“But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased” (Daniel 12:4).

Daniel had been given an amazing prophecy regarding events that were future to Daniel, but we can understand because we can look back in history. Daniel couldn’t possibly understand what he was shown but faithfully recorded the prophecy. The angel told him to seal the book without understanding it because it was for the time of the end. Knowledge would increase, so the words of the prophecy would become clear.

Brothers and sisters, we are at the time when we can understand the end times prophecies. Ezekiel, Daniel, Isaiah, Amos, Zechariah, and more have confused “scholars” for years, but today, prophecy is coming together. A few days ago, Hamas staged a satanic attack on Israel, and Israel has declared war. This attack was beyond belief. Israel has a defense system called Iron Dome, and it failed to stop a number of the reported 5,000 rockets fired into Israel. Hamas couldn’t have done this without outside help. Did Russia tell them how to get around the Iron Dome? China? How this happened will eventually come to light, but prophecy is definitely coming together.

God gave the Promised Land to Abraham, and through his son Isaac, it belongs to the Jewish people. It is their land. On occasion, they have been disobedient to God and have been taken captive, but the land will always be theirs.

“And it shall come to pass in that day, that the Lord shall set his hand again the second time to recover the remnant of his people, which shall be left, from Assyria, and from Egypt, and from Pathros, and from Cush, and from Elam, and from Shinar, and from Hamath, and from the islands of the sea. And he shall set up an ensign for the nations, and shall assemble the outcasts of Israel, and gather together the dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the earth” (Isaiah 11:11-12).

God also told the prophet Amos about this second gathering. “And I will bring again the captivity of my people of Israel, and they shall build the waste cities, and inhabit them; and they shall plant vineyards, and drink the wine thereof; they shall also make gardens, and eat the fruit of them. And I will plant them upon their land, and they shall no more be pulled up out of their land which I have given them, saith the LORD thy God” (Amos 9:14-15).

After World War 2, when the Jewish people returned to their land, it was desolate. Under the loving care of God’s chosen people, the land flourished and has prospered. Oddly enough, the world hates them, especially the Muslim people around them. This hatred is Satanic.

The attacks of a few days ago are evil. The attackers have kidnapped civilians, including elderly people and children, and murdered people in cold blood. Why? Will the world stand by and, as usually happens, condemn Israel? Brothers and sisters, we need to pray for Israel. God’s word tells us to.

“Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: they shall prosper that love thee. Peace shall be within thy walls, and prosperity within thy palaces” (Psalm 122:6-7).

This reflects another promise God made to Abraham. “And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing; and I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed” (Genesis 12:2-3).

God doesn’t go back on His promises. Peace will come, but prophecy is also clear that there will be much unrest and tribulation before true peace comes to Jerusalem. Biblical prophecy is coming together as we watch. Every person who claims to love the Lord must turn to God and pray for Jerusalem.

“[[A Song or Psalm of Asaph.]] Keep not thou silence, O God: hold not thy peace, and be not still, O God. For, lo, thine enemies make a tumult: and they that hate thee have lifted up the head. They have taken crafty counsel against thy people, and consulted against thy hidden ones. They have said, Come and let us cut them off from being a nation; that the name of Israel may be no more in remembrance” (Psalm 83:1-4).

Israel will never be erased. Many enemies have tried to destroy Israel, but God has never allowed Israel to be totally destroyed. The book of Judges is filled with accounts of nations that tried to destroy Israel, but God called men to stand against the enemy and win battles that seemed impossible to win. In Psalm 83, Asaph makes reference to many of these defeated enemies and reminds us of these battles. Battles are won when men turn to God for help. I pray that Israel will turn to God for His help and guidance in the war that is raging today.

As Asaph continued with his plea to God in Psalm 83, he asked God to make the enemy ashamed, but he also had a surprising request. “Fill their faces with shame; that they may seek thy name, O LORD” (Psalm 83:16).

He wanted them to be ashamed of their attack, but he wanted them to seek the Lord. That should be our desire for any enemy we face. Our prayer should be that everyone comes to salvation. I’ve seen many testimonies of Muslims who have had miraculous encounters with Jesus, and it would be wonderful if many more meet our Lord.

“That men may know that thou, whose name alone is JEHOVAH, art the most high over all the earth” (Psalm 83:18).

I know that I look at the enemies of Israel as pagans who worship a false god who is of Satan, but I also know that many of the Jewish people follow the traditions of their faith without believing in God. I pray that the Jewish people will come to a saving faith in God and recognize that Jesus is their Messiah. They will do that one day, but there will be more wars and tribulation before they ultimately call upon the name of Jesus. Only then will Jesus, the Messiah, return for the final battle and defeat the true enemy. That enemy is Satan.

It can be frightening watching prophecy being fulfilled. Sadly, most people don’t study prophecy, so they aren’t prepared to see it being fulfilled. Christian preachers seldom teach line upon line through Scripture and skip “tough” topics like prophecy. Quite often, prophecy is easier to interpret by hindsight, but when studying prophecy, always assume God means exactly what He says. When God says something will happen, you can be certain it will happen just as God said.

The knowledge of people living in the 1800s couldn’t possibly allow understanding of how the mark of the beast could be implemented. Today, it’s very easy to understand because knowledge has increased. We have microchips in everything, and with all the talk about chips being implanted and shots that affect RNA, it becomes understandable.

Old suppositions have to be dismissed if we are to understand prophecy. A heresy that is often taught is “replacement theology.” If you’ve been taught that the church has replaced Israel, then you will never understand prophecy. This fable started because people didn’t believe God’s word. Prophecy that talks of God dealing with Israel can only happen if Israel is back in the land, which they are. God loves Israel and will never turn away from them. Like a human parent allows their child to make mistakes and learn from them, so is God’s love for Israel. They’ve rebelled many times, but He is always there for them when they call on Him for help.

“[[A song of degrees.]] I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills from whence cometh my help. My help cometh from the LORD, which made heaven and earth. He will not suffer thy foot to be moved: he that keepeth thee will not slumber. Behold he that keepeth Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep” (Psalm 121:1-4). God never sleeps.

Don’t be afraid of what’s happening in Israel today. Many amazing things are happening that fulfill other prophecies. One of the most amazing happenings is the birth of five red heifers. This is a requirement of purification before the Temple can be built.

“This is the ordinance of the law which the LORD hath commanded, saying, Speak unto the children of Israel, that they bring thee a red heifer without spot, wherein is no blemish, and upon which never came yoke” (Numbers 19:2).

This is for purification of the Temple and the nation, but in Hebrews, we know that only the blood of Jesus brings true purification. “For if the blood of bulls and of goats, and the ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean, sanctifieth to the purifying of the flesh: how much more shall the blood of Christ who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?” (Hebrews 9:13-14).

Jewish priests today still trust the blood of animals. There hasn’t been a qualifying red heifer found for many years, but today, there are five in Israel that are soon to be sacrificed. If, for some reason, they are disqualified, there are 16 others that are possible replacements. Everything comes together in God’s perfect timing. These heifers may be sacrificed this month (October 2023), and Israel is also talking with Saudi Arabia about permission to build the temple. It’s interesting that Hamas chose this time to launch an attack on Israel. Satan is trying to stop Israel from returning to God.

What does all this mean for Christians? Brothers and sisters, are you prepared for the Rapture? Prophecy is happening quickly, and there really are no events that have to happen before the Rapture. How do you prepare? The Rapture is a promise to Christians that we will be taken out of the world prior to the time of Jacob’s trouble, also known as Daniel’s 70th Week. The world will go through the horrendous events described in Revelation chapter 6 and following chapters, but Christians will be called Home before that, just as Enoch was taken by God prior to the judgment of the Flood.

In Revelation, Jesus dictated seven letters to John, and he recorded them in Revelation chapters 2 and 3. Each letter describes a specific time in church history. As we read through these letters, we come to our modern age as described in the final letter to Laodicea. This church is described as lukewarm.

“Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched and miserable, and poor and blind, and naked: I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see” (Revelation 3:17-18).

So many congregations today go through motions. The pastor preaches easy-listening sermons that don’t confront sin or teach prophecy. As long as the people fill the collection plates, everything is fine. Ears are tickled, and the congregation sleeps. It doesn’t matter that demonic forces are attacking our schools and our entertainment, destroying families, and perverting God’s truth. As long as everyone feels good, there’s no problem. Jesus is excluded from the hallowed halls of little country churches as well as the megachurches.

“Behold I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me” (Revelation 3:20).

It’s up to you to hear Jesus knocking and invite Him in.

Scripture wasn’t originally written with chapters and verses. After we read about the lukewarm church age, we’re shown the next event. The Rapture! “After this I looked, and, behold, a door was opened in heaven: and the first voice which I heard was as it were of a trumpet talking with me; which said, Come up hither, and I will shew thee things which must be hereafter” (Revelation 4:1).

The first words in this verse (After this) and the last word (hereafter) are the same Greek words: meta tauta. They indicate a sequence: first something happens, then the next thing happens. So, after the Laodicean age, a door opens, and a voice says, “Come up hither,” then the next events happen.

What John saw was amazing. He was at the Bema Seat in Heaven. Yet, on earth, he sees the horrendous events of the Great Tribulation.

The only way to prepare for the Rapture is to accept Christ for salvation right now. It is our faith in Him that allows us to be with Him eternally. If you think you’re a Christian because you were baptized as a baby, that won’t save you. A baby cannot understand about sin and the need for Jesus.

“That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shall believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved” (Romans 10:9).

Don’t wait; tomorrow may be too late.

Prophecy is coming together, and it’s happening rapidly. God has told us in Scripture the things to look for, and these things are happening. If you’re holding tightly to sin and think God is happy with that, you need to study Scripture. Let God change your heart and serve Him. Do it now, before you’re left behind.

God bless you all,

Nathele Graham

twotug@embarqmail.com

Recommended prophecy sites:

www.raptureready.com

www.prophecyupdate.com

www.raptureforums.com

All original scripture is “theopneustos,” God-breathed.

If you’d like to be on my mailing list to receive the commentaries, just drop me an email and let me know.

“Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? And what communion hath light with darkness?” (2 Corinthians 6:14).

We all know what a yoke is. It’s used to bind animals together so they will work as a team to accomplish a purpose. We’ve all seen pictures of a pair of oxen yoked together to plow a field or pull a wagon. When the team is well-matched, they work together without a problem, but sometimes, one of the team isn’t willing to work with the other. The animal will pull away or try to run ahead. This makes it difficult to plow a straight line or to comfortably travel down a road. It’s not wise to unequally yoke a Clydesdale horse together with a Shetland pony. That just isn’t a good match.

In life, we all become yoked to something, whether it be a job, marriage, or friendships. In making choices of who or what to be yoked to, Christians need to make choices based on Scripture. We have freedom in Christ, but that isn’t a license to sin. If you join yourself to people who don’t know Jesus, even if they claim to be Christian, then you are unequally yoked and will be led along the path of the world, and the burden of sin is great.

Jesus told His disciples of the tough times they would face, but He also gave them hope. “These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world” (John 16:33). All who have yoked themselves to Jesus have this same promise. So be of good cheer!

Sin is a yoke that is heavy. It may start out as “harmless fun” and not seem burdensome. Time passes, and white lies become bigger, and one or two glasses of wine become martinis and whiskey until the bar closes. Having a glass of wine isn’t a sin, but drunkenness is. The yoke becomes heavier and heavier. One sin will lead to another, and the friends you have yoked yourself to will pull you away from the path you should be following.

“For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord” (Romans 6:23). 

Sin always has consequences. Alcoholism will cause liver damage, sexual encounters other than within the confines of a one man/one woman marriage will bring about disease, and lying will cause hurt feelings and trouble. The death caused by sin can be physical (you may be killed in a drunk driving accident), or it can be eternal if you don’t know Jesus.

Let’s set up a scenario. You’re happily married and have 2 children. You enjoy spending family time together, and every Sunday, you and your family show up to worship God at your neighborhood church. Then, you have to stay late at work one night in order to finish a big project. Your secretary also stays. After you’ve finished your job, you ask if she would like to grab a bite to eat. She agrees, and the conversation is interesting, and you enjoy her company very much. You go home, and your wife has kept your dinner warm for you. You tell your wife that you and a co-worker went to dinner after work. That isn’t a lie, but it is misleading.

The next week, you have to work late again, and the same scenario plays out. Pretty soon, you are dining with your secretary even though you don’t need to work. The lies you tell your wife are growing. That yoke of sin is getting heavy. Then the kids have a t-ball game, but you’ve made plans with your secretary. That yoke is getting very heavy.

You begin enjoying more than dinner with her, but you aren’t the only one she’s seeing, and you get a sexually transmitted disease. What do you tell your wife? More lies? Your marriage breaks up, and you now only see your children every other weekend. All because you have yoked yourself with a very heavy burden of sin and bad company.

The good news is that Jesus is very forgiving. “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9).

Confessing your sin doesn’t mean to run to a priest. We only need to confess our sins to Jesus and truly ask Him to forgive. He will. You must confess to Jesus and repent of your sin. Turn away from it. He will break the yoke that sin has forged. Faith in Jesus isn’t a “get out of jail free” card like in Monopoly. Sin comes with a price, and there will be consequences in life. But Jesus paid the price of our transgressions, and eternal life is still there for the true believer. Don’t treat that gift of salvation lightly.

God doesn’t want us to yoke ourselves to the powers of evil, and He has tried since He created Adam to keep us away from evil. We are surrounded by supernatural powers, both the ones of God and the evil powers of darkness. Because God knows how hateful the powers of darkness are, He has warned us not to yoke ourselves with that evil.

It’s impossible to live in this world and be totally isolated from the evil that spills into it, but we choose if we want to be a part of the evil or to follow Jesus. Movies and music are big influences on most people in the world, so choose wisely what you fill your mind with. The subject matter of many movies and songs is blatantly full of non-Christian ideas of violence, drugs, drunkenness, unbridled sex, and pure evil. Turn away from the evil and draw closer to God.

“But it is good for me to draw near to God: I have put my trust in the Lord GOD, that I may declare all thy works” (Psalm 73:28). 

Don’t yoke yourself to the world, but draw nearer to God each day.

When the Israelites were captive in Egypt, there was a god for everything, and the one true God’s chosen people were influenced by the evil. God called them out of Egypt and warned them to stay away from the gods they would encounter. These demon gods were worshipped by the inhabitants of the land which God promised to Abraham.

“I am the LORD your God, which brought you forth out of the land of Egypt, that ye should not be their bondmen, and I have broken the bands of your yoke, and made you go upright” (Leviticus 26:13). 

God demonstrated His power to the Israelites on many occasions, but throughout history, they chose to yoke with the evil rather than God Almighty. They should have felt that a heavy yoke had fallen away when the Egyptian bondage was over, and they should have turned away from the gods which were worshipped there.

“When thou art come into the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee, thou shalt not learn to do after the abominations of those nations. There shall not be found among you any one that maketh his son or his daughter to pass through the fire, or that useth divination, or an observer of times, or an enchanter, or a witch, or a charmer, or a consulter with familiar spirits, or a wizard, or a necromancer. For all that do these things are an abomination unto the LORD: and because of these abominations the LORD thy God doth drive them out from before thee” (Deuteronomy 18:9-12). 

God will never completely turn His back on Israel, but it’s time for them to turn back to Him. Christians, we need to pay attention to the full counsel of God’s word and turn away from these things too.

The prophets of old spoke of the coming Messiah, and Isaiah spoke quite a bit about Him. The Northern Kingdom of Israel fell to the Syrians. God allowed this fall because they had yoked themselves to the evil worship of idols and demonic gods promoted by King Ahab and Jezebel. The Southern Kingdom of Judah would also fall. In Isaiah chapter 8, we read the prophecy about Assyria invading and capturing Judah. It was their disobedience to God’s law that caused them to be taken captive. God has never forsaken Israel, and He promised them hope.

“The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light: they that dwell in the land of the shadow of death, upon them hath the light shined…. For thou hast broken the yoke of his burden, and the staff of his shoulder, the rod of his oppressor, as in the day of Midian” (Isaiah 9:1 & 4). 

God would provide the only way of redemption for Israel and the entire world. “For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace” (Isaiah 9:6). This is one of many prophecies about Jesus. The Jewish people were chosen to bring Christ into the world. Thank God He never goes back on His word.

Jesus fulfilled hundreds of prophecies during His first coming. “And it shall come to pass in that day, that his burden shall be taken away from off thy shoulder, and his yoke from off thy neck, and the yoke shall be destroyed because of the anointing” (Isaiah 10:27). 

Jesus broke the yoke of sin for anyone who turns to Him in faith. When we turn to Jesus, we need to turn away from the world. We need to yoke ourselves to Jesus rather than being yoked to the evils of the world, which is under the yoke of Satan.

Jesus spoke of how it was easier to follow His path instead of yoking to the world. “Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light” (Matthew 11:29-30).

Brothers and sisters, we have come once again to October, and Halloween is upon us. How do you plan to celebrate? Will you dress your children in costumes that glorify evil? Witches, ghosts, or some other horror figure.

Wouldn’t it be better not to yoke yourself or your children with the powers of darkness, but rather remember Martin Luther? He is the man who broke the yoke of the Catholic Church for many people and sparked the Protestant revolution. There were many things he found in error with Catholicism, and he taught the Biblical truth of grace through faith and not works. He had some unbiblical beliefs, such as his anti-Jewish views and soul sleep, which are not God’s views. Nevertheless, on October 31, 1517, he is said to have nailed the Ninety-five Theses to the door of the All Saints Church in Wittenberg.

Martin Luther took a stand and chose to be yoked to Christ instead of following the ways of the world. “Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage” (Galatians 5:1). Christ alone is our High Priest, and we should only bow our knees to Him.

Be diligent to study Scripture so that you will know God’s word and be better able to decide with what or whom you will yoke yourself. A wise person only yokes with Christ.

God bless you all,

Nathele Graham

twotug@embarqmail.com

Recommended prophecy sites:

www.raptureready.com

www.prophecyupdate.com

www.raptureforums.com

All original scripture is “theopneustos,” God-breathed.

If you’d like to be on my mailing list to receive the commentaries, just drop me an email and let me know.