We Are At War :: By Nathele Graham

Quick question. Can you think of war happening anywhere? I’m sure most of you answered that question easily. The Middle East is at war. Everybody seems to be mad at Israel. That’s not surprising.

Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of trembling unto all the people round about, when they shall be in the siege both against Judah and against Jerusalem. And in that day will I make Jerusalem a burdensome stone for all people: all that burden themselves with it shall be cut in pieces, though all the people of the earth be gathered together against it” (Zechariah 12:2-3). 

God certainly can be trusted to tell us what’s happening…and what will happen. This hatred has been going on for generations. I have no human explanation as to why the entire world seems to be against Israel, but I am absolutely certain that it’s inspired by Satan. Satan has always declared war against anyone who loves God, or any nation that honors God.

There’s another war raging. A spiritual one. This war began in the Garden of Eden. God had given Adam and Eve a perfect place to live. Food and water were plentiful. There were no hurricanes, tornadoes, or typhoons to hinder life there, and Adam and Eve should have been content with their life in the Garden. Unfortunately, Eve made a fatal mistake. She questioned God. She listened to Satan, who had taken the form of a serpent, and he planted doubt.

Satan is always wrong. God had given Adam one rule. “And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shall not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die” (Genesis 2:16-17).

Notice it was a command, not a suggestion.  The command was given to Adam prior to Eve’s creation, but Eve usurped her husband’s authority and chatted with Satan, who caused her to question God’s truth.

Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?” (Genesis 3:1-2).

Eve should have turned away right then, but she chose to debate with this evil entity. In doing so, she added to God’s words. She said they weren’t even to touch the fruit, which wasn’t what God said. The problem would come from eating it and making it a part of themselves, and that would cause death. If you touch rat poison, it won’t kill you, but if you eat it, you’ll die. That lying serpent convinced her that God didn’t want them to eat of the fruit because they would then know good and evil and be gods. The fruit looked good, and so she ate it. It tasted good, so she gave some to Adam.

Why did he just go along? He knew what God had commanded, but he chose to allow Eve to defy God. He joined her in sin, and the world hasn’t been the same since. We’re at war. A spiritual war that seems to be ignored by many Christians, who just go along.

Many pastors avoid two subjects. One is prophecy. Although prophecy fills approximately 1/3 of Scripture, this subject is ignored. The other subject is regarding spiritual matters. It seems as if most Christians are willingly blind to the spiritual realm. They claim to believe Scripture, and know there’s a Holy Spirit, and that God lives in another dimension, but refuse to acknowledge that there’s an evil side to the spirit realm.

Scripture wasn’t written by humans. The Holy Spirit spoke through the prophets and guided their words. This means that every word is supernaturally from God. “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works” (2 Timothy 3:16-17).

Since all Scripture is inspired by God, why isn’t it taught line upon line? That way, important spiritual truths, such as God is good and Satan is evil, won’t be ignored. You’ll understand there’s a difference between the spirituality of God and the Satanic spirituality of witchcraft and paganism. There’s a war raging, and until you understand the rules, you can’t be a soldier fit for the Lord’s army.

Jesus taught that there are many signs of the end, and two of them are evidence of Satan’s war on humanity. First, Jesus said, “And as it was in the days of Noe, so shall it be also in the days of the Son of man. They did eat, they drank, they married wives, they were given in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark, and the flood came, and destroyed them all” (Luke 17:26-27). 

Don’t be ignorant about what He meant. Genetic tampering by the fallen angels was happening, and all of creation was corrupted. The human genome was corrupted and no longer entirely human.

And it came to pass, when men began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born unto them, that the sons of God saw the daughters of men that they were fair: and they took them wives of all which they chose” (Genesis 6:1-2).

Just as Satan twisted God’s words and convinced Eve to sin, he has caused people to twist these words to mean that powerful and wicked men married sweet and innocent women. Satan doesn’t want you to know that this is talking about fallen angels having sexual relations with human women. There’s no other way to translate this unless you twist God’s words.

This ungodly relationship created hybrids known as Nephilim. These creatures weren’t angels nor were they human, and they were quite evil. God always has a plan, and first He raptured Enoch, a man who walked with God and wasn’t corrupted. Then He sent judgment in the form of a worldwide flood. Noah was directed to build an Ark, and pairs of animals were taken on board, as well as Noah and his family. All of creation was corrupted, and God selected genetically pure humans and animals. When judgment came, God shut the door.

Why was Noah and his family saved? They believed God and stayed away from the wickedness happening in the world. “And the LORD said unto Noah, Come thou and all thy house into the ark; for thee have I seen righteous before me in this generation” (Genesis 7:1). 

When your life is over, either by death or through the blessing of the Rapture, how will God view you? God saw Noah as righteous. There must have been many temptations for him and his family, but they obeyed God. Today, only Christians are seen as righteous. Not because we’re perfect in our own ways, but we are seen through the righteousness of the shed blood of Jesus Christ, our Saviour. We must repent and truly believe in the finished work of Jesus on the cross.

Don’t be blinded; genetic tampering is happening today. Goats are crossed with spiders, cats are tampered with so they glow in the dark, and much more. Be very wary of vaccines. A quick look at the “ingredients” of these vaccines will shock you. DNA from sacrificed (aborted) babies, DNA from cattle, and poisonous substances are injected into babies. No wonder there’s so much autism and uncontrollable children. What happens when the DNA of a little boy is injected into a little girl? Are they gender confused?

The war rages, and Satan influences people to be politically correct and just go along – don’t judge and don’t trust God to know what’s best.

Are we in the days of Noah? I say we are.

The other thing Jesus mentioned was the days of Lot. The Spiritual war didn’t end with Noah. After the Flood subsided, the Ark came to rest, and life began anew. God chose Abraham and led him to the promised land.  After a time, Abraham’s nephew Lot needed to leave because his herds were growing, as was Abraham’s herd. Rather than argue, Abraham suggested Lot choose where he wanted to go, and Abraham would go the opposite way. Lot chose to go to Sodom.

But the men of Sodom were wicked and sinners before the LORD exceedingly” (Genesis 13:13).

Lot wasn’t a part of their wicked ways, so he was a target for their evil. The greatest sin in Sodom and Gomorrah was homosexuality. Once again, the evil was so bad that God had to send judgment.

And the LORD said, Because the cry of Sodom and Gomorrah is great, and because their sin is very grievous; I will go down now, and see whether they have done altogether according to the cry of it, which is come unto me; and if not, I will know” (Genesis 18:20-21).

God is slow to anger, but there comes a point when judgment must come in order to protect humanity. So it was with Sodom and Gomorrah. The two angels who had been sent to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah stopped at the gate of the city and talked with Lot, who invited them to stay with him and his family that night.

The men of Sodom wouldn’t leave them alone. They surrounded Lot’s house. “And they called unto Lot, and said unto him, Where are the men which came in to thee this night? Bring them out unto us, that we may know them” (Genesis 19:5).

Yes, sin abounded in Sodom. Lot tried to bargain with those wicked men, even offering his two daughters for them to have their way with, but those men only wanted the men who were Lot’s guests. Then those wicked men decided to have their way with Lot. He was saved by his guests.

But the men put forth their hand, and pulled Lot into the house to them, and shut the door. And they smote the men that were at the door of the house with blindness, both small and great: so that they wearied themselves to find the door” (Genesis 19:10-11).

Homosexuality is a sin. Jesus said the end would be like the days of Noah and like the days of Lot. “Likewise also as it was in the days of Lot; they did eat, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they builded; But the same day that Lot went out of Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven, and destroyed them all. Even thus shall it be in the day when the Son of man is revealed” (Luke 17:28-30). 

I think we’re there. God’s judgment will come soon, but like Enoch and Lot, Christians will be taken away before God’s judgment.

Brothers and sisters, don’t ignore what’s happening. The war is spiritual, and it’s raging. Are you just going along and not paying attention? Is it more important to you to be politically correct than to be Biblically correct?

Jesus Christ came to save us from sin, but we can’t look back to our old ways. Lot’s wife looked back and was turned into a pillar of salt. “Remember Lot’s wife” (Luke 17:32).

We must remember that this is all spiritual warfare. It may look as if the enemy is the people who participate in the wickedness of sin, but the real enemy is Satan, who only wants to destroy humanity.

The supernatural world is real, and in order to navigate this life, we must be aware of the supernatural war that’s raging. We aren’t forbidden from learning about the wiles of the devil, but we aren’t to take his yoke upon us by being a part of the evil. It’s somewhat like the forbidden fruit. We can know about it and understand it, but we aren’t to make it part of us. Be sure you understand that we don’t wrestle against humans, but against principalities, powers, and the rulers of the darkness of this world.

Scripture will arm us. God has been very open about the spiritual adversary we face. He has also told us how to fight the battle. The Apostle Paul faced many spiritual fights, and his experience and knowledge of Old Testament facts enabled him to give us information about fighting this battle. We have God’s armor to protect us.

Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil” (Ephesians 6:10-11).

How can you fight a spiritual battle if you don’t know God’s armor even exists? Study Scripture, and don’t twist God’s words. When He says something is a sin, believe Him. The supernatural evil that hates you wants you to doubt God’s truth and change it to fit your own lifestyle.

For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places” (Ephesians 6:12).

Does that sound as if you’re to be ignorant about the evil that wants to destroy you? Those principalities, powers, and rulers of darkness are ranks of Satan’s demons. Are you ready to fight? Unless you stand firm upon Scripture without compromise, you’re fair game to the enemy.

Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand (Ephesians 6:13).

You must have the armor of God for protection. We are at war, and as we draw nearer to the time of Jacob’s trouble, evil grows stronger. God isn’t getting weaker, but as Christians compromise His word, our strength is weakening.

This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, Without natural affection trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away (2 Timothy 3:1-5).

We are at war, and these are attributes of people who have sided with Satan. Brothers and sisters, don’t deny the power of God by compromising His truth. Live for Him, and put on His armor. Fight in the battle, but be sure you’re on God’s side.

Many good Bible teachers say the “veil is thinning.” That means the veil that has kept evil at bay is weakening. I agree. More and more people report UFO sightings and abductions. Do I believe these stories? Yes, I do. These entities come from Satan, and they cannot stand against the name of Jesus. If you happen to see one, don’t try to chat with it, but call on Jesus. What about Bigfoot? I’ve never seen one, but I do believe it’s real and also needs to be rebuked in the name of Jesus.

There’s a growing fascination with the evil supernatural, and Christians are following the world. Much of the spiritual breakdown comes in the form of entertainment. What movies do you watch? Are they violent? Do they make evil look like fun?

Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!” (Isaiah 5:20).

The music industry is no better. Many songs glorify one-night stands, drugs, and violence. Why take such evil into yourself? It only opens doors to sin and all things the enemy promotes. If you’re a Christian, you must declare which side you’re on. Actually, no true Christian can take any pleasure in sin. Put on His armor, and understand how to use it.

Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; Above all, taking the shield of faith wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God: praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints (Ephesians 6:14-18).

Don’t compromise. Study Scripture as it’s written, and don’t twist God’s word. Learn to use each item of God’s armor. It’s spiritual armor to fight a spiritual war.

Whose side are you on? You can’t stand in the middle with one foot in the world. Remember, we wrestle with the powers of darkness, but the war has already been won. When Jesus was crucified, His blood was shed for us so that we can be forgiven of our sins and live eternally with Him. Repent, turn from your sin, and accept the free gift of salvation that Jesus offers.

When Jesus therefore had received the vinegar, he said, It is finished: and he bowed his head, and gave up the ghost” (John 19:30).

The war is finished, but there are lingering battles. Put God’s armor on and fight.

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

Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: they shall prosper that love thee” (Psalm 122:6).

 

 

 

Blessings From God :: By Nathele Graham

One of the interesting facts of Scripture is a “rule” that the first time a word is used, we need to pay attention. For instance, the word “bless” is first seen in Genesis, when God is speaking with Abram. Abram, later known as Abraham, lived in a very pagan culture filled with idol worship. When a person comes to faith, it’s important to leave the pagan world of sin behind and serve the Lord. So, it was with Abram.

“Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I will shew thee: 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 12:1-3).

God had great plans for Abram, but first Abram had to leave the pagan life behind. Things haven’t changed all that much over the years. Each of us has a calling from God, but we hinder God when we hold tightly to our sinful ways, and we miss God’s blessings. As Christians, we are to leave our worldly ways behind and live to honor God.

But ye have not so learned Christ; If so be that ye have heard him and have been taught by him, as the truth is in Jesus: that ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts: and be renewed in the spirit of your mind; and that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness” (Ephesians 4:20-24).

“Conversation,” of course, means our way of life. Like Abram, Christians must leave the sins of the world behind in order to be blessed by God.

Abram couldn’t possibly know just how blessed he would be because of his choice to obey God. He had been comfortable with his life, but the pagan ways were all he knew, and he wasn’t able to imagine a different life for himself. He loved his father and family, and although he and his wife hadn’t been blessed with children, he loved Sarai. Idol worship wasn’t offensive to him because it was all he knew. There was nobody to show him a better way.

When he finally heard God’s voice calling him from his ungodly way of life, he was smart enough to answer the call. He still had struggles, but he was truly blessed. He fathered two sons. The first was Ishmael, who was conceived with his wife’s maid. Abram loved him, but Ishmael was conceived in a way that didn’t honor God and didn’t fulfill God’s promise. Isaac was the son who was promised by God, and he would be the one the nation of Israel would come through.

In his letter to the Galatians, Paul wrote explaining the difference between bondage to the Law and the freedom found in Jesus. “For it is written, that Abraham had two sons, the one by a bondmaid, the other by a freewoman. But he who was of the bondwoman was born after the flesh; but he of the freewoman was by promise. Which things are an allegory: for these are the two covenants; the one from the mount Sinai, which gendereth to bondage, which is Agar” (Galatians 4:22-24).

Ishmael, born of the bondwoman Haggar, symbolizes the Old Covenant under the Law, while Isaac, born from Abraham’s wife Sarah, symbolizes freedom according to God’s promises. He is the one through whom the Messiah would ultimately be born. The entire world is blessed because of God’s promise. There are many Christians who think they need to follow Jewish Law, and by doing so, they miss out on the blessings that come from the New Covenant through Christ.

Abram was promised blessings, but he first had to leave his pagan life. When he obeyed God, he would be led to a land given to him by God, and he would become the father of a great nation. History proves this all to be true. The nation of Israel is truly a great nation, and the world has been blessed because of them. Israel has given the world some marvelous inventions, such as a way to get drinking water out of air.

The greatest way the Jewish people have blessed the world is through Jesus, the Messiah. Unfortunately, many people miss out on the blessing He offers because of a lack of faith and a blatant rejection of a Christian way of life. Most Jewish people, including their religious leaders, don’t accept their Messiah.

The United States has been very supportive of Israel lately, and I’m thankful for President Trump’s stand on Israel. Why, then, does it seem as if the blessings on America are missing? Why are prices going sky-high? Why has the weather been very severe lately, with many destructive storms? I’ve given this a lot of thought, and the verse that comes to my mind comes from the Old Testament and is actually directed at the Jewish people. Still, I see the truth found in it applies to Christians also.

If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land” (2 Chronicles 7:14).

In order to be blessed by God, Abram had to leave his pagan life, but too many people today who claim to be Christians want to be blessed by God but don’t want to leave their sin behind. How many people who sit in pews want the blessings of being forgiven and plan on eternity in Heaven, but cling to their sin? Are they truly saved?

Have you turned from your wicked ways? Have you humbled yourself before the Lord? When we come to faith in Jesus, we need to understand that we are saved by faith, not by works, but true faith should change the way we live. If you’re a Christian woman who has a girlfriend, or a man who has a boyfriend, then you haven’t left your pagan ways behind.

Today’s pastors seem to be afraid to call sin, sin. They don’t want to embarrass anybody, nor do they want to judge anyone. When we use Scripture as a guide, then it’s God’s word judging actions, and we must follow God’s truth. It’s wrong to say that God doesn’t care how we behave as long as we say we are Christians. Scripture is God-breathed and is our guide in life.

The Apostle Paul spoke against sin and didn’t mince words. When he wrote to the believers in Corinth, he spoke to them as brothers and sisters in Christ, but spoke strongly against their acceptance of sin.

Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves. Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates?” (2 Corinthians 13:5).

That word “reprobate” might sound harsh, but human souls are at stake. Modern translations aren’t quite so harsh as King James, but the question is whether or not, when you examine yourself as to whether or not you are living to please God, have you failed the test? Scripture, read in context, is your guide. A wise person will judge their own life against Scripture and will do whatever possible to live to please God.

Many Christians talk of revival and pray it will happen. It would be wonderful if there were a worldwide revival and a pouring out of the Holy Spirit with all the blessings promised from God. It won’t happen unless Christians lead the way and humble themselves before God, and turn from their wicked ways. We aren’t to condemn those who fall short of our own idea of perfection, but we need to welcome those who are seeking forgiveness of their sins and lead them to a blessed life in Christ.

One example of revival is described in the Old Testament. It was led by King Hezekiah. It seems as if the Jewish people had stopped honoring God and failed to celebrate Passover properly. When a nation, even Israel, doesn’t honor God, He allows them to fall into bad times. It’s interesting to me that, even though Passover was a foreshadowing of the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus, Christians choose to celebrate this blessing on a pagan holiday and embrace the pagan symbolism of rabbits and eggs. Then we want His blessings.

King Hezekiah was only 25 years old when he became king in Israel, but he was a very good king. “And he did that which was right in the sight of the LORD, according to all that David his father had done” (2 Chronicles 29:2).

The leader of any nation sets the standards, and Hezekiah led his people back into a stronger respect for God. Liberal ideas will always lead away from God, so when electing government leaders, vote according to which candidate has ideals that honor God. Hezekiah saw that the priests weren’t following the Law, and he told them to sanctify themselves.

I’m not the leader of anything, but I can see that many pastors have dropped the ball and don’t respect Scripture. That’s evident when they officiate at a same-sex “marriage” or aren’t bothered when members of the congregation live together in sinful relationships; very few teach line upon line from God’s word. The Apostle Paul encouraged the young pastor Timothy to stay true to God’s truth.

Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine” (2 Timothy 4:2).

He wasn’t concerned about keeping the collection plate full, but was concerned about people’s souls. If we want blessings from God, we must honor Him with our lives.

King Hezekiah did bring about a revival in Israel, and God’s blessings were upon His chosen people. That same spirit of revival can happen in any nation, but Scripture must be honored. Blessing Israel will bring blessings according to the promise God gave to Abram.

America has a chance for revival now that we have a president who is standing strong with Israel. President Trump isn’t blind, like many nations, to the atrocities that have been inflicted upon Israel. Christians must stop allowing colleges to teach liberal lunacy and antisemitism; we must insist that our children aren’t indoctrinated into sinful lifestyles in government-run schools. We must realize that to receive God’s blessings, we must honor God no matter what the world dictates. The world follows Satan, but Christians belong to God.

Once again, we can turn to the Old Testament and get a lesson in following God. Joshua was a man who trusted God when others crumbled in fear. It was Joshua and Caleb whom God used to clear the Promised Land of the evil Nephilim and the pagan ways found there. Joshua stood strong on God’s truth, and before the whole congregation of Israel, he declared:

And if it seem evil unto you to serve the LORD, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD” (Joshua 25:15).

Men, where are you? Are you leading your family closer to God? I urge you to take your God-ordained role of leadership and lead your family to a strong faith in God and honor Him.

God’s blessings are waiting for all of us, but we need to honor Him with our lives. We need to turn from our wicked ways and humbly serve Jesus. We can’t do that when we live with one foot in the world.

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

Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: they shall prosper that love thee” (Psalm 122:6).