Month: February 2022

As human beings our knowledge is limited to our physical world and what God tells us about the spiritual world through the revelation of his word. We all understand the godly principle of each species producing after its kind because we see it every day in the world. We’re also familiar with the normal birth process whereby a mother will grow a new life in her body until it’s time to come forth or be born. A male (or father) is needed to provide the other half of the chromosomes needed to produce this new life. This applies to most forms of life including both humans and animals. Let’s start by defining some key terms from my Oxford English dictionary so we’re on the same page when it comes to Bible interpretation:

1. Birth – the emergence of a baby or other young from the body of its mother
2. Born – existing as a result of birth
3. Reborn – brought back to life or activity
4. Renew – begin something again after an interruption
5. Again – returning to a previous position or condition
6. Regeneration – means the same thing as reborn

As a Christian reading these terms in the Bible I found it a little confusing at first and I’m sure that’s the case with most people. We think we know what God means by what is said in his word but we’re not absolutely sure all the time. When it comes to the phrase “born again” most of us see things a little bit like the Pharisee Nicodemus in the gospel of John. When Jesus told Nicodemus, “Unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” Nicodemus said to Jesus, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born? Of course we all know we can’t be physically born a second time so we assume it must be a recalibration of our mind in order to be more righteous; to think the way God wants us to think. Does God gives us a completely new spirit or does he just wash or remove the sin from our existing spirit? I couldn’t make up mu mind what to think. I always leaned to the removal of the sin from the spirit because I was thinking in human terms and not from God’s viewpoint. If you have a new expensive shirt and you get a gravy stain on it you don’t throw the shirt away and go buy a new one. You wipe off the stain, use a wet cloth to remove the stain or throw it in the laundry and wash the stain away. The shirt comes out of the wash good as new. It turns out that I was dead wrong about this. When God gives us a new eternal spirit at salvation it’s a brand new one. We’re a new creation in Christ Jesus.

2 Corinthians 5:17 – Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.

Romans 5:17 – For if by one man’s offense death reigned through the one, much more those who receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ.

Romans 5:12 – Therefore, just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned.

Ephesians 2:10 – For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.

Philippians 3:20 – For our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.

With my limited understanding of God and spiritual things I just couldn’t grasp that God would instantaneously swap out two identical spirits, one without sin for the one with the stain of sin. Kind of like a heavenly shell game. Our spirits from God are like fingerprints, no two are exactly alike. My wife taught me when doing the laundry to separate the lights from the darks. If you accidentally wash something light in with the dark clothes there is a chance the darker colors will bleed into the light clothing (which I’ve done). Once that dark stain gets into the light clothes it’s embedded and is there permanently. Scripture refers to it as “corruption” in both our body and spirit. I think the sin nature we all inherited from Adam’s original sin in the Garden of Eden is like that. The original sin caused by Adam can’t be removed from our body or spirit so our spirit must be replaced and our body must die. We must be given a brand new spirit to be saved. There’s no other way. When my mother was alive she was adamant none of her kids would be cremated. Mother wanted to make sure there was a body in a grave for God to resurrect. Mom worried about that needlessly.

Psalm 35:9 – And my soul shall be joyful in the Lord; it shall rejoice in His salvation.

When God gives believers their glorified bodies at the rapture and the resurrection saints on the last day those glorified bodies won’t have one atom from our old bodies because of the sin that permeated our old physical bodies. Scripture says you don’t sew an old piece of cloth on a new garment and you don’t put new wine into an old wineskin. That same principle applies to our bodies as well. God made us the first time and he can do it just as easily the second time, only without the sin nature from Adam. God hates sin; God cannot abide sin; and God will not allow sin in heaven. Our eternal spirit was stained by the original sin from Adam’s body and must be replaced in order for us to be able to go to heaven. After studying the Bible I find that God does indeed give each believer a brand spanking new spirit upon salvation unto eternal life through faith in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. We get our new glorified body at the rapture or the resurrection, depending on when you were saved. God does that because he loves us he is merciful. With God nothing is impossible. God made us to live with him forever in heaven so he came up with the salvation plan for man to restore the fellowship that existed between God and man before Adam’s fall.

John 3:5-8 – (Jesus speaking) – Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Do not marvel that I said to you, you must be born again. The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but cannot tell where it comes from and where it goes. So is everyone who is born of the Spirit.

As we can see from the above Scriptures every person has two births, one physical and one spiritual. Our physical birth we understand as I’ve previously explained. Our spiritual birth is something God explains in his word. God is Spirit and normally has no physical form. God made everything in the universe, including you and me. We exist and have our being because of the power of God. If God removed his hand from creation everything would instantly dissolve into nothing. At our physical conception God gives each new person a part of himself, a spirit that is eternal because God is eternal. That part of God that he puts into each person belongs to God and that spirit will one day return to God at our physical death. On the cross just before his death Jesus committed his spirit to God as a human being just like us. Jesus was being an example. It’ll be the same for us. There’s only one God, one divine being, so our spiritual birth can only be from God. God is both our birth mother and our birth father. God gives birth to our eternal spirit at our conception.

1 Corinthians 8:6 – Yet for us there is one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we for Him; and one Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we are all things, and through whom we live.

Colossians 1:17 – And He is before all things, and in Him all things consist.

Luke 23:46 – (Jesus speaking) – Father, into your hands I commit My spirit.

Revelation 21:7 – He who overcomes shall inherit all things, and I will be his God and he shall be My son.

Luke 8:55 – Then her spirit returned (Jairus’ daughter), and she arose immediately.

When you pray to God and call him father you’re being truthful. When God says you’re a child of God and his son God is also being truthful. As sons and daughters of the King we’re royalty in heaven but that’s a discussion for another time. We don’t have zombies or the walking dead in the real world. One of the spiritual truths of God is your spirit must leave the body when it dies and if you’re dead your body is not walking around without a spirit. If you’re a living human being you have both a flesh and blood life just like the animals of the earth and you have a spiritual life through your eternal spirit, which is God’s. Humans have their being in both the physical world (our bodies) and the spiritual world (our eternal spirit). Our mind is the conduit or interface between the physical world and the spiritual world. Our mind was given to us by God as our worship organ so we can know God and give praise, honor and glory to his name through prayer. Two gifts from God make human beings different from the other animals on earth; human beings have an eternal spirit and a mind that is the greatest computer in the universe.

Galatians 4:19 – My little children, for whom I labor in birth again until Christ is formed in you.

John 3:3 – (Jesus speaking) – Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.

1 Peter 1:23 – Having been born again, not of corruptible seed but incorruptible, through the word of God which lives and abides forever.

1 Peter 1:3 – Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.

Isaiah 44:24 – Thus says the Lord, your redeemer, and He who formed you in the womb: I am the Lord, who makes all things, who stretches out the heavens all alone, who spreads abroad the earth by Myself.

How is it I know we get a brand new spirit upon salvation? I use Scripture to interpret Scripture. God almost always confirms spiritual truths in multiple Bible verses so all we have to do is find them and compare them in order to get a clearer picture of what God is actually saying to us. The five verses above all confirm in one way or another what Jesus says in John 3:7 about being born again. By definition to be born is to exist as a result of a birth. To be born again is to go through the process of birth a second time which is just like the first time. Reborn means to be brought back to life. We were all dead in our sins and Jesus brought us back to life by the shedding of his blood on the cross for our sins. We were reborn. Again means to return to a previous position or condition. Begotten is the past participle of beget which menas to produce a child. 1 Peter 1:3 goes on to say this second spiritual rebirth results in our salvation because Jesus rose from the dead. Since we know we cannot physically be born a second time then the verses must mean being born again spiritually, a spiritual rebirth. In Galatians 4:19 God clears up any ambiguity by telling us he is the one who births us with an eternal spirit, not only the first time but again the second time because only God can accomplish this miracle. 1 Peter 1:23 confirms to us that our new spirit is eternal and therefore can only have come from God.

John 6:40 – (Jesus speaking) – And this is the will of Him who sent Me, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in Him may have everlasting life; and I will raise him up at the last day.

1 Thessalonians 5:23 – Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely; and may your whole spirit, soul, and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.

2 Corinthians 5:6 – So we are always confident, knowing that while we are at home in the body we are absent from the Lord.

John 3:27 – A man can receive nothing unless it has been given to him from heaven.

Psalm 32:8 – I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will guide you with My eye.

In summary, every human being goes through two births; a spiritual birth at conception from God and a physical birth nine months later with their birth mother and biological father. Believers who have accepted Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior receive a third birth; a second spiritual birth to replace the original spirit received at conception which became stained as a result of Adam’s original sin in the body. This spiritual rebirth is the important one because it’s a part of God’s salvation plan for man to restore fellowship with God and allow believers to enter heaven and live with God forever. God is pure and God will not have anything to do with sin whatsoever. When God is birthing our first eternal spirit at conception there’s no sin on it; there can’t be. Adam’s original sin in the Garde of Eden was in his body not his spirit; giving him and all men who came after a sin nature. Even in a fallen world we all still receive a pure spirit from God at conception but the sins of our body inherited from Adam bleed over and stain our eternal spirit which then prevents us from entering heaven without a new spirit; a rebirth of our spirit from God.

Isaiah 45:22 – Look to Me, and be saved, all you ends of the earth! For I am God, and there is no other.

Ecclesiastes 12:13 – Fear God, and keep his commandments; for this is the whole duty of man.

Psalm 112:1 – Praise the Lord! Blessed is the man who fears the Lord, who delights greatly in His commandments.

2 Corinthians 5:11 – Knowing, therefore, the terror of the Lord, we persuade men.

Isaiah 32:17 – The work of righteousness will be peace, and the effect of righteousness, quietness and assurance forever.

By his grace, God washes away the sins of the body through the blood of Jesus Christ who died as an atonement for the sins of all men. This washing away of sins from the body and rebirthing our eternal spirit occur simultaneously as an act of a loving, gracious and merciful God. God gives everyone the free will choice to accept his saving grace; to decide whether to serve God or Satan. Those who decide to serve Satan and decline the second spiritual rebirth then their sins will remain with them to be judged on the last day. God’s eternal creatures, angels and men, were created to eternally reside in one of two locations, heaven or hell. Those whose sins have been removed go to heaven and those who still abide in their sins go to hell. Anyone who fails to choose God chooses Satan by default. The option to choose God is only open to men while they yet live and before the rapture happens, which could occur at any time. Don’t delay making your decision.

Isaiah 44:22 – I have blotted out, like a thick cloud, your transgressions, and like a cloud, your sins. Return to Me, for I have redeemed you.

Titus 3:5-7 – Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, through the washing of regeneration and of the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior, that having been justified by His grace we should become heirs according to the hope of eternal life.

John 1:12 – But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even those who believe in His name.

2 Corinthians 5:10 – For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.

Isaiah 30:18 – Therefore the Lord will wait, that He may be gracious to you; and therefore He will be exalted, that He may have mercy on you. For the Lord is a God of justice; blessed are those who wait for Him.

Every time you read your Bible from now on and you read the verses that say you are reborn it should send a thrill through your soul. It’s not symbolism, an allegory or a spiritualization of God’s word. It’s the literal truth of God. Interpret God’s word literally unless the context indicates otherwise. By the word of God know you have a reborn eternal spirit without sin which is just as much proof you’re going to heaven as being indwelt by the Holy Spirit. Actually, the opposite is also true. Being indwelt by the Holy Spirit proves your new spirit is without sin because the Holy Spirit couldn’t live in a body that still had its sin nature. Remember, God can’t live near sin and the Holy Spirit is God. There’s no way God will indwell a sinful body unless it has been purified by the blood of Christ. In the Old Testament times people worshipped God in the temple and God resided there. Under the new blood covenant of Jesus Christ believers are the church and our bodies are the temple of God and the proof is that God resides on the inside of believers as the Holy Spirit. Our body and our spirit belong to God and we need to start acting like it.

1 Corinthians 6:20 – For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s

Romans 8:12 – But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you.

1 Corinthians 3:16-17 – Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? If anyone defiles the temple of God, God will destroy him. For the temple of God is holy, which temple you are.

2 Corinthians 5:1 – For we know that if our earthly house, this tent, is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.

2 Corinthians 4:16 – Therefore we do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day.

In Scripture I kept running across the words regeneration and renewing and thinking they meant the same thing but they don’t. Regeneration means the same thing as being reborn. Renewing means to begin something again after an interruption. When Adam was in fellowship with God in the Garden of Eden he had the mind of God. After Adam sinned God broke off the fellowship with man (an interruption) until Jesus came and reestablished that fellowship with God (begin again). That is renewing. Believers have the mind of Christ and can now renew their minds through the word of God. Adam and Eve were immortal beings but when God kicked them out of the Garden of Eden because of their sin they became mortal beings who grew old and died like us. Adam originally had great mental powers but after the fall that was greatly reduced. That’s why fallen man can use only 10% of his brain capacity. God didn’t shrink our brain after Adam’s fall he just deactivated part of it.

Malachi 4:1 – For behold, the day is coming, burning like an oven, and all the proud, yes, all who do wickedly will be stubble. And the day which is coming shall burn them up, says the Lord of hosts, that will leave them neither root nor branch.

It’s as though God put some kind of governor on our mind like you would an engine, in order to limit our brain output temporarily. No doubt when we receive our glorified resurrection bodies we’ll regain 100% of the brain power that was once Adam’s. Our brain is another proof of God. The theory of evolution is linear which means a species only evolves to the capacity it needs to survive. The fact that man has more than 90% more brain power than needed to survive as a species debunks the theory of evolution and fits perfectly with the story of creation in the book of Genesis. Our highly complex human brain is far greater than what we need to survive and function as a species which proves beyond any doubt that man was made by God in his image.

Romans 12:2 – And do not be conformed to this world, be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.

2 Timothy 1:7 – For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.

1 Corinthians 2:14 – But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them because they are spiritually discerned.

John 4:24 – (Jesus speaking) – God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.

2 Corinthians 5:9 – Therefore we make it our aim, whether present or absent, to be well pleasing to Him.

I’m calling on all Christian believers to don the armor of faith and contend with me for the souls of the lost and do good works for the kingdom of God while there’s still time. By my calculations we’re only four years and two months away from the rapture of the church and the beginning of the “time of sorrows”, the seven years of tribulation which will end with the Second Coming of Jesus Christ to judge the nations of the earth for their sins against God before establishing the millennial kingdom of God on the earth. Time is short so believers need to focus on these important things. Believers need to obey God and his commands that are in the Bible. God doesn’t create anyone who is destined for hell from the start. God wants all of his creatures in heaven so anyone can go to heaven if they really want to. Each person is responsible for finding the true God, educating themselves about God and then following the path that leads to heaven that’s prescribed by God. Some people just need a little more help getting there. It may sound easy but it’s not; as evidenced by the fact the vast majority of people on this earth are going to hell. One thing I’ve discovered about God is that he’s just and fair to every person he has ever created.

1 Peter 1:17 – And if you call on the Father, who without partiality judges according to each one’s work, conduct yourselves throughout the time of your stay here in fear.

2 Timothy 2:15 – Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.

Colossians 3:2 – Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth.

Colossians 3:17 – And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.

To the untrained observer it may look like God has given an unfair advantage to some people and hindered others in their search for God but that’s not the case at all. I used to bemoan the fact that God had dealt me a bad hand in life. I was raised in poverty, in a godless, dysfunctional family and I always wished my circumstances growing up were different. I blamed God and I held it against him for a long time. After I was saved I finally let go of my resentment against God when I realized my past has made me who I am and I have God to thank for that. God knows what he’s doing in every person’s life and he’s leveled the playing field so we all have an equal chance to find our own salvation unto eternal life. In a 400 meter race on an oval track the runners are staggered at the start of the race so it doesn’t look fair but the distance traveled in each lane is the same at the finish line. The race we run for God is like that. We all have to start where we are in life, with the abilities God gives us and then we have to run the best race we can for God. The path God gives each of us is unique because no two lives or races are exactly alike. Don’t worry about what you don’t have, didn’t get or don’t know; just start running for the Lord!

1 Corinthians 9:24 – Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may obtain it.

Hebrews 10:36 – For you have need of endurance, so that after you have done the will of God, you may receive the promise.

Ephesians 2:10 – For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.

2 Corinthians 9:8 – And God is able to make all grace abound toward you, that you, always having all sufficiency in all things, may have an abundance for every good work.

Nobody can be saved unless God first calls them and thing is this, God calls everyone. This is just another way of telling us that salvation unto eternal life is only gifted by God the Father. God always makes the first move to save us and he makes it repeatedly. Only the Holy Spirit of God can actually save someone unto eternal life by regenerating the spirit God gave them and washing away sin. Only the Holy Spirit writes the believer’s name in the book of life, ensuring the believer will live forever in heaven in the presence of God. It pleased God to save us by faith, by our believing in him and believing in the gospel of Christ. By believing that Jesus Christ is the son of God who came down from heaven, took on flesh, lived a sinless life, and was crucified on the cross for the forgiveness of the sins of all men, past, present and futire. By believing that on the third day Jesus rose from the dead and later ascended back to heaven where he sits at the right hand of God the Father as our mediator. It also pleased God to allow the children of God, believers, to participate in God’s salvation plan for man by commanding us to share our witness for Christ. God’s number one command for believers is to witness the gospel of Jesus Christ to all nations and all peoples. Witnessing for Christ is the ultimate good work for the kingdom of God, without which all other good works mean nothing to God. In addition to witnessing, we are to do other good works such as helping the poor, the needy, the orphan and the widow.

Romans 11:29 – For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable.

Romans 4:4 – Now to him who works, the wages are not counted as grace but as debt.

Titus 2:15 – Speak these things (the gospel), exhort, and rebuke with all authority. Let no one despise you.

1 Peter 3:15 – But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear.

When I became a believer and accepted Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior I was full of joy. I thought I was home free and my work on earth was done. I had found the Lord and my home in heaven! As I studied my Bible I was shocked to learn that my salvation came with strings attached. I learned my salvation was not the end of my journey with God but just the beginning. After we’re saved we are all servants and disciples of the King (Jesus) and therefore we all have a duty, a command, to fulfill the “Great Commission” that Jesus gave his disciples before ascending back to heaven, which is to share the gospel message of Christ to all nations and all peoples. God didn’t say we should do this but that we must do this. Disobeying God on this matter is not an option for believers who want to please God, and we should all want to please our maker.

2 Peter 3:9 – The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.

Galatians 4:19 – My little children, for whom I labor in birth again until Christ is formed in you.

Romans 1:16 – For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek (Gentile).

To disobey God is to sin against God and we’ll all be held accountable at the bema judgment seat of Christ. The first question Jesus will ask you is, “Have you shared the message of the gospel?” You need to be able to say “yes.” Our salvation is assured by our faith but our rewards are another matter. Our rewards in heaven will be burned up if we don’t obey this first and most important command of God, which is to share our witness for Christ. Salvation happens in an instant and is permanent whereas doing good works for the kingdom of God is a lifelong labor of love and what we receive in the way of a reward depends on what we do. It’s why God leaves us here on this earth after our salvation. Someone once helped save us and we owe it to the lost to repay that love shown us by helping to save others. We witness out of love for other people and because it’s our duty to God as disciples of Christ.

2 Timothy 4:1-2 – I charge you therefore before God and the Lord Jesus Christ, who will judge the living and the dead at His appearing and His kingdom: Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching.

1 Corinthians 3:7-9 – So then neither he who plants is anything, nor he who waters, but God who gives the increase. Now he who plants and he who waters are one, and each one will receive his own reward according to his own labor. For we are God’s fellow workers; you are God’s field, you are God’s building.

Titus 3:8 – This is a faithful saying, and these things I want you to affirm constantly, that those who have believed in God should be careful to maintain good works. These things are good and profitable to men.

Romans 14:12 – So then each of us shall give account of himself to God.

I’ve studied God’s Word for a long time and I’m a student of end time prophecy. I see the end times rushing toward us and it’s coming quicker than I thought it would. I now think the rapture of the saints could come as soon as four years and two months from now (see my previous blogs on this). I’m issuing a call to arms to all believers to maximize their efforts to witness for Christ and do good works for the kingdom of God. It’s now time for believers to put in some overtime for the Lord’s work. I know this won’t be easy but we’ll all need to be creative and improvise to make this work. I’ve been holed up in my house for two years because of covid-19. My wife and I are in our 70’s and we can’t afford to get the virus at our age, even with the shots. There are numerous ways we can still serve God even with these restrictions. I suggest that everyone do what I’ve been doing for many years, which is to distribute Christian tracts whenever you do have to go out into the local community.

I carry them in the console of my car and when I go to Walmart, Target, HEB, CVS, Costco, doctor’s offices, etc. I’ll grab five and place them in the bathrooms behind the soap dispensers, on top of the hand dryers and any other level space where they can be seen by anyone coming into the bathroom. I add my blog site on the back of each Christian tract I hand out. It’s the only advertising I do. I know that Christian tracts works because I used to pick them myself to read. You’re shooting for quantity here because probably only one in twenty people will be interested enough to take a tract home and read it. Many tracts are probably thrown in the trash by the cleaning staff. The point is whoever reads a Christian tract placed by you is receiving the gospel seed from your hand and therefore you are fulfilling the Great Commission. You’re obeying the number one command of God and that’s a very good thing. If you pass out tracts for 20 years and only wind up helping to save one person it’ll be worth it. A human soul is priceless to God and helping someone find salvation and heaven for all eternity is a wonderful thing for which God will bless you.

2 Timothy 2:21 – Therefore if anyone cleanses himself from the latter (dishonor), he will be a vessel for honor, sanctified and useful for the Master, prepared for every good work.

Hebrews 6:10 – For God is not unjust to forget your work and labor of love which you have shown toward His name, in that you have ministered to the saints, and do minister.

1 Corinthians 15:58 – Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.

James 1:22 – Be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.

Let me give you some background history on Christian tracts. They were started shortly after World War II by Jack T. Chick, a cartoonist and illustrator by trade who was a devout Christian. He was moved by the Holy spirit to create and distribute small cartoon booklets with a salvation message. That mission from God grew into a worldwide Christian ministry with close to a billion tracts sold. Jack Chick passed away in 2016 at age 92 but his legacy lives on with the Christian staff who run the company. Chick tracts only use Scriptures from the King James Bible originally published in 1611. All newer Bible versions have made changes to God’s word that are detrimental because the world’s media are under the influence of Satan and cannot be trusted to give you the pure word of God.

I personally will only use my new King James large print Bible to study God’s Word. Throw away all others Bibles. Jack Chick created over 200 Christian tracts in over 55 years of witnessing for Christ. Distributing Christian tracts is the easiest way to obey God’s command to witness for Christ. I call it “passive” witnessing for Christ but it works, especially in this time restricted personal interaction. People have been saved just by reading Christian tracts on their own because the sinner’s prayer is on the last page and following it will lead a person to salvation unto eternal life. Even after being saved by a Christian tract a new believer should reconfirm their commitment to God with a pastor as a witness before God.

2 Corinthians 9:6 – But this I say: He who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully.

Hebrews 4:12 – For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joint and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.

Galatians 6:9-10 – And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all, especially to those who are of the household of faith.

Romans 15:4 – For whatever things were written before were written for our learning, that we through the patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope.

There are copycat Christian tracts out there but I stick with the original. I have gone to the www.chick.com website and personally read every tract they have. You can pull them up, read them and order the ones you want. I used to buy and distribute a dozen or more different Christian tracts when I was new at this. I don’t do that anymore. I now buy only one of their very first tracts and by far the best seller named, “This is your life.” I order them by the thousand lot and I pay 17 1/2 cents apiece for them (they may have gone up by now like everything else). In Louisiana before I retired I had plastic display cases full of tracts that I managed to place in local businesses and I kept them restocked. I’m retired now in south Texas and I haven’t done that here. South Texas is largely Hispanic and largely Catholic and the Catholic church is dead set against Christian tracts.

The Catholic clergy want to maintain their power, position and influence by having their flock depend solely on their priest and the Catholic church for salvation and not personal salvation by faith like the Bible says. I’m a Southern Baptist and I once thought Catholics were the same as me but slightly different, similar to a different denomination. I found out Catholics and Protestants are very different from each other. While we’re both Christians we believe different things. I once tried to pass out Christian tracts at a Catholic run hospital and I thought they were going to have me arrested. After I did some research I realized the Catholic church wants all salvation funneled through the church which is why they don’t mention the Great Commission in their services. I’ve never met a Catholic who witnesses for Christ. Catholics leave salvation up to their priests and through the doctrines and sacraments of the Catholic church.

Titus 2:7 – In all things showing yourself to be a pattern of good works; in doctrine showing integrity, reverence, incorruptibility.

1 Corinthians 1:9 – God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

Romans 10:17 – So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.

1 Corinthians 6:20 – For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s.

The Catholic church wants to lead their flock by the nose and they have reduced Jesus Christ to a cookie used at mass. They honor Jesus with their lips but in practice they dishonor him. The Catholic church won’t allow Christian tracts anywhere near them because tracts witness the gospel message of Christ which conflicts with the doctrines of Catholic church. The sinner’s prayer is stressed in the Bible as the way to salvation but you won’t find it being stressed in the Catholic church. I have a whole series of blogs describing how the Catholic church was corrupted by Satan by the time of Pope Gregory, over 1500 years ago, and as a result 100% of doctrines in the Catholic church today are completely opposite of what God commands in the Bible.

A changed doctrine here and could be coincidental but to have 100% of Catholic doctrines go against God’s word is proof of Satan at work. The Catholic church has declared Mary, a human being and mother of Jesus, as divine and instructed their flock pray to her instead of Jesus because Jesus is supposedly too busy to receive prayers. The rationale is Mary will receive our prayers, sort them out, and take them to Jesus on a need to know basis. Kind of like a heavenly receptionist. What a load of bull that is! I’m amazed people fall for it. Scripture says to pray to God only! How can an omniscient, omnipresent and omnipotent God be too busy to receive prayers from the faithful?

Matthew 6:7 – (Jesus speaking) – And when you pray, do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do. For they think they will be heard for their many words. Therefore do not be like them.

Matthew 15:9 – (Jesus speaking) – And in vain they worship Me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.

1 Timothy 2:5 – For there is one God and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus.

Ephesians 6:18 – Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit (only to God).

Mary is only briefly mentioned in the Bible and then only as a useful vessel for God’s purpose. Nowhere in the Bible does it say we’re to pray to Mary. That’s an invention of the Catholic church. Mary is a blessed resident of heaven and no doubt she’s mortified at the prospect of being prayed to. In Luke 1:47 Mary calls Jesus her Lord and Savior. If Mary needed saving like the rest of us she certainly isn’t devine. It’s blasphemy to even think such a thing. As a mere human being, and not divine, Mary can’t hear your prayers and God won’t help you if you’re not praying to him directly. Your prayers to Mary can’t be heard or answered which was Satan’s plan all along. Only God can forgive your sins and not some priest in a box who is himself a sinner. Do you really think a child-molesting priest can forgive your sins? A priest can’t forgive himself so he surely can’t forgive you. If you aren’t going to God directly for forgiveness of your sins then your sins are surely still with you.

In their sheer arrogance the Catholic church has decided that the Pope has the ultimate authority over God himself to interpret Scripture. The Pope and the Catholic church claim they have the power to send someone to hell on behalf of God or to purgatory for rehab. There’s no such thing as purgatory and only God can condemn our souls to hell. The Catholic church has created sacraments and instituted paganistic rituals over the centuries that only benefit and enrich the church at the expense of believers. Scripture says not to worship God with vain repetitions like the pagan do yet that is exactly what a Catholic church service looks like. Hearing the monotonous incantations of the rosary drives me nuts! The Catholic church has stolen the honor and glory of God and the Catholic clergy will have to answer for that on the last day. They think they’ll be first but they’ll be last.

1 John 3:17 – But whoever has the world’s goods, and sees his brother in need, and shuts up his heart from him, how does the love of God abide in him?

2 Corinthians 9:7 – So let each one give as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity; for God loves a cheerful giver.

Hebrews 13:16 – But do not forget to do good and to share, for with such sacrifices God is well pleased.

2 Corinthians 8:12 – For if there is first a willing mind, it is acceptable according to what one has, and not according to what he does not have.

There are many creative ways to witness the gospel of Christ so choose the way you’re most comfortable with; the way that suits your personality. Still be prepared to witness one on one but realistically those chance are few and far between and getting fewer. The Holy Spirit prepared me and pushed me to write a Christian blog through my love of reading the Bible and studying God’s Word. I had an itch I couldn’t scratch until I started blogging. Christian authors will tell you that’s why they write books. God is creative so you should be too. Chick.com has a ministry program where believers can send tracts by the thousand lot to third world countries where local believers who can’t afford them will distribute them for you. That’s long distance witnessing for anyone buying and sending the tracts to be passed out.

I was looking into doing that in India but I wanted to choose the location and church myself rather than have the company pick a location to send them. I think I just talked myself into pulling the trigger on doing this in the near future. The point is, passing out Christian tracts is spreading the gospel seed and is therefore a passive method of witnessing for Christ. When a soul is harvested for the kingdom of God the reaper gets credit from God but so do all the people who sowed the gospel seed along the way in order to get that person to the point of salvation. The sower receives wages equal to the reaper. It’s rare for someone to come to salvation the first time they hear the gospel message. Most people have to hear the gospel message 15-20 times before they accept God’s saving grace. God is generous to a fault and he will reward everyone in the gospel chain who had a hand in saving a lost soul.

1 Timothy 4:13 – Till I come, give attention to reading, to exhortation, to doctrine.

2 Corinthians 5:10 – For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.

Romans 10:13 – For whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.

Galatians 6:7 – Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; whatever a man sows, that he will also reap.

While witnessing for Christ may be the most important good work we are commanded by God to do, it’s not something we may be able to do every day. However, other good works we can do every day if we look for those opportunities. Kindness doesn’t cost us a thing. I give money to charities of my choice. Do the same thing. The amount isn’t as important as giving regularly to bless those in need. Do you remember the Bible story of the old widow who gave two mites as an offering to the temple treasury? Jesus said her gift was greater than all the rest because while others gave of their increase she gave all she had to live on. You can do good works with little and you can do good works that don’t cost money. God will bless you based on what you have and not what you don’t have. God is fair to all.

I look for opportunities to help out my retirement community; to help those that may need assistance like picking up medication, taking them to the doctor’s office or something simple like bringing in their trash can from the street. I was a hospital volunteer at one time but the pandemic stopped that. Look for creative ways to volunteer that won’t expose you to the virus. The point is anyone can serve God and glorify his name where we are, by our Christian actions on behalf of the kingdom of God. When the light of God can be seen by what believers do then nonbelievers are attracted to the truth of God. Be the light of God; be the messenger for God! When we obey the commands of God we build up treasure in heaven that we’ll receive at the bema judgment seat of Jesus Christ. I think we only have four short years to save all the lost souls we can and build up our good works in heaven. This is my declaration to you and my call to arms to all believers to start where you are today and persevere in doing good until Jesus comes in the air for us to take us home.

As a long time student of the Bible and lover of end time prophecy I understand that Israel is the key to knowing when we’re getting close to the end of the age and the Second Coming of Jesus Christ. By studying the Scriptures I’ve calculated the Second Coming will be over Easter weekend in April 2033 and the rapture exactly seven years before that in 2026. At the rapture Jesus will call all the saints to himself in the air, both dead and alive, and take us back to heaven with him in our glorified bodies. I know the Bible says no man knows the time of the Second Coming, only God the Father. God doesn’t say believers can’t make an educated guess about the time of the Second Coming. Who knows; my guess could be spot on or very close; and then again God could give someone like me a revelation about the end times. All I know is we should be watching both Israel and Europe for signs of the prophesied end times. The Bible tells us that the coming antichrist will be the leader of a ten nation federation from Europe. We know this will be from countries that make up the current European Union. European countries have been working closely together since World War II but they all stubbornly defend their individual sovereignty. Fear is the only thing that could possibly cause all of these European countries to give up their national identity, control of their weapons and their security to one man and that is the fear of war; the fear of being invaded by another country that is bigger and more powerful.

1 Thessalonians 4:16-18 – For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And we shall always be with the Lord. Therefore comfort one another with these words.

Historically, the only thing Europe is afraid of is being invaded from the east. First it was Genghis Khan and his Mongol horde; then it was Atilla and his Huns; and finally it has been Russia for the last 300 years. That’s why the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) was formed after the last world war. I have long known that the antichrist, the man of sin, would not appear on the world stage in a vacuum. There had to be a major political upheaval of some kind in Europe in order to make the conditions just right for the antichrist to emerge. I also knew there had to be a time span for the evolution of the antichrist’s political power to come to fruition (months or years); a time in which spiritually mature Christians could discern the coming of the man of sin well before the rest of the world recognized him. Christians won’t be able to do anything about the antichrist even if they do identify him because the world won’t listen to us. We can’t stop it because it’s part of God’s plan so don’t even try. All we can do is put the word out; hoping to convince some people to accept God’s saving grace while there is still time. Many people will look at the coming prophetic signs of the end times and decide that now is the time to seek God’s salvation.

1 Corinthians 15:50-53 – Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; nor does corruption inherit incorruption. Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall be changed – in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised up incorruptible, and we shall be changed. For this corruption must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.

I say all this as background information, as a leadup to what I want to discuss, which is the current Russia-Ukraine crisis. I believe this impending war, and there will be a war, will be the beginning of the European struggle that causes the antichrist to emerge just as foretold in the Bible. Let me give you some additional background before I tell you what I think will happen. The old USSR unraveled back in 1991, 31 years ago, and fourteen republics within the boundaries of the old USSR declared their independence and the central government wasn’t able to do anything about it because it was in disarray. The Baltic provinces of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania had been a part of Russia off and on for over 300 years. They declared their independence as soon as the USSR collapsed. Belarus, just east of Poland declared its independence too. The Ukraine and Moldova, forever at the heart of the Russian empire, also claimed their independence. Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan, three small provinces between the Dead Sea and the Caspian Sea just north of Turkey saw their chance and quickly claimed independence as well. The five large sparsely populated central Asian provinces of the old USSR also took the opportunity to declare independence (Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan).

John 14:1-3 – (Jesus speaking) – And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself, that where I am, you may be also.

Russia felt violated and robbed by the breakup of the USSR, and as a result it staggered around like a drunk sailor for ten long years until Vladimir Putin came to power and stopped the bleeding. Russia has never forgotten the sting and the shame of losing her former territories. The Russian people always seem to turn to a strongman in times of crisis and they did it again. Russia couldn’t have chosen a worse leader than Vladimir Putin. Putin was a former colonel in the Soviet secret police (KGB) and well trained in the communist style of leadership using oppression and terror; where the end always justifies the means. The man is a stone cold killer, a psychopath and a liar. Vladimir Putin is evil incarnate which means he doesn’t think like a rational person. He has personal control over Russia’s nuclear weapons and that should scare all of us. Mr. Putin has personally killed and tortured dozens of people when he was a KGB operative and even as the President of Russia he has ordered the deaths of hundreds of people including his political opponents. Putin is utterly ruthless and without remorse which why the man has been a successful dictator for over 20 years. Putin has said on a number of occasions that the greatest tragedy of the twentieth century was the demise of the USSR. From day one in office Putin’s goal has always been to regather the lost republics and remake Russia into the world power it once was. Putin seethes with anger and resentment because he feels that Russia has been humiliated and disrespected on the world stage. Putin plans to rectify the situation, by force if necessary. Putin has put every last ruble he can lay his hands on into modernizing and rebuilding the Russian military and dictators don’t do that unless they plan to use it.

Matthew 24:6 – (Jesus speaking) – And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not troubled; for all these must come to pass, but the end is not yet.

The honor of mother Russia and his personal legacy demand that Putin face off against the west. Minor concessions won’t buy Putin off and sanctions won’t deter him either. Putin has stoked Russian nation pride and called for conflict with the west to the point where he can’t back down now without losing face and possibly even power. Putin has made the case that it’s Russia who is the victim who is being attacked by western aggression through their puppet the Ukraine. It’s an “us against them” gambit straight out of the old Soviet Union playbook. Threats by NATO and the U.S. don’t scare Putin in the least. He knows NATO is a defensive alliance and the west won’t invade Russia because it’s not their mandate to defend non-member states plus it’d be utter suicide to attack Russia, who is armed to the teeth with tactical nuclear weapons. No country in history has ever attacked Russia on the ground, on their own soil, and been victorious and I don’t believe anyone ever will. The Russian winter and the resolve with which the Russian people defend their homeland has defeated everyone who has ever attempted to invade Russia.

Matthew 24:7-8 – (Jesus speaking) – For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be famines, pestilences, and earthquakes in various places. All these are the beginning of sorrows.

In 2008 Russia invaded Georgia briefly before retreating. Since then a proxy war using pro-Russian separatists has carved out territory in Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan which continues to try to overthrow the country and rejoin Russia. In 2014 Russia took Crimea from the Ukraine and annexed it. That should tell you Russia doesn’t intend to install a pro-Russian government in Kyiv. That’s the thing with dictators; once they take a little nibble and get away with it they always come back for the whole apple. Russia means to annex all of the Ukraine this time. Russia set up pro-Russian separatist conflicts in the regions of Luhansk and Donetsk back in 2014 which have been ongoing for eight years at the cost of over 15,000 lives. Putin has been fighting judiciously by using separatist to do the fighting for him and unconventionally by using special forces, saboteurs, spies and cyber warfare while playing the long game. Putin means to conquer the Ukraine and at age 69 he’s running out of time to cement his legacy. Putin is a bully at heart and he only respects power. Moldova, which was once a western province of the old Russian Ukraine, is a long sliver of land between the Ukraine and Romania. Russia has also established pro-Russia separatists in the Transdneistr area between Moldova and Ukraine.

Matthew 24:27 – (Jesus speaking) – For as the lightning comes from the east and flashes to the west, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be.

Step one for Putin is to absorb the five former Russian republics of Ukraine, Moldova, Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan before anyone can do anything about it, all under the pretext of defending the separatist struggles of the majority Russian-speaking population in those five countries. None of these countries are NATO members so Putin knows they won’t be defended militarily. All NATO and the U.S. can do is bluster a bit, rattle the saber, and threaten economic sanctions on Russia. Russia has had 20 years to prepare for any sanctions and get ready for this war. You can see how carefully planned this is by the way Russian forces have been strategically positioned surrounding the Ukraine. Everything has been carefully thought out ahead of time leaving nothing to chance. It’s the perfect time for Putin to act. NATO is divided, the U.S. congress is ineffective and Putin thinks he can push the U. S. President around. Putin can mass more forces on his borders than NATO can muster, he can strike faster and he has a smaller border area to defend, with shorter supply lines. Putin holds all the cards and he knows it. NATO is all talk. The west will vigorously defend its own territory but they don’t have the stomach for offensive warfare against the Russian bear so whatever Russia can grab quickly and hold is theirs to keep. Russia is resolute on this and the west is not.

Matthew 24:30 – (Jesus speaking) – Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.

Let me play Putin’s military hand for a moment with the assets he has in place. There are 40,000 troops in Crimea to the south, 40,000 troops in Russia to the east just behind the separatist areas of Luhansk and Donetsk and 40,000 troops in Russia 30 miles northeast Kharkiv, the second largest city in Ukraine. The eastern two thirds of the Ukraine has a majority of Russian-speaking people. Over half of the 250,000 Ukrainian army troops are in the east along the Luhansk-Donetsk defense line fighting the separatist war. The 40,000 Russian troops that are in Belarus are there to pose an invasion threat to Kyiv, the capital of the Ukraine, which is 45 miles from the northern border with Belarus. Most of the Ukraine’s remaining military forces are up north protecting the capital from invasion. If I’m Putin I bypass the major cities and urban centers. I would focus on military assets and attack eastern Ukraine first, from the northeast above Kharkiv and from Crimea in the south in a pincer movement designed to cut the Ukraine in half and come in behind the Ukrainian army at Luhansk and Donetsk. If Russia controls the mighty Dnieper River that runs down the middle of the Ukraine and the bridges that cross the river they own the eastern half of the country and effectively cut off any resupply for the Ukrainian forces dug in at Luhansk and Donetsk.

Luke 21:36 – (Jesus speaking) – Watch therefore, and pray always that you may be counted worthy to escape all these things that will come to pass, and to stand before the Son of Man.

When The Ukrainian army at Luhansk and Donetsk turns to face the new threat at their rear the 40,000 troops waiting behind the separatist areas will then attack. The surrounded Ukrainian army will be cut off from resupply while the rest of the Ukranian army is pinned down defending the capital. Putin will use his air power and precision munitions in a shock and awe campaign to wipe out the airfields, troop and equipment concentrations, fuel and ammunition depots and command and control centers in order to paralyze any organized resistance from the Ukraine military. The Ukraine only has a few aircraft so Russia will control the air almost immediately so there won’t be any resupply of war materials by air from the west or available to the Ukraine across any of its borders. The Russian navy will block the Ukraine from receiving any shipping at the Ukrainian seaport of Odessa on the Black Sea. Russia already has numerous warships on station there that will stop all incoming goods to the country. Putin will probably bypass the all the major cities as I said earlier, so as to not get his army bogged down and because urban warfare is costly. It’s better to starve out the city residents or wait for them to surrender after they know the rest of the country has fallen.

John 5:28-29 – (Jesus speaking) – For the hour is coming in which all who are in the graves will hear His voice and come forth – those who have done good, to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil, to the resurrection of the damned.

I think the 40,000 troops in Belarus are there mainly as a decoy, as reserves and for resupply. These troops will never leave Belarus to actually invade the Ukraine unless absolutely necessary because the Ukrainian forces are dug in and any invasion of Kyiv from the north would be costly and would have to be conducted through a massive swamp that is along the border between the two countries or an invasion route that runs through the radioactive Chernobyl area . After Putin takes Kyiv, probably from the south, he will then pivot his forces in Belarus to the border with Poland to defend against any possible NATO aggression. Putin will then complete his takeover of Belarus. The five “stan” republics are also in the Russian sphere of influence and can be absorbed whenever Putin chooses. It’ll take two or three years tops to complete all the military actions I’ve just laid out and mop up pockets of resistance. All the while NATO will be sitting on their hands doing nothing but watch the carnage unfold. That’ll leave only the three Baltic republics of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania left to conquer. Putin will save them for last. They were all part of Russia and now they are NATO members. Putin will mass his armored divisions at the border when he is ready and quickly overrun the Baltic countries and then fight a defensive war to hold them. When Putin takes the Baltic countries the fight with Europe will start.

Mark 1:15 – (Jesus speaking) – The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand, repent, and believe in the gospel.

Russia’s conflict with NATO will last a couple of years with back and forth fighting. Europe will fear that Russia intends to conquer the rest of Europe and they will look for someone to lead them. They will place the combined leadership of NATO forces into the hands of one man, who will turn out to be the antichrist. At the same time Russia will be trying to secure the eastern Mediterranean Sea which will bring it into direct conflict with Israel. The prophesied end time peace agreement between the antichrist and Israel will actually be a mutual defense pact to protect each other against Russian aggression. Europe cannot afford to let Russia control the Mediterranean Sea and have access to the soft underbelly of Europe. I always wondered what would make Israel enter into a peace treaty with anyone. They’ll do if for the same reasons as the European countries; out of fear of the Russian bear. I’m looking at a conflict lasting roughly four years for all this fighting to take place and the antichrist to emerge on the scene.

John 8:32 – (Jesus speaking) – And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.

What made me look twice at the current Ukraine crisis as a possible trigger point for the end times was because on my last blog I calculated the Second Coming of Jesus Christ to come in 2033 and the rapture to occur in four years and two months from now (April 2026 over Easter weekend). It then occurred to me that the timeline of the coming conflict in the Ukraine perfectly parallels my rapture prediction timeline. It’s made me a bit unsettled these last few weeks as I’ve mulled over these thoughts in my mind and thought through different scenarios; hence this blog and the two previous ones. I have a vivid imagination. I could be totally off base on this, but then again, I could be spot on and God has put me in this position to sound the alarm to all who will stop and listen. Look at my facts, give it some thought and join me in watching closely the events that will occur in Europe and Israel in the coming months and years. I sure hope I’m wrong about this. Either way I stand ready for the approaching storm. I will continue to work for the kingdom of God because I know, “Jesus is coming!”

Jesus is coming! Jesus is coming! As a keen observer of world events through the lens of history and the book of Revelation I can clearly see the onrush of the end times. The end is not immediate but near; maybe as close as four years from now. The humanist manifesto is in shreds. Almost gone is the humanist propaganda and dream that there is no god at all; that man himself is a god who can save himself and make the world a better place. We all sense that man cannot save himself and things are getting worse in the world and not better. The lie has been exposed. Man is beginning a slow death spiral that will lead to eternal death, and we have a front row seat to see it with our own eyes. We can feel it in our bones, whether you’re a Christian who believes or a nonbeliever. The difference between the believer and the nonbeliever is striking. While the nonbeliever lives in a state of constant fear, dread, and despair the Christian true believer is at peace because they know God is in control of his creation. Believers know they have a “blessed hope.” Believers hopefully watch the horizon for the promised return of Jesus Christ, their Lord and Savior, who will one day appear in the air and call all those in Christ to himself, both dead and alive. At this rapture of the saints Jesus will give every believer their new eternal glorified bodies right there in the air, before returning to heaven with them. God will soon remove his church from the earth before pouring out his wrath on Israel and all the Gentile nations and peoples who have rejected the true God of this world and his salvation.

1 Timothy 6:14 – That you keep this commandment (to have faith) without spot, blameless until our Lord Jesus Christ’s appearing.

Jehovah is the one true God and the author of the Christian faith. God has proven himself whereas all the false gods of all the fake religions that have ever existed in the world have not; they all stand mute before our God because they don’t have a shred of proof to back up their claims. There’s no evidence or testimony to back them up. They exist only because Satan has created them through weak-minded men as a smoke screen to lead men away from the truth of God and his salvation. What proof do I have of God? Let’s start with God’s Word, our Holy Bible, which God has given us. The Bible was written over a span of 1500 years by forty different writers (prophets of God) who wrote as they were moved by the Holy Spirit of God. We ended up with the inerrant Bible (without error), which is the truth of God that was written so we might know God and know his commandments that we are to follow for a prosperous life. The consistent theme of the Bible is the revelation of Jesus Christ and the fact that none of the Bible writers varied from it, contradicted each other or walked over each others message proves God authored the Bible. God made the Bible one third prophecy, in part to prove he is who he says he is. God’s word contains over 1000 prophecies, over 500 of which have been fulfilled and documented as fact. Contrast that with all the false gods and fake religions that have ever existed who don’t have even one fulfilled prophecy between them. That proves without a doubt there’s a God in heaven.

Isaiah 1:18 – Come now and let us reason together, says the Lord, though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall be as wool.

The Bible clearly teaches there will be three “appearings” of Jesus Christ on the earth. The first appearing has already happened in the incarnation of Jesus Christ, who came down from heaven, took on flesh, and lived a sinless human life during his three and half years of ministry. By his crucifixion and resurrection Jesus atoned for the sins of all men, past, present and furure; which will allow a gracious God to restore fellowship with man if they accept Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. How can we be certain that the Son of God has already come and gone? Many of the 500 prophecies already fulfilled in the Bible were about the coming of the Messiah, Jesus Christ, the Son of God. In fact, there are over sixty specific prophecies about Jesus that were fulfilled with his first appearing. In a previous blog I listed the 37 fulfilled prophecies of Jesus I thought were most important, including the Old Testament predictions and the New Testament fulfillment. I won’t provide all of them again here. I’ll list just fifteen prophecies literally fulfilled at the first coming (appearing) of Jesus Christ:

Isaiah 7:14 – Born of a virgin

Micah 5:2 – At Bethlehem

Jeremiah 31:15 – Slaughter of the children

Hosea 11:1 – Called out of Egypt

Isaiah 11:2 – Anointed with the Spirit

Zechariah 9:9 – Entry into Jerusalem

Psalm 41:9; 55:12-14 – Betrayed by a friend

Zechariah 13:7 – Disciples forsake him

Zechariah 11:12 – Sold for 30 pieces of silver

Zechariah 11:13 – Potter’s field bought

Isaiah 50:6 – Spit on and scourged

Exodus 12:46; Psalm 43:20 – Not a bone broken

Psalm 69:21 – Gall and vinegar

Psalm 22 – Hand and feet pierced. Garments parted; lots cast

Isaiah 53 – Poverty, suffering, patience, death

One fulfilled Bible prophecy is enough proof of God for me. What’re the odds of over 500 prophecies being fulfilled in the Bible and also that any one person could fulfill 15, 37 or over 60 prophecies in the Bible about the coming Messiah, the Son of God? I’ll tell you. The odds are so great as to make it a certainty that Jehovah is God as he says he is and that Jesus Christ is indeed the Messiah, the promised Son of God. Since the first appearing of Jesus happened literally, exactly like the Bible said it would, then we can have confidence the next two appearings of Jesus will unfold in like manner. Believers understand from the Scriptures that God cannot lie and the eyes of God roam to and fro across the earth to fulfill his word. The Second Coming of Jesus Christ to the earth is coming and it will be the most important event in human history; it will be the culmination of the age. Jesus Christ will set foot on the Mount of Olives as prophesied and he will judge Israel and all the Gentile nations for their sins against God. The Second Coming of Jesus will actually be in two stages, seven years apart. The Second Coming of Jesus is called that because Jesus actually sets foot on earth for only the second time; but it’ll actually be the third appearing of Christ.

Titus 11:13 – For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men, teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age, looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ.

If you’ll notice in the above Scripture God refers to the rapture and the Second Coming as separate events so we know they occur at different times. The rapture of the church saints in the air by Jesus is referred to in the Bible as the “blessed hope.” In the Bible the Second Coming of Jesus to the earth is also referred to as the “glorious appearing.” We also know from other verses in the Bible that these two events occur seven years apart. Believers are excited about this Second Coming of Jesus because it’ll usher in the 1000 year millennial kingdom of Jesus Christ on the earth. Believers aren’t as concerned now about how this third appearing of Jesus Christ affects them because they’ll know all about it before it happens because believers will already be in heaven by then and will accompany Jesus at the Second Coming. The focus of believers should be on the second appearing of Jesus, that’s the important one for believers, where Jesus is coming in the air to call all believers to himself (the rapture), to give all believers, both dead and alive, their resurrection bodies before returning to heaven with them.

Revelation 20:6 – Blessed and holy is he who has part in the first resurrection. Over such the second death has no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with Him a thousand years.

The Second Coming of Jesus to the earth (the glorious appearing) is not as important to believers as the rapture because with the rapture believers still have skin in the game. Believers have more time to build up treasures in heaven by their work for the kingdom of God. Believers can still witness for Christ and help save lost souls for God. Believers can still do good works and glorify God by their actions. On the other hand, the saints will know the exact date of the Second Coming before it happens because believers will be alongside Jesus in their new glorified bodies when Jesus does descend from heaven to the earth. Believers will have already ended all good works done in the body and will have already received their rewards at the bema judgment seat of Christ before attending the Marriage Supper of the Lamb. There are eight times more prophecies concerning the Second Coming of Jesus as there are for his first coming. Since the first coming of Jesus was documented as fact we’re eight times more certain that the Second Coming will also literally be fulfilled as written in the Bible. I’m listing some of the prophecies to be literally fulfilled at the Second Coming:

Acts 1:11 – That Jesus will come to the earth again

Zechariah 14:4 -At the Mount of Olives where he ascended

2 Thessalonians 1:8 – In flaming fire

Matt.24:30; 1 Peter 1:7; 4:13 – In the clouds of heaven with power and great glory

Job 19:25 – Jesus will stand upon the earth

Deut.33:2; 1 Thess.3:13; Jude 14 – His saints (the church) will come with him

Revelation 1:7 – Every eye will see him

2 Thessalonians 2:8 – He will destroy the antichrist

Matt.25:31; Rev.5:13 – He will sit on his throne

Matt. 25:32 – He will gather all nations before him and judge them

Isa.9:6-7; Luke 1:32; Ezek.21:25-27 – He will have the throne of David

Jeremiah 23:5-5 – His throne will be upon the earth

Daniel 7:13-14 – He will have a kingdom

Dan.7:18-22-27; Rev.5:10 – He will rule over it with his saints

Ps.72:11; Isa.49:6-7; Rev.15-4 – All kings and nations of the earth will serve him

Zech.9:10; Rev.11:15 – The kingdoms of this world are his

Genesis 49:10 – The people will gather unto him

Isaiah 45:23 – Every knee will bow to him

Zech.14:6; Ps.86:9 – Everyone will come and worship the king

Psalm 102:16 – He will build up Zion

Jer.3:17; Isa.33:20-21 – That his throne will be in Jerusalem

Matt.19:28; Luke 22:28-30 – The apostles will sit on thrones judging the tribes of Israel

Ps.2:8-9; Rev.2:27 – He will rule all nations

Isaiah 9:7 – He will rule with judgment and justice

Eze.40-48; 43:2-5; 44:4 – The temple will be rebuilt and the glory of the Lord will enter it

Isaiah 40:5 – The glory of the lord will be revealed

Isaiah 32:15 – The wilderness will be a fruitful field

Isaiah 35:1-2 – The desert will blossom as a rose

Isaiah 11:10 – His rest will be glorious

The second appearing of Jesus Christ (in the air) is never referred to in the Bible as the rapture. The word rapture is a human term taken from the Latin translation of the Bible which is no longer in print or in use. The rapture event is prophesied in God’s Word and referred to by the Apostle Paul as the, “blessed hope” and in other areas of the Bible as simply our “hope.” Nonbelievers scoff at the rapture but Scripture clearly says it will happen. Scripture says the word of God is only foolishness to those that are perishing (nonbelievers) and to those who believe it is the power of God unto salvation. Believe in what God says. Even some believers don’t believe Jesus Christ will literally come for them in the air. Now, either these believers haven’t read or studied the Scriptures as thoroughly as they should have or they can’t believe or accept the literal interpretation of the Bible as God intended. A believer who refutes the rapture is going against God. They are, in effect, calling God a liar to his face and they will be held accountable at the bema judgment seat of Christ. Faith is believing in what God say, with no questions asked. You either have faith or you don’t. There is no middle ground. I’m listing some Scriptures that prophesy about the coming rapture of all believers, our “blessed hope.”

1 Corinthians 15:22-23 – For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ all shall be made alive. But each one in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, afterward those who are Christ’s at His coming.

1 Thessalonians 4:16 – That Jesus will come to the earth himself and he will shout

John 5:28 – That the dead will hear the voice of Jesus and come forth

1 Thessalonians 4:17 – That the raised dead and the living believers will be caught together up to meet Jesus in the air

John 14:3 – That Jesus will receive them unto himself

Luke 12:37 – That Jesus will minister unto his watching servants

1 Corinthians 15:53 – Believer shall receive new eternal glorified bodies while in the air with Jesus

The Bible commands that all believers love the rapture and to continually watch for its coming in anticipation. Believers are never more alive than when they expect Jesus to come for them at any moment. They are encouraged and motivated to witness for Christ, do good works and over all live more godly lives. The explosive growth rate of the early church during the first three centuries after the death of Jesus can largely be attributed to believers expecting the imminent return of Jesus Christ to take believers to heaven. The standard greeting between believers in those days was, “Jesus is coming.” As believers we need to recapture the passion for the rapture that existed in the early church. The rapture event is also very important to God as evidenced by the fact that God will give a special crown in heaven to all those saints who show a special love for the rapture and who watch continuously for its coming. According to 1 Thessalonians 4:18 God wants all believers to keep in remembrance the coming rapture in order to encourage and comfort each other. I have no idea what rewards or privileges go along with the crown of rejoicing but I plan to work for it and you should too. I urge all believers to strive with me for this crown, to focus on the coming rapture of the saints as a way to energize our faith in God; to help us to be obedient to God’s commands and to encourage us to do good works for the kingdom of God during the short time we have left here on earth. All the rewards we’ll ever receive in heaven, for all eternity, are dependent upon the actions we take for God while we’re in the flesh here on earth. Let’s take advantage of our opportunities while we can. This is why God leaves us on the earth after our salvation; to do the work he has planned for us.

1 Thessalonians 4:18 – Therefore comfort one another with these words (the rapture).

Isaiah 66:8 – Who has heard such a thing? Who has seen such a thing? Shall the earth be made to give birth in one day? Or shall a nation be born at once? For as soon as Zion was in labor, she gave birth to her children.

2 Peter 3:8 – But, beloved, do not forget this one thing, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.

I’ve pondered long and hard over what God means by the above Scripture; 2 Peter 3:8. All Scripture is there for a reason and I believe 2 Peter 3:8 is one of the keys to unlocking God’s plan for human history. God didn’t need seven days to create the world. God could have made the world with a snap of his fingers. So why did God need to take seven days to create the universe? I believe God made the world in seven days to symbolize or represent the seven thousand years of human history he had planned for us on this planet. One day of creation was allotted for each God-day of 1000 years and vice versa, hence the meaning of the Scripture. We know from the time of creation to Abraham was 2000 years (two God-days of 1000 years each) and the time from Abraham to Jesus was 2000 years (two more God-days). From the time of Jesus to right now has been almost 2000 years (another two God-days). God made the world in six days and then he rested on the seventh day. That has always puzzled me because I know God never gets tired. Sunday’s day of rest was meant to symbolize the 1000 year millennial kingdom of Jesus Christ, when all believers will “rest in Christ.” If my calculations are correct we’re very near the end of 6000 years of human existence and near the end of the sixth God-day. God is not arbitrary. If God was exact with Daniel’s prophecy I believe God will also be exact with his 1000 year God-days. If we can determine when God starts each God-day we can determine the exact date each day ends.

Hebrews 9:26 – He then would have had to suffer often since the foundation of the world; but now, once at the end of the ages, He has appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself.

Scripture says only God the Father knows the day of Christ’s Second Coming. Jesus spoke in parables to share spiritual truths with believers that nonbelievers wouldn’t be able to understand. In much the same way, God has included prophecies in the Bible meant to be revealed in the end times to believers while keeping nonbelievers in the dark. The fulfilled prophecies of God will give spiritually aware believers a general sense of the timeline of end time prophetic events and let us know the “season” of their fulfillment. We need to clear up two end time false teachings prevalent among weak-minded Christians today who have been influenced by satanic forces. First, the rapture and Second Coming of Christ occur at the same time and are essentially one event. Scripture clearly teaches this is false. These are two distinct, separate events that occur for different reasons, to two different people and at different times. Second, that the rapture occurs at the halfway point or at the end of the seven years of the tribulation period prophesied by God. Again, this is a false teaching. Scripture is clear that the church will be raptured to heaven prior to the tribulation where God pours out his wrath on Israel and the nonbelieving Gentiles. We know that the seven year tribulation period starts with a signed peace agreement between Israel and the antichrist and the man of sin won’t be revealed until the church is removed from the earth. We know the rapture and the peace agreement with Israel occur very close together, seven years before the Second Coming.

Hebrews 9:28 – So Christ was offered once to bear the sins of many. To those who eagerly wait for Him He will appear a second time, apart for sin, for salvation.

I believe we can use Scripture to verify that we are indeed in the season for the impending rapture of the church. I believe we can further shrink the timeline based on historical events and a number of Scriptures. Isaiah 66:8 predicted Israel would be born again in a single day, which occurred on May 15, 1948. That started the prophetic time clock ticking on the end times because Jesus said everyone alive in that generation would not pass away before he returned for his church. It is now been 74 years since Israel was born. God has set our current normal lifespan at 70-80 years. A few will live much longer but nobody lives past 120 years in the modern age so even if someone was born the day before Israel became a state and lived to be 120 years old that’s only another 46 years from today. I believe we can narrow it down further. We know Israel is the key to God’s prophetic time clock and we know God is precise with his timing of Bible events.

Matthew 24:42 – Watch therefore, for you do not know what hour your Lord is coming.

For example, when Daniel prophesied that the Messiah would be revealed in the city of Jerusalem in 483 years it occurred on the exact date foretold (using the Jewish calendar). Adam, the first man, was a type of Christ. Jesus is called the second Adam. Abraham was a type of Christ because he was the firstfruit of the Jewish people. Jesus is the firstfruit of the church, the first of many brethren. If God’s prophetic time clock is Israel then it makes sense God would start and end each 1000 years for a God-day based on Jesus. We’re almost at the end of the sixth God-day. It can’t end based on the anniversary of Jesus’ birth because we’re already past that date (the year 2000). The end of the sixth God-day can only end on the 1000 year anniversary of Christ’s death which will occur in April 2033, on good Friday. This date will coincide with the Second Coming of Jesus Christ to the earth to end the age.

Hebrews 9:24 – For Christ has not entered the holy places made with hands, which are copies of the true, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us.

When God has important information to share with us he routinely uses other verses of Scripture in other Bible books to verify his message. The absolute best method of Bible interpretation is using Scripture to interpret Scripture. That way a Scripture that may be a little ambiguous is made crystal clear. I’ve already given you my analysis of 2 Peter 3:8 as talking about the seven days of creation representing seven thousand years of human history God has allotted us; one 24 hour creation day equaling 1000 years (one God-day). Does God mention this anywhere else in the Scriptures? Yes he does. Check out the following verses:

Hosea 6:1-2 – Come, and let us return to the Lord; for He has torn, but He will heal us; He has stricken, but He will bind us up. After two days He will revive us; on the third day He will raise us up, that we may live in His sight.

“Come, and let us return to the Lord;”

I love it when I see a Scripture start with the word “come” followed by a comma (see Isaiah 1:18). God is coming down to our level and speaking to us in a personal way, asking us, exhorting us to do what he’s asking us to do. In verse one God is asking us to return to the Lord which means we used to be with God but aren’t anymore. God is telling us he wants us back and he has made a way we can return to him. When God says “us” he’s talking to every person he has ever made.

“for He has torn; but He will heal us;”

Adam and Eve were in perfect fellowship with God in the Garden of Eden and they were immortal beings in glorified bodies that never grew old or got sick. When Adam and Eve sinned against God they were literally torn away from fellowship with God and torn away from the Garden of Eden. That has already happened. God says he will heal us (future tense). God will repair the torn relationship with man and restore fellowship with God based on our future individual actions. To return to the Lord each person must believe the gospel message of Christ and accept Jesus Christ ans Lord and Savior.

“He has stricken, but He will bind us up.”

God uses a common literary device of repeating a truth in a slightly different way to help clarify what he’s saying and drive home the truth so we understand it. God tore Adam and Eve away from his presence and kicked them out of the Garden of Eden. But Adam and Eve were also “stricken” by God by removing their glorified bodies and replacing it with sin-stained bodies like we all have, bodies that will get sick, grow old and die; leaving only our eternal spirit which returns to God for judgment. This curse has befallen all men after Adam but God in his mercy will rescue us. God says he will bind us up (bandage our wounds and heal us) if we accept God’s salvation (future tense). God will bind us up by giving us glorified bodies once we have restored our fellowship with the Father by accepting his saving grace unto salvation by acknowledging Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior.

“After two days He will revive us;”

This is a clear reference to all believers who have died in Christ in the 2000 years (two God-days) since the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Believers, both alive and dead, will be raptured to meet Jesus in the air to receive their glorified resurrection bodies before returning to heaven with Jesus . The two thousand years that have passed since the death and resurrection of Christ is referred to as “two days” in this verse. This Scripture tells us explicitly that a God-day is 1000 years. You have to remember that the word “day” in the Bible can refer to a 24 hour creation day, a 12 hour Jewish day or a 1000 year God-day, depending on the context of the verse.

“on the third day He will raise us up, that we may live in His sight.”

The third day referenced in this Scripture is the 1000 year God-day we know as the 1000 year millennial kingdom of Jesus Christ where he will reign on earth. God has promised in other Bible verses that believers will always be with Jesus and that is confirmed here. Believers will live and reign alongside Jesus in his earthly kingdom for 1000 years and beyond. Let’s not forget Jesus will also raise up all believers who died in Christ during the seven year tribulation period and give them their glorified resurrection bodies like the raptured saints.

Most Bible scholars think Jesus died on April 3, 33 AD, at the age 33, because Jewish men couldn’t teach in the synagogue or become a Rabbi until age 30, and we know Jesus taught in the synagogue and was acknowledged to be a Rabbi (teacher). We have to assume Jesus started his three and a half year ministry as soon as he turned 30 years of age. Based on the Scriptures the only other possible date for the death of Jesus is in April of 30 AD; but then Jesus would have had to start his ministry earlier and had it last longer. Biblical scholars are split on this issue but I believe in the 33 AD date as the date of Jesus’ death. I don’t think God makes any mistake with the world dating system so 33 AD is the right date. Jesus Christ is the focal point of history and it make total sense for God to start and end his God-days surrounding the activities of Jesus Christ. The fourth God-day could have ended with the death of Jesus and the resurrection of Jesus began the first day of the fifth God-day. If we fast-forward 2000 years it would then be a logical assumption that the end of the sixth God-day would coincide with the Second Coming of Jesus Christ to the earth and the beginning of the seventh God-day (the millennial kingdom) starting the following day.

Luke 21:36 – (Jesus speaking) – Watch therefore, and pray always that you may be counted worthy to escape all these things that will come to pass, and to stand before the Son of Man.

If you use the Jewish calendar the Second Coming would then be on Easter Sunday of 2033. We know the tribulation period starts exactly seven years before the Second Coming and is triggered by the signing of a peace agreement by Israel with the antichrist. We’re talking about a timeline for the rapture to occur in April of 2026, probably on Good Friday or Easter Sunday. The rapture will occur before the signing of the peace treaty. Most Bible scholars think the two events occur almost simultaneously, but certainly no more than a day or two apart. If I’m right the rapture of the church will occur four years and two months from now, in 2026, over Easter weekend. It’s okay to speculate on the time of the “blessed hope” but it in the end it really doesn’t matter. What’s important for us is to be expecting it and we’re continuing to work for the kingdom of God as if Jesus were coming tomorrow. We’re to keep our eyes on the horizon watching for the coming of Jesus in the air for us. Believers are to do the work of God while it’s still day and continuously give praise, worship, honor and glory to God for all he has done for us. I wish you all Godspeed!

Revelation 16:15 – (Jesus speaking) – Behold, I am coming as a thief. Blessed is he who watches, and keeps his garments (righteousness), lest he walk naked and they see his shame.

Hebrews 10:35-36 – Therefore do not cast away your confidence, which has great reward. For you have need of endurance, so that after you have done the will of God, you may receive the promise.

Hebrews 10:37-38 – For yet a little while, and He who is coming will come and will not tarry. Now the just shall live by faith; but if anyone draws back, My soul has no pleasure in him.

1 Thessalonians 2:19 – For what is our hope, or joy, or crown of rejoicing? Is it not even you in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ at His coming?