Pray As Never Before

I begin this article with the opening words of a Joseph Scriven poem, later transcribed to the beautiful hymn we have all sung at one time or another. And the words to this hymn should serve as a beacon to our hearts, because, sadly, we have dipped our toe into the year 2022 and found the waters very cold and foreboding. Scriven could well have written of a time like this with his words, “Have we trials and temptations? Is there trouble anywhere?” Let’s change that last sentence to “Are there troubles everywhere?”

I believe the year 2021 will be like a picnic compared to the year 2022! Certainly, 2021 can’t be referred to as “the calm before the storm”, because Satan’s underlings in the three arms of Mystery Babylon have made great strides in conquering the will of the people, and taking from them, much of the freedom, pride and health of once proud Israel nations.

In these dying weeks, months and year(s) of the seventh prophetic hour, when the Satanic forces move into high gear, so to speak, all the stops will be removed as they leap toward their final goal, that is, total control and the elimination of what they believe is the ultimate defeat of Jesus Christ and Christianity. Yet Satan himself knows he can’t ultimately win, he knows the story, he just wants to corrupt the world while he still can. Indeed, Revelation 12:12 clearly states his intention, indeed, as we are already seeing, his great fury erupting because he knows his time is short.

And when Satan’s short time expires, all those ‘so easily tempted underlings’ over the centuries who put greed, money, luxury and power as their leading motivators will discover too late that their fate will be sealed with Satan’s. It will be “Welcome to the Lake of Fire” time as they are led to the slaughter as prophesied in James 5:1-5.

It’s easy to identify these men and women ‘underlings’, some of whom are there preaching to us in their ministries, others are in their high perches in government, the corporate and financial world or that component of the media false prophet. Interesting isn’t it, when Jesus warned in Matthew 24:17 when He said, “And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many”; how our minds gravitate to the ecclesiastical world. Yet, these ‘underlings’ can be everywhere; I suppose even now your minds are thinking of the scientific world, maybe on one of the chief spokespersons on Covid. It’s not hard to identify ‘underlings’ because Jesus Himself, in using the analogy of ‘good and evil men/women’ to the fruit of trees, ended by declaring that “by their fruits ye shall know them”.

I don’t think any strong Christian reader doubts for a moment that Christ is soon to return, perhaps in our very lifetime. But, we have yet to complete the “tribulation” period as Jesus warned in Matthew 24:21. When we reflect on His reference to the beginning of sorrows (Vs. 8) and how it is preceded by many disturbing events, including pestilence (covid maybe) and earthquakes (how about the growing number of natural disasters), we have to be aware of the frightening prospect of His following warning, “Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye shall be hated of all nations for my name’s sake”. So, we Christians must be strong and strengthen ourselves with His assurance in verse 22 that the days of tribulation will be shortened.

Still, we in the Israel nations have much to account for because the Devil has found fertile ground in our lands in which to sow the seeds of evil. Perhaps some of you might remember a previous TKC article wherein our writer wrote about the French historian, Alexis de Tocqueville, who came to America in 1831 to study what made the nation so great. He searched everywhere but finally discovered the reason and in his own words, “Not until I went into the churches of America and heard her pulpits flame with righteousness did I understand the secret of her genius and power. America is great because America is good”. What he said at that time was that Jesus Christ was the focal point of America, it was a Christian nation with the Laws and Commandments of God prominently in the minds of most of its citizens. But Tocqueville added this warning, “If America ever ceases to be good, America ceases to be great”.

And, folks, that is where we stand! With the influx of other religions, and the watering down of the Faith, etc., you can’t call America a Christian nation anymore, or for that matter, could any Israel nation burdened with iniquity be called a Christian nation. That’s why Jesus told us in (Matthew 24:12) that iniquity or evil will flourish in the days of the tribulation. After all, Satan realizes he has but a short time to do his damage before the King of kings returns. Isaiah 30:9 describes the current population of our Israel nations very well, “That this is a rebellious people, lying children, children that will not hear the law of the Lord”. Verse 12 only adds to this, “Whereupon thus saith the Holy One of Israel, Because ye despise the word and trust in oppression and perverseness …” In Verse 13, the Lord likens the iniquity as a breach ready to fall. I like the way the Knox version of the Bible describes it “Sudden and swift will be your punishment …”

When you have time, you might like to study the entire chapter of Isaiah because it is a very enlightening prophecy that relates to this very moment in time., but although space does not permit a lengthy account of its wisdom, I do want to touch on verse 25. “And there shall be upon every high mountain, and upon every high hill, rivers and streams of waters in the day of the great slaughter, when the towers fall”.

When we think of “every high mountain” we can’t help by saying they are the great nations, like America, China, Russia, United Kingdom, perhaps Canada; whereas “every high hill” relates to lessor nations. The rivers and streams represent the masses of people headed for the great slaughter as the towers fall. These towers do not represent the twin towers of 911 falling, as many of us thought at the time, but are, as we believe and have touched on in previous issues, the three components of Mystery Babylon, i.e., the ecclesiastical, political and economic arms. Revelation 17&18 describe these three towers and Revelation 18:10 describes their judgment, “Standing afar off for the fear of her torment, saying, Alas, alas that great city Babylon, that mighty city! for in one hour is thy judgment come”.

Could an economic debacle occur in 2022? Will the equity markets and large corporations begin to collapse? Could our political apparatus with its weak leadership follow along? Will enemy nations feed on our weakness and initiate war? Could Satan’s chief underling, the House of Edom, lose their anonymity?

And despite all this hardship, will we not only endure, but regain our identity as the true Israel of the Bible, as we look forward to the saving grace of our Lord Jesus Christ?

Have we trials and temptations?

Is there trouble anywhere?

We should never be discouraged

Take it to the Lord in prayer