President Putin, Syria and Battle of Gog and Magog

Not only will events in the Mid-East not “settle down”, they are rapidly being “ratcheted up” with President Putin of Russia insinuating himself in events between the United States and Syria by posing an alternative to America’s intervention in Syria.  That being, Mr. Assad, ruler of Syria, turn over all “weapons of mass destruction” to a 3^rd party, pending some sort of verification.  What a dramatic change of events.  Perhaps more dramatic than seen at first glance.

Consider this.  President Putin has with this one stroke consolidated his and Russia’s hegemony in the Mid-East bringing to the forefront the possibility of the battle of “Gog and Magog”.  In this a leader from the north (of Israel) develops a coalition of nations that will attack Israel, coming through Syria and Iran.

Joel Rosenberg, writer and speaker, is “all over the map” (radio & TV interviews, blogs, addresses in America and abroad) speaking of the possibilities of the battle of “Gog and Magog”.  The issue here is to “hold our peace” because we know the G-d of all history has things under control.  At this point the issue simply needs to be raised: is Putin's so dramatically entering into the situation in Syria the precursor to the Battle of "Gog and Magog"?  Keep watch.   

A Prayer for Israel

Almighty G-d, G-d of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the G-d and Father of our Savior, Jesus Christ, we humbly bow before you and acknowledge that you are the only G-d and that beside You there is none other.

On behalf of Israel we pray using the words of Ezekiel the Prophet:  Sanctify Your great name which has been profaned among the nations by your servant Israel.  Then nations shall know that the Lord is G-d, when He is sanctified in Israel before their eyes.  Sprinkle the clean water of Your Word on Israel and cleanse her from her filthiness and from all idols, including abortion and the occult.  Give Israel a new heart, and put a new spirit within her.  Remove her heart of stone and give her a heart of flesh that can respond to the Holy Spirit, and cause her to walk in Your statutes, keep Your commandments and do them.  (Ezekiel 36:23-27).

Destroy and divide the tongues of those who speak against Israel.  In the name of Jesus, the Messiah, we bind every false religion and false doctrine that does not acknowledge Your eternal plan for the land and people of Israel.  (Psalm 55:9).

Lord, it is You Who brings the counsel of the nations to nothing; Who makes their plans of no effect.  We declare that G-d’s purposes for Israel will be completely fulfilled and that He will be glorified. (Psalm 33:10).

Show Your loving kindness to Your people Israel and keep them as the apple of Your eye.  Hide them under the shadow of Your wings, from the wicked who oppress them, from their deadly enemies who surround them.  (Psalm 17:7-9).

Let them all be confounded and turned back that hate Zion.  Let them be as grass upon the housetops, which withers before it grows up.  Lord, deal justly and swiftly with Your enemies.  (Psalm 129:5-6).

Cause people everywhere to understand, particularly in the Church, that there will not be peace in the world until there is peace in Israel.  For that reason we pray for those things that make for the peace of Jerusalem.  Primary among these is that You, Father G-d, remove the veil You have sovereignly placed over the eyes of Israel, that they would recognize Jesus as their Messiah.  (II Corinthians 3:14).

Finally, we acknowledge the fact that If Israel’s falling away resulted in the light of the Gospel going fully to the Gentile, what shall her return to the purposes of G-d for her mean but resurrection from the dead. (Romans 11:15).

Therefore we bless Israel in the mighty Name of Jesus, remembering how You promised to Abraham, “I will bless them that bless you and curse them that curse you” (Genesis 12:3).

All these thoughts we offer in the mighty name of Jesus, AMEN.

A Prayer of Repentance for the Church--September 9, 2012

O Lord, great and awesome God, Who Keeps covenant and mercy with those who love Him and do what Jesus commands:

We, the church, have sinned in open and secret ways, often vile beyond mentioning, and been overwhelmed with a sense of our own importance, not remembering that it was for Your good pleasure that we have been created, all this is a demonstration of our rebellion.

Our rebellion is so shameful in light of what Your Son, Jesus, has done for us: bearing in His own body the consequences of our sin and paying the price for that sin which was a shameful death upon the cross.  By our rebellion we have trampled underfoot His precious blood; the thought of which is shameful to us.

That shame is reflected in the fact that many of the buildings constructed to reflect Your glory, by Your presence there, do not even welcome your presence there, even consider such presence an intrusion—this is apostasy of the worst sort.

In a place where the preaching of Your word should be so precious and so highly esteemed, we pay it scant attention.  In our arrogance we have risen up to stand in judgment upon Your word, when all the while our greatest protection is that we should let Your word stand in judgment upon us.

We have trifled with Your word, boldly and ignorantly setting forth new meanings for what was clearly intended.  This has led to “self-deception”, the worst of all kinds of deception, that immediately comes to all those who “hear” your word and do not “do it”.

From the church outward, all about are consequences of rejecting Your word—it is shameful to us.  By contrast we are to be the city on a hill.  We are to be the light of the world. We are to be the salt of the earth.  Have we not failed in all these?  Your kingdom is not about to topple, but our country is and the best way we can set our country right is to turn in humble repentance to you.

And so we do, Lord.  We ask that You would bare the might of Your right arm on our behalf.  We ask that You would turn and have mercy upon us and that the power of Your might would chase away the sin that brazenly shows itself in our midst and all about.  Burn the sin out of our own hearts.  Take away from us a spirit of compromise that keeps us from loving You with all our hearts.  Create within us a zeal for holiness and a zeal to see Your kingdom come and Your Name exalted in every place.

Turn, turn and have mercy upon us; then shall we rejoice as Your kingdom is exalted among us.

In Jesus’ mighty name, we pray.  Amen.

O Lord, great and awesome God, Who Keeps covenant and mercy with those who love Him and do what Jesus commands:

We, the church, have sinned in open and secret ways, often vile beyond mentioning, and been overwhelmed with a sense of our own importance, not remembering that it was for Your good pleasure that we have been created, all this is a demonstration of our rebellion.

Our rebellion is so shameful in light of what Your Son, Jesus, has done for us: bearing in His own body the consequences of our sin and paying the price for that sin which was a shameful death upon the cross.  By our rebellion we have trampled underfoot His precious blood; the thought of which is shameful to us.

That shame is reflected in the fact that many of the buildings constructed to reflect Your glory, by Your presence there, do not even welcome your presence there, even consider such presence an intrusion—this is apostasy of the worst sort.

In a place where the preaching of Your word should be so precious and so highly esteemed, we pay it scant attention.  In our arrogance we have risen up to stand in judgment upon Your word, when all the while our greatest protection is that we should let Your word stand in judgment upon us.

We have trifled with Your word, boldly and ignorantly setting forth new meanings for what was clearly intended.  This has led to “self-deception”, the worst of all kinds of deception, that immediately comes to all those who “hear” your word and do not “do it”.

From the church outward, all about are consequences of rejecting Your word—it is shameful to us.  By contrast we are to be the city on a hill.  We are to be the light of the world. We are to be the salt of the earth.  Have we not failed in all these?  Your kingdom is not about to topple, but our country is and the best way we can set our country right is to turn in humble repentance to you.

And so we do, Lord.  We ask that You would bare the might of Your right arm on our behalf.  We ask that You would turn and have mercy upon us and that the power of Your might would chase away the sin that brazenly shows itself in our midst and all about.  Burn the sin out of our own hearts.  Take away from us a spirit of compromise that keeps us from loving You with all our hearts.  Create within us a zeal for holiness and a zeal to see Your kingdom come and Your Name exalted in every place.

Turn, turn and have mercy upon us; then shall we rejoice as Your kingdom is exalted among us.

In Jesus’ mighty name, we pray.  Amen.

O Lord, great and awesome God, Who Keeps covenant and mercy with those who love Him and do what Jesus commands:

We, the church, have sinned in open and secret ways, often vile beyond mentioning, and been overwhelmed with a sense of our own importance, not remembering that it was for Your good pleasure that we have been created.  All this is a demonstration of our rebellion.

Our rebellion is so shameful in light of what Your Son, Jesus, has done for us: bearing in His own body the consequences of our sin and paying the price for that sin which was a shameful death upon the cross.  By our rebellion we have trampled underfoot His precious blood; the thought of which is shameful to us.

That shame is reflected in the fact that many of the buildings constructed to reflect Your glory, by Your presence there, do not even welcome your presence there, even consider such presence an intrusion—this is apostasy of the worst sort.

In a place where the preaching of Your word should be so precious and so highly esteemed, we pay it scant attention.  In our arrogance we have risen up to stand in judgment upon Your word, when all the while our greatest protection is that we should let Your word stand in judgment upon us.

We have trifled with Your word, boldly and ignorantly setting forth new meanings for what was clearly intended.  This has led to “self-deception”, the worst of all kinds of deception, that immediately comes to all those who “hear” your word and do not “do it”.

From the church outward, all about are consequences of rejecting Your word—it is shameful to us.  By contrast we are to be the city on a hill.  We are to be the light of the world. We are to be the salt of the earth.  Have we not failed in all these?  Your kingdom is not about to topple, but our country is and the best way we can set our country right is to turn in humble repentance to you.

And so we do, Lord.  We ask that You would bare the might of Your right arm on our behalf.  We ask that You would turn and have mercy upon us and that the power of Your might would chase away the sin that brazenly shows itself in our midst and all about.  Burn the sin out of our own hearts.  Take away from us a spirit of compromise that keeps us from loving You with all our hearts.  Create within us a zeal for holiness and a zeal to see Your kingdom come and Your Name exalted in every place.

Turn, turn and have mercy upon us; then shall we rejoice as Your kingdom is exalted among us.

In Jesus’ mighty name, we pray.  Amen.

When Is Bad Good?

When is bad good?  To get “religious”, it’s when the purposes of God are advanced no matter the circumstance.  To further “muddy” the waters of distinction between “bad” and “good”, the Apostle Paul is so bold as to say, “And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose” (Romans 8:28).

Can it be much peace is lost because God’s children don’t understand the truth of His words, “’For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways,’ says the Lord” (Isaiah 55:8)?  We have our notions about the way a thing ought to be and in the process perhaps run afoul of a higher purpose operating in our lives than we dared imagine, leaving us frustrated and totally bereft of God’s peace.

Persecution can advance God’s cause in a hurry.  Right now in many a Muslim country Christian ranks are being swelled by the influx of persons “joining up” because of wars and persecution.  Joel Rosenberg in his book, Epicenter, in a chapter entitled “Muslims Turn to Christ in Record Numbers”, recounts instance after delightful instance of this phenomenon.  Moreover, most of these Muslims are having an encounter with the risen Lord (Jesus) who persuades them of His love for them.  Yet, difficulty after difficulty lies ahead for these new “believers”.  So what?!

Where did the notion come from that being a follower of Jesus was supposed to be easy?  When Jesus declared His followers would also be His “witnesses” (Acts 1:8), a little word study would help get us back on track.  The word “witness” comes from the Anglicized, Greek word, “martureo” from which we directly get the word “martyr”.  Further, Jesus said, “’A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you.  If they kept My word, they will keep yours also” (John 15:20).

Could we not conclude acceptance of the fact of God’s ways being both different and higher than ours opens the door to peace and understanding?  Have you been missing God’s peace?