Nov 12
Total Collapse of Prophetic Discernment
Several years back, I wrote an article that detailed how the field of apologetics has collapsed. This type of ministry defends the faith against error. Right now, there are very few apologists left. They have been forced off of Christian radio and TV, and have been replaced by people who promote a feel-good message.
I am now seeing a much larger collapse that goes far beyond apologetics. Prophetic discernment is a crucial factor in knowing where we are on God’s time line, and it has gone into a stunning free fall. We live in an age when even the most dire warning signs fail to draw people’s attention.
I’m amazed at how oil has skyrocketed to historic levels, and we hear very little concern about the future availability of this dwindling resource. The lack of reaction makes me wonder if everyone in America is a multi-millionaire, and the only part of the pump Americans look at is where they insert their credit card.
Economists have been stunned over how consumers have largely ignored the rising price of oil-based products. They been predicted a recession would happen once oil hit $80 per barrel.
Potential sources of calamity cannot be ignored forever. What will make the coming year interesting for Bible prophecy is the sheer number of potential sources for trouble. So many land mines are hidden under the road ahead of us that, unless they are defused, we will eventually hit one of them. Here are just a few from this week:
Russian Cold War Action – The Russian parliament voted unanimously to suspend a key arms treaty limiting conventional forces in Europe, saying the United States and NATO were using the pact to undermine Russia's defenses. The suspension is part of a wave of increasingly aggressive Russian moves against the West.
China Bubble –The stock exchanges in Shanghai and Hong Kong have surged to dizzying heights. The mainland market is looking much like the tech bubble of 2000. PetroChina's is a probably the best example of one of these bubble stocks. Even though it only has growth at 1.4 percent, it trades at 57 time earnings. The Chinese are new to a capitalistic economy, so they’ve poured their life savings into a market that they’ve only known to go straight up.
The Dollar – French President Nicolas Sarkozy told a joint session of the U.S. Congress the Bush administration must stem the dollar's plunge or risk triggering a trade war. A senior Chinese political figure caused the dollar to plunge in value when he said China should diversify its $1.43 trillion foreign exchange reserves into the euro and other strong currencies.
Target Israel – Hezbollah militants in Lebanon now have long-range rockets capable of hitting Tel Aviv and have tripled their arsenal of land-to-sea missiles since last summer's war. To have rockets raining down on Israel ’s largest city would trigger a massive response by its military.
American Debt - The U.S. national debt has hit $9 trillion for the first time. When President George W. Bush took office in January 2001, the national debt stood at $5 trillion.
Pakistan in Political Crisis -- Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf imposed emergency rule, prompting protests and arrests. The West is very worried about Pakistan because it is has dozens of nuclear weapons and Islamic terrorists are trying to take over that nation.
Iran’s Nuclear Program – Iran has said it now has 3,000 working uranium-enriching centrifuges. Military sources in Washington said that the existence of such a large number could be a “tipping point" triggering an Israeli air strike. President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad added to the concern by saying the country is more than ever in need of the culture of martyrdom, self-sacrifice and appreciation of martyrs.
The Iranian nuclear land mine is one we are guaranteed to hit at some point. I have total confidence that Israel will stay true to its vow of never allowing Iran to gain nuclear weapons. Within the next year, I expect to wake up to news that Israel has launched an attack against Iran ’s nuclear facilities. Of course, that won’t be the only possible news of that day. Oil would be soaring, the dollar would plunge, and Iran’s buddies Hezbollah and Syria would likely join in a counter attack against the Jewish state.
I am not surprised at all by the lack of awareness that is so pervasive in the Church and the world today. Jesus repeatedly warned that apathy would be the calling card of His return.
"Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh" (Mat. 24:44).
There is a natural conflict with having all the signs of the tribulation coming together while awareness is waning. The rapture is the only real reason there is apathy. Because the two are linked, they need to be resolved before we can move forward. This is why I believe the rapture is very near.
-- Todd
Global Warmingism: A Global Religion
Evolution versus creationism in America is the long-argued disagreement between “science” and “religion”–although on the religious side of the debate it is almost exclusively Christianity that holds to the creation model. Most religions don’t enter the fray, in a major sense. This is likely true, for the most part, because most major religions, unlike Christianity, are intertwined with governments of the various nations in which they exist. For example, Islam is an inseparable part of the governments of most Mideast nations. Asian countries and their governments are dominated by Buddhism, Hinduism, or Islam. The point is, they have no reason to debate evolution versus creationism because their cultures don’t worry about things like separation of church and state so that politicians can appropriate power to exert control over the masses. Their political processes and religions are one and the same.
It is good, therefore, that the founding fathers of the United States built into the Constitution the freedom to worship as the individual citizen chooses--prohibiting the establishment of a state religion. Tragically, those who believe that the Constitution is a living organism rather than what the founders meant it to be–a document of established laws—have, through incremental judicial assaults on the legislative branch’s constitutional jurisdiction, brought America under a warped view of church and state. They have used a totally non-constitutional document, a letter from Thomas Jefferson to a Baptist ministry, to kick God out of government-involved life in the nation. And, the government is so pervasive that this kicking God out involves almost every aspect of public (and much of private) life these days.
The “liberal” –or “progressive” mindset, as they would have it, has evolved –if I may segue way with that controversial term—from wanting God out of public life, and out of private life as much as possible, to a quasi-spiritual mindset that seems designed to join them in the religion of another sort.
Religion, no matter the sort, if it is to be a form of worship and not a forced bending of the knee, requires faith. Each religion has a dogma, or a central tenet or tenets in which they place their faith. The terrorist Islamic fundamendalists of the ultra-fervent type that crashed the jets into the World Trade Towers in 2001 each had faith that by so doing, they would instantly find themselves in the present of their own harem of 72 virgins upon awakening to eternal life under the approving smile of Allah.
The “faith” we are increasingly being asked to embrace –that global warming threatens to destroy the earth, and we humans must alter our lifestyles to save the planet—is rapidly being accepted by the gullible. It is “faith” that, in my view, could ultimately be the nucleus of the central tenet of the one-world religion that will demand measures that will eventuate in the forced worship as outlined in God’s prophetic Word for the tribulation era.
“And I beheld another beast coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb, and he spake as a dragon. And he exerciseth all the power of the first beast before him, and causeth the earth and them which dwell therein to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed. 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. 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” (Rev. 13:11-15).
A new religion has been formed. It is the mantra, “we must save Earth,” that we see and hear every time we open a newspaper or hear and/or view news today. Global warming is the “faith” of evolutionistic sophistry with which this generation is being inculcated. The global elitists–aided and abetted by American politicians who take hook, line, and sinker the unproved bait that every word the evolutionist-spewing, so-called "scientific" minds regurgitate--are the new priesthood of Global Warmingism.
A former vice president of the United States says global warming is threatening Planet Earth with imminent destruction, and his declaration is made the gospel of the religion. He is given the Nobel Peace Prize for his “revelations” on the matter. It has to be that he received special “revelations,” because he is woefully unqualified to make such pontifications, either by education, scientific acumen, or by experience. He is seemingly made high priest of Global Warmingism through the dissemination of every word he says, and is honored by the Hollywood and mainstream media, receiving an Oscar and other grandiose tributes.
There is antithesis to his thesis, however. It comes from one who does have the education, acumen, and experience.
“John Coleman, founder of the Weather Channel, has written an article in which he calls the idea of man-made global warming 'a scam:’ ‘It is the greatest scam in history. I am amazed, appalled and highly offended by it. Global Warming; It is a SCAM. Some dastardly scientists with environmental and political motives manipulated long term scientific data to create in [sic] allusion of rapid global warming. Other scientists of the same environmental
whacko type jumped into the circle to support and broaden the "research" to further enhance the totally slanted, bogus global warming claims.Their friends in government steered huge research grants their way to keep the movement going. Soon they claimed to be a consensus. Environmental extremists, notable politicians among them, then teamed up with movie, media and other liberal, environmentalist journalists to create this wild ‘scientific’ scenario of the civilization threatening environmental consequences from Global Warming unless we adhere to their radical agenda. Now their ridiculous manipulated science has been accepted as fact and become a cornerstone issue for CNN, CBS, NBC, the Democratic Political Party, the Governor of California, school teachers and, in many cases, well informed but very gullible environmental conscientious citizens’” (Weather Channel Founder: Global Warming “Greatest Scam in History,” by Rick Moran, American Thinker Blog, Nov. 8, 2007).
Global Warmingism isn’t the first humanistic religion to bring God’s judgment. Paul the apostle reports one that occurred in past human history:
“For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness; Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them. For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse: Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools, And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things. Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves: Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen” (Rom. 1:18-25).
Are there strange things happening in earth’s weather? Yes, and in the earth as well, with increased seismic activity that spawns eruptions of volcanoes and earthquakes. Does man cause these through global warming? No. Does man cause these things otherwise? Yes, in my view at least. Man creates them through rebellion against the Creator of all things. The globalists are doing so today through worship of Planet Earth.
Jesus told the Pharisees at the time He rode the donkey into Jerusalem, offering himself as Israel’s Messiah, that if the people refused to praise Him, the very stones would cry out in great protest. The “stones” are crying out today. I believe creation will do so much more pronouncedly the closer to Christ’s second advent the world moves.
--Terry
