Bigger than 9-11! Be Ready… – Handmaid of the Most High

Originally posted at 444 PROPHECY NEWS on April 19, 2019

Yesterday, the Lord spoke to me as I prayed about words and visions I have not yet shared on this forum. Instead of writing those, the Lord told me to tell people this.

“The events coming to your land, ‘America the Beautiful’ will be so devastating that those who have not see visions will not be able to comprehend it. Those who have had visions have only seen a small portion of the devastation that is coming. Prepare your hearts my children for you shall see it very soon! It is on the horizon precious little ones and so many of you have been avoiding even considering this. You mistakenly believe that if you hide from this message, that somehow it will pass over you. I tell you once more, you can’t hide from this future cataclysm!

My word has been speaking to this age from the beginning, but you don’t know my word and you sit under willfully ignorant leaders who refuse to teach on it for fear you will run and take the money they covet with you! They have made merchandise of you and you have allowed it and will be accountable as well as them! Do you not know that those false shepherds work for the world system? Do you not realize they will sell you out in a New York minute? Have I not said that Sodom and Gomorrah has NOTHING compared to the revolting practices that your country embraces? I will destroy many of your cities and there is nothing you can do to stop it.

The time of repentance and prayer for your land has ended. I have closed up my ears from hearing the few, who bother to cry out. It is to little and to late. Those crying out mainly operate in fear of me and not out of the true repentance at their dismay and heartbreak over the evil that operates.I know their hearts and they are deceitfully wicked. It is time, my true children, my bride. I know you intimately better than you know yourself. Some hide from their own sins that they do not truly even know their own heart! How is this possible? Some don’t even understand this. I tell you, your sin has blinded you. Those who willfully embrace their sins are not seeing the stain I see when I look at them. It is insidious, the extent of darkness of many souls.

Many who call on me, have no idea who I really am. They think that all is covered in grace. I tell you, you don’t know grace nor understand it. My grace is sufficient. My grace is available for those who truly cry out in repentance. True repentance is turning away from the sin in humility and disgust at how it has corrupted you and others (when applicable).

Do you not know that I don’t play games. If you repent to me on Sunday morning and by Sunday night or Monday morning, you are once again at it, that you have lied to me and yourself? I am not fooled nor am I mocked.

I know that you only mouthed the words as a kind of covering of your nakedness, though you don’t even truly acknowledge your nakedness just as Adam and Eve did not as they hid in the garden after they ate from the forbidden Tree. I saw it, I AM was there. I saw Eve thinking it over before she took that bite. Our connection was forever severed and it took my only son to repair the breach. Oh, how I cried out to my children and again and again, they ignored me. If someone did a scintilla of what my children have done to me, most would experience rage and hate and worse.

Don’t you see? I must allow this devastation for there are many, that are so corrupted, that they can only sow corruption of the worst things imaginable. They are tainting and destroying every thing in their realm. They are infused with the demonic realm and they are dedicated to bringing all (underline please) into the corruption of this day. Woe to all who have stood on the sidelines and said nothing!

My wrath is kindled upon those, who commit these heinous acts and those who remain silent, and most definitely those who cheer them on! I am disgusted and dismayed that I have watched millions upon millions of children be murdered at your abortion mills. There are areas that are so stained with sin, that they must burn to be purified by my Holy Fire, though many will also be covered by water to let the world know that there are no survivors.

While many watch movies like Hunger Games and the many others that pit my children against evil, you have been bereft of praying. How you will respond when gross darkness and its insidious evil rule and reign in your world? No, you waste your time watching all sorts of talk shows and silly shows about fake people on islands matching wits with each other. What idle, lazy children you have become. Your celebrities are your idols. You rely on everyone else and every comfort to take you from one day to the next. Instead of being grateful, you are entitled. You’ve earned it, you say. Not for a moment considering the child slavery that was used to make your latest toy. No, you excuse it saying that can’t happen or that manufacturing company is ethical. Lies yo tell yourself will not negate the truth. You turn a blind eye to justice that is anything but just. You care not for the missing children, many whom are murdered or used in sexual slavery rings that operate here and abroad. You turn a blind eye to nearly all evil. You boast and say I selected your political officials. My have you mocked me with your lies!

You are corrupt in all your ways and I am not begging, I am telling you that you can not inherit my kingdom in your current state! Look at the seven churches in my book, The Revelation to John and you will see that in vain you worship me! Those who are blind, take off that mask! Open your ears, the minutes are numbered and the seconds left in this current state are almost over. I am watching the clock and I am counting the numbers when everything you rely on and expect will be forever changed.

Pray. Ask me and me alone for guidance. Trust in no man to save your soul or tell you the truth but me. I have sent my prophets but they only know in part for I will not reveal all. They have their place as watchman to warn you but they do not know the state of your soul! Time is short. Repent.
END

Please place your trust in the Lord.

Revelation Chapters 1-3
Amos 5:18
Leviticus 18:22

Numbers 23:19
God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good?

Hebrews 4:12
For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerned of the thoughts and intents of the heart.

1 Corinthians 13:9
For we know in part, and we prophesy in part.

When Does God Withdraw His Grace?

by JOSEPH MATTERA



The following is part two of my article "Why Some Have Already Been Judged By the Courts of Heaven, Part I."

The apostle Paul actually says that at a certain point God gives people over to the sinful desires of their hearts, gives people up to their shameful desires and to a depraved mind so that they do what ought not to be done (see Rom. 1:24-29). Consequently, it seems from the above that God actually gets to a point with some people in which He says, "enough is enough—I will give you over to what you want if you continue to persist in your own ways and resist my Holy Spirit." (Thus, the verdict has been cast.)

This is why the writer of the book of Hebrews warns believers "Today, if you will hear His voice, do not harden your hearts" (Heb. 4:7a). Paul said, "knowing the fear of the Lord, we persuade men" (2 Cor. 5:11). Unfortunately, there is a general lack of the fear of the Lord in the body of Christ today. This is true in part because of the recklessness of some of the hyper-grace teachers that say a person can live any way they want because their past, present and future sins have already been forgiven once a person asks Jesus into their hearts. This renders forgiveness and confession of sin unnecessary for anyone post- conversion, in spite of the fact that the apostle John told believers to confess their sins after they were already saved as noted in 1 John 1:8-10.

Paul answered that pernicious posture in principle when he wrote "What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may increase? 2 God forbid! How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it?" (Rom. 6:1-2) and "For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men, teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly desires, we should live soberly, righteously, and in godliness in this present world, as we await the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from all lawlessness and purify for Himself a special people, zealous of good works" (Rom. 6:1-2; Titus 2:11-14).

To summarize, the apostolic writings of the New Testament teach believers that the proof of grace is that we are eager to live godly and pure lives, not as a license to sin, as the apostle Jude also warned us against when he wrote "they are ungodly men, who pervert the grace of our God into immorality and deny the only Lord God and our Lord Jesus Christ" (Jude 4).

Getting back to the main point, I am not sure what all these "dualists" do with the above New Testament passages since they align with the Old Covenant ways of God who rendered a final verdict from heaven regarding physically alive sinners on the earth in several instances, including when He decided to bring the flood upon the earth (see Gen. 6:6-8, and judge the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah; see Gen. 18:20,21;19:13-25).

Since Jesus is the image of the invisible God who changes not (Col. 1:15; Heb. 13:8) and reflects exactly the express nature and being of God (Heb. 1:1-3), He demonstrated His justice and holiness when He rendered a verdict on some even before they passed away physically. (If you don't believe me, see Revelation 2:21, where it says He gave someone time to repent and when they chose not to, He rendered a verdict upon them and decided their judgment—which may possibly include eternal judgment as well as earthly suffering and pain.)

The writer of Proverbs has an ominous warning that is in line with the above:

Then they will call on me, but I will not answer; they will seek me early, but they will not find me. Because they hated knowledge and did not choose the fear of the Lord, they would have none of my counsel and despised all my reproof. Therefore they will eat of the fruit of their own way, and be filled with their own devices (Prov. 1:28-31).

Consequently, there are such acts of disobedience and hearts so hardened in a people that they cross an invisible line which is why God told Jeremiah not even to pray for certain people (See Jer. 7:16,11:14,15:1). These passages sound a lot like 1 John 5:15-16, don't they?

Finally, the apostle Paul makes the point of this article abundantly clear when he said, "Some men's sins are evident, pointing to judgment, but other men's sins are revealed later" (1 Tim. 5:24).

The above passage is as clear as tar on snow regarding the fact that temporal and eternal verdicts are rendered before a person passes away from the scene on earth.

I cannot end this troubling article without a great caution to all readers. Although I stand by the above, I never take the position that God is finished with someone or that His eternal verdict has already been cast. Only one time in my life did God stop me from praying for an individual because He showed me they would die because they refused to repent (consequently, my friend died within six months of the word I sensed in my heart). However, even in that case, it had to do with a physical death so their spirit would be saved (see 1 Cor. 5:5). So even when God takes a believer's life prematurely, it is often an act of mercy to keep them from further sin and unbelief so their spirit will be saved eternally.

Since we do not have the full mind of God, we are not called to proclaim eternal judgment on anybody, even as Paul says, "I do not even judge myself. ... Therefore judge nothing before the appointed time until the Lord comes. He will bring to light the hidden things of darkness and will reveal the purposes of the hearts" (1 Cor. 4:3b-5a).

The purpose of this article is not for us to judge others, but to motivate us to walk in the fear of the Lord (Prov. 1:7, 3:7). Truly, "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding" (Prov. 1:10).

May the Lord visit His church again with a healthy dose of the fear of the Lord, and may we never take advantage of the amazing grace of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Dr. Joseph Mattera is an internationally known author, interpreter of culture and activist/theologian whose mission is to influence leaders who influence nations. He is renowned for addressing current events through the lense of Scripture by applying biblical truths and offering cogent defenses to today's postmodern culture. He leads several organizations, including The United Coalition of Apostolic Leaders (uscal.us). He also has a blog on Charisma News called "The Pulse." To order one of his books or to subscribe to his weekly newsletter go to josephmattera.org.

Why Some Have Already Been Judged By the Courts of Heaven, Part I

by Dr. Joseph Mattera

I realize that some of my posts will not win the “Dale Carnegie” award that wins friends and influences people (at least the win friends part!). This is one of those posts.

People often ask me how I write, and I tell them that I sense a prophetic download or witness in my spirit on what to write and I just spontaneously write without often knowing detail of what I am going to say until my hand taps the computer; hence, I am not merely writing posts based on current events to get the most hits. I write based on what I sense the Lord has laid upon my heart—whether or not it is popular, because I always endeavor to write to an audience of ONE.

One more thing – lest someone who reads this thinks I am an extreme Arminian (who thinks believers can be saved and lost every day based on their walk) think again—I write this as one who considers himself a “soft” Calvinist (although I refuse to wear a particular doctrine or denomination on my shirtsleeves except the Lordship of Christ overall) when it comes to soteriology and or individual salvation. (How the following can fit in a so-called Calvinistic system is for another article, not this brief missive.)

HOW SOME HAVE ALREADY BEEN JUDGED BY THE COURTS OF HEAVEN

The bible makes it clear to us that all of us – Christian or non-Christian, will one day stand before the Judgment seat of Christ. For the believer it has to do with rewards for their works (1 Corinthians 3:10-15; 2 Corinthians 5:10) and for the unbeliever they will judged according to their works without Christ as their righteousness (Revelation 20:11-20).

The above passages make it seem as though verdicts have been rendered only after a person dies –however, other passages relate the fact that to a certain extent, verdicts have been rendered even before a person dies (perhaps not the full extent of rewards or punishments but a general verdict regarding their eternal fate—even before they pass away from the scene).

The Passages to study

Jesus said in the Gospel of John 5:24 that true believers HAVE ALREADY passed from death unto life. Consequently, if a believer in Christ has already passed unto life before they physically die—is it possible that some have already been condemned even though they are still physically alive?

In John 3:18, Jesus says “whoever believes in Him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe STANDS CONDEMNED ALREADY, because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son.”

Of course, we all at one time were in this state of unbelief and under condemnation, and by God’s grace eventually believed and were saved from His wrath—but the point of this is that legal standing with God is rendered while we are still alive – not after we die. (See also John 3:36.)

How about divine decisions regarding specific people being made regarding eternity?

The Apostle John said that it is possible that some people have sinned the sin unto death while they are still alive, perhaps even rending it meaningless for prayers to be offered up for them (See 1 John 5:16,17).

Scholars are divided over whether this has to do with a person committing spiritual death which is akin to the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit (which is the unpardonable sin which has to do with rejecting the Lord Jesus; see Matthew 12:32 in which Jesus said will their sins will not be forgiven IN THIS AGE OR THE ONE TO COME) or physical death. (See Acts 5:1-11; 1 Corinthians 5:5; 11:30-32 for an example of premature physical death.)

The point is – a person can get to a place on the earth wherein their sin and or disobedience is so great that the courts of Heaven render a decision regarding their fate even before they die physically. This is why it says, “The Lord will Judge His people” and “it is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God” (Hebrews 10:30,31).

Unfortunately, there are some dualistic preachers who focus on a truncated view of the goodness of God that compromises the plain teachings of the New Testament. Yes of Course, God is good, and the fullness of Grace has been manifest by Jesus—not by Moses (John 1:17); however, the penalty for rejecting truth is much more severe in the New Covenant than in the Old Covenant. (If you don’t believe me please see Hebrews 10:26-29.)

As a matter of fact, some mature believers who have tasted the fullness of the Word and Spirit and the power of the world to come who fall away CANNOT be brought back to repentance since they have crucified afresh the Son of God again in their heart -HENCE THE VERDICT HAS ALREADY BEEN GIVEN! (You don’t believe me -please read Hebrews 6:1-8.)

This is why the apostle Peter says that mature believers who have overcome the world and again fall away would have been better off if they HAD NOT BEEN BORN! (Read 2 Peter 2:20-22.) However, please note – this passage is not referring to new, immature believers who have always struggled like the Prodigal son of Luke 15, the pre-resurrection apostle Peter, the carnal Christians of 1 Corinthians 3 and the lapsed saints alluded to in Galatians 6:1,2.

Read more here:: Joseph Mattera

Dr. Joseph Mattera is an internationally known author, interpreter of culture and activist/theologian whose mission is to influence leaders who influence nations. He is renowned for addressing current events through the lense of Scripture by applying biblical truths and offering cogent defenses to today's postmodern culture. He leads several organizations, including The United Coalition of Apostolic Leaders (uscal.us). He also has a blog on Charisma News called "The Pulse." To order one of his books or to subscribe to his weekly newsletter go to josephmattera.org.

BRAZIL REVIVAL - ONGOING SINCE 1940

2010- Exponential Growth: About 27% (57.4 million) of Brazil 209 million population are evangelical Christians from less than 3% in 1940 according to SEPAL (Servicio Evangelizador Para America Latina) a respected Christian organization in Brazil

THE GREAT PYONGYANG REVIVAL

VISION: EAGLES ADVISE

20th July 2018

I saw some leaders who had found rapid success in their ministries. These had gained some fame among the people. Now cash rich, they stood in various architects’ offices seeking advice. All these offices were on the top-most floor of the skyscrapers and the views were spectacular.

These ‘flush-with-recent-success’ leaders, had ambitions for the biggest. The architects were advising them to commit all their assets into building big.

They paused and thought on all the glory, ‘building big’ would bring them.

Their near and dear ones had alerted these leaders of the change that had come over them and how the stench of pride was emanating from them.

These leaders paid no heed.

Suddenly, every leader in whichever top-storey offices they were in, stood still and gazed at the window. Perched on the sill was an eagle.

“ I have come to advise you not to build big, rather divide your resources and build four small, rather than one big”.

“What assets do you have, Mr Eagle? Do you have name, do you have fame? Do you have assets? Do you even have a mortgage-free home of your own? I do. And pray tell me, since when have eagles become financial advisers? Go mind your own business,” said the leader and turned his back to the window.

The leader only half heard the eagle’s response and turned to the large bird at the window and shouted, “ What did you say, what did you say? White what? White what?”

“ You racist eagle!”

The eagle repeated what he had said, but the leader heard it not. The background noises had increased and the leader had neither time nor inclination to listen to the eagle.

These leaders I saw in this vision forgot that it was God who had connected them with select people, and through divine connections and collaborations God had given them great success. They even forgot that some time  ago the Lord had said to them what the eagles had repeated.

Some of these leaders went ahead and spent all their assets to build that one ‘big’ thing, rejecting the advise of the eagles, because it came not from ‘market experts’.

Thereafter, over a short period of time, their resources dried up. The connections and collaborations, were no more profitable as they had been. These collaborators completely separated from the leaders after a set season, and all fruitful connections dried up.

Now the upkeep and maintenance of that one big thing in which they had poured all their assets, was draining them.

The ‘big’ thing had become a white elephant.

I understood that this was the time when the arrogance of some leaders would lead them to ignore advise, because it came not from ‘market experts.’

This was the time when the arrogant would invest in white elephants.

Yet, amongst these leaders had been a few, who had reacted differently.

These few had left their architect’s office in a rage. They were livid that the eagles had advised them. They had decided there and then, that they would neither take a decision about spending their assets nor take the eagle’s advise.

“ Take financial advise, from eagles? Bah!” They muttered to themselves.

As these few entered the elevator, to their utter amazement upon the mirror was written 1 Peter 5:6.

None of the other passengers in the elevator, saw it.

These leaders hastened home, and fell prostrate on the floor and cried out to God.

They did not want to ever do anything for name and fame and fortune for themselves. “ Lord You be Glorified,” they said.

These few did not invest in one ‘big’ thing, they prayerfully divided their assets into four separate investments.

They sought God’s guidance and prepared accordingly. Neither the ceasing of profitable collaborations nor the drying up of fruitful connections affected their investments.

They continued to serve God.

Swarna Jha

Bombay-India

Ezekiel 17:24
24 And all the trees of the field shall know that I the Lord have brought down the high tree, have exalted the low tree, have dried up the green tree, and have made the dry tree to flourish: I the Lord have spoken and have done it.

Isaiah 48:17
17 Thus saith the Lord, thy Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel; I am the Lord thy God which teacheth thee to profit, which leadeth thee by the way that thou shouldest go.

The Battle For Purity with Havilah Cunnington

How King Solomon Became the Original 'Lawless One'—and Model for the Antichrist

4/12/2019 MARK BILTZ



When it comes to truly decoding the Antichrist, we need to realize that the discovery of who or what the Antichrist will be is not nearly as important as understanding why—the motivating purpose behind why he has come. The Bible speaks of how the children of Israel knew God's acts, but Moses knew God's ways, meaning he understood why God does what He does.

There are many types or shadows of Messiah in the Old Testament—Adam, Isaac, Moses, David and Jonah come to mind. Most Christians consider King Solomon another type of Messiah. Surely someone like him would unite both Christians and Jews. Typically, our understanding of Solomon includes how wise, wealthy and famous he was and how he was able to transport Israel to the pinnacle of its existence. The whole world came to Solomon, admiring him and bringing him gifts. Israel was at the top of its game during his reign.

While many consider Solomon a type of Messiah, if we look closer at the details within Scripture, we might find we have been deceived. But wait, didn't he bring peace to the Middle East? Yes. This peace enabled him to accomplish great things, such as the building of the temple. The daunting question that must be asked is, why has it gone downhill for Israel ever since? I believe it is because Solomon compromised the Word of God for peace.

The Antichrist will be equally deceptive. The world will cry out for a messiah like King Solomon to solve the problems in the Middle East. Peace in our time! How could he not be admired? But will we find out we too have been deceived?

This may come as a shock to many, but what would you say if I told you the Antichrist, or lawless one, is going to appear similar to King Solomon in many ways? Pick your chin up off the floor and follow me on an eye-opening adventure of discovering why so many people will be deceived in the last days. My prayer is that the great deception descending upon the world today will not catch you unaware.

Solomon's Sins

God never intended for the children of Israel to be ruled by a human king. He was to be their King, but not as we have come to understand kingship. The Hebrew term translated as "king" is melech. A melech is a king whose subjects voluntarily choose to serve him out of a loving relationship. God is the great Melech of the entire universe, and He was upset and hurt that Israel rejected Him as their Melech and wanted to have a king like all the other nations (1 Sam. 8:5).

The tragic story of Israel's rejection of God as their Melech/King is truly heartbreaking, as you see the Creator of the universe humbling Himself. While God told Samuel to listen to the voice of the people, He told him to first warn them about how a worldly king would rule over them and what he would do: "This will be the judgment concerning the king who will reign over you: Your sons he will take in order to place them for himself in his chariots and as his horsemen, and they will run before his chariot" (1 Sam. 8:11). Samuel warned them that they would have to plow the king's ground and "gather in his harvest, and to make his weapons of war and the equipment of his chariots" (v. 12b).

The first two kings of Israel, Saul and David, did not fulfill these prophetic warnings, but note the similarities between what God had warned in 1 Samuel 8 and what Solomon did. In 1 Kings 9:22b we find that Solomon used the Israelites "as men of war, as his servants, his leaders, his captains, rulers of his chariots, and his horsemen." Sound familiar?

In 1 Kings 12:4a, we find the details of Solomon's rule directly from his former subjects. They are pleading with Solomon's son Rehoboam for a lighter rule than Solomon had subjected them to, saying, "Your father made our yoke unbearable."

Later, Rehoboam responds, "My father made your yoke heavy and ... chastised you with scorpions" (v. 14b).

When I first grasped this, I was shocked! This was not the Solomon I had grown up hearing about. Yes, King Solomon was full of both wisdom and power, but we also know wisdom and power inevitably go to one's head.

In Deuteronomy 17:20, any future king of Israel is specifically instructed not to allow his heart to be lifted up above others or to think he doesn't need to keep God's law. Solomon was given much wisdom, but he forgot who gave it to him. He allowed his heart to be lifted up after he obtained riches for himself through his wisdom.

Leviticus 4:22–23 mentions that if a king sinned through ignorance and was guilty of violating any of the commandments of the Lord, when he realized his mistake, he was mandated to bring a sin offering. According to verse 24, he was even required to lay his very own hand on the head of the goat as he slaughtered it. Even though he was a king, he couldn't simply pass this duty off to a servant. The Torah required him to perform this sacrifice personally.

And that's not all; the king's sin offering was to be completed at the brazen altar where everyone else fulfilled his sacrificial duties. God, in all His wisdom, didn't allow a king to have a private altar of his own in his private courtyard. He was required to complete his sacrifice to the Lord publicly, thereby informing virtually every one of his subjects that he had sinned through ignorance, so that his heart would not be lifted up above his people or above the Word of God.

In light of this, let's see how well Solomon obeyed. We will take a look at a few more of the Torah's unique requirements for the king and see how well Solomon followed God's Word. Surely Solomon wouldn't think he was above the Law, would he?

Solomon multiplied horses and was an international arms trader.

According to the Torah in Deuteronomy 17:16, God demanded that the king was not to increase the number of horses he possessed or make the people return to Egypt to increase his horses. Yet we find in 1 Kings 4:26 that "Solomon had forty thousand stalls of horses for his chariots and twelve thousand horsemen." It goes on to say in 1 Kings 10:26 that Solomon had 1,400 chariots.

Not only did Solomon disregard God's Word about not increasing the number of his horses, but he also purchased them from Egypt, which God specifically said not to do. Furthermore, the chariots imported from Egypt cost 600 shekels of silver, and a horse cost 150 shekels. Here's the most incredible part: they exported these horses and chariots to the kings of the Hittites and Syria (1 Kings 10:28-29).

Did you catch the significance of the last sentence? In Deuteronomy 7:1-2, the Lord specifically commanded that after He brought the Israelites into the land, they were not to make any covenants with the indigenous Canaanites. The Hittites were No. 1 on the list of seven nations He specified in particular. Yet Solomon was acting as an arms merchant selling weapons directly to Israel's enemies. Despite all of Solomon's wisdom, there aren't many actions the leader of any free country could take that are dumber than that.

Solomon had multiple wives and also married foreign wives.

Deuteronomy 17:17 says the king was not to multiply wives for himself, as his heart might turn away from serving God. And in Deuteronomy 7, God stated that they were not to marry any foreigners because they would turn their sons away from following Him to serve other gods. Yet we find in 1 Kings 11:3 that Solomon "had seven hundred wives who were princesses and three hundred concubines, and his wives turned his heart away."

Completely disregarding God's instructions, King Solomon loved many foreign women—the daughter of Pharaoh and women of the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Sidonians and Hittites—all the nations with which the Lord had told the children of Israel not to intermarry (see 1 Kings 11). Even if it was Solomon's way of securing peace with neighboring countries, it was still a direct affront to God's commands. He achieved peace but at a very expensive cost.

Solomon multiplied gold and silver.

In His warning in Deuteronomy 17, God also told the Israelites that their king must not "greatly multiply to himself silver and gold." However, 1 Kings 10:21 tells us, "All of King Solomon's drinking cups were made of gold." He had a fleet of ships, and every three years they brought in gold and silver, plus ivory, apes and peacocks (v. 22).

Guess what the rate of gold was that came to Solomon every year? It was 666 talents (1 Kings 10:14). The number 666 is found only twice in the Bible—once with reference to Solomon's gold trade and wisdom and once with reference to the Antichrist (Rev. 13:18).

Solomon was to write his own personal copy of the Torah.

In Deuteronomy 17, God declared that when the king sits on the throne of his kingdom, he is required to write for himself a copy of the Law in a book, from the one that is before the priests, the Levites. He does not only read it but also writes it, so he will be more likely to ingest God's Word and to incorporate God's Law into his heart.

The king could not have someone else write it for him. Since the priesthood was separate from the kingship, the Levitical priests served as a check to the king. They were supposed to hold the king's feet to the fire. Someone would be looking over his shoulder as he wrote his own copy from the original, ensuring he would not make errors or try to alter it. They would also be there to answer any questions the king might have.

There is a fascinating story in ancient Jewish literature from over 2,000 years ago that states that when Solomon wrote his own personal copy of the Law, he decided he was wise enough to be God's editor and make some editorial changes to God's Word.

Furthermore, when Jesus said in Matthew 5:18 that not one jot or tittle would ever pass from the law, it was a direct assault on King Solomon! The jot refers to the smallest letter of the Hebrew alphabet, known as the letter yud, which is equivalent to our letter y. The story goes that when Solomon was writing his Torah scroll and came across the words in Deuteronomy 17:17 (KJV), "Neither shall he multiply wives to himself, that his heart turn not away," he skipped the first letter of the word, the letter yud. That changes the phrase from "He shall not multiply" to "He did not multiply."

Solomon changed the tense of the verb! By changing the tense, it was no longer an imperative not to multiply wives, but rather a statement implying that his multiplication of wives would not lead his heart astray because he was so wise.

Of that change, a famous ancient midrash says, "At that time the letter ... went up to heaven and prostrated itself before God and said, 'Master of the universe! Didn't you say that no letter should ever be abolished from the Torah? Behold Solomon has now arisen and abolished one. Who knows? Today he has abolished one letter, tomorrow he will abolish another until the whole Torah will be nullified!' God replied, 'Solomon and a thousand like him will pass away, but the smallest tittle will not be erased from you.'"

This historical writing about Solomon existed long before Jesus spoke about not having one jot or tittle passing from the Law, so it is probable that His comment was a reference to this story, and His audience was aware of it.

Solomon built pagan altars rather than destroying them.

In Deuteronomy 7:5, God tells the Israelites they must destroy the idolatrous nations' altars, break down their sacred pillars, cut down their wooden images, and burn their carved images with fire. Yet in 1 Kings 11:7 (MEV), we find that Solomon built a "high place for Chemosh, the abomination of Moab, in the hill that is close to Jerusalem, and for Molek, the abomination of the children of Ammon."

Solomon's actions affected many future generations. Not only did his own sons turn from God as the Scriptures said would happen, but his future generations also followed Grandpa Solomon's folly.

It's sobering to put ourselves in King Solomon's shoes and consider that sometimes when everything seems to be going well in our lives, it may not be the result of God's blessing but His abandonment.

In Jeremiah 12:1b, the prophet claims the Lord is righteous but still questions God's judgments by begging the question "Why does the way of the wicked prosper?" King David also addressed this issue in Psalm 73:3 when he stated the ungodly are the ones who prosper in the world and increase in riches.

I am not saying this is true of all people who prosper. It's just that when we are prospering, it doesn't necessarily mean God is favoring us. We could be in a slippery place, and we had better be giving God the glory for "our" successes. Solomon, though, took the credit for his own success.

The Lawless One

So let's summarize what we have learned about Solomon. In spite of being beloved by God, blessed by God, and given abundant wisdom, fame, fortune, power and authority, Solomon thanked God by doing the following:

Multiplying his number of wives

Marrying foreign wives

Building more than a thousand pagan altars in and around Jerusalem, including within the temple precincts

Instituting human sacrifice on those very altars, murdering his firstborn children to pagan gods

Multiplying silver, gold and horses to himself

Selling arms to enemies and terrorists

Making covenants with forbidden foreign nations

Exalting himself above his brethren

Thumbing his nose at God and thinking he was above God's Law

This is the type of king the world is seeking to bring peace to the Middle East? No wonder many will be deceived.

Instead of trying to figure out who the Antichrist will be, we need to study what he will be like. Solomon was a total narcissist, and the Antichrist will be as well. Solomon had it all—power, wealth and fame—yet he was completely miserable.

Prophetically, I see all this unfolding again. Remember that prophetic patterns repeat themselves over and over in history. Haman was an Amalekite. His ancestry even showed he was from the royal line of Agag, the king of Amalek.

In Exodus 17:16, after the initial battle with Amalek, God states that from generation to generation He will have war with Amalek. This means that in every generation, there will be a nation wanting to destroy Israel or the Jewish people. Hitler was the Amalek of his day, and today we have the Amalek leaders of Iran proudly boasting of their desire to destroy Israel.

I believe historical patterns will be repeated in other aspects as well. Someone who will seem to be wiser than everyone else will try to achieve a false peace by entering into ungodly covenants with all the foreign nations. He will try to achieve a land-for-peace agreement in Israel, thinking it wiser to cut the baby in half and create two nations as two people groups are claiming the land of Israel as their own. This will only result in killing the baby that is alive!

This ungodly leader will have no regard for God's covenants with Israel, believing the covenants have been done away with, have been replaced or have already been fulfilled, and it is now time for a new era.

Hopefully by now, you have a different perspective on Solomon and can see how deceptively godly someone can appear if you do not have an accurate biblical perspective.

Mark Biltz is an author, commentator and the founder of El Shaddai Ministries.

4 Ways Antichrist Will Deceive Just as Solomon Did

4:00PM EDT 4/1/2019 MARK BILTZ

The Old Testament shows many shadows of the Messiah—Adam, Isaac, Moses, David—and most Christians would add Solomon to that list. Surely someone like him would unite both Christians and Jews, says author and pastor Mark Biltz.

But in his newest book, Decoding the Antichrist and the End Times: What the Bible Says and What the Future Holds, Biltz writes that typically our understanding of Solomon includes how wise he was, how famous he was, his incredible wealth and how Israel was at the top of its game during his reign.

"But if we look closer at the details within Scripture, we might find we have been deceived!" he says. "But didn't he bring peace to the Middle East? Yes. This peace enabled him to accomplish great things, such as the building of the temple. But then why has it gone downhill for Israel ever since? I believe it is because Solomon compromised the Word of God for peace.

"The Antichrist will be equally deceptive," Biltz continued. "The world will cry out for a messiah like King Solomon to solve the problems in the Middle East. But I believe the Antichrist will appear similar to King Solomon in many ways."

For example, Solomon had all the power, all the wealth and all the fame to advance the kingdom of God, but he chose to advance his own kingdom instead. He allowed his heart to be lifted up after he obtained riches for himself, as told in Ezekiel 28:1-7.

"God had given specific instructions in the Torah for Israel's king," Biltz said. "God held the king to a higher standard just so he would not think of himself as better than others and turn from God's commands as stated in Deuteronomy 17. Surely Solomon wouldn't think he was above the Law, would he?"

Biltz outlines some of the deceptions carried out by Solomon:

1. Solomon multiplied horses and was an international arms trader.

According to Deuteronomy 17:16, God demanded that the king was not to increase his number of horses or make the people return to Egypt to increase his horses. Yet we find in 1 Kings 4:26 that "Solomon had forty thousand stalls of horses for his chariots and twelve thousand horsemen."

Then, verse 27 says that through their agents he exported these horses and chariots to all the kings of the Hittites and the kings of Syria. Solomon was acting as an arms merchant selling weapons directly to Israel's enemies.

2. Solomon had multiple wives and married foreign wives.

Deuteronomy 17:17 says the king was not to multiply wives for himself. Yet in 1 Kings 11:3, Solomon "had seven hundred wives who were princess and three hundred concubines, and his wives turned his heart away" (1 Kings 11:3).

Solomon also married foreign women, which God said not to do. According to his wisdom, what better way to secure peace than by marrying the daughters of foreign kings? But it was a direct affront to God's commands. He achieved peace at a very expensive cost. How will the Antichrist achieve peace? Will it be according to God's law or through political means?

3. Solomon multiplied silver and gold.

In His warning in Deuteronomy 17, God also told the Israelites that their king must not "greatly multiply to himself silver and gold." However, 1 Kings 10:22 says Solomon had a fleet of ships, and every three years they brought in gold, silver, ivory, apes and peacocks.

1 Kings 10:25 says everything that came into Solomon's kingdom was at a specific rate. And the weight of gold that came to Solomon in one year was 666 talents (verse 14)—a man associated with both wisdom and the number 666. The number 666 is found only twice in the Bible, once referring to Solomon's gold trade and wisdom and once referring to the Antichrist.

4. Solomon built pagan altars rather than destroying them.

Deuteronomy 7:5 highlights how the Israelites were commanded to destroy their enemy's altars, break down their sacred pillars, cut down their wooden images and burn their carved images. But in 1 Kings 11, we see that Solomon built a "high place for Chemosh, the abomination of Moab, in the hill that is close to Jerusalem, and for Molek, the abomination of the children of Ammon" (v. 7). Verse 8 says he did this for all his foreign wives, "who burned incense and sacrificed to their gods."

"Solomon had obtained all the fame, riches and power, yet he considered all of his life's actions to be in vain, including the building of the temple," Biltz said. "This is because he felt it was all about himself! He had to be the 'narcissist in chief.'

"Is this the type of king the world is seeking to bring peace to the Middle East?" he continued. "No wonder many will be deceived. Instead of trying to figure out who the Antichrist will be, we need to study what he will be like. Solomon was a total narcissist, and the Antichrist will be as well. I believe historical patterns will also be repeated in other aspects. Someone who will seem to be wiser than everyone else will try to achieve a false peace by entering into ungodly covenants with all the foreign nations. He will try to achieve a land for peace agreement in Israel, thinking it wiser to cut the baby in half and create two nations as two people groups are claiming the land of Israel as their own. This will only result in killing the baby that is alive! We must not be deceived."

Decoding the Antichrist and the End Times takes an in-depth look at some of the deepest questions surrounding the Antichrist, such as the following:

What does the Bible say about the Antichrist's tactics and his motivation?

Will he be a Muslim, a Jew or a professed Christian—or something else?

Will the Antichrist work through modern technology to seize control?

Mark Biltz is founder of El Shaddai Ministries and a well-known and popular commentator on the feasts of the Lord. In fact, he has produced a series of DVDs on the feasts that have gone around the world. Biltz is also the author of Blood Moons and God's Day Timer. His research and theories have led to guest appearances on both radio and television as well as being featured on the covers of magazines.

Mark Biltz: Why Parents Will Run to Get the Mark of the Beast for Their Kids

4/12/2019 STEPHEN STRANG

The Bible has much to say about the end times. And if you've been watching the news, you may be wondering if we're in those prophesied last days. In many ways, it seems the evil in our culture and across the world is getting worse and worse. Are all these wars, political scandals and natural disasters coming to a head now? Is the Antichrist about to introduce the mark of the beast?

I recently discussed this topic with Pastor Mark Biltz for my "In Depth With Stephen Strang" podcast, which you can listen to here or at the end of the article. Biltz has been studying the Scriptures from a Jewish perspective to decode the end times and the Antichrist's future system. He says many Christians have a false sense of confidence that they will never take the mark of the beast. The mark the Antichrist chooses, he points out, will be extremely enticing.

"I think parents are going to run for the mark of the beast," Biltz says. "They're going to want it because it's going to be so tempting. It's not going to be some ugly thing. It's going to be something that will let you access the internet with your thoughts. So I think people will be deceived because they're going to be passionate about the things of this world."

Biltz writes about his findings in his new book, Decoding the Antichrist, which I've had the privilege to publish through Charisma House. Early sales have already far exceeded our expectations, indicating the book will be a huge success. One point he made in our interview, which he talks more in depth about in his book, is that artificial intelligence will likely play a huge role in creating the mark of the beast—and perhaps even the Antichrist himself.

"In this age of artificial intelligence, some are wondering if the Antichrist might be some kind of super-intelligent hybrid human cyborg that will want to be worshipped," he says. "Top experts are warning us of the malicious use of artificial intelligence."

Biltz is right; artificial intelligence is advancing at a frightening pace. After all, Google keeps track of more than just what you research online. It tracks where you've been, what you order and even what you do. Just recently, Google gave me a weekly update on everywhere I've been. Even though the report wasn't harmful, it still concerned me that a computer was keeping such detailed track of me. Who's to say an evil person or organization can't use such powerful technology to harm God's people?

"When it comes to this artificial intelligence, what's really creepy is the driverless cars they have now that will drive for you because of GPS," Biltz says. "They're creating a computer that's driving your car, and they're giving it a moral artificial intelligence. If you're in the back seat and that car is driving, and a deer runs in front of your car, the computer has to know: 'Do I hit the deer? Do I swerve and hit the two pedestrians? Or do I take the driver down the cliff?' So they're creating a moral intelligence for these computer systems."

But whether or not the Antichrist will use artificial intelligence to persecute believers and take control, Biltz says he will still use other methods to deceive people.

"The apostle John declared that there were many Antichrists at his time," Biltz explains. "But what was interesting is that he said they came out from among us, as if they were a type of professing Christian. And Paul says Satan comes as an angel of light and his ministers are ministers of righteousness. ... He wants to come across as a believer, which will be very deceptive. We have to know [the Antichrist's] modus operandi. I think he's going to have very flowery language. I think he's going to be solid, wealthy, famous and powerful.

Biltz says his message is resonating with people across the world. His El Shaddai Ministries church in Tacoma, Washington, represents a wide variety of ethnic groups and Christian denominations. And his online congregation is even more diverse—the 250,000 people who watch Biltz's church service online come from over 30 nations.

"I couldn't [draw this crowd,]" he says. "This is why I know it has to be a God thing. We have all the different cultures, different countries, wanting to come back to the original. And for me, that's pretty exciting."

Preaching That Hinders Revival by Richard Owen Roberts (2002)

by Richard Owen Roberts (2002)

Repentance must always begin in the house of God. Doubtless the best place for it to start is with those who preach. Let us examine some errors of preaching that stand in the way of revival.

1) Preaching that is Man-Centered

All of us, by our very own nature, are lovers of self more than lovers of righteousness. True gospel preaching exposes the wickedness of this self- oriented being and calls its hearers to radical conversion. It is only through a genuine Christian conversion that a thorough change of heart and life occurs, enabling one to keep the great commandments of Christ: loving God with one’s heart, soul, mind and strength and love his neighbor as himself (Mark 12:29-31).

Man-centered preaching cannot result in radical conversion. Tragically, the preaching which characterizes much of today's pulpit activity wallows in the weakness of pandering to perceive needs — needs which are normally different from true needs. For instance, many of those who are clamoring for acceptance really need repentance, and multitudes that come to church for comfort need to be severely discomforted and awakened out of their harmful slumbering.

In a day when multitudes have overloaded on self-love, man-centered preaching only fortifies man in the state of being lost. It may be add a measure of religion to his life, even a scripture assurance of faith to which he hopelessly clings, but it does not bring those who hear into a saving relationship with Jesus Christ.

Every preacher is in danger of telling his people what they want to hear. The motives for doing so are numerous, including bigger paychecks, greater applause, and hassle-free circumstances. If the preacher is called by men, he may sensibly give those who called him what they want, but what if the preacher so called by God? How can he dare to speak less than all the truth of God?

Every true revival constitutes a return of God’s people. Thus, any preaching that is not God-centered — that does not life up and exalt the God of the Bible above all else, calling all to return to Him — will prove to be a distinct hindrance to revival. May God have mercy and deliver each of us from this obstacle.


2) Preaching that is Timid

What happened to the fearless preachers whose fiery denunciations of sin and awesome warnings of impending doom used to grip the land? Are we too advanced a culture to be affected by prophets of God or are the men who think themselves called of God too timid to tell the truth?

I remember that old Sunday school song: "Dare to be Daniel to stand alone! Dare to have a purpose firm! Dare to make it known!"

Do you dare to be Daniel? Are you prepared to face your den of lions unafraid? Are you boldly standing, even if all alone? Are your purposes firmly set? Do all who you know to what you are unhesitatingly and compromisingly committed?

Do you dare to resist the clock-watchers who are vastly more committed to keeping the services short than to the prosperity of Christ's Kingdom?

Do you dare to stand against the unregenerate leaders in your church, calling them to repentance and faith, even when they are scheming your departure?

Do you dare to insist that the wealthy and prestigious must follow the same path of surrender and devotion to Jesus Christ as the poor and down-trodden?

Do you dare to preach against the favorite sins of your congregation or is you preaching fashionable and acceptable to the unrepentant Christ-haters among your people?

Do you dare to live a life of godly simplicity and open holiness before your watching world?

Does the daring of Daniel mark your daily devotions? Does the courage of Christ characterize your Christian walk? Does the fearless passion of a post-Pentecost Peter power your preaching?

Christians without courage are a strange and pathetic contradiction and a constant hindrance to revival.

3) Preaching That Evokes Strange Fire

In Leviticus ten the disturbing story is told of Nadam and Abihu who introduced "strange fire" into the midst of the work of God. This incident occurred at the time of the inauguration of the Aaronic priesthood and at a time when fire came out from before the Lord and consumed the burnt offering. Prompted by pride and lack of self-control, these brothers grievously offended the Lord with their "strange fire" and were themselves consumed by fire from the same source that burned up the sacrifice.

"Strange fire" represents all those acts and activities of men in ministry that emanate from their own proud hearts and undisciplined spirits. The worship and service of God is under the control and authority of God Himself. The scriptures guide and govern the entire life and ministry of the church. God has spoken and men are not at liberty to introduce their ideas and ways into His work. True men of God spend their primary time and energy finding and following God's desires as He has revealed them in the Bible. Proud and undisciplined men think they do God service by introducing new ways and means and means into the life of the church. In recent years an almost unbelievable host of innovations have appeared. Many of them are now accepted as if they were a part of divine revelation.

Face the fact! Every arrogant act in the church and every undisciplined addition to its ways is a hindrance to revival. God may yet send His fire to consume these men, but how much better would it be for them to repent and return to the Lord now.

4)   Preaching that is Self-Exalting

Some preachers love fine-tuned words and phrases more than divine truth, and symmetry of sermon construction more than the welfare of their auditors. What a tragedy that preaching, which was devised by God as an instrument of salvation for those who believe, should be one of the greatest possible hindrances to the progress of the gospel in ordinary times and to revival in times of great apostasy.

Certainly there is beauty in carefully arranged words — the Beatitudes of Matthew file are an outstanding example of this as is the love chapter of 1 Corinthians 13 but beauty is turned into ugliness when the motive is impression rather than the glory of God.

Sir, does the way you prepare and preach hinder revival? Which receives the greatest attention: the ornamentation of your words and phrases, or prayer for empowerment from the Holy Spirit? Which is your greater focus: exciting pleasure in the people and praise for the preacher, or reducing the unrepentant to tears of contrition and repentance? After which does your heart clamor: the pleasure of knowing that your sermons have been remarkably good, or joy in seeing your people radically affected by the truth of God?

5)  Preaching that is Non-Doctrinal

A pathetic wave of biblical ignorance has swept through the contemporary church. Much if the wind behind the wave is generated by the grossly erroneous preachers who frown on doctrinal preaching and from whose unsanctified lips emerge such impious frothing as, "Don't preach doctrine! It divides!" Of course it divides! It is intended to divide! It was never God's plan to have more goats than sheep in His flock! And yet that is precisely what has happened in multitudes of churches.

While the scriptures clearly indicate that there will be tares scattered throughout the fields of grain, and some goats lurking amidst the flocks of sheep, the biblical picture is not the prevailing image of this day. Instead, the tares vastly outnumber the wheat and the goats far more prevalent than lambs.

The direct result of non-doctrinal preaching is millions of people in the churches who believe that they are Christians as a result of something they have done, and whose claim to faith would have been denounced in a saner age as nothing more than mere mental acceptance.

Shame on the preacher who is too graceless to preach the sovereignty of God, the depravity of man, the wrath of the Almighty, the eternal condemnation of the unbeliever, the atonement of Christ, the mandatory nature of regeneration, the necessity of repentance, the justification of sinners by true faith, and all the other sobering and convicting doctrines of the Word of God.

6) Preaching that is Either Irrelevant or of Minor Consequence

Some sermons, which might have had a measure of usefulness fifty years ago when preached to a biblically literate congregation, are completely insignificant today when heard by generation of pagans unschooled in Bible basics.

What a strange phenomenon it is for preachers to boast that their preaching has not changed for half a century when society itself has changed so radically. My preaching has changed immensely. When I began preaching, people knew there was a God big enough to have created them, who had the authority to command their lives and control their futures. Today, multitudes who claim to believe in God know almost nothing of the God of the Bible and are often worshiping and serving a god no bigger than their own imaginations.

When we send missionaries to pagan lands we do not expect them to begin their proclamation to the heathen with statements about grace and forgiveness. We expect them to begin at the beginning, introducing their hearers to the God of the Bible. Indeed, the most effective missionaries take months in establishing the truth of God and His rights of authority before speaking of salvation.

A colossal hindrance to revival occurs when pearls are cast before swine. Jesus taught us that "They that are whole need not a physician but they that are sick" (Mark 9:12). The generations that preceded us preached the law, thus enabling people to feel their illness, long before the preached the grace that heals. Preaching grace to those who have never felt the sting of the law is a major infraction of God's ways. Preaching truth that cannot be appreciated and received by its auditors is ever a hindrance to spiritual awakening.

7)   Preaching that is Without Authority

How can one read the life of Jesus with any care at all without noting the authority with which He conducted His ministry? Matthew, Mark, Luke all record this. The same essential authority is evident in the ministries of the New Testament days. Is such authority a special gift to Christ Jesus and to first-century Apostles but not to be hoped for in times like these? Certainly not! There are men of authority today just as in every preceding generation: but why do some men speak with impressive authority and others without noticeable impact?

Can a self-called man preach with the same authority as a God-called preacher?

Can a man who confidence in the Holy Scriptures is shaken by personal doubts with the authority of the man of the man whose heart, soul and mind are dominated by conviction concerning the absolute accuracy of the Bible?

Can a man whose own conscience rises up in condemnation of him for some secret sin in his life preach with the same authority as the man who conscience condemns him not (I John 3:21-22)?

All of us need to face the fact that there are self-called men in the ministry. They may be good men who mean well, but they are doomed to a different kind of work than the called of God. None who listen to their preaching should be surprised at their lack of authority.

While I believe with all my heart in an educated ministry, I know full-well that many men have lost what little confidence they had in the Scriptures during their of formal preparation. I will never forget the negative impact of my own seminary days as my confidence in the written Word of God bordered on destruction. It was only because of the interference of a gracious Providence that I was spared the permanent doubts and uncertainties that plague many men in today's pulpits.

While some might like to pretend otherwise, the men in ministry whose own lives are marred by unconquered lusts and unbridled sins are legion in number. It is utterly impossible for a man who rejects God's command "Be ye holy as I am holy" (I Peter 1:16) to preach with divine authority. The crippled churches and limping Christians affected by the ministries of these leaders are everywhere apparent.

Christian preachers say that they deal with the most significant issues that mortal beings can ever face; issues of life and death, of hope and destruction, of eternal salvation and everlasting condemnation. Yet they often handle these sacred matters with less enthusiasm and passion than prisoners working on chain-gangs.

In 2 Peter one the apostle speaks of applying all diligence to your faith by supplying "moral excellence" or "moral power" or "moral energy." Faith must be supplemented by passion.

Those who listen to preaching have the right to be convinced that the preacher is morally in earnest about what he is saying, that he believes in it with all his heart, and that it is of the greatest possible consequence. If the listener has reason to doubt the earnestness of the preacher, he is fortified in doubting the message preached.

Preacher, why is there so little passion in your ministry? Do you yourself believe what you say?

8)   Preaching that is Without Power

Many a congregation is doomed to listen to a powerless preacher, a man without unction, one upon whom the fire of God never seems to rest. What a strange anomaly it is to see an unanointed servant of the living God who is an eternal fire. How can such creatures exist?

For some, it is a matter of theological error. By their system if beliefs they have ruled out the present empowerment of the servant of God by the Holy Spirit. Somehow, in their twisted thinking, special endowments of power either ceased at the end of the apostolic age, or all believers receive all of the empowerment of the Holy Spirit it is possible to receive at the time they first believe. God pity the congregations that must listen to such men.

For others, it is a very practical issue — they are too busy to seek the power of the Holy Spirit on their ministries. Empowerment does take time. It is connected with protracted season of prayer and seeking. True Holy Spirit power is not something once received, always possessed, but is to be freshly sought in connection with every opportunity of service. Oh, the tragedy of those too busy to seek!

For far too many, it is a moral matter for they are too sinful to allow for this profound and gracious influence of the Holy Spirit to work through them. It was ancient Job who recognized, "He who has clean hands grows stronger and stronger." But the reverse is obviously also true — unclean hands always rob men of power. How sad it is that multitudes listen weekly to powerless men with dirty hands.

9)    Preaching that Heals Superficially

In Jeremiah the Lord laments, "For from the least of them even to the greatest of them, everyone is greedy for gain, and from the prophet even to the priest everyone deals falsely. And they have healed the brokenness of My people superficially, saying, 'Peace, peace,' but there is no peace" (Jeremiah 6:13, 14). These words are certainly true today and their application perfectly apparent. Because of greed for gain, whether it be the love of money, the love of power, the love of acclaim, the love of crowds, the love of success, multitudes from the prophet to priest are dealing falsely, pronouncing persons healed who are still fatally ill.

Think of a person who is dying of cancer but has been afraid to seek the help of the physicians. Imagine his family and friends finally prevailing, scheduling an appointment, and taking him to the doctor's office. Because of weakness, he must be helped out of the car and up the walk but suddenly collapses in front of the office, falling into rose bushes whose thorns scratch and pierce his arms, hands and face. When the doctor sees him he flies into a fury of healing activity, cleansing and treating the wounds, sending home with the assurance that all is well when all the time it is cancer that is killing him, not rose bushes.

A major portion of today's preaching deals with the superficial hurts. Millions have been pronounced healed who still are dying of the cancer of sin.

Does the Lord God omnipotent lament the healing nature if your ministry? Is it a hindrance to revival in your life and church?

10)    Preaching that is Not Preaching At All But Merely Teaching

Tragically there are many men in ministry who do not know the difference between teaching and preaching. But there is a very real difference. That vast body of men who consider themselves preachers but are really teachers constitutes a major hindrance to revival. Do you know the difference?

Over a period of some years I was a frequent visitor in the home of a leading theological bookseller in the United Kingdom whom I had taken to be a very placid man. Then one day he called me indicating he was going to visit the United States and would like to spend some time with us in our home. We were delighted to be a part of his American itinerary. Upon my next visit to his home in England, I enquired concerning his impressions of this first visit to America. I was astonished at the vehemence of his response. In no uncertain terms he declared his great disappointment in not hearing a single preacher in America, albeit he had visited numerous churches in widely scattered areas. While he acknowledge hearing many teachers, he adamantly insisted he had not heard a single preacher. When I quietly asked, "What, in your opinion, is the difference between teaching and preaching?" I was amazed at the vigor with which he insisted, "It is not a matter of my opinion! It is a well established fact! To teach is to inform! To preach is to move! I heard all kinds of teaching in America but I was never moved from where I am to where I ought to be!"

Have you caught that distinction?

There appears to be tens-of-thousands of churches throughout the world where you can become better informed about a huge variety of issues, religious and otherwise, but where you will never be moved from where you are to where you ought to be. Granted, every sermon ought to convey information, but it will do much more than that if it is true preaching!

11)   Preaching that Calls For No Response Or A False Response

Preachers must guard against two false extremes: on the one hand, the failure to issue any calls for response to the message; and on the other hand, the foolish notion that an immediate overt response to a presentation of partial truth always results in eternal salvation.

Much preaching appears pointless. If there is anything the hearers ought to do in response to it, they are left with no idea of what that response should be. A serious question must be raised whether this is preaching at all. Even if by some stretch of the imagination, or by some act of charity, pointless preaching can be favorably judged, a solemn fact must be faced: preaching that calls neither for a response nor moves people toward responding correctly is a hindrance to revival.

The hindrance to revival is equally as great when over-confidence is placed in overt responses. That the Holy Spirit is powerful enough to totally and permanently transform a person in an immediate response to a partial truth is not questioned. That this is the normal way the Spirit works is certainly not the case. In the ministry of Jesus, the bulk of the permanent responses came as a result of years of disciplining. The records of those who had a one time exposure to a tidbit of truth and were eternally saved are scarce. The stress I place is upon partial truth. Most of today's sermons are so brief and so shallow that almost any truth conveyed has to be incomplete. Surely there was wisdom in the practice of earlier itinerant evangelists in preaching for days, even weeks, before issuing any call for overt responses.

What is a major contributor to the moral and spiritual decline in this generation? Is it not the negative impact of the inconsistent lives of millions of professed Christians who have never experienced a transforming work of the Holy Spirit? To add to that multitude by overemphasis on premature overt responses to sermons is a grievous offense against the Savior. This is a problem that ever loving preacher can immediately correct.

Those of us who preach do not need to look for hindrances to revival in others until we have first eliminated all the hindrances already working in our own lives and ministries. Let us covenant together to make changes that are needed.

But what about those who are not called to preach? Is there some way you have contributed to those hindrances? If so will you repent? Then will you pledge yourself to pray that all the preachers you know will rise above these hindrances. To your prayers add whatever help and encouragement you can give. Together, with God's help, these hindrances can be moved.

Time before the Antichrist IV - Political Correctness

by Jonah Lee (2007) 19.11.2010

Jeremiah 4:22, For my people is foolish, they have not known me; they are stupid sons, and they have no understanding: they are wise to do evil, but to do good they have no knowledge.

PRESENT REALITY

In Asian culture being truthful was often treated as being rude especially when talking to your seniors. To tell them their fault is outright disrespectful. We are taught to keep our peace because saving face is important in this culture and to violate it is inconceivable. More often it will go into quarrel or even a fight and who can predict what will happen next. If you speak rudely to an elder member in your family you may be punished. Whereas in the Western culture on the contrary they are encouraged to express their feeling sometimes even to the extent of being rude. Freedom of speech is uphold as individual’s right and is guaranteed by their Constitution. Anybody can speak their mind, regardless to whom and even to the president of their nation. They are truly free and sophisticated for many Asians to admire.

Yet in the process of such democracy and freedom another culture was coerced by some to reverse the existing culture and this was called the culture of “Political-Correctness”.

What is Political Correctness?

According to Philip Atkinson, Political Correctness is the communal tyranny that erupted in the 1980s. It was a spontaneous declaration that particular ideas, expressions and behavior, which were then legal, should be forbidden by law, and people who transgressed should be punished. It started with a few voices but grew in popularity until it became unwritten and written law within the community. With those who were publicly declared as being not politically correct becoming the object of persecution by the mob, if not prosecution by the state. The declared rational of this tyranny is to prevent people being offended; to compel everyone to avoid using words or behavior that may upset homosexuals, women, non-whites, the crippled, the stupid, the fat or the ugly. This reveals not only its absurdity but its inspiration. The set of values that are detested are those held by the previous generation (those who fought the Second World War), which is why the terms niggers, coons, dagos, wogs, poofs, spastics and sheilas, have become heresy, for, in an act of infantile rebellion, their subject have become revered by the new generation.

The origin of this culture was recognized as community declines when the majority of its citizens become selfish, and under this influence it slowly dismantles all the restraints upon self-indulgence established by manners, customs, beliefs and law: tradition. As each subsequent generation of selfish citizens inherits control of the community, it takes its opportunity to abandon more of the irksome restraints that genius and wisdom had installed. The proponents of this social demolition achieve their irrational purpose by publicly embracing absurdity through slogans while vilifying any who do not support their stance. The purpose of the slogan is to enshrine irrational fears, or fancies, as truth through the use of presumptuous words, so public pronouncement:

• Dissembles the real nature of the claim• Identifies any dissenters as enemies of the truth
• Acts as an excuse for any crimes committed in its name

All of which is an attack upon truth, clear thinking and plain speaking. Naturally as the restraints shrink the rebellion grows ever more extreme in nature. Now, in the late 1990s, the results of being bourgeois (retaining traditional notions), is being labeled racist, sexist etc. and risk losing your job, your reputation, being jostled in the street, being subject to judicial penalty and death threats. And it is this very extremity of reaction that has won media attention and the name Political Correctness, though the reaction will become even more unpleasant with the next generation. The inevitable scapegoat for people impatient of restraint must always be parents, because these are society's agents for teaching private restraint. So the cherished notions of the parents are always subject to attack by their maturing offspring. This resentment of tradition was observed in his own civilization by Polybius (c. 200-118 BC), the Greek historian, who said:

"For every democracy which has enjoyed prosperity for a considerable period first develops through its nature an attitude of discontent towards the existing order,.."

By using the excuse of not upsetting anyone, the politically correct are demanding that people behave like the fool who would please everyone; that everyone must become such a fool! All must accept the notions of the Politically Correct as truth, or else! This is the same mentality that inspired the Inquisition and forced Galileo to recant; the same mentality that inspired the Nazis and obtained the Holocaust. Once expression gets placed in a straitjacket of official truth, then the madness that occurs in all totalitarian states is obtained. Life, in private and public, becomes a meaningless charade where delusion thrives and terror rules.

A few years back, America has tried to enact a new law called the Hate Crime Law. This bill was tabled for sanction in the senate which many felt has circumlocutory purpose. Although this bill covers all religious sectors, the Christians felt it was designed to completely curb the voice of truth that found in the Bible. According to the chairman of Traditional Values which is a watchman ministry on the US government; this bill must be opposed because it begins to lay the legal foundation and framework to investigate, prosecute and persecute pastors and other Christians, whose actions are based upon and reflect the truths found in the Bible. For example, if someone is speaking against homosexual lifestyle and offended somebody regardless whether he or she a clergy (no provision for protection for the clergy) they will subject to prosecution if the “offend” file a legal suit against the offender. This law has empowered them to do so. It sounds so obscene, isn’t it? Especially for a Christian Nation that carries the slogan of “In God We Trust”.

Inadvertently, as the East looks to the West for direction for setting, thus, Asian will follow suit with the changes. They inadvertently adopt a philosophy that belongs to the Cultural Marxist which the West was so blindly embraced. Hence, in this case we could say that not all that glitters is gold.

What others say about Political Correctness

In this article, John MacArthur says, "Let's be brutally honest: most of Jesus' teaching is completely out of sync with the mores that dominate our culture. I'm talking, of course, about the Jesus we encounter in Scripture, not the always-gentle, never-stern, über-lenient coloring-book character who exists only in the popular imagination. The real Jesus was no domesticated clergyman with a starched collar and genteel manners; he was a bold, uncompromising Prophet who regularly challenged the canons of political correctness."

In, THE CULTURAL CHURCH, p.#77 LaGard Smith, says, "'Political correctness' is nothing more than a benign catch phrase for 'the liberal agenda.' In other words, you and I have to toe the liberal line on issues like abortion, gay rights, and radical feminism, or else be reported to the sensitivity police for being intolerant."

In Political Correctness vs. Faith, Dr. Michael Youssef says, "If you take the concept of political correctness at face value, it is a good thing. If being politically correct means that we treat people of different backgrounds with respect and do not stereotype them based on their race or gender, then it is in fact, very biblical. But this is not the real intention of our modern, politically correct movement. In truth, this movement is designed to intimidate people into using language that has been pre-approved. Political correctness tends to be completely focused on human sensitivity and self-esteem. When you focus on human sensitivity and self, you eliminate God from your life."

Time before the Antichrist - Part III (Truth is a Hated Fortitude)

Jonah Lee 2.08.2010

TRUTH IS A HATED FORTITUDE

To begin with, let me first quote a statement from Philip Atkinson concerning: Why Truth Is Hated and Suppressed In a Declining Civilization? Truth is sacrosanct (sacred, revered, holy) is claimed by citizens whether their society is waxing or waning, but in the declining mode it is hated and suppressed; winning only persecution for the honest. This is the Galileo Effect, where those who dare contradict a popular delusion find their message ignored while their person is attacked. They are condemned for the crime of heresy, for which truth is no defense, as Galileo discovered, being forced to deny the earth circled the sun, to avoid execution.

In Philip’s finding, perhaps, some of us could identify with a biblical situation where the Lord Jesus has to battle with the "Galileo Effect" of the day. The BATTLE begun immediately after He proclaimed Himself as the WAY, the TRUTH and the LIFE. His mission was to expose the LIES that embraced by the culture of His day. Consequently, He was hated, persecuted and eventually killed by His own people, a nation which He chose to share His inheritance.

"The Galileo Effect was merely an effect that brought forth from Calvary where the Truth was killed by those who offended by it"

And perhaps, some of us could also identify with Philip’s finding where truth is a hated fortitude in the present culture that is full of falsehood that masquerades themselves under cosmetic appearance. And perhaps, most of us are living in a make-believe world, where the truth is treated as a depriver of our dreams, perhaps the kind similar to the “Babel American Dream”. And perhaps, the Church has become soft when the things that surround it are footed on fantasy, promoted by men rather than truth to avoid the reality of moral depravity.
In Isaiah 59:12-19, Isaiah was interceding on behalf of his people confessing of such sins to the Lord. It was a very distressing time because he knew God was about to judge his people. The cup of wrath had been filled to the brim. It was about to overflow and Isaiah knew if he failed his duty to intercede for his people the whole of Israel would be wiped up in God’s wrath. Thus, he cried out to the Lord in desperation:

"For our rebellions are multiplied before You, and our sins testify against us. For our transgressions are with us, and we know our iniquities; transgressing and lying against Jehovah, and backsliding from our God, speaking oppression and revolt, conceiving and murmuring words of falsehood from the heart." And justice is driven back; and righteousness stands far off; for truth is fallen in the street, and right is not able to enter. So TRUTH FAILS; and whoever turns from evil makes himself a prey. And Jehovah saw; and it was evil in His eyes, that there was no justice. And He saw that there was no man, and He was astonished that there was no intercessor. And His own arm saved for Him; and His righteousness sustained Him for He put on righteousness like armor, and a helmet of salvation on His head. And He put on robes of vengeance as clothing; and He put on zeal like a mantle. According to works, so He will repay; fury to His foes; recompense to His foes; He will repay recompense to the coasts. So they shall fear Jehovah's name from the west, and His glory from the rising of the sun. When the foe comes like a flood, the Spirit of Jehovah shall cause him to flee.

The foes are God's own people. They had become enemy to Him. They slaughtered the truth that was meant to protect them. When truth fails there will be no justice. You could hear this lamentation throughout the book of Isaiah. The people were spiritually blind that they could not see what was wrong with them. The prophet was sent to give details of their failures. An ultimatum had been issued, that if they don’t repent they would enslave forever by their enemies. Their lives and the lives of their children would be miserable and under constant oppression.

Providentially, by the mercy of God, Isaiah’s intercession was accepted if the people are willing to repent. He shall reverse the calamity before them and restore their hope as promised to their fathers Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

In Isaiah’s time, truth has fallen and injustice has prevailed, so did in our time as Galileo put it, "to stand for truth will be condemned as a crime of heresy. The battle between truth and falsehood would continue until the end of the age."

We could see that the role of a prophet and intercessor is crucial to prevent destruction from coming upon the people. I'm not talking about title or position here. Let me divert a little here....

In the NT, the Lord has reversed the hierarchy order of the Jewish temple. A new temple was formed that is His own body we called 'church' for He no longer dwell in man-made temple (Acts 7:47-51). A "NEW TESTAMENT ORDER" has been set for the body of Christ as follows:   

Matthew 23:2-3, 8-12 (GW), The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses' seat (authority). Therefore whatever they tell you to observe, observe and do. But do not do according to their works (don't follow their examples); for they say, and do not do. But DON'T MAKE others call you Rabbi (Greek means master, teacher, a guide or leader. In our time we call them minister, pastor, prophet, apostle, evangelist, reverend, father, pope, bishop, doctor, your holiness, etc), because you have ONLY ONE teacher, and YOU ARE ALL BROTHERS. And don't call anyone on earth your father, because you have only one Father, and he is in heaven. Don't make others call you a leader, because you have only one leader, the Messiah. The person who is greatest among you will be your servant. Whoever honors himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be honored.

This is the commandment of Christ why are we deliberately violating it?
What the LORD referring here is the offices of the Mosaic system that implies authority but the coming NEW BODY is about the ROLE AND FUNCTION of the body not hierarchy (title and position) that carries the authority over another believers. The description of the name apostle, prophet, pastor and so on does not imply position of authority, it implies orderly and various functions in the body of Christ. The only authority we have is over the enemy and to love our brothers and sisters and not to rule over them.

FOR THERE IS ONE SHEPHERD, ONE APOSTLE, ONE PROPHET, ONE TEACHER, ONE LEADER, ONE EVANGELIST THAT IS THE LORD JESUS CHRIST WHO IS THE HEAD OF THE CHURCH FOR WE ARE HIS FUNCTIONING BODY.

These functions are important as a Church especially in a time of deceit. Their job is to sound the alarm and alleviate the wrath of God. They are the watchmen over the city or the church. Isaiah was a prophet not an intercessor but because God could not find (even) one willing vessel among them, therefore, Isaiah had to fill in the gap. However, often times we find that the role of a prophet would also comes with the responsibility of an intercessor. The Lord Jesus is a prophet and yet He is an intercessor forever interceding for His us (1 John 2:1).

The call is now! "God will raise up more spokesmen to SPEAK THE TRUTH and to INTERCEDE for His people as no one seems to care about the moral DECLINING of  the CHURCH." Therefore,

 

Are YOU willing to respond to the call if you are not giving a title or position? If you are not recognized by the people or your church? Are you still willing?



Please read related articles:
Time before the Antichrist Part I and II