Religion Articles

People Seek Help Through Prayer

(category: Religion, Word count: 383)
Share this article on: Facebook, Twitter, Whatsapp

People throughout the world are searching - for God, for answers, for meaning. Thousands of these seekers are led to Silent Unity, the prayer ministry of Unity. Silent Unity receives more than 2 million requests for prayer support each year from all over the world - by telephone, mail and the Internet.

The following requests reflect issues that many of us deal with in our own lives. Silent Unity is sharing them with the permission of those requesting prayer.

Every time I get one health challenge under control, something else goes wrong. It is hard to keep a positive attitude. Is there any prayer that can help?

Yes, prayer always helps when you are facing a healing challenge because prayer connects you to the presence of God within. As you pray, focus your thoughts only on God, the source of life and peace, and speak affirmative words quietly or aloud. The life of God within responds to your positive words and continuously works to renew every cell of your body.

Use the following affirmation to help keep your thoughts centered on the healing life of God: "The healing life of God is flowing through every cell of my body temple. I am whole and free."

My family members no longer speak to one another and everyone is blaming someone else in the family for the problems we're facing. I miss the fun times and the love we shared. Can you help me?

The love of God is greater than any challenge you and your family can face. As you pray, know that this great love is flowing through you and recognize it within each member of your family. God's love will guide each of you to live and work together in a spirit of cooperation, understanding and respect.

We are affirming with you now: "The love of God flows through me and each member of my family to guide our thoughts and actions. United in love, we live in harmony and understanding."

What one heart cannot bear alone, a hundred loving hearts can bear with faith. Silent Unity has been praying with people of all faiths for more than 100 years. Its 300 employees respond to each request for prayer support with reverence and complete confidentiality.

Four Prophetic Pillars That Mark Where We Are Right Now The Timing Of The Second Coming Of Christ

(category: Religion, Word count: 137)
Share this article on: Facebook, Twitter, Whatsapp

We could choose dozens of references to the second coming to show that these are the times predicted just prior to the second coming. For example Jesus spoke of wars and rumors of wars. It is no secret that most of the wars fought throughout history have been fought in the last seventy five years. Or that most of the earthquakes ever recorded have taken place in the last twenty five years. But it is not these general signs that give us the greatest insight into the timing of the second coming. It is the four pillars of prophecy that place us smack in the middle of the last generation before Christ's return. The four pillars are as follows.

Finding Favor In Uncommon Places

(category: Religion, Word count: 486)
Share this article on: Facebook, Twitter, Whatsapp

What do you want in your life? What kind of life would you like to live? I believe the answer lies in a question: What are you and I becoming? There is much written today in the coaching world about the law of attraction. The truth of the matter is that we really are attracting positive and negative things into our life everyday by our conversations, our interactions, even our demeanor. A person that acts and speaks negatively will no doubt repel positive people and most likely will only attract other negative people. The old expression, "misery loves company is really true."! So how do I get good things to come in my life? In God's Word, we read about this thing called "favor." Favor is this undeserved grace or open door that suddenly happens to us when we did very little to make happen. Its kind of like being at the right place at the right time. Its having someone really like you, believe in you and open unexpected opportunities for you. Ever experienced that? That is favor! In Proverbs 3:3-4, we read the key to finding favor.

"Let love and faithfulness never leave you;

Bind them around your neck.

Write them on the tablet of your heart.

Then you will find favor and a good name

In the sight of God and man."

Don't let love and faithfulness leave you! When you do a word study on love and faithfulness, you find they have similarities. They both have the element of steadfastness. The word for love means steadfast love, mercy, loving-kindness, faithfulness, goodness, devotion. The word for faithfulness means steadfast, endure, faithfulness, to be true, to trust. So in summary, the person who finds favor with God and man is the person who is loving, kind, faithful, merciful, devoted, steadfast and trustworthy. They are faithful. They are no doubt the kind of people that others want to be around because not only are they loving and kind, but they are trustworthy. They mean what they say and say what they mean. Their word is their bond. They can be counted on to fulfill their obligations. A long time ago men and women didn't have written contracts. Their word was their creed and it was good enough! Want favor to show up in unexpected places and times? Well, I must go back to the original question, What are you becoming? Are you faithful? Do you follow through with commitments? Are you trustworthy? Can you be counted on? Do you deal with people in a loving and kind way? Do people want to be around you?

Gifts and talents are great but, without character to sustain them, they really are a flash in the pan. Steadfast character, love and faithfulness open doors for favor and a good name in the sight of God and man. What could be better than that?

Prayer Is The Best Thing

(category: Religion, Word count: 574)
Share this article on: Facebook, Twitter, Whatsapp

Prayer definitely works and is still working today as it did thousands of years ago. There are many that have experienced it's power.

Just when you wonder when are things going to get better...prayer gets answered! And most of the time it will be better results than what you imagined! A powerful true experience of what prayer can do for those who have faith in it and in God.

I was really getting to the point of utter frustration involving the numerous business ventures I had invested in over the last few years.

One of my ventures was my own business as a real estate photographer and was just starting to market my service. Then the realtor companies were stating that real estate is booming and houses were selling without pictures and they were right, it was the beginning of a real estate boom...not what I wanted to hear!

After many attempts at trying to get this business going with little success, I just broke down and prayed out loud to God telling him that evidently this isn't the work that he had planned for me. And then I asked him to please show me what he would like for me to do.

The next day, I was remembering that I had sold a certain product line in retail quite a few years ago, and really enjoyed it. So I thought what can I lose by just checking into it again? Then I called a friend that I hadn't talked to for quite awhile and she was selling this line and was doing pretty well with it.

After calling her, she said that she was retiring soon, and referred me to another lady in the business. I then spoke with her, and we really hit it off over the phone. I had never met her in my life, but she seemed very nice and helpful. All of a sudden, in the middle of the phone conversation, she said that sometime in the early part of next year, she will be retiring and has quite a few representatives that she makes commissions on, working for her. She then asked me if I would be interested in taking them over at that point.

I wanted to shout out my answer, but managed to contain myself and said I was very interested. After the call had ended...I was dancing with joy! I thought this is so amazing, especially since she really didn't even know me.

Then that wasn't all...this next part of my experience is even more amazing! My Christian friend and her husband whom I had originally called about this business, had put their house on the market so they could retire and travel. They had it up for less than two weeks and received a cash offer for the total amount they were asking...wow! Then guess what happened next...she called me and asked if I would take over her customer base of over fifty regular customers ... WOW! Anyway, I think you know my answer.

Then I thanked God for his blessing with his answer to my prayer!

So in conclusion, if you are feeling like giving up, and have been really discouraged with your work or personal life, just ask God for his help. Then pray daily and give thanks to him too, have faith, and your prayers will be answered in the way that is best for you!

Am I Just A Freak Of Nature

(category: Religion, Word count: 756)
Share this article on: Facebook, Twitter, Whatsapp

My parents were not much into going to church but my paternal grandparents dragged my four brothers and I into church whenever possible. I went to Sunday School and sat through countless sermons - all the while wishing I were out playing baseball or doing something fun. I had better things to do on Sunday mornings and Wednesday evenings then attending church services. Thinking back, I am glad I did attend. Some of it did sink in. A seed was planted.

I learned all the Bible stories, you know, Creation, Adam and Eve, Noah's flood, Moses parting the Red Sea, Jesus and the cross, and so on, not knowing sure what to believe. Because at the same time my school science classes were telling me something very different about who I was and how I got here. The schools pretty much had me convinced I evolved from a fish, which evolved from something even lower in a warm slimy sludge. They had me convinced I was a product of random chance events and no creator was involved or needed. I did not see much of a future beyond the grave. I did not feel good about this, but who was I to argue with scientific facts!

In my early 20's (a long time ago), I began to question everything I was taught. I was torn between what I was taught in church and what I was taught in school. I decided someone had lied to me and I did not like it. I still did not fully understand the whole Christianity thing and why Jesus had to die on a cross. Nevertheless, I needed to know the truth about my existence. Was I the product of a series of random accidents, or did a Supreme Being place me on this earth for a reason? I wanted to know and had to know. I had a void inside that I could not explain. I had to know why I was here and what the future held for me. This set me on a quest for the truth.

The first thing I did was to go to a local bookstore and search for the "truth" in the occult section. Surely I can find all the answers to life on these shelves I thought. Believe it or not I did, or at least the answers started there. Right there, in the middle of all the astrologers, soothsayers, and modern day prophets, was a book titled "The Late Great Planet Earth" by Hal Lindsey. I bought the book, read it, and it completely changed the way I looked at life. I knew I had an exciting future - an exciting eternal future, if any of this were true.

After reading that book, I sat down and read Genesis. An unexplainable chill came over me as I realized that I was reading actual history and not ancient myths. It actually frightened me a bit, knowing without a shadow of a doubt the events really happened. I bought another one of Hal's books titled "The Liberation of Planet Earth", that went into great detail of who Jesus was and is, and why God had to become a man and die on a cross. Another chill came over me as when I knew it was a historical fact that Jesus actually rose from the dead. I finally understood God's plan - from creation to eternity. The lights in my head suddenly came on. It all made sense.

I then set out on a journey to study everything I could find on atheistic evolution (the type of evolution taught in public schools in the USA), and creation. All the living things around me took on new meaning. I looked at them differently. I could look at a bird or ant and I could see incredible design and purpose. I studied, in great detail, the cardiovascular and vision systems of humans. I studied the workings of the simplest life form, the cell. I concluded the chances of atheistic evolution being the process of which life evolved on earth was absolute zero, not mention the origin of life springing up from non-life in some slimy sludge also being absolute zero.

No, I am not a freak of nature, but one who has an exciting destiny in eternity, and placed here for a reason by a loving Creator. Since that day in the bookstore, I have been on an incredible and exciting journey and I have never looked back.

What Is Commitment

(category: Religion, Word count: 1647)
Share this article on: Facebook, Twitter, Whatsapp

What is Commitment? There are many types of Commitment. Commitment to, family, spouse, children, job, country, self, ideology and God. The state of being bound emotionally or intellectually to a course of action or to another person or persons. A Pledge. To pledge or obligate one's own self. commit, consign, entrust, confide, relegate. When I married my wife I committed myself to her welfare, both physically and emotionally. She put her trust in me to provide for not only her but for our children, forsaking all to the betterment of one relationship under God. I made a commitment to my employer to do the best as I was able to provide him with quality work for the pay that I received, never defrauding him in any way. I made a commitment to my Country, to serve and protect such rights as were provided by the constitution, as I served in the Military, being sent where and when I was ordered. I made a commitment to myself to do those things that were lawful and needful to my welfare, to obtain the American dream of self suffiency and wellbeing. I made a commitment to my Ideology, being understood that God came first then everything else afterwards. Believing in one God, one Saviour, one Bible and one way of Salvation by the Direction of one Holy Ghost. I did my best to uphold each commitment as I was able, being limited in the body but with my spirit willing. Even after being devastated by three heart attacks, my commitment to my wife, family, children, ideology, self and God has not dwindled nor been removed by my sercomstances. Once a commitment has been made it cannot be counted as void because of changing situations. But as we all have made commitments in our lives, not one of us ever had to shed blood for our commitment to God. We all, as believers, have made a commitment to God. To uphold, His, Statutes, Laws, Commandments, Ideals, to hold to our Faith in Him no mater what came against us, but we still have not shed blood for the cause of our commitment. We have not yet resisted unto blood, striving against sin.[Heb 12:4 Ye have not yet resisted unto blood, striving against sin.] Lets talk a little about the comittment of Jesus to His Father and to us. Matthew 26:39 And he went a little further, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt. Jesus made severial comittments,

1. To re-obtain Dominion over the earth. [Mat 4:8-10; Again, the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain, and sheweth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them; And saith unto him, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me. Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.] For we all know that Adam was given dominion over the earth by God and then lost it to Satan when He fell. Matthew 4:8-10, proves that Satan Had dominion over all because Jesus never rebuked him for his offer to give the kingdoms of the earth to Him.

2. Preach The everlasting Gospel to the House of Israel.[Mat 15:24 But he answered and said, I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel.

Mar 7:26-27 The woman was a Greek, a Syrophenician by nation; and she besought him that he would cast forth the devil out of her daughter.

But Jesus said unto her, Let the children first be filled: for it is not meet to take the children's bread, and to cast it unto the dogs. [The comittment of Jesus was to offer salvation to the Jews first, doing so fulfilling prophecy. [Isa_53:5, Isa_53:6, Isa_53:11, Isa_53:12; Mat_8:17; Gal_3:13; Heb_9:28; 1Pe_2:24, 1Pe_3:18; 1Jo_2:2] Isa 9:6-7; For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.

Isa 9:7 Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this.

3. To set in place a plan of Salvation for all mankind. John 3:14 And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up: Joh 3:17 For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. John 12:31 Now is the judgment of this world: now shall the prince of this world be cast out.

John 12:32 And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me.

4. To give His life to secure mankinds salvation for all that would believe on Him. Joh 10:14-18; I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep(Recognition of the Saved), and am known of mine(Recoginition of the Savour).

As the Father knoweth me, even so know I the Father: and I lay down my life for the sheep(Israel). And other sheep I have(The Gentile Race), which are not of this fold:(The Jewish Race of People) them also I must bring(Save), and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold,(No more Jew nor Greek) and one shepherd.

Therefore doth my Father love me, because I lay down my life, that I might take it again.(His fulfilment of His Comittment to God and Man.) No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This commandment have I received of my Father.

5. To live a sinless life for an example for us. Heb 9:14 How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot(Sin) to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God? Heb 9:28 So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for him shall he appear the second time without sin unto salvation. 1Pe 1:19 But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot: (Sinless) 6. Comitted to fulfill the will of the Father. Mat 7:21 Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.Mat 11:27 All things are delivered unto me of my Father: and no man knoweth the Son, but the Father; neither knoweth any man the Father, save the Son, and he to whomsoever the Son will reveal him. Mat 12:50 For whosoever shall do the will of my Father which is in heaven, the same is my brother, and sister, and mother. Joh 8:49 Jesus answered, I have not a devil; but I honour my Father, and ye do dishonour me. Joh 8:54 Jesus answered, If I honour myself, my honour is nothing: it is my Father that honoureth me; of whom ye say, that he is your God: 7. Comitted to Destroy the works of Satan. Luk 10:18 And he said unto them, I beheld Satan as lightning fall from heaven. Act 26:18 To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in me. Rev 3:9 Behold, I will make them of the synagogue of Satan, which say they are Jews, and are not, but do lie; behold, I will make them to come and worship before thy feet, and to know that I have loved thee. 8. Comitted to Return to reastablish Gods dominion upon the earth for eternity. Eph 4:10 He that descended is the same also that ascended up far above all heavens, that he might fill all things.) Eph 4:8 Wherefore he saith, When he ascended up on high, he led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men. Rev 19:15 And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. Rev 2:27 And he shall rule them with a rod of iron; as the vessels of a potter shall they be broken to shivers: even as I received of my Father.

Jesus has fulfilled His commitments except 1, The return to finally destroy Satan and establish His eternal kingdom upon the earth. To those that don't believe, look at history and see all the commitments that were fulfilled by Christ and ponder the thought, that if all these things are true, then the last will also come to pass. Do you think that God will leave the last undone? I think not. This world is falling apart at the seams, conflict, confusion, war and rumors of war. The worlds monetary system is going bankrupt, soon money will be useless and the things that you thought were important, no one will even want to steel. What will be your commitment when Christ returns? Will it be to Him or will you commit to Satan and a final battle at Armogedon?

Don T Limit Your Money Flow

(category: Religion, Word count: 552)
Share this article on: Facebook, Twitter, Whatsapp

This author has a dear friend who says that tithing is the worst thing a Christian can do if he really wants to prosper. Of course, he did not mean this in a negative way.

He just means he has learned that tithing alone will not generate real wealth for us Christians. Tithing is only part one of God's wealth generation process.

He learned by personal experience, that giving beyond the tithe is the answer to really unlocking the doors to heaven's vault. Of course, we start with the tithe. But when we go beyond it into the realm of "first fruit giving" and into the bracket of "every good work" giving, things will open up for us faster and bigger than we can even imagine.

Now see some Scriptures pertaining to God's blessing us because we give according to "the law of the first fruits" and "every good work giving." We show the first fruits offering in the Scriptures below.

Prov 3:9-10

9Honour the LORD with thy substance, and with the firstfruits of all thine increase:

So shall thy barns be filled with plenty, and thy presses shall burst out with new wine. (KJV)

"First fruit" giving brings two blessings to us: God promises to fill our barns with plenty. Then He promises to burst our presses with new wine. These are things we are not responsible for. God is responsible for them. Our responsibility is to act out what the "first fruit" giving requires of us. Next we look into the "every good work" offering.

"2 Cor 9:6-8

6But this I say, He which soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly; and he which soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully.

7Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver.

8And God is able to make all grace abound toward you; that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work: (KJV)"

From the Scripture above, sowing bountifully into God's every good work produces a bountiful harvest. Bountiful means to "make one rich." This seems to be the most powerful of the three offerings concerning multiplying back to you the giver. This one can produce a hundred fold return.

Universities teach secular economics. The Bible teaches God's supernatural economics. God's supernatural system is composed of three parts. Each one of them (operated alone) will help your financial posture but all three of them operated at the same time as a unit will blow the doors off your bank. Here's the three parts.

Part #1. The "Tithe": Abraham learned this when no law existed that commanded it.

Part #2. The "First Fruits Offering": we believe Abraham practiced this

Part #3. The Offering. This can be the "every good works offering."

These three parts, all running simultaneously, produce a supernatural, wealth flow. This flow, being supernatural, never stops. It never diminishes. It never withers. It just keeps going and going and going, even better than the Battery Bunny. If you haven't tapped into God's supernatural wealth stream, try it.

Once you've tried God's economics, you'll never turn back. You'll recognize that you are tapped into a supernatural power you never want to do without anymore. Do it now.

What Is A Prophet Are There Prophets In Our World Today

(category: Religion, Word count: 1832)
Share this article on: Facebook, Twitter, Whatsapp

The secular and commonly held belief about prophets is that they are people who are able to "see" the future and make it known to someone, thus they are sometimes referred to as "seers." This notion may be partly true, what this definition lacks can be the stuff you don't know that can hurt you.

The greatest single definition I have ever found is that a prophet is one who "tells forth the will and counsel of God." This would include things past, present and future. The bible broadens the definition of the prophet in three distinct ways giving credence to this definition.

First the "spirit of prophecy" is something defined in the book of Revelation. And I fell at his feet to worship him. And he said unto me, See thou do it not: I am thy fellowservant, and of thy brethren that have the testimony of Jesus: worship God: for the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy, Revelation 19:10. With this definition it can be seen that every one who proclaims the gospel has the "spirit of prophecy." That would include everyone from Billy Graham to the young believer standing on the corner talking to a stranger about how he met the Lord. It would be safe to say that most prophecy today is based on this telling others about Christ and his deeds even though they happened over two thousand years ago.

The second kind of prophecy is something that comes forth by the move of God's Holy Spirit in the church. It can come to virtually anyone in the church but it is always decided upon and administered by the Holy Spirit alone. But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit withal. For to one is given by the Spirit the word of wisdom; to another the word of knowledge by the same Spirit; To another faith by the same Spirit; to another the gifts of healing by the same Spirit; To another the working of miracles; to another prophecy; to another discerning of spirits; to another divers kinds of tongues; to another the interpretation of tongues: But all these worketh that one and the selfsame Spirit, dividing to every man severally as he will, I Corinthians 12:7-11. These kinds of prophecies seem only to be practiced in the charismatic and Pentecostal churches of today. But using the broader definition any preacher who is speaking under the power of the Holy Spirit could be said to be prophesying.

A third kind of prophecy is that which comes from someone who has been appointed not just to prophecy but has been specifically given the "office of the prophet." And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: Ephesians 4:11-12. How these "prophets" are chosen is an important matter and is often misunderstood so let's look at this next.

Prophets of today are chosen exactly as they were years ago in the bible. Usually they are called out by God through a word or a vision. In the bible some prophets saw a dream; others heard God's voice and still others saw a burning bush or some other great portent which got their attention and then God spoke to them.

In my experience it was not just a dream but a series of them and at one point an actual voice with a very specific message. At the beginning of my new faith I had three dreams one night and woke after each dream and spent a few moments pondering what I had seen. I was familiar with the events and sights of the first two dreams but not with those in the third and last dream. It puzzled me so much that I got out of bed to pray and ask God if he could help me understand what was going on. At that early stage in my new faith I wasn't sure God ever spoke to anyone directly anymore. I thought that those kinds of revelations were for biblical times only and had long since passed.

When I asked God to help me understand what the dreams meant I was drawn back to one of my favorite Christmas stories. I remembered Charles Dickens "A Christmas Carol" and the three spirits of Christmas past, present and future. It clicked in my head and I saw the answer as clear as day. I had seen myself and the events in my life as clear as a movie and while I was familiar with all but the last dream I knew I had seen the past, the present and the future in three separate dreams. Life itself verified my discovery when eight days later the events I saw in the third dream happened to the letter.

After the first three dreams I needed only one dream to see the future. You could say that God had to lead me into the whole matter with the first three dream episode just to help me overcome my general lack of knowledge of how he works and what he planned to do with me in the future. In fact the future would be filled with dream visions by the hundreds, perhaps by now I could say by the thousands.

I was flustered by all the dreams in the beginning. Although most of them were only personal and related to me or those near in my social setting and environment they were all vivid and rarely ever open to interpretation. They were mostly on a "what you see is what you get" basis no directions needed. But all these dreams scared me.

After puzzling over so many dreams I finally asked God in earnest why I was seeing so many dreams of the future, sometimes as much as five or six times a week. The day after I asked God to help me I was drawn to my bible and to the book of Numbers. It was in this book I read a single verse of scripture that put to rest my fear about the volume of dreams I was receiving. In Numbers 12:6 the Bible says, "And he said, Hear now my words: If there be a prophet among you, I the LORD will make myself known unto him in a vision, and will speak unto him in a dream."

I have seen world events far more rarely than personal events but not once in a period well over thirty years have any of my dream visions ever been wrong. Some of the dreams were more detailed and lengthy than others but the one that stands out the most was to do with the second coming of Christ. That dream sent me on a lifelong study and search to know all I could about Christ's return to earth. I am still in that search and I have no doubt that the time of his coming is as close as a breath.

As I studied prophecy and the prophets I discovered that there is a litmus test for both prophecy and the prophet. It defines the parameters and the veracity of every prophecy and every prophet including me. The test is basically twofold.

The first test is "are the prophecies or the message of the prophets true?" Does it actually happen? There is no wrangling out of this test. If the dreams, visions or messages of any kind are not true it is time to hang up the hat. In Hal Lindsey's popular book The Late Great Planet Earth, Mr. Lindsey points out that Old Testament prophets were subject to stoning if their prophecies were wrong. He was right about that but today people don't care if a prophet is occasionally wrong or if his messages are veiled or obscured like those of Nostradamus. Maybe we won't stone such prophets today but by all means we should not listen to them. Truth and error are not bed partners.

On the other hand a far more pervasive and deadly problem is getting anyone to keep from killing, maligning or just generally ignoring the true prophets. I try not to take anyone's skepticism personally and I remind myself of what C. S. Lewis said might happen if Jesus were conducting his ministry in today's self assured world of science, secularism and self. Lewis said that if Christ were ministering today they may not crucify him but rather would invite him to dinner, hear him and then make fun of him.

The second litmus test for all prophecies has to do with "prior revelation." Simply said, any revelation or prophetic utterance given today must agree with any and all the words and messages of the ancient biblical prophets, Christ or his Apostles. God never contradicts himself. Scripture or the "prior revelation" is foundational and indispensable to all revelation now or at any time to come. Because this is true I am always reminded that even of the few world events that I have been privileged to see they are only meant to be supplemental in nature and are never meant to "supplant" any part of the biblical revelation. I don't want the responsibility of adding anything to scripture that comes down as "extra-biblical" in nature. We have enough of that in things like the "Book of Mormon" and the doctrines of the Jehovah's Witnesses.

Finally it must be said that no one should be allowed to derive their prophetic calling by themselves. Phrases like self recognized, self appointed or self proclaimed should be avoided. The calling comes from God and God alone. I once heard someone say that those who hold the pulpit without having been called to do so are like men sitting on a bench as the prophets of God passed by and saying, "There go the men of God why don't we get up and go with them?"

Do you think you are a prophet? Let me say you have no idea what you're in for. Most people will not think of you as a Holy Spirit Dove driven man with a vision but they will see you as a cuckoo bird with another whole new version. You will stand alone in many ways because unlike the priests and ministers of the day who represent the people to God you can only represent God to the people. But take heart because as the time of Christ's return draws nearer God will call evermore prophets to speak and prophecy for him. This wonderful fact is a promise of the scriptures. "And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions: Joel 2:28."

Without A Trace The Great Rapture Controversy

(category: Religion, Word count: 582)
Share this article on: Facebook, Twitter, Whatsapp

The rapture of the Christian is a well known matter among believers around the world. It is sometimes referred to as the catching away. Jesus spoke of it in Matthew 24:37-42 But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, and marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark, And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coining of the Son of man be. Then two shall he in the field; the one shall be taken. And the other left. Two women shall be grinding at the mill; the one shall be taken, and the other left.

The Apostle Paul further elucidates the matter by adding to it a few details that the account in Matthew leaves out. 1 Corinthians 15: 51-52 Behold I show you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.

Like so many other prophecies of the second coming believers can't seem to fully agree on this one. The three common views are what are known as, pre-tribulation, mid- tribulation and post-tribulation rapture. That all believers dead or alive will be instantly transformed and carried up to meet the Lord at his second coming is not the argument. It is only when their going to be caught up that so puzzles the believer.

Not wanting to add to the confusion I can say that only the first two views have any possibility of being correct. The main purpose of Christ's return is to judge a world that has plunged into the worship of the devil in the flesh (antichrist) and it culminates in the pouring out of God's wrath on the entire world.

When the pouring out of God's wrath actually begins in the course of the antichrist's reign is extremely hard to pinpoint with accuracy. But whenever it is we who believe in Christ won't be here. The reason this can be said without one shred of doubt is based on a promise God has made to his children that he will save them from the wrath to come. The wrath of God is for the wicked not for his own children. This promise is found in 1Thess.1:10 And to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, even Jesus, which delivered us from the wrath to come.

The idea that we are not removed from the world before God starts to pour out his wrath, not only flies in the face of this clear promise but it smacks of absurdity. We would he directly in the line of fire and only a cursory perusal of God's judgments would he enough to see that no one will escape some damage. In modern warfare that is called, collateral damage, but even this term would not adequately describe the damages to almost everything and everyone during God's judgments.

Rev Bresciani is the author of two popular Christian books, one on the second coming of Christ. He has hundreds of articles published both online and in print.

Visit the website at www.americanprophet.com

Reload this page to get new content randomly.

More Categories

Time-Management | Loans | Credit | Weather | Finance | Weddings | Trucks-Suvs | Home-Family | Cars | Self-Improvement | Reference-Education | Insurance | Vehicles | Mortgage | Home-Improvement | Gardening | Society | Parenting | Debt-Consolidation | Womens-Issues | Relationships | Acne | Interior-Design | Nutrition | Fashion | Baby | Legal | Religion | Fishing | Clothing | Holidays | Product-Reviews | Personal-Finance | Auctions | Communications | Misc | Supplements | Marriage | Currency-Trading | Politics | Goal-Setting | Taxes | Ecommerce | Movie-Reviews | Recipes | Traffic-Generation | College | Cooking | Computer-Certification | Success | Motivation | Depression | Stress-Management | Site-Promotion | Outdoors | Home-Security | Book-Reviews | History | Entrepreneurs | Hair-Loss | Yoga | Consumer-Electronics | Stock-Market | Email-Marketing | Article-Writing | Ppc-Advertising | Science | K12-Education | Crafts | Environmental | Elderly-Care | Fitness-Equipment | Cruises | Coaching | Domains | Spirituality | Mens-Issues | Happiness | Leadership | Customer-Service | Inspirational | Diabetes | Attraction | Security | Copywriting | Language | Data-Recovery | Muscle-Building | Aviation | Motorcycles | Coffee | Landscaping | Homeschooling | Ebooks | Cardio | Psychology | Celebrities | Pregnancy | Ebay | Mesothelioma | Extreme | Ezine-Marketing | Digital-Products | Fundraising | Martial-Arts | Boating | Divorce | Book-Marketing | Commentary | Current-Events | Credit-Cards | Public-Speaking | Hunting | Debt | Financial | Coin-Collecting | Family-Budget | Meditation | Biking | Rss | Music-Reviews | Organizing | Breast-Cancer | Creativity | Spam | Podcasts | Google-Adsense | Forums | Ethics | Buying-Paintings | Gourmet | Auto-Sound-systems | After-School-Activities | Adsense | Dieting | Education | Dance | Cigars | Astronomy | Cats | Diamonds | Autoresponders | Disneyland | Carpet | Bbqs | Dental | Criminology | Craigslist | Atv | Excavation-Equipment | Buying-A-boat | Auto-Responders | Auto-Navigation-Systems | Autism-Articles | Atkins-Diet | Aspen-Nightlife | Fruit-Trees | Credit-Card-Debt | Creating-An-Online-Business | Breast-Feeding | Contact-Lenses | Computer-Games-systems | Colon-Cleanse | College-Scholarship | Golden-Retriever | Anger-Management | American-History | Bluetooth-Technology | Alternative-Energy | Closet-Organizers | Elliptical-Trainers | Electric-Cars | Black-History | Air-Purifiers | Diesel-Vs-Gasoline-Vehicles | Christmas-Shopping | Choosing-The-Right-Golf-Clubs | Dental-Assistant | Decorating-For-Christmas | Beach-Vacations | Cd-Duplication | Bathroom-Remodeling | Bargain-Hunting | Candle-Making | Backyard-Activities | Auto-Leasing | Skin-Cancer | Recreational-Vehicle | Mutual-Funds | Boats | Leasing | Innovation | Philosophy | Grief | Colon-Cancer | Prostate-Cancer | Dating-Women | Audio-Video-Streaming | Forex | Digital-Camera | Cell-Phone | Car-Stereo | Car-Rental | Running | Sociology | Multiple-Sclerosis | Leukemia | Dogs | Ovarian-Cancer