PROPHECY UPDATE.............10/25/2022

 

Israel’s Future Restoration Validates Our Hope as New Testament Saints – Jonathan Brentner - https://www.jonathanbrentner.com/https/jonathan-brentner-g8fgsquarespacecom/config/2022/10/24/israels-future-restoration-validates-our-glorious-hope   “Israel’s future guarantees our salvation.”   Amir Tsarfati began his sermon with these words while speaking a few years ago at Calvary Chapel Church in Kaneohe, Hawaii, JD Farag’s church. As I listened to his message and thought about his startling claim, I realized his assertion was totally correct.   In my book, The Triumph of the Redeemed, I wrote the following:   “Consider this: If God can break His covenants with such Old Testament champions of the faith as Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and David, what does that say about His promises regarding our salvation? If God can renege on His unconditional promises to Israel, ones He repeated many times throughout the writings of the prophets and in the Psalms, what does that say about our security?”[i]   As I demonstrated in my previous post, both Israel’s future and our security as New Testament saints rest upon both God’s promises and character. Those who believe that God has replaced Israel spiritually with the church (the essence of replacement theology), also erode our hope in Jesus’ imminent return for His church because our expectation also rests upon the veracity of God’s Word and His attributes.   That’s why I always begin my defense of the pre-Tribulation Rapture with biblical evidence regarding the Lord’s future restoration of a kingdom to Israel. It’s the first step in validating our glorious hope in Jesus’ appearing.   We know that God will someday restore a kingdom to Israel because:   1. THE FATHER CANNOT BREAK HIS PROMISE TO HIS SON.   In Psalm 2:7-8, we read this promise of the Father to the Son,   “The Lord said to me, ‘You are my Son; today I have begotten you. Ask of me, and I will make the nations your heritage, and the ends of the earth your possession.’”   The pledge of the Father to the Son in these verses verifies that there will be a reign of Jesus on the earth at a time when sin is possible as evidenced by the need for the Lord to exercise severe discipline during His rule.   The context clarifies that this is a physical rule over the nations of the world during which time Jesus brandishes a “rod of iron” and dashes the nations “in pieces like a potter’s vessel” (Psalm 2:9-10).   Psalm 2 cannot apply spiritually to the church age since Jesus never deals with believers in such a manner. Nor can it represent Jesus’ rule in the eternal state since sin is present.   The only possible fulfillment for the words of Psalm 2 is the future thousand-year rule of Christ, which we refer to as the millennium because of the repeated reference to a thousand years in Revelation 20:1-10.   2. A FUTURE RESTORED ISRAEL MAINTAINS THE INTEGRITY OF SCRIPTURE   One cannot deny the reality of a restored kingdom for Israel and at the same time interpret the prophetic words of Scripture in the way the authors intended them at the time they wrote them.   Zechariah prophesied about a time after Jesus’ crucifixion when a great number of the Israelites would repent and recognize Jesus as their Messiah. Using references in the context that cannot apply to anyone else, the prophet foresaw a time when Jacob’s descendants would recognize the One “they have pierced” as their true Messiah and weep signifying their regret and repentance (Zech. 12:10-13:1).   Zechariah 14:9 later depicts the Lord as “king over all the earth.” This occurs in Jerusalem during a time when rebellion remains possible on the earth (see vv. 16-19). The prophet is not talking about a spiritual reign, nor can one apply these words to the eternal state since there’s again the possibility of disobedience and sin in the context. The words must refer to Jesus’ reign over the nations from Jerusalem.   If Scripture can mean one thing when written and have an entirely different sense at a later time, then we would no longer be able to trust it. That’s why we must reject the retrofitting of God’s promises to Israel in order to make them apply spiritually to the church.   3. THE CONSISTENCY OF BIBLICAL INTERPRETATION   When Dr. David Reagan, Bible Scholar and founder of the Lamb and Lion Ministry, appeared on Jan Markell’s radio show, he explained how he came to believe in a future restoration of the nation of Israel. It happened as he noticed how Jesus literally fulfilled all the prophecies in the book of Zechariah related to His first coming. That led Dr. Reagan to conclude that there must be a literal fulfillment for the prophecies that remained unfulfilled regarding Israel and Jesus’ future reign.   The consistency of Bible interpretation demands that we apply a literal interpretation to texts that speak of a future restoration of Israel.   Isaiah 9:6-7 shows how consistency of interpretation necessitates Christ’s millennial rule. Those who deny a future for Israel agree that Jesus fulfilled this passage when He came into the world as a baby in Bethlehem. However, they switch to a much different mode of interpretation and suddenly regard words in this closely knit text regarding Christ’s future rule from the “throne of David” as merely symbolic.   If that is the case, why would the angel Gabriel repeat these words from this passage when he announced the Savior’s birth to Mary (Luke 1:32-33)? Why would he tell Mary that Jesus would “reign over the house of Jacob forever” if the passage in Isaiah is symbolic rather than literal? These words relate to a physical kingdom, which is the only possible way that Mary could have understood the words of Gabriel at the time.   4. THE SUN IS SHINING OUTSIDE MY OFFICE WINDOW   Lest you think I’m crazy for including this as an argument for Israel’s future restoration, let me refer you to Jeremiah 31:35-40.   Those who subscribe to the errant teaching that God has replaced Israel with the church, tell us that the descendants of Jacob no longer exist as a viable nation in God’s sight. The Lord Himself nixes such teaching in Jeremiah 31:35-36:   Thus says the LORD, who gives the sun for light by day    and the fixed order of the moon and the stars for light by night, who stirs up the sea so that its waves roar—    the Lord of hosts is his name: “If this fixed order departs    from before me, declares the Lord, then shall the offspring of Israel cease    from being a nation before me forever.”   According to the words of the Lord, the continuing existence of the sun, moon, and stars tell us that Israel remains a nation in His sight. And as if He anticipated those who would seek a faulty spiritual interpretation of this these words, God added a physical description of places in and around Jerusalem stating that after the city’s future restoration, “It shall not be plucked up or overthrown anymore forever” (Jeremiah 31:38-40).   So yes, the sun shining outside my window today confirms Israel’s continuing existence as a nation because the Lord gave us that as one of the signs of it.   5. DENYING WHAT THE BIBLE SAYS ABOUT ISRAEL’S RESTORATION OPENS THE DOOR TO HERESY   History demonstrates that over time, replacement theology leads to a further erosion of biblical truth thereby opening the door to further doctrinal error. When one retrofits biblical texts in order to make the physical prophecies of a kingdom apply spiritually to the church rather than physically to Israel, it always erodes the integrity of God’s Word. Such teaching always, always leads to heresy over time!   The events of January of 2020 show how such denying a kingdom for Israel leads to a further erosion of biblical truth. It was then that churches in Scotland and England, long immersed replacement theology, disinvited Franklin Graham to speak because of his views on the LGBTQ agenda. Bryan Kerr, a Church of Scotland pastor in Lanark said this, “Franklin Graham isn’t the voice of Christianity.”   Replacement theology, amillennialism, always, over time, opens the door to heresy. Without fail.   The apostle Paul clearly stated that “God has not rejected Israel” (Romans 11:1-2). The proponents of replacement theology tell us that the Lord has rejected Israel. Can you see from just thus one example how this errant doctrine erodes confidence in the words of Scripture and later leads to heresy?   6. GOD SAYS THAT HIS COVENANT OF THE LAND WITH ISRAEL IS EVERLASTING   God could not have made it any clearer than He did in Chronicles 16:14-16 and Psalm 105:8-11. In these texts, the Lord states that His covenant of the land with Abraham, Isaac, and the descendants of Jacob remains in effect forever. Why would God say it’s “an everlasting covenant” if he did not intend us to understand it “as an everlasting covenant?”   If the Lord says something is “everlasting,” it’s exactly that! It just doesn’t just go away because of bad behavior or reach fulfillment in some other mysterious way. The promise of the Land for the descendants of Jacob remains in effect today.   7. THE SEVENTIETH WEEK OF DANIEL 9:24-27 REMAINS UNFULFILLED TO THS DAY   In a previous post, The Biblical Necessity of a Third Jewish Temple, I follow the thread of prophecies from Daniel 9:27 through the New Testament demonstrating that Daniel’s prophecy regarding the antichrist’s desecration of a future Jewish temple remains unfulfilled. Please go to this post for a thorough argument as to why the seventieth week of Daniel, something exclusively for Israel, remains unfulfilled.   Since the antichrist’s sacrilege of the Jewish temple during this final week of years remains unfulfilled, the entire seventieth week of Daniel 9:24-27 also awaits a future fulfillment. The full scope of God’s purposes for choosing Israel has not yet reached completion.   There must be a time when God’s attention returns to the descendants of Jacob. This alone makes it impossible for one to claim that God has replaced Israel with the church.   8. JESUS’ RESPONSE TO THE DISCIPLES’ QUESTION VERIFIES GOD’S INTENT TO RESTORE ISRAEL   In Acts 1:6, the disciples asked Jesus this question moments before His ascension; “Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel” (Acts 1:6)?   The Savior responded to their question with these words, “It is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by his own authority.” (Acts 1:7)   Please notice that Jesus did not contradict, ridicule, or refute the premise of their question that He would restore a kingdom to Israel. Instead, He simply told his disciples they could not know the timing of this restoration as it was something the Father alone had “fixed by his own authority.”   In the Old Testament, the Lord repeatedly promised to “restore the fortunes” of Israel. The disciples had a firm scriptural basis for their question regarding the future restoration of Israel, one that Jesus did not refute or contradict.   9. ISRAEL’S MIRACULOUS REEMERGENCE AS A NATION IS A NECESSARY FIRST STEP IN THE FULFILLMENT OF END TIME PROPHECY   Besides the above reasons, we recognize God’s hand at work in the miraculous emergence of Israel as a nation in 1948 and in God’s supernatural defense and preservation of the nation ever since that time.   Perhaps the most tragic error of those that promote replacement theology is that they remain blind to the signs of the time and don’t believe that we live in the last days. They fail to see that Israel’s reappearance as a nation was a necessary first step in the fulfillment of end time biblical prophecy.   Just as the Lord keeps His covenants with and promises to Israel, He will also keep His Word to us and will someday catch us up to meet Him in the air (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18). Count on it!   In my next post, I will provide solid biblical evidence supporting the fact that Jesus will come for His church before the start of the seven-year Tribulation.   My book, The Triumph of the Redeemed-An eternal Perspective that Calms Our Fears in Perilous Times, is available on Amazon. In it, I provide much more detail regarding the absolute biblical necessity of a restored Israel and the refutation of the false teaching of replacement theology.   Note: Please consider signing up for my newsletter on the home page of my website at https://www.jonathanbrentner.com/ . It will greatly help me reach more people. Thanks!   [i] Jonathan C. Brentner, The Triumph of the Redeemed (Crane, MO: Defender Publishing, 2021), p. 43.

12 Reasons Why It Is Impossible for Any Rational Person To Be Optimistic About The U.S. Economy At This Point - by Michael Snyder - http://theeconomiccollapseblog.com/12-reasons-why-it-is-impossible-for-any-rational-person-to-be-optimistic-about-the-u-s-economy-at-this-point/   Things haven’t looked this bad for the U.S. economy since 2008. We are in the midst of the worst inflation crisis in decades, the housing market has started to collapse, some of the largest companies in America have begun laying off workers, and economic activity is slowing down all around us. Of course, Joe Biden is telling us that our economy is “strong as hell”, but that is just because he wants his party to do well in the upcoming elections. Ultimately, anyone that takes a truly objective view of things is forced to admit that the outlook for the months ahead is incredibly bleak. The following are 12 reasons why it is impossible for any rational person to be optimistic about the U.S. economy at this point…   #1 According to a recent Gallup survey, two-thirds of Americans believe that economic conditions are getting worse. When such a large proportion of the population starts behaving as though an economic downturn is coming, that actually makes an economic downturn even more likely. So many Americans are starting to hold on to their money more tightly, and that is having lots of ripple effects.   #2 The second largest auto lender in the United States just announced that it “saw charge-offs for retail auto loans quadruple in the third quarter”. We are also seeing credit card delinquencies start to rise. We certainly aren’t at 2008 levels yet, but we are moving in that direction.   #3 Cargo traffic at the Port of Los Angeles just declined to the lowest level that we have seen since the early days of the pandemic. As I noted earlier, economic activity is beginning to slow down all over the nation. One recent survey discovered that 98 percent of corporate CEOs believe that a recession is coming, and those CEOs are behaving accordingly.   #4 Major retailers such as Walmart and Target have been canceling billions of dollars in orders as they seek to cut back inventory levels. In all my years, I have never seen our largest retailers cancel so many orders just prior to the holiday season. Are they expecting the next couple of months to be a total bust?   #5 Existing home sales just fell to a 10 year low. We all knew that the housing market was going to implode once the Federal Reserve started to aggressively raise interest rates, but at this point that implosion is happening faster than most of the experts had anticipated.   #6 U.S. homebuilder sentiment has declined for 10 months in a row. That is a brand new record. I really feel sorry for you if you are a homebuilder or if you work for one. The months ahead are not going to be pleasant for you.   #7 60,000 real estate deals were called off in the month of September alone. I was stunned when I first saw that number. All over the country buyers are realizing that they agreed to pay too much and are feverishly trying to back out of deals while they still can.   #8 Mortgage demand has plunged to the lowest level in 25 years. Things never even got this bad during the downturn of 2008 and 2009. To me, this is a really troubling sign.   #9 Ian Sheperdson, the chief economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics, is projecting that home prices could fall 20 percent over the next year. Hopefully that will not happen, but there is also a possibility that they could fall even further than that. We will just have to wait and see how rapidly this new crisis plays out.   #10 U.S. diesel inventories have fallen to the lowest level since 2008. This is something that we will want to watch very carefully, because the U.S. economy runs on diesel.   #11 The core consumer price index has just surged to “the highest level since 1982”. Even though the Federal Reserve has been on an insane rate hiking spree, our inflation crisis continues to rage out of control. And as prices continue to soar, our standard of living is being absolutely eviscerated.   #12 A model created by Bloomberg economists Anna Wong and Eliza Winger indicates that there is a 100 percent chance of a recession within the next 12 months. Of course it is entirely possible that their model could be wrong. But without a doubt this is not a good sign.   Right now, even some of our society’s most relentless optimists are warning that tough economic times are ahead.   For instance, in a post on Twitter Elon Musk just suggested that we could be suffering through a recession until the spring of 2024…   If Elon Musk is any type of financial prognosticator, the market and economy could be in trouble for more than a year to come.   When prompted in a Twitter thread early on Friday morning, the Tesla CEO said that he thought the current recession would last “probably until spring of ’24”.   Because he is such an optimist, Musk believes that economic conditions will turn around eventually.   But what if they don’t?   What if the “perfect storm” that we are currently enduring ultimately results in the collapse of everything?   Are you prepared for such a scenario?   Previous generations of Americans handed us the keys to the most prosperous economy that the world has ever seen.   But instead of managing it carefully, we have piled up the biggest mountain of debt in the history of the planet, we have transformed Wall Street into the globe’s largest casino, and we have systematically destroyed the reserve currency of the world.   Thanks to a very long series of incredibly foolish decisions by our leaders, we are now facing a war with Russia, a collapse of the housing market, a global food crisis, a global inflation crisis and a worldwide financial meltdown simultaneously.   The entire system is starting to crumble all around us, but most people still believe that things will “return to normal” at some point.   Personally, I would love to see things “return to normal”, but unfortunately it appears that is not likely to happen any time soon.

Prophecy Update Videos

Prophecy Update: God Warned Us! – Pastor Tom Hughes Prophecy Update: Batten Down the Hatches! – Pastor Tom Hughes & John Haller The MESSIAH is COMING!!! – Pastor James Kaddis In The Meantime – Pastor Barry Stagner

Nearing Midnight: The Creeping Avalanche of Absurdity – Too Strandberg - https://www.raptureready.com/category/nearing-midnight/   Now, all avalanches involve an event that is over in a few seconds. Some earth movements take place over a very long period of time. They are very hard to manage because most normally involve a vast area of land. I think we are in a prophetic creeping avalanche of profound, willful ignorance.   The protest group Animal Rebellion went into shops all over the UK last week and started smashing milk containers onto the floor. The UK activists’ reason for pouring out milk in supermarkets is to stop Oil and Gas production and to have a plant-based future. Milk was targeted because they claim Dairy and cattle farms are responsible for more greenhouse gas emissions than oil giants like Exxon, Shell, and BP.   “Birds Aren’t Real” is a satirical conspiracy theory that claims birds are actually drones operated by the United States government to spy on Americans. Birds Aren’t Real hosted its “biggest rally ever” in Washington Square Park on Saturday, Oct. 15. Hundreds of participants crowded the north side of the park, holding signs that expressed a range of anti-avian sentiments, including “Birds Aren’t Real,” “Open Your Eyes,” “Pigeons Are Liars” and “Wake Up America.” Every time a flock of birds circled the Washington Square Arch, participants would boo.   The founder of Birds Aren’t Real sees his movement’s acts as a protest of more detestable causes like pro-life and anti-LGBTQ groups. He told one reporter that his opponents are likely accustomed to the standard counterprotesters: debaters that try to fight with reason. But this time, you come at them with signs and chants that say, “Birds aren’t real!” How do they respond to that? They would likely respond by saying this is an exercise in idiocy and an opportunity for people to question their life goals.   The dumbest statement so far came from PayPal. The online financial transfer company attempted to slip past its user base with terms that would have allowed it to fine them as much as $2,500 for “the sending, posting, or publication of any messages, content, or materials” that “promote misinformation.”   The company quickly backed off from its plan, saying it was a mistake that should have never been posted. This isn’t an error. It’s social media’s standard plan of attack, where it’s two steps forward, one step back. It would be crazy just 10 years ago for a financial firm to post their willingness to steal from clients because they don’t like their political views.   The insanity in the criminal world has people willing to ignore life and property over the smallest offense. The New York police spent nearly two weeks tracking down a man for setting a local Asian restaurant on fire.   Choephel Norbu, 49, admitted to setting Ittadi Garden and Grill in Jackson Heights ablaze on the morning of Oct. 2 after the Bangladeshi restaurant’s staff allegedly botched his order the night before. He was released just one day after his arrest for setting the fire because those charges do not require bail under New York’s criminal justice reform.   “I was very drunk. I bought chicken biryani. They didn’t give me chicken biryani. I was mad, and I threw it out,” Norbu told police following his arrest, according to the New York Post. In New York, so many are let out of jail within 24 hours, you would have to be Donald Trump’s New York property manager to serve any hard time.   The buzzwords of New York City crime circa 2022: Random and unprovoked. A chilling spate of recent incidents involving innocent victims runs the gamut from a woman savagely beaten inside a Queens subway station to a 17-year-old Brooklyn girl killed by a stray bullet to a Mexican immigrant nearly killed by a sucker-punch outside a Manhattan restaurant. The NYPD does not keep count of random or unprovoked attacks committed by the mentally ill — or anyone else.   Our lack of a biblical moral foundation has caused this meltdown in our society. I don’t like that it can be described as slow and relentless. The relentless part I can stand because when things finally break, the whole system will go at once.   “It will be righteousness for us if we are careful to observe all this commandment before the Lord our God, just as He commanded us” (Deuteronomy 6:25).   “Where there is no vision, the people are unrestrained, But happy is he who keeps the law” (Proverbs 29:18).

When Peace Equals Destruction – Scott Savell - https://www.rev310.net/post/when-peace-equals-destruction   “His power will be mighty, but not by his own power, and he will destroy to an extraordinary degree and prosper and perform his will; he will destroy mighty men and the holy people. And through his shrewdness he will cause deceit to succeed by his influence; and he will magnify himself in his heart, and through peace he shall destroy many. He will even oppose the Prince of princes, but he will be broken without human agency” (Daniel 8:24-25).   According to Wikipedia, “Peace is a concept of societal friendship and harmony in the absence of hostility and violence.” This understanding of peace is passive in nature. It is the absence of war or other hostilities. Peace like this often seems elusive. Even when countries agree to peace terms, those terms often hang by a thread with the smallest misunderstanding resulting in a loss of peace and a return to hostilities.   Christianity affirms God alone is the source of true peace. The Bible teaches peace is possible but only through Jesus Christ. Through faith in Jesus and His finished work of redemption we can have spiritual peace with God (Romans 5:1). But the Bible also speaks of peace in the Age to Come.   This peace will be achieved through Jesus Christ at His Second Coming when righteousness and justice will prevail for one thousand years (Revelation 20:4). Final judgment and the eternal state will commence shortly thereafter (Revelation 21). Leading up to His return to this earth, Jesus reminds us there will be “wars and rumors of wars” (Matthew 24:4).   The Bible further predicts there will be hostilities and other unrest in that part of the world the biblical prophets were concerned about—Israel and the Middle East. Peace for this region, according to Bible prophecy, would seem elusive but a false peace would come at some future time when a man more cunning than anyone imaginable comes on the scene and seemingly brokers peace between Israel and her enemies.   Once again, the Bible bats one thousand when it comes to predicting the future. This time, the evidence points to two categories of events I like to call the anticipation for peace in the Middle East and addiction to Jerusalem. Consider this article that appeared in The Jerusalem Post on October 17, 2022—Israel slams Australia for revoking Jerusalem capital recognition—“The Australian government cited its belief that the status of Jerusalem should be resolved through peace negotiations.” No one seems to be concerned about the status of any other city on the planet except Jerusalem. Amazingly, this is exactly what the Bible predicts for the last days.   The quest for an elusive peace in the Middle East and the refusal to recognize Jerusalem as the eternal capital of the Jewish people not only indicates the biblical prophets got it right. It also indicates things are falling right into place on the road to Daniel’s Seventieth Week (Daniel 9:24-27). Again, from the article: “Australian Foreign Ministry Penny Wong said, “Jerusalem is a final status issue that should be resolved as part of any peace negotiations [and] recommits Australia to international efforts in the responsible pursuit of progress towards a just and enduring two-state solution.”   The quest for an elusive peace in the Middle East points to a future time when a man comes on the scene who will seemingly broker the greatest peace deal the world has ever known. This peace deal, however, will end in destruction—“Through peace he shall destroy many” (Daniel 8:25). Furthermore, the Bible predicts the utter destruction of those who concern themselves with trying to tamper with or otherwise change the biblical status of Jerusalem as it relates to the Jewish people and God's everlasting covenant with them—“Behold, I am going to make Jerusalem a cup that causes reeling to all the peoples around… It will come about in that day that I will make Jerusalem a heavy stone for all the peoples; all who lift it will be severely injured” (Zechariah 12:2-3). World leaders are drunk over the status of Jerusalem, and it will not end well for them—just as the Bible predicts.   Finally, are you ready to see Jesus face-to-face? He’s coming soon for His bride—the church. Come to Jesus, confess your sin, and receive His free gift of forgiveness and eternal life.

Daily Jot: It takes just one - Bill Wilson – www.dailyjot.com   Along about 1992, our 14 year-old son brought home a brochure from school. This brochure was stirring up a lot of commotion on the bus. Kids were passing it, and others like it, around, showing it to the younger kids on the bus, embarrassing the young girls and causing a lot of disruption for the bus driver. When Ty showed it to me, I was appalled. This brochure was very explicit about showing cartoon-ish drawings on how to put on a condom, examples of “pillow talk” with your partner, and facts about sexually transmitted diseases. The brochure was every bit a pornographic infomercial for teen sex. I asked him where he got it and he said from a “career day” field trip to the local hospital.   He said the field trip didn’t really have much to do with careers as it did with information about sex. I couldn’t remember signing a permission slip for him to leave the school premises for a field trip. I asked my wife about it and she said she didn’t sign any permission slip either. So I proceeded to write an open letter to the Superintendent of Schools describing in detail the contents of the brochure, the fact that as parents we were not informed that our child would be removed from the school to attend the “career day,” and the we did not, nor would we give permission for our son to attend such a field trip. The Superintendent of Schools was the former chairman of the Democratic Party in that county. I was the current Republican Party chairman. The local newspaper published the letter.   I then took off to Ghana, West Africa where we were in the beginning stages of our ministry efforts there. Phone communication was very sketchy and a few days later, I finally was able to connect with my wife Chris. She told me that I had stirred up a lot of trouble with that letter. Apparently, parents were so upset that several mothers picketed the school board meeting, causing both radio, television and newspaper coverage. The school board, concerned that my wife and I would sue them, made the Superintendent issue a public apology. And he and his democrat buddies, who tried to sneak in an abhorrent sex promotion under the guise of promoting careers for young people, were forced to cease and desist. That was 30 years ago in a mostly rural Virginia county. You see how these things start.   It’s certainly mild compared with today’s struggle of LGBTQ+ activists grooming kids for sexual perversion, putting sandboxes in school restrooms because some kids think they are cats, the whole pronoun issue, and the list goes on. And yes, if you stand up to it, you might get labeled a terrorist by the Biden Administration and have the FBI give you a visit. See how far this has gone? Also see that one person, me in the aforementioned example, caused a policy change. The Lord God honors this as evidenced in Ezekiel 22:30, “So I sought for a man among them who would make a wall, and stand in the gap before Me on behalf of the land, that I should not destroy it.” As these issues and election day come upon us, let’s not allow the last part of that verse to ring true: “but I found no one.” It takes just one, maybe you.

Daily Devotion: Now Leaving Yesterday - by Greg Laurie – www.dailyjot.com   So, he left all, rose up, and followed Him. - Scripture: Luke 5:28   https://harvest.org/resources/devotion/now-leaving-yesterday/ - Listen   As an agent of Rome, Matthew knew that once he abandoned his post as a tax collector, he could never return to it. He knew the cost of his action and willingly paid it.   Of all the disciples of Jesus, Matthew made the greatest sacrifice as far as material possessions were concerned. He left his career, his livelihood. In a moment’s notice, he left everything he had to follow Christ.   I think he would have agreed with this statement from the apostle Paul: “But what things were gain to me, these I have counted loss for Christ. Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ” (Philippians 3:7–8 NLT).   Matthew 9:9 tells us, “As Jesus passed on from there, He saw a man named Matthew sitting at the tax office. And He said to him, ‘Follow Me.’ So he arose and followed Him” (NKJV).   However, Matthew modestly left out a little detail that Luke’s gospel fills in: “So he left all, rose up, and followed Him” (5:28 NKJV, emphasis added).   Matthew left a lot to follow Jesus Christ. When we really encounter Jesus, we will leave our old lives fast enough. Our old habits, standards, and practices will no longer appeal to us. We will gladly leave these behind.   Sure, Matthew lost a few things, but what he gained was far better. He lost a career and gained a destiny. He lost his material possessions and gained a spiritual fortune. And he lost his temporary security but gained eternal life. Matthew lost his emptiness and loneliness, and he found fulfillment and companionship.   Matthew gave up everything that the world had to offer and found Jesus.