The Kingdom Will Be Restored to Israel

First, following the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus, He appeared to His disciples several times over the next 50 days.

At His last appearance, just before He ascended into heaven, “they asked of him, saying, Lord, wilt thou at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel? And he said unto them, It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in his own power. But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth” (Acts 1:6-8).

Notice that Jesus didn’t say that the kingdom wouldn’t be restored to Israel.

Jesus said it wasn’t for His disciples to know the times or the seasons when the kingdom will be restored to Israel.

He added that the times and the seasons are the Father’s decision.

Then, He said the Holy Spirit would empower them and they would be witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria and all of the earth.

Those four places recently caught my attention.

Israel was destroyed in 70 A.D., but Israel has come back into existence; Israel took control of all of Jerusalem in 1967; Pres. Trump recognized Jerusalem as the capital of Israel in 2018; Israeli Prime Min. Netanyahu recently said, if elected, he will annex some of the settlements in Judea and Samaria; the U.S. Ambassador to Israel, David Friedman, recently said Israel has a right to annex some of Judea and Samaria; and the Bible teaches that Holy-Spirit-empowered Jews (the 144,000 and Two Witnesses) and an angel will take the gospel to the uttermost part of the earth during the Tribulation Period.

Israel coming back into possession of Jerusalem, Judea and Samaria, and some Jews accepting Jesus as the Messiah looks like stage-setting or preparation for the restoration of the kingdom to Israel (during the Millennium).

Second, in early May, Israel’s Ambassador to the UN, Danny Danon, held up a Bible and said, “This is our deed to our land” (the Promised Land).

It occurred to me that God could be telling the UN leaders that it is the Bible (God Himself) that says the Promised Land belongs to Israel.

A video of that incident and Mr. Danon’s speech was posted on the Internet.

The video went viral and then it was translated into Spanish, Polish, French, Portuguese, Turkish and who knows what else.

I am now wondering if God has warned the whole world in several languages that He will have the final say on who will get the Promised Land.

Third, it has been almost three years since British citizens voted to leave the EU, and they are still not out.

Many British citizens are beginning to show great disdain for the EU.

This should be a warning to other nations that are thinking about surrendering their sovereignty to the UN: Do it and you won’t get your sovereignty back until Jesus returns.

Fourth, a bill called the “Equality Act” has passed in the U.S. House of Representatives that will criminalize the Christian faith and make all of the currently legal Christian defenses (freedom of religion, freedom of speech, just telling people what the Bible says, etc.) illegal.

The “Equality Act” defines those that oppose the LGBTQ agenda as hate mongers, and it empowers the government to prosecute them.

Christians that take a Biblical stance on the LGBTQ agenda will be guilty of a hate crime, and they will be exposed to lawsuits by so-called “offended people.”

The goal is to force Christians to say positive things about the LGBTQ agenda or be silent.

This bill will not become law unless it is passed by the Senate and signed by the president, and that is not likely to happen under the current president, but it could happen under a future president (and we could be one election away from that).

Much prayer and major opposition is needed.

Fifth, many believe the U.S. was founded on Judeo-Christian beliefs.

In 1620, the Pilgrims mentioned a nation under God in the Mayflower Compact.

In 1776, the U.S. Declaration of Independence said citizens have the unalienable right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness; rights come from God.

In 1863, in his Gettysburg Address, Abraham Lincoln said that God brought forth a new nation (the U.S.) under God.

Now, one of the two major political parties in the U.S. has decided to delete the phrase “so help me God” when witnesses are sworn in before Congress because these politicians don’t want to offend people by mentioning God.

If it is wrong to mention God in Congress, how long will it be before it is wrong to mention God anywhere?

Sixth, there has long been speculation about the existence of electromagnetic pulse weapons (EMP’s).

On May 17, 2019, it was reported that the U.S. Air Force had deployed 20 operational missiles to the Middle East that emit EMP’s that can render electronic equipment and military vehicles virtually useless.

So, we now know that EMP’s exist (and some of America’s enemies probably have similar weapons).

Seventh, many articles are being published about the impact of natural disasters on crop production in the U.S., the impact of swine flu in China and elsewhere, etc.

Some experts are predicting that the loss of millions of acres of crops, destruction of more than 200 million pigs, etc., will cause food prices to soar next year.

Money is now worthless and people are bartering for food in Venezuela, and the U.S. spent more than $3 trillion this fiscal year.

The Church needs to pray for revival because famine, hyper-inflation and a global economic collapse are Tribulation Period signs (Rev. 6:5-6).

Eighth, concerning Iran, it is important to remember that the hardliners that are in control of Iran want to trigger the Tribulation Period because they believe they can hasten the Mahdi’s return, win the Mother of All Battles (Battle of Armageddon), speed up an Islamic world government and Islamic world religion, etc.

Signing a nuclear agreement with Iran didn’t work; giving billions of dollars to Iran didn’t work; putting sanctions on Iran hasn’t worked; four ships were sabotaged off the coast of the UAE; Iranian-supported terrorists used drones to attack an oil pipeline, the Saudi airport, Mecca, etc.; two tankers have been attacked in the Gulf of Oman near the Strait of Hormuz; rockets have been fired at U.S. bases in Iraq; Japan’s PM Shinzo Abe tried to deliver a message from Pres. Trump to the Ayatollah Khamenei, and he flatly refused to accept the message, saying Pres. Trump is not worthy of a response, etc.

Of importance too is the fact that Israel, the U.S. and England have said that they will not let Iran get nuclear weapons, and a former high official in the IAEA recently said that Iran could be as close as six months away from acquiring them.

God is in control, and I don’t think Iran can trigger the Tribulation Period without His permission, but it doesn’t look good; and the Rapture is clearly a pre-Trib event.

The hour is late, and most of this article is bad news for unbelievers, but the blessed hope of believers is real and perhaps closer than many think.

Prophecy Plus Ministries, Inc.
Daymond & Rachel Duck
duck_daymond@yahoo.com

 

The Apostle Paul wrote, “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad” (II Cor. 5:10).

“We” refers to believers (those that have received the Holy Spirit and walk by faith in Jesus (II Cor. 5:1-9).

“Must” means appearing before the judgment seat of Christ is a requirement for believers.

“All” means every believer must appear before the judgment seat of Christ.

“Judgment seat of Christ” means Jesus will be the Judge.

The time will come when every believer will be required to appear before Jesus.

He received the authority to judge from the Father (Jn. 5:27). Believers will be judged after He comes for His Church (after the Rapture when all believers are in heaven (I Cor. 4:5; I Thess. 4:17); believers will be judged before His throne in heaven (see Rev. 4:4-10); and believers will be judged rightly and fairly (Psa. 98:9).

But this judgment is not for condemnation because our sin was judged on the cross; and “There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit” (Rom. 8:1).

“That every one may receive the things done in his body” means the judgment seat of Christ will be established to evaluate what believers did when they were alive.

The Apostle John wrote, “Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth: Yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labours; and their works do follow them” (Rev. 14:13).

Those that “die in the Lord” (die as believers in Jesus) are blessed because their works (what they did while they were alive) will follow them into heaven.

“Whether it be good or bad” means the believer’s works on earth will be examined, appraised, or judged to determine their significance or value in the eyes of Jesus.

Paul said, “For we are labourers together with God: ye are God’s husbandry, ye are God’s building. According to the grace of God which is given unto me, as a wise masterbuilder, I have laid the foundation, and another buildeth thereon. But let every man take heed how he buildeth thereupon. For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ.

“Now if any man build upon this foundation gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble; Every man’s work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man’s work of what sort it is. If any man’s work abide which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward. If any man’s work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire” (I Cor. 3:9-15).

Jesus will judge the quality and quantity of the believer’s works (was it done in faith; was it done to honor Jesus; was it self-serving; was it done for personal praise; how many years did the believer serve; etc.).

The person that gets saved on their deathbed is just as saved as the person that gets saved in their early years, but there will be a big difference in rewards.

The person that gets saved on their deathbed has no time to lay up treasure in Heaven, but the person that gets saved in their early years could have many years to lay up treasure in heaven (Matt. 6:19-21).

Some believers serve in many ways, and they will receive great treasure in heaven; but others serve very little, and they will receive very little treasure in heaven.

Some believers serve to glorify Jesus, and they will be rewarded for honoring Him (gold, silver and precious stones); but others serve to glorify themselves, and their works will be worthless and destroyed (burned up like wood, hay and stubble).

Some believers will receive 5 crowns, some 4, or 3, or 2, or 1, or none (II Tim. 4:6-8; I Pet. 5:2-4; I Thess. 2:19-20; James 1:12; I Cor. 9:24-25).

Some Christians will be made ruler over 10 cities, some 5, or 1, or none (Luke 19:11-27).

The one that does more and for the right reason will receive a greater reward.

The one that does less or for the wrong reason will receive a lesser reward.

An elderly carpenter was ready to retire. The contractor he worked for asked him if he would build just one last house as a personal favor. The carpenter agreed, but he thought, “This is my last house. Why should I knock myself out?”

His work was sloppy, and the materials he used were cheap.

After the carpenter finished, the contractor gave him the keys to the house and said, “These keys and this house are yours in appreciation for your service.”

The carpenter was shocked! He thought, if I had known that I was building this house for myself, I would have built a better house.

Know that what believers do in this life will be evaluated for quality, quantity and motive; and there are implications for all eternity!

Talk about rewards in heaven makes some people nervous; but Jesus urged believers to lay up treasure in heaven (Matt. 6:19-20), and John encouraged believers to carefully receive a full reward (II Jn. 1:8).

FYI: My surgery is behind me, and my recovery is going better than anticipated.

Glory to God, and thanks to all of you that prayed.

I will now try to get back to current events.

Prophecy Plus Ministries, Inc.
Daymond & Rachel Duck
duck_daymond@yahoo.com