Sound The Midnight Cry

“I Don’t Believe It”

Have you ever made that statement before? Almost everyone at some time in their life has said it. The phrase is usually associated with the idea that something is so difficult or hard to believe that we are surprised to find that it is true. A case in point would be the news report back in 2008 of a story of twins separated at birth who inadvertently got married.

The story is one that raises all kinds of questions as to its legitimacy. There are just too many things that had to happen to bring off this unusual occurrence. These people have to have met by chance, got to know each other, discovered that they shared the same birthday and were both adopted, and yet never considered for a moment the possibility that they might be related. When you consider all of the facts necessary for the story to be true, it is worthy of an “I don’t believe it” remark.

That’s the way it is for a lot of people when you speak to them about bible prophecy and end-time events. You point out things that are going to happen according to the Bible and they tell you “there’s no way that will happen.”

One of the biggest road signs of prophecy to be fulfilled has to do with the rebuilding of the Jewish Temple in Jerusalem. Of course, at the present time, Islam’s Dome of the Rock presides on that site designated for the Jewish Temple. For years speculation has delved for information as to how these two buildings might be reconciled with prophecy.

Interestingly, this week a survey was release where over two-thirds of the Jewish population wants the Temple rebuilt. This is a huge increase in numbers over previous years.

Also, this week, a report was released by The Temple Institute began building a sacrificial altar. They have already built many of the vessels such as the ark and the menorah for when the Temple is rebuilt. Historically, the altar was located in the Temple where priests offered obligatory and voluntary sacrifices as commanded in the Bible.

“Unfortunately, we cannot currently build the altar in its proper place, on the Temple Mount,” Temple Institute director Yehudah Glick said. “We are building an altar of the minimum possible size so that we will be able to transport it to the Temple when it is rebuilt."

Another note of interest is a report that has surfaced of the Jewish Sanhedrin recently met with a man from Turkey that many in the Islamic world speculate could be the Mahdi (Islamic Messiah). Interestingly, he personally believes that the Jewish Temple should be rebuilt. [You can read articles & watch video interview with Christian reporter, Joel Richardson. Links found at www.soundthemidnightcry.com]

All of this brings to mind another saying: “So much to do and so little time to do it!” The heart of this adage rings out in Jesus’ words’ in Luke 2:49: “…I must be about my Father’s business.”

Sounds like good advice especially for those that think we have plenty of time. We should not be surprised and exclaim “I don’t believe it” with all the signs pointing to its coming. It’s time to believe for "time is of the essence"…but that’s another proverb for another day.

Side Note: My wife Amanda and I are celebrating our 35th anniversary this coming week cruising Alaska and seeing friends in Juneau that we haven’t seen in 28 years. Follow us on Twitter!

Could This Be The Mahdi?

Jewish Sanhedrin Meet With Adnan Oktar

Many in Turkey and the Muslim world claim that this man "might" to be the Mahdi—the Muslim messiah. He has recently met with the Jewish Sanhedrin to establish peace between Israel and the Muslim nations. Sanhedrin Report

An Interview With Mr. Adnan Oktar by Joel Richardson (June 22, 2009) Joel Richardson recently reported on two meetings that he had with Adnan Oktar, aka Harun Yahya, a controversial though very influential Muslim leader and intellectual who has written over three hundred books. He is very well known throughout Turkey and the larger Muslim world with literally millions of his books in circulation in numerous languages.

He has called for a Turkish Led Islamic Union. He has developed a very friendly relationship with the Israel Sanhedrin Rabbis who also are surprisingly very much in favor of this Turkish led Islamic Union. Most notable is Mr. Oktar’s friendship with Rabbi Menachem Fromen of interest is Mr. Oktar’s call to rebuild the Jewish Temple. Watch the 57 minute interview or download the transcript

“Now You See It?”

As I was reading the news events of the day, I had to stop for a moment and try to digest everything that was going on. As I tried to decipher the global events, the thought came to mind of a magician using sleight of hand.

Sleight of hand uses everyday items as props, such as cards and coins. A well-performed sleight of hand looks like an ordinary, natural and completely innocent gesture; change in hand position or body posture. In addition to manual agility, sleight of hand depends on the use of psychology, misdirection, and natural choreography in accomplishing a magical effect.

Misdirection is perhaps the most important component of the art of sleight of hand. The magician choreographs his actions so that all spectators are likely to look where he or she wants them to. More importantly, they do not look where the performer does not wish them to look…which brings me back to the news events of the day.

In the U.S. alone, the headlines and lead stories are filled with so many topics that people are spinning in circles trying to grab hold of them.

First we have the economy flailing in the wind like a flag. Unemployment is reaching numbers not seen since the Great Depression (over 20 percent in some states). California (with a number of other states not far behind) is on the verge of bankruptcy and is already issuing IOU’s for its bills. The U.S. annual deficit has already hit 1 trillion dollars and could reach 2 trillion before the year is out.

Besides the flailing economy, we now have Universal Healthcare which would mandate the public purchase or face heavy fines. It would also (in its present proposal) mandate taxpayer funded abortions and require healthcare professionals to advise the sick and elderly about the option of taking their life.

Add to this the doomsday prophets of global warming are predicting the earth has less than 96 months if we don’t act now to stop the destruction of the planet.

In the Middle East, German intelligence sources are saying that Iran will have nuclear strike capability in less than six months. Meanwhile, Israel has sent submarines and a naval strike force to the Red Sea and has conducted mock drills of a strike against Iran’s nuclear facilities before they come online.

The upheaval of events in the world are much like the sea churning from a storm so massive that it would sink anything that dares to stand in its way. So much is happening today that no one country can possibly focus on them all which begs for someone, anyone to come and “deliver us from evil.”

In the last days, the Bible says the whole world will be conditioned to accept a savior, a messiah of sorts, who will seem to have all the answers to the religious, economic and political problems facing the world.

The Bible demands the existence of a global government, a global economy and a global religion in need of leadership. The world today is demanding global leadership, and any leader will do, provided they like what he promises.

The Apostle John portrays the antichrist as a political leader who rises up out of the “sea” of nations. (Revelation 13:1) The props of the day are being put in place and this “magician” will come with the answers the world wants to hear, but it will come with a price—the Mark of the Beast. The ultimate end—worship to him!

“And when these things begin to come to pass, then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draws near.” (Luke 21:28)

“I’ll Believe It When I See It”

How many times have you or someone you know made the statement, “I’ll believe it when I see it?” Most of us have said it at one time or another.

The phrase lends itself to show that you do not think something will happen. Example: Headline declares, “Everyone in the U.S. is going will not have to pay income taxes for the next three years!” [I can dream, right?] I don’t see that happening but probably the opposite of more taxes [but I digress].

Well, you can imagine my shock when this past week an article in the NY Times entitled, “Iraq Suffers as the Euphrates River Dwindles” link referenced bible prophecy.

“The shrinking of the Euphrates, a river so crucial to the birth of civilization that the Book of Revelation prophesied its drying up as a sign of the end times, has decimated farms along its banks, has left fishermen impoverished and has depleted riverside towns as farmers flee to the cities looking for work”.

Week after week, the news outlets are filled with events that are pieces of the bible prophecy puzzle coming together. However, most people [including those that consider themselves Christians] never see the composing of the “mystery” of God (1 Corinthians 2:7). With statistics showing that around 100 million people that attend church in the U.S. have little to no knowledge of bible prophecy, this is not surprising. Add to that number those that have heard of it but think it’s too difficult to understand so they choose to ignore it all together.

So while the ignorant [those that don’t know and those that choose not to know] go about their lives, the events that will one day reveal the unveiling of the mystery hidden from the foundation of time, the global puzzle is assembled. They include:

• The framework for a global government
• The structure for a global currency market
• The setting for a global religious structure
  

These and more are being collectively molded right now for the not-to-distant future.

While the world watched the funeral of Michael Jackson, they heard the proclamation of this mystery, but I doubt anyone really heard it. Andre’ Crouch sang, “Soon and very soon, we are going to see the King”. The people clapped and swayed, but how many really heard the warning is not known.

Meanwhile, the true follower of Jesus Christ understands that it is “when we believe, we will see it”. That time of seeing is not very far away.

“Wolf! Wolf! Wolf?”

Most people are familiar with the story of “The Boy Who Cried Wolf”. He was a shepherd boy that was bored and would entertain himself by crying out “wolf”. The local town folks would come running and find that he was lying. Eventually, a wolf came but when he cried out, no one paid attention and the wolf ate the flock (in some versions of the story, the boy too).

What got me to thinking about this story is that from time to time, I get an email or someone will say to me, “Don’t you get tired of lying to people and trying to scare them about all this bible prophecy stuff?” Of course, my response is “no” I’m not tired of saying it; “no” I’m not trying to scare people and “no” it’s not “stuff” but rather “truth”. And maybe that’s where the rub comes to people that have that attitude.

It reminds me of a time over 20 years ago while starting a church in South Louisiana. For a period of time, I held a secular job selling insurance for an established company that serviced my town and surrounding area. I wasn’t just concerned with making a sale but was really concerned about people getting the best coverage for their money, especially when it came to life insurance. There were many families that I would review what they had been paying for and if possible show how to increase their coverage for the same dollars they were already spending.

Now I’m not going to get into arguments about types of life insurance, but I simply pointed out that many families had too little coverage because their choice was based on “what they could afford” rather than what they needed.

I remember one young family that I would remind regularly that his coverage was too low. He was in his early 30’s and had a young family. His coverage was only about a year of earned wages (actually it was less). I showed them repeatedly the need to properly cover his family but he would always tell me that he was satisfied with what he had. “Besides” he would say, “I’m still young, I have plenty of time to add more.” Well, you can probably where this story is going.

One day, I received a call from the man’s wife. He had been killed in an auto accident coming home from work. When the dust settled and everything was tallied up, the only coverage he had was that small amount that he had considered “plenty”. I’ll never forget the day I placed into the hands of the grieving young wife and mother, a check that wouldn’t support them for nine months. I vividly remember telling her, “I’m sorry, this is all there is.” I remember her asking how she was going to survive on that amount. I reminded her of the many conversations warning of what could happen at any time but that he felt he had plenty of that commodity.

The empty feeling I felt that day has stuck with me all these years. It is one of the reasons I continue to write and teach on bible prophecy. It’s the reason I constantly post articles pointing to what is coming according to the Bible.

People can laugh, scoff, deny or pretend it isn’t so. They can say; “You’re just a liar crying wolf” all they want. It doesn’t change the fact that 2 Peter 3:3-4 says, “…that scoffers will come in the last days…and saying, “Where is the promise of His coming?”

So, as long as I have breath I will continue to point to the signs of the times. Call it stuff, fables, stories or whatever description you want. The truth is that Jesus Christ is coming again…but this time not as a baby in manger. This time He comes as King of kings and Lord of lords.

“We’ve Come A Long Way—The Wrong Way!”

Most of us grew up and heard one our elders tell us how hard they had it when they were growing up. You know, the proverbial “walked to school 5 miles, up hill both ways.” In my case, having lived in the Northeast a good bit of my childhood, you had to add “in the snow” to the daily trudge. Inevitably it would end with, “we’ve come a long way since then.”

This weekend, the U.S. celebrates its 233rd anniversary of our legal separation from Great Britain. On July 4, 1776, the Second Continental Congress voted to approve the formal document of a resolution of independence. John Adams, the man who would become our second president, wrote to his wife Abigail: “I am apt to believe that it will be celebrated by succeeding generations as the great anniversary festival. It ought to be commemorated as the day of deliverance, by solemn acts of devotion to God Almighty. It ought to be solemnized with pomp and parade, with shows, games, sports, guns, bells, bonfires and illuminations, from one end of this continent to the other, from this time forward for evermore.”

Our Founding Fathers knew that it would take “a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence,” and pledged their “Lives, Fortunes and sacred Honor” to establish and defend the United States of America.

Adams, as were the overwhelming majority of the signers of Declaration of Independence, was a Christian. For more than 200 years, the laws of our nation were a reflection of the moral laws God set forth in the Bible. As a result, God’s blessing rested on us and we grew and prospered.

However, in recent years, our nation has turned away from God. If the truth be told, the fault lies at the doors of the Church in America. Christians, have become too comfortable and given to the pursuit of wealth, fame, entertainment and personal pleasures. We have relegated the need to watch and speak to issues of government to others that do not reflect biblical standards. As one write recently stated, “We don't carefully examine the candidates before we vote…we select our president and the rest of our representatives the same way a 7-year-old selects her Barbie doll.”

• As a nation we have disregarded the biblical warnings against borrowing and the result is we have become a debtor nation to communist and anti-god nations.
  
• We no longer trust in God to provide but have replaced God with government.
  
• We have become numb to the battle of declaring an unborn child a human being, created in God's image, with certain inalienable rights.
  
• We no longer speak out against immorality but pretend that it’s “not so bad” (possibly because we have allowed ourselves to be infected by it).
  
• We have permitted out tax dollars to fund abortions and “safe sex” education beginning in kindergarten.
  
• We have become weary to those that have been pounding the doors that have finally given way to recognizing homosexuality as “proper”.
  
• Christians, have been silent and allowed good to be called evil and evil to be called good.

The old spiritual hymn says, “We've come a long way, Lord, a mighty long way.” I would have to agree with that statement. But I would have to ask, “Where has it lead us?”

Proverbs 16:25 says, “There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death.”

It’s time for the Church to wake up, rise up, speak up and repent! Then and only then will God heal our land!