Morals and Values ~ Dustin Guthrie
http://www.youtube.com/user/dkguthrie13?feature=watch
Romans 3:18 There is no fear of God before their eyes.
Mrs. Nordman’s List from 50 Years Ago Today
Communist Goals (1963)
Congressional Record–Appendix, pp. A34-A35
January 10, 1963
EXTENSION OF REMARKS OF HON. A. S. HERLONG, JR. OF FLORIDA
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Thursday, January 10, 1963
Mr. HERLONG. Mr. Speaker, Mrs. Patricia Nordman of De Land, Fla., is an ardent and articulate opponent of communism, and until recently published the De Land Courier, which she dedicated to the purpose of alerting the public to the dangers of communism in America.
At Mrs. Nordman’s request, I include in the RECORD, under unanimous consent, the following “Current Communist Goals,” which she identifies as an excerpt from “The Naked Communist,” by Cleon Skousen:
[From "The Naked Communist," by Cleon Skousen]
Current Communist Goals
1. U.S. acceptance of coexistence as the only alternative to atomic war.
2. U.S. willingness to capitulate in preference to engaging in atomic war.
3. Develop the illusion that total disarmament [by] the United States would be a demonstration of moral strength.
4. Permit free trade between all nations regardless of Communist affiliation and regardless of whether or not items could be used for war.
5. Extension of long-term loans to Russia and Soviet satellites.
6. Provide American aid to all nations regardless of Communist domination.
7. Grant recognition of Red China. Admission of Red China to the U.N.
8. Set up East and West Germany as separate states in spite of Khrushchev’s promise in 1955 to settle the German question by free elections under supervision of the U.N.
9. Prolong the conferences to ban atomic tests because the United States has agreed to suspend tests as long as negotiations are in progress.
10. Allow all Soviet satellites individual representation in the U.N.
11. Promote the U.N. as the only hope for mankind. If its charter is rewritten, demand that it be set up as a one-world government with its own independent armed forces. (Some Communist leaders believe the world can be taken over as easily by the U.N. as by Moscow. Sometimes these two centers compete with each other as they are now doing in the Congo.)
12. Resist any attempt to outlaw the Communist Party.
13. Do away with all loyalty oaths.
14. Continue giving Russia access to the U.S. Patent Office.
15. Capture one or both of the political parties in the United States.
16. Use technical decisions of the courts to weaken basic American institutions by claiming their activities violate civil rights.
17. Get control of the schools. Use them as transmission belts for socialism and current Communist propaganda. Soften the curriculum. Get control of teachers’ associations. Put the party line in textbooks.
18. Gain control of all student newspapers.
19. Use student riots to foment public protests against programs or organizations which are under Communist attack.
20. Infiltrate the press. Get control of book-review assignments, editorial writing, policymaking positions.
21. Gain control of key positions in radio, TV, and motion pictures.
22. Continue discrediting American culture by degrading all forms of artistic expression. An American Communist cell was told to “eliminate all good sculpture from parks and buildings, substitute shapeless, awkward and meaningless forms.”
23. Control art critics and directors of art museums. “Our plan is to promote ugliness, repulsive, meaningless art.”
24. Eliminate all laws governing obscenity by calling them “censorship” and a violation of free speech and free press.
25. Break down cultural standards of morality by promoting pornography and obscenity in books, magazines, motion pictures, radio, and TV.
26. Present homosexuality, degeneracy and promiscuity as “normal, natural, healthy.”
27. Infiltrate the churches and replace revealed religion with “social” religion. Discredit the Bible and emphasize the need for intellectual maturity which does not need a “religious crutch.”
28. Eliminate prayer or any phase of religious expression in the schools on the ground that it violates the principle of “separation of church and state.”
29. Discredit the American Constitution by calling it inadequate, old-fashioned, out of step with modern needs, a hindrance to cooperation between nations on a worldwide basis.
30. Discredit the American Founding Fathers. Present them as selfish aristocrats who had no concern for the “common man.”
31. Belittle all forms of American culture and discourage the teaching of American history on the ground that it was only a minor part of the “big picture.” Give more emphasis to Russian history since the Communists took over.
32. Support any socialist movement to give centralized control over any part of the culture–education, social agencies, welfare programs, mental health clinics, etc.
33. Eliminate all laws or procedures which interfere with the operation of the Communist apparatus.
34. Eliminate the House Committee on Un-American Activities.
35. Discredit and eventually dismantle the FBI.
36. Infiltrate and gain control of more unions.
37. Infiltrate and gain control of big business.
38. Transfer some of the powers of arrest from the police to social agencies. Treat all behavioral problems as psychiatric disorders which no one but psychiatrists can understand [or treat].
39. Dominate the psychiatric profession and use mental health laws as a means of gaining coercive control over those who oppose Communist goals.
40. Discredit the family as an institution. Encourage promiscuity and easy divorce.
41. Emphasize the need to raise children away from the negative influence of parents. Attribute prejudices, mental blocks and retarding of children to suppressive influence of parents.
42. Create the impression that violence and insurrection are legitimate aspects of the American tradition; that students and special-interest groups should rise up and use ["]united force["] to solve economic, political or social problems.
43. Overthrow all colonial governments before native populations are ready for self-government.
44. Internationalize the Panama Canal.
45. Repeal the Connally reservation so the United States cannot prevent the World Court from seizing jurisdiction [over domestic problems. Give the World Court jurisdiction] over nations and individuals alike.
See also: Ten Planks of the Communist Manifesto
The American people have truly been “buried in Communism” by their own
politicians of both the Republican and Democratic parties. One other thing to
remember, Karl Marx was stating in the Communist Manifesto that these planks
will test whether a country has become commmunist or not. If they are all in
effect and in force the country IS communist. Communism, but by any other
name…??
See also: Progressives and the Communist Agenda
Again…
Iranian Pastor Nadarkhani Believed to be Dead
And Pastor Youcef is believed dead. It appears his release from prison was a deliberate plan so that Islamic supremacists could act in accordance with the brutal sharia away from the eyes of the world.
WHY IS IT THAT NOBODY WANTS THE Palestinians
Got this peice from middle east forum , read this and then you will see that nobody wants them. The Palestine have a right to hate Israel , but why do they not complain about their own Arab nations expelled them??????????? This is history and there is no decent Arab counties they hate their own .
Kuwait Expels Thousands of Palestinians…
Muslim Jewish Boycott
E-mail from a veteran friend on Monday, October 22, 2012
A few years ago, Iran's Supreme Leader Grand Ayatollah Ali Khomenei urged the Muslim World to boycott anything and everything that originates with the Jewish people.
In response, Meyer M. Treinkman, a pharmacist, out of the kindness of his heart, offered to assist them in their boycott as follows:
Any Muslim who has Syphilis must not be cured by Salvarsan, discovered by a Jew, Dr.
The Movie-2016
2016-obama-s-america-6400026
This is the movie that explains Obama’s designs for America and the world. Now that he has no more elections (and I don’t wonder what that really means) to worry about he can “let his hair down” and do as he pleases now. In his first 4 years he found out that he can sign Executive Orders with abandon and without guff from Congress. He found out that he can start wars and have our military join alongside “freedom fighters” with only UN approval and not be held accountable for by-passing Congress’ permission. He found out that he does not have to answer to the American people when he wants to invest money into failed alternative energy companies. He found out that he can lie to the people and the media is in his backpocket transforming those lies into relative truths. Obama has found out that he has come to power in a time of impotency by America’s political represenatives. Well, he has been given another 4 years to do his will and not ours while all of the citizens of America pay for it in many ways…
For my readers who understand Bible prophecy, an hour 12 minutes into the movie (toward the end) may be of interest to you. Pay attention to the Middle East map and remember that all nations will be against Israel. And this is just my sumising, but I wonder if the UN will move to Babylon, Iraq because America has become too dangerous for the diplomats. And, I’m wondering if we will see Isaiah 17: 1-3 come to pass.
Isaiah 17:1-3
New King James Version (NKJV)
Proclamation Against Syria and Israel
17 The burden against Damascus.
“Behold, Damascus will cease from being a city, And it will be a ruinous heap. 2 The cities of Aroer are forsaken;[a] They will be for flocks Which lie down, and no one will make them afraid. 3 The fortress also will cease from Ephraim, The kingdom from Damascus, And the remnant of Syria; They will be as the glory of the children of Israel,” Says the Lord of hosts.
Footnotes:
- Isaiah 17:2 Following Masoretic Text and Vulgate; Septuagint reads It shall be forsaken forever; Targum reads Its cities shall be forsaken and desolate.
Standing in the Way
Article by Jack Kelley
There are lots of news reports, articles, and even books devoted to the deteriorating state of America and speculating on the likely outcome. Reading them has brought several things to my mind.
As an example, I remembered something Hal Lindsey said 20 years ago about the then current world situation. He said he had been wondering how God was going to fulfill end times prophecy while the Soviet Union was standing in the way of the revived Roman Empire taking its prophesied place in the end times.
The term “revived Roman Empire” comes from Daniel’s interpretation of Nebuchadnezzar’s dream as a prophecy of “Gentile Dominion”, the time during which Gentile Empires would rule the world. (Daniel 2:31-43).
In the dream Nebuchadnezzar saw a large poly-metallic statue, and Daniel interpreted it to represent four Kingdoms. Many scholars believe the head of gold stood for Babylon, the chest and arms of silver symbolized Media Persia, who conquered Babylon. The belly and thighs of bronze pointed to Greece who defeated the Persians. The legs of iron represented Rome who replaced the Greeks.
Finally came the feet and toes, part of the legs and made partly of iron like the legs, but different in that they were also composed partly of baked clay. Daniel called them a divided kingdom, partly strong and partly weak (Daniel 2:41-42).
The Roman Empire was never completely conquered. Instead it split into eastern and western legs, versions of which have always been visible on the world scene. Since the feet and toes are the last phase of Gentile Dominion before the God of Heaven will set up a Kingdom of His own (Daniel 2:44) and since the statue only represents four kingdoms, scholars call them the revived Roman Empire.
How Will This Happen?
OK. Let’s go back to Hal’s question. Remember, before its fall in the early 1990s all of Eastern Europe including half of Germany was under Soviet control. This was a significant portion of the old Roman Empire. He wondered how the USSR would be defeated so the end times version of the Roman Empire could emerge.
Then we all received the answer loud and clear when for all intents and purposes the Soviet Union suddenly ceased to exist. It wasn’t defeated by an external enemy, but crumbled from within under a crippling burden of debt. The debt was the result of a combination of problems, including a disastrous war in Afghanistan, an unsustainable arms race with the US, and the inability to support the resulting increase in government spending in a declining Soviet economy.
Remembering Hal’s comment made me think how similar the world situation is today, only now it’s the US standing in the way of end times prophecy. Israel can’t experience the utter abandonment that will leave God as its only hope against powerful, hate filled enemies until the US has been neutralized. Like the Soviet Union, we could crumble from within for the same reasons they did. A catastrophic natural disaster, a coordinated series of terrorist attacks, or the rapture of the Church would also get the US out of God’s way. But something will have to happen to clear the way for the next phase of the end times, because just as the USSR was not part of Nebuchadnezzar’s statue, neither is the USA.
We’re All In This Together
Another thing that struck me was the “inter-dependency” of the world today. For example, news reports abound on the extent to which Europe’s economic difficulties are hindering America’s recovery. And now we’re being told that China’s exports are dropping at an alarming rate due to the world wide lack of demand. China is the world’s number one exporter and currently new orders are not sufficient to sustain its massive manufacturing capacity. Some experts are warning that China’s economy could be in the early stages of implosion. If so this could also carry world wide implications. And China is one of America’s major creditors. How would the decline of their economy affect the US? Oil prices also fluctuate in response to changing world wide demand. It seems like all the world’s economies depend to a growing extent on each other. These and other trends make me wonder how God would go about healing America without also healing the rest of the world.
In the days of Ruth and Boaz, escape from the famine in Bethlehem was as simple as walking across the Jordan River valley into Moab. And Nineveh was powerful during a time when nations could exist independently, and where God treated them individually. Remember, He only had Jonah warn Nineveh of the coming judgment. No other city was warned because the judgment was against Nineveh alone. Even within the last century isolationism was considered to be a viable strategy for the US. But we now live in an age where nations are interdependent and where God is in the process of bringing judgment upon the whole world. It’s a whole different set of conditions.
Who Are You Looking For?
Then I realized how our view of the end times affects our view of current events. If you’re one of those scoffers who laugh when people talk about the end times and think that everything will go on as it has since the beginning of creation (2 Peter 3:3-4) then I can understand why you want to pray for God to protect your way of life. It’s the natural thing to do. In Matt. 24:37-41 Jesus spoke about the time just before His coming. In effect, He said even then people would be trying their best to live a normal life, thinking the terrible times would have to end sooner or later and things would go back to being the way they’ve always been. They will have no idea that the world as they know it is about to end.
But if you believe we’re the generation that will see the Lord’s return for His Church then you see the decline of the US as a major sign that God is bringing things to a close, just as the fall of the Soviet Union was a major sign 20 years ago, and the re-birth of Israel was a major sign before that. And although that means things could get even more uncomfortable soon, you long for the Lord’s appearing, since you know the Lord has promised to rescue us from the coming wrath (1 Thes. 1:10) and will award a crown to all who’ve been longing for Him to do so (2 Tim. 4:8).
Personally, I believe the signs that show we’re well into the End times are becoming almost impossible to ignore. Israel is back in the land. The Middle East is a tinder box one spark away from erupting in flames, and all the participants in Psalm 83, Isaiah 17, and Ezekiel 38 are now in place. The weather is unpredictable and becoming more extreme. Natural disasters are on the rise. The economic problems we face are world wide in scope and require the kind of solutions only a one world government can implement and enforce. This means a leader will have to be found who can quickly gain world wide popularity. The quote attributed to Paul Henri-Spaak, former Prime minister of Belgium, is becoming more timely by the hour. “What we want is a man of sufficient stature to hold the alliances of all people and to lift us out of the economic morass into which we are sinking. Send us such a man, and be he god or devil, we will receive him.”
Thy Kingdom Come
It doesn’t matter whether you favor the western leg of the Old Roman Empire or the eastern leg, they’re both in the advanced stages of preparation to become the last Gentile empire before the Lord comes to establish His Kingdom. This is an urgent sign because the revived Roman Empire will have a short duration, perhaps as little as 7 years, and then the Lord will come to establish a kingdom that will never be destroyed or given to another (Daniel 2:44).
As has been the case in the past, this kingdom will exist in three components, Jews, Gentiles and the Church. The main difference, at least at the outset, is that all will be believers. The Jews will dwell with God in Israel, which will be expanded to include all the land He originally gave to Abraham. Believing Gentiles who survive the Great Tribulation will repopulate the rest of Earth, and the Church will inhabit the New Jerusalem.
Most of what the Bible contains in relation to the Kingdom Age on Earth is found in the Old Testament and is limited to descriptions of Israel, which will be the headquarters of the Kingdom on Earth. From them we can see glimpses of a creation liberated from it’s bondage to decay (Romans 8:18-21), with fields so fertile the farmer can barely complete the harvest of one crop before it’s time to plant the next one (Amos 9:13), of people living in peace and joy to an age well beyond what man currently experiences (Isaiah 65:20), of children no longer doomed to misfortune playing safely in the streets while the elderly look on happily (Zech. 8:4-5).
We can only assume that life in the nations will also be a much improved version of what we currently experience, but it seems clear to me that Israel will be the most favored nation on Earth.
Life in the New Jerusalem is even more sparingly described. But what is there is mostly contained in Rev. 21. From there we can see obvious differences. There’s no mention of fields, crops, or other earthly endeavors because after the rapture the Church will consist of immortals of the royal class, and royals don’t work in the sense that you and I do.
1 John 3:2 says, “Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when he appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is.”
John’s statement means it’s impossible to know in any detail the kind of life we’ll be living after the rapture. All we know for sure is that it’s beyond our imagining. Paul said, “No eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love Him” (1 Cor. 2:9).
So if you’ve heard stories about us sitting on clouds playing harps all day, or having to endure an endless worship service, or looking with envy on another person’s mansion and wishing we’d worked harder in life, you know those things can’t be true. Those ideas were conceived by human minds, and are not supported in Scripture.
Just as you have the faith to believe you are saved, you also have the faith to believe your next life will surpass your current one to an extent you can’t imagine. You only have to step outside the boundaries of your earthly perspective to exercise it.
End Times prophecies tell us God is working to bring His Kingdom to pass. These prophecies say this will be accomplished in several steps. First He will remove His Church from Earth to the place He’s prepared for us (John 14:2-3). Then He will turn His attention to Israel for the seven remaining years He promised them (Daniel 9:24-27, Acts 15:13-18). During those seven years He will accomplish three things in preparation for the Kingdom. Through the End Times judgments, He will 1) completely destroy the nations among which His people have been scattered, 2) discipline Israel (Jeremiah 30:11), and 3) bring about the restoration of His creation (Acts 3:21, Rev. 21:1). Then the Lord Jesus, having established His Heavenly Kingdom in the New Jerusalem seven years earlier, will return to establish His Earthly Kingdom, headquartered in Israel.
This is God’s plan for us, and I believe the signs tell us He’s already well into the final stages of implementation. You can almost hear the footsteps of the Messiah.
Movie: The Rebirth of Israel in Bible Prophesy
hattip: AntiChristComes
Isaiah 66:7-8: Before going into labor, she gave birth; before her pains came, she delivered a male child. Who ever heard of such at thing? Who has ever seen such things? Is a country born in one day? Is a nation brought forth all at once? For as soon as Tziyon went into labor, she brought forth her children. – Stern’s Complete Jewish Bible
Isaiah prophecied that Israel would become a nation again and that it would happen in one day!
Bible passage: Isaiah 66:7-8
Prophet: Isaiah Written: perhaps between 701-681 BC
Fulfilled: 1948
Remember and Never Let It Happen Again
Hattip: Findalis
Townhall political cartoon
America’s Future in the Hands of God
Another excellent article by Don Koenig~
If Bible prophecy will be fulfilled, why expect worldly solutions?
American Christians who are aware of Bible prophecy should not be surprised or unduly concerned by the lawlessness and insanity that we are seeing in our nation and the world. If we believe Bible prophecy will be fulfilled in our generation why would we now expect America or the world to come up with solutions for a world that will prove to be doomed without Jesus?
Why should we expect the prophecies about what would happen in the last days, to not happen, if we are indeed in the last days? If these things were not already happening before our eyes, I would have to question my own presumption that the prophetic scriptures about the end of the age will be totally fulfilled within a couple of decades. We are living in the times that the prophets longed to see, it is really not a time for panic or despair for believers looking for the Lord’s return. On the contrary, look up for your redemption draws near.
How could Bible prophecy be fulfilled while America remains a beacon of hope, freedom and liberty for the world? Obviously, if Bible prophecy is to be literally fulfilled, America as we have known her will have to cease to exist. According to Bible prophecy the world focus in the end times will be on Israel, the Middle East, the revived Roman Empire area, the Harlot, Gog in the far North, the Kings of the East, and on globalization and general immorality.
We should see that freedoms in America are suddenly being taken away at a startling pace at all levels of government in the name of drug wars, political correctness, environmentalism and national security. America has never been perfect; there have been significant demonic influences in all American generations, but the Christian influence in America in the past put America on a path of correction. Today, there will be no correction because most Americans do not believe what God said.
American Christendom actually leads the world in the latest bastardizations of Christianity. Even most of the American Evangelicals have already become corrupted or influenced by the rising New Evangelicals that are actually theological liberals or Dominion Theology reconstructionists disguised as evangelicals. They define Christianity not through the Bible, but through spiritual feelings or the philosophies and psychologies of a postmodern satanic world system.
America is doomed to receive the same fate as other great nations before it. The fall of America is now already underway and optimists that say there will be restoration again are not speaking from a biblical worldview. Americans elected a man who believes Marxist global government is the answer for the world. He believes the whole American system needs to change and be socialized and controlled by elitists controlling world government. Population control, UN Agenda 21 and climate change fear mongering, are just means toward that end.
Obama’s Defense Secretary recently let the cat out of the bag, when he said that world law trumps the American Constitution. He was just giving this administration’s position. These UN authorized Right to Protect wars are the start of military enforcement of world government. This is all part of a world socialist plan to gain control of the world and at the same time run down America’s super power status through endless wars, debt burdens, and class warfare. They know what is coming will bring riots to American cities, George Sorus even said as much.
You would think our generals would lay down the law for this administration, but apparently they just go along to get their pension or else they are insiders or they have been cowed. Any American citizen now can be detained indefinitely or even killed without due legal process and that is contrary to the US Constitution that all our military people took an oath to uphold and defend “so help them God”. Yet, they know they carry out unconstitutional unlawful orders. So why would God help these oath breakers?
Actually, if you read the executive orders of Obama, you have no rights at all if he declares otherwise.
Even if the Republican Party could somehow take over government, the purposely created race and class divisions and the criminal debt creation will still destroy this country. A house divided cannot stand; a debtor will become the slave of the lender. Christians helping to elect a progressive satanic cult leader is not going to bring a blessing from God on America.
Even if the Republicans successfully do dethrone the Marxist plant, they will only replace him with a Masonic plant. Christians think they can vote for the lesser of two evils and be blessed. They are wrong, and Christian leaders have been wrong on this issue for decades, and that is why we get the same evils to vote for.
I see no political solution to America’s problems. Why would God bless America? Sing that song all you want, but you’re part of the problem if you think God blesses nations that honor Him with their lips but dishonor Him in their deeds.
The political battle in America needs to be about retaining individual freedom and liberty. Will Americans allow government to control everyone and everything (statism and collectivism)? Will they make government god or will Americans fight to retain individual liberties outlined in our Constitution? We are probably the only nation left in the world that has a constitution where individual freedoms and individual liberties trump government, but that train may have already left the station.
Nobody should be under the illusion that sociopathic statists that gain control and establish Big Brother or Big Sister bureaucracies are suddenly going to reverse course and stop regulating, monitoring, and bullying everyone because a few more Republicans got into office. There are sociopathic control freaks in both political parties; our nation could not be where it is now at without them.
All it takes for tyranny is that sociopathic people rise to the top of government; they only need to be a very small percent of the population. Then add the passive yes men, and add apathy by the majority and you have Nazi Germany or Stalin’s Russia. The common people in these nations were no more evil than our own people today, and what happened there is just as likely to happen here when most Americans confess Jesus but live like heathen. After all, Germany supposedly was a Protestant/Catholic Christian nation and Stalin’s Russia was a Russian Orthodox supposedly Christian nation.
If lovers of liberty will not stand up and fight for the freedoms that our ancestors died for, the American Empire will continue on its police state death spiral. When over half of the nation becomes focused on free bread and circus, liberty and justice for all becomes just a side-show for the rich people that can pay the price of admission.
America is lost because repentance from evil is nowhere in sight. Most Americans do not care to reject evil, and the people they elect to political office reflect that. If you need proof that most Americans love evil, just observe what they watch, what they listen to, what they do, and what and whom they support.
Show me a nation that blesses Israel and I will show you a blessed nation. That used to be true of America but even most of American Christendom is now hostile toward Israel and totally ignorant of promises given to Israel in Bible prophecy…
Read the rest of the article here:
The Prophetic Years~
Evan Sayat Says It Bluntly About Liberals’ Mindset
Hattip: Wintery Knight- http://winteryknight.wordpress.com/
A Prophecy Soon To Be Fulfilled
It’s been known for some time that Syria has one of the world’s most advanced chemical weapons programs, even though such things are illegal, and is probably in possession of the bulk of Saddam Hussein’s WMDs that the MSM (main stream media) delights in telling you never existed. Recent satellite imagery suggests significant efforts to update Syria’s known chemical weapons facilities. They’ve also mobilized reserves, set up alternate communication centers, and moved all official historical and legal documents out of Damascus. They did this because they believe that Israel will respond to a chemical attack by destroying Damascus with nuclear weaponry. They’ve recalled all their citizens living in Lebanon. They’ve purchased Russian arms and defensive systems costing hundreds of millions of dollars in an effort to protect Damascus.
http://gracethrufaith.com/ikvot-hamashiach/isaiah-17-an-oracle-against-damascus/
An Oracle Concerning Damascus
“See, Damascus will no longer be a city but will become a heap of ruins. The cities of Aroer will be deserted and left to flocks, which will lie down, with no one to make them afraid. (Isaiah 17:1-2)
Because of the language of these verses, many scholars believe that this prophecy was only partially fulfilled when the Assyrians defeated the Arameans and overran their capital, Damascus, in 732 BC. To this day Damascus is thought to be the world’s oldest continuously inhabited city with a 5000-year history and a population close to 2 million, yet Isaiah 17:1 indicates that it will one day cease to exist.
The fortified city will disappear from Ephraim, and royal power from Damascus; the remnant of Aram will be like the glory of the Israelites,” declares the LORD Almighty. “In that day the glory of Jacob will fade; the fat of his body will waste away. It will be as when a reaper gathers the standing grain and harvests the grain with his arm – as when a man gleans heads of grain in the Valley of Rephaim. (Isaiah 17:3-5)
This segment speaks of the defeat of Damascus in 732BC and the destruction of Samaria 10 years later (722 BC). Damascus continued to exist as part of the Assyrian Empire and is still here today, but the ruins of Samaria are just now being excavated out of the sandy soil of Israel. The systematic relocation of the ruling classes to the far reaches of the Assyrian Empire is also in view here, symbolized by the fat of Jacob’s body wasting away. This was standard Assyrian policy to reduce the likelihood of subsequent rebellion among their conquered peoples. Jacob and Ephraim are alternate names for the Northern Kingdom, and Samaria was its capital.
Yet some gleanings will remain, as when an olive tree is beaten, leaving two or three olives on the topmost branches, four or five on the fruitful boughs,” declares the LORD, the God of Israel. (Isaiah 17:6)
In that day men will look to their Maker and turn their eyes to the Holy One of Israel. They will not look to the altars, the work of their hands, and they will have no regard for the Asherah poles and the incense altars their fingers have made. In that day their strong cities, which they left because of the Israelites, will be like places abandoned to thickets and undergrowth. And all will be desolation. (Isaiah 17:7-9)
This is another passage that’s problematic for those who try to consign the whole passage to history. There is simply no reason to believe that the Assyrians turned to God following their conquest of Aram and Israel. And far from abandoning their cities because of the Israelites, it was the Israelites who were defeated and dispersed. The yet future Jewish attack on Damascus causing the destruction and abandonment of Syrian cities, and the eventual return of the survivors to their God is a much more likely fulfillment. And it could happen soon.
You have forgotten God your Savior; you have not remembered the Rock, your fortress. Therefore, though you set out the finest plants and plant imported vines, though on the day you set them out, you make them grow, and on the morning when you plant them, you bring them to bud, yet the harvest will be as nothing in the day of disease and incurable pain. (Isaiah 17:10-11)
Oh, the raging of many nations – they rage like the raging sea! Oh, the uproar of the peoples – they roar like the roaring of great waters! Although the peoples roar like the roar of surging waters, when he rebukes them they flee far away, driven before the wind like chaff on the hills, like tumbleweed before a gale. In the evening, sudden terror! Before the morning, they are gone! This is the portion of those who loot us (Israel), the lot of those who plunder us. (Isaiah 17:12-14)
Israel is not blind to these mounting threats, but until lately seems to have been ignoring them. That’s about to stop. Israeli Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu has told the world he will not apologize for defending his country and will continue to do so even if it results in more confrontations. We can easily envision a scenario that escalates into the final fulfillment of Isaiah 17, the destruction of Damascus. Once again there will be sudden terror in the evening, and before morning they will be gone. If you listen carefully, you can almost hear the footsteps of the Messiah.
http://www.bibleprophecyblog.com/2010/06/isaiah-17-oracle-against-damascus.html
And in Jerusalem…
As you can see the Temple Mount was never considered Holy to Muslims, It is never mentioned in the Koran Jerusalem is never mentioned in the Koran, Mohammed never stepped foot in Israel, Palestine is never mentioned in the Bible or in the Koran. Its all a LIE by Arabs to continue the conflict with Israel by spreading fantasy Lies they are claiming to have a history in a land (Israel) they have no ancient history in at all. There never was a Palestine or a Palestinian People, this is an historical fact that even Arab have admitted to.
Stone-throwers attacked a group of Christian tourists that were visiting the site. At least 40 officers entered the Temple Mount to deal with the situation, said Rosenfeld.
Police arrested three suspects on the scene who were involved directly in the attacks. Police arrested ten additional suspects as they exited afternoon prayers at the Al Aksa mosque, and five more Sunday evening. They expected to make several further arrests. Police said no Jews were at the Temple Mount during the altercation. The site remained opened to tourists throughout the day.
Iran’s Sabre Rattlings and False Accusations of Americans for Future Leverage
Iran’s leader visits Venezuela amid tensions
CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — President Hugo Chavez defended his close ally Iranian leader Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on Monday and warned of “U.S. warmongering threats” amid tensions over Tehran’s nuclear program and a death sentence against an American man convicted of working for the CIA.
The two leaders met in Caracas on the first leg of a four-nation tour that will also take Ahmadinejad to Nicaragua, Cuba and Ecuador.
“We are very worried,” Chavez said of the pressures being put on Iran by the United States and its allies, which he accused of being a threat to peace.
Adding to the tensions, Iranian state radio reported on Monday that a court in Iran has convicted dual U.S.-Iranian citizen Amir Mirzaei Hekmati of working for the CIA and sentenced him to death.
Official Statement:Jan. 9, 20128:30am EST
Amir Hekmati’s parents respond to Iranian press statement about death penalty for their son:
My husband Ali and I are shocked and terrified by the news that our son, Amir, has been sentenced to death.
We believe that this verdict is the result of a process that was neither transparent nor fair.
The Iranian authorities are denying that Amir is a United States citizen, despite the fact he was born in Flagstaff, Arizona.
Amir did not engage in any acts of spying, or “fighting against God,” as the convicting Judge has claimed in his sentence. Amir is not a criminal. His very life is being exploited for political gain.
A grave error has been committed, and we have authorized our legal representatives to make direct contact with the Iranian authorities to find a solution to this misunderstanding.
We pray that Iran will show compassion and not murder our son, Amir, a natural born American citizen, who was visiting Iran and his relatives for the first time.
Behnaz Hekmati (Amir’s mother)
U.S. condemns reported Iran death sentence for former U.S. Marine
Hekmati, 28, a former U.S. Marine Arabic language translator in Iraq, was born in Flagstaff, Arizona of Iranian descent and raised in Michigan. His family in Michigan, former colleagues and American officials say Hekmati never served in the CIA and was in Iran to visit his grandmother…
“Like many other detainees in Iran, Amir Hekmati did not receive a fair trial and we question the timing and political circumstances of this decision,” said Ann Harrison, Amnesty International’s interim director for the Middle East and North Africa. “We know from past experience that the Iranian authorities sometimes rush forward with executions of political prisoners — including dual nationals — at politically sensitive times and we fear that this execution could happen within days or weeks.”
Amid tensions, U.S. Navy rescues Iranians from Somali pirates
Just days after Iranian and American military officials traded warnings over a U.S. Navy vessel’s departure from the Persian Gulf, the United States Navy has rescued 13 Iranian fishermen and their fishing dhow from Somali pirates in the north Arabian sea, the Pentagon said Friday. And in a side irony that punctuates the rare instance of Iranian-American co-operation, the rescue operation was carried out by a ship belonging to the very U.S. Navy aircraft carrier strike group that Iranian army officials had earlier boasted of evicting from Gulf waters.
(click on headlines for source to news stories)
Its the “Ron Paul Crazy”
No matter what you may think of Glen Beck (and its not much good as far as I’m concerned) what he says in this video is right on target: The Right Scoop (more info to be had in the RS comment line)
hattip to Kim and Ann Barnhardt.
On another note:
I have to agree with pundits out there that the Ron Paul backers are the meanest bunch when their idol gets criticized. I’ve read some nasty stuff on blogs and in You Tube comment lines. They easily come unglued. I try to look at it like this-they are a passionate bunch who fears greatly for our nation but can’t see the forest for the trees.
- One who believes that the only legitimate purpose of a government is to protect the rights of its citizens.
- Anyone who supports civil liberties to a greater-than-average degree.
- Anyone who believes in minimal, decentralized government.
- When the word “Libertarian” is capitalized, it generally refers to a member of the Libertarian Party.
I like that except that the word comes from the French libertaire, meaning “anarchist.”. I don’t like that. But the chances of anarchy under Ron Paul’s leadership are rather slim since his foreign policy would have us country-less one minute after his inaugaration!
Thing is, the U.S. had a strong military to back them up in talks with hostile nations. If you don’t have that, you don’t have clout in negotiations. DUH.
Knock, Knock, UN…Is Anybody Home?
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights
Preamble
Whereas recognition of the inherent dignity and of the equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human family is the foundation of freedom, justice and peace in the world,
Whereas disregard and contempt for human rights have resulted in barbarous acts which have outraged the conscience of mankind, and the advent of a world in which human beings shall enjoy freedom of speech and belief and freedom from fear and want has been proclaimed as the highest aspiration of the common people,
Whereas it is essential, if man is not to be compelled to have recourse, as a last resort, to rebellion against tyranny and oppression, that human rights should be protected by the rule of law,
Whereas it is essential to promote the development of friendly relations between nations,
Whereas the peoples of the United Nations have in the Charter reaffirmed their faith in fundamental human rights, in the dignity and worth of the human person and in the equal rights of men and women and have determined to promote social progress and better standards of life in larger freedom,
Whereas Member States have pledged themselves to achieve, in co-operation with the United Nations, the promotion of universal respect for and observance of human rights and fundamental freedoms,
Whereas a common understanding of these rights and freedoms is of the greatest importance for the full realization of this pledge,
Now, Therefore THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY proclaims THIS UNIVERSAL DECLARATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS as a common standard of achievement for all peoples and all nations, to the end that every individual and every organ of society, keeping this Declaration constantly in mind, shall strive by teaching and education to promote respect for these rights and freedoms and by progressive measures, national and international, to secure their universal and effective recognition and observance, both among the peoples of Member States themselves and among the peoples of territories under their jurisdiction.
Read the Articles here.
So, are the UN member states doing enough to protect women, children, Jews, Christians, Hindus and homosexuals from human rights violations from a certain religious/political/military group? Especially now that the Arab Spring has become an Arab rude Awakening of dictatorships in the middle east and north Africa, will we see the UN work feverishly to stop the human rights violations that are on a scale never seen before?
I greatly doubt it…
Palestinians Will Not Keep Any Oaths For Peace-Ever!
They cannot keep oaths to anyone other than a fellow Muslim:
Bukhari:V7B67N427 “The Prophet said, ‘If I take an oath and later find something else better than that, then I do what is better and expiate my oath.’”
Qur’an 9:3 “Allah and His Messenger dissolve obligations.”
Qur’an 66:2 “Allah has already sanctioned for you the dissolution of your vows.”
Bukhari:V4B52N268 “Allah’s Apostle said, ‘War is deceit.’”
Qur’an 4:142 “Surely the hypocrites strive to deceive Allah. He shall retaliate by deceiving them.”
Bukhari:V4B52N220 “Allah’s Apostle said, ‘I have been made victorious with terror.’”
Qur’an:8:12 “I shall terrorize the infidels. So wound their bodies and incapacitate them because they oppose Allah and His Apostle.”
Qur’an:8:57 “If you gain mastery over them in battle, inflict such a defeat as would terrorize them, so that they would learn a lesson and be warned.”
Ishaq:326 “If you come upon them, deal so forcibly as to terrify those who would follow, that they may be warned. Make a severe example of them by terrorizing Allah’s enemies.”
Qur’an:8:67 “It is not fitting for any prophet to have prisoners until he has made a great slaughter in the land.”
A Cup of Trembling?
Article by Jack Kelley
This is the word of the Lord concerning Israel. The Lord, Who stretches out the Heavens Who lays the foundations of the Earth, and Who forms the spirit of man within him declares, “I am going to make Jerusalem a cup that sends all the surrounding peoples reeling. Judah will be besieged as well as Jerusalem.
On that day when all the nations of the earth are gathered against her I will make Jerusalem an immovable rock for all the nations. All who try to move it will injure themselves” (Zech 12:1-3).
True, the ultimate fulfillment of this passage will come at the very end of the age, but a careful reading shows the progressive nature of the prophecy. First the surrounding nations will be sent reeling, with both Judah (West Bank) and Jerusalem besieged. Ultimately all the nations of the earth will be involved, and those who move against Jerusalem will wind up injuring themselves. And please don’t miss the way the Author identifies Himself: the One Who stretches out the heavens, lays the foundation of the earth and forms man’s spirit within him. Not much doubt as to Who’s speaking, so we better pay attention.
When Will These Things Happen?
It’s safe to say that all the nations of the earth are troubled over Jerusalem today. They realize the ease with which the whole world could be drawn into a conflict in the Middle East. And almost all are already aligned against Jerusalem. Remember, the prophecy is initially focused on the surrounding peoples and indicates that Judah and Jerusalem will be besieged. The degree to which this part of the prophecy is already being fulfilled is frightening. Much of the land bordering Israel has become little more than an armed camp, filled with troops at the ready.
Hezbollah has been moving their rockets and missiles into position again with Lebanon’s full support, while steadily increasing their inventories of weaponry. Syria also has troops along Israel’s northern border as well as missiles set to fire upon Israeli cities. In the South Hamas and the PA are no less prepared. Recent reports confirm that large numbers of rockets and missiles from Libya have turned up in Gaza. Together, these next door neighbors claim that every city in Israel is now within missile range. In it’s headline report on Dec. 5, 2011 Debkafile assessed the likelihood of war in the Middle East, including an Israeli attack on Iran, to be very high between mid-December and mid-January. The US and Russia have both stationed powerful fleets in the Eastern Mediterranean against this possibility. There’s still time for diplomacy but for now no one believes a diplomatic solution will be forthcoming.
Psalm 83
As a result, this is beginning to look like a run-up to Psalm 83, a battle that’s never happened, but involves all of Israel’s next door neighbors in an effort to “destroy them as a nation, that the name of Israel be remembered no more” (Psalm 83:4). The Psalmist pleads with God to pursue Israel’s neighbors with His tempest and terrify them with His storm so they will perish in disgrace (Psalm 83:15-17). I believe his prayer will be answered because this outcome is necessary to set the stage for Ezekiel 38-39.
Isaiah 17, An Oracle Against Damascus
We should also consider what could be a related prophecy from Isaiah 17. It was partially fulfilled in 732 BC when the Assyrians conquered Damascus (Aram). But never did Damascus cease to be inhabited as the prophecy requires (Isaiah 17:1). In fact to this day Damascus is described as the oldest continuously inhabited city in the world, over 5000 years and counting. The fortified city in vs. 3 was Samaria, capital of the Northern Kingdom of Israel. It was destroyed by the Assyrians in 722 BC. The Northern Kingdom consisted of the 10 tribes of Israel who rebelled in the religious upheaval that followed King Solomon’s death and was allied with Damascus against Assyria. Like Damascus it was defeated and its people carried off into captivity. Since Damascus was never destroyed and never ceased being inhabited, the world may have seen a partial fulfillment in history that points to a total fulfillment yet future to us.
Validating Prophecy
This is not unusual in Bible prophecy where the complete fulfillment of a passage may unfold over thousands of years. You receive an example of this in the mail every Christmas. It comes in the form of a Christmas card that says, “For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given. And the government will be on his shoulders. And He will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, the Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace” (Isa 9:6). The passage goes on to explain that He will sit on David’s throne and reign in peace forever.
Only the first phrase of this passage has come to pass. The Child was born, the Son was given. The rest of the passage awaits His 2nd coming, but the fact that He was born confirms that the rest will take place as well. Partial fulfillment is the Lord’s way of validating End Times prophecies thousands of years in advance.
The Oracle against Damascus is a lot like the one against Babylon in Isaiah 13-14, where Babylon is also described as being so totally destroyed that it would never be inhabited again. For many years scholars believed this prophecy was fulfilled when the Medes and Persians conquered Babylon about 535 BC. It took the Gulf War to show us that Saddam Hussein had spent billions re-building Babylon, and to realize that Babylon was never destroyed in the manner the Bible describes. It has in fact been occupied almost continuously since its construction 2700 years ago. The City of Babylon will play a major role in world events at the end of the age before its final and total destruction, foretold in Rev. 18.
Back To Damascus
Admittedly the Oracle against Damascus in Isaiah 17 is somewhat more obscure. Scholars who place fulfillment of this passage in our time rely on four things:
1. The phrase in vs. 1 “Damascus will no longer be a city”
2. The multiple use of the phrase “in that day” through out the passage (vs. 4, 7, 9) which often hints of the end times
3. Men will “Look to their Maker and turn their eyes to the Holy One of Israel,” see below,
4. The mention of many nations in vs.12-14 would seem to include more than just Assyria.
Regarding point 3 there was a temporary revival in the southern kingdom under King Hezekiah that spared Jerusalem from the Assyrians, but nowhere is a revival in the northern kingdom or among the Arameans (Damascus was the capital of Aram) or Assyrians mentioned in history. And yet in Isaiah 19:23-25 Assyria is mentioned with Egypt and Israel as being called “My people, My handiwork, and My inheritance” by God in the millennium. This reconciliation with God is still in the future.
Soon And Very Soon
The USA and Europe have been warning Israel that an attack on Iran would not only result in a wider war in the Middle East, but would also deliver a severe blow to an already reeling world economy. Because of this US Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta recently said that Israel has to come to terms with a Nuclear Iran, an Islamized Middle East, and reliance on the US for protection.
Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu said sometimes making a risky decision carries a heavy price, but the price for not making it would be heavier. Reliable observers interpret this to mean when the time comes to attack Iran, whatever repercussions it could cause will not be considered in light of the threat to Israel’s continued existence. We’ll soon know whether that time has come.
You can almost hear the Footsteps of the Messiah. 12-10-11
Radical Islam Has The Plan to Destroy America
About 50 minutes long.
A Recovering Muslim’s Editorial on Non-Muslim Muslims
From Political Islam:
My name is Bosch and I’m a recovering Muslim.
…So while I understand that most Muslims are not at war with us, they’ve proven in their silence and inaction against jihad that they’re not on our side either, and there’s nothing we can say or do to change that. We just have to finally accept it and stop expecting them to come around, while doing our best to kill those who are trying to kill us.
Another problem with Muslims who aren’t very Muslim is that they lead some among us to conclude that they must be practicing a more enlightened form of Islam. They’re not. They’re “practicing” life in non-Muslim countries, where they are free to live as they choose. But their “Islam” is not the Islam. There’s no separate ideology apart from Islam that’s being practiced by these Muslims in name only, there’s no such thing as “Western Islam”. (italics mine for emphasis)
Non-observant Muslims are not our problem, but neither are they the solution to our problem. Our problem is Islam and its most consistent practitioners. There is nothing in Islam that stays the hand of Muslims who want to kill non-Muslims. If an individual Muslim is personally peaceful, it’s not because of Islam, it’s because of his individual choice, which is why I often say that your average Muslim is morally superior to Mohammad, to their own religion. The very rare Muslim who helps us against Jihad is acting against his religion, but that doesn’t stop some among us from thinking that his existence somehow means that he represents more than himself.
…In addition to these politically active moderates, when you see well-assimilated Muslims in the West, you’re not seeing Islam in action, you’re seeing individuals living up to the old adage, when in Rome, do as the Romans do. They’re essentially post-Islamic Muslims who have rejected Islamic values and have embraced Western ones. But since the process of their assimilation was implicit – as it happened naturally by their exposure to Western, i.e., pro-life, values – both Muslims and non-Muslims alike prefer to generously give Islam some credit for it. But a good Muslim, by our standards is a bad Muslim by Islamic standards. Objectively good human beings, who identify themselves as Muslim, give Islam a good face, one far better then it deserves. This only gives us a false impression about what it is we’re facing, with just another excuse not to face it.And this leads to our acceptance into our culture of stealth jihadists who have figured out how to say what we want to hear, while they scheme behind the scenes to further Islamize the West. (bold mine for emphasis)
In the name of distinguishing the enemy from Muslims who mean us no harm, far too many Western commentators have avoided using the name “Islam” for the enemy’s ideology, and instead have decided to create their very own terms for the threat we’re facing, terms that are alien to the enemy. Terms such as:
Islamic Fundamentalism.
Islamic Extremism.
Totalitarian Islam.
Islamofascism.
Islamonazism.
Political Islam.
Bin Ladenism.
Radical Islam.
Militant Islam.
Islamism.
Jihadism.
We didn’t use terms such as “Radical Nazism”, “Extremist Shinto” and “Militant Communism” in the past. “Militant Islam”, Political Islam”, etc., are redundant terms. Our pretending otherwise has proven disastrous. Thousands of American lives, both civilian and military, have been sacrificed because of policies predicated on the myth that “Islam means peace.” We didn’t try to reform Shinto or Nazism during World War II; the major changes in those cultures took place only after we thoroughly de-militarized them. (bold mine for emphasis)
And it’s no accident that Western analysts of Islam who are most informed about Islam are also most critical of it, while those least informed are least critical. But then there are those who, in their study of Islam, have become so enamored with their subject that, instead of sticking to what Islam is, they often write about what it isn’t, what they hope it might be. They seem preoccupied with doing their part to save Islam from those who have allegedly corrupted it. (italics mine for emphasis)
…Our altruistic concern for the future and well being of the Muslim world has come at the expense of American lives and treasure. We’ve placed the well being of “The Muslim World” above our own self-defense. We’ve placed today’s Big Lie, “Islam means peace”, above the truth we need to act on. We’ve placed the lives of Muslim civilians above the lives of our soldiers, placing them in absolutely unnecessary danger in order to protect innocent (or even guilty) civilians. Our Rules of Engagement might as well be renamed the Golden Rules of Engagement, as our soldiers have been forced to treat the enemy the way we’d like to be treated. And the enemy takes full advantage of that, as they do of all of the policies our morally vain politicians have concocted. We need to shift the focus onto our own well-being at the enemy’s expense for a change.
We’ve tried everything since 9/11 except real war. War is the answer to Jihad.
So who cares about Islam? Muslims, Jihadists, Islamophiles, Leftists who naturally side with anti-American ideologies, guilt-ridden fellow travelers who think America is usually in the wrong, and religionists who believe any religion is better than none. But since Leftists and Islamophiles usually know very little about Islam, who truly cares about Islam? Those who are at war with us. (bold mine for emphasis)
Read more here.
Bosch Fawstin is an Eisner Award nominated cartoonist currently working on a graphic novel, The Infidel, of which the first chapter is now available as a digital comic. Bosch’s first graphic novel is Table for One. He is also the author of ProPiganda: Drawing the Line Against Jihad, a companion to The Infidel, and the 1st print appearance of Pigman.
Copyright © 2009 FrontPage Magazine. All rights reserved.
Psalm 83 and Israel’s Enemies
O God, do not keep silent; be not quiet, O God, be not still. See how your enemies are astir, how your foes rear their heads. With cunning they conspire against your people; they plot against those you cherish.
“Come,” they say, “let us destroy them as a nation, that the name of Israel be remembered no more.”
With one mind they plot together; they form an alliance against you- the tents of Edom and the Ishmaelites, of Moab and the Hagrites, Gebal, Ammon and Amalek, Philistia, with the people of Tyre. Even Assyria has joined them to lend strength to the descendants of Lot.
Do to them as you did to Midian, as you did to Sisera and Jabin at the river Kishon, who perished at Endor and became like refuse on the ground. Make their nobles like Oreb and Zeeb, all their princes like Zebah and Zalmunna, who said, “Let us take possession of the pasturelands of God.”
Make them like tumbleweed, O my God, like chaff before the wind. As fire consumes the forest or a flame sets the mountains ablaze, so pursue them with your tempest and terrify them with your storm. Cover their faces with shame so that men will seek your name, O LORD. May they ever be ashamed and dismayed; may they perish in disgrace.
Let them know that you, whose name is the LORD-that you alone are the Most High over all the earth.
This psalm speaks of the nations who border on Israel. At various times, they’ve tried to defeat the Jewish people and drive them from the Land God gave them. Although all their attempts in the past have been unsuccessful, it looks like they’re getting ready to try again. They still haven’t learned the painful lesson that comes from defying God’s promise to Abraham. “I will bless those who bless you and curse those who curse you.“ Once again Israel will defeat them, a testimony to the power of a promise from God.
Has God made promises to you? “Surely I am with you always,” He said, “Even to the end of the age (Matt 28:20). Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink, or about your body, what you will wear. But seek first His Kingdom and His Righteousness and all these things will be given to you as well (Matt. 6:25, 33). I tell you the truth it is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away the Counselor will not come to you, but if I go I will send Him to you (John 16:7). And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am (John 14:3). Since you have kept my command to endure patiently, I will also keep you from the hour of trial that is going to come upon the whole world to test those who live on the earth (Rev. 3:10).”
Each one of these is straight from the Lord’s mouth to our ears. Each is as clear as His promise to Abraham. “Jesus Christ is the same, yesterday today and forever,” we’re told (Hebrews 13:8). God’s promise to Abraham carried no expiration date. Over 4,000 years later, nations who curse the descendants of Abraham still risk the wrath of God.
And it’s the same with His promises to us. As a shepherd’s first priority is protecting His sheep, so the Lord’s first priority is protecting us. It’s a sacred trust, placed with Him upon His descent to Earth.
“I have come down from Heaven not to do my own will,” He said, “But the will of Him Who sent me. And this is the will of Him Who sent me; that I shall lose none of all that He has given me, but raise them up at the last day. For my Father’s will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in Him shall have eternal life, and I shall raise him up at the last day.” (John 6:37-40)
Oh Lord, let the disposition of these ancient nations who sought to defy your promise to your chosen people serve to strengthen our faith in your promises to us today.
http://gracethrufaith.com/bread-from-heaven/psalm-83/#more-4040
Our Taxes Funding Christian Persecution Abroad
‘We Want Justice’ Say Capitol Demonstrators Protesting Army Killing of Egyptian Christians
CNSNews.com) – Rain and dozens of armed Capitol police setting up barriers did not dampen the enthusiasm of hundreds of Coptic Christians who showed up on Wednesday to show support for their fellow believers in Egypt.
Protesters said the persecution and killing of Christians in Egypt has happened for centuries, but the slaying of more than 20 Coptic Christians by the Egyptian army in Cairo on Oct. 9 marks the deadliest attack since the “Arab spring” uprising that ousted President Hosni Mubarak.
The deadly incident, caught on video, shows demonstrators protesting in front of the state television station being mowed down by military vehicles.
“We want justice for the killing of our Coptic brothers in Egypt,” Shawky Boulos, who came from New York for the protest, told CNSNews.com. “We want justice now.”
Peter Maurice, who traveled from New Jersey for the protest, told CNSNews.com that the United States should continue to provide financial support for Egypt.
“If the U.S. is not funding, they don’t have the influence,” he said, adding that Congress should ensure that any funding is tied to Egyptian authorities meeting certain criteria, including protection of human rights and religious tolerance.
But is our funding helping the Coptic Christians? Read on…
American Taxpayers Aiding the Slaughter of Egypt’s Christians
Millions of us have seen the pictures on our television screens of armored personnel carriers plowing into unarmed protesters, mowing them down. Those vehicles, and their drivers, are being funded in part by the United States. We are lavishly paying the Egyptian military regime.
The Obama administration welcomed last February’s ouster of longtime Egyptian strongman Hosni Mubarak. President Obama and Secretary Clinton have referred to the mass demonstrations in Egypt ’s capital as part of a new and more hopeful “Arab Spring.”
Well, is it? We now know the Muslim Brotherhood is increasing its influence daily in post-Mubarak Egypt . This international Islamist group is well versed in using terror and threats of terror to advance its political objectives. The Obama administration takes at face value any statements from the Muslim Brotherhood that it seeks to work within the recognized boundaries of civil, cultural, and political life. It does indeed. But it also keeps in reserve its mailed fist. It has influence with Egyptian masses, in part, because it is known to use terror against its opponents.
American taxpayers continue to underwrite Egypt ’s military regime. Why? We are constantly told that without them, things would be even worse for the Copts. Yes. They might be, like Egypt ’s Jews, driven out of their homeland.
The Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom states that “to compel a man to furnish contributions of money for the propagation of opinions which he disbelieves and abhors, is sinful and tyrannical.”
That 1786 statute was a cornerstone of our own Great Republic . Jefferson and Madison worked in harness to achieve this Magna Carta of religious liberty. Has the U.S. Department of State forgotten who we Americans are?
The folly of sending more U.S. tax dollars to the Palestinian Authority.
(a 2009 story but still relevent for today)
Does Secretary Hillary Clinton read the reports issued by her own State Department? It’s a fair question. She recently argued passionately at a summit at the Egyptian resort center of Sharm el-Sheikh for increased Western and Arab financial aid to an entity called the Palestinian Authority. To show the Obama administration is taking the lead, she pledged $900 million in U.S. taxpayer funds to jump start the re-building of Gaza and to underscore American commitment to the “two-state (Israel and Palestine) solution.”
In Gaza, which we are paying to rebuild, Muslims attacked Christians with impunity. The Lighthouse Baptist School in Gaza City has been attacked repeatedly, as has the YMCA. Rami Khader Ayyad was abducted on the way home from work at the Baptist Holy Bible Association and murdered and the association offices were bombed.
Is this the new diplomacy? Is this the new direction of U.S. foreign policy? We’re supposed to cheer when our new leader bows low before the Saudi king. Of all people! The report on religious freedom in Saudi Arabia could be written on one side of a postcard: there is none. (Save the postage.)
He’s Home!
Its been 5+ years of prayers, pleadings, rallies and political wranglings to get Gilad Shalit home and, finally! it has happened. Truly a day to celebrate in Isreal and among all of those around the world who trusted God to bring him home safely. Welcome home, Gilad!~
I Heart Wild Bill for America
Don’t just listen to this one! Get over to his You Tube site and grab a coffee and listen for a spell. Its called common sense thinking.
If you listen closely, you can almost hear the footsteps of the Messiah
A Covenant With Death
~ Feature Article by Jack Kelley
Therefore hear the word of the LORD, you scoffers who rule this people in Jerusalem. You boast, “We have entered into a covenant with death, with the grave we have made an agreement. When an overwhelming scourge sweeps by, it cannot touch us, for we have made a lie our refuge and falsehood our hiding place.”
So this is what the Sovereign LORD says: “See, I lay a stone in Zion, a tested stone, a precious cornerstone for a sure foundation; the one who trusts will never be dismayed.
I will make justice the measuring line and righteousness the plumb line; hail will sweep away your refuge, the lie, and water will overflow your hiding place. Your covenant with death will be annulled; your agreement with the grave will not stand. When the overwhelming scourge sweeps by, you will be beaten down by it. (Isaiah 28:14-18)
I first wrote about this passage from Isaiah about six years ago. At the time Israel was in the process of giving up the Gaza Strip in the hopes of moving closer to peace with the Palestinians. Since then things have only gotten worse for the Jewish people. Every effort they’ve made to accommodate world opinion has left them weakened, while their enemies have become stronger.
As I read the accounts of Israel’s current situation, Isaiah’s words still come to mind. Some believe that in his prophecies Isaiah was sending the Southern Kingdom three messages simultaneously. The first had to do with the near term and warned them of a coming judgment at the hands of the Babylonians. It would be similar to the one the Northern Kingdom was about to receive from the Assyrians. The second message concerned the times surrounding the first coming of the Messiah, and the third described events at the End of the Age. Scholars who hold this view claim that in some places Isaiah refers to all three time frames at once. If so Isaiah 28:14-18 is one of them.
What’s He Talking About?
The meaning of the passage is clear. By making treaties with countries committed to their demise, the Israelites were fooling themselves into believing that they’d be exempt from those countries’ plans for expansion and conquest. In truth Israel’s policies of appeasement would generate agreements based on wishful thinking that would be quickly broken whenever the enemy found it convenient to do so. It proved to be true with the Assyrians, the Babylonians, the Syrians of Greek times, the Romans, and lately the “Palestinians.” This policy will finally culminate in the ultimate self-deception. A treaty with the anti-Christ will just about bring them to ruin.
The Lord had Isaiah warn His people that there was only one man in the world they could trust, and that was their Messiah. Only He would deal justly and righteously with them. All others, even their supposed friends, would lie to suit their own purposes, which would always run contrary to Israel’s.
Those of us with Biblical background and prophetic understanding watch in open dismay as Israel’s current leaders bow to international pressure and plan once again to evict their own people from God-given land, explaining that by doing so they’re achieving peace with their neighbors. But even those without such understanding need only review the recent actions of Israel’s friends and enemies to gain a clear view of what the future will bring.
Iran keeps stepping up the pace of its nuclear program, having dropped all pretense of just wanting an additional source for domestic power, while repeating their determination to wipe Israel off the face of the Earth. A growing consensus among Israel’s commanding generals has resulted in a public plea that they be allowed to attack Iran and destroy their nuclear capabilities before it’s too late.
At the same time, Syria’s current civil strife has left Lebanon almost completely under Iran’s control with Hezbollah a more than willing partner. The arch enemy stands poised at Israel’s northern border. And in the south Iran is turning Hamas soldiers into an army of disciplined commandos, ready to attack. Rocket and mortar fire increases daily.
In May of 2011 US President Obama publicly suggested that any agreement between Israel and the Palestinians would likely be made around Israel’s pre-1967 borders. The world jumped on his statement and even though he tried to back down from it a few days later, nobody listened. I don’t think that was an accident. I think Pres. Obama was deliberately making that position official US policy. Since then the world has been bringing almost unbearable pressure on Israel to accept it as well.
Having initially rejected the Obama position in the strongest terms, just recently Israeli PM Netanyahu seemed to be ready to agree to it, with two conditions. He won’t accept a divided Jerusalem and said the Palestinians must recognize Israel as a Jewish state.
Emboldened by the US position, but ignoring Netanyahu’s conditions, the Palestinians are planning a unilateral declaration of statehood to be presented to the UN for ratification in September.
How blind does one have to be to miss the handwriting on the wall? I believe the goal is to make Israel absolutely indefensible, forcing them to rely on the international community for protection. Look for growing pressure to tear down the security fences followed by calls for nuclear disarmament, all in the name of peace. (Remember, Ezekiel 38:11 describes Israel as being a land of un-walled villages just prior to the Moslem coalition’s sneak attack.)
Who You Gonna Call?
Ultimately, Israel will pin its hopes for protection on one man, the one we call the anti-Christ. Shortly after the Moslem coalition led by Iran and armed by Russia takes advantage of Israel’s careless assumption that peace has come and pulls a mammoth sneak attack, he’ll enforce a seven-year treaty that includes provisions for building a Temple in Israel. (Daniel 9:27) Israel will want a Temple by then because they’ll realize that the One who put the attacking forces to flight was God Himself. The Old Covenant, dormant for so long, will be renewed for its final seven years. But even so, they’ll accept the false Messiah who comes in his own name, having rejected the True One who came in His Father’s name (John 5:43) and the result will almost destroy them.
In the middle of the seven years their supposed benefactor will pull the ultimate betrayal, and proclaiming himself to be their God (2 Thes. 2:4), will set about to destroy every last one of them. He’ll do this from the very Temple he helped them build, and then he’ll bring the military resources of every nation on Earth to bear against them. Betrayed by friends and beset by enemies, they’ll have no one to turn to and with Jerusalem surrounded and half the city already taken it will look like the end is upon them at last.
“Come, let us return to the LORD,” they’ll cry. “He has torn us to pieces but he will heal us; he has injured us but he will bind up our wounds. After two days he will revive us; on the third day he will restore us, that we may live in his presence.”
“Let us acknowledge the LORD; let us press on to acknowledge him. As surely as the sun rises, he will appear; he will come to us like the winter rains, like the spring rains that water the earth.” (Hosea 6:1-3)
And their Messiah Jesus, Who has been waiting for 2000 years for them to say this, will respond. “And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and supplication. They will look on me, the one they have pierced, and they will mourn for him as one mourns for an only child, and grieve bitterly for him as one grieves for a firstborn son. (Zech 12:10)
On that day a fountain will be opened to the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, to cleanse them from sin and impurity. (Zech 13:1)
Then the LORD will go out and fight against those nations, as he fights in the day of battle. On that day his feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, east of Jerusalem, and the Mount of Olives will be split in two from east to west, forming a great valley, with half of the mountain moving north and half moving south. (Zech.14:3-4)
The LORD will be king over the whole earth. On that day there will be one LORD, and his name the only name. (Zech 14:9) The One Who is faithful and true will have fulfilled His every commitment to them, and as King of the whole Earth He’ll have the power to make it stick.
If you’re like me, you grieve over the current plight of God’s people. Know that the Lord grieves as well. Know also that as conditions steadily worsen for them, their victory and ours is breathtakingly near. For the One Who watches over Israel neither slumbers nor sleeps, and is ever alert for any sign that His people are ready to return to Him.
In the meantime Psalm 122:6-7 instructs us on the proper response to the events of our time. Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: “May those who love you be secure. May there be peace within your walls and security within your citadels.” If you listen closely, you can almost hear the footsteps of the Messiah. 08-05-11
Source: A Covenant With Death
An Obama Resolution to Wipe Israel Off the World Map?
President Obama’s Speech~
“It will be the policy of the United States to support democracy and civil society in the region……the dream of a Jewish and democratic state cannot be fulfilled with permanent occupation.
“What America and the international community can do is state frankly what everyone knows: a lasting peace will involve two states for two peoples. Israel as a Jewish state and the homeland for the Jewish people, and the state of Palestine as the homeland for the Palestinian people; each state enjoying self-determination, mutual recognition, and peace.
“The United States believes that negotiations should result in two states, with permanent Palestinian borders with Israel, Jordan, and Egypt, and permanent Israeli borders with Palestine. We believe the borders of Israel and Palestine should be based on the 1967 lines with mutually agreed swaps, so that secure and recognized borders are established for both states. The Palestinian people must have the right to govern themselves, and reach their potential, in a sovereign and contiguous state.”
From the Office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu~
Israel appreciates President Obama’s commitment to peace. Israel believes that for peace to endure between Israelis and Palestinians, the viability of a Palestinian state cannot come at the expense of the viability of the one and only Jewish state. That is why Prime Minister Netanyahu expects to hear a re-affirmation from President Obama of U.S. commitments made to Israel in 2004, which were overwhelmingly supported by both Houses of Congress.
Among other things, those commitments relate to Israel not having to withdraw to the 1967 lines which are both indefensible and which would leave major Israeli population centers in Judea and Samaria beyond those lines. Those commitments also ensure Israel’s well-being as a Jewish state by making clear that Palestinian refugees will settle in a future Palestinian state rather than in Israel. Without a solution to the Palestinian refugee problem outside the borders of Israel, no territorial concession will bring peace. Equally, the Palestinians, and not just the United States, must recognize Israel as the nation state of the Jewish people, and any peace agreement with them must end all claims against Israel. Prime Minister Netanyahu will make clear that the defense of Israel requires an Israeli military presence along the Jordan River.
Prime Minister Netanyahu will also express his disappointment over the Palestinian Authority’s decision to embrace Hamas a terror organization committed to Israel’s destruction, as well as over Abbas’s recently expressed views which grossly distort history and make clear that Abbas seeks a Palestinian state in order to continue the conflict with Israel rather than end it.
President Obama,
There was a reason that those borders changed in 1967 and it was because of the attacks on Israel by her enemies, who, until this very day, wants to annhilate the tiny nation. Either you are not educated on Israel’s history or you really just don’t care about our most valuable ally’s future. You ape the Palestinians’ rhetoric and close your eyes to the terror dished out on Israel’s citizens nearly daily, especially since giving the Palestinians the Gaza Strip for their “state”. What a fiasco that turned out to be. I suspect you will find alot fewer liberal Jewish votes come this next election. Rightly so, too.
At least you are keeping to your word to stand by the Muslims. Please, don’t think that you have spoken for the majority of the citizens of the U.S.A.! The last time you snubbed Netanyahu Hilary Clinton and Congress had to reiterate that the U.S. continues to support Israel. Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (aka, Israel).
Gene Simmons Commentary on President Obama’s speech~
http://www.therightscoop.com/gene-simmons-slams-obama-for-israel-speech/
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