with fire. Next is the second resurrection and Jesus’ White Throne judgement. Then, John sees a new Jerusalem descending out of a new heaven onto a new Earth where only the righteous dwell.

When Darwin came up with the Theory of Evolution by natural selection, he did not know the incredible evidence for design in the Cosmos. As Dr. Dean Kenyon (former Professor of Biochemistry at Stanford University and author of two Evolutionary Biochemistry textbooks) states the discovery of DNA and the electron microscope rang the death knell of evolution. Imagine how difficult it was for Dr. Kenyon to come out and say that what he had been teaching for many years was nonsense.

DNA is the complex information in every living cell that controls all the functions of the organism. Information is only derived from an Intelligent Designer who is separate from His creation.

The electron microscope reveals that inside each cell are manufacturing units making all the complex chemicals required for life and transport devices to take them to where they are needed.

The DNA, and the factories and functions that the DNA controls must be perfect on day one; they could not have evolved. They were created by an omnipotent designer just as the Bible, God’s Word states. The opening words of the Bible state “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.“

In other branches of science such as geology the paradigm of slow gradual change over billions of years is also being challenged as the evidence in the rocks is of catastrophe not slow gradual change. Billions of dead things all over the world including fossil fuels are evidence of a catastrophic global flood.

Make sure you are equipped to give an answer when you are asked about the faith you hold in Jesus Christ. You can get the resources you need from http://www.answersingenesis.org and http://www.creation.com.

THE BIBLE TEACHES SATAN RULES THIS EARTH FOR 6000 YEARS AND JESUS RULES FOR 1000 YEARS.

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Great message from Ken Ham of Answers in Genesis. Make sure you visit their website http://www.answersingenesis.org. He omits what is next for this planet hence my addendum.

In an attempt to accept evolutionary ideas about the age of the earth (millions of years), many Christians try to add long ages somewhere into Genesis. Sometimes Christians will argue that the days of creation were not literal 24-hour days, that there was a time gap between Genesis 1:1 and 1:2, or that Genesis is just poetry. But any attempt to put millions of years into Genesis puts millions of years of death, suffering, and disease before sin—and that’s a big problem!

The Bible teaches that God’s original creation was “very good” (Genesis 1:31) and that death is the consequence of Adam’s sin (Genesis 2:17). Death did not exist in creation until after Adam’s sin.

“Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned.” Romans 5:12

“For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive.” 1 Corinthians 15:21–22

Although those passages refer specifically to human death, they are also discussing death in general. Other passages like Romans 8:22 make it clear that the whole world is groaning because of sin, and this includes the animal world. Taking Scripture with Scripture, it’s obvious there was no death, disease, or suffering of human or animal (nephesh) life before sin.

This is a big problem for those who believe in millions of years because those long ages supposedly come from the rock layers and fossils. Now, fossils are, of course, dead things, so if those rock layers are millions of years old, there’s been millions of years of death before Adam and Eve. And not just death, but also, millions of years of diseases and suffering, animal carnivory (but in God’s original creation everything was vegetarian, see Genesis 1:29–30), and thorns and thistles (a consequence of sin, Genesis 3:18).

Millions of years is incompatible with the Bible’s teaching about death!

Death is not a natural part of creation; it’s not something that has existed for millions of years—it’s an enemy (1 Corinthians 15:26), an intruder into God’s once “very good” creation.

As Christians, we cannot accept millions of years and remain faithful to the plain meaning of Scripture. So how old is the earth? Well, God created everything in six days, and then Genesis 5 and 11 give us detailed genealogies that allow us to determine how many years passed between Adam and Abraham (about 2,000 years). We know about 2,000 years passed between Abraham and Jesus, and then 2,000 more years gets us from Christ to us today. So, starting with the Bible’s history, the universe, earth, and life is only about 6,000 years old.

Yes, we live on a young earth impacted by death because of sin. But someday Jesus will return and create a new heavens and a new earth where death and suffering will be done away with and everyone who has placed their faith and trust in Jesus will live with him forever.

Thanks for stopping by and thanks for praying,
Ken

A great message from Ken Ham except he left out the 1000 years Jesus will rule over the nations on this Earth with some, if not all of the glorified Saints. We have had 6000 years of Satan’s dominion over the Earth, next is Jesus’ Millennial Kingdom, and only then will this Earth be destroyed. The second resurrection of all of the dead will take place followed by Jesus’ White Throne judgement. It is only after the White Throne judgement that John sees the new Heaven and new Earth.

“Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. From his presence earth and sky fled away, and no place was found for them. And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened… Death and Hades gave up the dead who were in them, and they were judged, each one of them, according to what they had done. Then Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire.” Revelation 20:11-12

“Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God.” Revelation 21:1-3

NOW IS THE TIME TO PRAY: FOR LOVED ONES, FRIENDS, YOUR CITY AND NATIONS

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FOR SAVED LOVED ONES AND FRIENDS:

“We have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to Him: bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; being strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy; giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light.” Colossians 1:9-12

FOR YOUR CITY

 Pray for the churches in your city to be renewed in their efforts to reach the city with God’s Word. As so many of the institutional churches have departed from God’s Word and compromised with the world. Pray that God would convict members of those churches to come out of them. Ask God to pray that He will raise up churches as described in the Book of Acts that will make disciples that make disciples. Churches that will seek to meet the needs of their city, knowing the Lord will guide them if they ask Him.  The LORD says, “I will teach you the way you should go; I will instruct you and advise you.” (Psalm 32:8 GNT)

“In the same way, your light must shine before people so that they will see the good things you do and praise your Father in heaven.” Matthew 5:16

Pray that people’s hearts will be opened to repent of their sins and confess Jesus as their Saviour. “I tell you for certain that everyone who hears my message and has faith in the one who sent me has eternal life and will never be condemned. They have already gone from death to life.” John 5:24

FOR NATIONS

Jesus calls us to pray for the gospel to be preached to all nations. God created the nations and one nation, Israel, for His purposes, hence Israel needs to be in our prayers.

“First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way. This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.” 1 Timothy 2:1-4

Also, in Matthew 28, Jesus tells us that all authority in heaven and on earth has been given to him, and with that authority, he tells us to go and make disciples of all nations. Jesus cares about all the people of the world and wants every one of them to be saved, but there are still over 2 billion people who have never heard the gospel before. As Christians, this should move us to pray for the nations.

How can you pray for the nations? There are endless verses and promises about God-loving and rescuing the nations. You can ask the Holy Spirit for guidance in your prayers.

“Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words.” Romans 8:26

You can pray that God would send out workers or missionaries to these people groups, for the believers who are being persecuted, and even for their persecutors. Remember, there is a time coming when every knee will bow and every tongue confesses that Jesus Christ is Lord. However, Jesus’ Millennial Kingdom is next on God’s agenda. We have had 6,000 years with Satan as Prince of this World. Next is Jesus ruling on this Earth with glorified Saints for 1,000 years only then will this Earth be destroyed. Then, after the second resurrection and the White Throne judgment God will usher in a new Heaven and new Earth where only the righteous dwell.

“As I live, says the Lord, every knee will bow to Me, and every tongue will give praise to God.” Romans 14:11

“All the ends of the earth shall remember and turn to the LORD, and all the families of the nations shall worship before you. For kingship belongs to the LORD, and he rules over the nations.“ Psalms 22:27

Pray that we may help bring people from all nations to salvation so they may be among those standing before the throne of God praising Him.

“After this, I (John) looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, and crying out with a loud voice, “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!” And all the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures, and they fell on their faces before the throne and worshiped God.” Revelation 7:9-11

WHO CAUSED DEATH, DISEASE, AND SUFFERING IN THIS WORLD?

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For those Christians who believe in millions of years, it is only logical that the world as we see it today with all its groaning has gone on like this for millions of years before man. This then puts the blame on God for death, disease, and suffering. But God’s Word blames our sin!

No, one can’t add millions of years into Scripture. To do so is to attack the character of God and undermine the authority of the Word of God.

When God originally created everything, it was “very good.” There was no death, disease, or suffering. But because we (in Adam) sinned against our holy God (we committed high treason against God by our outright disobedience), God judged that disobedience with death and the curse (Genesis 3:14–19; Romans 5:12).

“Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned… The good news is ”For if, because of one man’s trespass, death reigned through that one man, much more will those who receive the abundance of grace and the free gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man Jesus Christ.” Romans 5:12, 17

It must be remembered that there was a supernatural entity, Satan, involved in deceiving Eve and Adam into disobeying God. He is a fallen angel who we are told rebelled against God because he wanted to be God.

Satan is called the “prince of the power of the air” in Ephesians 2:2. He is the “ruler of this world” in John 12:31. These titles and many more signify Satan’s capabilities. To say, for example, that Satan is the “prince of the power of the air” is to signify that in some way he rules over the world and the people in it. This is not to say that he rules the world completely; God is still sovereign. But it does mean that God, in His infinite wisdom, has allowed Satan to operate in this world within the boundaries God has set for him.

We know from Biblical prophecy that all of the O.T. prophets were told that their Messiah would eventually rule Israel (Acts 3:24), the nation God established for His purposes. Almost 2,000 Biblical prophecies are of Jesus’ return to this Earth first to rescue His Saints and pour out His wrath upon an unrepentant world. Jesus then returns to Earth with the glorified Saints to rule and reign the nations with a rod of iron for 1000 years. Satan has ruled this world for 6,000 years but now he is bound in chains for most of the thousand years. He is released at the end of the thousand years and we are told that he is still able to raise an army of rebellious people to come against Jesus and the Saints. Fire from heaven consumes them and it is at this stage God destroys the old heaven and earth. Jesus’ Millennial Kingdom is a transition period.

It is after the second resurrection and the White Throne judgement that John sees a magnificent new Jerusalem descending from a new Heaven onto a new Earth where there will be no more death, disease, pain, or suffering. It will be a restoration (Acts 3:20–21). If death, disease, and suffering have been here since God created life, then it makes no sense that there will be a restoration to a new heaven and earth with no death and suffering.