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Dead Prophets Society

Posted on September 4, 2014 by ez3728

Until today, I would read the huge jeopardy placed upon the OT prophet (in this declaration of Moses – verses 20), and shudder at their accountability, back then:

Deuteronomy 18:15-22
A New Prophet Like Moses
15 “The Lord your God will raise up for you a Prophet like me from your midst, from your brethren. Him you shall hear,
16 according to all you desired of the Lord your God in Horeb in the day of the assembly, saying, ‘Let me not hear again the voice of the Lord my God, nor let me see this great fire anymore, lest I die.’
17 “And the Lord said to me: ‘What they have spoken is good.
18 I will raise up for them a Prophet like you from among their brethren, and will put My words in His mouth, and He shall speak to them all that I command Him.
19 And it shall be that whoever will not hear My words, which He speaks in My name, I will require it of him.
20 But the prophet who presumes to speak a word in My name, which I have not commanded him to speak, or who speaks in the name of other gods, that prophet shall die.’
21 And if you say in your heart, ‘How shall we know the word which the Lord has not spoken?’—
22 when a prophet speaks in the name of the Lord, if the thing does not happen or come to pass, that is the thing which the Lord has not spoken; the prophet has spoken it presumptuously; you shall not be afraid of him.

Verse 20 is confirmed, in the physical, when Jeremiah found himself in conflict with a cadre of false prophets who were prophesying easy times ahead during a period when God had other plans:

Jeremiah 28:15-17
15 Then the prophet Jeremiah said to Hananiah the prophet, “Hear now, Hananiah, the Lord has not sent you, but you make this people trust in a lie.
16 Therefore thus says the Lord: ‘Behold, I will cast you from the face of the earth. This year you shall die, because you have taught rebellion against the Lord.’ ”
17 So Hananiah the prophet died the same year in the seventh month.

Hananiah’s teaching of rebellion was actually Hananiah proclaiming God moving on behalf of Israel and breaking the yoke of Nebuchadnezzar. It sounded like a good thing, except it flew in the face of the stronger, more difficult, and less popular words of Jeremiah. Jeremiah was likely less of a draw at the conferences than Hananiah.

It also should be noted that there were many other false prophets during the OT days, and we do not have accounts of all of them prophesying-and-dying either on the spot or within the year (like Hananiah) of their foolishness, so one might be inclined to (I’d think rightly) conclude that their deaths may have been in a spiritual sense, like Adam and Eve, who died the day they sinned. Sin will do that to you.

Genesis 2:17
17 but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.”

Adam and Eve physically lived for lots more years. But they were spiritual zombies – the walking dead – for the rest of their physical lives.

QUES: SO WHAT RECENTLY CHANGED IN MY PERCEPTION OF THIS (DEUT 18) WARNING TO THE OT PROPHETS?

ANSWER: I AM MORE AND MORE OF THE MIND THAT THIS WARNING MIGHT INDEED BE TO ALL PROPHETS IN BOTH TESTAMENTS.

I come to that conclusion because the verses of Deut 15 are one ongoing and uninterrupted communiqué from God to mankind, via Moses, in which God is speaking into the future, about when Jesus makes His appearance.

ONE MORE TIME:
(Deut 15):
17 “And the Lord said to me: ‘What they have spoken is good.
18 I will raise up for them a Prophet like you from among their brethren, and will put My words in His mouth, and He shall speak to them all that I command Him.
19 And it shall be that whoever will not hear My words, which He speaks in My name, I will require it of him.
20 But the prophet who presumes to speak a word in My name, which I have not commanded him to speak, or who speaks in the name of other gods, that prophet shall die.’

That later-to-be-raised-up Prophet is Jesus, as identified clearly by Peter in his call to repentance. That same portion of scripture is also mentioned by Stephen, in his one and only recorded sermon – to the religious leaders:

PETER SAYS:
Acts 3:22-23
22 For Moses truly said to the fathers, ‘The Lord your God will raise up for you a Prophet like me from your brethren. Him you shall hear in all things, whatever He says to you.
23 And it shall be that every soul who will not hear that Prophet shall be utterly destroyed from among the people. ’

STEPHEN SAYS:
Acts 7:37
37 “ This is that Moses who said to the children of Israel, ‘The Lord your God will raise up for you a Prophet like me from your brethren. Him you shall hear. ’

A while back I wrote an article called UNTEMPERED MORTAR pertaining to this topic. But as things heat up, I feel a reconsideration of this matter is in order, for our safety and accuracy, and also for our effectiveness in accomplishing the purposes of God.

The let’s-have-fun-and-prophesy days need to be done and gone. We should be trembling at the word of God, DEFINITELY anticipating and allowing Him to move through us and speak through us, BUT very carefully and prayerfully moving in this arena.

The true and accurate prophetic voice is being called forth in this critical season, and I believe we will see a greater confirmation of the words of the true prophets, and a more obvious exposure of the false prophets, the goofy prophets, the well-intended but inaccurate prophets. I further believe we will see the corrective hand of our Lord on the prophets who prophesy falsely, hoping something will happen, instead of hearing from the Lord and setting forth that which they’ve heard, no more and no less.

Here’s the promise of increased spiritual activity as we come closer to the end of the age: Joel 2:28 and Acts 2:17.

Especially with that increased activity, the warnings must be heeded.

Ezekiel 13:3-10
3 Thus says the Lord God:“ Woe to the foolish prophets, who follow their own spirit and have seen nothing!
4 O Israel, your prophets are like foxes in the deserts.
5 You have not gone up into the gaps to build a wall for the house of Israel to stand in battle on the day of the Lord.
6 They have envisioned futility and false divination, saying, ‘Thus says the Lord! ’ But the Lord has not sent them; yet they hope that the word may be confirmed.
7 Have you not seen a futile vision, and have you not spoken false divination? You say, ‘The Lord says, ’ but I have not spoken.”
8 Therefore thus says the Lord God: “Because you have spoken nonsense and envisioned lies, therefore I am indeed against you,” says the Lord God.
9 “My hand will be against the prophets who envision futility and who divine lies; they shall not be in the assembly of My people, nor be written in the record of the house of Israel, nor shall they enter into the land of Israel. Then you shall know that I am the Lord God.
10 “ Because, indeed, because they have seduced My people, saying, ‘ Peace! ’ when there is no peace —and one builds a wall, and they plaster it with untempered mortar

Jeremiah puts it this way, and even discloses the ever and always popular message of ones who prophesy from their own hearts:

Jeremiah 6:14
14 They have also healed the hurt of My people slightly,
Saying, ‘ Peace, peace! ’
When there is no peace.

That of course does not mean true prophets will not speak kind and good messages as well. They will, and the must, when they hear such words. There is no validation of office in harshness or heaviness of message. The issue is not the TOPIC. The issue is the fact that a prophet heard it from God.

HEY WAIT – Didn’t Paul declare ALL CAN PROPHESY?

Of course he did:
1 Corinthians 14:31-32
31 For you can all prophesy one by one, that all may learn and all may be encouraged.
32 And the spirits of the prophets are subject to the prophets.

The potential is there for us to all prophesy. All CAN. But WILL all pay the price of obedience to prophesy accurately? The activity of that potential is contingent upon our deep relationship with the Lord, and us having ears to hear.

Is that all-can-prophesy proclamation a NEW THING, only a NT THING?

Numbers 11:29
29 Then Moses said to him, “Are you zealous for my sake? Oh, that all the Lord ‘s people were prophets and that the Lord would put His Spirit upon them,

God’s heart has always been that all of His people might be in the place of deep relationship with Him, hear His voice, understand His ways, and prophesy. THAT would be the nation of priests the Lord originally intended for Israel, and then made a way to happen by the blood of our Savior.

But let’s face it – we’re all not yet walking in all that the Lord has provided for us to walk in, and God in this season is allowing and even causing things to happen to drive and draw us to the place of deeper intimacy. So let’s expect more true prophets to rise up – even while the noise of the false prophets will understandably increase.

We hear lots of prophetic words and see lots of prophetic activity that sounds good, but much of which does not come to pass. The ones who would continue to ignore the instruction and warning of scripture, walking around proclaiming the “words of the Lord” when they are not the words of the Lord, constitute the Dead Prophet’s Society.

Thank God for repentance, and for resurrection in Christ. God is wanting us all to get this thing right. And by His grace, we can.

I believe the more we understand who God is, how He operates, what He says, and what His word says, the safer we will be and the more confident we will be when we indeed hear His voice. We will be more able to discern not only what is of Him, but also what is not of Him.

I totally believe the Lord is OK with us learning, and growing and maturing – which would mean even making some “prophetic mistakes”. But I do not see where the Lord has ever been pleased with people making believe they are prophets when they are not. In fact, I don’t scripturally see the Lord pleased with anyone ever making believe they attained to any title or office, when they have not.

To the contrary.

I read of a greater accountability upon us all in the NT dispensation, not a lesser one.

Hebrews 12:25
See that you do not refuse Him who speaks. For if they did not escape who refused Him who spoke on earth, much more shall we not escape if we turn away from Him who speaks from heaven,

Jeremiah 23 (good reading) both WARNS the prophet to exercise extreme care in their activity, and at the same time CHARGES the ones who hear from God to speak forth that which they hear from the Lord and recognize as being public words. Some things we hear from God are for us to pray into, and not proclaim. Another topic. He shares His heart with His servants.

There is no safe-place-in-silence. There is only a safe place in obedience. There’s times to be silent, and times to speak.

All this said, Peter puts it this way:
1 Peter 4:11
11 If anyone speaks, let him speak as the oracles of God. If anyone ministers, let him do it as with the ability which God supplies, that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom belong the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen.

All scripture NJKV

Posted in Everything, Prophecy, Prophets, Understanding & Knowing God | Leave a comment

Back To Normal

Posted on August 19, 2014 by ez3728

Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown were three dedicated and knowledgeable gents who wrote an exhaustive commentary on the entire bible, back in the days when writing actually meant WRITING with a pen, going through stacks and stack of your own notes, thumbing through printed bibles to locate obscure verses, and researching prior commentaries and writings – all often in dim lighting.

Their efforts required more than some taps on a keyboard. My hat is off to them.
I read them frequently. I learn a lot from them.

I definitely do not agree with some of their leanings as they apply to predestination and free will choice, election etc. At the same time, for the most part I believe these guys are right on. I have been mightily blessed by their diligence and academic drive, and godliness. I thought I’d share one glorious thought with you – but first, Wikipedia tells us this about them:

David Brown (Aberdeen August 17, 1803- Aberdeen, July 3, 1897) was a Free Church of Scotland minister at St. James, Glasgow, and professor of theology at Free Church College of the University of Aberdeen.^[1] He was co-author of the Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Commentary (1871) with Robert Jamieson, St. Paul’s, Glasgow and the Rev. A. R. Fausset, St. Cuthbert’s, York, England. He was a director of the National Bible Society of Scotland, and the Evangelical Alliance, and the Alliance of the Reformed Churches.

More can be read here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jamieson-Fausset-Brown_Commentary

Recently I came upon this edifying insight that one of them (they apparently divvied up the bible for commentary workload) wrote re Gen 1:24 – “Let Us make God in Our Image”. I was scouring around to the original text re the pluralization of US and OUR. Instead, they wrote this:

Gen 1:24
And in what did this image of God consist? Not in the erect form or features of man, not in his intellect, for the devil and his angels are, in this respect, far superior; not in his immortality, for he has not, like God, a past as well as a future eternity of being; but in the moral dispositions of his soul, commonly called original righteousness (Ec 7:29). As the new creation is only a restoration of this image, the history of the one throws light on the other; and we are informed that it is renewed after the image of God in knowledge, righteousness, and true holiness (Col 3:10; Eph 4:24).

For your convenience, the cited reference verses are:

29 Truly, this only I have found:
That God made man upright,
But they have sought out many schemes.
(Ecclesiastes 7:29 NKJVS)

10 and have put on the new man who is renewed in knowledge according to the image of Him who created him
(Colossians 3:9-10 NKJVS)

24 and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness.
(Ephesians 4:24 NKJVS)

Isn’t that great stuff?

The new creation is a restoration of the image of righteousness in man.
Through Christ we are brought back to God’s definition of the original normal.

It’s sin that makes people weird.

Posted in Creation, Everything, Movement of God, Personal Relationship, Understanding & Knowing God | 1 Comment

People Get Ready….

Posted on August 14, 2014 by ez3728

Somehow a good portion of the western church appears to have bought into a gospel that positions our Lord in a lovely glass enclosure that displays a neatly printed label: “In Case Of Fire, Break Glass”.

The assumption is that we can call upon Him at absolutely any time, and there He is, ready to help. Paramedic Jesus.

This is half-accurate. Our Lord is totally, 100% for those who would call upon Him, at any time, BUT it is on His terms, not on our terms. Some proof text (less I be deemed a spiritual sourpuss):

Wisdom is presented to us as a trait, a companion and a representative of our great God, and testifies of itself in Proverbs 1, saying the following:

(Proverbs 1:22-33 NKJVS)
22 “How long, you simple ones, will you love simplicity?
For scorners delight in their scorning,
And fools hate knowledge.
23 Turn at my rebuke;
Surely I will pour out my spirit on you;
I will make my words known to you.

(So far, so good. We see wisdom is pro-active in getting our attention. But that pro-activity demands our response, as we find in v24 that our non-response is not good).

24 Because I have called and you refused,
I have stretched out my hand and no one regarded,
25 Because you disdained all my counsel,
And would have none of my rebuke,
26 I also will laugh at your calamity;
I will mock when your terror comes,
27 When your terror comes like a storm,
And your destruction comes like a whirlwind,
When distress and anguish come upon you.
28 “Then they will call on me, but I will not answer;
They will seek me diligently, but they will not find me.

(Golly, that sounds sort of cruel, but we must be reminded that God is not mocked – Gal 6:7).

29 Because they hated knowledge
And did not choose the fear of the Lord,
30 They would have none of my counsel
And despised my every rebuke.
31 Therefore they shall eat the fruit of their own way,
And be filled to the full with their own fancies.
32 For the turning away of the simple will slay them,
And the complacency of fools will destroy them;

(The good news is the promise of God’s amazing mercy and protection to those who would make the choice to respond to the revelations, and corrections, of wisdom – which will always work in perfect harmony with the plans and personality of God)

33 But whoever listens to me will dwell safely,
And will be secure, without fear of evil.

It’s therefore evident that we’re to purposely position ourselves in the place of preparedness (aPologies for all those P’s) and vulnerability towards God.

Our active faith that God will do what He says He is going to do, is a good thing. It will inspire us to be prepared.

In the midst of some very tough verses in Hosea, the Lord planted an eternal promise that is offered to us, if/when we understand that the breaking up of the fallow ground (by US, not by Him) is to be done PRIOR TO the outpouring, so that WHEN the outpouring pours out, we will be able to soak up and absorb all that the Lord has intended for us:

(Hosea 10:12 NKJVS)
12 Sow for yourselves righteousness;
Reap in mercy;
Break up your fallow ground,
For it is time to seek the Lord,
Till He comes and rains righteousness on you

See what’s being told us, by Hosea?

He’s telling us to personally take a pick-axe to the hard-pack of our hearts and lives, so that the broken-up ground is already overturned, and therefore receptive to the flood waters of God’s outpouring. It is a work of faith, in us, that would have us prepare – PRIOR TO the outpouring. The alternative is the promised outpouring overflowing us, and the unprepared (those with fallow ground) either missing most of what was intended to be absorbed, or worse yet, getting get swept away in the resultant flood.

Repentant David, in Psalm 32, tells us likewise – prepare. Get into, and stay in, the place of deep Spirit-led relationship with God. Now. We’re not to wait for more trouble to come upon us personally, or upon the earth, prior to coming into the deep places with our Lord. That would be foolhardy.

(Psalms 32:5-6 NKJVS)
6 For this cause everyone who is godly shall pray to You
In a time when You may be found;
Surely in a flood of great waters
They shall not come near him

David just told us that trying to get to God, during the flood waters, may not happen. We’re to call upon Him while He may be found. David lived that way himself (most of the time – we all know of his shortfalls):

(Psalms 27:8 NKJVS)
8 When You said, “ Seek My face,”
My heart said to You, “Your face, Lord, I will seek.

How does this theology travel into the New Testament? Like all true doctrine, it travels quite seamlessly. First of all, the abundance of scriptures regarding the second return of Jesus – those scriptures purposely positioned by God in the OLD Testament – simply all must (and do) function within the context of the New Testament, because it is at the end of the New Testament age that our Lord will return.

Second, is our observance that our Lord Himself called religious leadership of His own day to task for their personal failure to discern His FIRST COMING – about which LESS is mentioned in the Old Testament than what is mentioned regarding His SECOND COMING. That should speak volumes to us.

The Pharisees and Sadducees apparently got much of the religious activity correct, but sadly missed the whole point of the plan of God (our Lord’s first appearance – as our sacrifice), and the timing of God, because they were fixated on their religious protocol. Church-as-usual was being interrupted by the plans of God. Funny how that works, isn’t it?

(Matthew 16:1-3 NKJVS)
1 Then the Pharisees and Sadducees came, and testing Him asked that He would show them a sign from heaven.
2 He answered and said to them, “ When it is evening you say, ‘It will be fair weather, for the sky is red ’;
3 and in the morning, ‘It will be foul weather today, for the sky is red and threatening. ’ Hypocrites! You know how to discern the face of the sky, but you cannot discern the signs of the times.

So is it time to call upon the Lord? I would put forth that even a cursory awareness of issues in our country (economy, government, general moral decay), the world in general, and the Middle-East in particular, would incline most bible-centric folks to nod affirmatively.

It is time.

It is time to seek the Lord. It is time for us to personally break up our fallow ground. My bible speaks to me of trying times towards the end of this age. It also speaks to me of great opportunity and favor towards a victorious church, opportunity and favor and authority and eventual reward to all who would be prepared and in position to partner with God in His victorious return. The ready people.

Twice in Joel 2 the prophet tells those who would have ears to hear:
“Blow the trumpet in Zion”. You may want to read and pray into that entire chapter, or entire book, even. That short book is end-of-age-centric.

If the Second Coming of our Lord is the God-ordained capstone event of the Age, wouldn’t one be inclined to think that Joel’s alarming expression-of-ultimate-priority over all other important events (eating, weddings, gatherings of all sorts by all age people) would be MOST pertinent to the actual times prior to The Event Of All Events?

(Joel 2:14-17 NKJVS)
15 Blow the trumpet in Zion,
Consecrate a fast,
Call a sacred assembly;
16 Gather the people,
Sanctify the congregation,
Assemble the elders,
Gather the children and nursing babes;
Let the bridegroom go out from his chamber,
And the bride from her dressing room.
17 Let the priests, who minister to the Lord,
Weep between the porch and the altar;
Let them say, “ Spare Your people, O Lord,

Posted in Apocalypse, End Times Related, Everything, Movement of God, Prophecy, Revelation(s), Tribulation | Leave a comment

Boasting In Knowing

Posted on August 1, 2014 by ez3728

Boasting sort of seems like it has no good purpose.
But somehow God wired us with the ability, as well as the inclination, to boast. It therefore must have a viable and godly application.

Jeremiah 9 (in the New International Version) reads this way:
23 This is what the Lord says:
“Let not the wise boast of their wisdom
or the strong boast of their strength
or the rich boast of their riches,
24 but let the one who boasts boast about this:
that they have the understanding to know me,
that I am the Lord, who exercises kindness,
justice and righteousness on earth,
for in these I delight,”
declares the Lord
(Jeremiah 9:23-24 NIV)

I personally prefer the New King James, It poetically morphs “boasting” to “glorying”, and reads this way:

23 Thus says the Lord:
“Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom,
Let not the mighty man glory in his might,
Nor let the rich man glory in his riches;
24 But let him who glories glory in this,
That he understands and knows Me,
That I am the Lord, exercising lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness in the earth.
For in these I delight,” says the Lord.
(Jeremiah 9:23-24 NKJVS)

Whichever you might choose, these verses in any translation say the same thing:
The issues and accomplishments of life are not what boasting/glorying is for.

After all, “what do we have that we did not receive?” asks Paul (1 Cor 4:7).
Both KNOWING and also UNDERSTANDING our great God – who He is and how He operates, is what we ought to be doing cartwheels over, and in which we ought to be finding our security and safety.

Jeremiah 9 is rather a tough prophetic chapter – with the prophet starting off (verse 1) saying “I don’t have sufficient tears to weep for the upcoming troubles of my people”. He then goes into detail regarding the upcoming tough season. Israel, in their stubborn religiosity, in their continuous refusal to hear God and to respond to how He was dealing with them, had provoked God to escalation of His corrective ways and means.

They were plenty religious. But that has never been what God has been looking for.
They had plenty of popular doctrines. Synagogues were likely filled with happy people hearing happy messages.

Jeremiah, in fact, was regarded as a party-pooper because he failed to go along with the church/synagogue philosophy. It was not “all good”. Their refusal to repent was soon going to come to a head. Sound familiar? Paul spoke of upcoming times when people would not endure SOUND doctrine, but still wanting SOME doctrine, they’d put before themselves teachers, having itching ears, and would be turned aside to fables.

3 For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers;
4 and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables.
(2 Timothy 4:3-4 NKJVS)

As long as the people of God dig their intellectual, philosophical and spiritual heels in, and determine to do things their own way, embracing “relevant” world-ways instead of God’s ways, they are in for His correction and judgment. He is jealous. He tells us so.

I cannot find a scripture or historical reference pointing to our great God competing in some popularity contest or striving for our approval. He is God. His Word endures forever.

To the point – Jeremiah 9 again, verse 24:
24 But let him who glories glory in this,
That he understands and knows Me,
That I am the Lord, exercising lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness in the earth.
For in these I delight,” says the Lord.

“understands (Me)” – Hebrew is “sakal” – circumspect, wisely skilled and taught, prudent in understanding, thus having good success….

“knows (Me)” – Hebrew is “yada” – implying an intimacy of acquaintance and knowledge and understanding, even to the point of describing Abraham “knowing” Sarah, at which time she bore a child. It runs deep.

So BOTH of the those elements have to work together for successful living particularly in trying times (although, in all times).
The “knowing and understanding” of Jeremiah 9 also reveals the daily not-pending-the-end-of-time (1) lovingkindness, (2) judgment and (3) righteousness, by God, in the earth. All three. Always. Ongoing. In those He delights. “Exercising” those things means happening always. Always righteous. Amen. Always lovingly kind. Amen. Always judging. Well, gee. Yes. Always judging – people, societies, His people in particular:

1 Hear this word that the Lord has spoken against you, O children of Israel, against the whole family which I brought up from the land of Egypt, saying:
2 “You only have I known of all the families of the earth;
Therefore I will punish you for all your iniquities.”
3 Can two walk together, unless they are agreed?
(Amos 3:1-3 NKJVS)

God’s desire for oneness with us, agreement, precipitates His correction of His people, so that might choose to come into that alignment.

That may war against superficial grace doctrines that sound so good and mean so little, but the reality is God is who He is, and we are invited into that knowing, because He loves us, and because His ways are better than ours. In fact, His ways are life. Ours are death.

Pretending God is a softy has never worked. Nor will it.
God is God, and that is a good. His love for us runs deeper than we can imagine. In that love is His mercy, and His righteousness, and His judgment. History has proven these truths.

The beginning of wisdom is the fear of the Lord.

Happily and soberly, we also can boast/glory/rejoice in His willingness to be discovered by those who would diligently, biblically, and prayerfully seek Him.

Posted in Everything, Movement of God, Personal Relationship, Understanding & Knowing God, Wisdom | Leave a comment

It All Comes Down To Worship

Posted on July 23, 2014 by ez3728

Because our God is great, He has no problem writing out His own priorities and His end-times plan, not only for us to see, but also for our adversary/His adversary to see. The real marvel is the sheer blindness and stupidity of wickedness – that our adversary would even think there was some ray of hope of success in defying God. But then again, that same logic ought to be applied to our own susceptibility to the deceit of sin. Meanwhile, for our purposes, let’s look at what the eternal and immovable Word of God tells us about worship and the end times plan. I believe it will assist us not only in prioritizing worship, but also in understanding the insidious plans that will be waged against worship, from all directions.

BOTTOM LINE: In many ways, it is all about worship. Needless to say, worship is not simply guitars and songs. It is a lifestyle and a heart-attitude. THAT SAID, music has proven itself to be a doorway into the soul of man, so we definitely ought to understand and embrace the element of music-based song-generated prophetic worship as being key to this conversation.

WHAT DOES THE GOOD BOOK SAY ABOUT WORSHIP?

Jesus tells us this – God is looking for those who will worship in spirit and in truth – two critical elements necessary for the only worship that satisfies God:
John 4:23-24
23 But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him.
24 God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.”

Jesus Himself came from the tribe of Judah. The worship tribe:
Psalms 78:67-69
67 Moreover He rejected the tent of Joseph, And did not choose the tribe of Ephraim,
68 But chose the tribe of Judah, Mount Zion which He loved.
69 And He built His sanctuary like the heights, Like the earth which He has established forever.

Satan not only understands the priority of worship, but is so incensed by the possibility of people worshipping God, that he lies even to Jesus and offers Him all, if our Lord were to worship him:

Matthew 4:8-10
8 Again, the devil took Him up on an exceedingly high mountain, and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory.
9 And he said to Him, “All these things I will give You if You will fall down and worship me.”
(To which our Lord reiterates a worship-command from the OT)
10 Then Jesus said to him, “Away with you, Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only you shall serve.’ ”

Paul understood that Anti-Christ would eventually sit in the temple, demanding worship, since world-power will not be sufficient to satisfy his demonized tapeworm for godly position. Remember, from the last post (Prov 28:16 – “a ruler without understanding is a great oppressor”). That applies, in spades, here. Satan fancies himself a ruler, as will the one called the son of perdition:

2 Thessalonians 2:3-4
3 Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day will not come unless the falling away comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition,
4 who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God or that is worshiped, so that he sits as God in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God.

Meanwhile, Isaiah tells us that huge end-times victory will be achieved specifically via prophetic worship.
Tophet, by the way, is another name for the Valley of Hinnom outside the walls of Jerusalem. It was a former place for the sacrifice of innocent children. It will eventually be redeemed by the blood of guilty kings who come to war against Jerusalem, and against God.

Isaiah 30:27-33
27 Behold, the name of the Lord comes from afar, Burning with His anger, And His burden is heavy; His lips are full of indignation, And His tongue like a devouring fire.
28 His breath is like an overflowing stream, Which reaches up to the neck, To sift the nations with the sieve of futility; And there shall be a bridle in the jaws of the people, Causing them to err.
29 You shall have a song As in the night when a holy festival is kept, And gladness of heart as when one goes with a flute, To come into the mountain of the Lord, To the Mighty One of Israel.
30 The Lord will cause His glorious voice to be heard, And show the descent of His arm, With the indignation of His anger And the flame of a devouring fire, With scattering, tempest, and hailstones.
31 For through the voice of the Lord Assyria will be beaten down, As He strikes with the rod.
32 And in every place where the staff of punishment passes, Which the Lord lays on him, It will be with tambourines and harps; And in battles of brandishing He will fight with it.
33 For Tophet was established of old, Yes, for the king it is prepared. He has made it deep and large; Its pyre is fire with much wood; The breath of the Lord, like a stream of brimstone, Kindles it.

That (verse 33) “Tophet prophecy” corresponds to some final verses of Psalm 110:

Psalms 110:5-6
5 The Lord is at Your right hand;
He shall execute kings in the day of His wrath.
6 He shall judge among the nations,
He shall fill the places with dead bodies,
He shall execute the heads of many countries.

Isn’t it wonderfully ironic that the wholeness of the scriptures actually begin making sense if/when one begins accepting them for what they say? The plan of God is intended to be revealed to us, as long as we wisely and soberly turn from doctrines that satisfy a portion of text, but not all of the text of God.

The prophet Daniel (affirmed by Jesus, who tells us to actually go read Daniel when the Abomination is spotted in the temple) tells us much about Anti-Christ.

First, the affirmation of Daniel by Jesus:

Matthew 24:15
15 “ Therefore when you see the ‘ abomination of desolation, ’ spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place” (whoever reads, let him understand)

There was a PARTIAL FULFILLMENT of some of Matthew 24 during the destruction of the temple in 70AD, but by no means a complete fulfillment. Time does not allow me to go into that fullness of explanation right here, but let’s simply look at one word: “Immediately” (in Greek: “eutheos” – it means Forthwith. Straightway. Just following). It does not mean 2,000 + years later.

Contrary to widespread popular doctrine, the most troubling times of demonic activity have yet to occur. We therefore have the Lord speaking of His prompt and highly visible return (which inarguably did not happen in 70AD):

Matthew 24:29-30
29 “ Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken.
30 Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.

So now that we know Daniel has been affirmed by Jesus, what does Daniel tell us about the times ahead? Will there be trouble? Will some saints lose their lives? Will these be times of glory for those of understanding? Will there be intrigue, deception and deceit even within the body of believers?

Daniel 11:29-36
31 And forces shall be mustered by him, and they shall defile the sanctuary fortress; then they shall take away the daily sacrifices, and place there the abomination of desolation.
32 Those who do wickedly against the covenant he shall corrupt with flattery; but the people who know their God shall be strong, and carry out great exploits.
33 And those of the people who understand shall instruct many; yet for many days they shall fall by sword and flame, by captivity and plundering.
34 Now when they fall, they shall be aided with a little help; but many shall join with them by intrigue.
35 And some of those of understanding shall fall, to refine them, purify them, and make them white, until the time of the end; because it is still for the appointed time.
36 “Then the king shall do according to his own will: he shall exalt and magnify himself above every god, shall speak blasphemies against the God of gods, and shall prosper till the wrath has been accomplished; for what has been determined shall be done.

Verse 36 sounds much like 2 Thessalonians, which we read before:
2 Thessalonians 2:3-4
3 Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day will not come unless the falling away comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition,
4 who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God or that is worshiped, so that he sits as God in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God.

What is this leading us to conclude?
1. The Word of God will come to pass. All will be fulfilled.
2. Righteousness, humility and the fear of the Lord will be our only safe place.
3. Troubling times lie ahead.
4. Times of great exploits in the Lord lie ahead.
5. Prophetic worship, in spirit and in truth, is key. In fact, Isa 30 tells us that through such prophetic worship, demonic strongholds will fall (one huge reason why the Lord said He’d rebuild the tabernacle of David in the last days).
6. We therefore must conscientiously enter into that place of prophetic worship, and at the same time anticipate resistance to us entering that place.
7. We win.

All scripture NKJV

Posted in Everything, Personal Relationship, Psalms, Understanding & Knowing God, Worship | Leave a comment

Understanding UNDERSTANDING

Posted on July 22, 2014 by ez3728

“Understanding” means you get it – you are able to receive, process, and then reach a proper conclusion to a matter. It works that way in the world, and it particularly works that way in the Kingdom of God.

The scriptures put such a high value on “getting it”, and yet one might inclined to think that if you simply “know your bible”, if you’ve been around the spiritual block a few times, then you’d be able to claim spiritual understanding. But it doesn’t quite work that way. In fact, the scriptures not only point to the value and merit of knowledge and understanding the ways of God, it actually gives us warnings and cites examples of failed understanding. It can in fact be tragic.

Understanding is not an “automatic anything”. We are told to purposely go after understanding. To in fact cry out for it.

This is why our God, in His great mercy, has provided for, and assigned, the Holy Spirit to be our active teacher, so that we might grow in our daily revelationary understanding of God. That comes only from time spent with God, with the Holy Spirit. Strategically, this is also why our adversary has invested so much effort in undermining and maligning the work of the Holy Spirit, and in warring against the saints, and their prayer time. Satan has some understanding as well – he understands that a Spirit-filled and Spirit-led saint is a dangerous adversary for him.

Here’s some scriptural thoughts re the topic (since my opinion might be nice, but biblical accuracy is a must):

THE VALUE OF UNDERSTANDING:
Proverbs 16:22
22 Understanding is a wellspring of life to him who has it.

WHERE TO OBTAIN SPIRITUAL UNDERSTANDING – IN THE WORD OF GOD:
Psalms 119:104
104 Through Your precepts I get understanding;
Therefore I hate every false way.

THE ADMONISHMENT TO GO AFTER UNDERSTANDING – AN INVITATION BY THE SPIRIT OF WISDOM. (and we all know that the beginning of wisdom is – HINT: Psalm 111:10):

Proverbs 4:5-7
5 Get wisdom! Get understanding!
Do not forget, nor turn away from the words of my mouth.
6 Do not forsake her, and she will preserve you;
Love her, and she will keep you.
7 Wisdom is the principal thing;
Therefore get wisdom.
And in all your getting, get understanding.

THE REJOICING, IN HUMILITY, OF THE PROGRESS OF UNDERSTANDING IN OUR LIVES:

Jeremiah 9:23-24
23 Thus says the Lord:
“Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom,
Let not the mighty man glory in his might,
Nor let the rich man glory in his riches;
24 But let him who glories glory in this,
That he understands and knows Me,
That I am the Lord, exercising lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness in the earth.
For in these I delight,” says the Lord.

The above verses are critical in that they are positioned, by the Lord, in the midst of some seemingly harsh prophecies towards Israel. We can write these off as Old Testament writings if we like. But they are for us. In the midst of those strong words is the revelation that we absolutely must search out and even embrace HOW our God operates throughout the age, how He responds to sinfulness, rebellion, wickedness, how He moves upon His people, in love, in correction, in consistency. Without that understanding, we are assured we will either fail to understand God, and then become offended when He does work in our lives and the lives of the people around us.

In fact, I am confident that, sadly, the “many shall be offended” verse in Matthew pertains primarily to Christians who have been so fed on a diet of less-than-biblical fullness, that when God moves as He has promised to move in the last days, saints will be offended by their God. I believe these verses speak to us of the falling away spoken about IN THE CHURCH, in the last days:

Matthew 24:10-13
10 And then many will be offended, will betray one another, and will hate one another.
11 Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many.
12 And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold.
13 But he who endures to the end shall be saved.

THE POTENTIAL FOR THE FAILURE OF LEADERSHIP:
Solomon understood (see Daniel 2:20-21, below) that even a man placed in a position of authority by God, without understanding the ways and rules and requirements of God, actually has no other course than to become a great oppressor, because in failing to understand his own accountability to God, and in failing to believe the work and intent of the Holy Spirit in the lives of the ones under his authority, that leader’s only other conclusion will be the necessity to control and manipulate. That is always a disaster:

Proverbs 28:16
16 A ruler who lacks understanding is a great oppressor,

THE GOOD NEWS – MODELED BY A PROFESSIONAL KILLER – HERE WE SEE A ROMAN CENTURION, A LEADER OVER 100 TRAINED VIOLENT WARRIORS, BLOWING THE MIND OF OUR LORD, BECAUSE THAT CENTURION “GOT IT”:

Matthew 8:9-10
9 For I also am a man under authority, having soldiers under me. And I say to this one, ‘ Go, ’ and he goes; and to another, ‘ Come, ’ and he comes; and to my servant, ‘ Do this, ’ and he does it.”
10 When Jesus heard it, He marveled, and said to those who followed, “ Assuredly, I say to you, I have not found such great faith, not even in Israel!

Jesus perceived the centurion got it. In being IN authority, he understood He was UNDER authority, accountable to the great God who puts men in place, and takes men out of office. Jesus saw the pompous control of the Pharisees. And here was a Centurion who had understanding.

ETERNAL TRUTH THAT SOLOMON ALREADY UNDERSTOOD, WRITTEN LATER BY DANIEL:
Daniel 2:20-21
20 Daniel answered and said:
“ Blessed be the name of God forever and ever,
For wisdom and might are His.
21 And He changes the times and the seasons;
He removes kings and raises up kings;
He gives wisdom to the wise
And knowledge to those who have understanding.

FINISHING UP WHERE WE BEGAN:
Proverbs 4:5-7
5 Get wisdom! Get understanding!
Do not forget, nor turn away from the words of my mouth.
6 Do not forsake her, and she will preserve you;
Love her, and she will keep you.
7 Wisdom is the principal thing;
Therefore get wisdom.
And in all your getting, get understanding.

All scripture NKJV.

Posted in Everything, Movement of God, Personal Relationship, Understanding & Knowing God, Wisdom | Leave a comment

Legalism vs. Legal vs. Illegal

Posted on July 14, 2014 by ez3728

Matthew 7:21-29
21 “ Not everyone who says to Me, ‘ Lord, Lord, ’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven.
22 Many will say to Me in that day, ‘ Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name? ’
23 And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness! ’

Jesus was clearly speaking to ones who knew Him. He was addressing the unpopular but necessary and critical issue of disqualification, a topic no one runs to embrace. Nonetheless, our Lord spoke of it (as did others, including Paul – who wrote a major portion of the New Testament) so we would do well to consider these words. It is this same Paul that brought forth the doctrines of grace. He got it.

Declaring: “Lord, Lord”, notably with signs and prophetic words following, would seem marked evidence of relationship with the One to whom they were speaking. They knew Him, but the deeper issue was about Him knowing them, in the biblical sense of knowing. The disqualifying condition was their lawlessness, their refusal to live and walk within biblical guideline, after knowing Him. Sad.

ILLEGAL
Those poor folks may well have referred to their lifestyles as being gloriously free in Christ. Simply enjoying Him. No worries. Safe and secure in His love. God is in a good mood, so all is cool. And hey, I prophesy accurately and cast out demons (and hey, blog-readers: we all agree those are very good things). Their conclusion, however: I have the goods. I therefore must be good to go. This group is often inclined to denounce a more stringent interpretation of scripture as legalism – a popular criticism often pointed towards people perhaps more convicted about the eternal Word, and its reasonable requirements, a group that at the same time hopefully embraces its glorious promises. Intimate relationship with God, and accountability, are not contradictions (Ps 99:6-9).

LEGALISM
True, there are folks way too legalistic, way too restrictive, formulating religious lifestyle, even adding new pious rules beyond biblical principle or biblical revelation, not Spirit-led. Welcome, Pharisees.

LEGAL – The Safe Place
But there is also a gloriously safe place, a place I choose to call Legal. It is sitting upright on the mount of truth, neither falling off one side into legalism, nor the other side, into illegal behavior- both of which are disastrous.
There is a place to be found in Christ, the living Word, that is legal, and free, and full of glory. Jesus told the Jewish believers (believing so therefore already forgiven, and saved) that in their continuing in the Word they would then know truth, and at that time the truth would set them free. James referred to scripture as the law of liberty.

Lest we overlook Paul, he took this matter of discipline and correct biblical living so far as to reveal his attitude towards his own salvation in this manner:

1 Corinthians 9:27
But I discipline my body and bring it into subjection, lest, when I have preached to others, I myself should become disqualified.

He then went on to charge us with the same sober alert, in 2 Cor. 13:5. Of note is not whether Christ was “in us”. But whether we were in Him. He optimistically ends on the high note of believing better things for us. Yea Paul.

2 Corinthians 13:5-6
5 Examine yourselves as to whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Do you not know yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you? — unless indeed you are disqualified.
6 But I trust that you will know that we are not disqualified.

Those scriptures are crystal clear. They are only a mystery (actually, a confusion) if one has been presented with a false grace.

BACK TO MATTHEW 7
Jesus, in His mercy and lovingkindness, will send storms of testing. Biblically, it appears that God, the Creator of heaven and earth, controls the weather (Amos 4:7, 1 Kings 18:44, Psalm 107:25, 33-35, 2 Chron 7:13). I do not personally perceive that the storm Jesus commanded to subside had been constructed by Satan. I personally believe our God created Goliath for David. I believe in God’s sovereignty. Isa 45:7 can shed some light on this.

In Matthew 7:24 and 25, Jesus does not say “if” storms might come. There is more of a silent “when” implied. Times of testing. That too is biblical, folks. It also is wise to note that the folks in verses 24 and 25 all heard the sayings of Jesus. This is not a story about the unsaved, about ones outside of relationship with Him. This is written for us.

Matt 7:24-25
24 “ Therefore whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock
25 and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it did not fall, for it was founded on the rock.
26 “ But everyone who hears these sayings of Mine, and does not do them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand:
27 and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it fell. And great was its fall.”
28 And so it was, when Jesus had ended these sayings, that the people were astonished at His teaching,
29 for He taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes.

TAKEAWAY:
A. Legalism is dry and dead and religious.
B. “Illegalism” is a destructive and false doctrine put forth as freedom in Christ, without the holy restraint or limitations of the whole Word of God. We’re warned about this coming into the church, as times progress (2 Peter 2, Jude, 2 Tim 4:3)
C. Legal is good. The Word will set you free, and keep you free.

John 8:31-32
31 Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, “ If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed.
32 And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.”

All scripture NKJV

Posted in Everything, False Teachers, Legalism, Understanding & Knowing God | Leave a comment

Avner Boskey’s 7/13 post

Posted on July 14, 2014 by ez3728

This is a post of an email newsletter by a dear friend living in Israel. It is truth. It should be broadcasted to the computer of every individual. It should be on the radar and in the understanding of every praying saint.

I believe God is at these times utilizing Israel as a stone for the church – a potential stepping stone for those who will recognize God’s purposes (with the blessing attached to that position), and also as a stone of stumbling for those who, even with Scripture at their side, would treat the cause of Israel lightly.

Gen 12:3A – He will bless (baruch) those who baruch Israel, but more (accurately, hebraically worded 12:3B): “…I will (arar) curse those who (halal) “burnish” (or simply lightly touch over) you.

In other words, God’s priority and promise to the land and the people must be treated with the same level of priority as the Lord places upon it. The saints in particular and the church in general is at a crossroads. It is not business as usual.

You can sign up to receive your own updates from Avner, via his site:

http://davidstent.com/words/

What will the Jewish people’s acceptance of Yeshua result in but life from the dead? (Romans 11:15)
Make war, not love

The Woodstock Generation had many buzzwords and pet phrases such as “Turn on, tune in, drop out,” “Go with the flow,” and “Make love not war.” At the same time, a simmering spirit of rebellion and violent revolution played at the edges of hippiedom. Jefferson Airplane’s “Volunteers of America”, Neil Young’s “Ohio,” and MC5’s “Kick out the jams” painted a vision of America burning, beset by internal revolution. The Rolling Stones’ “Street Fighting Man” and the Beatles’ “Revolution” took a step back from the brink, lowering the rhetoric and letting off steam in more quixotic ways.

Right now the Middle East is going through epileptic convulsions. Sunni jihadi armies are sweeping like a black cloud across Syria, Iraq and Africa, while Shi’ite terror armies are stretching their bony green fingers across Lebanon, Iraq and Iran. Over 200,000 people have died in these recent outbreaks of hostility. Both Saudi Arabia and Jordan have moved their armies to their borders with Iraq and are on hair-trigger alert.

At the same time Hamas (in Arabic, Harakat al-Muqawima al-Islamiyya, or ‘The Islamic Resistance Movement’; http://davidstent.com/hurtling-through-the-fog-of-war-a-messianic-perspective-on-the-new-hamastan/) has kicked off a third military campaign, (2006 – http://davidstent.com/the-coming-war-with-hamas/; 2012 – http://davidstent.com/category/hamas/page/2/), targeting over half of Israel’s residents with short and long-range rockets.
As world media zooms in on the developing war, we need accurate facts, clear context and biblical perspective. And how can we pray for the situation with biblical compassion and wisdom?

The bombs bursting in air

On Saturday Hamas upped the military ante, firing barrages totaling over 100 rockets at major Israeli cities. They threatened to unleash a new type of rocket called the J80, notifying Israeli TV to make sure that cameras were focused on Tel Aviv at 21:00 hours. Six rockets were fired and all were shot down by the Iron Dome system with no injuries. Saturday night three Katyusha rockets were fired from Lebanon into Western Galilee by Palestinian Lebanese fighters also with no injuries.

The amazing lack of injuries is a sign of God’s protection and the ongoing prayers of the saints, because Hamas is trying its hardest to wound and kill Israeli civilians. Keep praying for continued protection!

Military intelligence estimates that Hamas still has over 7,000 short-range rockets and over 200 long-range rockets stored in residential homes, hospitals, mosques and schools throughout Gaza – as was the case in 2006 and 2012. It is impossible to destroy these inventories without causing extensive collateral damage. As a result, last night the IDF began to communicate with residents of northern Gaza by leaflet, phone calls and text messages, warning them to vacate specific areas by noon Sunday or face potential damage or death. Sunday afternoon will see intensive pinpoint bombing of Hamas’ northern Gaza rocket bunkers.

Escalation mostly from the air

As of 23:30 Saturday night The Israel Air Force (IAF) intensified its bombing of terror command-and-control centers, rocket launchers and rocket bunkers – by jet, helicopter and by IDF artillery from outside the Gaza Strip. A Shayetet 13 (Israeli Navy Seals) team was inserted into the northern Gaza Strip before dawn to take out rocket launchers near Sudaniye.

As well, Hamas public and political leaders’ homes are being targeted, though these leaders have long since gone to ground, hiding in a rat’s warren of underground tunnels that would have made the Viet Cong proud. World media have reported that some of Hamas former Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh’s nephews were killed in a bombing attack, though without giving vital context – that the main target was jihadi Nidal al-Malash (https://mobile.twitter.com/KhaledAbuToameh/status/487949076697083905/photo/1) – leader of a Hamas rocket squad division.

World media is casting an anti-Israel spin on such casualties. They are actually following Hamas’s posted guidelines on how best to inflict maximum propaganda damage on Israel by selective media spin (www.timesofisrael.com/hamas-warns-residents-against-revealing-downtown-gaza-launches/; www.bloombergview.com/articles/2014-07-11/is-hamas-trying-to-get-gazans-killed).
But former Hamas PM Haniyeh blows away the fog of war with unapologetic and fighting words. Describing Hamas’ jihadi warriors (which include his own nephews) he said on January 13, 2014, “Beware of this generation. This is a generation which knows no fear. It is the generation of the missile, the tunnel and suicide attacks.” Hamas is not a peace-seeking group.

“Masters of the bluff and masters of the proposition” (Bob Dylan)

To get the UN Security Council to agree on censures is like pulling teeth. Whether it be Ukraine, Georgia, Sudan, North Korea, Syria, al-Nusra, ISIL/ISIS – the “world’s moral conscience” slowly lowers its head and slowly mosies on in all the above cases. When Christians are tortured, raped and murdered in Syria, Iraq or Iran, or when similar massacres happen to Shi’ites or Sunnis in Iraq, the U.N. is silent. However, when Israel defends itself from Hamas’ jihadi madness as, world censure and Security Council and General Assembly resolutions are passed in a jiffy. Hypocrisy combined with anti-Semitism is the order of the day in international relations – as prophesied in Psalm 2:1-3).

Pray for wisdom for the leaders of your own country (Psalm 2:10-12) that they will make righteous and true choices regarding the enemy’s attacks on the Jewish people and their state

For an in-your-face challenge regarding world hypocrisy and anti-Semitism, watch the biting British commentary by Pat Condell entitled “Why I support Israel” – www.youtube.com/watch?v=HHC8KC5cLs8&feature=youtube_gdata_player.

Why is Hamas doing this?

Western minds find it difficult to understand why Hamas would provoke a fight with Israel when they are bound to take a whipping militarily. The answers have to do both with political strategy (http://m.nationalreview.com/article/382477/why-does-hamas-want-war-daniel-pipes) and with spiritual dynamics.

From a spiritual point of view, Hamas is committed to endless jihad against Israel. Its Islamist charter (www.acpr.org.il/resources/hamascharter.html) states bluntly that it will never cease from violent jihad against Israel until the Jewish state is destroyed. As a result, there is no peace treaty that can be established with Hamas. It is a fight to the death:

“The Platform of The Islamic Resistance Movement (ed., Hamas): Israel will rise and will remain erect until Islam eliminates it as it had eliminated its predecessors.

“The Islamic Resistance Movement…join(s) its hands with those of all Jihad fighters for the purpose of liberating Palestine … Our struggle against the Jews is extremely wide-ranging and grave…until the enemies are defeated and Allah’s victory prevails” (Introduction).

“The Islamic Resistance Movement (ed., Hamas) draws its guidelines from Islam” (Article #1).

“The Islamic Resistance Movement is one of the wings of the Muslim Brothers (al-Ikhwan al-Muslimin)…the largest Islamic Movement in the modern era” (Article #2).

“The Islamic Resistance Movement…has raised the banner of Jihad in the face of the oppressors in order to extricate the country and the people from the (oppressors’) desecration, filth and evil” (Article #3).

“The Islamic Resistance Movement…strives to raise the banner of Allah over every inch of Palestine” (Article #6).

“Hamas has been looking forward to implement Allah’s promise whatever time it might take. The prophet, prayer and peace be upon him, said: ‘The time will not come until Muslims will fight the Jews (and kill them); until the Jews hide behind rocks and trees, which will cry: O Muslim! There is a Jew hiding behind me, come on and kill him! This will not apply to the Gharqad, which is a Jewish tree’ (cited by Bukhari and Muslim)” (Article #7).

“Allah is its goal, the Prophet its model, the Qur’an its Constitution, Jihad its path and death for the case of Allah its most sublime belief (ed. this is also the slogan of the Muslim Brotherhood)” (Article #8 – The Slogan of the Hamas).

“The land of Palestine has been an Islamic Waqf (ed. irrevocably Islamic land, never to be owned again by non-Muslims) throughout the generations and until the Day of Resurrection. No one can renounce it or part of it, or abandon it or part of it. No Arab country nor the aggregate of all Arab countries, and no Arab King or President…has that right … This is the status (of the land) in Islamic Shari’a, and it is similar to all lands conquered by Islam by force … Any demarche in violation of this law of Islam, with regard to Palestine, is baseless” (Article #11).

“Nothing is loftier or deeper in nationalism than waging Jihad against the enemy and confronting him when he sets foot on the land of the Muslims. And this becomes an individual duty binding on every Muslim man and woman” (Article #12).

“(Peace) initiatives, the so-called peaceful solutions, and the international conferences to resolve the Palestinian problem, are all contrary to the beliefs of the Islamic Resistance Movement … From time to time a clamoring is voiced to hold an International Conference in search for a solution to the problem … The Islamic Resistance Movement…does not believe that those conferences are capable of responding to demands, or of restoring rights or doing justice to the oppressed . . . Those conferences are no more than a means to appoint the nonbelievers as arbitrators in the lands of Islam … There is no solution to the Palestinian problem except by Jihad. The initiatives, proposals and International Conferences are but a waste of time, an exercise in futility” (Article #13).

“In order to face the usurpation of Palestine by the Jews, we have no escape from raising the banner of Jihad … We must imprint on the minds of generations of Muslims that the Palestinian problem is a religious one, to be dealt with on this premise. ‘I swear by that who holds in His Hands the Soul of Muhammad! I indeed wish to go to war for the sake of Allah! I will assault and kill, assault and kill, assault and kill’ (told by Bukhari and Muslim)” (Article #15).

“Israel, by virtue of its being Jewish and of having a Jewish population, defies Islam and the Muslims” (Article #28).

For more insight into the geo-political ramifications of these teachings, see former CIA DCI James Woolsey’s address at the Restoration Weekend conference in 2002 (http://archive.frontpagemag.com/readArticle.aspx?ARTID=21031 ).

A cup of cold water

While Hamas rockets are landing over major sections of Israel, their operators have also accidentally targeted Arab areas – including an Arab village in the Gush Etzion area, the Arab city of Hebron, and Ramallah.

Simultaneously, as rocket fire continues, Israel is supplying its enemies in Gaza with over 200 trucks containing 1,998 tons of food, 9 trucks of medicine, 759,000 liters of fuel, and an uninterrupted supply of electricity. This same electricity also runs Hamas’ weapons factories. This is indeed a Twilight Zone scenario.

“If your enemy is hungry, give him food to eat; and if he is thirsty, give him water to drink. For you will heap burning coals on his head, and YHVH will reward you” (Proverbs 25:21-22). It is challenging to consider that the Jewish state is acting in a more “turn the other cheek” with Gaza, than many so-called Christian countries do in their international dealings.

Gandhi, Britain, Hitler and Hamas

In 1940 the Indian advocate of non-violence Mahatma Gandhi wrote an open letter “To Every Briton” offering his sage advice to Winston Churchill, the Queen and everyone in between on how to deal with the Nazi menace:

“I hope you do not wish to enter into such an undignified competition with the Nazis. I venture to present you with a nobler and a braver way, worthy of the bravest soldier. I want you to fight Nazism without arms, or, if I am to retain the military terminology, with non-violent arms. I would like you to lay down the arms you have as being useless for saving you or humanity. You will invite Herr Hitler and Signor Mussolini to take what they want of the countries you call your possessions. Let them take possession of your beautiful island, with your many beautiful buildings. You will give all these, but neither your souls, nor your minds. If these gentlemen choose to occupy your homes, you will vacate them. If they do not give you free passage out, you will allow yourself, man, woman and child, to be slaughtered, but you will refuse to owe allegiance to them. This process or method, which I have called non-violent non-co-operation, is not without considerable success in its use in India. Your representatives in India may deny my claim. If they do, I shall feel sorry for them” (Open letter, “To Every Briton”, New Delhi [2 July 1940]; published in Harijan [6 July 1940]; www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1945851/posts).

In many senses, this is the position held by the U.N., the E.U., the Quartet and its smiling envoy Tony Blair, and even some in the State Department. Thankfully, Mahatma Gandhi’s free advice was not followed by the Allies in WWII. Otherwise no Jewish people would have ever survived the Holocaust. Israel is in no mood to repeat colossal foolishness and follow such frivolous and disastrous counsel in our day.

Pray for Israel’s leaders to receive revelation and resolve from YHVH Lord of the battle to do all that is needed to protect and defend the Jewish state and all of its citizens.

Wisdom from Germany

Prussian General Carl von Clausewitz is the recognized master of military strategists. In his magnum opus Vom Kriege (On War; http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/On_War, Clausewitz sated some salient points worth remembering here:

“Kind-hearted people might of course think there was some ingenious way to disarm or defeat the enemy without too much bloodshed, and might imagine this is the true goal of the art of war. Pleasant as it sounds, it is a fallacy that must be exposed. War is such a dangerous business that mistakes that come from kindness are the very worst” (Book I, Chapter 1, Section 3, Paragraph 1).

“We see, therefore, that war is not merely an act of policy but a true political instrument, a continuation of political intercourse carried on with other means. What remains peculiar to war is simply the peculiar nature of its means (In laymen’s terms, he is saying that war is merely the continuation of politics by other means. War is an act of violence to compel our enemy to fulfil our will). (Book I, Chapter I, Paragraph 2).

Your prayers and support hold up our arms and are the enablement of God to us in the work He has called us to do!
In Messiah Yeshua,

Avner Boskey

Posted in End Times Related, Everything, Israel, Movement of God, Prayer, Prophecy, Revelation(s), Understanding & Knowing God | Leave a comment

Boasting in Knowing and Understanding

Posted on June 6, 2014 by ez3728

Boasting sort of seems like it has no good purpose. But somehow God wired us with the ability and the propensity to boast. Jeremiah 9 (in the New International Version) reads this way:

23 This is what the Lord says: “Let not the wise boast of their wisdom or the strong boast of their strength or the rich boast of their riches,

24 but let the one who boasts boast about this: that they have the understanding to know me, that I am the Lord, who exercises kindness, justice and righteousness on earth, for in these I delight,” declares the Lord (Jeremiah 9:23-24 NIV)

I personally prefer the New King James, It poetically morphs “boasting” to “glorying”, and reads this way:

23 Thus says the Lord: “Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, Let not the mighty man glory in his might, Nor let the rich man glory in his riches;

24 But let him who glories glory in this, That he understands and knows Me, That I am the Lord, exercising lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness in the earth. For in these I delight,” says the Lord. (Jeremiah 9:23-24 NKJVS)

Whichever you might choose, these verses in any translation say the same thing: The issues and accomplishments of life are not what boasting/glorying is for. After all, “what do we have that we did not receive?” asks Paul (1 Cor 4:7).

Both KNOWING and also UNDERSTANDING our great God – who He is and how He operates, is what we ought to be doing cartwheels over, and in which we ought to be finding our security and safety.

Jeremiah 9 is rather a brutal prophetic chapter – with the prophet starting off (verse 1) saying “I don’t have sufficient tears to weep for the upcoming troubles of my people”. He then goes into detail regarding the upcoming tough season. Israel, in their stubborn religiosity, in their continuous refusal to hear God and to respond to how He was dealing with them, had provoked God to escalation of His ways and means.

They were plenty religious. But that has never been what God has been looking for. They had plenty of popular doctrines. Jeremiah, in fact, was regarded as a party-pooper because he failed to go along with the church/synagogue philosophy. It was not “all good”. Their refusal to repent was soon going to come to a head. Sound familiar?

I cannot find a scripture or historical reference pointing to our great God competing in some popularity contest. He is God. His word endures forever.

To the point – verse 24:

“understands (Me)” – Hebrew is “sakal” – circumspect, wisely skilled and taught, prudent in understanding, thus having good success….

So BOTH of the those elements have to be act work, together, for successful living, particularly in trying times (although, in all times).

The “knowing and understanding” of Jeremiah 9 also reveals the never-ending and not-waiting-until-the-end-of-time (1) lovingkindness, (2) judgment and (3) righteousness, by God, in the earth. All three. Ongoing.

In those He delights. “Exercising” those things means happening always. That may war against superficial grace doctrines that sound so good and mean so little, but the reality is God is who He is, and we are invited into that knowing, because He loves us, and because His ways are better than ours.

Pretending God is a softy has never worked. Nor will it. God is God, and that is a good. His love for us runs deeper than we can imagine. In that love is His mercy, and His righteousness, and His judgment. History has proven these truths.