Obama's Betrayal of Israel ~ by Guy Millière

  •  Released January 13, 2017  

• President Obama's decision not to use the US veto in the UN Security Council and to let pass Resolution 2334, effectively sets the boundaries of a future Palestinian state. The resolution declares all of Judea, Samaria and East Jerusalem -- home to the Old City, the Western Wall and the Temple Mount -- the most sacred place in Judaism -- "occupied Palestinian territory," and is a declaration of war against Israel.
• Resolution 2334 nullified any possibility of further negotiations by giving the Palestinians everything in exchange for nothing -- not even an insincere promise of peace.
• The next act is the Orwellian-named "peace conference," to be held in Paris on January 15. It has but one objective: to set the stage to eradicate Israel.
• In this new "Dreyfus trial," the accused will be the only Jewish state and the accusers will be the OIC and officials from Islamized, dhimmified, anti-Israel Western states. As in the Dreyfus trial, the verdict has been decided before it even starts. Israel will be considered guilty of all charges and condemned. A draft of the declaration to be published at the end of the conference is already available.
• The declaration rejects any Jewish presence beyond the 1949 armistice lines -- thereby instituting apartheid. It also praises the "Arab Peace Initiative," which calls for returning of millions of so-called "refugees" to Israel, thus transforming Israel into an Arab Muslim state where a massacre of Jews could conveniently be organized.
• The declaration is most likely meant serve as the basis for a new Security Council resolution on January 17 that would recognize a Palestinian state inside the "1967 borders," and be adopted, thanks to a second US abstention, three days before Obama leaves office. The betrayal of Israel by the Obama administration and by Obama himself would then be complete.
• The US Congress is already discussing bills to defund the UN and the Palestinian Authority. If Europeans think that the incoming Trump administration is as spineless as the Obama administration, they are in for a shock.
• Khaled Abu Toameh noted that the Palestinian Authority sees Resolution 2334 as a green light for more murders and violence.
• Daniel Pipes recently wrote that it is time to acknowledge the failure of a "peace process" that is really a war process. He stresses that peace can only come when an enemy is defeated.
• Resolution 2334 and the Paris conference, both promoted by Obama, are, as the great historian Bat Ye'or wrote, simply a victory for jihad.

Is Barack Obama planning another betrayal of Israel at next week's Paris "peace conference," organized by French President François Hollande? Pictured: Obama and Hollande in Washington, May 18, 2012. (Image source: White House)

The Middle East is in chaos. More than half a million people have been killed in the Syrian war and the number is rising. Bashar al-Assad's army used chemical weapons and barrel bombs against civilians; Russia has bombed schools and hospitals.

Syrians, Christians, Yazidis, Libyans, Yemenis and Egyptians all face lethal treats. Iranian leaders still shout "Death to Israel" and "Death to America" while buying nuclear equipment with money from lifted sanctions. Turkey is sliding toward an Islamist dictatorship, and unable to stem attacks against it.

The only democratic and stable country in the region is Israel, and that is the country U.S. President Barack Obama, in the final weeks of his term, chooses to incriminate. His decision not to use the US veto in the UN Security Council, to let pass Resolution 2334, effectively sets the boundaries of a future Palestinian state. The resolution also declares all of Judea, Samaria and East Jerusalem, home to the Old City, the Western Wall and the Temple Mount -- the most sacred place in Judaism -- "occupied Palestinian territory," and is a declaration of war against Israel.

UNSC Resolution 2334 nullified any possibility of further negotiations, by giving the Palestinians everything in exchange for nothing -- not even an insincere promise of peace. US Secretary of State John Kerry's speech five days later confirmed Obama's support for the resolution. Kerry, like US Ambassador to the UN Samantha Power, used the existence of Jewish towns and villages in Judea and Samaria as a pretext to endorse the position of Palestinian leaders, who want to ethnically cleanse Jews from these areas. But this was just a prelude.

The next act is the Orwellian-named "peace conference," to be held in Paris on January 15. It has but one objective: to set the stage to eradicate Israel.

Organized by François Hollande, a failed French President who will leave power in four months, it was supported from the start by the Obama administration. Israeli Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman called it "the new Dreyfus trial." The accused will be the only Jewish state and the accusers will be the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and officials from Islamized, dhimmified, anti-Israel Western states. As in the Dreyfus trial, the verdict is known before it starts. Israel will be considered guilty of all charges and condemned to what its accusers hope will be the beginning of its end.

Some commentators have compared what will happen in Paris to the 1942 Wannsee Conference in Nazi Germany, because the aim seems clearly to be the "final solution" of the "Jewish problem" in the Middle East. A draft of the declaration to be published at the end of the conference is already available. It affirms unreserved support for the "Palestinian Statehood strategy" and the principle of intangibility (that the borders cannot be modified) of the "1967 borders," including East Jerusalem, the Old City and the Western Wall.

The draft declaration rejects any Jewish presence beyond these borders -- thereby instituting apartheid -- and praises the "Arab Peace Initiative," which calls for returning millions of so-called "refugees" to Israel, and thus the transforming of Israel into an Arab Muslim state -- where a massacre of the Jews could conveniently be organized.

The declaration is most likely meant to be the basis for a new UN Security Council resolution that would endorse the recognition of a Palestinian state in the "1967 borders" as defined in the declaration. The new resolution could be adopted by a second US abstention at the Security Council on January 17, three days before Obama leaves office. The betrayal of Israel by the Obama administration and by Obama himself would then be complete.

On January 20, however, Donald J. Trump is to take office as President of the United States. Trump sent a message on December 23: "Stay strong Israel, January 20th is fast approaching!" He added explicitly that the U.S. "cannot continue to let Israel be treated with such total disdain and disrespect."
On January 5, the US House of Representatives approved a text harshly criticizing Resolution 2334. Congress is already discussing defunding the UN and the Palestinian Authority. If Europeans and members of UN think the incoming Trump administration is as spineless as the Obama administration, they are in for a shock.

Wall Street Journal columnist Bret Stephens recently wondered if the creation of a Palestinian state would alleviate the current Middle East chaos. His answer was that it would not, and that the creation of a Palestinian state would be seen as a victory for jihadists. He also noted that the Palestinian Authority still behaves like a terrorist entity; that an Israeli withdrawal from Judea and Samaria would encourage Hamas and lead to the creation of another terrorist Islamic state in the West Bank, and that an Israeli withdrawal is something that most Palestinians do not even want:

"[A] telling figure came in a June 2015 poll conducted by the Palestinian Center for Public Opinion, which found that a majority of Arab residents in East Jerusalem would rather live as citizens with equal rights in Israel than in a Palestinian state."

Khaled Abu Toameh, an Arab journalist who has never yet been wrong, noted that the Palestinian Authority sees Resolution 2334 as a green light for more violence, murders and confrontation. He added that if presidential elections by the PA were held today, Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh would win by a comfortable margin.

In another important article, Middle East scholar Daniel Pipes writes that it is time to acknowledge the failure of a "peace process" that is really a war process. He stressed that peace can only come when an enemy is defeated. He predicts that for peace to come, Israel must win unambiguously, and the Palestinians pass through "the bitter crucible of defeat, with all its deprivation, destruction, and despair."

Jihadi indoctrination, as well as the financial aid given to Palestinian terrorists, have been paid for by the United States, France, and other Western European nations. That too should stop.
Resolution 2334 and the Paris peace conference, both promoted by Obama, are, as the great historian Bat Ye'or wrote, simply victories for jihad.

Dr. Guy Millière, a professor at the University of Paris, is the author of 27 books on France and Europe.

© 2017 Gatestone Institute. All rights reserved. The articles printed here do not necessarily reflect the views of the Editors or of Gatestone Institute. No part of the Gatestone website or any of its contents may be reproduced, copied or modified, without the prior written consent of Gatestone Institute.

Make Me More Like You ~ Winter 2016 / 2017

After our nearly 5 hour westbound flight in the B767, and my body still on Toronto time of 7am, I was now wide awake and wanting to stretch my legs after sitting at the controls for a long time.  After checking in and depositing my bags in my Marriott room, I decided to stroll through the now almost-deserted Vancouver suburb streets of Richmond even though the local time was only 4am.  The red eye flight was uneventful, but I wanted to move around a bit and get my circulation back and my blood flowing before getting into the hotel's awesome breakfast.

I strolled past a hundred Chinese noodle houses, various other oriental businesses and scores of apartment buildings that dot the now forever-changed Richmond landscape.  Just over from the middle-arm of the mighty Fraser River as it empties into the Strait of Georgia, the streets were still dark and the temperature was cool.  But I was dressed for this winter walk and quite enjoyed it.  I always enjoy the West Coast.  I enjoy praying and worship when I'm walking or driving alone and this seemed like an opportunity to mix my passions.  I'd lived here in Vancouver and for a while in Victoria for years in the 80's and never quite got the west out of my blood.  The sea, sky and mountains blend into their beautiful western natural splendor, and it always makes me feel good to be alive out here.  As I'd left home some hours ago, my son had handed me a slip of paper with a phone number of someone who'd called while I'd been sleeping and wanted to speak with me on the phone.  As I started my stroll, it was now 8am back home and so I dialed the number to return the phone call.  Early in the conversation, I decided that it was probably a marketing call setup and after a few "short, brisk words" I said goodbye.

I constantly (as I'm sure you do as well) get the telemarketing calls during the day at home.  I hate to break it to you, but I find it quite unproductive, distracting, not to mention very, very annoying being so consistently bombarded with these phone calls.  Knowing that their phone call is now illegal under Canadian legislation makes it even more annoying as I'm sure it's hard to police and bring a conviction against these pesky guys. It's unproductive because there is a zero-chance I will buy something from this person; distracting because it breaks into my time when I'm concentrating on something else in my day-to-day agenda that has to be done. There is one particular guy who daily calls and markets his "Ducks Cleaning Service", or something like that in an squeaky barely-English but heavily accented-voice.

As I continue to walk I got thinking of how my demeanor seemingly instantly changes when I am confronted with telemarketers and the like. How do I reconcile my wanting to love and worship the Lord with the sudden hostility I feel when confronted with "people like that", trying to make a buck off of robbing me of my time?  I may live and die before I find out the answer to that personal question. As I walked along I pondered that. My thoughts turned back to worship and prayer.  Perhaps I reasoned, I need to spend more time this year in prayer.  I need to be more like Jesus.  While it's true he never had to deal with the telemarketers, Jesus always seemed to only show love and was generous with his time for people, whereas I get impatient and less-than-gentle over a phone call? As it was still the first week in January, that will be a great resolution and theme for 2017 ~ Make Me More Like You Jesus!  So I sang that little chorus for a few bars to let it's meaning set itself into my spirit.

Make Me More Like You
Jesus, Make Me More Like You
Give Me A Heart That's filled with Love
And Make Me More Like You

In Galatians 5, Paul counsels us to get in step with the Spirit.

19Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, 20idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, 21envy,^d drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do^e such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. 22But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. 24And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.

25If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit. 26Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another. ~ Galatians 5

~ Happy New Year from all of us!  

May We Be MORE Like Jesus in 2017  (St Mark)

Characteristics of Pentecostal Church Growth ~ by C. Peter Wagner

Editors Note: 

Here in this article C. Peter Wagner discusses the phenomenal growth of Pentecostal churches.  Wagner died several months ago (October 2016), and I believe he wrote this article in the 1980's.  Today, many current Pentecostal churches have left or lost their "roots" in an attempt to reinvent themselves rather than to rely on the incredible Power of the Word and the awesome Power of the Holy Spirit.  In some cases, churches have corporately chosen to follow after "Purpose-Driven Church" style methodology, and other attempted strategies (almost always with dismal results).  It is helpful to occasionally revisit our "DNA". ~ St. Mark

_________________________________________

About Charles Peter Wagner (August 15, 1930 – October 21, 2016) was an Apostle, theologian, missiologist, missionary, writer, teacher, and church growth specialist best known for his controversial writings on spiritual warfare.^[1]

Wagner served as a missionary in Bolivia under the South American Mission and Andes Evangelical Mission (now SIM International) from 1956 to 1971. He then served for 30 years (1971 to 2001) as Professor of Church Growth at the Fuller Theological Seminary's School of World Missions until his retirement in 2001. He is the author of more than 70 books. He was the president of Global Harvest Ministries from 1993 to 2011 and served as the chancellor emeritus of Wagner Leadership Institute, which trains leaders to join in a movement known as the New Apostolic Reformation, an organization Wagner also helped found. He was also the vice president of Global Spheres, Inc.

(...More about C. Peter Wagner)

__________________________________________

To say that this growth (Pentecostal Church Growth) is phenomenal is an understatement.  The pentecostal movement is less than 100 years old, young as such movements go.  Only 50 years ago it was still being classified by many along with cults.  Now, being a Pentecostal is an “in” thing amoung many Christians, and the stature, reputation and dignity of the group continue to grow.  If the Lord tarries, pentecostalism will undoubtedly go down in future history as the most significant religious phenomenon of the twentieth century.

What is behind this awesome growth?

First and foremost, pentecostal growth, as all bona fide church growth, is a sovereign work of God.  Paul said that although he plants and Apollos waters, it is God who gives the increase (1 Cor 3:6).  Jesus said, “I will build my church” (Matthew 16:18).  It is His church, and He is the builder.  To God and God alone be the glory!

But the same God is the underlying cause of Episcopal, Mennonite, Presbyterian, Lutheran, and any other kind of church growth, as well as pentecostal growth.  Why is it, then, that pentecostals seem to grow more vigorously?  The full answer to that question is complex; but, for the purpose of this article, I am going to attempt to simplify it by selecting as carefully as I can what I consider to be the four most salient characteristics of pentecostal growth.  Not that other churches do not also share some of these qualities - they do.  But none, it seems to me, have combined all four quite as well as pentecostals have.  Pentecostals are usually characterized by churches of purity, prayer, power and the poor.  Let me develop each one of these.

Churches of Purity

                Pentecostal churches have a tradition of purity in three key areas: belief in the Bible, Christian doctrine, and lifestyle.

Belief in the Bible

                The authority of the Scriptures is final.  Pentecostals believe that what the Bible says is the Word of God, no questions asked.  The great theological debates of the last century which have eroded confidence in the Bible amoung large segments of Christendom have scarcely touched pentecostals. 

If pentecostals have erred at all, they may interpret the Bible too literally in places, but that is hardly a dangerous error any more than having too many clothes on when you are caught in a mountain snowstorm.  Too many clothes may be cumbersome, but too few could cost you your life.

                Research in church growth has shown that the more literally the Bible is interpreted, the more likely the church is to grow.  One reason then, that pentecostal churches are growing is that they hold to biblical purity.

Sound Doctrine

Sound doctrine, which goes along with biblical authority, has also contributed to the purity of pentecostal churches.  While it is true that pentecostals have differed amoung themselves on secondary doctrines, they have agreed on the basics.

Christian Lifestyle

                Christian lifestyle is a third mark of pentecostal purity.  For most pentecostals conversion is a radical, life-changing experience.  Separation from the world is demanded at the new birth.  No drinking, no-smoking, no drugs, no extramarital sex, no cussing, and no gambling are common lifestyle characteristics amoung pentecostals.  Some groups add others such as no dancing, no gold, no bikinis, no rock music, no movies, no card playing, no sports, and no buying on Sunday.  On the positive side, pentecostals usually go to church three or four times a week, read the Bible daily, pray before each meal, and give at least ten percent of their income to the Lord.

                It may seem to some that such strictness could be an obstacle to church growth.  Just the opposite.  It is a well-known fact that the stricter the religious obligations and the higher the level of commitment demanded on its members, the more vigorously a church grows.  Watering down the Christian lifestyle to conform to society in general may appear to have some short-term benefits for growth, but over the long haul it will surely turn people away from the church.  The pentecostal pendulum, fortunately, is still over on the strict side.

               

Churches of Prayer

                This section on prayer will be relatively short.  The shortness, however does not reflect the lack of importance of prayer for the growth of the church.  It simply reflects the lack of research.  I know that prayer is closely related to church growth, and I have set as one of my research goals for the eighties an attempt to discover just how and why this is true.

                However, even though I do not know as much as I wish I knew about the subject, I do know that pentecostals are praying people.  The kind of prayer that requires the active, energetic participation of each person (as contrasted to liturgical prayers that require very little personal involvement) is a universal characteristic of pentecostal people in their churches, their family circles, and their private devotions.  Praying in tongues undoubtedly helps this greatly.  It frequently establishes an intimate contact with God that is otherwise much more difficult to establish and maintain.  Through the years I have noticed that in interdenominational meetings the person called upon to lead the group in prayer is frequently the pentecostal.

                Intimacy with God is reflected not only in formal prayers, but also in revelatory manifestations of the Spirit such as prophecies, including what many call a word of knowledge (which I consider a type of prophecy).  This kind of direct contact with the Holy Ghost is a tremendous force for growth and is most consistently prominent in pentecostal churches.

                If I may be permitted a personal anecdote, some years ago I was helping our Congregational church through the process of planting a new daughter church.  We retained a firm to do a demographic study so that we would be sure we located the new church in the right place.  As I recall, the service cost us about $ 7,000.  While we were still in the process of this project, I was invited to dinner at a friend’s house.  Pastor Jack Hayford of the Church of the Way in Van Nuys, the largest church of the Foursquare Gospel in the country, was also a guest.  He mentioned in passing that they were planting a new church in Valencia, and I asked him how they went about selecting Valencia as the location.  “Oh,” he said, “I was driving along the freeway by Magic Mountain when all of a sudden I got a warm feeling in my chest, and the Lord said, “Plant a new church in Valencia.”   I told him that it was much cheaper to be a Pentecostal than a Congregationalist!

Churches of Power

                Closely related to the intimacy with God attained through prayer is the frequent manifestation of supernatural signs and wonders in Pentecostal churches.  Probably the greatest contribution that Pentecostalism has made to Christianity in general is restoring the reality of the miracle power of the New Testament.  Such power had been absent amoung the other churches for so long that when it appeared in Pentecostalism around the turn of the century the only way many traditional Christians could handle it was to declare it a heresy and classify Pentecostals as a false cult.  Most Christians are smarter now, and God has forgiven them for the past.

                Although I am still in the process of studying this, it does seem to me that one of the major purposes, if not the major one, of signs and wonders in the New Testament was to attract the attention of unbelievers and to draw them to Jesus Christ and to the kingdom of god.  Time after time in the book of Acts, signs and wonders are related to vigorous church growth.  Acts 5:12-16 is typical of many other passages: “Many miracles and wonders were being performed amoung the people by the apostles . . . more and more people were added to the group - a crowd of men and women who believed in the Lord.”

                Worldwide, Pentecostal churches grow when the Holy Spirit is free to manifest His miracle power through believers.  An amazing phenomenon of modern times is the explosive growth of churches in Mainland China during the Mao era.  When the missionaries were driven out in 1949 and 1950, an estimated one million Protestant Christians remained in China.  Through 30 years of the harsh persecution, through the brutality of the Cultural Revolution, with no Bibles, pastors, or church buildings, the church did not wither away as many feared it would.  Instead it grew vigorously so that estimates of believers in China now run from 25 million to almost 50 million.  How did this happen?  All the answers are not yet in, but one thing we know for sure is that a major factor was God’s immediate supernatural work of healings, casting out of demons, and miracles.  While the thousands of house-churches that have been springing up cannot be claimed for Pentecostals or for any other denomination, my hunch is that most of them will turn out to be more like Pentecostals than any other modern branch of Christianity.

                Not only do Pentecostals believe in miracle power, they also believe in soul-winning power. Sharing the faith is a constant way of life for Pentecostals.  They believe that God wants to use them to win souls, and He does.  When I consult with many denominations, I have to start by convincing them that the gospel is worth sharing and that God wants churches to grow.  Not so with Pentecostals.  It never occurred to them to question it.  Pentecostals are possibility thinkers - their faith level is high.  They believe in evangelism, and they believe in church growth.  They trust God for great things and God honors their faith.  Pentecostal churches are churches of power.

Churches of the Poor

                The God of the Bible is a God who loves the poor.  It is true that He loves all people, including the rich; but, if we take the Bible seriously, we know that He has a special bias for the poor.  Because of this, God is going to make sure that the poor have a strong witness for Christ.  Back in the eighteenth century the Anglican Church in England had abandoned the poor, so God raised up the Methodist Church.  When the Methodists came to America, they ministered to the poor with circuit riders going from cabin to cabin out on the frontier.  But one hundred years later, the Methodists had become middle-class, and God raised up the Holiness / Pentecostal movement to minister to the poor once again.

                Check it out.  Almost all Pentecostal preachers now in their sixties or seventies were born in poor homes, and many younger ones were also.  This is one of the strongest characteristics of Pentecostal growth. 

Research has shown that the working class people of the world are more receptive to the gospel than the higher classes.  

Furthermore, God reserves a special blessing for His servants who preach the good news to the poor, and Pentecostals have been receiving this blessing through the years.

                But this observation leads me to my final section in which I want to elaborate on what I said up front; namely, that there are some ominous signs that Pentecostals may subtly be moving away from the very things that have contributed to their growth for 80 years.  

Many different factors are entering into this process, but most of them can be classified under the following: the burning desire for respectability.

Dangers of Respectability

                I have argued that Pentecostal churches are growing steadily and strongly because they are churches of purity, prayer, power and the poor.  If they remain that way, they will remain strong.  But cutting any of these characteristics off will be like cutting off the hair of Samson.  Unfortunately, I think Delilah with her scissors may be lurking right around the corner.

                Especially since World War II ended, 35 years ago, Pentecostals have been gaining respectability rapidly.  Being persecuted and classified with the Jehovah’s Witnesses now seems like an unreal bad dream.  General superintendents and general overseers are now officers in the National Association of Evangelicals.  They get invitations to the large international congresses.  For the older generation it is a great relief to be able to mix with other leaders inter-denominationally after taking nothing but abuse for so many years.  The younger generation knows no different - weren’t Pentecostals always respectable, just like Lutherans and Presbyterians?

                All this is to the good.  Behold how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity.  But it has its problems - especially for church growth.  

One price of respectability is that you will continue to be accepted so long as you do not stress your doctrinal distinctives.  

For Pentecostals this means keeping a low profile on Baptism in the Holy Spirit, the initial evidence of speaking in tongues, hallelujahs and amens from the audience, miraculous healings and exorcisms, prophecies / words of knowledge, and many more.  But these are some of the very characteristics that have enabled Pentecostals to grow three or four times faster than the other groups they are trying to gain respectability from.

                Behind all this is a phenomenon called redemption and lift.  When poor people become Christians and allow God to clean up their life, they frequently do not remain poor.  But, as the Methodists learned, rising to middle-class respectability can easily get a church out of touch with the poor they originally came from.  This hasn’t completely happened to Pentecostals, but it has happened enough to hoist yellow flags all over the place.  If the Pentecostals abandon the poor, God will raise up someone else to minister to them and the rate of growth of Pentecostal churches will surely begin to drop.

                One of the measuring sticks for redemption and lift is the denominational educational system.  As Pentecostals who were born poor rise socially and economically, they desire better educational opportunities for their children than they themselves had - so they establish colleges.  When their children graduate from college, they are irretrievably middle-class.  Over the decades this can and usually does shift the focus of outreach and church growth from the poor to the middle class.

                Another measuring stick involves requirements for ministers.  Most of the old-time Pentecostal preachers were either self-educated or they learned by being an apprentice to another pastor.  Then, when the colleges came, more and more were college graduates.  Ministers were considered more respectable if they went to college.  Then the process escalates until graduate schools are established.  Currently, the Church of God, the Assemblies of God, and the Pentecostal Holiness Church are about at this point.  Down the line a two-tiered ministry is likely to develop.  Those who go to graduate school will subtly be thought of as superior to those who do not, and they will be elected to influential denominational policy-making positions.  It may take a few decades, but the well-meaning declarations of the present leaders (who have not gone to graduate school) that no formal education requirements will be made for ordination into the ministry may begin to erode and eventually disappear altogether.  A study of the Methodist church will show that it can happen.  It will be devastating for church growth if it does.

                By this time some are saying, “Hey! Wagner has stopped preaching and gone to meddling.”  Well, then let me conclude with a list of concrete suggestions that can keep Pentecostals on track as the global leaders in making church growth happen:

1.       Hold purity high.  I do not see much change as yet in biblical authority or doctrine, but I do detect some watering down of the Christian lifestyle as distinctly separated from the world around.  Keep strict, and God will bless.

2.       Depend on prayer and fastings as your spiritual core. Keep channels open for intimacy with God through tongues and prophecies.

3.       Ask God to show His power through signs and wonders as He did in the early days of the Pentecostal movement.  Publicize testimonies of those who have been blessed through miracles.  Not enough is said about healing any more.  If I am not mistaken, only one author, David L. Lemons, addressed the issue of healing in the entire first year of publication of the Pentecostal Minister.

4.       Maintain a passion for souls. Keep witnessing and outreach in the forefront of all church programs.

5.       Never allow educational requirements to substitute for spiritual gifts as the basis for ordaining new ministers.

6.       Vigorously plant new churches and exalt the bivocational minister.  There’s nothing wrong with earning money from a secular job while you’re building a new church.

7.       Curse  “the demon of respectability.” Be willing to be fools for Christ’s sake.  Do not allow association with other Christians to water down Pentecostal distinctive of doctrine or practice.

The last two decades of the twentieth century hold incredible promise.  I believe that they will see the greatest harvest of souls in the history of the Christian Church.  My prayer is that, as Pentecostals have led the way in reaping the harvest over the past two decades, they will maintain this leadership with even greater power as we move into the future for the glory of God.

Tumbling Down ~ Canton Junction

Acts 16:25-40English Standard Version (ESV)

The Philippian Jailer Converted

25 About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them, 26 and suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken. And immediately all the doors were opened, and everyone's bonds were unfastened. 27 When the jailer woke and saw that the prison doors were open, he drew his sword and was about to kill himself, supposing that the prisoners had escaped. 28 But Paul cried with a loud voice, “Do not harm yourself, for we are all here.” 29 And the jailer[a] called for lights and rushed in, and trembling with fear he fell down before Paul and Silas. 30 Then he brought them out and said, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” 31 And they said, 

“Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household.”

32 And they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all who were in his house. 33 And he took them the same hour of the night and washed their wounds; and he was baptized at once, he and all his family. 34 Then he brought them up into his house and set food before them. And he rejoiced along with his entire household that he had believed in God.

35 But when it was day, the magistrates sent the police, saying, “Let those men go.” 36 And the jailer reported these words to Paul, saying, “The magistrates have sent to let you go. Therefore come out now and go in peace.” 37 But Paul said to them, “They have beaten us publicly,uncondemned, men who are Roman citizens, and have thrown us into prison; and do they now throw us out secretly? No! Let them come themselves and take us out.” 38 The police reported these words to the magistrates, and they were afraid when they heard that they were Roman citizens. 39 So they came and apologized to them. And they took them out and asked them to leave the city. 40 So they went out of the prison and visited Lydia. And when they had seen the brothers, they encouraged them and departed.

Why Was Trump Elected? ~ John Hagee

Editor's Note:  According to Pastor Hagee, the Abrahamic Covenant is still in effect !!!  God is a covenant-keeping God.  He does not change! Praise His Holy Name.  God Blesses those who Bless Israel, the apple of His eye! 

•       The Abrahamic Covenant: (Genesis 12: 1-3) 1 The Lord had said to Abram, “Go from your country, your people and your father’s household to the land I will show you. 2“I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. 3I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.”
• The "Replacement Theology" people say that "the church" has "replaced" ISRAEL.  There is one word for that teaching: WRONG! ~ Do your own research.  God is a Covenant-Keeper...God never changes a covenant!  Oh and by the way...Israel is not occupying the land, they OWN it...and they don't need anyone's permission to defend themselves.  ~ St. Mark

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Why Was Trump Elected? ~ from "Think About It" YouTube channel

Peace on Earth ~ Collingsworth Family

Power In The Blood ~ The Tent of Meeting

In our family devotions we are passing through Hebrews Chapter 9, and studying the significance of Christ's power through his blood.  He is my High Priest!

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The "Power" is the Blood of Christ!

In view of the colossal problems around us—drugs, divorce, depression, to name a few—it seems like a gross oversimplification to say that the blood of Jesus Christ is the solution. But, in a different context, the Hebrews faced similar problems of neglect, unbelief and immaturity. They were in danger of dropping out of the race and turning back to their old ways. Seemingly, they lacked the power and purpose to advance and press on in their faith-race. What was the solution given to them? The blood of Jesus. Only a full and perfect knowledge of what Jesus is and does for us can bring us to a full and perfect Christian life.

        The Old Covenant was based on MAN's Faithfulness;               

        The New Covenant was based on GOD's Faithfulness!

The Tabernacle:

·         Tabernacle was 45' x 15' wide and 15' high

·         Located inside the "Court of Israel" & divided into two sections; The Holy Place (or "Sanctuary") and the Holy of Holies.  The Altar of incense was immediately just inside the entrance. The priest would daily offer the incense unto God by swinging it daily (symbol of the prayers of the saints).

·         Altar of Incense where incense would be swung; Lampstand -the priest would go into this first part of the temple and trim the wicks on the "menora" (lampstand with 7 candles); 7 lamps symbolize the Holy Spirit... God wanted this lampstand to burn continually.

·         Also in the first part (Holy Place) was the "table of shewbread".  Weekly the priest would change the shewbread on the table; there were 12 loaves each representing the 12 tribes of Israel.

·         Sacrifices: -people would bring offerings to give to the Lord during the day, and the priest would sacrifice them as they came in.

·         The priests would each serve for about a month at a time.

In the Holy of Holies you would find:

·         Golden censor

·         Ark of the Covenant which was overlaid in gold, containing the tablets of stone (10 Commandments that God gave them.)

·         Golden Pot containing manna preserved from their forefather's wilderness days.

·         Aaron's Rod that had budded; This budding was God's confirmation that Aaron was selected to establish the "Aaronic order" priesthood.

·         The "Cherubim's of Glory" overseeing the "Mercy Seat or bema" (symbolizing a model of heaven, as the throne of God is surrounded by cherubims).

·         Daily the priest would perform his priestly duties; trimming the wicks, refilling the oil, offering sacrifices for sin that people brought to him.

·         The High Priest would enter the Holy of Holies through "the veil" only once a year (on "Yom Kippor", which means "The Day of Atonement", and "not without blood"; since they haven't had a temple for many years, they currently call this "The Day of Reflection") ....a sacrifice that he would offer for himself first, and then for the people. He would go into the Holy of Holies first for cleansing for himself after he bathed; he would kill an ox and enter with the blood of the ox and sprinkle it on the "mercy seat".  He would bathe again, and then take two goats aside for consideration for the sins of the people; ...both goats were used to "pay" for the sins of the Israelis, but one would be slain, and one would be set free. (Generations later....Barabbas was set free while Christ was slain). After casting lots over the two goats, he would slay the goat upon which the lot fell, and set the other one free somewhere in the wilderness.  After slaying the goat, he would enter into the Holy of Holies again for the sins of the nation with the blood of the goat. The "puttting away" of sins was the idea and as the goat was set free signifying that God would remember their sins no more.

·         This could only happen once per year and that signified the "separation" of man from GOD! The heavy veil of the temple separated them as the Holy Spirit was not yet given to man. We read later that when Jesus was crucified, the veil of the temple was ripped "from the top to the bottom"...God ripped it!; if man had ripped it, it would have been ripped from the bottom to the top. This veil-ripping signified that the way into God's presence was available for all men! We can enter into God's presence by ourselves! Because Christ is our High Priest!

If you look at the Old Testament placement of the Israelite camp during their time wandering in the wilderness, each tribe was situated so that the whole assembly made the shape of a cross!!!  This is a foreshadowing of things to come in God’s plan.  Remember, this was thousands of years before the New Testament and the story of Christ and His power to save because of His death on the Cross!  The tent of meeting was positioned in the middle.

UPDATE ~ The ARK Encounter, Williamstown, KY

RELATED: The ARK Encounter, Williamstown, KY

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Just when you think you’ve heard it all, there’s this:

Ken Ham, the staunch defender of Biblical creationism and creator of the giant Ark Encounter replica in Kentucky, decided to boldly take back the stolen rainbow symbol for Christianity by decorating his ark in rainbow colors for Christmas.

But in a letter to the editor of the Cincinnati Enquirer, one LGBT advocate, Ellen Hackman Ziegler, took Ham to task over it. And you’ll have to read what she says to believe it:

“Ham trying to poison a symbol of love.

“I found it quite disheartening to read that Ken Ham of the Ark Encounter is trying to poison the original intent of the rainbow coalition as a symbol of love and inclusiveness of all — regardless of race, religion, gender identity — by using it to promote bigotry Dec. 24.

“I very much doubt that this is what Jesus and Christianity represent.”

It’s just bewildering.

Ham himself (a very distant relation of Noah and his son Ham — as is everyone) replied to the letter writer on Facebook, and somehow he seemed to do it without laughing.

Ham wrote: “Well, I do agree some people are trying to ‘poison the original intent of the rainbow’ — but it’s not our Ark Encounter!”

He then responded to the writer simply with Genesis 9:12-17:

“And God said: ‘This is the sign of the covenant which I make between Me and you, and every living creature that is with you, for perpetual generations: I set My rainbow in the cloud, and it shall be for the sign of the covenant between Me and the earth. It shall be, when I bring a cloud over the earth, that the rainbow shall be seen in the cloud; and I will remember My covenant which is between Me and you and every living creature of all flesh; the waters shall never again become a flood to destroy all flesh. The rainbow shall be in the cloud, and I will look on it to remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is on the earth.’ And God said to Noah, ‘This is the sign of the covenant which I have established between Me and all flesh that is on the earth.’”

Reported by: Faith Family America