Forgiveness—A Superhuman Act Between You and Jesus

By M. Fontaine

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Forgiveness is one of those beautiful spiritual principles that works no matter who is preaching or practicing it. Even those of other faiths or beliefs find that forgiveness is the right choice—that if they choose to forgive, it brings blessings into their lives—happiness, relief, healing, peace.

Forgiveness, and the freedom and healing it brings into your life when you choose to forgive, is one of the spiritual laws that God has put in place to govern our actions in this life. It’s like the principles of gratitude, giving, or humility. You don’t have to know Jesus or be a Christian to see those spiritual principles work wonders in your life. God made it that way, because when people choose to forgive, they are choosing to love in spite of pain, to humble their pride and take what seems like the lower seat, to let go of resentment and revenge and retribution. God blesses those choices and there are clear rewards attached to them.

However, as you know, choosing to forgive is hard. It’s not easy to forgive; it goes against human inclination and pride and the desire for fairness. When you’ve been hurt, it’s not easy to let go of the hurt or move past it. Especially for someone who doesn’t have much love in their life, or doesn’t know God’s love, it’s practically a miracle when they can find the strength to forgive. In fact, it is a miracle. It’s a miracle of love, a miracle of divine strength.

Whether someone has a relationship with Jesus or not, when they are trying to forgive, in a sense, their spirit reaches out to God, and He hears their cry and throws His power behind them to help them have the strength to choose rightly. Even if they aren’t consciously crying out to Him, if they want to forgive, they are in essence choosing God’s love, humility, truth, and mercy—attributes of God’s Spirit—through their choice to forgive, and God honors that and blesses and rewards them for it.

If those who don’t know Jesus can make the choice to forgive, how much more should we, who have received and experienced Jesus’ ultimate love and forgiveness, be compelled to give forgiveness freely to those who have wronged us?

There are so many opportunities when we have to make the choice to forgive. Life is full of them. From little idiosyncrasies on someone’s part, to unintentional hurts, to repeated mistakes, to willful wrongs, to actual evil and malice, or actions with irreparable consequences, the choice is still the same, and it’s still in our court—we can choose whether to forgive. And whether the transgression was a big one or a small one, forgiveness allows us to heal and move on, whereas a lack of forgiveness will stop our growth and will eventually start to poison our spirit.

Choosing to forgive is not something you have to feel like doing. You don’t have to feel that the person deserves forgiveness. They don’t even have to be sorry or acknowledge that they’ve done anything wrong.

Forgiveness is something we do for ourselves, and we do it for Jesus. We do it because it’s the only way to heal. We do it because it will help us to be happier; it will set us free from resentment, bitterness, and misery. And we do it for Jesus because He gave everything for us so that we could be forgiven, so how can we do any less? He took the sins of the world on His shoulders so that He could forgive any sin—past, present, or future; small, major, or absolutely devastating. His forgiveness knows no limits. With all that He has given for us, can we place a limit on what we will give to others?

If there is anything in your past that you haven’t been able to forgive, I pray that reading the following words received in prophecy will be an encouragement to you in your journey toward forgiveness. After all, Jesus said that in order to be forgiven, you must forgive.



You may wonder if, when you forgive, that means you’re saying that you’re okay with what happened, even though with all your heart and soul you disagree with what took place, you hate it, you can’t stand it, and you would get even with the one who caused it if it were in your power. And what if the individual is not repentant? What if they’re not sorry or haven’t shown any signs of remorse or wanting to make things right? What if they are continuing to hurt others? Must you still forgive?

Try to forget about the other person, try to forget about the loss; simply look to Me. Remember that I love you, that I died for you, and that you are in My care. No matter what has happened to you or hurt you, you are Mine, and I can make things right again. Remember that this life is only a vapor, only for a little while, and that the suffering of this present time cannot be compared with the glories of the world beyond.1

Fix your thoughts on Me and meditate on My power, greatness, and love, until you are confident of My love and care for you despite what does or doesn’t happen to you on earth. Remember that your life is not intended to be a paradise of only good. As I said, “in the world you shall have tribulation.”2 Remember this, so that you don’t become angry at Me for how I have or haven’t intervened in your life. If you feel angry at Me, tell Me so. That’s okay. I want to hear from your heart, even if it is a confused jumble of sorrow and anger. I’m here for you, even if you feel angry at Me.

It really helps if you are secure in the knowledge that I love you and can work all things together for good in your life.3 You don’t have to know why, you don’t have to understand why certain things happen in your life; you only have to believe that I am love, that no matter what happens in this life I will work it all together for your good, and that I will never leave you or forsake you.4

If all you can do is repeat “God is love”5 over and over until you come to believe it, then that is a start. Remember that I am here, I love you, and I care for you. This is a matter of faith, a knowledge in your heart that I am the God of the universe, and that I am love, and that My love will never fail.

If you believe in My goodness and My ability to work all things together for your good, it will give you faith to forgive. Before you think about forgiving the one who has wronged you, make your peace with Me. You must come to know, like Job, that you can’t hold Me to an accounting and ask Me to explain Myself to you, for as the heavens are high above the earth, so are My ways above your ways, and My thoughts above your thoughts.6

My promises are there for you—promises of encouragement, comfort, rest, faith, and My eternal, unconditional love. Strengthen yourself in these things until you are fully able to believe in My love and My goodness. Then, while still putting the person and their actions aside, remind yourself of your desire for a pure heart, a heart free from hate, negativity, bitterness, anger, revenge, coldness, or anything else that would separate you from Me. Tell Me that you want a heart full of My light and My purity. Tell Me that you want a heart full of love. Think on how you desire and will need My mercy in your future, how you will need My forgiveness time and again, and that you don’t want to be denied that. Contemplate how you don’t want to be separated from Me in any way, or have any dark or closed-off portions of your heart. Remind yourself that you desire nothing but full oneness and communication with Me, without giving place to the Enemy in any way.7

Once you have decided this and you truly desire it, then forgiveness comes into focus. It’s not about telling anyone that you’re okay with what they did. It’s a sacred act between you and Me, an acknowledgment of My love and goodness, and a desire to have nothing in your heart that isn’t of Me. It’s giving someone else what I have already given you.

Then you can genuinely express from the heart that you forgive what has happened. You express—in words or in your heart—that something has happened to you, something sad or difficult or even terrible, and although you don’t like it, agree with it, or want it, you choose to forgive the people who caused it, to forsake any anger toward them, and to act as though they owe you nothing, because you are erasing the debt they have to you.

Although you may remember for some time, the resentment will fade. Although you may still feel pain for a while, you won’t be tempted to retaliate. Although you may be crushed and it will take time for your spirit to mend, you are surrendering to My love, and thus for God’s sake, and for your own sake, you extend others forgiveness in the name of Christ, who also forgave you.

This is an act of superhuman proportions. It may be one of the hardest things you will ever do. But once you make this decision to forgive, even in the quietness of your own heart, the liberating power of this act will immediately become apparent to you. You will be free, you will be right with Me. Although you may still be in pain, the evil of the action will lose its hold on you. You will have risen above and opened the door to restoration.

When you see it this way, it doesn’t matter whether the other person is sorry, or whether they meant to do it or not, or whether they have made appropriate reparations or not. It’s not about them. It’s about you and Me.

Originally published 2008. Updated and republished May 2013.
Read by Irene Quiti Vera.


1 James 4:14; Romans 8:18.

2 John 16:33.

3 Romans 8:28.

4 Hebrews 13:5.

5 1 John 4:8.

6 Isaiah 55:8–9.

7 Ephesians 4:27.

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Underground Catholic lost everything in Chinese labor camp, but gained faith

By Mark Ellis, May 23, 2013

He was once a presiding judge of the intermediate court in an affluent city on China’s east coast. But he became a beaten prisoner imprisoned for 11 years due to his involvement in the underground church.

“That’s the story of brother Li JF, a dedicated Catholic brother in the underground church,” says Bob Fu, founder and president of ChinaAid Association. “He was imprisoned not because of corruption or criminal activities but because he provided free legal advice to the weak and vulnerable,” says Fu.

“Li could easily have gained a fortune if he chose to continue his comfortable legal career; he could have avoided arrest, beatings, and torture by staying silent in the face of injustice. But he chose a different way because his ears heard the Voice behind him: ‘This is the way; walk in it.’” (Isaiah 30:21.)

In a letter to Fu after his release in April, Li wrote, “I lost everything but gained my faith in God!” In the letter he described how his health was destroyed during his incarceration, his wife divorced him following government threats, and his daughter disappeared.

Li’s younger brother fled to Thailand in 2010 because of government threats, after two years in jail. While Li was imprisoned, government authorities sold his house.

“Brother Li still claims he gained from his imprisonment because he did not lose his faith in God,” Fu says.

In the labor camp, Li worked 14 hours a day and spent three hours each day in “re-education” classes.

His elderly parents, barely able to meet their own expenses, sent him $25 each month. From his meager income Li smuggled money out of the labor camp to purchase Bibles, which he used to lead Bible studies for dozens of prisoners.

In his classes he often challenged his disciples with a probing question, “upon whom can you fix your real hope?”

Not only did Li’s faith sustain his life, he even defended fellow prisoners despite the risk of additional punishment. Li used his knowledge of Chinese and international law to defend the prisoners’ right to own Bibles.

Last November, after their Bibles were confiscated by camp officials, Li and several other Christian leaders went to the senior officer of the camp and demanded to know why their Bibles were confiscated.

When the senior officer attempted to make excuses, Li used his knowledge of Chinese laws and regulations to challenge him. Unable to win the argument with this courageous prisoner, the senior officer finally sent them away. That same evening, God softened the man’s heart, and their Bibles were returned.

One encouraging feature in Li’s letter is his perspective about gain and loss. “My heavenly father chose to let me follow Him by carrying my cross. With difficulty, I chose a road on which I would become poorer in material wealth and on which commutation of sentence would be more difficult. So I continued to spread the seeds of the Gospel… . I’m all the more the chosen person of the Lord and such a glory cannot be replaced with any material gains.”

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Russia’s Role in the End Time – A Study of Ezekiel 38

By Joseph Candel
http://endtimeinfo.com/2011/12/russias-role-in-the-end-time-a-study-of-ezekiel-38/

Although it was written some 2,500 years ago, the message in Ezekiel 38 has proven to be an astonishingly accurate glimpse into our present world situation. In addition to that, the prophecy catapults us into the near future. We can imagine that it was no small task, in the culture of ancient times, to describe modern events, places, or technology using only the names and limited terminology available back then. But because this was such a crucial message for future generations, God did not let that be any kind of obstacle.


In this startling prophecy about the future, some place names and terms sound as though they should belong in the past. In these cases, it behooves us to allow some leeway, remembering how difficult it would have been to describe modern realities using the limited vocabulary of ancient times. As we keep this in mind, the prophecy will unfold itself in a straightforward manner; it will be easy to catch the thrust of what the Lord was saying and get the most out of this intriguing message from so long ago. It is truly faith-building to behold the grand foresight of God who knew way back then how history was going to unfold 2,500 years later. It comforts us too, for we can have faith that world events, however chaotic and unsettling they may be now, are still under His control.


Chapter 38 of the book of Ezekiel describes a war in which the antichrist invades and conquers Israel and sets up his anti-God government proclaiming himself to be God while his propaganda manager, the false prophet organizes the image of the Antichrist to be set up and the image to be worshipped. Let’s look at this chapter verse by verse:


Verse 1-2: “And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, Son of man, set thy face against Gog, the land of Magog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal, and prophesy against him.”


The prophet Ezekiel was receiving the word of the Lord about the endtime. “Now what are you talking about here, Gog & Magog? Never heard of such places! They’re not on the maps,” – you might ask. Well, they used to be! In fact, they were places which existed before there were any maps! And the land of Magog is the ancient name of guess what country today?–Russia!


In this verse the Antichrist is called “Gog” of the land of Magog. He is also the prince of Rosh, Meshech, and the place called Tubal, where he is said to come from. “Ros” or “Rus” is the name of the people who settled around the Volga River and from which the word “Russia” is derived. It should read like this: “Set your face against Russia and against Gog (the leader of Russia), the chief prince of Meshech, (the ancient name of Moscow) and Tobolsk, (one of the chief cities of eastern Russia).” This Gog will be the coming antichrist leader.


Verse 3: “And say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against thee, O Gog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal:”


The Lord Tells Gog the Antichrist right at the beginning, ”I am against you.” Nevertheless as a razor that is hired, so will the Lord bring about judgments in the world & in this case the coming invasion of Israel using the Antichrist and his military forces.





This map is from Jon Mark Ruthven’s remarkable, new research on Ezekiel 38-39


Verse 4: “And I will turn thee back, and put hooks into thy jaws, and I will bring thee forth, and all thine army, horses and horsemen, all of them clothed with all sorts of armour, even a great company with bucklers and shields, all of them handling swords:”


It sounds pretty ancient and antiquated and antique to be fighting an army with horses and swords and shields and armour! That doesn’t sound like anything modern. Well, what could the prophet say? What kind of words could he use for our modern armies and soldiers? The prophet has to use words and terminology he knows. He never heard of a tank, he never heard of a plane, he never heard of a gun. He has to say they are chariots, or horses with horsemen. The main idea the Lord was trying to get across was that Gog the Antichrist would have a great army – “a great company”.


There is an alternative theory about this. It is possible that at some point a powerful EMP would be used, disabling any and all forms of weapons that depend on electricity or electronics. If such a scenario were ever to occur, much of modern weaponry would be disabled, and maybe soldiers would have to revert to using swords and shields.


Verse 5: “Persia, Ethiopia, and Libya with them; all of them with shield and helmet:”


This verse talks about the allies of the antichrist. One of them is Persia, which is modern day Iran, then Ethiopia, which is part of ancient Abyssinia, “and Libya with them.”


Verse 6: “Gomer, and all his bands; the house of Togarmah of the north quarters, and all his bands: and many people with thee.”


Who else is going to be allied with Russia? Gomer is the ancient name of Germany. The verse refers to Germany and all the Germanic peoples, “all his bands.” Germanic people and the Germanic languages include the people of Scandinavia, Holland and the countries bordering Germany. “Togarmah” is the powerful nation of Turkey but Togarmah is also regarded as the forefather of all the Turkic peoples. That would include the independent nations of Turkey, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, and Kyrgyzstan.


We also read about some of these same countries in Daniel 11:40-43. In fact Daniel Chapter 11:40-43 IS ALMOST IDENTICAL TO EZEKIEL’S PROPHECY OF THIS MASSIVE INVASION OF ISRAEL LED BY THE ANTICHRIST. Many Bible Scholars believe that the two chapters describe the same event from different angles but at this point in time it’s only speculation.


Daniel 11:40-41: “And at the time of the end shall the king of the south (Israel & U.S.A.?) push at him: and the king of the north (Antichrist) shall come against him like a whirlwind, with chariots, and with horsemen, and with many ships; and he shall enter into the countries, and shall overflow and pass over. He shall enter also into the glorious land (Israel), and many countries shall be overthrown: but these shall escape out of his hand, even Edom, and Moab, and the chief of the children of Ammon.”


“Edom, Moab, and the chief of the children of Ammon,” refer to modern day Jordan.


Daniel 11:42: “He shall stretch forth his hand also upon the countries: and the land of Egypt shall not escape.”


“He”, referring to Gog, the antichrist leader of Russia “shall stretch forth his hand also upon the countries: and the land of Egypt shall not escape.”


Daniel 11:43: “But he shall have power over the treasures of gold and of silver, and over all the precious things of Egypt: and the Libyans and the Ethiopians shall be at his steps.”


“The Libyans and the Ethiopians shall be at his steps.” This is exactly what we just read in Ezekiel 38:5. The Ethiopians and the Libyans are going to be with him, along with the Iranians and the Turks. Notice the economic power that the Antichrist is going to have: “he shall have power over the treasures of gold and of silver.”


Verse 7: “Be thou prepared, and prepare for thyself, thou, and all thy company that are assembled unto thee, and be thou a guard unto them.”


Russia is going to be a guard unto the nations that align with her. They are going to be a great company or alliance, Russia and all the nations that are on her side.


Verse 8: “After many days thou shalt be visited: in the latter years thou shalt come into the land that is brought back from the sword, and is gathered out of many people, against the mountains of Israel, which have been always waste: but it is brought forth out of the nations, and they shall dwell safely all of them.”


He is talking to Gog, the Antichrist leader of Magog, which is Russia saying that he is going to “come into the land that is brought back from the sword, and is gathered out of many people, against the mountains of Israel.” And the Jews certainly have been brought back from throughout the World and gathered out of many people, many nations all over the world and into the mountains of Israel.


“Which have always been waste, but it is brought forth out of the nations, and they shall dwell safely all of them.” Israel was just a wasteland, just a desert until the Jews began to come back and improve it and irrigate it and water it and cultivate it, and they have caused the desert to blossom like a rose! (Isaiah Chapter 35) THE FIRST GREAT MAJOR RETURN OF THE JEWS TO ISRAEL was to begin after the Balfour Declaration, after World War 1.


“And now all of them dwell safely” – Since the establishment of Israel in 1948, and with America’s support, Israel is dwelling safely enough, considering how much she is surrounded by enemies.


Verse 9-10: “Thou shalt ascend and come like a storm, thou shalt be like a cloud to cover the land, thou, and all thy bands, and many people with thee. Thus saith the Lord GOD; It shall also come to pass, that at the same time shall things come into thy mind, and thou shalt think an evil thought:”


He is saying, Gog, I know what you’re going to do. I can read your mind. You’re thinking, ‘I am going to go down into that little country that is causing me so much trouble here in my new worldwide government. I am just going to go down there and invade them and I am going to take it over by force. And so he does.


Verse 11: “And thou shalt say, I will go up to the land of unwalled villages; I will go to them that are at rest, that dwell safely, all of them dwelling without walls, and having neither bars nor gates,”


God is talking directly to the Antichrist. A very strange thing is happening here, because up until about a hundred years ago, all villages and towns and cities had walls and gates. Even after the invention of gunpowder and cannons, walls were still an effective protection against enemy forces, such protections, fortifications, forts, various bastions of that kind were still used as protection against enemies.


Today walls cannot provide protection at all. They are no help whatsoever because planes can fly right over and drop bombs within the walls and powerful weapons can shoot right over and even through them. The rockets can be fired over the walls, so there’s no use even building walls around towns and villages anymore.


This is the first time in man’s history that cities, towns and villages are without walls for protection. The verse describes how the Jews have come back to Israel, rebuilt the land and rebuilt villages and towns and cities without walls. It is talking about this day and age. We are living in the age in which this prophecy is going to be fulfilled! Now is the time that Ezekiel is talking about, because this is the first time in World history, just within the past 100 years or so that towns have been built without walls. So he has to be talking about the present day and the immediate future.


Verse 12: “To take a spoil, and to take a prey; to turn thine hand upon the desolate places that are now inhabited, and upon the people that are gathered out of the nations, which have gotten cattle and goods, that dwell in the midst of the land.”


“The deserted, uninhabited places that are now inhabited… a people gathered from the nations.” The points brought out in verse 8 are mentioned again highlighting once more when and where the events predicted in Ezekiel’s message will take place and describes a remarkable event: the rebirth of Israel in our modern age.


Is anybody going to oppose this invasion? Is Russia going get any resistance in going down there to take Israel over because of all the trouble she keeps causing? Would you like to know who the enemies of Russia are going to be? Who is going to object and fight against Russia’s invasion? We can find out from the next verse.


Verse 13: “Sheba, and Dedan, and the merchants of Tarshish, with all the young lions thereof, shall say unto thee, Art thou come to take a spoil? hast thou gathered thy company to take a prey? to carry away silver and gold, to take away cattle and goods, to take a great spoil?”


Sheba and Dedan are Arabia, Saudi Arabia or the Princes of Arabia, the various oil states. So apparently very conservative Saudi Arabia who is getting military help from the United States, as well as Egypt, are going to side against Russia.





“The merchants of Tarshish, with all the young lions thereof.” Tarshish has for a long time been interpreted by most Bible students as being the British and the British Isles. Interestingly the animal symbol for Britain is a lion. What does Great Britain have scattered throughout the World? All kinds of former colonies, all kinds of former possessions known today as the British Commonwealth that used to be known as the British Empire. Even the United States is one of her young lions, Canada and Australia are also her young lions.


All the various former British colonies, the commonwealth, former parts and partners of the British Empire are the young lions of Tarshish, the young lions of Britain, and they are the ones who are going to oppose this Russian invasion. Britain, the U.S., Canada and the British Commonwealth, former British Empire, all of them are going to be against this Russian invasion of Israel.


Verse 14: “Therefore, son of man, prophesy and say unto Gog, Thus saith the Lord GOD; In that day when my people of Israel dwelleth safely, shalt thou not know it?”


In this verse God is talking to Ezekiel, His prophet, “You tell the Antichrist that the day when My people of Israel dwell safely, shalt thou not know it?” He knows it all right! And he also knows how vulnerable Israel is, despite all the help she receives from the U.S.


Verse 15: “And thou shalt come from thy place out of the north parts, thou, and many people with thee, all of them riding upon horses, a great company, and a mighty army:”


“Thou shalt come forth from thy place out of the north parts.” What direction is Russia from Israel? Due North! No time in history has Russia invaded Israel, but now in the Time of the End, Russia has become a great nation, & Israel became a nation a second time on May 14th, 1948. She ceased being an independent nation when Babylon’s King Nebuchadnezzar invaded Jerusalem & destroyed the Temple around 586 BC. We can now see how this amazing prophecy is falling into place.


As we brought out earlier the word “horses” hear could mean the way the prophet refers to vehicles that transport the soldiers. In modern times armies have little need to make long-distance marches; there are many types of vehicles (the “horses” of today) that can transport troops quickly and easily from one place to another.


Verse 16: “And thou shalt come up against my people of Israel, as a cloud to cover the land; it shall be in the latter days, and I will bring thee against my land, that the heathen may know me, when I shall be sanctified in thee, O Gog, before their eyes.”


In case there was any doubt, the prophecy again pinpoints for us the setting: the location is “the far north” (in verse 15) and the time is “the latter days”. And there are “many peoples” (in verse 15): as we learned earlier, many nations will ally with the Russian forces of Gog. Even Russia herself consists of quite a few nations. Assuming the nations of the Commonwealth of Independent States get drawn more into her sphere of influence, then Russia can expect the forces of these nations to join her in this conflict, along with the other main allies already mentioned.


What does it mean that the Lord is going to be sanctified in the Antichrist? Why is God bringing Russia up against Israel? To let the World know that God is righteous and that the heathen would know Him. He is a good God, a fair God, He is a just God, and therefore the World knows that Israel needs it! The Lord is using the antichrist to judge Israel for her sins & waywardness.


Many people ask when this invasion will take place on the world scene. Most Bible scholars suggest that it will come to pass when the antichrist breaks the 7 year covenant. When he confirms the covenant, Israel will be allowed to rebuild their temple on Mount Moriah & resume their animal sacrifices. Jerusalem will probably be shared by the Jews, Muslims, & Christians under the World Government.


In the middle of the 7 year covenant, after the first 3-1/2 years, the antichrist will break the covenant and take away the daily sacrifice, & the world government will place the Abomination of Desolation, also called Image of the Beast, somewhere on the Temple Mount. (Daniel 9:27, 11:31, Matthew 24:15,21; Revelation 13:5-7, 11-18)


The antichrist, the leader of Russia, will not only invade Israel but will also make Jerusalem his capital and set up his headquarters there to rule the whole World for three-and-a-half years. He will also sit in the Temple of God saying he’s God. (Daniel 11:45; 2Thessalonians 2:3-4; Revelation 11:2)


Although the Lord uses the Antichrist to judge Israel, later in this chapter we will see that the Lord will defeat Gog and the Russian military forces at the Battle of Armageddon.


Some Bible scholars suggest that this war can happen anytime now especially since many of these nations are lining up behind Russia while others believe this invasion will happen sometime during the latter part of the Great Tribulation. We will have to wait to see when this scenario plays out. Daniel Chapter 11:21-45, explains that the Antichrist will fight 5 or 6 wars, & this chapter sounds like it is certainly one of them.


Verse 17: “Thus saith the Lord GOD; Art thou he of whom I have spoken in old time by my servants the prophets of Israel, which prophesied in those days many years that I would bring thee against them?”


We have read that some of the other prophets predicted the coming of the Antichrist. Daniel talks about him time and time again all through the Book of Daniel. God is saying: I am not only telling Ezekiel, I have told many of My prophets about you, Gog.” He is talking to Gog. He says, “I have prophesied about you for centuries,” in fact, for thousands of years now, “that I would bring you against them.” He is going to judge Israel through Gog and Magog!


Verse 18: “And it shall come to pass at the same time when Gog shall come against the land of Israel, saith the Lord GOD, that my fury shall come up in my face.”


This passage is dealing primarily with Gog and Magog, the antichrist and Russia, and their war with Israel. Unlike other prophesies in the Bible it does not tell us how long they stayed there after the invasion and what they did while they were there. In many ways it is a message to Gog and Magog telling them that God brought them down there as a judgement upon Israel for their sins followed by a warning that God is going to judge the Antichrist and Russia as well.


This is a procedure God has so often followed. He had used the heathen, the Godless, the anti-Christ, the wicked of the World to judge and punish His Own people and then turned right around to judge their enemies as well. God is just and everybody that deserves punishment gets punished and judged!


Verse 19: “For in my jealousy and in the fire of my wrath have I spoken, Surely in that day there shall be a great shaking in the land of Israel;”


God says there is going to be a great shaking when He finally decides to pour out His judgment after the antichrist has taken over Israel. The Antichrist has been there for three-and-a-half years, it has been his headquarters. He has been running the World from Jerusalem, but at a certain point after causing so much trouble and misery in the world God will finally put a stop to it.


God starts judging the Antichrist and his worldwide kingdom, his anti-God, anti-Christ, anti-religious kingdom of which he has made himself god. God is going to send great earthquakes to Israel, because it has become his capital. It is his head city.


Verse 20-22: “So that the fishes of the sea, and the fowls of the heaven, and the beasts of the field, and all creeping things that creep upon the earth, and all the men that are upon the face of the earth, shall shake at my presence, and the mountains shall be thrown down, and the steep places.


And I will call for a sword against him throughout all my mountains, saith the Lord GOD: every man’s sword shall be against his brother.


And I will plead against him with pestilence and with blood; and I will rain upon him, and upon his bands, and upon the many people that are with him, an overflowing rain, and great hailstones, fire, and brimstone.”


This is a good place to recap the situation! The Antichrist & his military forces invade Israel possibly during the middle of the last 7 year covenant. This ushers in the 3-1/2 years, 42 months, or 1260 days of Great Tribulation. The Antichrist is ruling from his headquarters in Jerusalem. Immediately after this last three and a half years of the Great Tribulation, Jesus Christ will return “in the clouds of Heaven with power and great glory” (Matthew 24:29-31) to rescue and resurrect all of those who received Him! His people will then rise from the earth in powerful, immortal resurrection bodies and join Jesus in Heaven for a great victory celebration, the “marriage supper of the Lamb” (1 Corinthians 15:51-52; 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17; Revelation 19:7-9).


Meanwhile, the wicked forces of the Antichrist will suffer hell on earth as God pours out His judgments on those who cruelly persecuted His people and brought such destruction to others (Revelation 16:1-11).


The armies of the Antichrist will gather in the Valley of Jezreel, around the height of Megiddo, Armageddon, to war against the armies of the nations that oppose him. This is the gathering of the Battle of Armageddon during the Wrath of God under the 6th vial. (Revelation 16:12-16). The course of the battle will run from Megiddo to the very gates of Jerusalem (Joel 3:10-14; Zechariah 14:1-5).


Sometime during this time the Lord and all His resurrected saints from all the ages will come flying down on powerful heavenly white horses to destroy the Antichrist forces and rescue the opposing armies (Revelation 19:11-21; Zechariah 14:1-5; Ezekiel 39:17-22). So horrible will be the carnage that it will take seven months to bury the dead in Israel alone, and seven years to remove all the wreckage of the battle (Ezekiel 39:9-16).


The Antichrist (Gog) and the False Prophet will be taken from the Battle of Armageddon and tossed directly into the lake of fire–Hell (Revelation 19:20; Daniel 7:11). Satan, who possessed the Antichrist, will be imprisoned in the “bottomless pit” for 1,000 years (Revelation 20:1-3).


We also learn that God’s fury on Gog, takes the form of a “great earthquake”. “All men who are on the face of the earth shall shake at My presence, and the mountains shall be thrown down, and the steep places” It is most likely the same event that is described in Revelation 16:17-21: “there was a great earthquake, such a mighty and great earthquake as had not occurred since men were on the earth… and the cities of the nations fell”. (Revelation 16:18-21). Such a grand cataclysm will surely bring to an end the murderous rampage of the Antichrist Gog and his armies. In fact, it will bring an end to the whole present social order as we know it. As the Seventh Angel, who poured out the last vial says,” It is done.”


Verse 23: “Thus will I magnify myself, and sanctify myself; and I will be known in the eyes of many nations, and they shall know that I am the LORD.”


So how is the world going to know this? Well, for one thing they’ll know that probably only God could have done such a thing in such magnitude, in such a magnificent manner, to have the whole Earth shake and the skies rain down fire and brimstone and hailstones and red-hot rocks upon the forces of the Antichrist! God is going to manifest His justice, His righteousness to the World. The World by this time will know that the Antichrist has gone too far, and will feel that if there is a God in Heaven the Antichrist should be punished. So God is going to punish him just like with the Israelis who have gone too far, bringing God’s punishments upon themselves through the Antichrist and the Russians. The whole World will know that these events are the true, just, righteous, fair judgments of God.


The Good news is The Lord and His resurrected saints, His saved people of all ages, will then work together with those on earth who survived the Battle of Armageddon to rebuild a new and better world, setting up the kingdom of God on earth (Daniel 7:18,27; Revelation 2:26; 20:4,6). Only then, under the supreme rule and reign of Christ, will all wars finally cease and the world at last be governed fairly and well with true justice, liberty, peace, plenty, and happiness for all. Jesus “shall judge between the nations, and rebuke many people; they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore” (Isaiah 2:4). Complete disarmament at last!


ANTICHRISTISRAELLAST SEVEN YEAR

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“What a Parent of a Child with Disabilities Can Really Handle”

Georgia Purdom:

This was the title of a blog post by my good friend and colleague at Answers in Genesis, Stacia. I’ve shared her insightful blog posts several times in the past on my blog. Stacia’s son Kieran has Williams Syndrome. I wanted to share this post because of a conversation I had with a woman at the Answers for Women conference a few weeks ago.

She shared with me the story of her two disabled children. Her little girl is four years old and will require a feeding tube soon. Although this woman had a lot to be heartbroken about, I could see that she had learned to depend on God’s grace and strength to carry her through these very difficult times. It would be easy for me to think of this woman and my friend Stacia as “super women” for being able to bear their burdens. But I have no doubt that both women would shun that title and freely admit it is not by their own strength or abilities that they are able to do what they do but God’s.

Stacia writes the following:

There’s a meme that floats around on social media every once in awhile that goes like this, “God won’t give you more than you can handle!” And then there’s the meme about this meme that says, “I know God won’t give me anything I can’t handle; I just wish He didn’t trust me so much!”

And everyone chuckles.

People also say this to those going through rough times (for example, to parents of children with disabilities), in an attempt to encourage them.

It sounds good, doesn’t it? It has “God” in it and that pull-yourself-up-by-your-bootstraps mentality that we Americans love and embrace.

But here’s the thing about that bootstraps phrase: it’s a lie.

Really. Get out your Bible and look for that ideology in it. Go ahead, I’ll wait.

Didn’t find it? That’s because it isn’t there.

In fact, this phrase presents a view of God that is completely contrary to the God of the Bible. It portrays God as a distant, laissez-faire deity who gleefully dumps problems on humanity and then steps back to watch them groan under the weight of their burdens, twiddling His fingers and offering the occasional “Atta boy!” when we do something right.

But that isn’t the God that we learn about in the Bible. That God is sovereign and gives to everyone what He deems best, but in giving He also provides the strength and grace we need (Philippians 4:19). He is the stronghold we run to in affliction. And He doesn’t forsake His people.

But the Lord sits enthroned forever;

he has established his throne for justice,

and he judges the world with righteousness;

he judges the peoples with uprightness.

The Lord is a stronghold for the oppressed,

a stronghold in times of trouble.

And those who know your name put their trust in you,

for you, O Lord, have not forsaken those who seek you. (Psalm 9:7-10, ESV)

The Creator of the universe is close to the brokenhearted and He is the one who saves those who are crushed in spirit (Psalm 34:18).

He is our refuge and strength and His are the arms that we lean on (Deuteronomy 33:27).

Not only does this phrase present a false view of God, it also gives a false view of humanity. It says that they’re all alone in this. That the trial they find unbearable really isn’t so bad–it’s just their imagination. That they have the ability and strength on their own to buckle down and make it work, no matter what.

Far from being encouraging, however, the “you can do it, just grit your teeth and barrel through!” mentality is like salt in a wound to those who know better — to those living out amazingly difficult lives.

When my friend lost her daughter several years ago in a car accident, she couldn’t handle it.

When a mother finds out her unborn baby has multiple disabilities, she has her baby killed because she can’t handle it.

When the father of a severely disabled child looks out at the unending days of caring for his child who can’t do anything by himself, he leaves his family because he can’t handle it.

When parents are told, “There’s something wrong with your child . . . ” they begin to lose their faith in God because they can’t handle it.

And on a more personal note . . .

When Kieran was a baby and not eating well and not gaining weight and not sleeping and crying for hours on end and in the hospital more times that I can count, I couldn’t handle it. Really. I remember telling Seth, “I don’t think I can do this much longer.”

When he was diagnosed with WS and we were forced to face a now-uncertain future filled with even more hospital visits, learning difficulties, potential bullies, and who-knew-what-else, I couldn’t handle it.

When I’m again encouraging him to eat or telling him to put on his shoes for the fifth time because he’s gotten caught up in five different things since the initial telling, I don’t have the patience. I can’t handle it.

And just when I think I can handle life, I’m gently (and sometimes not-so-gently) reminded that I simply can’t. That I’m weak and in desperate need of the wisdom of God, the peace of Jesus, and the filling of the Holy Spirit who works to produce His fruits in my life.

And I’m so thankful for passages that remind me that I don’t need to handle it alone:

“Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.” (Hebrews 4:16)

And

But now, this is what the Lord says—

he who created you, Jacob,

he who formed you, Israel:

“Do not fear, for I have redeemed you;

I have summoned you by name; you are mine.

When you pass through the waters,

I will be with you;

and when you pass through the rivers,

they will not sweep over you.

When you walk through the fire,

you will not be burned;

the flames will not set you ablaze.

For I am the Lord your God,

the Holy One of Israel, your Savior. (Isaiah 43:1–3)

And

This I recall to my mind, therefore I have hope. Through the Lord’s mercies we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning; Great is Your faithfulness. “The Lord is my portion,” says my soul, “Therefore I hope in Him!” The Lord is good to those who wait for Him, to the soul who seeks Him. It is good that one should hope and wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord.(Lamentations 3:21–26)

And

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort those who are in any trouble, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. (2 Corinthians 1:3–4)

I appreciate the way Greg, the father of a severely disabled child, has said it:

My experience is that God will place a burden on you so heavy that you cannot possibly carry it alone. He will break your back and your will. He will buckle your legs until you fall flat beneath the crushing weight of your load. All the while He will walk beside you waiting for you to come to the point where you must depend on Him. “‘My power is made perfect in your weakness,’ He says, as we strain under our burden. Whatever the burden, it might indeed get worse, but I know this—God is faithful. And while we change and get old, he does not. When we get weaker, He remains strong. And in our weakness and humility, He offers us true, lasting transformation, and undeserved grace.” Wrestling with an Angel, p. 14

And if we could handle life on our own, who would get the glory? And who deserves the glory?

The hope of a parent of a child with disabilities — or the hope of anyone — isn’t in themselves and what they can handle. It’s only found in Jesus, the lover of souls and Savior of mankind. The perfect Son of God who loved us enough to step into history, feel what it’s like to be human, minister to the disabled and needy, die a painful death, and then rise from the dead three days later. In His amazing love, He offers eternal life to all those who believe and seals us with His Holy Spirit who gives us strength and wisdom and peace and patience–the very things any parent with a special needs child craves. And works all things for His glory and our good.

Jesus said, “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”(Matthew 11:28-30)

So the next time you’re tempted to share that meme on Facebook or offer that platitude to a friend going through a rough patch, can I ask that you please refrain? Instead, offer to sit with them while they cry. Offer to listen to the desperations of their heart. Offer to pray with them and for them. Share a meal with them. Offer to stay with their children while they go out to dinner. Offer to help with therapy visits. But don’t give them a false god and an empty hope. Instead, point them to Jesus who bears our burdens and is the close and personal lover of our souls.

As I read this I wondered how many times I’ve thought or said, “God won’t give you more than you can handle.” But I know from my own experience that God does give us more than we can handle on our own! He gives us more than we can bear because He wants us to be totally dependent on Him and not on ourselves. I think many times God makes the situation so impossible, so unbearable that only through His grace, mercy, and power can we have victory. Gideon found that out when God reduced his army to 300 men (Judges 7)! May we, in whatever our unbearable situation is, “come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need” (Hebrews 4:16), and may we do it to glorify God.

Keep fighting the good fight of the faith!

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Power of Moore tornado dwarfs Hiroshima bomb

By Seth Borenstein, AP, May 21, 2013

WASHINGTON (AP)—Everything had to come together just perfectly to create the killer tornado in Moore, Okla.: wind speed, moisture in the air, temperature and timing. And when they did, the awesome energy released over that city dwarfed the power of the atomic bomb that leveled Hiroshima.

On Tuesday, the National Weather Service gave it the top-of-the-scale rating of EF5 for wind speed and breadth, and severity of damage. Wind speeds were estimated at between 200 and 210 mph. The death count is 24 so far, including at least nine children. The United States averages about one EF5 a year, but this was the first in nearly two years.

To get such an uncommon storm to form is “a bit of a Goldilocks problem,” said Pennsylvania State University meteorology professor Paul Markowski. “Everything has to be just right.”

For example, there must be humidity for a tornado to form, but too much can cut the storm off. The same goes with the cold air in a downdraft: Too much can be a storm-killer.

But when the ideal conditions do occur, watch out. The power of nature beats out anything man can create.

“Everything was ready for explosive development yesterday,” said Colorado State University meteorology professor Russ Schumacher, who was in Oklahoma launching airborne devices that measured the energy, moisture and wind speeds on Monday. “It all just unleashed on that one area.”

Several meteorologists contacted by The Associated Press used real time measurements, some made by Schumacher, to calculate the energy released during the storm’s 40-minute life span. Their estimates ranged from 8 times to more than 600 times the power of the Hiroshima bomb, with more experts at the high end. Their calculations were based on energy measured in the air and then multiplied over the size and duration of the storm.

An EF5 tornado has the most violent winds on Earth, more powerful than a hurricane. The strongest winds ever measured were the 302 mph reading, measured by radar, during the EF5 tornado that struck Moore on May 3, 1999, according to Jeff Masters, meteorology director at the Weather Underground.

With the third strong storm hitting Moore in 14 years—and following roughly the same path as an EF5 that killed 40 people in 1999 and an EF4 that injured 45 others in 2003—some people are wondering why Moore?

It’s a combination of geography, meteorology and lots of bad luck, experts said.

If you look at the climate history of tornadoes in May, you will see they cluster in a spot, maybe 100 miles wide, in central Oklahoma, Houston said. That’s where the weather conditions of warm, moist air and strong wind shear needed for tornadoes combine, in just the right balance.

“Central Oklahoma is a hot spot and there’s a good reason for it,” Houston said. “There’s this perfect combination where the jet stream is strong, the instability is large and the typical position for this juxtaposition climatologically is central Oklahoma.”

Of the 60 EF5 tornadoes since 1950, Oklahoma and Alabama have been struck the most, seven times each. More than half of these top-of-the-scale twisters are in just five states: Oklahoma, Alabama, Texas, Kansas, and Iowa. Less than 1 percent of all .S. tornadoes are this violent—only about 10 a year.

The United States’ Great Plains is the “best place on Earth” for the formation of violent tornadoes because of geography, Markowski said. You need the low pressure systems coming down off the Rocky Mountains colliding with the warm moist unstable air coming north from the Gulf of Mexico.

Early research, much of it by Brooks, predicts that as the world warms, the moist energy—or instability—will increase, and the U.S. will have more thunderstorms. But at the same time, the needed wind shear—the difference between wind speed and direction at different altitudes—will likely decrease.

The two factors go in different directions and it’s hard to tell which will win out. Brooks and others think that eventually there may be more thunderstorms and fewer days with tornadoes, but more tornadoes on those days when twisters do strike.

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