As We Wait :: By Holly Spate

With all the various world events rapidly merging, it appears we are closer than ever to soon hearing the glorious trumpet blast. For those paying attention, our meeting-in-the-clouds moment seems to be on the horizon.

Are you ready?

As world events ramp up at an incredible pace, we’ve been given a front-row seat to viewing God’s prophetic Word come to life. In real-time, it appears we are witnessing the very birth pains mentioned in the Word of God.

It truly is remarkable to know that, of all those before us, God appears to have chosen this very time in history, this current generation, to bring to fruition prophesied events we and all believers up until this point have read about and been waiting for.

How amazing!

The pages of scripture truly seem to be coming to life right before our very eyes. How incredible… how remarkable and humbling to think God placed each of us here, at this time in history, for such a time as this!

Just think… He placed YOU here, at this time in history, for such a time as this!

What a great privilege…what an amazing and special gift!

As the clock ticks faster, we all find ourselves on borrowed time. Each day, more precious than before, makes each moment we as believers have left on earth all the more important. To anyone with eyes open… to those watching and waiting, the message has become crystal clear: Soon and very soon, we are going to see the King!

Hallelujah! Hallelujah! We are going to see the King!

As we wait, how will you spend these precious final hours? Will you be busy being about your Father’s business… praying, sharing, planting, helping… looking for any and all opportunities to be a witness of His love, His light, and His hope to a lost and dying world?

The time is short, and each day we wake up (each day YOU wake up) we’re that much closer to going home. There is a mere window of opportunity left to plant as many seeds as we can and to do as much as we can for the lost and the kingdom as we wait for our bridegroom to call us to Himself.

Yes, there is still much to do as we wait, brothers and sisters!

Let’s finish well as we hold to hope and continually remember and embrace the wonderful truths in these beautiful verses:

Galatians 6:9 – “And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.”

1 Chronicles 16:11 – “Seek the LORD and his strength, seek his face continually.”

Philippians 4:8 – “Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.”

Like Paul, I pray we can all say, as stated in 2 Timothy 4:7-8:  “I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith: Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing.”

As we wait, let’s do all we can…
Let’s fight the good fight.
Let’s complete the course.
Let’s keep the faith.
Let’s finish strong!

May you be encouraged by this beautiful poem by C.T. Studd, which says it all. Have a blessed day!

spate.holly@gmail.com

Only One Life, Twill Soon Be Past

Two little lines I heard one day,
Traveling along life’s busy way;
Bringing conviction to my heart,
And from my mind would not depart;
Only one life, ’twill soon be past,
Only what’s done for Christ will last.

Only one life, yes only one,
Soon will its fleeting hours be done;
Then, in ‘that day’ my Lord to meet,
And stand before His Judgement seat;
Only one life, ’twill soon be past,
Only what’s done for Christ will last.

Only one life, the still small voice,
Gently pleads for a better choice
Bidding me selfish aims to leave,
And to God’s holy will to cleave;
Only one life, ’twill soon be past,
Only what’s done for Christ will last.

Only one life, a few brief years,
Each with its burdens, hopes, and fears;
Each with its days I must fulfill,
living for self or in His will;
Only one life, ’twill soon be past,
Only what’s done for Christ will last.

When this bright world would tempt me sore,
When Satan would a victory score;
When self would seek to have its way,
Then help me Lord with joy to say;
Only one life, ’twill soon be past,
Only what’s done for Christ will last.

Give me Father, a purpose deep,
In joy or sorrow Thy word to keep;
Faithful and true what e’er the strife,
Pleasing Thee in my daily life;
Only one life, ’twill soon be past,
Only what’s done for Christ will last.

Oh, let my love with fervor burn,
And from the world now let me turn;
Living for Thee, and Thee alone,
Bringing Thee pleasure on Thy throne;
Only one life, ’twill soon be past,
Only what’s done for Christ will last.

Only one life, yes only one,
Now let me say, ”Thy will be done;”
And when at last I’ll hear the call,
I know I’ll say “twas worth it all;”
Only one life, ’twill soon be past,
Only what’s done for Christ will last. ”

Only one life, ’twill soon be past,
Only what’s done for Christ will last.
And when I am dying, how happy I’ll be,
If the lamp of my life has been burned out for Thee.

In A Nutshell :: By Dave Hubley

(There is a special message at the end of this article for those who might happen to read this and do not have Jesus in their life and are looking for peace and a way to better understand the present-day insanity and confusion.)

In the sixth chapter of the Book of Isaiah, the prophet received a vision, and his exposure to the Glory of the Lord of Hosts exposed the stark reality of his sin and iniquity to him.

When confronted with the Holiness of the One True God, he immediately confesses:

“Woe is me, for I am ruined, because I am a man of unclean lips dwelling among a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of Hosts” (Isaiah 6:5).

His acknowledgement and confession of his sin results in him being cleansed. He is told that his “iniquity has been removed and his sin atoned for” (v7).

This cleansing results in the Lord accepting him as a messenger when Isaiah volunteers to serve the Lord by delivering a message to His people Israel:

“Go and tell this people, ‘Be ever hearing, but never understanding; be ever seeing, but never perceiving.’ Make the hearts of this people calloused; deafen their ears and close their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts, and turn and be healed” (V9-10).

“Then I asked: ‘How long, O Lord?’ And He replied: Until the cities lie ruined and without inhabitant, until the houses are left unoccupied and the land is desolate and ravaged, until the LORD has driven men far away and the land is utterly forsaken. And though a tenth remains in the land, it will be burned again. As the terebinth and oak leave stumps when felled, so the holy seed will be a stump in the land” (v11-13).

This message (prophesy in reality) was dutifully delivered by Isaiah as well as many wonderful prophetic messages about the coming Messiah (see Isaiah Chapters 9:2-7 and 52:7-15 through 53:1-12).

2,700+/- years after Isaiah was tasked with this message, the world responds in the same way to the Gospel message, and the result will be the same as it was then: Rejection, disbelief, indifference, denial, rebellion, and the list of negatives go on.

Now that we have arrived in 2024, let’s unpack a few things from these Scriptures and see what, if anything, has changed.

The first is: If an individual is determined to deny the Truth of God’s Word, likely no amount of empirical evidence, no matter how indisputable it might be, will change their mind. 2+2 will not be 4 if they have determined that it could also be 5, etc.

This is not an arrogant statement by me but a Scriptural Truth.

“But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned” (1 Corinthians 2:14).

I would say to anyone who has not received God’s Son as Savior, and that may read this article: read on! Perhaps you do not realize that your rebellious attitude may have a few cracks in it. If it does, then God will surely seek to bring you to the living proof of His love for you in Jesus Christ.

The below statements are made in consideration of the possibility that the reader might possess a modicum of spiritual awareness that can lead to Salvation.

Perhaps you are not so much the “natural man” that you can’t be reached.

We know that, by God’s own Word, He is from everlasting to everlasting, and He does not change. “For I, the LORD, do not change” (Malachi 3:6a).

We know that from the beginning of creation, God has determined the future and that current events unfolding in real-time prove that fact every day.

“Remember the former things long past, For I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is no one like Me, Declaring the end from the beginning, And from ancient times things which have not been done, Saying, ‘My purpose     will be established, And I will accomplish all My good pleasure’” (Isaiah 46:9-10).

He has also made it clear that Jews and Gentiles ultimately will share equally in the blessings of the Gospel and the Glory of Jesus Christ.

“This mystery is that through the gospel the Gentiles are fellow heirs, fellow members of the body, and fellow partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus” (Ephesians 3:6).

He has also made it clear that all, Jews and Gentiles, will be made one for eternity.

“He did this to create in Himself one new man out of the two, thus making peace and reconciling both of them to God in one body through the cross, by which He extinguished their hostility” (Ephesians 2:15-16). Emphasis by me.

In consideration of these realities of the Word of God, let’s examine the verses from Isaiah 6 in the light of present-day circumstances.

  • The message given to the Hebrews in (Isaiah 6:9-11) can easily be applied to the world today. How long has the Word of God been available in its present form in almost every language, yet it is largely ignored or disbelieved by a major percentage of the earth’s population?
  • In many “Christian” churches in the world today, the pews are filled with those who are “ever hearing but never perceiving” and whose hearts are calloused and being hardened by many of them to ignore the clear teaching of prophecy.

God’s answer to Isaiah’s question: “How Long, Oh Lord?” conveys the same sadness that Jesus expressed over the future of Jerusalem:

“O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who kills the prophets and stones those sent to her, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were unwilling! Look, your house is left to you desolate” (Matthew 23:37-38a). Emphasis added by me.

The world of Gentile nations, as well as present-day Israel, will largely continue to be unwilling to listen just as ancient Israel was, even to the same end: “Until the cities lie ruined and without inhabitant, until the houses are left unoccupied and the land is desolate and ravaged, until the LORD has driven men far away and the land is utterly forsaken.”

Thus, Isaiah 6:11-13, in harmony with the judgments of the Book of Revelation, Chapters 4:1- 20:15, indicates that the world of men, who deny the Lord Jesus Christ, and instead place their vain hope and misplaced trust in he who will turn out to be the antichrist, offers no real hope at all.

In a nutshell: who does this message contained in the Book of Isaiah, really apply to, and what has changed since these prophecies were delivered by Isaiah?

  • Rejection of God and His Son Jesus, rebellion, mockery, and depravity have exponentially increased and have now attained horrifying levels.
  • Conditions defined by the Word of God by Jesus Himself in (Matthew 24:4-7), as well as the Apostle Paul in the Book of 2 Timothy 3:1-5, have become obvious and are everyday occurrences today.

In short, things have deteriorated and continue at an ever-increasing rate.

These conditions will cause the Lord to execute the judgments of Revelation 4:1-20:15 against the entire world.

The mirroring messages of judgment shared by Isaiah 6 (general) and Revelation 4:1–20:15 (detailed) share a common truth: that mankind will continue in worsening rebellion and rejection of God’s plan of Salvation in Jesus Christ for the same reasons that the Book of Genesis recorded prior to the flood, and that rejection will bring about God’s judgment again, this time for the final time.

Now to the crux of this article.

You do not have to live in the hopeless state of those who refuse to accept the Truth of the Word of God.

One small example of the promise of hope, while surrounded by apparent hopelessness, is planted by the Spirit of God in the short Book of Titus.

“In hope of eternal life which God, who cannot lie, promised before time began” (Titus 1:2). Emphasis added by me.

“Put no more trust in man, who has only the breath in his nostrils. Of what account is he?” (Isaiah 2:22).

The Bible, the Word of God, is the only source of predictive future prophecy that has never failed to come to pass in its proper time with 100% accuracy.

Could anyone but He who controls the future accomplish this? El Shaddai: God Almighty?

“For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the LORD, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope” (Jeremiah 29:11).

You can be included in His promised future and hope.

“Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me” (Revelation 3:20). Emphasis added by me. 

“Anyone,” Jesus says. Unlike man, God means what He says and always keeps His Word.

Set aside your fear. Open your door and Live.

The special message I promised you:

For anyone who may read this article and has not trusted in Jesus Christ and therefore has no hope or peace in your life.

You can have hope. You can have the peace that Jesus has promised to all who have made Him their Lord and Savior. The peace that passes understanding.

It requires that you come before God on His terms.

And, what are His terms according to His Word?

  • Genuine repentance (turning to God instead of continuing to reject or ignore Him).
  • Confession of sins (that you are a sinner and acknowledge that to God).
  • That you understand that the wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23).
  • To acknowledge to God that you are unable to pay that debt.
  • Belief that Jesus Christ paid your death sentence for you on the cross.
  • To believe that Jesus is the Way, the only Way, that God has established by which humans may be saved from the consequences of their sin and rebellion.

God has made it absolutely clear that there is no one who comes before Him, under His terms, that will be refused.

  • No one: no race, no color, no country of origin, regardless of any previous belief system: no one.
  • No matter what your past sins have been, God can and WILL forgive you because He says He will.
  • Salvation is available to everyone without any exceptions.

If you put all your trust for salvation in Jesus, and Him only, you can follow that prayer up by simply saying, “Thank you, Father God, for hearing my prayer and saving me,” because we can trust Him to keep His Word. He always has. He always will.

“Truly, Truly, I say to you that he who hears My words and believes the One who sent Me has eternal life and will not be condemned. He has crossed from death to life” (John 5:24).

There are no answers and there is no hope in the world by governments, organizations, politics or politicians. There are only lies and deception. But you can have the Truth and the peace you seek.

The answers are in the Word of God—The Bible. If you ask God, with all your heart, He will hear you.

“And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart” (Jeremiah 29:13).

Pro Salvator Vigilans                      

To contact me: canoeman96@gmail.com