21 Mar 2022

On the Downslide

LAST DAYS OF LOT RETURNED

Man edges out man for ‘Woman of the Year’ prize. Rachel Levine (US Assistant Secretary of Health) was named “Woman of the year” by USA Today this week, allegedly for being “one of the women across the country who have made a significant impact.” Given this qualifier, it is safe to assume one of the other candidates Levine beat out was University of Pennsylvania transgender swimmer Lia Thomas — especially since the winner or candidates for such an honor do not have to be actual women.

Sydney Watson exposes Texas gender identity clinic for performing breast removal on 12-year-olds.

New York Times Praised ‘Political Ascendancy’ Of Democrat Mayor Now Facing Over 10 Felony Child Sex Assault Charges. The news follows a number of high profile Democrats facing conviction on child sex or pornography charges, including Oregon Mayor Dennis Doyle, Black Lives Matter organizer Chris DeVries, and Hunter Biden associate Terry Bean. Robert Jacob, a Democrat mayor in California who is a Black Lives Matter supporter and “defund the police” advocate, is indicted for nearly a dozen felony crimes in connection to a child sex assault investigation.

‘Operation March Sadness 2’: Disney Employees Arrested in Human Trafficking Sting. A six-day undercover human trafficking investigation led to 108 arrests, including four Disney employees. Undercover detectives pretended to be online prostitutes posting ads as well as “johns” looking for a prostitute. Some of the “johns” allegedly engaged in sexually suggestive communications with those whom they believed were children.

ABORTION ABOMINATION

Sick: Planned Parenthood Targets Youngest Audience Yet with Their ‘Ice Cream Abortion’ Truck. Planned Parenthood, which targets children in the womb for death by abortion, also promotes sex to children in schools, ensuring future customers. The abortion giant’s latest stunt involves use of an apparent ice cream truck to distribute condoms and lies about abortion. The truck will be present at a festival in Austin, Texas, which features music, film, exhibits, etc. A poster on the truck says, “Ice Cream You Scream: ‘Abortion Rights for All.'” Next to the image of an ice cream cone is a condom and a number to text to “join the fight to defend abortion access.” The truck also features images of what appear to be ice cream products, but they actually display types of condoms.

House Democrats Pass Spending Bill That Will Force Americans to Fund Planned Parenthood Abortion Biz. The House approved a $1.5 trillion bill that sets new federal government spending levels and funds agencies through October, which will be a massive financial gain for Planned Parenthood and the abortion industry. Republicans voted against the measure, while Democrats voted for it.

Democrat Sponsor of Maryland Bill That Legalizes Infanticide Up to 28 Days After Birth Cancels Hearing After Backlash. Some Democrats in Maryland want to end protection for vulnerable newborns, first by saying they can be killed by a “failure to act,” — for instance, withholding medical care, or nourishment, or a blanket — and then spelling out that neither the “person” who has the baby nor anyone who helps her can be subject to criminal or civil charges. Further, anyone who attempts to prosecute the pregnant person or her accomplice can be sued for damages.

The Pregnant Person’s Freedom Act of 2022 [note “persons” rather than “women”] includes a section stating that investigations of infanticides would be curtailed: “This section may not be construed to authorize any form of investigation or penalty for a person: … experiencing a miscarriage, perinatal death related to a failure to act, or stillbirth.” “Perinatal death related to a failure to act,” is the most menacing line in this terrible bill; it’s an imprecise word with many interpretations. WHO defines it as the period between 23 weeks’ gestation and 7days after birth. Other bodies say the perinatal period ends 28 days after birth. After massive outcry about the bill, Smith reportedly decided to drop that language and has canceled the hearing.

APOSTASY

Barna Survey: parents lack of biblical worldview puts children at spiritual disadvantage. The report was based on a survey of 600 American parents with children younger than 13. While 67% of parents with children younger than 13 identified as Christians, just 2% subscribed to a biblical worldview – accepting the Bible as a relevant and authoritative guide for life.

LAST DAYS TRAITORS AND THEIR DECEIVED ONES

Wake up, America — They’re Trying to Destroy Us. Powerful people — kings, communist dictators, tribal tyrants, warmongering corporatists — have always resented America. The reason is simple and biblical: America’s success was proof that free people who exercise self-restraint grounded in Judeo-Christian principles of human dignity and ordered society can govern themselves and flourish, unencumbered by totalitarian control. But we’ve grown weak, dependent and easily manipulated We’re not yet slaves, but we’re governed by a regime installed by a soft coup, with a senile figurehead on top, surrounded by highly visible people of breathtaking stupidity or mendacity (or both). Behind the scenes, those with the real power disseminate lies to shape public opinion, engender fear, foment outrage, obtain compliance and increase their control. Meanwhile, they’re tightening their stranglehold on America. Everything we see happening is being done deliberately.

Libtarditis – the forgotten mental failing. It’s tempting to just blame elected libtards for the problem, but that lets millions of Democrat libtards off the hook for a ruined world. Regardless of how the Biden administration obtained power in the so-called election, one has to wonder at the mental abilities of those who voted to install this current crop of Demo politicians on the national stage. Remember, God gave us a sound mind. Libtarditis is humanity’s enemy; it can’t exist in the presence of God. That’s both the cause and the cure wrapped in one package. Have at it, folks!

HEADING TOWARDS A CASHLESS SOCIETY AS PROPHESIED FOR THE TRIBULATION

With New EO, Biden Is Probing How to Terminate Fiat Currency, Implement Digital Money. No matter how much money the government pulls in, it’s never enough, so the government has come up with a new plan to make it even easier for its agents to seize Americans’ bank accounts. Make way for the digital dollar. Although government agencies have six months to weigh in on the advantages and disadvantages of a centralized digital currency, it’s as good as a done deal. This is how the government operates: by giving us tools to make our lives “easier” while, in the process, making it easier for the government to track, control and punish the citizenry.

Indeed, this shift to a digital currency is a global trend. More than 100 other countries are considering introducing their own digital currencies. Despite all of the advantages that go along with living in a digital age—namely, convenience—it’s hard to imagine how a cashless world navigated by way of a digital wallet doesn’t signal the beginning of the end for what little privacy we have left and leave us vulnerable to the likes of government thieves, data hackers and an all-knowing, all-seeing Orwellian corpo-governmental state.

DELIBERATE BORDER DISORDER: MARXIST AGENDA

170,000 Illegals Amass on US Southern Border Ready to Storm Across When Biden Ends Trump’s COVID Rules — DHS Puts Out Call for Volunteers (VIDEO).

PLAGUE

2.8 Million Fowl (Mostly Chickens & Turkeys) Have Died in The First Month of America’s Raging New Bird Flu Pandemic. With new outbreaks in Iowa and Missouri, nearly 2.8 million birds — almost entirely chickens and turkeys — have died in one month due to highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI). The viral disease has been identified in 23 poultry farms and backyard flocks in a dozen states since February 8, when the first report of “high path” bird flu in a domestic flock was reported.

South Africa: Locusts Swarm Karoo Skies in Biblical Proportions, and Wreak Havoc on Crops. The locusts have appeared in their masses as a result of the persistent rainfall that has transformed the usually arid Northern Cape and Karoo into a lush, green landscape. These hungry grasshoppers have been hatching in swarms dense enough to eclipse the sun and lay waste to entire crops. “We have no idea when they will leave, as they have been around for the past three years. It’s the Brown Karoo Locust, and they lay millions of eggs before they die. So when the next rain comes, they hatch again.

THE PLANNED-DEMIC AND ITS CONSEQUENCES

Meanwhile In China, All Hell Is Breaking Loose. China is scrambling to address its most severe Covid outbreak in two years, reporting soaring cases in a fresh wave that has seen the country tweak its zero-Covid policy by allowing rapid antigen tests for public use. And since the port of Shenzhen – one of the world’s busiest container ports, is now also locked down, expect a fresh round of cascading chaos in Transpacific supply chains, just in time to join the snarled Transatlantic supply chains as the Ukraine war cripples all global seaborne traffic.

Children In China Diagnosed with Leukemia After Taking Chinese Vaccines. Hundreds of Chinese belong to a social media group claiming to be suffering from or have a household member suffering from leukemia, developed after taking Chinese vaccines. The leukemia cases span across different age groups. There is a particular rise in patients from the younger age group in the last few months, coinciding with the regime’s push to inoculate children between 3 and 11 years old beginning last October.

7-Year-Old Died of Cardiac Arrest 13 Days After Pfizer Shot, VAERS Data Shows. VAERS data released March 11 included 1,168,894 reports of adverse events from all age groups following COVID vaccines, including 25,158 deaths and 203,888 serious injuries between Dec. 14, 2020, and March 4, 2022. VAERS is the primary government-funded system for reporting adverse vaccine reactions in the US. The most recent death involves a 14-year-old who died from a cerebral aneurysm a day after his first dose of Pfizer’s vaccine. There were 69 reports of anaphylaxis among 12- to 17-year-olds where the reaction was life-threatening, requiring treatment or resulting in death, with 96% of cases attributed to Pfizer’s vaccine. See more figures in the article for deaths of all ages. Florida’s surgeon general said he will formally recommend against COVID vaccines for healthy children. Florida is the first state to break with official guidance from the CDC, which recommends all children over age 5 get the vaccine.

Fallout from COVID jabs will come with economic collapse, warns finance executive. Former BlackRock portfolio manager Edward Dowd is speaking out about the real motivations behind the pandemic, which include a global debt problem and imminent global collapse of the financial industry. After the Great Financial Crisis, the decision was made to increase the money supply, but this debt-based financial system is unsustainable; Dowd believes it’s on the brink of collapse. With solid data that non-COVID deaths have skyrocketed among young people since introduction of COVID shots, evidence of fraud in Pfizer’s COVID shot trials and disturbing Dept of Defense data on vaccine side effects, Dowd believes it’s only a matter of time before the criminals behind this scheme are held accountable.

3 COVID-19 tests recalled after FDA warns about ‘high risk’ of false results. LuSys Laboratories recalled three test types: a saliva antigen test, a nasal antigen test and an IgG/IgM antibody test.

ILLICIT DRUG USE

Multiple West Point Cadets on Spring Break Overdose on Fentanyl-Laced Cocaine. First responders found six cadets in cardiac arrest in the yard of a Florida rental home. Two who overdosed were sickened because they tried to give CPR to the initial overdose victims. Some patients regained their heartbeat after Narcan was given; others were still in respiratory arrest when taken to hospitals.

Is It Drugs or The Vaccines (Or Both) That Have Caused So Many Deaths of Soldiers at Fort Bragg? 83 soldiers died at Fort Bragg in the 18 months ending June 2021. Only 11 of those deaths were from natural causes. Fort Bragg hasn’t announced any fatalities since then. They’re still happening, but the base has gone silent about it. No matter what the cause, it’s killing a lot of healthy young people, and we need to find out exactly what is going on. Also, is this happening at any other military bases?

HATRED OF JEWS AND ISRAEL

Amnesty’s US director said Israel shouldn’t exist ‘as a state for the Jewish people.Paul O’Brien said, “We are opposed to the idea…that Israel should be preserved as a state for the Jewish people.”

Muslim Persecution of Christians. This article lists incidents among the abuses Muslims inflicted on Christians throughout January 2022.

EXTREME WEATHER EVENTS/DISASTERS

Texas Brushfires: Deputy Killed Trying to Save Residents. 50 homes have been destroyed, and the wind-driven fires so far are not contained.

Landslide in Peru Buries Dozens of Homes. At least 15 people are still missing.

GREAT EARTHQUAKES IN DIVERSE PLACES

4 dead after 7.4 earthquake hits coast off Japan’s Fukushima prefecture. Over 100 people were injured, and power was cut to millions of homes.

FOOD INSECURITY

Moving Towards Revelation 6:5-6 Tribulation Prophecy for the Left Behind

Plains Drought to Curb U.S. Wheat Harvest, Adding to Global Supply Worries. A worsening drought in the southern US Plains is threatening the region’s winter wheat crop just as the Russian invasion of Ukraine dents global supplies. Some farmers in southwestern Kansas, the top US wheat-producing state, have not received much measurable rain or snow since October. Winter wheat is planted in autumn, lays dormant in winter and begins sending up green shoots in spring. Proper soil moisture is critical at this stage for the crop to thrive. More than half of Kansas was classified as under severe drought or worse as of March 8, the driest conditions since 2018. Severe drought is also covering three-fourths of Oklahoma and over two-thirds of Texas, both of which also are large wheat producers.

How the Ukraine war is lurching the globe toward a new food crisis. Since the Russian assault began, countries from Hungary to Indonesia have moved to bar the door to exports, corralling grains and cooking oils to feed their own and risking a round of trade protectionism that could deepen global supply and price woes. Global food prices were already rising fast amid supply chain disruptions and pandemic-era inflation. But some prices – especially wheat, a basic source of sustenance in many countries – have shot through the roof due to the Ukraine crisis, upending calculations of the world’s available food supply and leading to rationing of flour in parts of the Middle East. Steve Taravella, U.N. World Food Program senior spokesman, said, “We’re taking from the hungry to feed the starving, is what it comes down to, just because the numbers are so great. Conflict, covid, climate – we talk about the three C’s…driving hunger around the world…. Ukraine is putting a fourth C on that: Cost.”

Snack and Drink Portions Being Reduced Due to Rising Inflation. Inflation under the Biden bunch had been skyrocketing even before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine caused energy prices to surge, which has trickled down to transportation costs. Experts believe the severity of the situation will likely worsen as inflation rates continue to rise. Besides snack and drink products, other notable brands known to be shrinking their products in recent months include Charmin, Bounty, Crest, Quaker, Ziploc, and Dial. Treasury Secretary Yellen said economic uncertainty driven by the conflict in Ukraine means Americans should brace for “uncomfortably high” inflation throughout the year.

WARS AND RUMORS OF WARS

Gog Hog:

Russian airstrikes hit near Ukrainian Orthodox Christian monastery sheltering refugees. Several people were wounded.

Mariupol theater bombed by Russia. It was not yet clear whether all those who sheltered in the theater had survived. Taruta said on Thursday that 1,300 people were in the building when it was bombed, and 130 have so far been rescued.

Zelenskyy says Jerusalem could serve as potential site for negotiation with Russia. Ukraine’s President Zelenskyy’s comments came just one week after Israeli Prime Minister Bennett flew to Russia to meet with Putin and spoke with Zelensky several times by phone in an attempt to bring an end to the fighting.

30% ‘Ukrainian Refugees’ Are Actually from Other Countries arriving in France, mostly from North Africa and the Middle East, according to an investigation by newspaper Le Figaro.

Russia spiraling towards $205 billion debt default nightmare. Russia’s economy is fraying, its currency has collapsed, and its debt is junk. Next up is a potential default that could cost investors billions and shut the country out of most funding markets.

US Warns Chinese on Support for Russia in Ukraine War. The US warned a top Chinese official about China’s support for Russia in the Ukraine invasion – even as the Kremlin denies anew that it has requested Chinese military equipment.

Biden Administration refuses to send Polish jet fighters to Ukraine. White House press secretary Jen Psaki struggled to explain why the Biden administration continues to reject Poland’s offer to send MiG-29 jet fighters to Ukraine despite President Zelensky’s repeated pleas for the warplanes to help his country repel the Russian invasion.

Persian Provocateur:

Iran Fires Ballistic Missiles at what it claims are ‘Secret Israeli Bases’ in Iraq; Warns of ‘Harsher Response.’ A dozen missiles were fired March 13 at the US consulate in Erbil. Iran’s Revolutionary Guards Corps claimed responsibility for the attack, which it said targeted “secret Israeli bases” in the northern Iraqi city. The strike comes days after an Israeli airstrike killed two members of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard near Damascus, Syria. Iran’s foreign ministry had strongly condemned that attack and vowed revenge.

Israel No Longer Sees Us as Reliable Ally in Potential War Against Iran. Knesset Member and former Health Minister Yuli Edelstein is the latest voice from the Israeli establishment admitting that the US can no longer be relied upon in case of war with Iran. Edelstein said: “When it comes to Israel’s security, the country can only rely on itself.”

THINGS THAT MAKE YOU GO HMM…

Praise Of Zelenskyy Highlights the Global Hunger for A Worldly’ Savior.’ Respect for Zelenskyy’s actions was and is warranted. As a Christian, seeing a leader take a hands-on approach in war has brought to mind Biblical accounts of kings accompanying their armies into battle, a way of doing things that has been long lost in the modern age. HOWEVER, as the world’s praise has risen to an out-of-control level and information about his ties to the World Economic Forum emerged, a point was reached in which many Christians began to become cautious about the Ukrainian leader. To understand the reason for this concern, we need to go back to the Bible, which describes a future leader of a global government that will emerge and be viewed as a savior of the world. Scripture refers to Him as the lawless one and the “anti-Christ” (Rev. 13, Daniel 7, 9:27, 2 Thes. 2, 1 John 2:18).

Who the Antichrist will be is a mystery and will remain a mystery in the time prior to the Rapture of the Church. The Economist’s magazine cover depicting Emmanuel Macron walking on water with the words “Europe’s Savior?” does not mean Macron will fill the prophetic role. Both demonstrate, however, that the Christ-rejecting world is growing in its hunger for a worldly savior, and the true Antichrist is waiting in the wings to fill that wicked role. Also, read the new article “Antichrist: Could it Be?” about Zelenskyy and an article from a couple of years ago on Macron titled “Hiding in Plain Sight or Paving the Way.”

Christians are to watch for our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, who will take us up to be with Him to escape the coming wrath of the Tribulation. That said, I would want to warn those who may be left behind who the top candidates for the Antichrist appear at the moment to be.

CONCUDING SCRIPTURE

“There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit” (Romans 8:1).

“Because thou hast kept the word of my patience, I also will keep thee from the hour of temptation, which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon the earth” (Revelation 3:10).

 

While We Wait :: By Charles Gray Adams Jr

 

While growing up, children often look forward to events planned by their parents. This could be a trip to an amusement park or some other adventure they long for. As time passes, the children mature, and the things they look forward to become more important. Marriage comes to mind and having children who will begin to pine for the very things the parent themselves once did. Likewise, God has provided the most important things for mankind to desire. Chief among these things is the gathering of the faithful at the moment of the rapture. Ask around; anyone who has the Spirit of the living God residing in them will tell you the departure of the church is at hand. That is to say, the rapture could happen any second.

The doctrine of imminence teaches that this attitude has been prevalent amongst the faithful since the beginning of the church age. Therefore, perhaps the best way to look forward is to look back in an attempt to ascertain the greatest possible way to behave while we wait.

Since the very beginning of the church, the best way to exist has been to look to the author and finisher of faith and allow Him to lead and guide (Heb 12:2; Prov 3:5-6).[1] Actually, this statement has been applicable since the time of the very first man. Had Adam kept his eyes on God and followed His leadership without question, the world would be a very different place today. The good news is, the last Adam, Jesus Christ, through perfect obedience, made a way for all to overcome the sin and death introduced by the first. Though all are born of the nature of the first Adam, those who are saved by believing in Jesus the Son of God, the last Adam, will be at the rapture, changed into the mysterious incorruptible ‘spirit-being’ foretold by the apostle Paul (1 Cor 15:35-57).

The question at hand, however, is how does one behave while waiting on the aforementioned rapture, the moment of great transformation? Paul concludes his instructions to the Corinthians in regard to the ‘change’ the church is to long for, with the statement:

“Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord” (1 Cor 15:58).

Paul’s words imply that faithfully working for the Lord is the reasonable service of any believer. He also says whatsoever is done for the Lord is counted as worthy. With this in mind, believers should strive to do all things in a manner worthy of God. Could it be this simple? Could the task at hand simply be to do all things as unto the Lord? (Col 3:23). A brief examination of those who were deemed worthy to receive mention in the most holy book ever written, the Bible, will provide adequate proof that this is all one needs in order to overcome while we wait.

Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord; Genesis chapter six explains why. The world had become so wicked that God had decided to destroy mankind along with the beasts, creeping things, and the fowls of the air. It was at this time that God found one just man, a man referred to as perfect in his generation. The same faithfulness which caused Noah to receive grace caused him to heed God’s word and build the ark. In fact, Genesis 22 states that “Noah did everything that God commanded him to do.” This is the beginning of a pattern of success we are to follow while we wait.

Moses, targeted for destruction by Pharaoh because of fear the Israelites were becoming too strong, was miraculously saved. Ironically, he was saved by the very people who sought his demise, the Egyptians. As incredible as his birth was, this is not what makes him so important to the topic at hand. The story of Moses stretches from the fateful moment in the bulrushes all the way to the Mount of Transfiguration. Many instances could be expounded upon with equal effectiveness; however, one particular moment stands out. Moses had led the people out of Egypt and, on more than one occasion, had to place himself between God and the rebellious children of Israel. One such instance, the rebellion of Korah, provides the key to understanding why Moses was so greatly beloved by the Lord.

In the midst of the rebellion, Moses does not reflect on his leadership. Instead, he tells the people they will know the Lord had sent him to do all the works he did by the judgment which would come upon Korah and those with him. Then he provided the secret to his success in his next statement, “For I have not done them of mine own mind” (Num 16:28b). Indeed, Moses did whatsoever the Lord commanded him to do. By the way, things did not go well for Korah and those faithful to him; they ended up swallowed whole by the earth (Num 16). Obviously, these were not doing all things as unto the Lord.

David, the shepherd boy who became king, lived a life full of ups and downs. As a youth, he was anointed by Samuel to be king of Israel. Next, he, as a ruddy boy, killed Goliath for blaspheming the God of Israel with a sling and stone, no less. He became great while serving Saul, who attempted to kill him repeatedly; he then fled for his life and lived as a throneless king for a time. After his exaltation to the throne, he fell into sin with Bathsheba and lost a son in the process.

King David’s story goes on; however, this last point will suffice. In the midst of his sin, David received forgiveness, not because he was king, but because he was quick to repent (2 Sam 12:13). Yes, David failed to live a perfect life; however, any time he came short of God’s desire, he quickly repented. These instances proved that David lived according to God’s testimony of him; he was a man after God’s own heart who would fulfill all of the Lord’s will (Acts 13:22). Again, the way to ‘live ready’ is to do all the Lord desires.

The prophets, named in the Bible, were no different than the patriarchs already discussed. Each one followed the will of the Lord closely, even if it meant maltreatment by their own peoples. Micaiah comes to mind. He was the only prophet in the entire kingdom who would speak the unpopular truth to King Ahab, who desired to war against Syria. After being encouraged by a messenger from the king to speak good things like the four hundred prophets that had already declared victory, Micaiah said, “As the LORD liveth, even what my God saith, that will I speak” (2 Chr 18:13).

Of course, the story goes that the king has Micaiah imprisoned and fed only bread and water until the king should return safely. Ironically, even though the king disguises himself, he is felled by a stray arrow, and his passing fulfills the words of the prophet Micaiah with perfect precision. Incredibly, the death of King Ahab also fulfilled a prophecy by another prophet, Elijah (1 Kings 21:19). Micaiah’s desire to speak only what the Lord tells him to speak validates the presented proposal that the best way to wait on the rapture is to be busy doing all things as though doing them to the Lord, even if it brings difficulty.

Jesus lived a perfect, sinless life. Therefore, He is the best example possible. In fact, His entire existence on earth was in direct fulfillment of God’s will. The apostle John, the beloved, recorded these words from Jesus, “For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me” (John 6:38). Jesus demonstrated the truth of this statement with every action and word. Perhaps, the most poignant example of this is when He prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane. Without a doubt, He knew of the impending turbulent ending of His earthly life when uttering the words, “O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt” (Matt 26:39).

Jesus, in the most difficult season of His life, relied solely on the Father’s will, as demonstrated by the remainder of His time on earth. Like Jesus, our reasonable service, even in the midst of great difficulty, is to do all that we do to and for the Lord.

The Apostles, the first to live as Christians without Christ on earth, validated the principle before us. They lived and died gracefully, knowing that Jesus was genuine. They had seen and touched Him. They walked with Him for over three years as He taught in word and deed.

Incredibly, in the midst of being with Christ, they sometimes struggled to maintain focus on the most important thing, Jesus Christ. For instance, Peter began to sink when he took his eyes off of the one who had called him out onto the waters; later, he denied the Lord three times. Thomas, could not believe in the resurrection without seeing evidence of the risen Savior. Ironically, the disciples slept through the aforementioned prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane, even though Jesus admonished them to pray with Him. These are but a few of the examples of how the apostles struggled to do all things as unto the Lord.

The good news is Jesus provided a way for the disciples and all those who believe after them to overcome while waiting. He sent the Holy Spirit, and from the Day of Pentecost onward, the Apostles never looked back. In fact, each one faithfully ministered for the remainder of their lives, which were often cut short by martyrdom. Indeed, the ‘Spirit-filled’ Apostles exemplified how those who followed them, the church, should wait.

Since its inception on the aforementioned Day of Pentecost, the church has certainly seen its ups and downs. Throughout its existence, spanning nearly two thousand years, the body of Christ, another name for the church, has been comprised of many individuals. Some have remained faithful to the will of the Lord, while others have fallen astray because of a wandering gaze. For some, the church became a religious function; for others, a means to escape coming judgment. Still others have used the church for gain and thereby have been led astray while also leading others off of the simple ‘narrow path’ of true obedience onto a crooked ‘broad path’ that leads to destruction (Matt 7:13).

The journey each believer undertakes while waiting is often affected by this struggle to stay on the right path. Another way to see this fierce combat is to understand it is a war between the flesh and spirit. The flesh wants to do things that make the individual happy; think David and Bathsheba. The spirit, on the other hand, wants to please the Father in the same manner that Jesus did. Therefore, waiting is not a task for the faint of heart. Instead, the one who waits must not shy away from the battle at hand.

The good news is, the very fact that one wants to don the armor of God as depicted in Ephesians chapter six and engage in the warfare necessary to maintain a spiritual stance, proves the believer, like any good soldier of Jesus Christ (2 Tim 2:3), has a desire to do all things as unto the Lord. The armor and battle would otherwise be unnecessary.

Throughout its existence, the church has demonstrated varying degrees of faithfulness, as demonstrated by the letters to the seven churches in the book of Revelation. Some see these churches as seven sequential church periods marked by the conditions noted in the 2nd and 3rd chapters of the last book of the Bible. However, perhaps it is best to recognize these as physical churches in John’s day, which further represent the possible conditions or combination of conditions of all churches throughout the existence of the church up until the rapture.

One sure way to grasp this truth is to examine the words to each church and the admonition, to any that have an ear, to hear what the Spirit says unto the “churches.” The plurality of the message indicates the message for one is for all. Remarkably, this same statement validates the very argument at hand.

Notice, regardless of the circumstance of each church, any that ‘have an ear to hear’ are admonished to hear what the Spirit says. One could argue this is the very crux of the Christian life. All Christians are to live daily as children of the Most High who ‘desire to hear from Him’ in order to faithfully live while waiting for our gathering unto Him (1 Thess 4:13-17). This desire to hear indicates one has the necessary faith to ‘do all things as unto the Lord’, which is the best way to emulate Jesus and the other faithful examples provided in Holy Writ.

Conclusion

Time after time, these examples have shown exactly how to behave while waiting. Each has lived a life wholly dedicated to doing the Lord’s will and speaking what He commands, even though the individual was not always perfect and the way was not always pleasant. Only Jesus lived a sinless, perfect life while doing all things as unto His Father. His life is the one we are to strive to emulate. However, if we, in our struggle, stumble, let us be like King David and quickly repent and continue on our journey of faith while we wait.

Website: In His Commission

[1] Unless otherwise noted, all biblical passages referenced are in the King James Version.