I’m using the word “tribulation” as it is commonly understood in the eschatosphere, but I want to to be clear that what’s coming following the death/rapture/resurrection of all believers is NOT tribulation. It will be wrath – God displaying His fierce anger against those who are in rebellion against Him and have refused to repent and be reconciled. (An explanation of the distinction between tribulation and wrath appears below.) What I’m presenting here is what may be the lead stories or current events during the 42 months that The Dragon rules the planet (see Rev. 13:5).

So imagine these are the headline stories for the next few years; a disaster every two months, and none of these problems can be fixed. They compound and are simply moved back in the news cycle because a fresh catastrophe replaces the last one. Imagine each of these on the Six O’Clock News … until those TV sets flicker off forever:

1. Dramatic increase in civil violence. We are seeing this now, but scripture indicates it will get worse. In addition to war, people are simply killing other people. School shootings are overshadowed by gangs of hungry, sociopathic thugs moving through suburban neighborhoods, killing randomly and stealing. (Rev. 6:4)
2. Supply chains broken. Stores empty or nearly so. Merchants can’t do business because of armed thieves. Few groceries. (Rev. 6:6)
3. Banking collapse. Small banks absorbed by bigger ones, small business loans, home loans, car loans all discontinued. End of current money system; “Social credit” banking is mandatory (Rev. 13:17) though some barter may be possible … temporarily. All “life savings” and retirement accounts are wiped out.
4. Diseases rampant. Health Care System is compromised – Most “cures” offered are drugs/pharmakaia/sorcery. (Rev. 18:23) “Big Pharma” may be the deceiving merchants in view. Foods and other consumables may be laced with fentanyl or other toxic substances.
5. Societal and cultural collapse – local communities and even families will break down (Matthew 10:21) because nobody knows the truth and nobody can trust anyone. (Rev. 6:2)
6. There are not enough people or resources to bury the dead – both people and animals. Two billion casualties worldwide – one in four people die from disease, violence, famine, or wild animals (Rev. 6:8)
7. A third of the trees and all green grass is burned up (Rev. 8:7). This is an ecological nightmare with long-lasting consequences. This will crush the food supply even more. This also affects the air they will breathe, as trees reduce airborne pollutants and produce oxygen. The smells of smoke and decaying flesh will be pervasive, and anyone with respiratory problems will find those problems getting much worse. It may become painful to breathe.
8. A third of sea life dies. Another hammer-blow to the food supply. (Rev. 8:9)
9. A third of ships destroyed. Any idea how many essentials are transported by water?
10. A third of the rivers and springs of water become toxic. Some folks may have water treatment units, and maybe those filters will work. But a man lives 3-4 days without water. (Rev. 8:11) Entire communities will become uninhabitable because there is simply no water.
11. The sun goes dim. Less energy, less heat = “global cooling”?? ANY change is adverse; opinions today offer a range of dire possibilities. Like the ten previous events, this is “permanent disaster” – not something that can be fixed, nor can the damage be undone. (Rev. 8:12)
12. Invasion of the Locust-scorpions. (Rev. 9:1-11) – This is a specific 5-month period of misery. The long-term effects are unknown. These creatures – and my guess is this is GMO weaponized animals, perhaps released intentionally by the miscreants running the planet – will have no permanent effect on the planet, but will certainly traumatize everyone stung by one. No one dies, no apparent damage to the planet or ecology. No recorded remedy – no place to run, no place to hide.
13. Plague of fire, smoke and brimstone (Rev. 9:18) – this kills a third of remaining mankind.
14. No rain (Rev. 11:6), portion of remaining potable water turned to blood, various undefined “plagues” of unrecorded impact, scope and severity. But these events are controlled by the two witnesses, are apparently global in scope, and generate so much misery that the deaths of these two men trigger global celebration. (Note: these men confront the “god of the earth” much as Moses and Aaron withstood Pharaoh.)
15. Malignant sores. The banking credential received (Rev. 13:7) becomes a “foul and loathsome sore” (Rev. 16:2). This misery will be, for all intents and purposes, universal – everyone who refused the mark will have been killed.
16. All the remaining creatures in the sea die. (Rev. 16:3) This could be the oceans of the world, or it could be just the Mediterranean Sea. It’s reasonable to assume that as civilizations collapse, the resources would be kept closer to the seat of government in Jerusalem, so the destruction of the Mediterranean would effectively impact everyone left living. At this late point, most of the distant lands would be desolate or nearly so.
17. All remaining rivers and springs of water become toxic (Rev. 16:4)
18. Solar power surges (Rev. 16:8-9) – People are scorched by the sun. Not hard to imagine that the “grid” is gone … a faint memory. No air-conditioning, no escape, no relief.
19. Massive earthquakes. (Rev. 6:12, 8:5, 11:13,19 and 16:18) These are the seismic events specifically mentioned, but it’s reasonable to believe there will be more, of varying magnitude. Once again, these won’t be local events where relief from unaffected outside resources can be expected. There will most probably be NO outside help or humanitarian relief resources available.
20. Unprecedented hailstorms pound the planet. (Rev. 8:7, 11:19, 16:21) – Most probably not the hailstorms we’ve occasionally heard of or experienced. This is at least three episodes of unknown scope and intensity. In the final hail storm, each stone weighs about a talent. (Note: a “talent” is between 100 and 200 lbs. depending on the substance being weighed.)

This is not gloom-and-doom or pessimism run rampant. Rather, it’s simply a catalog, based on explicit scripture, of the escalating miseries on the planet and what God says will take place at the time of the end: an average of one MAJOR and irreversible catastrophic event with global impact every two months for over three years. This is NOT what we see as fulfillment of John 16:33 or Acts 14:22, what we experience and understand to be the difficult but refining adversities of life. This is not a “field ripe unto harvest” (John 4:35). Rather, Satan is granted authority over the planet, and he has as his followers all those who have rejected Christ. This is not an arena for us “ambassadors for Christ” to diplomatically extend God’s offer of reconciliation. The Four Horsemen are not on a goodwill mission. It will be “kingdoms in conflict” and it won’t be pretty.

This is war.

The Distinction between Tribulation and Wrath

The Pre-Tribulation Equivocation – Summary: The word tribulation comes from the Latin word “tribulum” which was an agricultural implement used to remove husks from wheat kernels.  Tribulation makes the wheat fit for use.  Similarly, God uses tribulation on those He has chosen, to make them fit for His use.  We are His workmanship (Ephesians 2:10). 

Tribulation is also separation.  It separates the useful from the useless.  It separates the kernel from the husk.  It separates what will be kept and enjoyed from what will be discarded and destroyed. In the lives of believers, tribulation is the often unpleasant burdens and challenges of life, but it is managed by God and it leads to hope, patience, and completeness.  It includes harassment and persecution (see Acts 14:22).  For the elect, tribulation is essentially and intentionally redemptive.

Tribulation is NOT wrath. Wrath is the manifestation of God’s hatred of sin and sinners. It is punitive, and never redemptive. God hates sin with a holy hatred. God does not use wrath to correct His children.

I probably spend more time on YouTube than I should, but it’s an interesting way to take the pulse of mainstream church teaching.  And one of the things that comes up a lot is attacks against the pre-trib position, and “scholarly” support of the post-tribulation rapture position.

Often, it’s just “Christians have always suffered.  Jesus told us in John 16:33 that we would experience tribulation.  Believers all over the world are suffering today; the American Christian experience is an anomaly.”  All true, of course – but irrelevant. Sometimes it’s even Biblical examples or exegesis that seem to support their idea. But the more I read The Revelation, the more convinced I am that a pre-tribulation rapture is the most realistic expectation.  Here are some reasons why:

1.  We know from scripture that “the night is coming when no man can work.” (John 9:4) As Christ’s ambassadors, we have a mission to preach the gospel and extend God’s offer of forgiveness and reconciliation to the world (2 Cor. 5:20).  If anyone, anywhere has a receptive heart, the message may find a fertile place to take root.  But the world described in Revelation appears to be filled with those who have rejected the truth, so God took His offer off the table, and sent a strong delusion (see 2 Thess 2:11). This “man of lawlessness” will be on the scene and controlling the planet for 42 months (Rev. 13:5).  We would not send a gardener out at night to plant grass seed on an asphalt parking lot.  Similarly, God will not send us out to attempt a spiritual harvest in a world that’s incapable of responding.

2.  God explains that “tribulation worketh patience.”  We do not suffer as an end in itself – pain for the sake of pain is masochism, not redemption.  God is not a sadist.  We may not always understand the reason for pain, but we’re reassured that there IS a reason and that our suffering is worth it.  Revelation describes a world under judgment.  While World War Two impacted most of the people on the planet, only 3% of the world’s population perished.  Revelation speaks of a world where, within three years (possibly much less), a quarter of the earth’s population will be killed by war, disease, famine, and beasts of the earth.  And Revelation says over and over that those who survive will blaspheme God and refuse to repent.  There is no role for Christians in a world like that.

It very much appears to me that the post-tribbers really have no idea of what life on earth will be like under the Beast System.  Some think “suffering is good for Christians,” and others assert that Rev. 3:10 is a promise of preservation IN the world, and not a removal FROM it.  Well, if we’re insulated from war, famine and disease, then I guess we watch everyone else suffer from inside our protective bubble.  In other words, we don’t really suffer.  So how can you suffer (because God won’t make an exception just for us) and not suffer (because God made a promise in Rev. 3:10) at the same time? 

The pre-trib position may seem outrageous or science-fiction, but when you soberly consider what is coming on the world, it’s the only expectation that really makes sense.  By “pre-trib” I mean before the Beast System.  My own conclusion is that the past 2,000 years have been “tribulation” for true believers, but we do not experience God’s Wrath, which seems to be the “tribulation” that post-tribbers have in view.

And by the way, there’s also this distinction that some make, where the final years are divided into 1) man’s wrath, and then 2) Satan’s wrath, and finally 3) God’s wrath – and then they assert we’re only exempt from God’s wrath.  This is a man-made and unbiblical distinction.  Whether God uses men or Satan as His instruments, or inflicts His wrath directly, is irrelevant. We’re not appointed to wrath.

And “wrath” is what the Reign of the Anti-Christ is all about: 42 months of it. There will be an average of one major, earth-shattering event or series of events every 8 weeks for over three years. Escalating misery with no relief and no evidence of repentance. I will catalog these headline events in a future post.

My expectation is: 1) church age ending with the rapture, 2) short period (maybe 10 weeks) of intense “great tribulation” per Rev. 2:22, and then 3) the wrath of God for about 3 1/2 years, culminating in 4) the battle of Armageddon. Suffice to say, we won’t be here.

For some reason, baptism is a hot-button issue. I’m not going to push any of those buttons with this brief post, but just want to unburden myself a bit and maybe get a few people to think a little differently about the issue.

Let’s start by looking at 1 Corinthians:

They were all baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea …

1 Cor. 10:2

The discussion Paul initiates is with regard to idolatry, but he begins with the point that when the Israelites came out of Egypt, they were all identified with Moses and that identification was in the form of baptism. Could there be some sort of tension between baptism and idolatry?

I don’t think I’ve heard many sermons on the baptism of identification, but we have something similar in marriage. When a man and woman marry, there are two essential elements. First, they must freely make covenant vows. This in the west (and probably everywhere else) is the “marriage ceremony.” Then the marriage must be physically consummated. When these two things are completed, the man and woman are husband and wife.

Traditionally (though the western tradition is being aggressively challenged), the woman changes her name. “Mary Jones” becomes “Mrs. Robert Smith.” This is not a legal requirement, but is something a woman joyfully does and is entitled to do in order to be completely identified with her new husband. And the key is “identified.”

I have come to believe that baptism is somewhat similar, except that the LORD Jesus Christ commands it. This, of course, is where the disputes arise, because if you have to “do” something in order to be saved, then (some argue) it’s not all of grace and the security of Eph. 2:8 has been breached.

I’ll save that discussion for another post. My point here is simply that baptism is complete identification with Jesus and it should be received joyfully as a privilege and blessing. For a woman to NOT take her husband’s name does not nullify the marriage. But it DOES insult the husband. Why would the woman NOT want to be completely identified with her husband?

And in the same vein, why would any Christian NOT want to be completely identified with Christ? Whoever has been baptized into Christ has put on Christ (Gal. 3:27). Why would a new believer NOT want to put on Christ? And especially in America, where conversion (unlike in Saudi Arabia) does not incur the death penalty?

Two possible reasons come to mind. The first is “embarrassment.” Ashamed of Christ. Ashamed to be identified with Him. And scripture speaks to that in Luke 9:26. You want to be a “believer” if that means you don’t go to hell, but you don’t want to be a “disciple” if that means Jesus can tell you what to do. And if you can have the first without the second … we can call it “discipleship lite.”

That’s the second reason: you don’t want anyone telling you what to do. You don’t want other Christians, your pastor, or even Jesus telling you that you MUST do something. You don’t want restrictions or conditions. No “legalism” for you – just “by grace, through faith …. plus nothing.” But the elevation of anything above the known will of God is … idolatry. Willful refusal to submit to the Lordship of Jesus Christ is idolatry.

Someone who refuses – for whatever reason – to be identified with Christ can hardly be called an “overcomer” and it could be that they, by their refusal, are disqualifying themselves from the promised deliverance in Rev. 3:10. Maybe not – is it worth the risk?

It’s not “gloom and doom” if you are prepared. And I’d also like to point out that it is not just “some” of us who have been divinely designated as “watchmen.” Rather, we are ALL commanded to watch (Mark 13:37), and those who don’t see what’s coming and why it’s coming are simply derelict at their assigned post. We’re expected to be “children of Issachar” (1 Chron. 12:32) and EACH of us – sons and daughters – should have understanding of the times.

The title of this post is intended to bring Numbers 20:8 to mind:

“Take the rod; you and your brother Aaron gather the congregation together. Speak to the rock before their eyes, and it will yield its water …”

Numbers 20:8 NKJV (emphasis added)

The Israelites had been in this situation before. No water, people thirsty, animals likewise. God told Moses what to do the first time they were in this situation: strike the rock and the rock will produce all the water you need. God gave different instructions to Moses this time, but as we know Moses erred and followed the “old” instructions.

We’re now on the threshold of global disaster. This is not the first time humankind has been in this situation. Last time, God told Noah to build an ark for the salvation of his family. We know from history that Noah and his family were preserved. This time, building an ark – or bunker, or off-the-grid homestead – is NOT the direction that the Lord seems to be giving us. Rather, He has provided an ark: His Son Jesus. He has given us a promise in Rev. 3:10 and also instructions on how to enter that ark.

I bring it up because many of our well-meaning friends, and even fellow Christians, are urging some of us to start prepping (“build an ark”) rather than trust God to deliver us. Their arguments sound Biblical and valid. “Noah trusted God, but he didn’t then expect that God would build the ark for him. Noah still had to obey.” We’re urged to protect our families, do what’s prudent. Stock up on a few things “just in case” — the “case” being that this is just escalating misery and we might not be on the threshold of Revelation chapter 6.

I agree that Noah had to obey, and we’re all here because he did. Moses was disobedient when he struck the rock (instead of speaking to it), even though he followed Divine instructions given previously in a similar circumstance. Obedience to the counsel and instruction of the Lord is absolutely essential. So it’s important for both us and our well-meaning Christian friends to discern what the Lord would have us to do. Yes, we need an ark of safety, but I repeat: the ark we need has already been built. Jesus Christ is our Ark, and all who trust in Him and obey Him will be saved. (Note: this is not “salvation by works.” It’s common sense. If Jesus Christ is your Lord, you will do what He tells you to do – Luke 6:46)

In the hours before Sodom was destroyed, God’s counsel was for Lot and his family to escape from the city, NOT shelter in place and survive in a bunker. Jesus’ counsel to the believers in Jerusalem when Titus arrived was to leave the city. His counsel to us in these last day is to persevere in order that He might keep us from “the hour of trial which shall come upon the whole world.” ALL of Sodom was under judgment in the days of Lot. There was no “safe space” in the city – escape FROM the city was the only option. Similarly, in the days of Titus, there was no safety anywhere in Jerusalem. In our immediate future, there will be no safe place on the planet.

Possibly the last call: Be reconciled, repent, persevere. Don’t be lukewarm. Get your head out of the world and into the Word. Become the person God created you to be. A moment after that last trump sounds is a moment too late.

What Is the Gospel?

A Fuller Dignity

Run From This Word

When God was bringing His people out of Egypt, He crushed the Egyptian deities in the process. From Hepi, their “god of the Nile” up to Pharaoh – none were spared God’s wrath. Of course, the Israelites saw all this and must have realized (though it seems they quickly forgot) that the One who was delivering them was the Only and All-Powerful God.

We may soon see a replay of this motif. As you may know, the markets throughout the world have become turbulent and unpredictable. According to Aaron Brickman, the market events of the past week followed his prediction and the next item on the agenda (he does not say when) is a MAJOR “correction” that he expects will bottom out on November 11th. He’d be easy to ignore if he were the only one proclaiming these likely events, but he is far from alone. (also here and here.)

I can’t speak to Mr. Brickman’s record of accuracy or his method for reaching these conclusions, but it makes sense to me that God would deal a severe blow to “mammon” – the other god that competes for the love and allegiance of nearly all men everywhere. Whether it’s a bank account, gold and silver, a 401(k) or some other form of the world’s “wealth” (so-called), it would be very consistent with God’s modus operandi to crush this false god and give people one last opportunity to either 1) recognize their idolatry and turn in trust to the living God, or 2) mourn the loss of their “wealth” and perhaps wait hopefully to see what the “god of this world” will raise up to replace what was destroyed.

And notably, the timing could not be better. Here on the threshold of the rapture, an event largely unanticipated by both the professing Christian subculture and the world, we will see how folks respond when their material assets go to zero. Like the Israelites at the Red Sea, many will see no way forward. Many may panic. Many may lose hope entirely. Many with a superficial “faith” may get angry at God. It will be very clarifying.

For myself, I will NOT start proclaiming the imminent rapture. Rather, I will assert to anyone who will listen that in Jesus Christ, complete reconciliation with God is still freely available. I will, by God’s grace, make the choice of reconciliation with God as stark and binary as I possibly can.

How complex must any physical thing be before you must logically conclude that it came into being solely through a series of random, purposeless and natural events?

A question for an evolutionist, one might think. I probably think more about refuting evolution than I should, but it surprises me (and it probably shouldn’t) that anyone could embrace the tenets of Darwinism and find intellectual fulfillment, as Richard Dawkins has famously asserted. Let’s play with this a little bit.

Suppose I show you a penny and tell you I found it on the ground while walking the dog. I explain to you that I don’t know how it came to be on the ground, but I have a theory. My theory is that a million years ago, a meteor made of zinc struck the ground, and millennia of wind, erosion and random natural forces caused almost all of the meteorite to wear away, and all that was left was this penny. I also mention that this is a common occurrence – it must be – because there are millions of pennies and this is not the first time I found one. I imagine you would smile and assure me that the penny came from a mint, where it was designed and produced and then sent to a bank somewhere and spent into circulation. Pennies don’t just fall from the sky.

Fair enough. But I also found a child’s bow and arrow. This is more complex, has a discernible purpose, has moving parts that function, and is made of different materials. The bicycle, the car in the parking lot – each in turn displaying increasing levels of complexity. I saw them all while walking the dog. You would no doubt set my inquiring mind at ease. None of them sprang from the ground or fell from the sky. Each was designed and manufactured.

Then we come to the acorn. I found an acorn, which is a bio-mechanical device that makes an oak tree out of carbon dioxide, water and sunshine. An acorn is an extremely complex device, and yet the same evolutionist who would laugh at my original penny hypothesis would in all seriousness insist that the acorn “just happened” over millions of years of natural processes. No design, no designer – just random undirected natural activity, guided only by some principle we have not yet discovered that suspends or transcends the well-known laws of thermodynamics.

This is not intellectual fulfillment. It’s the desperate pseudo-philosophical flailing of someone who is in serious denial and is suppressing self-evident truth in unrighteousness (Romans 1:18). A quote attributed to Lincoln comes to mind: “When a man who is honestly mistaken hears the truth, he will either quit being mistaken or cease to be honest.”

It is for this reason that I think a lot of modern “apologetics” is probably a waste of time. At some point, the discussion becomes dishonest. It should make perfect sense to one who seeks intellectual fulfillment, that the more complex something is and the more obvious its purpose or function is, the more likely it is that the thing was designed and built. Pennies, toys and bikes don’t “just happen.” An acorn is more complex than a penny.

So I’d ask the intellectually fulfilled atheistic scientist: “Where is the threshold? What’s the formula for computing the level of complexity that exceeds intentional design? How can we tell ‘scientifically’ whether something was designed or whether it ‘just happened’?”

How complex must any physical thing be before you must logically conclude that it was not designed?

I ran cross country in high school and one of the things I remember hearing was “always run through the tape.” By this was meant the sage counsel that you don’t stop or even slow down at the end of a race. As much as is in you, you run even harder and try to, if at all possible, increase speed at the finish.

The reason is simple: the runner behind you is still also in the race, and he is trying to pass you. Dialing back on your effort before the end can cost you points.

Many of us have been in this “race” for a long, long time. Some have known since childhood (as I have) that this was the “terminal generation” and that we would live to see the return of our beloved King. We have also seen a lot of extremely promising “high watch” dates come and go. Many have been tempted (as I have) to dial back and coast. Then the date passes and we’re still here. Opportunities lost.

We are once again in a high watch state. For those who expected a rapture on Rosh Hashana (I did not) there is now the usual period of second-guessing and re-calibration. “Maybe we used the wrong calendar,” some are thinking. Or “maybe the bridegroom has been delayed.” And maybe that’s true.

The point of this post is simple: Don’t quit. That means keep doing everything you can to grow in Christ. Keep praying with confidence. Keep living as a mature Christian is supposed to live. And live aggressively! Don’t let your “walk” become a crawl. Rather, let it be a sprint!

Most Christians have been led to believe that “just getting to heaven” is all that’s important, and that because our destination is God’s gift, we need do nothing. But you can suffer loss, remain spiritually puerile, and spend eternity in Heaven’s Day Care Center. As pointed out previously, Jesus deserves a spiritually mature bride. We still have time to become the companions He deserves.

Grow in grace! Stay anchored in Biblical doctrine so you aren’t among those “children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine” (Eph. 4:14). Have a clear, complete and Biblical idea of what a mature disciple of Christ is like: how he (or she) spends his time, spends his money, treats others, and cleans up after himself, and then be that person. Identify the areas in your life that are strongholds of the enemy, and then overcome those strongholds. It may not be easy, but it’s necessary and by God’s grace (and WITH His grace) it need not take long.

The promise in Revelation 3:10 is for those who persevere.

Persevere!

About 25 years ago, I wrote a piece called Complementary or Supplementary? and it was dealing with the dynamics between a husband and wife in a healthy marriage. The thrust of the message is that the wife, in her role as “helper” was to help her husband overcome his short-comings rather than step in and make up the difference. I illustrated my point with a hypothetical marriage where the husband was not earning enough to support his growing family. A “complementary” approach to the problem would be that the wife would help her husband to become worth more so he could earn more. A “supplementary” approach would be that the wife would simply get a job to make up for the shortfall.

My position was that “complementary” was a more Biblical approach. I got some push-back. Maybe I was on to something. I haven’t pursued it.

But it gave me pause – as I was considering the over-arching purpose of the book of Revelation as well as our relationship to Christ as His bride. It appears to me that Revelation completes our picture of Jesus Christ as both redeemer and judge. In the gospels, we see Jesus as Savior – a portrait of a man on a mission of redemption who takes the worst that fallen men can dish out. We see how He responds when abused, lied about, insulted and betrayed. We see His grief over the hard-heartedness of people and the effects of sin on mankind. We see His joy at the successes of His disciples and the nascent faith of some people, seen in the most unlikely places. We also see His wrath restrained.

The portrait of Jesus is completed for us in the book of Revelation. Having extended mercy to all men, an offer of forgiveness and reconciliation, and having that offer spurned, we now see His wrath against sin and against those who embrace it. We see Divine Justice poured out as rebellious men continue to blaspheme God and refuse to repent.

With this complete picture of Jesus, I think it’s obvious that He does not need to be “supplemented.” He has no lack, no deficiency, no shortfall. We are called to be conformed to Christ, to be like Him. This does not mean we become clones or identical copies. Rather, we are in some way to “complement” Him. I guess the best (or least inadequate) picture I get is of a man dancing with his wife. They move together as one. He leads and she follows. She “completes” him in the dance. She is neither inferior nor subservient.

Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is.

1 John 3:2 NKJV (emphasis added)

Our own revelation – what WE will be – has not yet been revealed. We know we will fall down before Him and cast our crowns. We know we will sing a song of redemption. But I’m sure you’d agree that an eternity consisting of just those activities would get pretty old. And while we are inferior to Christ, He apparently does not want us to be subservient. He did not save us to serve Him; clearly He has numberless angels who provide complete and perfect service whenever He desires. Rather, He desires mature companionship.

Being an eternal “complementary” companion of Jesus Christ will be complete fulfillment and joy for us. I am also confident that we will bring a level of joy to Him:

Let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. For consider Him who endured such hostility from sinners against Himself, lest you become weary and discouraged in your souls.

Hebrews 12:1-3 NKJV (emphasis added)

This, I suspect, is why the enemy of Christ wants to distract us from Christian maturity. This is why the deceiver and his underlings emphasize soul-winning and “church growth” often at the expense of the difficult and painful parts of growing up in all things in Christ. This may also be why the deceivers among us trivialize the eschatological warnings. “There’s still plenty of time. Jesus might not come back for another hundred years.” Let’s be honest: it’s relatively easy to invite someone to church, or give someone a humorous gospel tract. But it’s hard to go to someone you work with and admit, “I lied to you yesterday to make myself look good. I should have said, ‘ … (painful truth here) …’ Will you forgive me?“

In American culture today, people don’t trust Christians any more than they trust unbelievers. Christians don’t trust Christians either. We’re immature.

Little time remains. Soon, each of us will stand before our Creator. Take the time left to grow: make good on your promises, seek reconciliation with those you’ve offended, make restitution to those you’ve defrauded, apologize and ask forgiveness from those you’ve hurt. The Bema Seat is not a test on Bible knowledge; it’s an examination of your character. The more you grow, the more joy you will bring to your Savior.

I can take nothing away from the literary skill of Randy Alcorn, or from the daily courage displayed by the Staines family (and many others), who are unquestionably stellar examples of total commitment to Christ. However, there’s a subtle inference I would like to point out; something that struck me as I read this dedication.

One might infer that because these saints and martyrs paid such a high price, that they are perhaps “elite” or super-Christians, living at a level that the rest of us could never attain because 1) they serve in a hostile foreign environment, and 2) they have a level of faith the rest of us do not possess.

It’s easy to make those assumptions, but the fact is they are simply examples of Christians living out their lives and displaying what it means to be completely committed to Jesus Christ. It is because they are totally committed that they are deemed to be among “those of whom the world is not worthy.”

God has called them, and He has given them what they need in order to do what He has called them to do. This does not differ from our situations. Regardless of who you are, where you live or anything else, you can still choose — as the Staines family obviously has — to live a life of complete commitment, surrendered to and trusting in Jesus Christ. You are also in a hostile environment; it’s just that the enemies of Christ in the world where you live and work have not (yet) reverted to deadly force. The “great desire” that Gladys articulated for the lepers in India should be very similar to the desire you have for your family, friends, neighbors and co-workers who remain estranged from their Creator and are slowly being choked to death by the “leprosy” of the sin dwelling within them.

The point is that the Staines family does not display “exceptional” Christianity. Rather, they are living out what AUTHENTIC Christianity looks like, and we are all called to live authentic Christian lives. If Jesus can sustain foreign missionaries under extremely adverse conditions, we can KNOW that He will also sustain us. If the Staines family, after enduring these hardships, still concludes that it is worth it, then WE can similarly know that our lives, if lived as authentic Christians, will also be worth it.

No doubt the Staines family faced hard decisions every day. No doubt they endured seasons of discouragement, deprivation, and second-guessing. Just like every other believer. God is not keeping track of our mistakes, doubts or failures. What He sees and no doubt delights in, is the daily commitment and living out of authentic faith, the Job 13:15 (or if you prefer, Daniel 3:17-18) moments when you experience resistance or temptation and you choose the will of Christ – over your own comfort and safety if necessary.

In short, don’t come away from stories of rugged faith and think, “I could never do that.” Rather, understand that you CAN “do that” every day, if you choose every day to live an authentic and totally committed life in Christ. Just as the Staines answered their calling, you can answer yours. Choose wisely – live authentically.

The big whoop – well, one of several – is about five allegedly kosher red heifers raised in Texas and recently sent to Israel so they can have the “ashes of a red heifer” in order to properly inaugurate their Third Temple. Some Christians can’t get to their checkbooks fast enough, in their zeal to support the new Temple. The narrative from many of our “prophecy experts” is that this new Temple will be a God-pleasing endeavor, that the Jews (much to God’s delight) will re-institute Old Testament temple services, and that in 3 1/2 years The AntiChrist will spoil the party by walking brazenly into the Holy of Holies, seating himself on the Mercy Seat therein, and declaring himself to be God.

With this egregious offense (the “official” narrative continues), the Jews will finally “get it” and realize that The AntiChrist is NOT their friend, they will flee from this abomination of desolation, and God will then begin 3 1/2 years of “great tribulation” on planet Earth.

This narrative is pure garbage. PLEASE: read your Bibles. I will give you the salient points, and I dare anyone to prove me wrong.

God is not interested in a return to the Old Testament. Jesus Christ fulfilled Passover and every other sacrifice once for all. He is our High Priest and He is not stepping aside. God is not interested in the blood of bulls and goats. They were a shadow of the true Sacrifice. The blood of Jesus Christ cleanses us from all sin. God does not have one plan for Gentiles and another plan for last-days Jews, just as He had just one plan at the beginning of the church age. Jews and Gentiles then were saved the same way as Jews and Gentiles now.

There will most certainly be a “temple” in Jerusalem but it won’t have God-pleasing worship. The “third temple” will be an abomination of desolation from its beginning. It will be inaugurated near the beginning of Daniel’s 70th week, but in the middle of the ‘week’ Jesus Christ will bring an end to sacrifice and offering. This religious whore-house will feature abominable sacrifices, most probably human.

So if you’re getting appeals for funding to complete the Third Temple, please think this through. Read Hebrews and Daniel. Try Revelation 13 where John says specifically that when the Dragon takes over, the only allowed object of worship will be the image of the beast.

Also, do a search on “red heifer” in the Bible. I did:

This is the ordinance of the law which the LORD has commanded, saying: ‘Speak to the children of Israel, that they bring you a red heifer without blemish, in which there is no defect and on which a yoke has never come.‘

Numbers 19:2 NKJV

This is the only Biblical reference, and it pertains to the tent of meeting and for the water of purification. These were under the Old Testament law. It’s an unwarranted stretch to say these ashes were necessary for the Temple, and accordingly there is no mention of either the ashes of a red heifer or the water of purification when Solomon dedicated the first Temple or when Zerubbabel dedicated the second one. The phrase “water of purification” appears only seven times in the Bible and only in the book of Numbers – once in 8:7, once in 31:23 and all the rest in chapter 19.

Outside the Bible, the red heifer is discussed in chapter 8 of the Epistle of Barnabas. Whether this is true, accurately recorded and faithfully transmitted, I will leave to your prayerful research –

Now what do you suppose this to be a type of, that a command was given to Israel, that men of the greatest wickedness should offer a heifer, and slay and burn it, and, that then boys should take the ashes, and put these into vessels, and bind round a stick purple wool along with hyssop, and that thus the boys should sprinkle the people, one by one, in order that they might be purified from their sins? Consider how He speaks to you with simplicity. The calf is Jesus: the sinful men offering it are those who led Him to the slaughter.

But now the men are no longer guilty, are no longer regarded as sinners. And the boys that sprinkle are those that have proclaimed to us the remission of sins and purification of heart. To these He gave authority to preach the Gospel, being twelve in number, corresponding to the twelve tribes of Israel.

But why are there three boys that sprinkle? To correspond to Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, because these were great with God.

And why was the wool [placed] upon the wood? Because by wood Jesus holds His kingdom, so that [through the cross] those believing on Him shall live forever.

But why was hyssop joined with the wool? Because in His kingdom the days will be evil and polluted in which we shall be saved, [and] because he who suffers in body is cured through the cleansing efficacy of hyssop. And on this account the things which stand thus are clear to us, but obscure to them because they did not hear the voice of the Lord.

Interesting, to be sure. According to Barnabas, the red heifer is fulfilled prophecy. If the Jews are interested in presenting a “heifer” other than Christ, it would suggest a false messiah; one who comes in his own name, whom the Jews willingly receive (John 5:43). Is this really something Christians want to be involved with?

If nothing else, this is another in-your-face example of some of the “prophecy experts” leading people astray. If you disagree, cite chapter and verse in the comments.