Speaking maliciously of a king or powerful rich person has repercussions. “Curse not the king, no not in thy thought; and curse not the rich in thy bedchamber: for a bird of the air shall carry the voice, and that which hath wings shall tell the matter” (Ecclesiastes 10:20 KJV). Simply testifying of evil conduct is not so much implied, as speaking maliciously with intent to harm, and certainly not “speaking the truth in love” (Ephesians 4:15). “A little bird told me” would more be like gossip, for obvious political purposes, when speaking of a person of power. Moses wrote, “Thou shalt not revile the gods [Hebrew, elohim, as in lesser gods of the Divine Council, Psalm 82:1 ESV ], nor curse the ruler of thy people” (Exodus 22:28). Even the archangel Michael refused to speak boastfully against the devil from the Unseen Realm, but carefully watched his heart and directed his speech. “Yet Michael the archangel, when contending with the devil he disputed about the body of Moses, durst not bring against him a railing accusation, but said, The Lord rebuke thee” (Jude 1:9). Paul vilified Ananias the high priest for ordering him to be struck, contrary to the law, for simply speaking the truth. When informed his words were directed against a high priest, Paul respectfully replied, “I wist [knew] not, brethren, that he was the high priest: for it is written, Thou shalt not speak evil of the ruler of thy people” (Acts 23:5). He quoted again Moses, closing the circle of the argument, especially dealing with the powerful but lesser gods of the Unseen Realm, we need to be like Michael the archangel, by humbly resisting the devil “and he will flee from you” (James 4:7). LORD, we know You have already won the game, so we know how we play the game is the only thing of importance. Help us to remember to watch always our heart, that none can ever tattle on us, ‘A little bird told me.’ May our hearts stay pure in the midst of the political posturing and wrangling, of others. In Jesus’ name, we pray, for “Thou God seest me” (Genesis 16:13). Amen.
Promises
Messages From Three Angels (Revelation 14:6-13)
The Gospel, judgment for Babylon, and personal judgment are the messages of the three angels from God to the world. With the removal of the 144,000 and the Two Witnesses at the Pre-Wrath Rapture, no other outward testimony for the LORD exists on planet earth, but these three angels, before the handfuls of days left for the completion of the Seven Vial Judgments at the end of the Tribulation Week. “And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people” (Revelation 14:6 KJV). The Gospel is the Greek euaggelionor good news, but it is only good news, if you repent. The second angel announces, “Babylon is fallen, is fallen, that great city, because she made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication” (14:8). This warns of the soon and sudden demise — “in one hour” (18:17) — of the Beast’s religious and economic systems detailed in Revelation 17 and 18. And finally, the third Angel warns of the “wrath of God” (14:10) for all worshippers of the Antichrist, and blessing for those who “die in the Lord from henceforth” (14:13). The stage is now set for the final judgment of the earth. LORD, we can barely imagine the scope of what You have set for Your program of dealing with humanity. How You have wisely designed all these interactions and prophesied their fulfillment, knowing that You will bring them to pass contrary to the best efforts of the Devil, the Antichrist, and the False Prophet. Glory to Your name. We magnify You for Your mercy and grace in salvation. And, we praise and extol You for Your righteousness and judgment of the earth. Fulfill all Your prophecies and keep all Your promises. In Jesus’ name, we pray. Amen and amen.
Come Out From Among Them
Where does God draw the line for you? When you make a decision to move away from a circumstance, which would cause you to compromise truth you have received, then the LORD will receive you. “Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you” (2Corinthians 6:17 KJV). Holiness unto the LORD is our set apartness unto God. The Holy Spirit gives us our guidance. How close can we get to God? The question is never how close to the world can you get and still be a Christian? Unless God has your whole heart, you are none of His. “My son, give me thine heart, and let thine eyes observe my ways” (Proverbs 23:26). Remember the warning to the Professed Christians at Laodicea. “Because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of My mouth” (Revelation 3:16). Profession is not possession, unless there is heart obedience. LORD, make us to be holy for You are holy. Cause us to see how close we can draw to You, and not the world. Return quickly, and deliver us. In Jesus’ name, we pray. Amen.
144,000 Israelites Safe in Heaven (Revelation 14:1)
Safe in Heaven, 144,000 Tribulation Saints, who are Israelites, have made it through the Tribulation Week without suffering martyrdom and have been Pre-Wrath Raptured before the final Seven Vial Judgments (Revelation 16) are poured out at the end of the Seventieth Week of Daniel. “And I looked, and, lo, a Lamb stood on the mount Sion, and with Him an hundred forty and four thousand, having His Father’s name written in their foreheads” (Revelation 14:1 KJV). Roughly speaking, this would be akin to the head of state (Christ the Lamb) greeting hostages, who have returned from captivity from an enemy country. These are the same 144,000 sealed in Revelation 7. All of this indicates that there will be an enormous number of Israelis saved immediately after the Pre-Tribulational Rapture, which means evangelistic efforts in Israel must be effectively reaching out to Israelis prior to the Tribulation. Support and pray for those ministries. The faithfulness of God to preserve all of His Saints presently from temptation, is also able to do so during the Tribulation. “There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it” (1Corinthians 10:13). Remember, the 144,000 are the “firstfruits” (Revelation 14:4) of the nation of Israel, who will “be born at once” (Isaiah 66:8) at Messiah Jesus’ Second Coming. LORD, You are the same God now and forever. Demonstrate Yourself strong on behalf of Your people now and Your 144,000 later. In Jesus’ name, return quickly. Amen and amen.
Awakening the Church
The Holy Spirit has always been the Church’s greatest secret, but especially for the fragmented Church, its greatest mystery. Our most valuable connections are not man’s devices, such as the internet or social media — which have their place — but the Holy Spirit. We are accustomed to other means because of their obvious utility. What has the Church always had as both its Source and resource, but the Holy Spirit? How did the Early Church achieve such incomprehensible results without our modern devices, but through the Holy Spirit? “I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me” (Philippians 4:13 KJV). Disconnected from man’s devices, God is able to replicate and communicate His intentions and movement through the Holy Spirit. His Word is used to communicate to us by His Spirit. And, prayer is used to communicate with Him — and, to the rest of the Body of Christ. When His Spirit is moving upon us, then we can believe and pray He is similarly moving upon others. Use the assembling of the local church and the fellowship of disciples and believers, where possible and available, but do not neglect the Holy Spirit and prayer. Naturally, the enemy does not want us to fully appreciate our advantage. We neglect prayer because we do not well understand nor control it. “Through God we shall do valiantly: for He it is that shall tread down our enemies” (Psalm 60:12). LORD, inspire us to pray like we believe prayer is more effective and valuable than man’s devices. In Jesus’ name, we ask it. Amen.
Blindness of the Church (Part 1)
All of history has been building up to today, when the Church faces the god of this world and the minions of his demonic horde, long ignored in western biblical exposition. Jewish rabbis would rejoice to find the difficult passages to interpret because then they would have the most opportunity for discovery. “Open Thou mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of Thy law” (Psalm 119:18 KJV). We will either lose our faith or go mad, if we continue to seek solutions without elevating our thinking about the Scriptures. Genesis is the beginning of most of our misunderstandings that only multiply throughout Scripture. Without debating six literal days of creation or Noah’s worldwide flood carving the Grand Canyon, trouble appears in Genesis 6, where the “sons of God came in unto the daughters of men, and they bare children to them, the same became mighty men which were of old, men of renown” (Genesis 6:4 KJV). In the OT, benai elohim, “sons of God” (6:4) always refers to angelic beings (Job 1:6; 2:1; 38:7). Angels (also called elohim, Psalm 82:1,6) who “kept not their first estate” (Jude 1:6) produced an unnatural, ungodly hybrid known as Nephilim. “The Nephilim [KJV, giants] were on the earth in those days, and also afterward, when the sons of God came in to the daughters of man and they bore children to them. These were the mighty men who were of old, the men of renown” (Genesis 6:4 ESV). The significance of this ungodly hybridization manifests itself throughout Scripture, e.g., Goliath; but ultimately, it will demonstrate itself in the fulfillment of Bible prophecy concerning the Antichrist. Already, the Church has been blinded concerning this because it has been mired in establishing the First Truths of the doctrines of Christ. “1 Therefore leaving the principles [Greek, archē, elementary instructions, first truths] of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto perfection; not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works, and of faith toward God, 2 Of the doctrine of baptisms, and of laying on of hands, and of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment” (Hebrews 6:1-2). More about this later. LORD, grant us the gift of a willing heart to remove our blindness about what You are about to do in fulfillment of Prophecy. In Jesus’ name, amen.
For more information on the Nephilim, see our book, Understanding Spiritual Warfare.
Blessed Are The Poor
Rich people are not necessarily blessed, and poor people are blessed with more of a need to depend upon God. “Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God” (Luke 6:20 NIV). I like to think of myself as “poor in spirit” (Matthew 5:3 KJV), but ‘rich’ and ‘poor’ are only terms of comparison, for the “poor always ye have with you” (John 12:8). Show me where prosperity is a tool or weapon in our Spiritual Warfare for the Kingdom of God, then I can become excited about prospering, for “no weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper” (Isaiah 54:17). Prosperity for (1) believing His prophets: “Believe in the LORD your God, so shall ye be established; believe His prophets, so shall ye prosper” (2Chronicles 20:20), (2) walking with God: “And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper” (Psalm 1:3 KJV), (3) praying for and loving Jerusalem: “Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: they shall prosper that love thee” (Psalm 122:6), and (4) confidence in God’s words: “So shall My word be that goeth forth out of My mouth: it shall not return unto Me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it” (Isaiah 55:11). LORD, prosper Your servants that Your Kingdom would be increased and all would know our prosperity comes only from You to be used only for You. Return quickly, in Jesus’ name. Amen and amen.
Why No Revival?
God is not to be blamed for the lack of revival in the churches. Reviving the same failed ideas does not require the moving of the Holy Spirit. Pulpit preaching seeking to inspire the congregation to recreate past ideas, only on a larger scale, and by getting out of our comfort zone, simply bewilders the hearers. Before the Holy Spirit will grant the miraculous, He requires a better comprehension of Him and what He is about to do. How does the Holy Spirit act? He moves upon us to cause us to obey Him without forcing us. “And I will put My spirit within you, and cause you to walk in My statutes, and ye shall keep My judgments, and do them” (Ezekiel 36:27 KJV). What does the Holy Spirit expects of us? He is both given to those who obey Him, as well as to cause us to obey Him. “And we are His witnesses of these things; and so is also the Holy Ghost, whom God hath given to them that obey Him” (Acts 5:32). Miracles will be wasted on the Church, if God’s people have not learned the fundamentals of Spirit inspired obedience. If we still have reservations about why we can’t obey, then that must be removed before God’s Spirit will act. “Yet lackest thou one thing: sell all that thou hast, and distribute unto the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, follow Me” (Luke 18:22). LORD, we need revival in the Church, but we need to address the deficiencies in our understanding before we can receive the outpouring of Your Spirit. Grant to us the new wineskins of better understanding that we may have the appropriate vessel for the filling of Your Spirit. Transform Your Church. Even so, return quickly. In Jesus’ name, amen.
False Prophet: Worship the Image of the Beast (Revelation 13:15)
An image of the Antichrist will be made, brought to life, and worshipped by all earth dwellers, as demanded by the False Prophet. “And he had power to give life unto the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed” (Revelation 13:15 KJV). No one can remain neutral about worshipping the “image of the beast” (13:25). Worship or die. Before the events of the Tribulation Week, one might proceed to the end of their natural life before a decision might be made. Now, “the devil is come down unto you, having great wrath, because he knoweth that he hath but a short time” (12:12). Rationality is not the question. Do you value your present physical life more than your eternal life? Even the young in Christ can understand the choice. God can give His people the power to persevere a martyr’s death. “Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer: behold, the devil shall cast some of you into prison, that ye may be tried; and ye shall have tribulation ten days: be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life” (2:10). LORD, You alone can make us faithful to bear a martyr’s death. Make us faithful and cause us to hang on, when we have no one else but You to grasp. Bless Your Name and all those, who hold fast to You. In Jesus’ name, we pray. Amen.
Hope for the Prodigal
How often do you think about sons and daughters, who once enjoyed your close fellowship as disciples, but now bear little resemblance to Christ? Especially for you, Christ’s Parable of the Prodigal Son (Luke 15:11-32) is meant for your encouragement. Christ had just reproved the “Pharisees and scribes” (15:2) for their hypocrisy of not rejoicing in the penitence of the “publicans and sinners” (15:1), when they would rejoice over the recovery of one lost sheep (15:4-7) or one lost coin (15:8-10). His story of the Prodigal Son reminds Christian parents that our Heavenly Father yearns to restore our hardened, impenitent children, but first they must be reduced “to be in want” (15:14) of their former provisioned circumstances, and be Spirit led to confess their need (15:17-18). Only then can the Holy Spirit “give them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth” (2Timothy 2:25). The Father restores gladly, but the rest of the family needs to understand the Spirit filled significance of using the bounty of the Body of Christ to call Home the wayward. LORD, You are the Good Father watching for the return of our prodigal children. Your compassion is encouragement they will return. Make us to prosper to draw them home. Make it to be so. In Jesus’ name, we pray. Amen.
We Need A Miracle 
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