Global March to Jerusalem

(Written by Donna Wasson)
Come on everybody, pack a picnic lunch, grab your honey and don’t forget the sunscreen ‘cause ya’ll are invited to participate in the Global March to Jerusalem, to be held on March 30^th! This event hopes to draw at least 1 million Arabs and their supporters to march on and attempt to infiltrate Israel’s borders, as well as demand freedom for Palestine and its capital, Jerusalem. What a party it promises to be!
Organized on the sly by Iran and approved by its supreme leader, the Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, this fun filled event is being presented as part of a new strategy designed to increase regional unity against the ‘Zionist occupation of Jerusalem’, and is based on the ‘Resistance Axis’, made up of Syria and various terrorists organizations, used as proxies by Iran. Apparently Iran is too shy to support this publically.

You Don’t Mess With Israel!

(Written by Donna Wasson)
Geesh! Some so-called Christians these days get on my last nerve. I made the mistake of reading the excellent article, So Jesus Lived in Occupied Territory, by Jan Markell, on the Rapture Ready website and got so disgusted I wanted to stick a pencil in somebody! Up until that point, I was blissfully unaware that an international conference called, Christ at the Checkpoint even existed. Blech!

Apparently this symposium, held in Bethlehem of all places, features some of the ‘intellectually elite Christian thinkers of our time.’ This yearly conference started in 2010 and its overall theme is, (hold your nose!) “Hope in the Midst of Conflict.”

Their aim is to, “provide an opportunity for Evangelical Christians to prayerfully seek proper awareness of issues of peace, justice and reconciliation in the context of the realities on the ground in the Palestinian territories.” What a load…

Peace And Safety

(Written by Jack Kelley)
Now, brothers, about times and dates we do not need to write to you, for you know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. While people are saying, “Peace and safety,” destruction will come on them suddenly, as labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape. (1 Thes. 5:1-3)

The one time when people are sure to talk about peace and safety, is just after they've experienced the horrible effects of war. For example, I remember as a kid seeing movies of people dancing in the streets of New York when they learned that World War 2 had finally ended. Soon the military was all but dismantled and people everywhere expressed a joyous expectation of peace.

Of course this turned out to be only an illusion. A scant five years after the end of WW2 the US was at war again in Korea. But people have an amazing sense of optimism, even if it's only based on illusion, something I think we're about to have confirmed again in 2012. I think circumstances are ripe for a brief but intense war in the Middle East.

The Powerful Delusion

(Written by Jack Kelley)
The coming of the lawless one will be in accordance with the work of Satan displayed in all kinds of counterfeit miracles, signs and wonders, and in every sort of evil that deceives those who are perishing. They perish because they refused to love the truth and so be saved. For this reason God sends them a powerful delusion so that they will believe the lie and so that all will be condemned who have not believed the truth but have delighted in wickedness. (2 Thes. 2:9-12)

It’s no secret that Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is preoccupied with the coming of a Shiite Islamic messiah figure, al Mahdi. This continues to raise concern that a nuclear-armed Iran would create the kind of global chaos he believes will be necessary to set the stage for the Mahdi’s return. Recent events seem to confirm this. For example, after years of promising that their nuclear ambitions are purely peaceful, Iran just announced their intention to test a 1 kiloton nuclear warhead this year. Iran’s Supreme Leader is thought to favor announcing Iran’s nuclear capability as an accomplished fact as soon as possible.

Life's Most Important Choices

(Written by Jack Kelley)
Recently I've been asked about witnessing to “unsaved believers” as one writer called them. I usually refer to them as Christians-in-name-only. They call themselves Christians and do some things that make them appear to be Christians. They go to Church, make regular contributions, sign up for volunteer service projects, even teach Sunday School, but they're not born again. Being born again means you know you're a sinner in need of a savior. You believe Jesus died for all your sins and have asked Him to be your Savior. According to Jesus, people who are not born again will be denied entrance into the Kingdom (John 3:3) no matter how “good” they've been on Earth.

Very few Christians-in-name-only have actually refused to be born again, they just don't think it's necessary. They were taught that they're saved because they were baptized as infants, or because they belong to a certain church or denomination, or because they try to live a good life. They're relying on what someone has told them instead of learning what the Bible says. With all the necessary resources at their disposal, they've staked their eternal destiny on the opinion of someone who might not be saved himself rather than do their own homework.

If I Could Just Go Back

(Written by Grant Phillips)
How many of us have sat alone, pondering over our past life, and thought “If I could just go back and do it over?” If everyone were honest with themselves, there would be none to say they haven’t, simply because none of us is perfect. Even the best of us would wish we could do something over. Some even have nothing more than a total mess to look back on.

The Apostle Paul said, “Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on (emphasis mine) toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 3:12-14 NIV)

Arab Spring - Hope or Concern?

(Written by Edward Wood)
For all those who are feeling elated at the downfall of dictators and what appears to be the spread of democracy across the Middle East, I'll tell you up front that I'm about to rain on your parade. It isn't because I want to, but I feel I need to!

Let's look at some of the facts.
Historically, given a choice Muslim societies tend to choose worse leaders than the ones they previously had. Take a look at Iran, Lebanon and Gaza. Radical Islam took over in the first; Hezbollah is pretty much running the show in the second, and Hamas the third. At this time, Tunisia is choosing a so-called moderate government based on Sharia. We'll see just how moderate they are down the line. In Egypt the only organized faction is the Muslim Brotherhood, so guess where my bets are concerning who runs their next government.

The Last Christmas?

(Written by Jack Kelley)
Whether you’re following commentaries by prophecy scholars on the nearness of the rapture or predictions by financial experts on the nearness of the world’s economic downfall, the message is the same. This could very well be the last time we celebrate Christmas as we’ve come to know it.

And that’s a good thing. Because for most of the world, Christmas has become little more than an annual exercise in spending money we don’t have to buy things they don’t need for the people on our list, some of whom we don’t even like. Add to that the sad fact that millions of American families are doing this from homes they no longer own, adding to a debt load they can hardly carry now, and you can see the level to which the world has sunk. And the saddest fact of all is they aren’t doing this out of any gratitude for what the Lord has given them. They’re doing this because for a brief period of time they can pretend everything’s OK.

The End Of The Last Days

(Written by Matt Leasher)
In the decades that followed the rebirth of Israel as a nation in 1948, Bible prophecy scholars have been declaring the realization that we are in the last days and that Christ is coming soon. But as the decades continue to roll by many have become weary of the message that we are in the last days and have presumed Christ’s return to be far off. The problem with the people that are losing hope in Christ’s soon return is that perhaps they do not understand just exactly what the last days are in light of the big picture.

Hebrews 1:1-2 tells us that the period known as being the “last days” began when Jesus Christ came into the world.

God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets, has in these last days spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, (Hebrews 1:1-2).

Arab Spring Gives Way to Islamic Winter

(Written by Todd Strandberg)
There is no such thing as good news in the Middle East. Any positive move will eventually be followed by a negative consequence. In last week's Nearing Midnight Update, I pointed out the demise of Libyan dictator of Moammar Gadhafi. Some people mistook my comments about his death as being a beneficial sign for Libya. If you have been following my commentary for the past few years, you would know that I see no hope of the Muslim world ever becoming the cradle of democracy.

The Arab Spring uprising had Western leaders and the liberal media giddy for several months. They all cheered as one dictator after another was forced from power. Now that the political process is starting to show that radical Islamists have the upper hand in the region, optimism is starting to fade.

The Myth of “Global Warming”

(Written by Dr. Ron J. Bigalke, Eternal Ministries)
“The Evangelical Climate Initiative is a group of senior evangelical leaders in the United States who are convinced it is time for our country to help solve the problem of global warming.” [1] The Initiative seeks to accomplish their stated goal by creating jobs, cleaning the environment, and enhancing national security by reducing dependence upon foreign oil. The Initiative’s goal is to help create a safe and healthy environment for future generations. The first of four “urgent claims” by the Evangelical Climate Initiative is the assertion that “human-induced climate change is real.”

The problem with the Initiative is that global warming is a myth. Global warming is nothing more than a political agenda that has infiltrated evangelicalism. The church, therefore, should be concerned with regard to the global lukewarming of churchianity. Jesus warned the church,

“I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot; I wish that you were cold or hot. So because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of My mouth” (Rev 3:15-16).The concern of this writer is that those who are involved in the Evangelical Climate Initiative are becoming “cold” to proclaiming the Gospel and are seeking to make “disciples” by proclaiming temporal, planetary issues to be more important - which are actually fabrications - than eternal issues such as the destiny of the souls of human beings. The majority of environmental policies are based upon myths. Only four of the most common will be addressed in this article.

Left behind: Can you still be saved?

(Written by Joseph Chambers)
THE SADDEST DAY IN HUMAN HISTORY WILL BE THE DAY FOLLOWING THE RAPTURE OF THE SAINTS OF GOD!
Once it sinks into the minds of a multiplied number of “Left Behind” individuals that Jesus has literally come to get the prepared saints and gone back to Heaven, it will be a traumatic moment of heartbreak and regrets. Some will commit suicide; some will go and kill preachers that did not preach the truth, while many will fall on their faces in sad and soul-searching repentance.

The idea of an Antichrist and the number 666 is understood by millions of people. Most ot these do not live a surrendered life to Jesus Christ. Many people are religious, but show no evidence of being truly “born again.” Even among the religious of our day, the “fear of God” is almost totally absent. There is a kind of religious facade that has come to characterize this present generation. Preaching the words of God, like Billy Sunday and D. L. Moody, etc., is utterly rejected by the church world. Many people literally hate old-fashioned ministers.

Left Behind For Bad Behavior?

(Written by Jack Kelley)
One of the most telling indicators that the rapture is near is the number of people who write fearing that because of their behavior they're going to be left behind. People didn't worry so much about that when they thought the rapture was off in the distant future.

I'm sure some of this is due to the normal conviction of the Holy Spirit and in that case it's not a rapture issue because as we'll see born again believers can't be excluded from the Rapture for any reason.

No, I think most of the fear of missing the rapture comes from the false “partial-rapture” teaching. There are several variations on this theme but they all claim that just being saved is either not enough to put you in the rapture, or it's not enough to get you into the Kingdom after you are raptured. They say you also have to be worthy in some additional way. In my opinion none of this can be reconciled with Scripture.