[Pictured: Mount of Olives Hebrew Cemetery]

I have developed such a desire to dig into Old Testament scripture in my study of eschatology, this year I'm going to limit my Christmas readings to the Old Testament only. How is that possible? Easy - God is completely amazing: telling his prophets Isaiah and Micah what will transpire seven centuries BEFORE it happens is nothing to Him. If you're not a Christian, my prayer is that you would wrestle with this scripture and begin to ask some serious questions about who Christ is. How you answer those questions is the single most important duty of man. Christ is coming again. God is fulfilling prophesy today by gathering nations around little, seemingly insignificant Israel. Keep an eye on Israel, but most importantly make sure you're right with the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Only Jesus Christ can justify you in the sight of God.

Micah 5

A Promised Ruler From Bethlehem

1 Marshal your troops, O city of troops,
for a siege is laid against us.
They will strike Israel's ruler
on the cheek with a rod.

2 "But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah,
though you are small among the clans of Judah,
out of you will come for me
one who will be ruler over Israel,
whose origins are from of old,
from ancient times. "

3 Therefore Israel will be abandoned
until the time when she who is in labor gives birth
and the rest of his brothers return
to join the Israelites.

4 He will stand and shepherd his flock
in the strength of the LORD,
in the majesty of the name of the LORD his God.
And they will live securely, for then his greatness
will reach to the ends of the earth.

5 And he will be their peace.

Isaiah 53

1 Who has believed our message
and to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?

2 He grew up before him like a tender shoot,
and like a root out of dry ground.
He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him,
nothing in his appearance that we should desire him.

3 He was despised and rejected by men,
a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering.
Like one from whom men hide their faces
he was despised, and we esteemed him not.

4 Surely he took up our infirmities
and carried our sorrows,
yet we considered him stricken by God,
smitten by him, and afflicted.

5 But he was pierced for our transgressions,
he was crushed for our iniquities;
the punishment that brought us peace was upon him,
and by his wounds we are healed.

6 We all, like sheep, have gone astray,
each of us has turned to his own way;
and the LORD has laid on him
the iniquity of us all.

We Know Where This is Headed

"But you, brothers, are not in darkness so that this day should surprise you like a thief." [1 Thessalonians 5:4]

I came across a good summarization of recent quotes from Islamic leaders in the Middle East. These rulers are actively and publicly calling for the destruction of Israel.

[Source: FrontPageMagazine.com]

Ahmadinejad, Iran’s President since the summer of 2005:

“... the annihilation of the Zionist regime will come.”

"The Islamic umma (community) will not allow its historic enemy [Israel] to live in its heartland."

"There is no doubt that the new wave [of attacks] in Palestine will soon wipe off this disgraceful blot [Israel] from the face of the Islamic world."

“Our dear Imam [Ayatollah Khomeini] ordered that the occupying regime in Jerusalem be wiped off the face of the earth. This was a very wise statement. The issue of Palestine is not one which we could compromise on…this would mean the defeat of the Islamic world.”

“The issue in Palestine is by no means finished. The Palestinian issue will only be resolved when all of Palestine comes under stringent Palestinian rule.”

“I am hopeful that just as the Palestinian nation continued its struggle for the past ten years, they will continue to keep their awareness and vigilance. This period is going to be short-lived. If we put it behind us successfully, god willing, it will pave the way for the destruction and the downfall of the Zionist regime.”

"When I see the behavior of America, England, and their other accomplices [i.e. Canada in Afghanistan] in recent days, I get the impression that they are preparing even greater crimes. I warn them: know that the fire of the wrath of the peoples is about to erupt and overflow. If you do not put an end to your crimes, know that the ocean of the peoples will soon rage. When the peoples begin to move, they will drag everybody to the defendant's bench, and will remove them from the throne of power."

"Today, the Iranian people is the owner of nuclear technology. Those who want to talk with our people should know what people they are talking to. If some believe they can keep talking to the Iranian people in the language of threats and aggressiveness, they should know that they are making a bitter mistake. If they have not realized this by now, they soon will, but then it will be too late. Then they will realize that they are facing a vigilant, proud people."

"Today, Hizbullah in Lebanon is the standard-bearer of the resistance of all the monotheistic peoples, of the seekers of justice, and of the free people [Note: Christians are considered polytheists to Muslims because we believe in the Trinity]. Hassan Nasrallah is shouting the loud cry of the vigilant human consciences. Today, Hizbullah stands tall as the representative of all the peoples, all the vigilant consciences, all the monotheistic people, all the seekers of justice, and all free people of the world, against the rule of hegemony. Until now, with the help of Allah, [Hizbullah] is winning, and, Allah willing, it will reach the ultimate victory in the near future."

Editor’s note: At this point you should all be asking: “what does Ahmadinejad consider “ultimate victory in the near future”? Ahmadinejad is a Shiite “twelver”. He believes that he has been chosen to hasten the reappearance of the Imam Mahdi, the 12th Imam. According to Ahmadinejad, the world must be in a chaotic condition before the 12th Imam will come out of hiding. That is why there is so much concern about Ahmadinejad potentially getting nuclear weapons. This is or should be extremely scary stuff IF you have no hope other than in the “here and now”. Of course, advance notice of what WILL transpire is in Ezekiel 38 and 39 for any who are willing to hear.

From an Editorial in the Iranian newspaper Resalat, which is close to the Iranian regime:

"It must not be forgotten that the great war is ahead of us, perhaps tomorrow, or in another few days, or in a few months, or even in a few years," .The nation of Muslims must prepare for the great war, so as to completely wipe out the Zionist regime, and remove this cancerous growth. Like the Imam [Ayatollah] Khomeini said: 'Israel must collapse."

Hassan Nasrallah, Leader of Hezbollah (Political party/terrorist group in Lebanon):

"Anyone who reads the Koran and the holy writings of the monotheistic religions sees what they did to the prophets, and what acts of madness and slaughter the Jews carried out throughout history. Anyone who reads these texts cannot think of co-existence with them, of peace with them, or about accepting their presence, not only in Palestine of 1948 (Israel was declared a nation on May 14, 1948 – see Isaiah 66:8) but even in a small village in Palestine, because they are a cancer which is liable to spread again at any moment."

"If they [the Jews] all gather in Israel, it will save us the trouble of going after them worldwide."

“They [the Jews] are a cancer which is liable to spread again at any moment."

"There is no solution to the conflict in this region except with the disappearance of Israel."

"One of the central reasons for creating Hizbullah was to challenge the Zionist program in the region. Hizbullah still preserves this principle, and when an Egyptian journalist visited me after the liberation and asked me if the destruction of Israel and the liberation of Palestine and Jerusalem were Hizbullah's goal, I replied: 'That is the principal objective of Hizbullah, and it is no less sacred than our [ultimate] goal.' We face an entity that conquered the land of another people, drove them out of their land, and committed horrendous massacres. As we see, this is an illegal state; it is a cancerous entity and the root of all the crises and wars and cannot be a factor in bringing about a true and just peace in this region. Therefore, we cannot acknowledge the existence of a state called Israel, not even far in the future, as some people have tried to suggest. Time does not cancel the legitimacy of the Palestinian claim."

"Put a knife in your shirt, then get close to an Israeli occupier and stab him."


The last word however, comes from the only God, the God of Israel:

Zechariah 12:2-3
2 "I am going to make Jerusalem a cup that sends all the surrounding peoples reeling. Judah will be besieged as well as Jerusalem.
3 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.

Psalm 83 :
A song, a psalm of Asaph.
83:1 O God, do not be silent!
Do not ignore us! Do not be inactive, O God!
83:2 For look, your enemies are making a commotion;
those who hate you are hostile.

83:3 They carefully plot against your people,
and make plans to harm the ones you cherish.
83:4 They say, “Come on, let’s annihilate them so they are no longer a nation!
Then the name of Israel will be remembered no more.”
83:5 Yes, they devise a unified strategy;

they form an alliance against you.
83:6 It includes the tents of Edom and the Ishmaelites,
Moab and the Hagrites,
83:7 Gebal, Ammon, and Amalek,
Philistia and the inhabitants of Tyre.
83:8 Even Assyria has allied with them,
lending its strength to the descendants of Lot. (Selah)
83:9 Do to them as you did to Midian –
as you did to Sisera and Jabin at the Kishon River!
83:10 They were destroyed at Endor;
their corpses were like manure on the ground.
83:11 Make their nobles like Oreb and Zeeb,
and all their rulers like Zebah and Zalmunna,
83:12 who said, “Let’s take over the pastures of God!”
83:13 O my God, make them like dead thistles,

like dead weeds blown away by the wind!
83:14 Like the fire that burns down the forest,
or the flames that consume the mountainsides,
83:15 chase them with your gale winds,
and terrify them with your windstorm.
83:16 Cover their faces with shame,
so they might seek you, O Lord.
83:17 May they be humiliated and continually terrified!

May they die in shame!

83:18 Then they will know that you alone are the Lord,
the sovereign king over all the earth.

Micah 4: 9-13:
4:9 Jerusalem, why are you now shouting so loudly?
Has your king disappeared?
Has your wise leader been destroyed?
Is this why pain grips you as if you were a woman in labor?
4:10 Twist and strain, Daughter Zion, as if you were in labor!
For you will leave the city
and live in the open field.
You will go to Babylon,
but there you will be rescued.
There the Lord will deliver you
from the power of your enemies.
4:11 Many nations have now assembled against you.
They say, “Jerusalem must be desecrated,
so we can gloat over Zion!”
4:12 But they do not know what the Lord is planning;
they do not understand his strategy.
He has gathered them like stalks of grain to be threshed at the threshing floor.
4:13 “Get up and thresh, Daughter Zion!
For I will give you iron horns;
I will give you bronze hooves,
and you will crush many nations.”
You will devote to the Lord the spoils you take from them,
and dedicate their wealth to the sovereign Ruler of the whole earth.

Be always on the watch, and pray that you may be able to escape all that is about to happen, and that you may be able to stand before the Son of Man." Luke 21:36

Prepare our hearts Lord Jesus for your return - Amen.

Canada on a Knife Edge

The following article is talking specifically about America but is completely true of Canada as well. Sadly, but not surprisingly, our society closely resembles 2 Timothy 3:1-5, and there isn't a political party in the world that can turn things around unless citizens themselves are willing to repent and submit:

A Knife Edge

Is the Pope Going to Survive Turkey this Week?

• ISTANBUL, Turkey Nov 26, 2006 (AP) — More than 25,000 people joined demonstrations Sunday against Pope Benedict XVI's upcoming visit, police said. [Source: ABC News]
• BBC Report: Stepping into the Storm

After reading Revelation 17 and 18 many times, I find it hard to believe that Pope Benedict is going to visit Turkey on Tuesday to express his "esteem for Islam" - we HAVE come a long way since the Crusades - WOW!

Since I'm 98% convinced that Rome is the "City on 7 hills" mentioned in these two chapters in Revelation (see Dave Hunt's comments), I would not be surprised if this upcoming trip resulted in a major clash between the beast (Leopard-Bear-Lion of Islam) and the Whore riding on the Beast (Catholicism). Is the Pope going to survive his trip?? Is Rome (especially the Vatican) soon going to be destroyed by the beast? Only God knows for sure. We'll see.

Did I mention that we're headed for another war?

DEBKAfile reports: Russia sells Iran sophisticated missile systems capable of repelling US or Israeli air or missile assaults: Debkafile

I had to post this just in case anyone's still wondering whose side Russia is on. Are we marching right into Ezekiel 38-39?

I've been reading Joel Rosenberg's book called "Epicenter-Why the Current Rumblings in the Middle East Will Change Your Future" - a very interesting and intriguing book!

Joel has a video sermon online entitled : "Are We Living in the Last Days" that can be found here.

In the pull-down menu labelled "Search by Speaker" Select "Joel Rosenberg"

Twins!

As reported in www.irna.ir
Iran is now "one step away" from nuclear success and [Ahmadinejad] advised "our malevolent enemies to adopt a friendly attitude towards the determined Iranian nation."
"They should know that having friendly ties with the noble Iranian nation would be to their benefit, otherwise they would face disgrace and defeat."

That second line sounds to me like a threat. I was watching Glenn Beck's special last night on CNN (I think it was called "Extremists Exposed"). I find Glenn to be a bit of a loud mouth, not exceptionally bright (i.e. he keeps calling Ahmadinejad: Ahmadeemajob), but I do have to give Glenn credit for his assessment of “the extremists”. Of course by extremists he's really talking about Islamofascists. I know we're all dangerously politically correct in North America, but let's face facts and be honest with ourselves for at least one second: the extremist threat is coming directly from within Islam.

If you've been following the subject matter of this blog at all, you'll know that I believe the Leopard-Bear-Lion (LBL) beast in Revelation 13:2 is the revival of the Leopard, Bear, and Lion beasts of Daniel 7. The LBL beast in Revelation 13 shows up as a combined beast because Islam is the glue that holds it together. I also believe that the combined beast in Revelation 13 will, in combination with Satan and the False Prophet, call the world to battle in the final Day of the Lord (aka Armageddon).

Here’s a quote to think about:
13Then I saw three evil spirits that looked like frogs; they came out of the mouth of the dragon (Satan), out of the mouth of the beast (Lion-Bear-Leopard beast) and out of the mouth of the false prophet (Mohammed). 14They are spirits of demons performing miraculous signs, and they go out to the kings of the whole world, to gather them for the battle on the great day of God Almighty. [Revelation 16:13-14, comments added in parenthesis]

If you're unfamiliar with what happens on "the great day of God Almighty", I recommend you get really familiar with it quickly. See Zechariah 12 and 14; Joel 3; Ezekiel 38 and 39, etc. I believe the Day of the Lord is closer than most think, or I should say "most don't think". I believe I'm not flying out on some wild tangent by saying most people are asleep to the warnings of biblical prophesy. People, inside and outside of the church, are generally so busy doing things that have NO ETERNAL SIGNIFICANCE, that they can't be bothered to read what they must consider “irrelevant Old Testament prophesy".

God said to Daniel that his prophesy will remain sealed up until the time of the end. Guess what? With the re-establishment of Israel on May 14, 1948, and with the end of Gentile rule over Jerusalem in 1967 - WE ARE LIVING IN THE END. The "time of the Gentiles” is over, therefore prophesy given to Daniel can only be properly understood now – post 1967.

This must sound pretty “flaky” to many of you, but in my opinion, the best interpretation of prophesy in the Old Testament and in Revelation comes from Ellis Skolfield [www.ellisskolfield.com]. As described by Skolfield in his free online book The False Prophet, he was frustrated by the lack of support for the traditional end time theory consisting of: Daniel’s 70th week; with Anti-Christ in the middle; a re-build, third temple on Mount Moriah in Jerusalem; and a 7-year peace treaty that goes very badly in the last 3.5 years.

Like Skolfield, I too was getting frustrated by what this traditional theory offered up as biblical support. I’ve read the traditional books (eg. John Walvoord) that specify, in 15-step chronological detail , what will happen in the end - with the first step being the rapture. What? How can the rapture be step number 1 of 15 when 1 Corinthians 15:51-52 states:

51Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed— 52in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed.

These verses refer to the transformation that Christians will undergo at the last trumpet. Traditionalists say this transformation will happen at the rapture. But how can the rapture be the next event then if 1 Corinthians 15:52 says our transformation will occur at the last trumpet of Revelation?! To me, the traditional theory has gone off track with the imminent rapture prediction. I don’t believe that we will be transformed into our eternal bodies until the seventh trumpet sounds. To think otherwise contradicts 1 Corinthians 15!

In light of what the world has seen transpire since the end of Gentile rule over Jerusalem in 1967, it looks a lot more like the European Union is not the final kingdom that will war against Christians and the re-gathered Israelites before Christ’s second coming. It looks more likely that Islam and Muslims will be (are) warring against the followers of Jesus Christ and Jehovah God.

Ahmadinejad, Iran’s president, is almost on a daily basis threatening the very existence of Israel, who just happens to be the apple of God’s eye. God is not going to let Israel be destroyed, now that he has re-gathered Jacob’s children from the four corners of the earth – that’s for certain (Jeremiah 31:35-37).

The traditional “next stop: the rapture” theory is widely accepted as gospel truth. It is considered established Christian doctrine by many, and many think that to diverge from it is to blaspheme God. But when a theory, which has been built up on shaky assumptions, is starting to fail, it is important to go back to the bible (back to the drawing board, so to speak) and look for a better explanation. We are commanded by Jesus to watch for his second coming. Rest assured, most will continue to watch through the lens of the traditional theory, and consequently most will be unprepared and surprised by Christ’s physical reappearance:

So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him. [Matthew 24:44]

Does this verse support a 15-step chronologically ordered end times theory?

See - I'm not the only one talking about a naval buildup (and I'm not talking lint)

US naval war games off the Iranian coastline: A provocation which could lead to War?
by Michel Chossudovsky
October 24, 2006
GlobalResearch.ca

There is a massive concentration of US naval power in the Persian Gulf and the Arabian Sea. Two US naval strike groups are deployed: USS Enterprise, and USS Iwo Jima Expeditionary Strike Group. The naval strike groups have been assigned to fighting the "global war on terrorism." War GamesConcurrent with this concentration of US Naval power, the US is also involved in military exercises in the Persian Gulf, which consists in "interdicting ships in the Gulf carrying weapons of mass destruction and missiles" The exercise is taking place as the United States and other major powers are considering sanctions including possible interdiction of ships on North Korea, following a reported nuclear test, and on Iran, which has defied a U.N. Security Council mandate to stop enriching uranium.
The exercise, set for Oct. 31, is the 25th to be organized under the U.S.-led 66-member Proliferation Security Initiative and the first to be based in the Gulf near Bahrain, across from Iran, the officials said.
A senior U.S. official insisted the exercise is not aimed specifically at Iran, although it reinforces a U.S. strategy aimed at strengthening America’s ties with states in the Gulf, where Tehran and Washington are competing for influence" (Defense News, http://www.defensenews.com/story.php?F=2171176&C=mideast) Tehran considers the US sponsored war games in the Persian Gulf, off the Iranian coastline as a provocation, which is intended to trigger a potential crisis and a situation of direct confrontation between US and Iranian naval forces in the Persian Gulf:"Reports say the US-led naval exercises based near Bahrain will practise intercepting and searching ships carrying weapons of mass destruction and missiles. Iran's official news agency IRNA quoted an unnamed foreign ministry official as describing the military manoeuvres as dangerous and suspicious.
Reports say the US-led naval exercises based near Bahrain will practise intercepting and searching ships carrying weapons of mass destruction and missiles.
The Iranian foreign ministry official said the US-led exercises were not in line with the security and stability of the region. Instead, they are aimed at fomenting crises, he said." (quoted in BBC, 23 October 2006)
USS Boxer Expeditionary Strike Group (ESG 5) to arrive in Arabian SeaThe USS Boxer (LHD 4), --which is the flagship for the Boxer Expeditionary Strike Group (ESG 5)-- which left Singapore on October 16, is scheduled to join the two other naval strikes groups. ESG 5 is comprised of USS Boxer, Bunker Hill, USS Dubuque (LPD 8), USS Comstock (LSD 45), USS Benfold (DDG 65), and USS Howard (DDG 83). ESG 5 also includes PHIBRON 5, the 15th MEU, Coast Guard Cutter Midgett (WHEC 726). “We are about to enter a part of the world that can be very dangerous,” said Chief Aviation Ordnanceman (AW/SW) Jacques Beaver, Boxer’s flight deck ordnance chief. “We must be flexible and prepared to defend ourselves from any threats.”Boxer has been preparing for the weapons upload for two months by completing required maintenance and electronic pre-checks. Checks ensure that the ship’s missile and launching systems are up to standard and safe to load with live ordnance. “It has taken a lot of hard work for our people to get this done,” said Chief Fire Controlman (SW) William Lewis, combat systems, fire control division’s leading chief petty officer. “You cannot measure the importance of having these defenses guarding the lives of the Sailors and Marines in this strike group.”BOXESG is comprised of USS Boxer (LHD 4), USS Bunker Hill (CG 52), USS Dubuque (LPD 8), USS Comstock (LSD 45), USS Benfold (DDG 65) and USS Howard (DDG 83). The strike group also includes Amphibious Squadron 5, the 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit, Coast Guard Cutter Midgett (WHEC 726) and Canadian Frigate HMCS Ottawa (FFH 341).BOXESG is currently conducting operations in support of the global war on terrorism while transiting to the Arabian Gulf [sic]." (http://www.c7f.navy.mil/news/2006/october/3.htm) USS BoxerCanada is part of the Expeditonary Strike Group (ESG 5)Canada is formally participating in this military deployment under the disguise of the "war on terrorism". The Canadian Navy has dispatched Frigate HMCS Ottawa, which is now an integral part of ESG 5, under US Command. It is worth noting that particular emphasis has been given to medical evacuations and combat medical support suggesting that a combat scenario could be envisaged. Boxer and Ottawa, both operating in the U.S. 7th Fleet area of responsibility, know that they can play a vital role to aid humanitarian assistance operations, medical evacuations or combat medical support that would rely heavily on the medical capabilities of the Boxer strike group. Cross training Sailors from ship to ship helps ensure the success of the strike group should BOXESG have to respond to any medical scenario, according to Richardson.“Training is a necessary part of any evolution,” said Richardson. “Anytime you’re working with another nation, it’s important that we understand their capabilities just as much as they understand ours, so in the event anything occurs we know where our assets are.” The cross training also fostered cooperation between the two allies which provided Verville and Boxer corpsmen a forum to learn about each other’s navies and each other’s culture." (Military.com October 2006) Dangerous Crossroads: Tonkin II? "An incident" in the Persian Gulf could be used by the US as a pretext for war against Iran. A war pretext incident, similar to "the Gulf of Tonkin Incident", which triggered the Vietnam war, could be used by US forces, with a view to justifying retaliatory military action against Iran. In August 1964, President Lyndon B. Johnson claimed that North Vietnamese forces had attacked US destroyers in the Gulf of Tonkin. The Tonkin incident, which had been manipulated, contributed to unleashing a full-fledged war against Vietnam: "A phantom attack on two U.S. destroyers cruising the Gulf of Tonkin was staged by the Pentagon and the C.I.A. The bogus attack occurred early in August, 1964. That evening President Lyndon Johnson went on television giving the grim details of the non-attack. Later, however, it was revealed that navy commander James Stockdale flew cover over the Gulf of Tonkin that night. Stockdale disclosed that U.S. ships were firing at phantom targets—targets that didn’t exist. The Gulf of Tonkin Incident that drew the U.S. into the quagmire of Viet Nam simply didn’t happen. Johnson, as presidents so often do, lied to the American people. The result was the rapid passage of the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution, which was the sole legal basis for the Viet Nam War. As a result of Johnson’s lie, three million Vietnamese people and fifty eight thousand U.S. soldiers died." (Charles Sullivan, Global Research, January 2006)Revised and updated Oct 25, 2006. Note: Since this report was first published, we have been advised that several press reports concerning USS Eisenhower are incorrect. US military sources have confirmed that USS Eisenhower was in Naples on Oct 23. We have made appropriate corrections.

Traffic's Getting Heavier Around Israel and the Middle East These Days

DEBKAfile’s military sources (www.debka.com) are reporting massive deployments in the waters surrounding Iran: “Hundreds of US and allied war ships are gathering in the strategic seas of the Middle East and India in the last days of October 2006…A large-scale US-Indian sea exercise called Malabar 06 is in progress off the Indian coast of Goa, ending Nov. 5. The American vessels taking part are the USS Boxer carrier, the USS Bunker Hill guided missile battle cruiser, the guided missile destroyer USS Howard and the USS Benfold , as well as the Los Angeles-class nuclear attack submarine Providence and the Canadian guided missile frigate HMCS Ottawa.(Yes, even Canada is there). Indian maritime might is displayed with its warships like INS Beas , INS Mysore , INS Shakti , INS Ganga , tanking ship INS Gharia , submarine INS Shankush and Coast Guard ship CGS Samar. Malabar also involves the landing of large number of soldiers ashore, ahead of the Indian acquisition of the massive amphibious USS Trenton transport dock which can carry six helicopters and about a 1000 soldiers.”

This armada around Iran is in addition to the armada sailing off the shores of Lebanon (see my earlier Gathering the Nations post), where the U.S., Italy, and France each have an aircraft carrier and multiple support ships presumably “keeping the peace” between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon.

Meanwhile Hezbollah is rearming itself via Syria and Iran, and Hamas is digging tunnels though the Egyptian border in order to rearm the Gaza Strip with anti-tank and anti-aircraft missiles, and is busily getting military personnel training from Iran. Not to be outdone, Assad in Syria is threatening Israel with war over the Golan Heights.

Things aren’t looking more peaceful around Jerusalem these days. Zechariah 12:2 is coming alive before our eyes: “: "I am going to make Jerusalem a cup that sends all the surrounding peoples reeling.”

Ahmadinejad continued his rhetoric yesterday, quoted as saying: "Anyone who takes action against us even on paper [i.e. sanctions], should be aware that the Iranian nation will give proper response to it. It is better for you to be a friend of the Iranian nation. You cannot obstruct Iran's authority and the nation is going to turn into an unrivaled power in the world in the near future."

Ahmadinejad has in the past threatened that any attack on Iran will be reciprocated with an immediate attack on Israel. To the average layperson this threat must seem an unusual response – Iran is threatened by the U.S., British, Indian, and French navy, and Ahmadinejad counters by saying he’ll retaliate against Israel - ?? This truly must be a spiritual war between Satan and God because retaliating against the apple of God’s eye, Israel, makes no sense from a humanistic perspective. But as I’ve said before, the bible says that Jerusalem will be the center of attention in the end, and it also states that Jerusalem will never again be moved. The Israelites have been gathered from the rest of the world and will never again be dispersed from their land (Jeremiah 31 verses 10, 11, 36 and 37). The God of Jacob is their shepherd!

Isn’t it “kinda” weird that those of us who are Christians can sit here, watch today’s events, and literally read the outcome based on prophesies written millennia ago? Praise God!

Ahmadinejad Warns of Israel's Collapse

[source: Breitbart.com]

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has predicted Israel will collapse and warned that its allies face the "boiling wrath" of the people if they continue to support the Jewish State.

The renewed assault on Israel by Ahmadinejad -- who has been castigated by world powers for his frequent anti-Israeli outbursts -- came as tens of thousands marched through Tehran in an annual pro-Palestinian protest. "This regime (Israel) will be gone, definitely," Ahmadinejad, who has previously called for Israel to be "wiped from the map" and described the Holocaust as a myth, told the protestors. "You (the Western powers) should know that any government that stands by the Zionist regime from now on will not see any result but the hatred of the people," he added. "The wrath of the region's people is boiling." "Efforts to stabilise this fraudulent regime have completely failed, thank God ... This regime has lost the rationale of its existence," the president said.

Ahmadinejad described his warning as an "ultimatum" for Western powers. "You should not complain that we did not give a warning. We are saying this explicitly now." "If a hurricane starts be rest assured that the dimensions of this hurricane will not be limited to the geographic borders of Palestine," he added. "This regime (Israel) will take its supporters to the bottom of the swamp." "The best solution is for you to take all the components of the regime and take it away," Ahmadinejad said.

Chanting "Death to Israel" and predicting the "Triumph of Palestine", tens of thousands of people had earlier converged on Tehran University, where Ahmadinejad gave his speech, to mark Iran's Quds (Jerusalem) Day. [more...]

In my bible reading this past week, I came across Micah 4:11-13:

Micah 4:11-13 (New Living Translation)

11 Now many nations have gathered against you.
“Let her be desecrated,” they say.
“Let us see the destruction of Jerusalem.^[a]”
12 But they do not know the Lord’s thoughts
or understand his plan.
These nations don’t know
that he is gathering them together
to be beaten and trampled
like sheaves of grain on a threshing floor.
13 “Rise up and crush the nations, O Jerusalem!”^[b]
says the Lord.
“For I will give you iron horns and bronze hooves,
so you can trample many nations to pieces.
You will present their stolen riches to the Lord,
their wealth to the Lord of all the earth.”

I thought: how accurate and descriptive these verses are of our day. Ahmadinejad speech commemorated Al Quds Day, which is accurately interpreted as Jerusalem Liberation Day. Western Muslims will earnestly defend Al Quds Day as a day of "general solidarity with all the world's oppressed" . But I don't buy that for a minute - the real purpose for Al Quds Day, as originally instituted in 1979 by Ayatollah Khomeini, is to focus on the destruction of everything Jewish. This is evident by the large number of anti-Israel, anti-Semitic demonstrations on that day, especially in Iran. Ahmadinejad is at least forthright with his intentions - he has publicly stated numerous times that he intends to liberate Jerusalem by blowing it, and every Jew, off the face of the earth..."soon". Ahmadinejad is literally quoting Micah 4:11: "Let us see the destruction of Israel".

But it will not happen! God has declared: "...never again will [Jerusalem] be destroyed. Jerusalem will be secure" [Zechariah 14:11]. My "money", so to speak, is on this God, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. I think two thirds of Israel will perish according to Zechariah 13:8 during God's refinement of Israel, but the remaining third will be saved.

Can anyone seriously doubt that we are in the last days? As I've stated in my past posts, the armies of many countries are gathered around Israel today. The gathering of many nations around Israel and specifically Jerusalem is described in many verses of the bible [Zechariah 12:3 ; Zechariah 14:2 ; Micah 4:11 ; Ezekiel 38:15 ; etc] as the beginning of the Day of the Lord. Do I know with certainty that we are entering directly into this final Day of the Lord - of course not. But I'm trying to present the possibility that it could occur because we are commanded by Jesus to be alert to his coming. That is the entire purpose of my blog. I suspect too many Christians are asleep and, I think, too intertwined with this world. Hopefully by writing this blog, true Christians will be motivated, not to listen to me necessary, but to dig deeper into the Bible and learn what it says. We need to dig deeper into God's word to ensure that our lives are built on solid rock, and not the shifting sands of popular opinion. I believe this foundation of our lives will soon be tested like never before, so it's important that we are built on the only solid rock - Jesus Christ [John 14:6].

More on the LBL Beast

Iran's supreme ruler Ayatollah Ali Khamenei clutching on to an AK-47 machine gun during "Friday prayers" this past Friday. This guy gives Ahmadinejad spiritual direction (guess what? It ain't a spirit of love and forgiveness)

Here's some more on the LBL beast from Ellis Skolfield. The LBL beast is what the western world is just starting to wake up to. I'm not sure of Mr. Skolfield's interpretation of the mark of the beast, but I do know that Islam considers 666 to be a number of perfection. Just do a search on Google for "Quran 666" and you'll get a whole lot of disconcerting information. I have no idea why Muslims would defend the number 666, when the bible clearly states that it is the mark of the beast - God's infinite wisdom appears to convincingly label Islam. We need to be alert, watch, and pray for 1.3 billion Muslims and all the lost of the world.

Ellis Skolfield's article:

This page is only a short explanation of the verses in the Bible that predict the fall of Islam during this generation. It is only intended as an overview. For a complete analysis of the subject, please go to www.ellisskolfield.com. Read our e-book, "The False Prophet" and the other letters and essays on that site. All are free downloads.

First of all, we need to learn what some of the figurative words in Revelation, like "beast," actually mean. The definition for "beast" can be found in an Old Testament book of the prophet Daniel. In Daniel 7, the figurative word "beast" was defined as world empires that existed during and after Daniel's time.
1. The first beast in Daniel 7 was a Lion. History shows this Lion beast to be a figurative picture of the Babylonian empire. (Babylon controlled the Holy Land from 606 to 536 B.C.)
2. The next beast in his vision was a Bear. History shows this Bear to be a figurative picture of the Medo-Persian empire. (Medo-Persia controlled the Holy Land from 536 B.C. to 332 B.C.)
3. The third beast was a Leopard. History shows this Leopard to be a figurative picture of the Greek empire (Grecian rulers controlled the Holy Land from 332 B.C. to 65 B.C. when Rome took control).
So unless God changes the definition of "beast" later in Scripture, visionary beasts should always be understood as empires. Babylon the Lion, Medo-Persia the Bear and Greece the Leopard. Each of these empires controlled the whole known world, from India to Greece, the Holy Land, and even into North Africa. In other words, the whole Middle East.
Now lets pan forward to 95 A.D., when John, a New Testament prophet, foretells the future of the Middle East during the Christian Era. In his visions, guess what John sees? Three more beasts: the Leopard-Bear-Lion "beast," a Two Horned "beast" and a Scarlet "beast". These three "beasts" are not real beasts because we now know that "beast" means something other than a wild animal:

Revelation 13:2 "And the beast which I saw was like unto a Leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a Bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a Lion: and the dragon gave him his power, and his seat, and great authority."
Beasts = Empires, but this beastly empire in Revelation is a composite Leopard-Bear-Lion so it isn't just one of Daniel's three empires. It's all three empires rolled into one. In other words, this new empire is composed of the descendants of those earlier empires, in the same geographic location. Looking back at the history of the Middle East, we can now identify this new empire as the various Islamic powers that have controlled the Holy Land, and particularly Jerusalem since the 1st Jihad (which began in 639 A.D.)
Some might claim that the Islamic states in the Middle East do not constitute a real "empire" because they are not united under one central government, but the God of the Bible is far more concerned with the spiritual realities in a land than He is with how many earthly governments it may have. The reality is this: All Middle Eastern states are united under one religion, Islam, and all Moslems have one central goal: world conquest for their religion. So how should Revelation 13 be understood? Quoted below is part of the chapter, with a few of my words inserted (in parenthesis) to explain the figures . . .

Revelation 13:1-5 "And I stood upon the sand of the sea and saw a beast (an empire) rise up out of the sea (of people Rev 17:15), having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns (various Islamic rulers in the Middle East who controlled the Holy Land), and upon his heads the name of blasphemy (this empire stands against the God of the Bible). And the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion (Leopard-Bear-Lion gives the reader a positive ID; it's the Middle East): and the dragon (Satan) gave him his power, and his seat, and great authority. And I saw one of his heads (governments) as it were wounded to death (the first Jihad
was defeated at the battle of Tours and the battle of Vienna); and his deadly wound was healed (the rise
of Islam today and the new Jihad): and all the world wondered after the beast (this Islamic empire). And they (the people of the Middle East) worshipped the dragon (Satan) which gave power unto the beast: and they worshipped the beast (the Islamic empire), saying, Who is like unto the beast, who is able to make war with him? And there was given unto him a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies; and power was given unto him to continue (controlling Jerusalem) forty and two months."

Those 42 months is how the above interpretation can be proven. 42 months is 1278.34 days. Construction of the Islamic Dome of the Rock began in Jerusalem in 688 A.D.. Jerusalem was freed of Islamic control in 1967 A.D.. Applying the prophetic days of Ezekiel 4:5-6 . . .

1967A.D. - 1278.34 years = 688.66 A. D. An exact historic fit; so the interpretation is correct. But to continue on . . .

Revelation 13:6-9 "And he (the Leopard-Bear-Lion) opened his mouth in blasphemy against God (by
saying "God forbid that He should have a Son"), to blaspheme his name (by trying to change the name of the true God from I AM, to that of a local Arab deity), and his tabernacle (God's temple mount in Jerusalem), and them that dwell in heaven (Believers are presently seated in heaven with Christ, Eph 2:6). And it was given unto him (the Islamic empire) to make war with the saints (the Christians and Jews),
and to overcome them (during the 1st Jihad): and power was given him over all kindreds,
and tongues, and nations (of the Middle East). And all that dwell upon the earth (the known world at the time of John) shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb (Jesus, the Son of God) slain from the foundation of the world. If any man have an ear, let him hear."

Not many can hear, but it is now apparent that 1.3 billion people are being terribly deceived by Satan.
The God of the Bible and the god of Islam are not the same being because the God of the Bible said, "they worship the dragon" (Satan). What's more, the God of the Bible and the god of Islam are totally different
in nature; they have different values and teach people to behave differently . . .
The Quran states: "O ye who believe! fight the unbelievers ... " (Sura 9:123).
The God of the Bible says: "Love your enemies."
The Quran states: "But when the forbidden months are past, then fight and slay the pagans wherever ye find them, and seize them, beleaguer them and lie in wait (ambush) for them in every stratagem (of war)" (Sura 9:5).
The God of the Bible says: "Bless them that curse you."
The Quran states: "Fight those who believe not in God [Allah] and his apostle [Muhammad], nor acknowledge the religion of truth [even if they are] of the people of the book [i.e. Jews and Christians], until they pay jizya [humiliating tax] with willing submission, and feel themselves subdued [enslaved]" (Sura 9:29).
The God of the Bible says: "Do good to them that hate you."
The Quran states: "Therefore when ye meet the unbelievers [in fight] smite at their necks; at length,
when ye have thoroughly subdued them, bind a bond firmly [on them]" (Sura 47:4).
The God of the Bible says: "Pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you."
So you see, the Bible and the Quran teach different thoughts and a different morality. In 1984, Ayatollah Khomeini declared to the entire world: "In order to achieve the victory of Islam in the world, we need to provoke repeated crises, restored value to the idea of death and martyrdom. The important thing is to engulf the world in crises."
The God of the Bible goes on to say:
Be ye kind to one another, tender hearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you."

The point being, the God of the Bible and Allah are not the same being because One teaches man to do good and the other teaches man to do evil. One teaches love and peace, the other teaches war and
hatred. One is really the Creator of the Universe and one is not.
So which is a god worthy of worship? The One who teaches man to do good or the one who teaches man
to do evil?
The Quran states: "God forbid that he should have a son." Jesus declared He is the Son of God and in saying, "Before Abraham was, I AM" declared Himself to be God.
Jesus also said: "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever
believeth in Him, should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved."

We should pray for Moslems, not hate them. If they do not turn to Jesus, their eventual fate could be the greatest tragedy in all human history.

Revelation 13:16 "And he (the Leopard-Bear-Lion) causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads: And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the (Islamic) beast, or the number of his name."

Like the rest of the church, I used to teach that above verse was a worldwide prophecy, but that doesn't
fit context. The Leopard-Bear-Lion prophecy is about the Middle East and the Islamic control of the Holy Land and nowhere else. Contextually, the mark of the beast is given by the Leopard-Bear-Lion, the Islamic empire. There are 1.3 billion Muslims in the world now, but do you see that mark on a forehead of any of the servants of the Leopard-Bear-Lion? No? Then that mark must be an invisible Satanic mark, on the forehead of Moslems, seen only in the spiritual world. That "no man might buy or sell" is not about China, Europe or the Americas, it's about conditions that have existed for Christians and Jews in Islamic
countries ever since the 1st Jihad. One only needs to watch the nightly news or read about the latest beheading to see how accurate that prophecy is.
Revelation 14:9-11 ". . . If any man worship the (Islamic) beast and his image (some eschatologists believe that image to be the Kaaba stone in Mecca), and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand (man thinks evil thoughts in his mind and with his hands he does them), the same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb (Jesus): And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the (Leopard-Bear-Lion) beast and his image (the Kaaba stone?), and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name."
So will Islam fall? The God of the Bible says so. As written earlier, it will be a spiritual tragedy of unimaginable proportions, and it will happen because the followers of the Leopard-Bear-Lion have been deceived into rejecting the Son of God who sacrificed Himself for all mankind on the Cross of Calvary. Scripture goes on to say:

Revelation 13:18 "Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the (Leopard-Bear-Lion) beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number is Six hundred threescore and six," i.e., 666.

Many books have been written about that number, all speculative, but about 20 years ago a former Muslim who could read Arabic told me that 666 was the number of the Koran. I believed him, sort of, and promptly forgot about it. Then about three months ago, another friend told me there were many Islamic sites on
the Internet claiming 666 to be the number of the Koran, though Moslems keep changing the addresses which makes those sites harder for us infidels to find. But that did it; by knowing the true identity of 666, the last piece of the Leopard-Bear-Lion puzzle fell into place. We can now see the verse in a new light:

666 The number of a man! So what man has led a billion and a half people away from the Savior of the world? What man said, "God forbid that he should have a son." Is that not Muhammad, the prophet of the Leopard-Bear-Lion? Of course, and according to the Bible, the end for him and his followers will be grim indeed:

Revelation 19:20 "And the (Leopard-Bear-Lion) beast was taken, and with him the false prophet (Muhammad) that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of the beast, and them that worshipped his image (the Kaaba stone?). These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone."

May our beloved God, who sacrificed His only begotten Son for all mankind, take the blindness from their eyes while there is still time.

Gathering the Nations

1 This is the word of the LORD concerning Israel. The LORD, who stretches out the heavens, who lays the foundation of the earth, and who forms the spirit of man within him, declares: 2 "I am going to make Jerusalem a cup that sends all the surrounding peoples reeling. Judah will be besieged as well as Jerusalem. 3 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. 4 On that day I will strike every horse with panic and its rider with madness," declares the LORD. "I will keep a watchful eye over the house of Judah, but I will blind all the horses of the nations. 5 Then the leaders of Judah will say in their hearts, 'The people of Jerusalem are strong, because the LORD Almighty is their God.'
6 "On that day I will make the leaders of Judah like a firepot in a woodpile, like a flaming torch among sheaves. They will consume right and left all the surrounding peoples, but Jerusalem will remain intact in her place. [Zechariah 12:1-6]

I was reading through Debka.com the other day and came across an interesting article on how there is an armada of ships lining up off the coast of the Israeli/Lebanon border (see "Lebanese Security” Is the Pretext for the Naval Babel around Lebanon’s Shores). I have found Debka.com to be quite accurate and detailed in their coverage in the past; they seem to be well-connected to Middle East intelligence sources. That fact makes this article all the more interesting.

According to the article, there is a naval build-up off the coast of Lebanon that is “…the greatest sea and air armada Europe has ever assembled at any point on earth since WWII”. Hmm, funny that no other news source is reporting anything about this military build-up. All I hear in the mainstream news, and I monitor A LOT of it, is about Israeli troop withdrawals out of Lebanon, and how a couple thousand UNIFIL troops are slowly making their way down to southern Lebanon – all else is quiet and the press has moved on to reporting other issues of our day. Lebanon is almost completely off the public radar.

Continuing with the details in the Debka article, it states that the primary objective of the armada is to monitor the ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon after their 34-day battle this past summer. But common’ that can’t possibly be the objective because, as per the article, this naval armada includes:

“…France’s nuclear-powered 38,000-ton Charles De Gaulle carrier, 40 Rafale M fighter craft whose range is 3,340 km can take off at intervals of 30 seconds. The ship also carries three E-2C Hawkeye surveillance craft. The combat control center of the French carrier can handle 2,000 simultaneous targets. The carrier leads a task fore of 7 warships carrying 2,800 French Marines.

Charles De Gaulle is also a floating logistics center operating water desalination plants for 15,000 men and enough food to feed an army for 90 days. The USS Mount Whitney has the most sophisticated command and control suite in the world. Like the French Charles De Gaulle , it exercises command over a task force of 1,800 sailors, Marines, Air force medical and other personnel serving aboard the USS Barry, the USS Trenton , HSV Swift and USNS Kanawha .
Available to the fleet commander, US Vice Admiral J. “Boomer” Stufflebeem, formally titled commander of Joint Task Force Lebanon, is the uniquely advanced C41 command and intelligence system through which he can flash intelligence data to every American commander at any point between the eastern Mediterranean and the Persian Gulf and Iran. USS Mount Whitney communications are described as unsurpassed for the secure transmission of data from any point to any other point in the world through HF, UHF,VHF, SHF and EHF.
The third carrier joining the other two is the Italian aircraft-helicopter carrier Garibaldi , which has launch pads for vertical takeoff by 16 AV-8B Harrier fighter-bombers or 18 Sikorsky SH-3D Sea King sea-choppers (or Italian Augusta Bell AB212 helicopters), designed to attack submarines and missile ships. Military experts estimate that the Garibaldi currently carries 10 fighter planes and 6 helicopters.”

A military expert referenced by Debka estimates that this naval armada off the Lebanon shores is roughly 10 times the amount of support the UN troops (UNIFIL) monitoring the “ceasefire” need. This is especially true because the UN troops have an extremely limited mandate in monitoring the ceasefire – they are basically monitoring the rearming of Hezbollah and there’s nothing the UN troops are willing to do under the UN Security Resolution 1701 without the permission of the Lebanese government. The Lebanese government includes two Hezbollah MP’s and the government as a whole is much less popular than the Hezbollah terrorist regime, who are literally handing out fistfuls of rebuilding cash to the Lebanese citizens who had their homes destroyed by Israeli bombs. Hezbollah ( and its backers/suppliers in Syria and Iran) can do what it wants in southern Lebanon under the sleepy eye of the UNIFIL. The current number of UNIFIL troops actually on the ground in southern Lebanon is less than 3,800. The UN wasn’t quite able to pull together the 15,000 ground troops they promised under UN Security Resolution 1701, but then again I wouldn’t want to be one of those ground troops who are “sitting ducks” when the conflict resumes, plus there is an Al Qaeda chapter establishing itself in Lebanon, under Al Qaeda’s second-in-command Ayman Zawahiri, that has threatened that UNIFIL troops are legitimate targets of attack.


With this temporary ceasefire (read: re-loading) the major countries of the world have been encouraged to restart the peace process and discuss Bush’s favourite “two state solution”. Too bad Hamas in the Gaza Stip can’t be convinced to recognize the nation of Israel – they can’t seem to get past the dream of obliterating Israel with a nuke. I’m always wary about ceasefires and peace agreements that involve Israel and its Arab and Persian neighbours. Peace agreements involving Israel remind me of 1 Thessalonians 5:2-4:

2for you know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. 3While people are saying, "Peace and safety," destruction will come on them suddenly, as labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape.
4But you, brothers, are not in darkness so that this day should surprise you like a thief.
[1 Thessalonians 5:2-4].

And

37As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. 38For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark [Matthew 24:37-38]

Are we soon headed into the Day of the Lord? Is God starting to bring the nations of the world together against Jerusalem, and the more encompassing Judah, at this time as stated in Zechariah 12? Well one thing is for sure: most people are completely asleep, unconcerned, and mesmerized by money, job, and family issues (and probably in that order). I think our society is perfectly described by Matthew 24:37-38. How I wish that 1 Thessalonians 5:4 described the readiness of the church today – but I’m afraid that day will come as a complete surprise to many brothers and sisters.

Call me completely nuts (if you haven’t written me off already), but I think the Day of the Lord is potentially shaping up in Lebanon today. There are already plenty of nations represented on the UNIFIL deployment and off the coast of Lebanon in a naval armada. Satan is the current ruler of this world, and it wouldn’t take much for all these nations to suddenly turn against (see Ezekiel 38:10) Jerusalem and Judah (i.e. Israel). Now would be an excellent time to read the chapters of Zechariah 12 and 14; Ezekiel 38 and 39; and Joel 1,2 and 3 (among others) to find out what the Day of the Lord will be.

Check out especially Joel 3,verse 4 : "Now what have you against me, O Tyre and Sidon and all you regions of Philistia? Are you repaying me for something I have done? If you are paying me back, I will swiftly and speedily return on your own heads what you have done."

Joel 3 is an amazing prophesy! You'll find Tyre and Sidon mentioned frequently in today's news in reference to Hezbollah strongholds - they are still called Tyre and Sidon (there's no guesswork on who God is talking about)!

In our times, one of the verses I lean on very heavily, and one of my favourites, is: “Be always on the watch, and pray that you may be able to escape all that is about to happen, and that you may be able to stand before the Son of Man." [Luke 21:36] Praise the Lord that we can be on the winning side of this inevitable, final conflict when it happens.

A Religious War

Source: EllisSkolfield.com

A Hindu doctor friend who left northern India because of the violence there made the following observation, "When there is trouble anywhere in the world today, you will find Moslems on one side of it and they started it. Western leaders don’t understand Islam's goal for the past 1400 years. It has been to make peace with the infidels until Moslems are strong enough, then to fight against them."

Strange as it may seem, Sadaam’s secular regime was a buffer against the unification of Islam in the Middle East, but now, who is there to stop that happening? The United States could, but our leaders don’t recognize who our enemy really is. We keep hearing that we’re just fighting a few million radical Islamic terrorists, but it isn’t so. Our enemy is Islam itself. For details read Chapter 13 in "The False Prophet," downloadable free on this site.

In Islam there are only two houses, The Dar el Salaam (the house of peace) and the Dar el Harb (the house of war). If you are a Moslem you are in the Dar el Salaam, but if you’re of any other faith, you’re an infidel in the Dar el Harb and Islam is at war with you. That is why making a treaty with Iran is meaningless. Since we are all Infidels, as far as they are concerned, no treaty we sign with them is binding. For over 40 years, Israel has been signing treaties with the Palestinian Moslems; to date, they have not honored a single one. It isn’t that Moslems are worse than anyone else. They are doing their best to follow their bloody religion because they have been deluded by a false prophet. Since our leaders don’t really understand the problem and don't prepare us for the real battle, it's just as Scripture states . . .

1Corinthians 14:8 "For if the trumpet give an uncertain sound, who shall prepare himself to the battle?",

During the 2nd Gulf War, Palestinians in Jordan were rioting in the streets and Mullahs all over the Middle East were preaching against the United States and inciting thousands of Jihadists to fight for Sadaam. Did they do so because of any great love for Iraq’s secular dictator? Of course not. Jihadists came into Iraq (and still do) because an Islamic state was being invaded by infidels. Middle Eastern Islam was just behaving Islamic.

Despite hand-wringing protests to the contrary, this is a religious war. The God of the Bible against Allah, but the whole Western Church is asleep. Forgetting Islam’s bloody history, we smilingly permit Moslem Mullahs to preach sedition against our democratic way of life and violence against anyone of a different faith. The God of the Bible and Allah are not the same being, nevertheless, some church leaders invite Islamic Mullahs to preach from their pulpits. We even have Moslem Mullahs as chaplains in our prisons. Regardless of where Moslems might live or any internal differences they might have between themselves, Few seem to realize that Islam is one entity with one book they consider holy, a Koran that teaches Moslems to bring the world into Islam by the power of the sword. To fight against, subjugate and even kill all who are determined to remain non-Moslem. We may not be at war with Islam, but Islam has been at war with the West since it’s inception.

The war in Iraq was barely over before fundamental Mullah’s from Iran goaded 1,000,000 or so Iraqi Shi’ites to demonstrate against the American forces who had just freed them from Sadaam’s brutal tyranny. And what was the stated purpose of those "spontaneous" gatherings? Fundamental Mullahs want Iraq to become an fundamental Islamic state like its neighbor Iran. Fundamental Islam hasn’t been weakened by freeing Iraqi’s people, it’s been strengthened. And this war cannot be won by force of arms. If we kill bin Laden, another bin Laden will arise, and another and another. The only way to win is to change the belief structure of those waging it. The gospel could do that, but with the church asleep, the gospel trumpet has indeed been giving an uncertain sound.

We are at the threshold of a final time of trial coming upon the earth. The final enemy of the Church and Israel (the Leopard-Bear-Lion Islamic beast) is clawing at the gates and we’re worried about gas prices, the economy, building a bigger church facility, buying a new car or whether we get to speak in tongues or not. Jesus’ beloved sheep have shepherds whose blindness is self-inflicted. They are preaching, "We’ll all be raptured out before the bad stuff happens," but it isn’t so. We will be taken to be with the Lord at the last trumpet of all time and "the day of the Lord" will be just like God said it would:

Amos 5:18-19 "Woe unto you that desire the day of the LORD! to what end is it for you? the day of the LORD is darkness, and not light. As if a man did flee from a lion, and a bear met him; or went into the house, and leaned his hand on the wall, and a serpent bit him."

Thank God that His Son Jesus will be here soon. It isn’t going to be easy for Jews and Christians between now and then. There is still an "hour of trial" to come, but the Lord can see us through it.

Isaiah 59:1 "Behold, the LORD'S hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither his ear heavy, that it cannot hear."

Ellis Skolfield

The Leopard Bear Lion

In chapter 11 of Ellis Skolfield’s book The False Prophet, Skolfield states that the Leopard-Bear-Lion beast mentioned in Revelation chapter 13 is representative of the Muslim nations currently surrounding Israel. Specifically, Skolfield makes the following connection on page 20 of his book:

Lion = ancient Babylon = modern day Iraq
Bear = ancient Medo/Persia = modern day Iran
Leopard = ancient Greece = modern day Syria/Lebanon

Skolfield makes this connection between the beast and the related kingdoms from the prophesy given in Daniel 7. The following is a quote from page 16 of Skolfield’s book. He in turn quotes scripture and inserts his own comments in parenthesis:

Dan 7:3-4 And four great beasts came up from the sea [the
sea is the peoples and nations of the world, Rev 17:15], diverse
one from another. The first was like a lion [The national
emblem of Babylon was the winged lion], and had eagle’s
wings [The Ishtar gate of that city has bass reliefs of winged
lions upon it]: I beheld till the wings thereof were plucked,
and it was lifted up from the earth, and made stand upon the
feet as a man [The Neo-Babylonian Empire, begun under
Nebopolasser, was brought to the peak of its power by his son
Nebuchadnezzar, (606-562BC). Nebuchadnezzar was the most
absolute monarch in all human history], and a man’s heart
was given to it [Also a reference to Nebuchadnezzar, who came
to the Lord late in life, Dan 4:37].

Dan 7:5 And behold another beast, a second, like to a bear
[After Babylon was taken in 536BC, Medo-Persia became the
dominant world power], and it raised up itself on one side
[The Persians were ”raised up” over and ruled the Medean half
of their empire], and it had three ribs in the mouth of it
between the teeth of it [The Medo-Persians conquered three
other empires: Lydia, Babylon, and Egypt]: and they said thus
unto it, Arise, devour much flesh.
Dan 7:6 After this I beheld, and lo another, like a leopard,
which had upon the back of it four wings of a fowl
[Alexander the Great defeated the Medo-Persian Empire at the
Battle of Issus, in 332BC]; the beast had also four heads
[Alexander had four great generals under him]; and dominion
was given to it [After Alexander died in Babylon, 323BC, his
empire was divided between his four generals: Ptolemy,
Selucius, Lycimicus, and Cassander].
Dan 7:7 After this I saw in the night visions, and behold a
fourth beast, dreadful and terrible, and strong exceedingly;
and it had great iron teeth: it devoured and brake in pieces,
and stamped the residue with the feet of it [Rome destroyed
the remnants of the divided Grecian Empire and began to
control the Holy Land in 65BC . The Roman Empire continued
until 476AD]: and it was diverse from all the beasts that were
before it; and it had ten horns [After Rome fell, it was divided
into roughly ten Eastern and western nations which have
continued to this day.].

The attribution in Daniel between the Lion-Bear-Leopard vision to Babylon, Medo-Persia, and Greece is of little doubt. Unbelievers generally do not contest this relationship; however many unbelievers doubt that Daniel was written as early as the 6th century BC during Judah’s captivity because of the book’s accuracy in describing the ancient kingdoms. They attribute Daniel’s prophesies to the mid 2nd century or they contend that other, later writers changed Daniel’s original prophesies to line up with history – both of these contentions are an utterly ridiculous attempt to discredit the Bible, but I suppose we’re stuck with Christian scoffers until our Messiah returns:
[see Isaiah 45:23]

It is no coincidence that the Lion-Bear-Leopard beast in Revelation 13 describes the focal point of the world’s attention today. Israel is at war with Hezbollah, which is funded and armed by Iran and Syria. Iraq has been a political disaster for President Bush since the U.S. invasion on March 20, 2003. Is it merely coincidence that Israel is surrounded by its enemies who are bent on Israel’s destruction? Absolutely not. Read Zechariah 12.

Another interesting point that has crossed my mind: take a look at the map above and notice the location of the Valley of Megiddo. Revelation 16: 12-16 states [with my comments in parenthesis]:

12The sixth angel poured out his bowl on the great river Euphrates, and its water was dried up to prepare the way for the kings from the East. 13Then I saw three evil spirits that looked like frogs; they came out of the mouth of the dragon [Satan], out of the mouth of the beast[Lion-Bear-Leopard= Islam] and out of the mouth of the false prophet[Mohammed]. 14They are spirits of demons performing miraculous signs, and they go out to the kings of the whole world, to gather them for the battle on the great day of God Almighty.

15"Behold, I come like a thief! Blessed is he who stays awake and keeps his clothes with him, so that he may not go naked and be shamefully exposed."

16Then they gathered the kings together to the place that in Hebrew is called Armageddon.

Are world leaders being gathered in our day to fight in this final battle? Is this final battle going to be fought just south of the Israel/Lebanon border in the Jezreel Valley, in Megiddo as is commonly believed by many eschatologists? The Lion-Bear-Leopard beast is represented by modern day Iraq, Iran, and Syria/Lebanon – this we can prove in Daniel 7. What holds this beast together as presented in Revelation 13 is the religion of Islam, which denies the sonship of Christ. As stated in my earlier post, the Dome of the Rock has blasphemies incribed in it such as: Surely He does not have a Son; Do not say three- cease. (i.e. a reference to the trinity), etc. Don't be deceived by Islam treating Jesus as a wise prophet. He was not/is not a prophet of God- he is the Son of God. Anyone who denies that is the Anti-Christ [I John 2:22-23]

The whole world is watching the Lebanon-Israel conflict and each nation has a stake in its outcome. Don’t believe for a minute that the current cease-fire in Lebanon is going to hold and we will have peace (see 1 Thessalonians 5:3). The “cease-fire” should instead be called a “re-load” because both Israel and Hezbollah are re-arming themselves for further conflict. Debka.com reports that Hezbollah is currently smuggling hundreds of rockets and dozens of launchers into S. Lebanon without interference from UNIFIL (UN troops) or the Lebanese government.

Interestingly, Ahmadinejad has agreed to respond to the UN Security Council tomorrow (August 22) on whether he will accept their incentives package and stop nuclear enrichment activities. We’ve already been told by Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei yesterday that Tehran will continue to pursue nuclear technology regardless of what the UN does. How is Ahmadinejad going to respond to the UN? Is he planning an attack on Jerusalem as Bernard Lewis, professor emeritus at Princeton University and a renowned Middle East expert, has suggested is possible:

“This might well be deemed an appropriate date for the apocalyptic ending of Israel and if necessary of the world. It is far from certain that Mr. Ahmadinejad plans any such cataclysmic events precisely for Aug. 22. But it would be wise to bear the possibility in mind.”

If you’re a Christian, be ready for Christ's return. If you’ve not made a decision to follow Christ – what are you waiting for? The end of this world has already been determined. The only question is when. Bet your life on it!

“By the same word the present heavens and earth are reserved for fire, being kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men.” 2 Peter 3:7

Challenging Words

I would like to point to Ellis Skolfield's July comments: http://www.ellisskolfield.com/millennial-musings-july-2006.shtml

I am working on a next post, but in the mean time, Skolfield makes some incredibly challenging July 2006 comments on his web site that I would like to point people to. I feel so utterly ignorant of scripture when I read the challenges put forward by Skolfield. I love it when a Christian isn't afraid to go against the enormous tide of common belief when common belief appears to be in Biblical error. May Skolfield's words challenge you to dig ever deeper into God's word. I know I have been enormously challenged to dig deeper, and not necessarily just accept the words coming from the pulpit on Sunday. That being said, Skolfield's comments are not sacred scripture either and are definitely open to constructive criticism. If anyone has any comments, please do post them.

Now We See but a Poor Reflection

Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.

1 Corinthians 13:12 (New International Version)

Sometimes I’m frustrated by all the alternative theories that are floating out there about the end times or Armageddon, or about where we are in God’s plan, and how the current Middle East crisis fits in. Are we at the very threshold of Armageddon where two-thirds of Israel will be killed (Zechariah 13:8-9)? Where does the rapture fit in? Is there even going to be a rapture since 1 Corinthians 15:52 says that we will ALL be transformed “at the last trumpet” (of Revelation?). Very confusing! Nonetheless, there is no doubt we are to keep watch for Christ’s return. The preparations are clear. We need to preach the gospel “in and out of season” until Christ calls us home. I thank God for the simplicity of that instruction, and mostly, for the simplicity of His plan of salvation. All you have to do is simply confess sin and accept Christ as ruler of your life. That sounds like a big commitment, but our lives are only a vapour in time so this is not asking much of us at all, especially since Jesus did the hard part by providing the sacrifice.

I’ve often wondered how meaningless and incredibly shallow it is to pursue a life of leisure, money and possessions. We are living on a minuscule planet in an immeasurable universe, and most of mankind is interested in “the pursuit of happiness” as its overriding goal. If you’re living life like that, may you snap out of the utter stupidity of it (sorry, there are no other, more appropriate words for it). I guess that kind of lifestyle just grinds me, because I see it all over where I live, in the land of the second largest oil reserves in the world. Many young people here are incredibly wealthy, with incredible amounts of toys (i.e. boats, $125,000 cars, trailers, ATV’s, Harley’s, massive houses, etc, etc, etc). Ahhhh! These people are completely blind and need desperately to wake up! It’s frustrating watching young people throw their very eternities, not just lives, away because they devote their lives to hedonism– what a trap! THERE IS AN INFINITELY BIGGER PURPOSE! (did I stress that enough? I don’t think so!)

I’m going on vacation again to visit family over the next two weeks. I’m looking forward to it as a kind of “spiritual pilgrimage”. I’ve already had great talks with my dad on eschatology on the phone, and I can’t wait to dig deeper into conversation with him personally. Thank God that I have godly parents, who have truly dedicated their lives to Christ. It’s an incredible, divine miracle that my parents even survived their childhood, fleeing the horrors of Germany during WWII and literally outrunning Russian bombs, not unlike the situation in Lebanon today. But as is typical of God’s wisdom, I think it’s this traumatic event that produced the unshakable faith in God in my parents. One thing I’m clear on regarding the end times is that the world will enter a time of unparalleled tribulation (Matthew 24:21) before Christ returns. And whether we as Christians live through, or die in, or completely miss the Tribulation, we should all be praying for more faith, and more wisdom so that that day does not surprise us “…like a thief” (I Thessalonians 5:4)

I can tell you what will happen next!

"If the occupying regime of Jerusalem attacks Syria, it will be equivalent to an attack on the whole Islamic world and the regime (Israel) will face a crushing response" Ahmadinejad was quoted as saying by the official IRNA news agency.

Yup, it's going that way alright. Am I the only one of very few who are awake on this issue? The Muslim Dome of the Rock is the abomination of desolation on Mount Moriah, the temple mount. The battle of Armageddon is just about ready to ignite...and what do you hear in Christ's remaining churches? NOTHING!

Granted, there have been a far-than-adequate number of false alarms about Christ return, but shouldn't Christian churches at least be exploring the possibility that this latest Middle East crisis will lead to Armageddon and the return of Christ? A U.S. senator (I can't remember which one) stated last night on CNN's Larry King Live that this crisis is far more severe than any of the previous Israeli battles - including the 6-day war in 1967, and the Yom Kippur war of 1972, because this conflict has a chain-reaction (read: nuclear reaction) attached to it. The enemies of Israel in this war will chain-react from: Hamas->Hezballah->Syria->Iran->the rest of the world. THIS SOUNDS A LOT LIKE ARMAGEDDON TO ME, FOLKS! Should the sincere Christian churches, few they may be, not at least be standing up and speaking about this distinct possibility?

Alas, we are in an evil, blind age. Call me a fundamentalist Christian. That's ok, I consider that a compliment and a necessity, but the church reaction to this crisis gives me perfect understanding of Matthew 24:38-39:

"38For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark; 39and they knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took them all away. That is how it will be at the coming of the Son of Man."

Lord, help me to do what I can to wake up my fellow Christians (and non-Christians especially), because your patience is about finished - the time is short.

Matthew 24:32"Now learn this lesson from the fig tree [i.e. Israel]: As soon as its twigs get tender and its leaves come out[i.e. May 14, 1948 the re-establishment of the state of Israel], you know that summer [i.e. the Second Coming] is near.

World Crisis Escalation

As a Christian, today is an incredible time to be alive. Israel, the olive tree upon which I am grafted (Praise the Lord!), is back in the holy land and is surrounded by its enemies. These enemies, the leopard-bear-lion of the Book of Revelation, are intent on Israel's complete annihilation:

"I am going to make Jerusalem a cup that sends all the surrounding peoples reeling." Zechariah 12:2

Now, Iran's Ahmadinejad is thumbing his nose at the U.N. and the IAEA, and promising the soon destruction of Israel. Iran Focus (http://www.iranfocus.com/modules/news/article.php?storyid=7885) has reported that Ahmadinejad said just yesterday: “In the near future we will witness the rapid collapse of the Zionist regime”.
Ah...excuse me Mr. Ahmadinejad? The true and only God of Abraham, that is: the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob said:

On that day the LORD will shield those who live in Jerusalem, so that the feeblest among them will be like David, and the house of David will be like God, like the Angel of the LORD going before them. 9 On that day I will set out to destroy all the nations that attack Jerusalem. [Zechariah 12:8-9]

These are the words of the only God, not the words of the anti-Christ - Allah, and his book of Satanic Verses - the Quran. So put the only God to the test Mr. Ahmadinejad. Let's see whose god is the true God. Ahmadinejad is only coming against Jerusalem because God declared it long ago in Joel chapter 3.

This upcoming battle, whether very near (as Ahmadinejad's rhetoric seems to suggest) or in the not-too-distant future, is what I call the world escalation in slow motion. As a Christian, I know this battle is coming. The only question is when. According to Ahmadinejad, the Hezbollah, Hamas, Al Aqsa, etc this day will be coming sooner rather than later. I say: amen, let it come:

He who testifies to these things says, "Yes, I am coming soon." Amen Come Lord Jesus [Revelation 22:20; emphasis mine].

May you be found ready.