Bible ban.  Why is religion taboo in American schools? Christian attorney John Whitehead addresses that question.   "God has become THE four-letter word in most public schools in the United States," says Whitehead, founder of The Rutherford Institute. And he explains in a commentary why that has come to pass: "An elite segment of society that views God as irrelevant has come to predominate." (View video commentary)

Whitehead gained his legal insights into the phenomenon through the many cases of religious discrimination that have crossed his desk.

View the video:   http://www.rutherford.org/OnTarget/default.asp

"What’s happened is [that] the elitists — the people who run American society, from the public education system to certain governmental institutions and figures — have basically decided that God is irrelevant to public discussion," says Whitehead during an interview with OneNewsNow.

"…This ignores the 120 million-plus people in America who take their religion seriously, [who] practice it, and who pay taxes to support institutions like the public schools."

And what that does, adds Whitehead, is force those people — along with their religious rights and their free-speech rights — into "utter subservience" to all other beliefs.

The issue, according to the attorney, is not separation of church and state — an argument frequently cited by those who assume the secular viewpoint. "The issue in such instances is the religious believer versus the secular state," he writes. "It is also a denial of everything this country stands for in terms of the freedoms of speech, religion, and a respect for moral tradition."

Whitehead believes that what exists now in America is akin to the old Soviet Union and China, where it is religious believers fending off the state.

Last week’s article has quickly become one of the most widely read of any we’ve ever posted. It has also generated several questions and some wild information I had never heard before. Among these are excerpts from secular news sources containing two non-Biblical prophecies that I will offer first. Since they both opened with rhetorical questions, I’ve arranged them in our familiar Q and A format, but post them as written. The remaining questions are all reader submitted.

Two Non-Biblical Prophecies

The first one is very controversial and I offer no opinion as to its validity, except that I’ve received it from several independent news sources. I have been able to confirm that Johanwa Owalo was who this prophecy says he was and that it apparently came from a document copyrighted in 1915. Readers are cautioned to conduct their own research before accepting it as authentic.

“Q. Is Barak Obama the “Son of Kenya” foretold by the great 19^th Century Kenyan Prophet, Johanwa Owalo, the founder of Kenya’s Nomiya Luo Church?

A. Among the Kenyan people of the Luo religion Owalo is believed to be a prophet similar to Jesus Christ and Muhammad, and who in 1912 made this horrific prophecy about the United States:

‘So far have they [the United States] strayed into wickedness in those [future] times that their destruction has been sealed by my [father]. Their great cities will burn, their crops and cattle will suffer disease and death, their children will perish from diseases never seen upon this Earth, and I reveal to you the greatest [mystery] of all as I have been allowed to see that their [the United States] destruction will come about through the vengeful hands of one of our very own sons.’ “

The next one comes from a Forbes.com article dated 10-26-08 by Amir Taheri, author of 10 books on Iran, the Middle East and Islam.

“Q. Is Barack Obama the "promised warrior" coming to help the Hidden Imam of Shiite Muslims conquer the world?

A. This question has made the rounds in Iran since last month, when a pro-government Web site published a Hadith (or tradition) from a Shiite text of the 17th century. The tradition comes from Bahar al-Anvar (meaning Oceans of Light) by Mullah Majlisi, a magnum opus in 132 volumes and the basis of modern Shiite Islam.

According to the tradition, Imam Ali Ibn Abi-Talib (the prophet’s cousin and son-in-law) prophesied that at the End of Times and just before the return of the Mahdi, the Ultimate Saviour, a "tall black man will assume the reins of government in the West." Commanding "the strongest army on earth," the new ruler in the West will carry "a clear sign" from the third imam, whose name was Hussein Ibn Ali. The tradition concludes: "Shiites should have no doubt that he is with us ."

In a curious coincidence Obama’s first and second names–Barack Hussein–mean "the blessing of Hussein" in Arabic and Persian. His family name, Obama, written in the Persian alphabet, reads O Ba Ma, which means "he is with us," the magic formula in Majlisi’s tradition.”

From these secular sources it appears that people from diverse backgrounds believe that a leader matching Mr. Obama’s description could appear in the last days, and that his impact will not be good for America. Time will tell.

Reader Submitted Questions

Now we’ll begin our reader submitted questions. In the interest of time and space, I’ve summarized them all into three basic questions that speak to Mr. Obama’s qualification to be the anti-Christ.

Q. Re: The people of the leader who will come will destroy the city and the sanctuary (Daniel 9:26) How can Mr. Obama be the fulfillment of Daniel 9:26 if he was born in Hawaii, or Kenya for that matter?

A. When Daniel wrote these words from the Angel Gabriel, the Babylonians were about to be conquered by the Medes and Persians. The Romans wouldn’t arrive on the scene for several hundred years yet so Gabriel needed a way to identify them. He told Daniel the coming leader would be from the people who would destroy the city and sanctuary following the Messiah’s rejection. The Jewish Temple and the City of Jerusalem were destroyed separately. The Roman General Titus Vespasian led the troops who burned the Temple and tore its ruins apart stone by stone in either 68 or 69 AD depending on who’s account you favor. He did this under orders from his father Vespasian who was the Emperor of Rome. Then in 135 AD another Roman Emperor, Hadrian, ordered the complete destruction of Jerusalem as a consequence of the bar Kochba rebellion. These two separate events bear witness that Gabriel was referring to the Romans. Together they meet the standard that a matter must be established by the testimony of 2 or 3 witnesses. (Deut. 19:15 )

Brittainia (Great Britain) first came to the notice of the Romans in 55BC and by 43 AD had been assimilated into the Roman Empire, well before the City and Sanctuary were destroyed. Therefore the Roman Empire of the time stretched from Great Britain in the west across southern Europe and Northern Africa to the Caspian Sea and Persian Gulf in the East. Romans called the Mediterranean sea “Mare Nostrum” (our sea) because the Roman Empire pretty much surrounded it.

Many students of prophecy agree that almost anyone of Middle Eastern or European descent could meet the qualification of Daniel 9:26 to be the anti-Christ providing he also becomes a world leader. They say this is even true of many Americans because of our prior status as a British Colony and the fact that our country was founded in large part by Europeans whose ancestors dwelt in the Roman Empire of Biblical times.

Mr. Obama is almost certainly of European descent through His mother, and those who claim to have done the research say that on his father’s side he’s much more Arab than African. In fact Mr. Obama Sr.’s birth certificate identifies him as an Arab. They say Mr. Obama Jr.’s genealogy shows him to be 50% Caucasian, 43.75% Arab and 6.25% African. And in an interesting side note, Great Britain is one of the countries Mr. Obama is being asked to prove he’s not a citizen of in at least one of the lawsuits that have been filed. If he was born in Kenya in 1961 he would likely be a British citizen, because Kenya’s independence from Great Britain didn’t take place until 1963. The Supreme Court Justices will review one of these suits on Dec. 5,2008 to determine if they want to hear oral arguments. It is still unclear to everyone why Mr. Obama doesn’t just release his original birth certificate and put an end to all the speculation.

Q. Since the soldiers who destroyed the Temple were actually Assyrian mercenaries, and since Isaiah mentions an Assyrian enemy of Israel (Isaiah 10:5), doesn’t this mean the anti Christ has to be Assyrian? Wouldn’t that exclude Mr. Obama?

A. In my answer above I showed that the Angel Gabriel had to be referring to Rome when he spoke of the people who would destroy the city and the sanctuary. Remember, they were two different events, almost 70 years apart, and both times the soldiers were under Roman command following Roman orders. Also, the Assyrian Empire had been assimilated into Rome by territorial conquest, so there was no official Assyrian presence at the time. And had the passage referred to the Assyrians, Gabriel could have just mentioned them by name, since everyone in Daniel’s day knew of them.

Isaiah 10:1-19 is a judgment against Assyria. The Hebrew word translated Assyrian in verse 5 is Asshur, the name of the second son of Shem. This means it’s a reference to the Assyrian people, the descendants of Asshur, not to an individual. When the Assyrian King Sennacherib conquered Damascus and the Northern Kingdom, his army was bringing God’s judgment against godless people (verse 6). But when they set their sights on Jerusalem (verse 11) they exceeded God’s intention. In one night God sent the angel of death into the Assyrian camp and by morning 185,000 Assyrian soldiers were dead. Isaiah compared it to a fire burning through thorns and briers. (verses 17-18) The remaining Assyrians went home in shame and later Sennacherib’s own sons killed him. (Isaiah 37:36-38 ) Based on these things, I am not convinced that the Scriptures require the anti-Christ to be of Assyrian descent.

Q. The Bible seems to say that the anti-Christ will be asexual. Since Mr. Obama is happily married with two daughters why wouldn’t this exclude him?

A. This question refers to Daniel 11:37 which in the KJV reads;

Neither shall he regard the God of his fathers, nor the desire of women, nor regard any god: for he shall magnify himself above all.

According to tradition, the phrase “desire of women” refers to the Messiah, not to the anti-Christ’s sexual orientation. From the time of Eve it was every Jewish woman’s desire to be the mother of the Messiah, so one of the informal names of the Messiah was “the desire of women”. This whole idea stems from the phrase “seed of the woman”, a reference to the promised redeemer from Genesis 3:15 . The idea that the anti-Christ will be asexual can not be supported from Scripture.

What’s The Point Of All this?

My purpose in this study has been to separate Biblical fact from human opinion on the issue of the anti-Christ, specifically in support of my claim that there’s no Biblical reason Mr. Obama couldn’t one day be revealed as the anti-Christ. By the way, much this information could be used to support the opinion that Bill Clinton, Prince Charles, or a number of others could turn out to be the anti-Christ as easily as Barack Obama, but he’s the one I’ve been asked about.

In part one of this study, I said that I don’t think it’s time for the anti-Christ to be introduced yet, and that the Church will not be here when he is. In 2 Thes.2:1-8 Paul gave a summary of End Times events in sequence. A careful reading reveals that Paul identified three specific things that will have to happen before the Day of the Lord (Great Tribulation) can come. There will have to be a falling away, a rebellion against the truth. This is when the believers in name only will be drawn out of the true Church into one of the various apostate movements we see springing up in our midst. The restraining force that’s holding the secret power of lawlessness back will also have to be taken out of the way. That’s the Holy Spirit contained in the Church, a reference to the Rapture. Then the man of lawlessness will be revealed and will stand in God’s Temple proclaiming himself to be God. That’s the abomination of Desolation that kicks off the Great Tribulation, and that’s when the world will know for certain just who the anti-Christ is.

For us it’s enough to know that the signs pointing to the End of the Age are appearing all around us. This is not happening so that we can hunker down and prepare for the storm. It’s happening so we can begin making preparations for our departure. Whether it’s several months or several years is also immaterial. The sooner we act the better prepared we’ll be. No one on Earth will be able to tell you in advance when we’ll be leaving. There will be no specific warning. One moment we’ll be here and the next we’ll be there. Jesus said we won’t know the day or hour, but He had Paul tell us that we should not be taken by surprise. Fore warned is fore armed, they say, and we’ve been forewarned. You can almost hear the footsteps of the Messiah. 11-22-08

Full Story Reference

Since the election I’ve been asked a number of times to comment on the likelihood that Mr. Obama could be the anti-Christ. Let me begin by saying that having been elected President he’s Mr. Obama now, not just Obama. As for him being the anti-Christ I’ve discouraged that thought because I don’t believe it’s time for the anti-Christ to be revealed yet. But apart from that there’s no Biblical reason I can find that would absolutely disqualify him. And based on the things we know about the anti-Christ there’s a fit in several important places. The anti-Christ will have to burst on the scene quickly and powerfully to accomplish so much in the little time he has, so maybe he’ll need a head start. If that’s the case, maybe Mr. Obama is on his way to becoming the anti-Christ. Let’s find out.

We know that the anti-Christ will be a descendant of the people who made up the Roman Empire in Biblical times (Daniel 9:26 ), and he’ll arrive on the world scene as a peace maker (Daniel 8:25 ). He won’t be part of the world’s powerful elite at the beginning of his career (Daniel 7:8 ) but will rise up among them to eventually surpass them and become the leader of the entire world. (Rev. 13:7-8 )

He will cause deceit to prosper, and he will consider himself superior. When they feel secure, he will destroy many and take his stand against the Prince of princes. Yet he will be destroyed, but not by human power. (Daniel 8:25 )

This means that he’ll base his success on a lie, misrepresenting himself and his intentions, but people will want to believe him so badly that they’ll disregard his inconsistencies until it’s too late to stop him. Initially he’ll seem successful, but just when they’re saying “Peace and safety”, destruction will come on them suddenly, as labor pains to a pregnant woman, and they won’t escape (1 Thes. 5:3 ).

Deja Vu All Over Again?

Some of us remember when Jimmy Carter was elected President of the US. The country was fed up with Washington and even though he had no national leadership experience, we elected him because he was an outsider who promised change. He said he would never lie to us, but after the election it turned out that he had. He had misrepresented his background and didn’t have the ability he needed when it came to governing. He said he was Christian and even orchestrated a land for peace deal between Israel and Egypt, but he proved to be anti-Israel. Soon we had a crisis in finance with interest rates at 20%, an energy crisis with our first gas shortages, and an administration that didn’t know how to work with Congress to fix things. The Iranians captured our embassy and held our citizens hostage. Thankfully he lasted only one term.

Mr. Obama could easily turn out to be just another Jimmy Carter, and if so America will suffer through the next four years and then he’ll be gone. But if he continues to be successful in convincing people all around the world that he’s on the right track even though everything seems to be falling apart, it could be a different story.

If my calculations are correct, American Christians have just voted in our last presidential elections and won’t be here to see if Mr. Obama turns out to be the anti-Christ or not. But someone with a lot more experience in accurately predicting the future has some interesting insight into the next few years. His name is Gerald Celente, CEO of Trends Research Institute, and he’s renowned the world over for his accuracy in predicting future world and economic events. He accurately predicted the 1987 Stock market crash, the Fall of the Soviet Union, the 1997 Asian currency collapse, the sub-prime mortgage crisis, and one year before the fact predicted what he said would become known as the Panic of 2008, saying that giants would tumble to their deaths, which is what we’ve just seen in the fall of several of our oldest and biggest financial firms, and with the big three auto makers teetering on the brink. (You can check his track record for yourself at www.trendsresearch.com )

Celente is now forecasting revolution in America, food riots and tax rebellions - all within four years, cautioning that putting food on the table will be a more pressing concern than buying Christmas gifts by 2012.

According to his recent Fox News interview, called “Predicting Obama’s Impact” (posted on YouTube on Nov. 10, 2008), by 2012 America will have become an undeveloped nation. There will be a revolution marked by food riots, squatter rebellions, tax revolts and job marches, and holidays will be more about obtaining food than gifts.

“We’re going to see the end of the retail Christmas….we’re going to see a fundamental shift take place….putting food on the table is going to be more important that putting gifts under the Christmas tree,” said Celente, adding that the situation would be “worse than the great depression”.

“America’s going to go through a transition the likes of which no one is prepared for,” he said, noting that people’s refusal to acknowledge that America was even in a recession highlights how big a problem denial is in being ready for the true scale of the crisis.

All this comes from a man with an international reputation for being right and whose continued success depends on it. If he’s right now like he has been so often in the past, then the next four years will be worse than the Carter Administration ever was, rather than the launching platform for a coming world leader.

(By the way, please take note that this is another independent expert pointing to the year 2012 as one of cataclysmic significance in bringing about the End of the Age.)

There’s a wild card that I hesitate to throw in here because I don’t even want to think about it. But if it’s true it could easily cause the problems that Mr. Celente is predicting. For some time now certain people, Republican and Democrat alike, have been saying that Mr. Obama isn’t legally qualified to be President because he’s not a natural born citizen of the US. I won’t go into the details but the point is that he could make this all go away by producing a legitimate birth certificate, something he’s been unwilling to do. A federal court has given him until Dec. 1, 2008 to do so, and if he does then the Electoral College vote will be certified and he’ll be the next President. But lawsuits in a dozen or so states have been or are being filed to prevent the certification until Mr. Obama proves he’s qualified. If the courts throw out the election who knows what could happen.

What Time Is It?

As many of you know, I’ve said that all of the End Times prophecies including the 2^nd Coming could be fulfilled as early as 2018. I base this on the Lord’s promise that the generation being born at the time of the first End Times signs would still be alive when “all these things have happened” (Matt. 24:34 ) Most scholars view the re-birth of Israel in 1948 as the first of the end times signs. With an average lifespan being 70 years, according to Psalm 90:10 , everything will have to come to pass by 2018. If the Rapture only just precedes the 70^th Week of Daniel it could come 7 years earlier, in 2011, which is 2 ½ years from now, about half way through Mr. Obama’s first term, assuming the election stands.

So here’s how to tell if he’ll become the anti-Christ or not. If it seems like he can do no wrong, if people feel safe and it’s beginning to look like there’ll be peace in our time, then there’s a good chance he’s the one. But if Gerald Celente’s predictions are coming to pass, and the world’s in worse shape than ever, then he’s just another Jimmy Carter, an inexperienced outsider who had no business running for president in the first place, let alone being elected.

Time will tell, but either way we can look for some difficult days ahead for the Church. Because either way we are in the final phase of post Christian America and can expect the world around us to become more and more anti-Christian. And if the economy continues to self-destruct it will be just that much worse.

But whether Mr. Obama turns out to be the anti-Christ or not is really irrelevant to the Church. Our job in the short time we have left is to get ready to move to our new home. That means breaking our ties with the old one. Anything that can’t be put to kingdom use is excess baggage to us now. We should be sending whatever treasure we have up ahead. We should stop worrying about our career, our retirement fund, our lifestyle, and all those other worldly distractions and put all our resources to work for the benefit of our next life. After all it’s the real one. And one way or the other, this one is already gone.

Whether you believe in a pre-trib rapture or not you know my advice is sound. After all I’m not just making this up. Everything I ‘ve been saying is straight from the Lord’s own mouth. He’s the one who said to quit storing up treasure on Earth where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal. He’s the one who said to store up treasure in Heaven instead. (Matt. 6:19-20 ) And He’s the one who said not to worry about our lives here but seek first His Kingdom and His righteousness and he’ll provide all our needs. (Matt. 6:31-34 ) So whether you think we’re leaving here soon or not, it’s time to pay attention to what He’s been telling us. No matter how much time you think we have, you can almost hear the footsteps of the Messiah. 11-15-08

Full Story Reference

The church has been referred to as "the bride of Christ," and our Savior, in turn, has been called the "Bridegroom." It is a beautiful and magnificent love story found in the pages of the Bible. We who are in the bride of Christ anxiously await our Bridegroom.

Let’s review the marriage customs of the Jews and discuss some prophetic implications. When the young Jewish man chose his bride-to-be, he came to her home to discuss the matter with her father. This first major step in the Jewish marriage was called the "betrothal." It involved the establishment of a marriage covenant.

During the days of the Bible, it was customary for the prospective bridegroom to negotiate with the father of the young woman to determine the price that he must pay to purchase his bride. Once the bridegroom paid the purchase price (called in Hebrew the "mohar" ), the marriage covenant was established. From that day, the couple were regarded as husband and wife. From that moment the bride was declared to be consecrated or sanctified — set apart exclusively for her bridegroom.

As a symbol of the covenant relationship that had been established, the groom and bride would drink from a cup of wine over which a betrothal benediction was pronounced.

After the marriage covenant was established, the groom would leave the home of the bride and return to his father’s house. There he would remain separated from his bride for a period of several days, weeks, or months. This period of separation afforded the bride time to gather her trousseau and prepare for married life.

The groom occupied himself with the preparation of a bridal chamber (called in the Hebrew language, "huppah" ) to which he could bring his bride.

At the end of the period of separation, the groom would come to take his bride to live with him. The taking of the bride usually took place at night. The groom, along with his best man and the other groomsmen, would conduct a torch-lit procession to the home of the bride.

Although the bride and her attendants were hoping that the groom would come for her, she did not know the exact time of his coming. As a result, the groom’s arrival would be preceded by a shout. This shout would forewarn the bride to be prepared for the coming of the groom. By the way, that evening, her parents would manage to be gone, giving some excuse. She did not know that they had gone to the wedding.

After the groom received his bride (together with her bridesmaids or attendants) the enlarged wedding party returned to his father’s house. When the bride arrived, she would find her parents there. Shortly after their arrival, the bride and groom would be escorted to the bridal chamber by the other members of the wedding party.

During this time the bride remained veiled so that no one could see her face. Only the groom and his bride entered the bridal chamber. As soon as the marriage was consummated, the wedding guests would feast and make merry for the next seven days. During that week of wedding festivities, which were sometimes called the "Seven Days of the Huppah ," the bride remained hidden in the bridal chamber.

At the conclusion of the seven days the groom would bring his bride out of the bridal chamber — with her veil removed — so that all could see who his bride was. Let us examine this ancient marriage custom and see how magnificently it provides a prophetic preview of the coming of our Bridegroom, the Lord Jesus Christ.

To begin with, let us establish that Jesus is the Bridegroom. That takes us to Matthew 9:15:

"And Jesus said unto them, Can the children of the bridechamber mourn, as long as the bridegroom is with them? But the days will come, when the bridegroom shall be taken from them, and then shall they fast."

Aside from the details of the story, let us take note that Jesus referred to Himself as the Bridegroom.

Next let us establish who is the bride. For this we go to Ephesians 5:23-24:

"For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church: and he is the saviour of the body.

"Therefore as the church is subject unto Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in every thing."

Again, aside from the context, we can see that the bride of Christ refers to that vast body of believers who have received Jesus Christ as their personal Lord and Savior.

Consider yet another passage written by Paul the Apostle. Not only did he refer to the church at Ephesus as being part of the bride of Christ, but in II Corinthians 11:2 he referred to the church at Corinth as being members of the bride:

"For I am jealous over you with godly jealously: for I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ."

Who is the bride? Obviously, we are the bride.

When the Jewish man came to negotiate for his bride, he paid the "mohar" or price of betrothal. The comparison is made in I Corinthians 6:20:

"For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body and your spirit, which are God’s."

Here we are reminded of the "Mohar." We are bought with a price. But the price of betrothal was not paid with silver or gold. We were bought with something far more valuable than that. It was Peter who wrote in his first epistle, I Peter 1:18,19, that we were not redeemed with corruptible things as silver and gold, but with the precious blood of Christ — a Lamb without blemish and without spot.

So we are the bride, and we have been purchased by the Lord Jesus Christ. He has paid the price of betrothal.

When that price was paid (in the days of the Bible) a ceremony took place. The young couple sealed their covenant by drinking from a glass of wine over which a special benediction had been pronounced. In like manner our Bridegroom met with the disciples on the night before His death, took the wine and passed it among them. Matthew 26:27-29:

"And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, Drink ye all of it;

"For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.

"But I say unto you, I will not drink henceforth of this fruit of the vine, until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father’s kingdom."

Our Savior established the betrothal covenant and promised that we would drink anew with Him in His Father’s kingdom. About midnight, they left the Upper Room for the garden of Gethsemane. Jesus went to pray and prepare himself to pay the price (the mohar ) for His bride.

Alfred Edersheim in his book entitled Sketches of Jewish Social Life wrote on page 143, "The woman had to give her own free and expressed consent, without which a union was invalid."

In like manner there is no pressure put upon the unbeliever today — merely the invitation of our Savior to become a member of the bride. No pastor can force salvation upon an unwilling sinner, and Jesus Christ, Who loves you, will not force the issue. If you would be saved, it must be by your own free will.

In a footnote at the bottom of page 140, Edersheim gave an illustration. "A certain wise woman said to her daughter before her marriage, ‘My child, stand before thy husband and minister to him. If thou will act as his maiden, he will be thy slave and honor thee as his mistress. But if thou exalt thyself against him, he will be thy master and thou shall become vile in his eyes, like one of the maid servants.’"

No wonder the Lord Jesus Christ took the towel that night in the upper room and took a basin of water with which He washed the disciples’ feet. He made it plain that the greatest in the kingdom of heaven would be those who have made themselves servants of the Lord. (By the way, that’s a beautiful bit of advice for wives today.)

On page 146, Dr. Edersheim wrote, "It is on similar grounds that the rabbis argue that a man must seek after a woman and not a woman after a man. It was observed by ancient Jews that God had not formed woman out of the head lest she become proud, nor out of the eye lest she should lust, nor out of the ear lest she should be curious, nor out of the mouth lest she should be talkative, nor out of the heart lest she should be jealous, nor out of the hand lest she should be covetous, nor out of the foot lest she should be a busybody, but out of the rib which was always covered. Modesty, therefore, was a prime quality in the women of Israel."

In like manner it must be said that Christ seeks after us. It is not the nature of a sinner to want to become a Christian, and, dear friend, you cannot become a Christian just when you want to. You can only become a Christian when the Holy Spirit places conviction within your heart and that wooing of the Holy Spirit takes place. When you feel that desire, that longing down inside to settle the matter of your soul, that is God’s invitation to you. If you reject at that point, it is like turning down a proposal made by the groom to be His bride. Have you ever been to a church service where, when the invitation was given, you had the urge to step out and walk the aisle and there receive Christ as your Savior, but you did not?

It seemed that God the Holy Spirit was urging you to step forward, but someone else was giving you a hundred reasons why you should put it off until another day. Finally, you decided to wait.

Dear friend, that is dangerous. There may never be another day. Oh, you may live another 50 years, but the Bridegroom may never again propose to you.

"Well," you may ask, "how will I know that God will receive me if I pray and ask for salvation?" If you are concerned, it is God who gave you that concern. If you are indifferent then you should know the Holy Spirit is not working in your heart. Please, don’t continue to reject His proposal.

On page 148, Dr. Edersheim continued, "From the moment of her betrothal, a woman was treated as if she were actually married. The union could not be dissolved except by regular divorce."

In like manner, once we have received Jesus Christ as our personal Savior, the betrothal covenant is activated. The believer becomes the bride of Christ. We are actually married, and our union cannot be dissolved.

Ah, but wait a minute. Divorce was available among the Jews. Someone may be asking the question, "Cannot a Christian, then, lose his salvation?" For the answer to that, we have only to read the words of Jesus. Matthew 19:3-6:

"The Pharisees also came unto him, tempting him, and saying unto him, Is it lawful for a man to put away his wife for every cause?

"And he answered and said unto them, Have ye not read, that he which made them at the beginning made them male and female,

"And said, For this cause shall a man leave father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife: and they twain shall be one flesh?

"Wherefore they are no more twain, but one flesh. What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder."

This profound statement made by Jesus Christ sets aside any possible divorce in our new covenant. When the Jews pressed the matter of divorce, Jesus said, "But from the beginning it was not so."

Dear friend, once you make that decision of your own free will to join the bride of Christ, the union cannot be dissolved.

In the ancient Jewish custom a betrothal covenant was drawn up stipulating the mutual obligations, the dowry, and all other points on which the parties had agreed. Then the document was signed by two witnesses.

According to rabbinical law, certain formalities were necessary in order to make a betrothal legally valid. These consisted either in giving the bride-to-be (directly or through messengers) a piece of money, or a letter stating that the man intended to espouse the woman as his wife. In like manner, our Savior has given us 27 books of the new covenant wherein He promises to return one day to take us as His bride.

According to ancient Jewish custom, once the price is paid and the betrothal covenant is established the bridegroom goes back home to the father’s house and builds the "huppah" — the bridal chamber. It may take a few weeks, or it could take several months.

The bride, meanwhile, knows only that her bridegroom will return for her. She does not know when. In like manner, our Bridegroom has returned to the Father’s house — where, for more than 1,900 years, He has been building the huppah , the bridal chamber. Read His promise in John 14:1-3:

"Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me.

"In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.

"And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also."

"I go to prepare a place for you," said Jesus. And He has been doing just that for almost 2,000 years, preparing for that day when he shall return to receive us unto Himself. Meanwhile, the bride prepared for the coming of her bridegroom. According to the ancient custom, the bride gathered her dowry and chose the young ladies who would be her bridesmaids.

These young ladies were given lamps to use in the procession when the bridegroom came. According to Dr. Edersheim’s book, Sketches of Jewish Social Life , page 155, rabbinical authority took note that such lamps were carried on the top of staves and that ten lamps were always the number mentioned in connection with public solemnities.

He wrote, "According to Rabbi Simon, it was an eastern custom that when the bride was led to her future home, they carried before the party about ten such lamps."

That compares quite nicely with the parable of the ten virgins given in Matthew 25. According to the ancient custom, the groom did not tell his bride when he could be expected.

Therefore, she must be prepared at all times. In like manner, our Savior has hidden from His bride the day and the hour of His return. Again, according to the ancient custom, the coming of the bridegroom usually occurred at night. That was the reason for the ten lamps.

In traditional Jewish weddings the celebration began after the marriage ceremony when the evening star appeared in the sky. The time would be somewhere between eight and ten o’clock in the evening, depending upon the season of the year. According to the parable of the ten virgins, however, it was well past ten o’clock when the bridegroom came. In fact, it was at the midnight hour, and five of the virgins had run out of oil.

In like manner, I must say that historians have called the 19th century "The Darkling Plane" and the 20th century, "The Midnight Hour — the darkest period in world history."

World War III looms on the horizon. There has never been a darker hour than today. Surely the Bridegroom is soon to be on His way.

According to the ancient custom, as the bridegroom approached the home of his bride a shout would go forth, "Behold, the bridegroom cometh! Go ye out to meet him." Again, in like manner, we are promised that the "Lord Himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God." At that time, wrote the apostle Paul in I Thessalonians 4:16-17:

"… the dead in Christ shall rise first:

"Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air…"

It is a beautifully romantic picture. Listen to the Song of Solomon 2:8-13:

"The voice of my beloved! behold, he cometh leaping upon the mountains, skipping upon the hills.

"My beloved is like a roe or a young hart: behold, he standeth behind our wall, he looketh forth at the windows, shewing himself through the lattice.

"My beloved spake, and said unto me, Rise up, my love, my fair one, and come away.

"For, lo, the winter is past, the rain is over and gone;

"The flowers appear on the earth; the time of the singing of birds is come, and the voice of the turtle is heard in our land;

"The fig tree putteth forth her green figs [Did you see that?! The budding of the fig tree is mentioned here!] , and the vines with the tender grape give a good smell. Arise, my love, my fair one, and come away."

And then the bride exclaimed in verses 16-17:

"My beloved is mine, and I am his…

"Until the day break, and the shadows flee away…"

Wow! What a promise that in the midst of the midnight hour of world history our Bridegroom will come and take us away with Him until the day breaks and the shadows flee away.

Read the rest of the story here

In Greek, it is called Apocalypsis Ioannou , or "Revelation of John." Its title bears the word that comes down to us in the English as "apocalypse," meaning "exposure," "disclosure," or "unveiling." Of course, it also means "revelation," the common title of the Bible’s final book. John, "the disciple whom Jesus loved" (John 21:20), received an extraordinary view of the climax of human history.

It prominently features a door between heaven and earth. It opens, allowing John to enter the dimensions of heaven, and to observe a series of decisive events. It is possible that this open door provides us with some important clues about prophetic timing.

Many have attempted to place this book into the context of history past, history present and history future. Or as Jesus put it in his instruction to John, "Write the things which thou hast seen, and the things which are, and the things which shall be hereafter" (Rev. 1:19).

From that day to this, the faithful have pondered its details in the hope of placing its vast prospect into the understandable scope of human perception. John’s use of phrases such as "after these things," "after this," and "I saw," beg an interpretation that follows the time line to which we are accustomed as human beings … past, present and future. Or as the wag once put it, "The present is the future you worried about in the past." Because of the limitations of our present reality, we are forced to view eternity as a long line with a beginning and an end. But as God declared to the prophet Isaiah, His view includes all that there was, is, or ever will be. Furthermore, His stance allows a view from any perspective.

"Remember the former things of old: for I am God, and there is none else; I am God, and there is none like me,

"Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure" (Isa. 46:9,10).

Probably the closest we can come to an understanding of what the Lord calls beginning and end, is to envision a hologram. Held in one’s hands, it is a flat picture. But when tilted one way or another, it reveals many perspectives. To God, history is probably something like this, or like a polygon, containing an infinite number of perspectives. To Him, past, present and future are always visible.

The Apostle John was privileged to view history from this platform, then to write about it. Led by the Holy Spirit of God, he condensed the era of the church, the Tribulation and the New Heavens and Earth from its multi-dimensional reality into the language of three dimensions that flow along a line that we call "time."

Following this flow, Revelation can be read with ease as an unfolding account of future history. But anyone who has studied it deeply has had the puzzling experience of seeing two or more events seemingly merge into the same crucial time slot. The trumpet judgments and the vial judgments appear in some cases to describe the very same events. But how can this be, seeing that the trumpet judgments "come first," to be followed by the vial judgments?

The "months," and "days" of Revelation often defy placement on a firm time line. Many of its chapters are parenthetical descriptions of the judgment process. Others, with varying degrees of difficulty, may be assigned to the first half, or the second half of the Tribulation. But on timing, there is disagreement among sincere scholars.

Having stated the general difficulty of viewing the infinite through a finite lens, it must also be said that there are portions of John’s Revelation that present an understandable flow, even though we can’t assign them a precise time slot.

Between Heaven and Earth

The Revelation begins on the Isle of Patmos on the Lord’s Day, when suddenly, the voice of the Lord announced that John was to receive a vision of the church and the world. The second and third chapters record the vision of the seven churches, in type, symbol, history and destination. Taken as a whole, they represent the life cycle of the body of Christ in the context of a world controlled by Satan. ….. full story