A Match Made In Heaven

Mary Magdalene is this years leading lady. Common misconception used to paint her as a lowly prostitute. Now, no one is quite sure what to think. Her life has become a mystery for modern Sherlock Holmess everywhere. But, no one has channeled the man of reason better than Dan Brown. In The DaVinci Code Dan Brown firmly supports the marriage theory. But is it really possible Mary and Jesus were married? To find the answer the Bible is not the only thing under scrutiny. Culture needs examining too.

Separate but equal is not a new concept. During Jesus time men and women hardly ever mixed. A womans domain was her home, while men kept the public persona. If a woman did anything in public, she got permission from her husband. In the Bible, Mary Magdalene traveled. She met Jesus at his early teaching at Galilee and appeared in Judea where Jesus was crucified. Since women could not leave their homes on a whim, Mary had to be married to someone. Jesus is the best candidate.

The Gnostic Gospels, written by early Christian followers, claim Jesus and Magdalene had a very close relationship. It is written Jesus was extremely fond of her and used to kiss her. This action meant one of two things: adultery or marriage. Men did not feel comfortable with their wifes speaking to male relatives, let alone kissing strange prophets. The scandal would have ruined Jesus reputation. The only option left is marriage. Even holy men had wifes; it was unnatural to be alone.

Based on the cultural evidence, a bond between Jesus and Mary Magdalene was very likely. They were too free around each other not to be married. The Bible says God made everything with the purpose of balance. Jesus was not above this. He needed a woman to be complete. That woman was Mary Magdalene.

Christianity

Christianity is the number 1 hated religion in the world.

Even with the State of Israel being our most beloved brothers, they still reject the Messiah being Jesus. In the news this week, I hear of The new Sanhedrin holding meetings on Banning Christians from preaching the Gospel, one year prison terms for those doing so. The restart of the Construction of the third temple with a chance of Arab approval, and the beginning of Red heifer Sacrifices, and finally a replacement of the government, and replace it with a democratically elected King, as was in the Davinich period.

Mar 13:13 And ye shall be hated of all men for my name's sake: but he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.
What is Christianity, and why is it so hated among all unbelievers?
Christianity is, according to Webster; The religion of Christians; or the system of doctrines and precepts taught by Christ, and recorded by the evangelists and apostles. Whilst politicians are disputing about monarchies, aristocracies, and republics, Christianity is alike applicable, useful and friendly to them all.
Why is Christianity so hated? Because of the doctrines and precepts taught by Christ. We, as believers, follow no man made religion. The religion that we follow is a true, peaceful and docile religion. Developed by God, Delivered By Christ and Taught by the Holy Ghost.

John 18:36; Jesus answered, My kingdom is not of this world: if my kingdom were of this world, then would my servants fight, that I should not be delivered to the Jews: but now is my kingdom not from hence. (hence; From this cause or reason, noting a consequence, inference or deduction from something just before stated.)
Christians do not seek any kingdom or world conquest, for our Kingdom is not of this world but of the next.

Many of the so called, major religions, seek world domination threw, war, terror, and manipulation of the truth, and those that are weak and cannot suffer much persecution. We see this example in
James 4:2; Ye lust, and have not: ye kill, and desire to have, and cannot obtain: ye fight and war, yet ye have not, because ye ask not. All other religions are manipulative, and deceiving. Jesus knew this from the beginning. He warned all Christians, threw scripture, that we would be most hated among all men, and nations. We are especially hated because of our unconditional support of The House of David, The state of Israel.
Many say that Christianity is a hateful religion, and that it seeks only to cause friction between nations. This is not so, for Christianity lends itself to all religions, so that they may hear the truth and be saved. When I speak of false religions, I speak this from love of the lost soul. Jesus told us that there would be false doctrine, priest, deceivers, teachers and ministers.

We cannot follow after the doctrines and precepts taught by man, for there is no salvation in them. Many religions, today, do not even speak of salvation or repentance, for the soul of man. If there is to be no resurrection of the soul, then we would be living a life, that would never be held accountable for.
Men such as, Goliath, Hitler, Stalin, Saddam Hussein, and even Osayme Ben Louden, would never be held accountable for their, murders, and actions, that were unrighteous.
But we must also remember that a lie, in the eyes of God, is also punishable by everlasting torment in the lake of fire. So a lier, and a murderer are accounted the same punishment, for with God any unrighteousness will never enter into the kingdom of Heaven. This is where repentance is very important.

Rev 21:27 And there shall in no wise enter into it any thing that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination, or maketh a lie: but they which are written in the Lamb's book of life. Rev 22:15-16; For without are dogs, and sorcerers, and whoremongers, and murderers, and idolaters, and whosoever loveth and maketh a lie.
I Jesus have sent mine angel to testify unto you these things in the churches. I am the root and the offspring of David, and the bright and morning star.

Rev 22:14 Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city
Jesus stated in Mark 16:16; He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned. A Christian must approach others by two means listed in Scripture; Jude 1:22-23; And of some have compassion, making a difference:
And others save with fear, pulling them out of the fire; hating even the garment spotted by the flesh. We do not hate but we know that without Christ, they will be lost and sentenced to the Lack of Fire for eternity. Sometimes Christians approach others with the wrong attitude, these you must forgive and look over.

Christianity brings a light to all unrighteousness, which many other religions agree with. But the Difference between, Christianity and other religions is that, Christ died for all mankind, and no other religion has made such a sacrifice for all men. They speak of their own, and not of mankind at all. We being a gentile race of people, must realize that without Christ, and His sacrifice for all men, we would have no hope, and would still be worshiping devils. This includes all religions today that are not of the Jewish nature.
For before Jesus, the Jews were the only ones that had access to God.

Why did God choose the House of Israel? They were the only people that wanted the true God, they were a one God, religious people. These were the people that were given the first written law, written by God, and delivered by His servant, Moses. John 4:22, states about the people of Israel and the gentile race of people; Ye worship ye know not what: we know what we worship: for salvation is of the Jews. Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils;

1Co 10:20 But I say, that the things which the Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice to devils, and not to God: and I would not that ye should have fellowship with devils.
The end is closer than you think. We must, as Christians, work while there is still light, for a time is coming soon, where the light will turn to darkness, and no man shall work. We cannot deny what we believe and to whom we worship, we are a light to a lost and dieing world. The earth and its people are destroying all hope of peace and a sustainable life. The earth is contaminated, and dieing from within. The only hope we have is in Jesus Christ, the Son of the Most High God. Ars.

John 18:36 -

Jesus: 1Ti_6:13

My kingdom is: Joh_6:15, Joh_8:15; Psa_45:3-7; Isa_9:6, Isa_9:7; Dan_2:44, Dan_7:14; Zec_9:9; Luk_12:14; Luk_17:20,Luk_17:21; Rom_14:17; Col_1:12-14

Source, The new Sanhedrin holding meetings on Banning Christians from preaching the Gospel; http://www.worthynews.com/news/ynetnews-com-Ext-Comp-ArticleLayout-CdaArticlePrintPreview-1,2506,L-3371508,00-html/

Temple of Spirit & Truth Ministries
A.R.Smith Ministries
http://www.ourchurch.com/member/a/arsmithsermons/

Two Witnesses in Jerusalem

Church of God minister Arlen Berkey, in "The Work of God in the Laodicean Era," makes a statement nobody in God's Church would disagree with: "The whole world will soon know about the two witnesses. They will not be welcome by this world."

We are not responsible for how the world reacts to these two men (it does NOT say ministers), however, we should question whether the two witnesses will be welcome by God's Church!

Does that sound preposterous? Presumptuous? Not if you're well-versed in holy Scripture! It was often the religious who opposed the Prophets and it was the religious leaders who stirred up the people to cry out against Jesus: "Crucify Him!" There is nothing new under the sun.

The two witnesses will be sent by God in the spirit of Elijah. The chief spokesman between the two will hail from the royal house of David and fulfills the Elijah role and will shake up the earth by his God-given MESSAGE and MIRACLES! (Zechariah 12:8).

Herbert W. Armstrong, in the spirit of Elijah, laid the foundation for such a great Work, and restored precious truths to God's CHURCH. Jesus Christ will restore God's government to the entire Earth (Acts 3:21). The interlude finds the leader of the two witnesses, in the spirit of Elijah/HWA, restoring truth to the NATION of Israel (Malachi 4:4). There is no contradiction. This is based upon the Law and the Covenant and is testified to by the Prophets.

Some might initially resist God's choice of men to fulfill the controversial roles of the two witnesses (Jeremiah 15:10). Even Moses' met rejection by his own people God sent him to save (Acts 7:25, 35). Moses and Aaron met first with the elders of Israel before going before pharaoh (Exodus 4:29). God's Church will know the identity of the two witnesses before the world sees them take the stand in Jerusalem.

God's apostle, Herbert W. Armstrong, saw we must reach "the cities of Judah" and yet God didn't permit him to do it. But God will give Judah His Message, last but not least! God has been raising up someone for this very purpose (Isaiah 41:27).

Herbert Armstrong also began to see that God's Church has a divine commission to help physically prepare for Christ's coming to Jerusalem: The Great Mideast Commission: Reaching the Cities of Judah. Read and believe it for yourself in Mr. Armstrong's autobiography and wonder why you haven't heard any of your ministers preaching about it or chomping at the bit to get it done.

Soon the the Two Witnesses will rise and shine in this world of darkness, and finish the Work that God has given us to do. Jesus Christ is returning in this generation! May we be found worthy to escape the nuclear blitzkrieg about to strike, and to stand before Christ when He returns to claim David's Throne in Jerusalem!

Here's some kosher food for thought:

Will an earthquake bring water to the deserts? Preparing the way for the Church of God to enter "Her Place?" (Isaiah 43:20).

David Ben-Ariel is a Christian-Zionist writer in Ohio and author of Beyond Babylon: Europe's Rise and Fall. With a focus on the Middle East and Jerusalem, his analytical articles help others improve their understanding of that troubled region. Visit the Beyond Babylon blog.

How Can I Get Rid of My Sins?

When the Gospel is preached properly, concerned people will eventually start asking the question, "What must I do to be saved?" How can I be forgiven? It's an age-old question that has been given many answers. Both Catholic and Protestant responses leave much to be desired. God does not want anyone to perish (Peter). Forgiveness and mercy are His very nature. "Whoever wants to come, let him come," says Jesus(John). God sees who will accept and for them He has made a plan.

So what is the plan? Many Protestants say, "Accept Jesus as your personal Saviour." It's a correct response in many ways, and when explained has worked for many, but it is hard to trace this exact verbiage to the writings of the apostles. Biblically it means to accept the forgiveness He hands out freely because of His death on Calvary, and to personalize the offer as though it were coming directly to you. It means he doesn't just save nations and neighborhoods, He saves individuals. All well and good.

Unfortunately, the idea of a "personal Saviour" has degenerated through the years until it almost means the same as the "household gods" of the pagan religions. A "personal" Saviour for many is someone over whom I have complete control, instead of the other way around. I can take him or leave him. I can use him for my personal benefit, but he has no real sway in my life.

The church needs to call men to repent, and receive forgiveness from the Sovereign Lord of all, who desires to be Lord over individual lives as a part of the saving process.

The Roman system has another approach to forgiveness. Because of the words of Jesus to Peter and the apostles about their ability to forgive sins, it has been long accepted in Roman circles that only Rome's men have the power on earth to forgive fully the transgressions of mankind.

Of course, humans are called to forgive. The Lord's prayer has us asking God to forgive us as we forgive others. Here we see forgiveness flowing directly from the Father to the child with no human intervention. We also see the need for His forgiveness to flow through human hearts to other human hearts. Peter was told that 70 times seven times a day we may be called upon to forgive the same person.

But that initial forgiveness, from death to life, from sin to righteousness, the entering into the Kingdom. Is even that Rome's territory? We see how the apostles lived out the forgiveness commission as the history of the church unfolded. They preached a crucified resurrected Christ and laid the blame for His death at the feet of their audience. The crowd was convicted of sin and asked what they could do. The apostles then offered the forgiveness of Christ as repentance took place in their hearts. That same method of forgiveness is available today.

For this reason it is sad to me that the "invitation" portion of the Protestant meetings seems to have gone the way of great hymns & church organs. But it was there that God's people could actually witness repentance taking place, where sinners could publicly testify of their new-found faith. Mini-revivals could take place every meeting.

Yes, the church, God's church, forgives, is the instrument of God's forgiveness in a man's life. When a sinner comes to church and is convicted by what he hears, and tells the church so, that church, through its visible spokesman, tells that sinner, God will forgive you, turn from your sin.

But what of the idea of withholding forgiveness? What of the men and nations who feared the hand of the Pope for those many centuries because they perceived that he could keep God's forgiveness from them?

Once again the apostles show us what that means, and it is a far cry from what Rome teaches. First, they told people what Jesus said. He said that those who come to Him would see life and those who do not, will not see life but instead experience forever the wrath of God (John 3:36). That's one way of withholding forgiveness. Just say what Jesus said.

The other factor is brought up by John in his first epistle.He says there are sins that lead to death and sins that do not. He says you can pray for the latter but not the former. When you don't pray for a person's sin to be forgiven, it is not forgiven.

So what could be a sin that is so great that I would not pray for it as a pastor in a church? Who could come to me that I would have to turn away and resign to eternal torment? I can think of two instances. If a man wants the blessings of God but has never asked for the salvation of Christ available only through the blood, I will tell him, first things first. If he rejects the way of the cross, he is lost and should be told so.

And if there be one who who is living in an obvious sin that he refuses to relinquish, but somehow wants to be a part of the fellowship, even the ministry of the church, we must inform him that that is not how the church operates. First let go of the sin. I cannot pray for your desire for fellowship and ministry if that sin hangs on to your life. You may say you have repented of much, but Christ says He wants all laid on the altar.

We must call men to repent and be saved, not only from their sin, but from this perverse generation. In other words, we issue a call for holiness and taking up the cross from the very beginning, as Jesus did. Then forgiveness flows from Heaven, and the peace that Jesus promised.

Look for Bob Faulkner's home page on http://sermonaudio.com There you will find a combination of love for the Scriptures and a desire for North Korean believers to have their needs met. There are nearly 300 blogs , over 200 Bible teaching MP3's, lists of resources, NK picture albums, and ways to respond to the overwhelming need in North Korea. Let's love Chosun together! Contact me any time at diakonos5@yahoo.com

And who am I? A man found of God over 50 years ago, called to the ministry, serving the Lord as needed in my world. Married, member of a local church in the Chicago area, with full time work in public education. Would love to fellowship with believers who respond.

The Sabbath in John's Gospel

Studying the Sabbath in as much detail as possible brought me eventually to the stories related by the apostle John. First, the healing at the pool of Bethesda:

John 5:8-18 [portions]. "Jesus said to [the man], Rise, take up your bed and walk. And immediately the man was made well, took up his bed, and walked. And that day was the Sabbath. The Jews therefore said to him who was cured, It is the Sabbath; it is not lawful for you to carry your bed... the man [departed and] told the Jews that it was Jesus who had made him well. For this reason the Jews persecuted Jesus, and sought to kill Him, because He had done these things on the Sabbath. But Jesus answered them, My Father has been working until now, and I have been working. Therefore the Jews sought all the more to kill Him, because He not only broke the Sabbath, but also said that God was His Father, making Himself equal with God."

Here is a reason for exceptions to the Sabbath rule: The eternal work of God never stops. The creation was an isolated six-day event after which came the lasting Sabbath picture. His work of creation is over, the material world was completed in a mere six days. The worlds are held together by the word He spoke. But His work of sustaining and caring for what He made never stops. So it is always proper to do on the Sabbath those things that are reflections of the eternal sustaining mercy of God.

In John 7 is another Sabbath principle espoused.

John 7:22-23. "...you circumcise a man on the Sabbath. If a man receives circumcision on the Sabbath, so that the law of Moses should not be broken, are you angry with Me because I made a man completely well on the Sabbath? Do not judge according to the appearance but judge with righteous judgment."

So here is Moses vs. Moses. Circumcision is an actual deed to be performed, a work. Yet in the hypocritical eyes of the Pharisees, its performance was Sabbath-friendly . There is no way to get around the fact that some children's births are exactly eight days before the Sabbath. And eight days was the required time to wait to circumcise a new-born. They do not want to break one of Moses' laws, so in their thinking, Moses must have approved the bending of one of Moses' laws. To yield to Moses was an okay thing, but to yield to the pain and suffering of a fellow human could wait until the next day. This was garbage thinking to Jesus and He told them so without doing damage to the law which He came not to destroy.

John's final Sabbath entry concerns the healing of the man born blind.

John 9:14-16. "Now it was a Sabbath when Jesus made the clay and opened his eyes. Then the Pharisees also asked him again how he had received his sight. He said to them, He put clay on my eyes, and I washed, and I see. Therefore some of the Pharisees said, This Man is not from God, because He does not keep the Sabbath. Others said, How can a man who is a sinner do such signs? And there was a division among them."

You say, For a man who believed in Sabbath, Jesus certainly was active on that day! Oh, He believed in it, all right. He is the Creator Who spent the very first Sabbath rejoicing over the work he had made, and in the plan for the man who would rule that creation. But His plan from the beginning was simply that there be a weekly remembrance of Who God is, and what God did. The entrance of sin clouded that purpose. Busy men forgot the Day altogether. Religious men later remembered the day but still obscured the meaning. Jesus brought by example the teaching of the Sabbath back to where it began, just as He did with marriage, adultery, murder. He cut the tree of false teaching to its roots. He weeded the garden. It is for us to keep the garden clean of these wicked plants, the thorns that choke the life from God's People.

http://chosunhouse.com is a website I put together a few months back to get the word out to believers that they need to pray for North Korea. Just about every day I'm writing a blog featuring some news, a book, or a story of North Korea. There's a live news feed on the site, lists of resources, picture essays, and ways to respond to the overwhelming need in North Korea. Let's love Chosun together!

And who am I? A man found of God over 50 years ago, called to the ministry, serving the Lord as needed in my world. Married, member of a local church in the Chicago area, with full time work in public education. Who are you? Would love to fellowship with believers who respond on my site.

In North Korea - The Guard of Hoeryong

Here is an eyewitness account of a North Korean former prison guard. His name is Ahn Myong Chol, and he served at Hoeryong Concentration Camp, among other places. He and his story are described by David Hawk in online materials free to all.

Ahn, born in 1969 to a "good" (Party Member) family in Hangwon, did his compulsory military service in four consecutive prisons from 1978-1994. His last assignment was Hoeryong, the only one of the four that is still operational.

Ahn's father was a good man in other ways. He actually was caught doing something good. He gave food to one of his neighbors without authorization. This is reactionary and subversive by NK government standards. Knowing that his father was facing trouble, and that the whole family would therefore be dragged into it, Ahn took his wife across the Tumen into China. Eventually he reached Seoul, where he began telling his story. This developed into a book, and even testimony before the U.S. Congress.

In 2002, when technology allowed us to see certain truths about Hoeryong by satellite, Ahn was there to identify what we were seeing. We now know the location and purpose of every building in the prison complex. Ahn was able to be so conversant about these things because of his position as truck driver.

Ahn confirms the shock one experiences upon the first arrival at camp. Walking skeletons. Dwarfs. Cripples in rags. It doesn't get better with time. He was aware that as many as 2,000 people died in the camp of malnutrition every year. Most of these were children. Perhaps ten executions per year, of people who had been caught eating from the harvest food. More deaths, by beating, of prisoners who had not been meeting production quotas.

The only meat people ate was from rats, snakes, and frogs caught.

Marriage nearly totally forbidden.

One pregnant woman was executed because of her pregnancy.

I do not intend to "defame" North Korea or its government. The stories I tell come from credible eyewitnesses whose books are widely published. The idea is compassion. And much prayer. God may tell you more that you can do, but I think this is a good start.

http://chosunhouse.com is a website I put together a few months back to get the word out to believers that they need to pray for North Korea. Just about every day I'm writing a blog featuring some news, a book, or a story of North Korea. There's a live news feed on the site, lists of resources, picture essays, and ways to respond to the overwhelming need in North Korea. Let's love Chosun together!

And who am I? A man found of God over 50 years ago, called to the ministry, serving the Lord as needed in my world. Married, member of a local church in the Chicago area, with full time work in public education. Who are you? Would love to fellowship with believers who respond on my site.

The Sabbath - A Psalmist and a Prophet speak

The Sabbath. Is it for believers today? For sure it was for the people of God assembled at Sinai, yet they often neglected it. Here are a couple of Old Testament documents meant to encourage Sabbath-keeping.

According to the uninspired but probably trustworthy inscription above Psalm 92, we have a song written especially for the Sabbath. Here are significant portions:

Psalm 92. (1) It is a good thing to give thanks to the Lord, and to sing praises to your name, O Most High. By this section we understand that Sabbath is to be a day of praise. (4-5) For You, Lord, have made me glad through Your work; I will triumph in the works of Your hands. O Lord, how great are your works! Here is the heart of Sabbath: rejoicing in the creation, recognizing the Creator, resting in His work, the only work that matters.

Isaiah the prophet lived before Nehemiah, prophesying during the times when Israel was undergoing her judgment for idolatry (before and after 721 B.C.). Notice how little the externals matter when the heart is corrupt, and that the Sabbath can be cut out of Jewish tradition, too. Anyone keeping a holy day as a religious exercise as opposed to an expression of a holy commitment to God is not part of the covenant:

Isaiah 1:13-18 [portions]. "Bring no more futile sacrifices. Incense is an abomination to Me. The New Moons, the Sabbaths, and the calling of assemblies. I cannot endure iniquity and the sacred meeting. Your New Moons and your appointed feast days my soul hates... your hands are full of blood. Wash yourselves, make yourselves clean; Put away the evil of your doings from before My eyes. Cease to do evil. Learn to do good. Seek justice, reprove the oppressor; defend the fatherless. Plead for the widow. Come now, and let us reason together. Though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow."

First the heart, says Isaiah, then the outward signs. Later Nehemiah will turn the people of God to these observances, after their hearts are properly tuned. Even Isaiah, looking into Israel's future, sees a restored Sabbath...

Isaiah 56:1-2. "Keep justice and do righteousness, for My salvation is about to come and my righteousness to be revealed. Blessed is the man who does this and the son of man who lays hold on it; who keeps from defiling the Sabbath, and keeps his hand from doing any evil..."

...and, dare I share it? The following promise is also from the prophet, shattering any notion that somehow Gentile ways are going to dominate the Kingdom of God. No, even though Gentiles will be present, it is the ways of the God of Israel that will be our daily fare in that glorious day:

Isaiah 56:6-8 . "Also the sons of the foreigner who join themselves to the Lord, to serve Him, and to love the name of the Lord, to be His servants, everyone who keeps from defiling the Sabbath, and holds fast My covenant, even them I will bring to My holy mountain and make them joyful in My house of prayer. Their burnt offerings and their sacrifices will be accepted on My altar. For My House shall be called a house of prayer for all nations. The Lord God who gathers the outcasts of Israel says, Yet I will gather to him besides those who are gathered to him."

The Gentiles are coming. They will be added to the Jews. And together these people will experience burnt offerings, a House of God, and a Sabbath. Isaiah previews nothing less here than the Millennial Kingdom, a favorite theme of apostles, prophets, and Jesus Himself. So, Sabbath is in the past and the future of the people of God. Is it to be in our present?

In Isaiah 58 is a description of a fast that truly pleases God. Here is how it ends:

Isaiah 58:13-14. "If you turn away your foot from the Sabbath, doing your pleasure on my holy day, and call the Sabbath a delight, the holy day of the Lord honorable, and shall honor Him, not doing your own ways, nor finding your own pleasure, nor speaking your own words, then shall you delight yourself in the Lord, and I will cause you to ride on the high hills of the earth and feed you with the heritage of Jacob your father- The mouth of the Lord has spoken!"

a. Note here the Sabbath is called the holy "day of the Lord". This is the only Biblical time period called the "Lord's Day." Every apostle knew these passages. When they spoke of the Lord's Day, they spoke of the Sabbath. This is how they thought.

b. Here are yet more insights that Israel is given to help her understand just how profitable this weekly time can be. The idea is that the people of God are to give that Day to re-creation of the Spirit of God, not RECreation in the form of food and play. They are to cease from taking care of earthly business, their own concerns, altogether, and seek the business of Heaven.

Isaiah's final Sabbath word is in his final chapter, once more envisioning what the Millennial Day will look like:

Isaiah 66:23. "And it shall come to pass that from one...Sabbath to another all flesh shall come to worship before Me, says the Lord."

In my mind there is no question that Sabbath worship was enjoined on the people of God from creation to Christ, and will be the fare of both Jew and Gentile for the duration of the 1000 year reign of Christ on earth. That's 5,000 years of Biblical Sabbath-keeping! What about these last 2,000? Did it all change? I encourage readers to seek God on this matter.

http://chosunhouse.com is a website I put together a few months back to get the word out to believers that they need to pray for North Korea. Just about every day I'm writing a blog featuring some news, a book, or a story of North Korea. There's a live news feed on the site, lists of resources, picture essays, and ways to respond to the overwhelming need in North Korea. Let's love Chosun together!

And who am I? A man found of God over 50 years ago, called to the ministry, serving the Lord as needed in my world. Married, member of a local church in the Chicago area, with full time work in public education. Who are you? Would love to fellowship with believers who respond on my site.

The Sabbath - From Moses to Nehemiah

The Sabbath is a serious Bible theme, and can be found in Moses' final message to Israel, as well as Governor Nehemiah's dealings with them.

Deuteronomy 5:12-15. "Observe the Sabbath Day to keep it holy, as the Lord your God commanded you. Six days you shall labor and do all your work. But the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord your God. In it you shall not do any work: you, nor your son, nor your daughter, nor your manservant, nor your maidservant, nor your ox, nor your donkey, nor any of your cattle, nor your stranger who is within your gates, that your manservant and your maidservant may rest as well as you. Remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and that the Lord your God brought you out from there by a mighty hand and by an outstretched arm: Therefore the Lord your God commanded you to keep the Sabbath day."

a. Note , as in Exodus, that this commandment is the longest of the ten.

b. Here is added the reasoning behind allowing servants to rest. In this passage is anticipated what Jesus would say 1,400 years later, that "the Sabbath was made for man," and not the other way around. It is humane and loving of God to demand from us a cessation of labor. Here we meet the One Who told us He would give our very souls rest. This literal Sabbath truly prefigures the ultimate rest in Him.

More specifically, God reminds His people of the fact that they too were slaves. They should therefore be merciful to the slaves that will continue among them. This is a much fuller description of the seventh day than in Exodus. Even richer ones will follow. So far Israel has two strong reasons to keep the Sabbath, aside from the death penalty: 1. God rested on that day. 2. God delivered Israel from bondage, and Israel needs to rest to remember that horrible time.

The ongoing question is , "Does this all apply to me today?" Since I have entered into His rest, and was myself delivered from bondage, should I not also desire earnestly that weekly reminder?

But let us leave our friend Moses behind, and journey ahead some 1,000 years to Brother Nehemiah. During this time the kingdoms of Israel and Judah rise and fall. The Babylonian captors give place to the Persians, who send Jews back to their land. Nehemiah is one of these returnees, and in the land again, he renews the covenant with God's people. By the time of his arrival however, many Jews are already falling away. A remnant separate themselves (9:2), read the Holy Book (9:3), and confess their sins. In the next chapter is recorded their new commitment.

Nehemiah 10:29-31 [portions]. "[the people] entered into a curse and an oath to walk in God's Law, which was given by Moses the servant of God and to observe and do all the commandments of the Lord our God... that if the peoples of the land bring wares or any grain to sell on the Sabbath day we would not buy it from them on the Sabbath."

Many of Israel thus attempted to restore God's will to the land. However there were others...

Nehemiah 13:15-22 [portions]. "In those days I saw in Judah some people treading wine presses on the Sabbath, and bringing in sheaves, and loading donkeys with wine, grapes, figs, and all kinds of burdens which they brought into Jerusalem on the Sabbath Day. And I warned them about the day on which they were selling provisions... Men of Tyre dwelt there also, who brought in fish and all kinds of goods, and sold them on the Sabbath to the children of Judah, and in Jerusalem. Then I contended with the nobles of Judah and said to them, What evil thing is this that you do, by which you profane the Sabbath day? Did not your fathers do thus, and did not our God bring all this disaster on us and on this city? Yet you bring added wrath on Israel by profaning the Sabbath. So...I commanded the gates to be shut, and charged that they must not be opened till after the Sabbath... And I commanded the Levites that they should cleanse themselves, and that they should go and guard the gates, to sanctify the Sabbath day."

We have now come about 3,500 years into the Bible story, and the Sabbath strain is intact. Nehemiah goes so far as to blame Sabbath-breakers for the downfall of their nation. I say again, how serious this matter must be. Notice that no anger is given to the ignorant Gentiles who are simply doing what they know to do, make money. But the people of God are here chastised, for the oracles of God are clear about this holy day.

Do you, dear reader, believe in the keeping of the Sabbath? Are you as serious as were men like Moses and Nehemiah? There's more to this story, and I encourage seekers to keep digging the facts from God's Word.

http://chosunhouse.com is a website I put together a few months back to get the word out to believers that they need to pray for North Korea. Just about every day I'm writing a blog featuring some news, a book, or a story of North Korea. There's a live news feed on the site, lists of resources, picture essays, and ways to respond to the overwhelming need in North Korea. Let's love Chosun together!

And who am I? A man found of God over 50 years ago, called to the ministry, serving the Lord as needed in my world. Married, member of a local church in the Chicago area, with full time work in public education. Who are you? Would love to fellowship with believers who respond on my site.

The Law of Moses and the Believer

What is the status of Moses' law today? In short, law lives. But it can harm us no more. The original law came by Moses (John 1:17 )and because of the weakness of our flesh condemned us, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ, who promised us He did not intend to destroy the law, but to be sure it is fulfilled (in Him and in us).

Law lives. How do I know? Because sin lives, and sin is the transgression of law. Every man who confesses his sin admits to the broken law of God. The difference between now and then or if you will, us and them, is not lawlessness but forgiveness.

Law, a major part of Scripture, lives, but now we dread not its pages. Rather we can be enriched by the "encouragement of the Scripture" (Romans 15:4). For the unconvinced we will look at some of Paul's heaviest teachings about the law, in summaries of the teachings of Romans and Galatians .

Romans: Romans 2. Law is everywhere, whether handed down from Sinai or built into Gentile thinking by the passing down of truths from the creation. We are told that we cannot boast in the law, because we are all lawbreakers. Circumcision is added as a seal of the Old Covenant if the covenant-maker is perfectly obedient in every way. Since that never happened, and all are lawbreakers, circumcision is a meaningless sign now, and the New Covenant is sealed by a circumcision of the Spirit.

Romans 3. We can never be justified by law, but we cannot with our sin make void law either. In fact, our constant breaking of the law establishes that holy piece of work!

Romans 4: Where there is no law, there is no transgression , for sin is the transgression of the law.

Romans 5: Sin was in the world before the law was given, but not imputed to man, not clearly defined, not placed in men's accounts. When it did come to us, it was to expose sin for what it is. This is still its purpose. It teaches us our need and brings us to Jesus.

Romans 6: Now we are not under the law. But law lives. Sin shall not have dominion over us. But sin is a possibility. Sin lives.

Romans 7: We are dead to the law (which lives) through the Body of Christ. We are delivered from the law, this fearful taskmaster that kept us in bondage. But now, as prophesied by Jeremiah we serve in the newness of the Spirit, who does God's law in us. The law is not sin! But we know sin through the law. We are "alive" without the law. But when the law comes, we are exposed, we "die". The law is holy and we delight in it with our mind. No one should hate the law of God and consider it a thing to be destroyed! Jesus never did. No one should pray to be delivered from the law of God, but from the curse connected to it. One who is without law is lawless , and there is nothing but contempt in Scripture for the spirit of lawlessness, II Thessalonians 2. What we want is freedom from its curse, not its righteousness! Though I do delight in it, there is another law inside me against the original law: it's called sin.

Romans 8: My flesh makes the law seem weak. But Jesus condemned sin in the flesh. Now the requirement of the law is fulfilled in those who walk by the Spirit, just as Jeremiah and Jesus both taught.

Galatians: Galatians 2. No flesh will ever be justified by the works of the law. Through the law we died to the law, and there is no righteousness to be gained through trying to keep law, whether Sinai's or the expanded revelations of Jesus and the apostles.

Galatians 3. One cannot receive the Spirit or any of His gifts by keeping the law. To be "under" the law is to be under a curse, for, as he quotes from Deuteronomy 27:26, "...cursed is everyone who does not continue in all things written in the book of the law." But Jesus became the curse for us and sets us free to keep the law's requirements.

Galatians 5. We are to maintain our liberty by not being entangled with the curse again. Yet he says in the same chapter that all the law is fulfilled in the love of neighbor that flows from the Spirit-filled believer. He tells us to walk in the Spirit and we will not fulfill the lusts of the flesh, to be led by the Spirit since we are not now under the law.

So the connection between law and believer is not as simple as we might have suspected. The law lives, and through the Spirit expresses itself in a righteous life, pleasing to God the Father.

http://chosunhouse.com is a website I put together a few months back to get the word out to believers that they need to pray for North Korea. I have created over 200 blogs and the site features a live news feed , lists of resources, picture essays, and ways to respond to the overwhelming need in North Korea. Let's love Chosun together! Contact me any time at diakonos5@yahoo.com

And who am I? A man found of God over 50 years ago, called to the ministry, serving the Lord as needed in my world. Married, member of a local church in the Chicago area, with full time work in public education. I love to write Scriptural works. Who are you? Would love to fellowship with believers who respond .

Evangelism Now-Reaching Without Preaching

It seems evangelism has become too difficult in the minds of many Christians and too religious in the minds of everyone else. I regularly hear dedicated Christians describe our mission as if it requires a professional presentation and a degree to share the love of Jesus with someone. Churches have even gotten into the act by having professional tracts, church events and DVDs produced to "make it easier" for regular Christians but this implies, unintentionally, that regular Christians can't do this without such help and tools. Nothing is further from the truth. All anyone needs, to be a witness for Jesus, is natural, real, living faith and genuine concern for the other person.

Natural Christian Outreach: I had the same misconceptions as everyone else at my first ministry post. So, I started a door-to-door program that had pretty good success because we were taking prayer requests, rather than preaching at people. Later, I found we had better success turning the church parking lot into a flea market one Saturday a year, so we could meet our neighbors under more natural circumstances. Finally, after trying evangelism the traditional way for over 10 years, I've come to the realization that most people have their guard up before our second sentence is finished. Here in the USA, everybody is bombarded from every direction by thousands of Christians. All of these approaches have one thing in common...they are as systematic and impersonal as a cheap sales pitch. I'm now getting evangelistic junk email because some poor misguided souls feel they're serving God by irritating strangers with messages they didn't ask for. So, when we approach a loved one with the message of Jesus, it's easy for them to think they know what we're going to say, and reject it without listening. Natural Christian outreach starts with a person who is seeking a solution to one of life's problems. When people discover Jesus as a solution to their problems, He has value to them and they're far more receptive to the message. After all, Jesus healed and fed people...He didn't just preach at them.

Be A Witness Without Witnessing: Another thing that puts people off and negates our evangelistic efforts is "The Presentation." Let me be straight with you, no one wants a canned God. Canned God has been sold to people their whole lives. They don't like how He tastes, how He smells, His mushy texture. The next time someone comes into your group selling the latest in canned God materials, boil up a can of peas for him and ask him if this is the way he likes his vegetables. Serve him some stale bread on the side. The only way to serve God is fresh. If you don't have a fresh relationship with God daily then don't try to serve Him to others. Jesus didn't say to go witnessing, He said to be a witness. It's the nature of a genuine Christian that reaches others for Jesus, not the use of flashy witnessing materials. Jesus is living water that wells up in you to overflowing...but He's got to be flowing in you first.

Have The Bible In You, Not On You: This point is very much like the last. It seems many religious people carry a Bible when they "go witnessing." You may have noticed from this and others of my articles, I speak and write the message from the Bible without quoting it chapter and verse. You and I know the Bible is a highly valuable book...God's Word to us. We use it to guide our lives and often quote it to each other. To those we're trying to reach...it's just a book. You don't need to carry it, quote from it, open it and show people what it says...you just need to live it.

One of my fellow students in Bible College told me about his "street-witnessing" experience the night before. He finally got someone cornered, opened his Bible and started down "The Roman Road" with him. The man interrupted and started disagreeing. It ended with the man running away while the student yelled, "You're going to hell." I'll never forget what my student friend told me next. He said, "At least I planted a seed." What kind of seed? What kind of crop? Will anyone be able to talk about Jesus again with that poor man?

If you have the Bible in you, it will come out in your actions and your words without you even trying. The Holy Spirit will remind you of everything you need to say and do. You'll care more about the person you're talking to than yourself. Leave the Bible on your desk at home, where you can keep putting it in your life, then it will shine through your life in how you treat others.

Share Faith In Jesus, Not The Gospel: Many people share "the gospel" out of a sense of duty, in response to a preacher or book they read or to be active in the latest program their church has to "reach the lost." These people are not acting in the right motivations, and worse, not acting in faith. Faith says Jesus doesn't want anyone to die and that everyone who comes to Him will be drawn by the Holy Spirit. If we're acting in faith, we can leave it up to God to provide valid opportunities to share Him and we can leave the results to Him, as well. If our faith is in Jesus, we don't need to share the gospel, but to live the Good News. We don't need to tell the people they have sinned, that's the Holy Spirit's job. We don't need to judge them, Jesus will do that at the end of time. All we need to do is live the love Jesus has given us and let Him love and help others through us...and believe in Him for the rest. Nothing can be easier than sharing faith, because faith says there is no way to fail.

Glen Williams is an Ordained Minister, Founder and CEO of E-Home Fellowship (EHF), Inc. and Webmaster for http://www.web-church.com. He has been active in ministry since 1989. You can comment on his articles at Web-Church Christian Forums.

Jesus And Paul Agree - After

We can only build where the Lord built. Solomon said in Psalm 127:1, "Unless the Lord builds the house, they labor in vain who build it." Any doctrine not firmly supported by a word from God will fall, regardless of how many good and brilliant men believe and teach it, or how many movies have been made to support it.

There are two chapters of Scripture that indicate clearly the order of events of that fateful season of earth's history known as the Day of the Lord: Matthew 24 and II Thessalonians 2. Both of these passages say that signs will tell us of the season of Jesus' coming. Signs first, then Christ comes. Here are the statements:

Matthew 24:12-31: "...because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold...when you see the abomination of desolation...then will be great tribulation...Immediately after the tribulation of those days ...the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven...and He will send His angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they will gather together His elect..."

After is post. "Tribulation" is tribulation. The "gathering" of the elect is what is called today rapture. Post-tribulation rapture.

And, II Thessalonians 2:2-3: "...the day of Christ...will not come unless the falling away comes first, and the man of sin is revealed...who...sits as God in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God."

First the falling away of professing Christians, then the works of the antichrist, which bring on the Matthew 24 tribulation, then the day of Christ.

The pre-tribulation rapture position is not stated in these or any passage of Scripture and is dependent totally on logic and assumption. In fairness we must add that the logic is quite sensible at times and even has the appearance of Scriptural backing, but the theory is man-made, connects ideas randomly and without proof, and thus cannot stand. Many have forsaken this theory already.

All Biblical doctrines must begin in the Bible, not merely find support there. Some believers of a few generations ago concluded either through a "revelation" as from God or through a false conclusion of Scripture, that it would be impossible for Jesus to fulfill all the Scriptures about His coming by only one appearance. Therefore, they reasoned, there must be two. It made sense to many, and the teaching has spread like wildfire. Before

ordinary believers had a chance to study the pre-tribulation issue, they were told that Jesus will appear in the sky and take them to heaven the moment it looks like the world is going to go through its greatest trouble.

Sounded good. Scriptures here and there that seemed to back up the position were deposited in their minds, and the doctrine settled in as truth.

It is time for ordinary believers to search the Scriptures , and begin their formation of theology with clear words from God, not with an unverified statement of a Bible teacher, not even with a "supernatural" manifestation. The Thessalonian church experienced all of that and even received a letter with Paul's name on it stating the same thing:

II Thessalonians 2:2 "[do not ] be soon shaken in mind or troubled, either by spirit or by word or by letter, as if from us, as though the day of Christ had come."

Jesus and His most published author Paul have both spoken. The word is after. Who can miss this? I confess that I did for some time. When teachings are repeated by well known brothers and then even incorporated in the motion picture industry, they certainly seem to be authoritative. But God's people know God's foundation and stand upon it.

http://chosunhouse.com is a website I put together a few months back to get the word out to believers that they need to pray for North Korea. Just about every day I'm writing a blog featuring some news, a book, or a story of North Korea. There's a live news feed on the site, lists of resources, picture essays, and ways to respond to the overwhelming need in North Korea. Let's love Chosun together!

And who am I? A man found of God over 50 years ago, called to the ministry, serving the Lord as needed in my world. Married, member of a local church in the Chicago area, with full time work in public education. Who are you? Would love to fellowship with believers who respond on my site.

Why Worry About The Rapture?

Why study this rapture issue?
That we not wind up like the Thessalonians, totally vulnerable
to false teachers who will tell us of "secret" comings in remote places (see Matthew 24:26-
27). And for several other reasons:

1. The integrity of Scripture is at stake. Is the Bible true? Can we trust its statements,
even when they speak against our pet doctrines, cultural ways, and even our "common
sense" and human logic?

2. The method of Biblical interpretation is important. Shall we look at Scripture literally
whenever possible or only when it suits our theories? Shall we adamantly affirm with
Agur in Proverbs 30:5, "Every word of God is pure", or shall we cloud the meanings of
Scripture with "revelations" that have come later? Certainly when Jesus is telling a parable
we look for "interpretation" but if no obvious figure is intended we must trust God's Word
as it is.

3. Though such matters as the timing of the rapture may not be on a par with the teachings
regarding salvation and the Deity of Christ, do we have a right to classify any Scriptural
theme as "unimportant" when so often we fill our minds with Hollywood fantasies, or the
triviality of game-playing known as "sports", or the ramblings of the stock market? Are
those who glibly say, "Well, Jesus is coming, that's all that really matters," occupied in the
collecting of the world's knowledge and calling that important? Why shouldn't God's people
be excited about even the smallest of the Bible's issues?

The teacher in particular is warned in Matthew 5:19, "Whoever therefore breaks one
of the least of these commandments, and teaches men so, shall be called least in the kingdom
of heaven..." This passage refers to the eternal law of God that His people keep by their new
life in the Spirit, but shows us how God values everything He says to a prophet or an apostle.

Things we want to call "little" are not necessarily so.

Perhaps by the time you have examined the evidence you will see that this issue is
not so trivial anyway. Returning to the Thessalonian context, the issue was big enough to
warrant two letters of Paul to correct! A misplaced return of Jesus brought confusion and
desperation to that assembly. In our day, imagine the plight of those who fed on the Hollywood-
style dramas made by pre-tribulation rapturists, when they see antichrist arise before
them, and Jesus has not yet returned. At best these people will be angry with those who sold
them a bill of goods with no clear Scriptural evidence. These folks were expecting years of
bliss in Heaven while hellish things happened to "tribulation saints" on earth. They will bitterly
reflect that some very godly-sounding men led them astray.

That's why we need to study the rapture.

http://chosunhouse.com is a website I put together a few months back to get the word out to believers that they need to pray for North Korea. Just about every day I'm writing a blog featuring some news, a book, or a story of North Korea. There's a live news feed on the site, lists of resources, picture essays, and ways to respond to the overwhelming need in North Korea. Let's love Chosun together!

And who am I? A man found of God over 50 years ago, called to the ministry, serving the Lord as needed in my world. Married, member of a local church in the Chicago area, with full time work in public education. Who are you? Would love to fellowship with believers who respond on my site.

The Show Church

In North Korea there are churches that have been opened by the government, just for show. I was pondering recently over the situation in America. One wonders how much of what we Christians do is for the same reason, show. How many churches are run by the bulletin instead of by His program? How many have an agenda that must be kept at all costs?

Order is essential in a congregation, we understand. But when the meeting becomes predictable, or when the flesh dictates that order, one has a show church.

For example, today many pastors refuse to wear ties, in deference to the unpopularity of that item of the male wardrobe. It is assumed that the donning of casual dress will attract casual people. This is fleshly thinking.

In many churches, the desires of the young have been placed over the wisdom of the elderly. Music is one of the victims of this decision. For generations the church has passed on a rich tradition of in-depth majestic hymnody. The great teachings of Scripture have been put to music, and passed on decade after decade. As new songs have come along, those of wisdom have slowly added them to the collection.

But now, the collections are set aside en masse. Entirely new collections are in place, and weekly there are new songs added to the list. A man who has been a Christian for 50 years can sit through a meeting totally a stranger to the music portion of the fellowship. And he can think he is a stranger to the church, being left behind. This has not been true in every generation. It is sadly true in this one.

Often, standing before such elderly saints are young rockers, who have been granted sanction in this fast-evolving scene, authority to lead, not only worship, but devotion, prayer time, up to half of the meeting. Certainly we honor the new believer, and want him to learn leadership skills a bit at a time. But the wholesale turning over of pulpits and platforms to the young is not a Biblical precedent. It is more fleshly thinking. And it is destructive to all concerned.

The thinking is, We will let these people get involved, and then they will stick around. We used to think of such a process as bribery. What if they are not given heady leadership roles, and attention? Will they drift away? Is this what the framers of the New Testament saw as a likely scenario for church growth? Is this how we progress?

Or is this a show church? A church that hopes to grow by having the best show? Should not a warning be posted to the ones responsible for sheperding God's flock, that those who neglect the ancient landmarks in the interest of attracting those whose motives are fleshly will produce a fleshly church, a la Rome? When the saints are set aside so that the world can be promoted in God's holy church, is that church holy any longer? Is that church God's? When the sheep are bleating out their pain at the hijacking of their fellowship by those who only seek ambitious fulfillment, shall not the shepherd take action?

Evangelism is to be by testimony, not by show. Not the best building in town. Not the best performance in town. Only the purest Gospel, the most defining of standards, preached all week by its members. Raise the bar high. Let the world know that without help from above they cannot reach the wonderful ways He has given us.

Is that not how we were raised? Oh there were those who became "all things" to us. There were youth leaders who drew us in and made us feel comfortable. But there was also a higher plane to which we attained. There was a corporate meeting of men and women to whom we aspired. The elderly men stood before us, and by life and word led us to better things. Who is leading now? Certainly not the men, in more and more churches. And certainly not the elderly.

I fear that these later inventions will be exported to North Korea when it is finally open to the Gospel. So many Koreans are in America drinking in American ways. And so many want to take this brand of Christianity to the North. May God help us to understand that the brand of Christianity already in North Korea is what they need more of, not our brand.

There, people come to Christ because they love Him. No one else in his right mind would take the journey to certain suffering. They need not rock music, modern ways. They already love Him more than many of us. They don't need to be bribed. Sprinlked throughout this barren nation are pockets of believers worshiping and learning of the Master, serving Him alone.

They have found the way of the Cross. The way of the Cross trumps the way of the show.

http://chosunhouse.com is a website made to ask believers to pray for North Korea. Recently I have added Bible teachings to the menu. There are nearly 300 blogs , a live news feed , lists of resources, picture essays, and ways to respond to the overwhelming need in North Korea. Let's love Chosun together! Contact me any time at diakonos5@yahoo.com Audio teachings at sermonaudio.com under my name.

And who am I? A man found of God over 50 years ago, called to the ministry, serving the Lord as needed in my world. Married, member of a local church in the Chicago area, with full time work in public education. Would love to fellowship with believers who respond.

Being A North Korean - What's It Like?

So what's it like being a North Korean Christian? Who really knows, but since you asked, and since the Word tells me to remember prisoners as though I were bound with them, it's probably important to try to understand what they are experiencing.

Let's see, to be a North Korean Christian must mean to eat a lot less. Could I do that? Yes, fasting is a command and an opportunity to relate to the suffering church. I could skip a meal now and then. Or cut out a meal altogether. Who says I need three a day to survive?

North Korean Christians probably walk a lot. Hmmm. No wheels? Could I find ways to walk more? What if I were the one on the trail each day that the wheeled people were always saying "on your left" to? What if it were me that the cars were coming around and blasting away with their nasty horns? Yeah, I could do that. Could lose some weight in the process. Get back to nature. Live simply.

Believers over there don't go to church to "be" someone, or to watch videos, or to talk with their friends about the latest sports outcomes. They don't go to see a performance or to gossip about so-and-so. Their attendance is not casual. If they go, the meeting is in secret, and it is understood that it could end in jail or worse. They go to hear from God, regardless of the cost. Now how in the world can I relate to that? Well, I could take my church attendance more seriously. I could stop criticizing. I could lead a holy life that makes church necessary and not optional. I could develop a love for Jesus in my prayer life that would spill over to my church life.

Being a North Korean believer means no television to speak of. No constant distraction and temptation to look at what the world is doing , and try to be like it. Hmmm, not a bad idea. Could I get rid of my habit? My TV? At least one of the 5 hangin' around my house? Maybe I could trash all but one, and use it only for news? Or could I use my radio & computer for news, and pitch all the TV's? Am I too far advanced in my addiction to try any of this? Then how will I ever relate to a North Korean believer and have anything better to offer him?

In truth, some of the above things I have already done. I desire to do all of them and more. But even then it will not let me fully understand what it means to be a North Korean Christian. When the persecution comes here, then I will know.

I've said it before. We need North Korea more than they need us. As you read through the items above, doesn't it strike you that the life they are living is very close to the life prescribed in the Word? If I in my liberty have chosen not to live as they must live in their restriction, I must ask why? What's wrong with less food, no TV, lots of walking and vital church services? What's wrong with me and my culture?

Sorry. My answer to your question turns into another question.

http://chosunhouse.com is a website I put together a few months back to get the word out to believers that they need to pray for North Korea. Just about every day I'm writing a blog featuring some news, a book, or a story of North Korea. There's a live news feed on the site, lists of resources, picture essays, and ways to respond to the overwhelming need in North Korea. Let's love Chosun together!

And who am I? A man found of God over 50 years ago, called to the ministry, serving the Lord as needed in my world. Married, member of a local church in the Chicago area, with full time work in public education. Who are you? Would love to fellowship with believers who respond on my site.

Christian Online Dating - What is it All About?

Religion is still a large and pervasive part of our world today. I see religion as another colour on the spectrum that makes man unique. Belief and faith has divided and united us in the past few thousand years, and in these modern times, and in more modern and contemporary settings, there is an environment of tolerance that has blessed these times. There are very few of us who would lift the vanguard of religion as a weapon against those who are different and religion in society has as much place as ethnicity, as colour, as belief, as educational status.

Once we can view religion as just part of an individual, then we have matured as a society. I think this has been most succinctly been produced in the Christian online dating scene. Yes, there is a Christian online dating scene, just like there is a Jewish and a Muslim one. I do not really see it as a another form of segregation but an identification of mutual interests reaching out. The internet has focused the dating scene thoroughly and it is through sites like these that the bad cycles of 'fall out' dating does not happen. Why? Have you ever been in a position where you just want to find the right one and you are going through dates night after night? We do not want to be in that cycle of mismatched personalities and interests and sometimes we cannot deny that religion does get in the way.

While some of us float along on the grey areas of religion and love, others have a much more focused vision of what we would like to see in our partners. Maybe its down to traditionalism or even belief, a cyclic pathological inculcated by generations of co-existence. I have had friends who have lost the ones they loved, or who have been in difficult relationships because of the issue of religion. Why put yourself through the pain if you know it is going to be a problem? Find someone who shares the same monotheistic beliefs as you do, if you find arguments over theology not a good way to spend a candle lit dinner over. It is unavoidable. But it also makes us unique.

I shudder to think of the day when we are all equal, thinking equally and sharing the same interests - a wallpaper paste existence of no colour, no dynamism and of no vibrancy. Love can be nurtured in almost any setting, and Christian online dating is for those who have chosen a path in their life and would like to walk within this valley with a partner of equal stature; one who sees the same things; who hears the same voices as they do and who believes in the same realities. If that is happiness then the internet and dating sites such as these have helped them achieve it. What ever your orientation or your belief, the internet has allowed you to find someone of some likeness to you.

Jane Sanders, an expert in psychology, researched human dating behaviors for years. She has currently released her findings in a FREE Copy of her "Online Dating Success! In 5 Simple Steps!" Click Here! to Download the Free Ebook Now!

Antidotes For Doubt

Now there were only eleven men on the mountain with Jesus on the day He left Earth to begin another phase of His preparation for the coming Kingdom. Only eleven. These eleven had seen Him die and had seen Him risen from the dead. They had walked with Him three years and watched Him raise others from death and near-death. They had seen a disturbed Sea of Galilee hushed. Now for 40 days after His own decease and resurrection they had eaten with Him, been amazed by off and on appearances, beheld as He walked through walls. Now He stands in front of them to receive their worship, a parting gesture that will remain in their memory as they face a world that most certainly is not a friend of Jesus of Nazareth. Their hands are raised, the praise begins. And then, can you possibly believe this, the Gospel writer adds, "but some doubted."

Doubt has been showing up at church ever since. We who have the entire written testimony of these and other men in a Book that has become in itself a miracle; we who have had our own mountain-top experiences with Him, not the least of which has been a changed and changing life, often sit in our little prisons of doubt and fear and ask with John the Baptist, "Are You the One Who was to come, or should we keep looking for someone else?"

That's who we are at times. We doubt Him, and we doubt what He has done for us. And we wait for a rushing mighty wind or light from Heaven that has not been promised us in these days. Some do experience unqualified and totally verifiable miracles. But not all. Maybe not even many. And both the haves and the have-nots of the miraculous must deal with the Word that says, "Blessed are those who do not see [something] and still believe."

The Jesus who left from a mountain in the Middle East will eventually return via the clouds to that same mountain. All will be gathered to Him to give an account. John in his first epistle indicates that many will be ashamed. And John shows the way not to be ashamed at that coming. In 1:28 he counsels us simply to abide in Him. Stay put. Keep believing. Keep trusting. Talk to Him, walk with Him. Let Him talk to you.

By this method, slowly but very surely one becomes aware of the dual nature of the non-physical part of man, and sees that all those doubts - which will plague from time to time - are part of the old nature, the corrupted mind, the messages from elsewhere. He will see that the new man continues to broadcast hope and courage. The key will be , which of these two power centers will be strongest, which will he feed the most?

John takes it farther than a struggle of the soul. He gives a series of tests of the whole man and the actions being produced in it. He says that the man abiding with Jesus will not have a sinning habit any more. He will have a healthy dislike of this present evil world system. He will naturally gravitate to the brothers and sisters in the Lord and care about their well-being. This man can take a look in the mirror John has fashioned and know in an instant whether there is a real Jesus and whether this Jesus lives in him. Great antidotes for doubt. Has the new nature produced a new man?

Of course, such an examination is a potential cause for concern, too.What if the image is blurred? What if staring back at him is a picture of an empty man who loves his worldliness and his vices -even chuckles about it all - and has a hidden distaste for people who are into Jesus "a little too much", which means being interpreted, more than himself ? One can throw away such a mirror of course and live with the ever-nagging and ever-growing doubt, or one can repent.

I believe now that doubt in most believers is a common possibility. The enemy will continually look for an entry place. But if Satan finds that the entry-ways are well guarded, there is a good chance he will go to some simpler task elsewhere. Doubt then becomes our choice.

As does its opposite, faith.

Look for Bob Faulkner's home page on http://sermonaudio.com - There you will find a combination of love for the Scriptures and a desire for North Korean believers to have their needs met. There are nearly 300 blogs, over 200 Bible teaching MP3's, lists of resources, NK picture albums, and ways to respond to the overwhelming need in North Korea. Let's love Chosun together! Contact me any time at diakonos5@yahoo.com

And who am I? A man found of God over 50 years ago, called to the ministry, serving the Lord as needed in my world. Married, member of a local church in the Chicago area, with full time work in public education. Would love to fellowship with believers who respond.

How Daniel Saw The Anti-Christ and the End of All Things

Let's look at the last prophecy of a 91-year-old man of God, Daniel the prophet, following the lead of Jesus who told us that we are to be in search of the abomination of desolation mentioned by this man (Matthew 24:15).

Daniel 10, 11, and 12, are all a part of one long prophecy. In those 3 chapters, there is extensive preparation, followed by the prediction itself, then some follow-up questions to deal with.

We cannot get past the first verse (10:1) without seeing an odd phrase: "the appointed time." The Spirit wants us to know that the time of this fulfillment will be "long". Later, the "time of the end" is mentioned, as in chapter 8.

After a period of sorrowful fasting over some unknown issues, probably longing to know more of the plan of God (verse 12), Daniel sees a vision much like John will about 600 years later on the island called Patmos. The first person he sees seems to be the Son of God. Mixed in with messages from this Person are those of the angel Gabriel, who tells Daniel that once more he has been sent to him, but was involved heavily in spiritual warfare with demons controlling Persia and Greece, the two nations that were the subject of chapter 8. This latter piece of information points us to Gabriel as opposed to Jesus. As in Revelation there is some confusion about who is being seen, who is talking.

But whoever is talking, it seems as though this message to Daniel is being opposed in a mighty way. After all, if Daniel receives this message and passes it on, the Enemy's plan will be exposed for the whole world and church to see. But although the angel prevails, and the message is recorded, the book of Daniel has been hit so hard by "scholars" that in many circles it is totally discredited. Those who do believe it is the very word of God find that most churches just aren't interested. After all, merely to read the book is to "name names" of people and nations. So it is not politically correct to preach from it. Those who take it seriously have relegated all its prophecies to the past, making it true but irrelevant. We have the word of angels to the contrary, but thus will the book remain "sealed" until the time is upon us (12:9). What wisdom of God! How the Enemy must have thought he had ripped this book from the Collection. But he will be exposed in due time!

In the remaining verses of chapter 10, Daniel is encouraged, strengthened, so that he can take in the predictive details of the following message, nearly every one of which certainly happened in history. But it is the way that history blends into prophecy that is the fascination of this message. Before you have heard it all, you too may need time to regain your strength. Are you ready for this?

The prophecy proper begins in chapter 11.And those first few verses are nothing more than chapter 8:3-8 retold. . He starts with familiar ground, and leads into greater detail. Persia is in chapter 8? Here, It shall rise. It shall be great. A Persian king (we call him Xerxes) will stir up trouble with Greece ( the push west is mentioned in 8). Indeed the march of Xerxes' armies westward was rivaled in history only by the subsequent eastward march of Alexander the Great, mentioned here in verse 3. Verse 4 then tells of the breaking up of Alexander's Kingdom among his four generals (not among family members, adds this chapter's vision). All known facts, right?

11:5-20 . The Spirit then travels ahead to the kingdoms that arise from Alexander's heritage. He lets us know that they have been established now, and are in competition. But his focus has narrowed already from four to only two. Later it is one that will be at center stage, the one from whence comes "the little horn." For this is where the angel is leading us...

The little horn. The man of sin. The antichrist.

http://chosunhouse.com is a website I put together a few months back to get the word out to believers that they need to pray for North Korea. Just about every day I'm writing a blog featuring some news, a book, or a story of North Korea. There's a live news feed on the site, lists of resources, picture essays, and ways to respond to the overwhelming need in North Korea. Let's love Chosun together!

And who am I? A man found of God over 50 years ago, called to the ministry, serving the Lord as needed in my world. Married, member of a local church in the Chicago area, with full time work in public education. Who are you? Would love to fellowship with believers who respond on my site.

Measure Yourself Against This Positive Practical and Model Example

When I used to go to the football (soccer for those of you reading this across the pond) I expected to see a match taking place with 22 players. I did not expect a concert or flower arranging or knitting. Now, I am not against any of these things. I am not against anything, but sin.

But when I 'go to Church', I expect to hear about Jesus and sense that God is at the very centre and heart of all that is going on.

In Acts Chapter 11 and at verse 26, these disciples of Jesus Christ were always talking about their Saviour and Lord, Jesus Christ, and in Antioch they were first called Christians - 'little anointed ones' - 'little Christs'. Antioch must have been a great place to be in these days. Faith was fresh vibrant and dynamic and there were spiritually powerful preachers and teachers.

It is a peculiar fact today, that you can bring the name of Jesus Christ even into some Church meetings, and people can become embarrassed and uncomfortable. Not so in Antioch.

Their lives were so different from other people's lives, in so many ways. They were distinctly different - by their love - their joy - their compassion - their openness - the way they could welcome all who came to faith - their eagerness to learn - their generosity - the way their lives were so radically transformed - the way they coped with and how they could handle suffering. These men and women were different from everyone else in Antioch, and it was JESUS Who made them different.

Sharing - speaking - testifying - fellowshipping - feeding upon the teach of Barnabas and Saul for a whole year - and their willingness to receive The Word of God helped made them different too - strong in character - filled with faith - powerful in The Holy Spirit.

They were so very positive.

Some prophets came down from Jerusalem. A man named Agabus stood up, and through the Spirit predicted that a severe famine would spread over the entire Roman world. What kind of man does that? What kind of man would have the courage today to speak forth like that, knowing that if it did not happened he would rightly be labelled as a false prophet.

Agabus had a prophetic ministry. He heard from God, and spoke on behalf of God, with the anointing of the Holy Spirit upon him.

There is also something here of a word of knowledge. Agabus knew something, revealed by God, which no-one else knew at that time. God was saying something vitally important, and God was saying it through The Church. A great need was going to arise throughout the whole Roman world. That covered quite an area at that time.

This actually happened during the historical reign of Emperor Claudius.

These disciples of Jesus Christ in Antioch just began to give. There was no appeal for funds, and it was no token offering. Each gave as much as he was able to.

They realised that there was going to a physical problem in Judea - in Jerusalem. As the Holy Spirit revealed the need, these disciples rose to the occasion, in a positive and practical manner.

Wherever real needs arise today will the Church of Jesus Christ respond in such a positive and practical manner without lengthy appeals? As an individual disciple of Jesus will you rise up when you become aware of some specific need in the world, in your local community or in the Fellowship where you regularly worship?

At the end of Acts chapter 11, the Church of Jesus Christ has been going for around four or five years.

Take a moment to consider how that young fellowship of Jesus Christ in Antioch was such a model fellowship, and an example for us today.

Persecuted disciples of Jesus Christ made their home in Antioch and influence many in the community.

They are so eager to hear The Word of God and receive teaching from those who were just a little bit further along the way than the others.

They are open to the Holy Spirit - open to prophecy and a word of knowledge.

There is an obedience to those in authority. These true believers are willing to give generously, and there were men of calibre who could be trusted to deliver the money to the people in need.

Yes, we are reading of these first early years of The Church. How does the Church where you worship measure to what we read of in the Fellowship in Antioch?

Sandy Shaw

Sandy Shaw is Pastor of Nairn Christian Fellowship, Chaplain at Inverness Prison, and Nairn Academy, and serves on The Children's Panel in Scotland, and has travelled extensively over these past years teaching, speaking, in America, Canada, South Africa, Australia, making 12 visits to Israel conducting Tours and Pilgrimages, and most recently in Uganda and Kenya, ministering at Pastors and Leaders Seminars, in the poor areas surrounding Kampala, Nairobi, Mombasa and Kisumu.

He broadcasts regularly on WSHO radio out of New Orleans, and writes a weekly commentary at http://www.studylight.org entitled "Word from Scotland" on various biblical themes, as well as a weekly newspaper column.

His M.A. and B.D. degrees are from The University of Edinburgh, and he continues to run and exercise regularly to maintain a level of physical fitness.

Sandy Shaw
sandyshaw63@yahoo.com

North Korea - Cheng Lee and Hong Jun

Communists have been known to tell North Korean children that they will suffer a horrific fate if they are ever caught in China. But the children also know that if they are fortunate enough to escape, they should look for a building with the shape of a cross on it to find help. Two North Korean children who managed to arrive at a Chinese church relayed their stories ...

Cheng Lee and his sister watched their parents slowly starve to death. They managed to walk across the Yalu River while it was still frozen. Once on the other side, his older sister said, 'You stay here. I have to go on a little farther by myself.' But she never returned.

Cheng was only six at the time this happened..

Hong Jun, an eleven-year-old boy, said that he wanted to return to North Korea and tell others about Christ. Truly mature in Christ for his age, he cried as he sang:

"Oh Lord, give us the voice of the Gospel,

For our beloved brothers the Lord so loved before,

Where are all these gone? The Lord is looking upon them.

"Oh Lord, send us to them, to our beloved Korean brothers,

Oh Lord, send us to them, to our beloved Korean brothers.

Wherever they are, let them bloom as flowers."

A few months later, Hong Jun was kidnapped from the village and forcibly returned to North Korea. Perhaps he is witnessing to his captors even now.

May we be as faithful to Jesus when our time of trial comes.

http://chosunhouse.com is a website I put together a few months back to get the word out to believers that they need to pray for North Korea. Just about every day I'm writing a blog featuring some news, a book, or a story of North Korea. There's a live news feed on the site, lists of resources, picture essays, and ways to respond to the overwhelming need in North Korea. Let's love Chosun together!

And who am I? A man found of God over 50 years ago, called to the ministry, serving the Lord as needed in my world. Married, member of a local church in the Chicago area, with full time work in public education. Who are you? Would love to fellowship with believers who respond on my site.

Christians Against Proselytizing Among Israel

CAPAI -- Christians Against Proselytizing Among Israel -- is an organization headed by Moshe-Mordechai van Zuiden. Is there an equivalent organization of Jews against Jewish proselytizing among Christians? I doubt it.

I am opposed to anybody - Jew, Israelite or Gentile - becoming a convert to the counterfeit Christianity of "traditional Churchianity." Such popular error misrepresents true Christianity with its Babylonian mystery religion dressed up in the drag of "Christianity."

True Christianity, as taught by Herbert W. Armstrong, merely announces the soon coming Kingdom of God to be established by King Messiah, Yeshua. We don't seek converts or believe it's our responsibility to "save" the world. If God wants to save the world, it will be saved. There's no contest between God and the devil, contrary to traditional myths.

I encourage Moshe-Mordechai van Zuiden and others to call upon Jews not to be hypocrites against "Christian" proselytizing while remaining in a self-imposed exile, far away from the Jewish homeland, and having the chutzpah to preach against Jesus in such professing countries, as I've seen on too many forums. Mind you, these forums I refer to were not legitimate Jewish responses to efforts to convert them.

Jews Should Follow Judaism to Israel!

May faithful Jews not confuse ersatz New York with Eretz Yisrael. Israel needs American Jews and American Jews need Israel! Such a great influx of American Jews into Eretz Israel could help sweep away the suicidal peace process and restore Israel to its right mind.

A Jewish Homeland

Weren't the Jews prophesied to return to Israel? Are the Jews ethnic Jews or merely converts? How should Israel treat their resident Arabs? Why does the world focus on Jerusalem for all the wrong reasons?

David Ben-Ariel is a Christian-Zionist writer and author of Beyond Babylon: Europe's Rise and Fall. With a focus on the Middle East and Jerusalem, his analytical articles help others improve their understanding of that troubled region. Check out the Beyond Babylon blog.

Can You See Christ in the Feast of the Tabernacles

In "the Gospel of John," Arthur W. Pink suggests that "the simplest and often most effective way of studying a portion of God's Word is to draw up a list of questions upon it." After a few days of research, pondering where to start and struggling to discover the underlying symbolism associated with the Feast of Tabernacle, I decided to put Mr. Pink's idea to the test.

What is a Tabernacle? What are the Alternative names of the Feast of Tabernacle? What was the purpose of the Feast of Tabernacle? What is the significance of the "booths?" How are the answers to these questions symbolized by Christ?

Where better to start than a look at the Tabernacle itself. The Tabernacle is a picturesque illustration of Christ and His Church on earth. I believe "on earth" is a key when looking at the Feast of Tabernacle. The Tabernacle in the wilderness was a temporary, earthly structure symbolizing Christ, that according to Exodus 25:8-9 was that "God might dwell among His people." We see some aspect of Jesus Christ in every piece of its furniture, boards, pillars, ropes and curtains. Jesus came to this earth to offer us a way to the Father and a way to salvation. Christ is our Tabernacle, our place of worship and our way to the Father.

What is the evidence of Christ in the alternative names for the Feast? The Feast of Tabernacle was also known as the Feast of Ingathering and/or Feast of Booths. I believe that these are important to reference because the further reflect the significance of Jesus.

The Feast of the Ingathering speaks of a harvest and agricultural celebration. Revelation 14:115 tells us of His great harvest. "Take your sickle and reap for the time to reap has come, for the harvest of the earth is ripe." Just as Jesus came to plant the seed for salvation, He too will return for the harvest.

Also known as the Feast of Booths, it was a tribute to the memory of God's people and their struggle in the wilderness. The booths were shabby, make-shift structures of sticks, boughs, palm branches and the like. The booths were only occupied during the time of the Feast and were temporary in ever sense of the word. Jesus fulfills the symbolism of the booth by humbling Himself and coming to us in the frail, shabby, destructible body of man. Like the pilgrims of the Feast, His booth was also temporary. Jesus was here for only a short time; for the planting of the good seed. However, He promises to return and harvest those that believe. What a glorious festival there will be when He finally returns.

When I look more deeply at the Feast of Tabernacle, Christ shines through. Simply, we might say that the Feast of Tabernacle is a tribute to Christ and His amazing days on earth as the sewer of salvation. How grateful we should be that He chose to pitch His tent or build His tabernacle with us and for us as the Son of Man and Savior.

The Tabernacle is a reference of good things yet to come. As we are told in Revelation 21:3, "Behold, the Tabernacle of God is with men and He will dwell with them and they shall be His people and God Himself shall be with them and be their God." Jesus Christ is the Tabernacle of God. When the glorious day comes and He returns, Christ will dwell amongst His people again. For me, this is ultimately what the Feast of the Tabernacle is all about.

Copyright Anthony Mullins

Elite Coaching Alliance 2005

Anthony Mullins is the President and Life Coach for The Elite Coaching Alliance. He specializes in personal, leadership, marriage, relationship and family, christian based coaching. He is the author of the upcoming e-book "A Chronical of the Miracles in the Gospel of John." He can be reached by e-mail: anthony@elitecoachingalliance.com or by phone at 770.344.7975. Visit our website http://www.elitecoachingalliance.com

The Abomination of Desolation

The abomination of Desolation.
There is a misconception of the prophecy's of Christ, Daniel, Isaiah, and Ezekiel concerning the time of the abomination of desolation. There have been many desolations and times of desolation in Israel. Many of these caused much hardships and even death to the House of Israel.

The Babylonian Captivity, Jer 25:11 And this whole land shall be a desolation, and an astonishment; and these nations shall serve the king of Babylon seventy years.
Jer 44:22 So that the LORD could no longer bear, because of the evil of your doings, and because of the abominations which ye have committed; therefore is your land a desolation, and an astonishment, and a curse, without an inhabitant, as at this day. Ezr 9:7 Since the days of our fathers have we been in a great trespass unto this day; and for our iniquities have we, our kings, and our priests, been delivered into the hand of the kings of the lands, to the sword, to captivity, and to a spoil, and to confusion of face, as it is this day.

The House of Israel has rejected Christ as the Messiah and are still under the law to a point. The Daily sacrifices have been put aside because of the natural law of man, but they justify this by the verse, Obedience is better than Sacrifice. This will end in the days of the anti-Christ, which will allow the renewing of the Red Heifer Sacrifices within the 3rd temple. Which I must say that many scholars do not believe in.
Dan 12:11 And from the time that the daily sacrifice shall be taken away, and the abomination that maketh desolate set up, there shall be a thousand two hundred and ninety days.
What we are going to look deeper at is the end days.
Jewish 76.4%, Muslim 16%, Arab Christians 1.7%, other Christian 0.4%, Druze 1.6%, unspecified 3.9% (2004)(C.I.A. World Fact Book)

The abomination of desolation.
The Daily sacrifices and The abomination of desolation, as spoken of by Daniel, is a subject of much controversy among many bible Scholars. There are those that teach that these two events have already taken place in the Days of Caesar,as many are teaching.

This prophecy has nothing to do with, Rome nor Caesar. Prophecy must be looked at very carefully and be regarded by not single events, but as a string or combination of events. Those things spoken of the abomination of desolation and the third temple are future events backed up by Scripture. Israel is not allowed by natural or should I say mans law, to accomplish animal sacrifices.

This interpretation from T.S.K. Is one that I disagree with, take a look;
the abomination: Heb. to set up the abomination, etc. Probably Mohammedanism, which sprang up in power the same year as the papal, ad 606; and 1,290 years from that time will be ad 1896, and 1,335 years ad 1941.

The abomination of desolation will be a statue of the anti-Christ that will be placed inside the third temple. Many scripture back this up. This attempt to work time and dates to justify interpretation is not the way to interpret scripture, many try to look at past events and match Bible prophecy to it, this is a grave mistake and leads to faulty or false interpretations.
Mar 13:14 But when ye shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing where it ought not, (let him that readeth understand,) then let them that be in Judaea flee to the mountains:
Isa 28:22 Now therefore be ye not mockers, lest your bands be made strong: for I have heard from the Lord GOD of hosts a consumption, even determined upon the whole earth.

The best reference to this is in Revelations 19:20; And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of the beast, and them that worshipped his image. These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone. This is the abomination of desolation as the end of the anti-Christ; read and understand, them that worshipped his image.
Mohammedanism(Islam) is not older than Christianity nor the Jewish religion, but it will play and important part in the desolation of Israel as spoken of by Christ.
Therefore, Rameses, nor the Caesars of Rome, have not fulfilled prophecy of the end days.

Many use this part of Mark 13:14, to justify calling Caesar the anti-Christ for He had an image of Himself constructed and forced many to worship his image as God, but there were Kings before and after that have done the same thing. Dan 3:14 Nebuchadnezzar spake and said unto them, Is it true, O Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, do not ye serve my gods, nor worship the golden image which I have set up? But when ye shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing where it ought not;, The point of the matter with all these false god images is that they never fulfilled the prophecy's of the end days such as these;

Rev 13:13-14; And he doeth great wonders, so that he maketh fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men,
And deceiveth them that dwell on the earth by the means of those miracles which he had power to do in the sight of the beast; saying to them that dwell on the earth, that they should make an image to the beast, which had the wound by a sword, and did live.
Rev 13:15 And he had power to give life unto the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed.

Dan 7:25-26; And he shall speak great words against the most High, and shall wear out the saints of the most High, and think to change times and laws: and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time.
But the judgment shall sit, and they shall take away his dominion, to consume and to destroy it unto the end.

2Th 2:9-10; Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders,
And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved.

What Caesar never fulfilled is this verse of prophecy; Dan 9:27; And he(The Anti-Christ.) shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate.
Also this verse was not fulfilled by any King yet; Mat 24:15 When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand:) Key words here; the abomination of desolation (Image)stand in the holy place.
Luke 21:32; Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass away, till all be fulfilled. This study is just the tip of the Prophecy of the abomination of desolation.
ars.

Temple of Spirit & Truth Ministries A.R.Smith Ministries http://www.ourchurch.com/member/a/arsmithsermons/