August 17, 2010
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LIVING ON BORROWED TIME - DVD
A morally and spiritually bankrupt society …A worldwide economic meltdown…A planet racked with increasingly intense manmade and natural disasters…Are we the Final Generation?
Watch therefore, for you do not know what hour your Lord is coming. But know this that if the master of the house had known what hour the thief would come, he would have watched and not allowed his house to be broken into. Therefore you also be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect. Matthew 24:42-44
Reviews: The DVD should be seen by small groups and youth ministries far and wide. The clear quoting and referencing of bible verses is especially strong. The collage of dramatic imagery - both in photography and artwork, grabs the viewers' attention and weaves the conclusion that God is about to continue His plan in a major way. The video is so fresh - the oil explosion and spill in the Gulf of Mexico is shown as one example of how this old world is wearing out and is in flames
The video next defends the authorship and reliability of the bible before showing eight unmistakable developments in our world that point toward the soon return of the Lord Jesus Christ. The number one sign given to our generation is the return of the Jewish people to form the nation of Israel. Jesus Christ is now standing at the door waiting to take his beloved bride- His true believers. Like the admonition from the Book of Jude, verse 23, I pray that this DVD will be used by the Holy Spirit to pluck dying people out of the fire before the borrowed time runs out. - John Wicklund - Chair- Olive Tree Ministries Board of Directors - Maple Grove, MN
Great Job! We have watched all your DVD’s and we think this is the best one so far. After someone watches this DVD there is no way they could argue that we are not living in the last days! – Don & Cindy K. – Bakersfield, CA
The DVD came and it was great. GOOD JOB ! ! – Julie A. – Whitefish, MT
God bless you, the new DVD is amazing! I know that if there is anyone out there who doesn't know what the bible holds or has no clue about what is really going on after seeing this DVD they will surely be enlightened about what is truly going on in the world today. - The Taylor's - Bakersfield, CA
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Israel has '8 days' to hit Iran nuclear site: Bolton – www.news.yahoo.com
WASHINGTON (AFP) – Israel has "eight days" to launch a military strike against Iran's Bushehr nuclear facility and stop Tehran from acquiring a functioning atomic plant, a former US envoy to the UN has said.
Iran is to bring online its first nuclear power reactor, built with Russia's help, on August 21, when a shipment of nuclear fuel will be loaded into the plant's core.
At that point, John Bolton warned Monday, it will be too late for Israel to launch a military strike against the facility because any attack would spread radiation and affect Iranian civilians.
"Once that uranium, once those fuel rods are very close to the reactor, certainly once they're in the reactor, attacking it means a release of radiation, no question about it," Bolton told Fox Business Network.
"So if Israel is going to do anything against Bushehr it has to move in the next eight days."
Absent an Israeli strike, Bolton said, "Iran will achieve something that no other opponent of Israel, no other enemy of the United States in the Middle East really has and that is a functioning nuclear reactor."
But when asked whether he expected Israel to actually launch strikes against Iran within the next eight days, Bolton was skeptical.
"I don't think so, I'm afraid that they've lost this opportunity," he said.
The controversial former envoy to the United Nations criticized Russia's role in the development of the plant, saying "the Russians are, as they often do, playing both sides against the middle."
"The idea of being able to stick a thumb in America's eye always figures prominently in Moscow," he added.
Iran dismissed the possibilities of such an attack from its archfoes.
Foreign Ministry spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast said Tuesday that "these threats of attacks had become repetitive and lost their meaning."
"According to international law, installations which have real fuel cannot be attacked because of the humanitarian consequences," he told reporters at a news conference in Tehran.
Iranian officials say Iran has stepped up defensive measures at the Bushehr plant to protect it from any attacks.
Russia has been building the Bushehr plant since the mid-1990s but the project was marred by delays, and the issue is hugely sensitive amid Tehran's standoff with the West and Israel over its nuclear ambitions.
The UN Security Council hit Tehran with a fourth set of sanctions on June 9 over its nuclear program, and the United States and European Union followed up with tougher punitive measures targeting Iran's banking and energy sectors.
The Bushehr project was first launched by the late shah in the 1970s using contractors from German firm Siemens. But it was shelved when he was deposed in the 1979 Islamic revolution.
It was revived after the death of revolutionary founder Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini in 1989, as Iran's new supreme leader Ali Khamenei and his first president, Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, backed the project.
In 1995, Iran won the support of Russia which agreed to finish building the plant and fuel it.
'Obama won't hit Iranian reactor' – Dov Preminger – www.jpost.com
Bolton claims Israel has only 3 days to strike Bushehr plant.
Former US ambassador to the UN John Bolton said he didn't see "any signs whatsoever that President Obama would make the necessary decision" to strike Iran's nuclear reactor, speaking in an interview with Israel Radio Tuesday.
Bolton claimed Israel has only three days to strike before Russia "begins the fueling process for the Bushehr reactor this Friday," after which any attack would cause radioactive fallout that could reach as far as the waters of the Persian Gulf.
In an interview with Fox Business Network earlier Tuesday Bolton had said the deadline was eight days, but he revised it to three in the Israel Radio interview, saying Iran and Russia had announced they would begin fueling on Friday.
"It has always been optimal that military force is used before the fuel rods are inserted," Bolton explained. "That's what Israel did in Osirak in 1991, and when they attacked the North Korean reactor built in Syria." Israel bombed the Osirak nuclear reactor in Iraq in 1981, and a Syrian reactor in 2007.
However Bolton didn't see any indication that an Israeli strike was going to happen. "Obviously if Israel were going to do something it wouldn't exactly be advertising it. But time is short."
Bolton said that it would be "a much more dangerous world" if Iran were to gain nuclear capability. "That's why I think it's so critical. It won't stop with Iran. Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Turkey, perhaps other states as well."
Iranian nuclear chief Ali Akbar Salehi said earlier Tuesday that an attack on Iranian nuclear facilities would be an "international crime."
In an interview with IRNA, Salehi said that the impact of such a strike would be global. "This is stipulated in the resolutions passed by the IAEA and the UN Security Council as well as in the resolution adopted at the close of the NPT Review Conference," he stressed.
Russia, who is supplying the uranium fuel for the plant, announced last week that they will begin loading the Bushehr reactor on August 21.
In an initial interview earlier today with Fox Business Network earlier Tuesday, Bolton warned that once the Bushehr facility is operational it will be too late for a military air strike against Iran because such an attack would spread radiation and harm Iranian civilians.
"Once that uranium, once those fuel rods are very close to the reactor, certainly once they're in the reactor, attacking it means a release of radiation, no question about it," Bolton said.
"Iran will achieve something that no other opponent of Israel, no other enemy of the United States in the Middle East really has and that is a functioning nuclear reactor."
Bolton was critical of Russia for aiding Iran in the fueling of the nuclear reactor.
"The Russians are, as they often do, playing both sides against the middle. The idea of being able to stick a thumb in America's eye always figures prominently in Moscow," Bolton concluded.
Air crash near Bushehr, drones slam into reactor dome – www.debka.com
Two mysterious incidents are reported by debkafile in the run-up to the fueling up of Iran's first nuclear reactor Saturday, Aug. 21
Tuesday, Aug. 17, an Iranian F4 Phantom fighter jet was claimed by Tehran to have crashed 6 kilometers north of the Bushehr nuclear reactor in southern Iran. debkafile's military sources report it was shot down by Russian-made TOR-M1 air-missile defense batteries guarding the reactor. A local government official Gholam Reza Keshtkar said the pilot and co-pilot ejected from the plane before it crashed and were rushed to hospital.
The TOR-M1 is designed to intercept planes or missiles coming in at medium or very low altitudes in case of American or Israeli attack.
Our sources ask: How did the Phantom penetrate to a distance of 6 kilometers from the reactor when its skies up to a 20-kilometer radius are a no-fly zone?
Perhaps the Bushehr's air defense system is slow to pick up intruders - although it is known to have been on high alert since a previous incident on Aug. 1. Or else it may been activated when inquiries to Iranian Air Force command about the jet's identity and mission failed to elicit a satisfactory reply.
Our Iranian sources report extreme edginess in Tehran ahead of August 21 when the Russian-built Bushehr reactor enters its first operational phase in the presence of high-ranking officials from Moscow.
Tuesday afternoon, after the fighter jet crashed, the foreign ministry spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast warned "any aggression against the Bushehr nuclear plant can provoke serious reactions. Based on international rules, a facility with nuclear fuel cannot be damaged"
All the Bushehr defensive systems have been on the highest alert since a previous incident first revealed on Aug. 6 by DEBKA-Net-Weekly 456:.
On Aug. 1, three unidentified UAVs slammed into the reactor buildings, scaring the townspeople who were sure the plant was under American or Israeli attack.
After the heads of government in Tehran put their heads together to try and identify the drones, without success, the defense ministry emerged with a communiqué reporting that a single drone had crashed on the nuclear reactor's dome, but insisted it was launched by Iran's Revolutionary Guards to test the alertness of the air defense personnel guarding it and the effectiveness of its anti-air radar system.
According to DEBKA-Net-Weekly's Iranian and intelligence sources, Bushehr citizens were sure they heard three mighty explosions - not one. So the deputy district governor for security affairs, Mohammad Hossein Shenidi, who is responsible for safeguarding Bushehr and its reactors against air or missile attacks, pitched in with a lighter version of the communiqué: A single drone had indeed been fired, he admitted, but it carried no explosives because its only purpose was to simulate a loud bang to check the level of local alertness.
According to our sources, the townspeople were correct: Three drones hit the reactor killing at least five of its staff members.
Tuesday afternoon, another Iranian high-up, defense minister Brig. Gen. Ahmad Vahidi, talked to reporters. He declared that the "long range UAV called Karrar would be unveiled on this day" - an apparent reference to the debkafile report of Monday, Aug. 16, that the death of Iran's drone program head Reza Baruni had buried the program for years to come.
Regarding the delay in Moscow's delivery of S-300 anti-aircraft missile system, Vahidi declared: "We build whatever we want inside the country… and the production of long-range air defense system in Iran is already on the agenda of the defense ministry."
Former US envoy to the UN John Bolton Tuesday Aug. 17 repeated his warning that Israel has "eight days" to launch a military strike against Bushehr and stop Tehran from acquiring a functioning atomic plant. Once Russian loads it with fuel on Saturday, it will be too late because any attack would spread radiation and affect Iranian citizens, he said.
In the absence of an Israeli strike, said Bolton, "Iran will achieve something that no other opponent of Israel, no other opponent of the US in the Middle East really has and that is a functioning nuclear reactor."
Iran Threatens ‘Israel’s Existence’ If It Attacks - By Ali Sheikholeslami - www.businessweek.com
Iran will respond if Israel attacks its first nuclear power plant, which will begin loading fuel Aug. 21, according to the Persian Gulf country’s defense minister.
“In that case we will lose a power plant, but Israel’s existence will be in danger,” Ahmad Vahidi was cited as saying today by the state-run Mehr news agency, in response to questions about the possibility of an attack by Israel on the Russian-built atomic facility at Bushehr.
The Foreign Ministry’s spokesman, Ramin Mehmanparast, said today he “doubts” that Israel would “make such a dangerous move.” In comments on state television, he said, “Any aggression against this power plant will result in a serious reaction.”
Israeli leaders have said that all options are on the table in dealing with Iran’s nuclear aspirations. Iran is under four sets of United Nations sanctions over its nuclear program, which the U.S. and many of its allies say is aimed at creating a weapon. Iran, the second-largest oil producer in the Middle East, denies the allegation, saying it needs nuclear energy for civilian purposes, such as generating electricity.
Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Yigal Palmor declined to comment when asked about the Iranian defense minister’s remarks.
President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad yesterday announced the enactment of a law that obliges Iran to produce nuclear fuel for its Tehran medical-research reactor, on the day the country said it will build its third uranium-enrichment plant as part of a program to add 10 such facilities. Iran’s first uranium- enrichment plant is at Natanz and a second plant is under construction at Qom.
Iran has defied UN demands to cease production of enriched uranium, which can fuel a reactor or, at higher concentrations, form the core of a bomb.
The Bushehr power station will begin producing electricity in several months, Sergei Novikov, spokesman for Rosatom Corp., the Russian state nuclear holding company that built the plant, said Aug. 13.
Putin pushes ahead with fueling up Iran's reactor Saturday – www.debka.com
Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin decided it was safe to go ahead and load Iran's first nuclear reactor with fuel on Aug. 21 - effectively making it active - after the Kremlin's weekend announcement of this intent seemed not to trouble the US and Israel, debkafile's sources in Moscow and Tehran report. He decided the two governments had either been caught flatfooted or come to terms with a Russian-sponsored nuclear project that would allow Iran to produce weapons-grade plutonium.
The impression Russian officials tried to convey that the reactor would only go on stream in late September was meant to deflect US or Israeli pressure, which in the event was not forthcoming.
Monday, Aug. 16, therefore, Moscow further announced that Sergei Kirienko, the head of the Russian state nuclearcorporation Rosatom, would visit Bushehr Friday, Aug. 20, to see for himself how far the work on the 1,200-1,300 MWe reactor had progressed. He expects to be accompanied by Russian Energy Minister Sergei Shmatko.
Moscow furthermore disclosed it had guaranteed a 10-year supply of reactor fuel for Bushehr.
Then, on Aug. 21, Ali-Akbar Salehi, head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, will join the Russian officials at a press conference to coincide with the transfer of fuel to the Bushehr reactor and mark its effective inauguration. Salehi also announced that Iran would build another 10 installations for enriching uranium inside protected mountain caves - in addition to the three known facilities which brought Iran under UN and Western sanctions.
The announcements from Moscow, our sources say, broadcast due warning to would-be attackers that the Iranian reactor at Bushehr is now under Russia's protection.
Rosatom's spokesman Sergey Novikov commented Monday: "I think it is a very strong signal that international society supports such peaceful projects as Bushehr, because everybody understands that you cannot use a power plant in a hypothetical military program." He went on to say: "A nuclear power plan just generates electricity, There are two double-purpose elements - enrichment and spent fuel management. Both of these elements are taken out of Iranian responsibility, because we are going to supply the Bushehr power plant with nuclear fuel."
Russian and Iranian officials are bending over backwards to assure the world that Bushehr is a harmless and peaceful project for manufacturing electricity, whereas, as debkafile has previously reported and American experts stressed Monday: "Once fueled and operational, Bushehr will produce plutonium 239 which can be used to make nuclear weapons."
They also confirmed the warning by former US ambassador to the UN John Bolton (that once the fuel is loaded, Bushehr will be immune from attack because of the risk of spreading radiation) by repeating: "…once it has gone critical, any attempt to do so (attack the reactor) would risk the release of a radioactive plume that might kill civilians and poison surrounding areas."
Bolton gave Israel and the US less than a week - that is until Aug. 21 - to put the reactor out of commission before it was too late.
The American experts also stressed that, even if - and that is a big "if" - Iran does not at present have the right equipment for separating plutonium from fuel before the spent rods are shipped back to their Russian suppliers - as Moscow claims is part of the deal - possession of a large, functioning nuclear reactor will give Tehran extra impetus to lay hands on the necessary equipment and technology.
The apathy in Washington and Jerusalem greeting the Bushehr reactor going on stream stands in sharp contrast to the cooperation between them in September 2007 for Israel to bomb the Syrian reactor built by North Korean before it was completed. Its purpose was precisely the same as that of the Bushehr plant, albeit using different technology, namely to provide Iran's military nuclear program with plutonium fuel.
In the case of Bushehr, this will be the first time Israel has stood by for a Middle East nation to get close to producing a nuclear weapon without taking action - even through its leaders openly avow their intention of wiping it off the map.
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Strike on Iran could start in Lebanon - By Ahmad Mustafa – www.gulfnews.com
If Hezbollah members are formally accused of former Lebanese prime minister Rafik Hariri's murder, one of Tehran's main allies will be sidelined
The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, violence in Pakistan, skirmishes in south-eastern Turkey and even the flaring tension on the Korean peninsula were briefly overshadowed by developments in Lebanon in recent weeks. It seemed as if the crisis between the West and Iran was subsiding, but in fact what is going on in Lebanon is just an extension of the US-Iran conflict.
The issue became apparent thanks to the media, which reported that the UN's Special Tribunal for Lebanon investigating the assassination of former Lebanese prime minister Rafik Hariri would lay the blame on Hezbollah members.
But in fact, it began earlier with a wave of arrests by Lebanese security forces of suspected Mossad agents. Hezbollah, the Lebanese resistance supported by Iran and Syria, played a behind-the-scenes role in identifying the agents and helping the authorities to nab them.
Since one of its senior leaders, Emad Mughniyah, was killed in February 2008 by a car bomb in Damascus, Hezbollah has focused on internal security issues. The month-long war between Israel and Hezbollah in the summer of 2006 also alerted the latter that the Israelis were actively infiltrating its incubating environment — Lebanese society.
The latest attempt to implicate the group in Hariri's assassination, leaving Syria seemingly in the clear, is worth contemplating. Hezbollah Secretary-General Syed Hassan Nasrallah has responded by accusing the Israelis and the West of plotting to defame the resistance.
But it is not clear that his attempt to paint Israel as a more likely suspect in the Hariri killing will succeed. The consequences of Hezbollah members being formally accused of the murder are dire. Regardless of how politicized the tribunal may be, the heat is on Hezbollah. Even the high-profile diplomatic maneuvering of Saudi Arabia and Syria is meant only to lessen the impact of the UN tribunal's decision, rather than avert the inevitable.
The Israeli siege of Gaza is keeping Hamas in check and Hezbollah's attention is well and truly diverted to internal disputes in Lebanon, weakening Iran's two main allies in the region.
This is especially important if a strike against the Islamic Republic's nuclear facilities is to be launched soon. The country's two allies are a thorn in the side of Israel, as they are succeeding in changing the geopolitical equation in the region as influential non-state actors. The two groups could make life difficult for the Israelis, even if the strike on Iran were an American one.
Isolation
Iran's only alternate ally, Syria, seems to have been neutralized. Damascus has been urged to dissociate itself from Tehran in return for promised incentives and a possible breakthrough in talks towards a peaceful settlement with Israel.
The recent visit of the Saudi King Abdullah Bin Abdul Aziz to Damascus, and his visit, along with President Bashar Al Assad, to Beirut, sent many messages. The most important of these was that the moderate camp is succeeding in putting pressure on Iran.
Another member of the moderate camp, Egypt, is actively involved in facilitating progress towards direct talks between the Israelis and the Palestinians. These political processes — whether they achieve their declared goals or not — are essential to softening the impact of another potential war in the region involving Israel directly or indirectly.
Lebanon is going to be a key player, even if it is relatively removed from any war. Not only is there the issue of Iran's armed ally, Hezbollah, but the divisive Sunni-Shiite struggle is more evident in Lebanon than anywhere else in the region.
One feature of Lebanon makes it easier for the West to intervene in the country: a sizeable Christian population. This distinguishes Lebanon from the rest of the region, where Sunnis and Shiites are already suffering tense relations.
For decades, analysts have said Lebanon is a microcosm of the region. Regional powers use the country as an arena to sort out their conflicts, with a resultant toll on civilian lives. To a degree, Lebanon is the soft underbelly of Iran, as any action against Tehran would start in Beirut. We might discover just how soft that underbelly is once the Special Tribunal for Lebanon announces its findings.
Iran says to unveil array of weapons next week – www.news.yahoo.com
TEHRAN (AFP) – Defence Minister Ahmad Vahidi said on Tuesday that Iran will unveil next week an array of weapons, including missiles, speedboats and a long range drone, the ISNA news agency reported.
Two missiles, Qiam (Rising) and the third generation Fateh 110 (Conqueror) would be tested next week when Iran marks the annual government week, Vahidi said in reference to the Iranian week which starts on Saturday.
Iran will also unveil the long-range drone, Karar, he said using the nickname of revered Shiite Imam Ali.
On Sunday Iran launches its annual government week which runs until August 30 and is an occasion to showcase Tehran's achievements.
Iran has previously paraded a version of Fateh 110 which has a travel range of 150 to 200 kilometres (90 to 125 miles), but the range of the surface-to-surface Qiam missile was not reported by ISNA on Tuesday.
Vahidi said production lines of two missile-carrying speedboats, Seraj (Lamp) and Zolfaqar (named after Imam Ali's sword) would also be opened next week.
Vahidi said the unveiling of these weapons indicate that "sanctions have had no impact on us, but made us more experienced and self-sufficient."
Iranian officials regularly boast about the Islamic republic's military capabilities and Vahidi's announcements come at a time when local officials have been warning against any attack on the Islamic republic.
Tehran's arch foes, the United States and Israel have not ruled out a military strike against Iran to stop its controversial nuclear program.
Last week a top commander from the Revolutionary Guards said Iran will mass produce replicas of the Bladerunner 51, often described as the world's fastest boat, and equip them with weapons to be deployed in the Gulf.
Also on August 8, Iran took delivery of four new mini-submarines of the home-produced Ghadir class. Weighing 120 tons, the "stealth" submarines are aimed at operations in shallow waters, notably in the Gulf.
Standing on a landmine - By Caroline B. Glick
http://www.JewishWorldReview.com | US President Barack Obama's warm endorsement of the plan to build a mosque by the ruins of the World Trade Center tells Israel - and its enemies - everything we need to know about the president of the United States of America.
Speaking during a Ramadan fast breaking meal at the White House to an audience of people affiliated with various Muslim Brotherhood- related groups in the US, Obama couched his support for the mosque at Ground Zero in constitutional terms.
In his words, "As a citizen, and as president, I believe that Muslims have the same right to practice their religion as everyone else in this country. And that includes the right to build a place of worship and a community center on private property in Lower Manhattan, in accordance with local laws and ordinances. This is America. Our commitment to religious freedom must be unshakable. The principle that people of all faiths are welcome in this country and that they will not be treated differently by their government is essential to who we are. The writ of the Founders must endure."
Of course, none of those who have voiced opposition to the mosque project at Ground Zero have claimed that the Islamic group behind the mosque project is acting unlawfully in seeking to construct a mosque. The nearly 70 percent of Americans who oppose building a mosque at Ground Zero oppose the mosque because they believe it is wrong to build a mosque at the site where less than a decade ago Muslims acting in the name of Islam murdered nearly 3,000 people in an act of war against the US and an act of terror against the American people.
Obama has been pilloried by his opponents for his position. And his fellow Democrats, facing the likelihood of massive defeats in the Congressional elections in three months, are reportedly deeply frustrated by his statements. Indeed, the uproar Obama's pro-mosque remarks has unleashed has been so harsh it raises the question of why he made it.
THERE ARE two possible explanations for Obama's move. Either he was motivated by politics or he was motivated by ideology. The view that Obama was motivated by politics is easily dismissed. With more than two-thirds of Americans telling pollsters they oppose the Ground Zero mosque project, it makes no political sense for a politician to strike out a position in favor of the mosque. Indeed, major Democrats have either refused to state a position on the issue or, like New York Governor David Paterson, they have recommended that the mosque builders construct their mosque elsewhere.
Perhaps Obama thought he could he could get away with making his statement. However, with his polling numbers consistently eroding, it is hard to imagine Obama's advisers would have told him that was a realistic view.
This leaves ideology. But what ideology motivates Obama to embrace such an unpopular initiative at such an explosive political juncture? Obama and his supporters would like us to believe this is a civil rights issue. In his defense of the Ground Zero mosque, Obama claimed his position was based on the American values such as, "The laws that we apply without regard to race, or religion, or wealth, or status. Our capacity to show not merely tolerance, but respect towards those who are different from us."
But if Obama is motivated by a belief in civil rights that is so strong it propels him to take on deeply unpopular causes in an election season, then one could reasonably expect that his support for civil rights would be absolute. That is, one could expect him to use the same yardstick for all groups, in all places and at all times.
But for Obama, there are some groups who must be denied the same civil rights he upholds as absolute in his defense of the plan to build a mosque at Ground Zero. As Obama has made clear since his first days in office, he believes that Jews should be denied the right to their property in Jerusalem, Judea and Samaria simply because they are Jews.
OBAMA IS so firm in his belief that Jews should be denied civil rights in Israel's capital and in the heartland of Jewish history that he has provoked multiple crises in his relations with Israel to advance this bigoted view. Almost from his first day in office Obama has struck out a radical position in which he has insisted that Jews must be prohibited from building anything - synagogues, homes, nurseries, schools - in Judea, Jerusalem and Samaria on land they own. Jews - Israeli and non-Israeli - should be barred from exercising their property rights even if their construction plans have already been approved "in accordance with local laws and ordinances."
At the same time, Obama has insisted that Israel take no action to enforce its "local laws and ordinances" against illegal structures built by Arabs in Jerusalem, Judea, or Samaria.
Next month the deeply discriminatory and legally dubious 10-month moratorium on Jewish building in Judea and Samaria that Obama coerced Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu into instituting is set to end. So now Obama is putting the full weight of the White House on Israel to again coerce Netanyahu into prolonging the discriminatory ban that denies the civil rights and property rights of Jews simply because they are Jewish.
Obama claims to be embracing the nullification of Jewish civil right in the interests of peace. In his stated view, to forge peace in the Middle East it is necessary for the Palestinians to achieve statehood. But it hard to see how the establishment of a Palestinian state squares with Obama's purported dedication to civil rights.
In a briefing with the Egyptian media last week Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas told reporters that no Jews will be allowed to live in a future Palestinian state. He also said that while he would agree to allow NATO forces to deploy in the future Palestinian state, he would not permit any Jewish soldiers to serve in the NATO units stationed on the territory of such a state. As he put it, "I will not agree that there will be Jews among NATO forces and I will not allow even one Israeli to live amongst us on the Palestinian soil."
The notion that an inherently anti-Semitic Palestinian state, predicated on Jew hatred that strong, could possibly live at peace with Israel is simply ridiculous. But tellingly, in all the American pressure that has been placed on Abbas to begin direct negotiations with Israel, at no time has the administration been reported to have insisted that Abbas abandon his anti-Semitism. Obama has made no statement addressing the fact that the Palestinians demand that Jews be barred from living in the future Palestinian state. He has certainly not objected to this position although it squares with none of the American values of tolerance and property rights he upheld so strongly in his remarks on the Ground Zero mosque.
SO THE ideology Obama holds so strongly that it provokes him to take positions antithetical to the political interests of his party during an election season is not civil rights. Rather it has to do with his commitment to advancing the interests of a specific group or groups over the interests of other specific groups. In the case of the Ground Zero mosque he prefers the rights of Muslims over the values of the overwhelming majority of Americans. In the case of the Palestinians, he prefers their anti-Semitic nationalism over the civil rights of Jews.
Obama's behavior tells Israel's leaders something very important about how they should think about their relations with the Obama administration. It tells them that Obama is so wed to his ideology that he will push it regardless of political conditions. This means that for Israel, dealing with Obama is like standing on a landmine. Just as a landmine can explode at any minute, Obama can attack Israel at any moment. He is so ideologically bound to the Palestinian cause against Israel that he is liable to provoke a crisis when it is least politically advantageous - from his perspective - for him to do so.
This lesson is particularly urgent on the eve of yet another round of direct negotiations with the Palestinians and as the freeze on Jewish property rights is about to expire. Obama's ideological fanaticism means that nothing Israel does in the upcoming talks will help us.
As Obama's media surrogates like Tony Karon at Time magazine have made clear in recent weeks, the anti-Israel narrative has already coalesced. Everything that happens regarding those negotiations is Israel's fault. It is Israel's fault that they haven't begun. It will be Israel's fault when they falter. It will be Israel's fault when they fail. And if they succeed, Israel will still be blameworthy.
Facing this US President and his radical ideology, Netanyahu and his deputies must understand that they cannot appease him. They cannot convince him of Israel's good intentions.
The US leader who has rejected the expressed views of 68 percent of his fellow citizens in favor of the construction of a mosque at Ground Zero is not going to be moved by reason. The American president who defends the Ground Zero mosque builders even though their leader refuses to acknowledge that Hamas is a terrorist organization and has claimed that the US had the Sept. 11 attacks coming to it; and the American president who upholds the Palestinian cause even though it is virulently, and often genocidally anti-Semitic is not going to be appeased by Israeli building freezes and other confidence building gestures.
What this means is that Netanyahu and his deputies must concentrate on defending Israel and advancing its national interests. It is in Israel's national interests to guarantee the civil rights and property rights of Jews. It is in Israel's national interests to forthrightly set out and defend Israel's legal rights in Judea and Samaria and its sovereignty in united Jerusalem. It is in Israel's national interest to enforce its laws without prejudice towards all its citizens and expect all its citizens to respect its laws.
We are dealing with a self-consciously radical President who intends to remake the US relationship with the Muslim world. We will find no understanding from him.
The prophecy of Ishmael and the Ground Zero Islamic Center – Bill Wilson – www.dailyjot.com
Some 68 percent of Americans do not want an Islamist center built near the hallowed ground zero of 911 where Muslims, carrying out the tenets of the Koran, killed nearly 3,000 innocent people. Crying religious freedom, even Hamas terrorist leaders are saying that Muslims should be able to worship wherever they please. And the man who occupies the Oval office has once again sided with the terrorists--he says it’s ok to build a mosque and Islamic center there. "Once again" because he has been doing it all along in supporting the Palestinian terrorist view of Israel, in extolling the virtues of Islam in official White House policy, and in refusing to control American borders, allowing terrorists in unabated.
So now, is this the issue that will stir the passions of all true Americans? Is this the straw that breaks the camel's back? Has this Islamic-raised usurper in the White House finally crossed the line? History, if Americans were actually taught it, would indicate that Islam has been at war with Jews and Christians for centuries. It was a prophecy of the angel of the LORD to Hagar about her son Ishmael, who is considered the patriarch of Islam. Genesis 16:12 says, "And he will be a wild man; his hand will be against every man, and every man's hand against him; and he shall dwell in the presence of all his brethren." Every place where you see human suffering either socialism or Islam is involved. This president touts both.
Now beware. In the days ahead there will be a deception in play. Islamists in America, in their spirit of respect and grace, will appear to back off from building an Islamic center near ground zero. But do not believe it. Do not stop pressuring the public sentiment. There are actually two entities that are to be built on the complex near ground zero--a mosque and an Islamic center. Watch these cunning Islamist leaders recant on the center, so they can keep the mosque. Watch how the media and the White House will praise them for being so sensitive. Then they will build the mosque as intended--a memorial to their struggle against the "great American satan."
Islam is an enemy of the state that uses religion to anchor the seed of its rancid and hateful agenda as it grows into a tyrannical political system. Americans have no business with a usurper in the White House who demands that Israel quit building houses on its own land, but fully supports Islam building a mosque near the site where it attacked Americans and spilled innocent blood. This is calloused disrespect for all Americans, especially to the families of those who died in the 911 attacks, and to those who have fought in this horrible war of Islamic aggression since then. Americans, especially Christian Americans, need to stand up and shout loud that even the deaf politicians hear the error of their ways.
Have a Blessed and Powerful Day!
Bill Wilson
Word of Life Ministry
Honor His Name – Greg Laurie – www.harvest.org
Blessed be the name of the Lord from this time forth and forevermore! From the rising of the sun to its going down the Lord's name is to be praised.
— Psalm 113:2–3
There is power in God's name, and we are to honor it. Moses said, "For I proclaim the name of the Lord: Ascribe greatness to our God" (Deuteronomy 32:3).
Elijah knew the power of the name of the Lord as he faced off with the prophets of Baal on Mt. Carmel. He told the people, "Then you call on the name of your gods, and I will call on the name of the Lord; and the God who answers by fire, He is God" (1 Kings 18:24).
Not only does God want us to honor His name, but He wants us to invoke His holy name in our hour of need. Proverbs 18:10 says, "The name of the Lord is a strong tower; the righteous run to it and are safe."
Job knew the power of that name when tragedy hit. He said, "Naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked shall I return there. The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord" (Job 1:21).
Have you ever noticed that when someone speaks your name, you hear it? You know your name. In the same way, God pays attention when we speak His name. But we use God's name in vain—that is, use it in an empty, idle, insincere, or frivolous way—more often than we may realize. We use God's name in vain with little phrases such as, "Oh, my gosh!" We take God's name in vain when we use it for personal gain or to sell things. We use God's name in vain when we say, "Praise the Lord!" or "God bless you" when we don't really mean it.
God knows His name. He hears when we speak it. So let's not take it in vain; let's honor it instead.
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The Rapture is a Family Matter – Lambert Dolphin – www.ldolphin.org
Lately I am meeting some new friends by email who are interested in discussing the rapture of the church in more detail. The vast majority of the people in the world are disinterested in all this (to say the least), reflecting the fact that Jesus Christ is the most hated man who ever lived.
Brenda Peterson has written a light-hearted book, "I Want to be Left Behind: Finding Rapture Here on Earth." As a girl she attended a Southern Baptist evangelical church where she "accepted Jesus Christ as her personal Savior," and where she learned a lot of fine old hymns, whose titles make convenient chapter headings in her book. She has an obvious love of nature and for greener living, but further thoughts about the real, living God soon fade from consideration as one gets into her book.
At times, I, too, would like to escape from the ferenetic stressed-out life of the city, but then I am instantly reminded that nature is broken too, not just us people who live here on God's green earth.
"...if Christ is in you, the body is dead because of sin, but the Spirit is life because of righteousness. 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. Therefore, brethren, we are debtors--not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh. For if you live according to the flesh you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God. For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, “Abba, Father.” The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs--heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified together. For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us. For the earnest expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the sons of God. For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it in hope; because the creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation groans and labors with birth pangs together until now. Not only that, but we also who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, eagerly waiting for the adoption, the redemption of our body." (Romans 8:10-23)
Just a few years ago, it seemed to me that many churches oversimplified the gospel message. Jesus Christ, alive from the dead, does indeed offer himself to us as Savior, Lord, Friend and Lover. His ability to offer Himself to us so generously, so freely, is based on his own voluntary death by crucifixion, for each one of us. "...He Himself is the propitiation (Greek: hilasterion, http://www.raystedman.org/new-testament/romans/but-now), for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the whole world." (1 John 2:2) Ray Stedman explains that the issue of all human sin, for all time, has been paid for in full by Jesus Christ the Son of God,
Now, why does John say, "he is the expiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world?" Why does he put that in? Obviously he is drawing a contrast between Christians and non-Christians. He is reminding us that when the Lord Jesus died upon the cross 1900 years ago, he not only paid the debt of our sins, he not only took our guilt, as Christians, but he took the guilt of the whole world. He paid the price for every man. There is no man who will be kept away from God because of his sins, if he accepts the work of Christ on his behalf. Sin can never separate an individual from God, because of the cross of Christ. No matter how bad the sins, no matter how extreme it may be, or how long continued, sin can never separate anybody, anywhere, in any time, or any age, from the heart of God, if the work of the cross be received. That is the extent of the expiation mentioned here. But why does he remind us of that in this context? The answer is: It is to help us see ourselves.
Why is it that all the world is not reconciled to God? Why is it that these others, whose sins have been already settled for on the cross, are living in estrangement and hostility to the God who loves them and who seeks after them? Why is it that men are still defying God, and blaspheming God, and turning and running from him, and experiencing the death, darkness, and degradation that comes from not knowing? You know the answer: Because they will not believe him. They will not accept his forgiveness. He has forgiven them, but they have never forgiven him. As Paul puts it in Second Corinthians 5, "We are ambassadors for Christ, for God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them. Therefore, we beseech men, be ye reconciled to God," (2 Corinthians 5:20). We do not have to say to God, "be reconciled to men"; we are saying to men, "be ye reconciled to God," (2 Corinthians 5:20b KJV).
Now, that is the very same reason why we Christians are not enjoying the full flow of the Spirit of power, life, love, and wisdom, in our experience. It is all available to us, but we will not receive it. That is what John means. Like the world, we are turning our back on it. We are saying to God, "I'm not interested in cleansing because, you see, I really don't need it. After all, this is not a sin, it's simply a weakness, just an inherited tendency, something I got from my family. I can't help it." That kind of thing is cutting the ground out from under the whole redemptive work of Jesus Christ on our behalf. Though his power is all-available, it is not experienced because of that. Now let us bow before him. In a moment of quietness before God, let us confess this terrible tendency that each of us has unquestionably experienced, to rationalize sin, to excuse it, justify it, call it something else, doll it up, sprinkle perfume on it and make it look better, instead of calling it exactly what it is. Christ has found a way below, around, and above our circumstances. He can reach us despite the pressures; it is just that we do not want it. (http://www.raystedman.org/new-testament/1-john/the-man-who-rationalizes-sin).
The kind and quality of the boundless love Jesus offers us demands a wholehearted response from us. True, we have nothing to offer Him but ourselves, but that is exactly what He is asking from us. Our Lord is also offering each of us a place in his kingdom, and a place of intimacy with Him as well--as indicated by the symbols of heavenly Bridegroom courting and becoming one with his gentile, virgin Bride. (Never mind that the bride-to-be may have previously been a spiritual adulteress, or worse--the forgiveness package offered covers any and all kinds of sin. Only sinners need apply).
In spite of much pleading by God, and much love poured out on our generation, history has shown that only a small number of people are accepting the courtship offer God still offers mankind. The time period Jesus has been calling a Bride to Himself has now been about 2000 years. Many believed in Jesus after the Creation of the world but before the Flood of Noah. Most of the people of Israel have not as yet responded to the calling of their Messiah.
The offer of Jesus -- in the role of a Bridegroom seeking a Bride -- is not the whole story of God's love for the world. It is but one, one facet. Evangelism of the whole world will pick up again after the rapture of the church--with great power and conviction, but many of these last-minute converts will pay by experiencing their own immediate martyrdom. Trying to stay alive on earth for even a short time after the Rapture will involve a series of horrific, cascading nightmares whose primary purpose is to deal with layers of human evil and corruption which must be purged away before the rebuilding of earth can begin.
As noted by Paul in Romans 8, nature ("the creation") is fatally broken and running down and must be completely remade. Evil men who insist on running their lives by their own selfish rules must be dealt with by force; justice must be dispensed, the "unrighteous" of earth will find themselves soon evicted. They have been living on borrowed time and borrowed land. The Landlord wants His property back. Whole (holy) men and women need to will be housed in a holy place, in an all new-creation. Sin is terribly contagious and must be eradicated one step at a time, until we come to a time of a "new heavens and new earth." What will survive the coming great purges are the deeds God has done though His people.
In chapter after chapter, whole books of the Bible tell us what the future of life on earth will be like when Jesus Christ returns in power as Ruling King of all the nations (Psalm 2). We might wish for more detail, but there is actually plenty already written down for us by the ancients.
The big event called the "second coming" of Jesus is described in the New Testament by the use of the Greek words "parousia," and "epiphaneia." The first aspect of the return of Jesus, is popularly known as the rapture of the church. (See "Aspects of the Return of the Lord Jesus Christ," http://ldolphin.org/Return.html). After that event, history will move rapidly ahead to the visible appearing of Jesus Christ on the Mt. of Olives in Jerusalem. The Rapture may be largely unseen and unnoticed in the daily news but radical, major shifts in world, power will follow the rapture in short order. Bible buffs are quite busy tracking down the major shifts in the world one can see were foretold long ago in the Bible. We are already seeing a small foretaste of bad things to come down here on earth in recent months.
God surely grieves when men reject the gift He offers, yet for God the consent of a few to follow Him is apparently reward enough. Most of us know that the news media of our day do not usually report on those issues that are of major importance to God and His kingdom. Not many Christians may be leaving with us at the rapture, because many who say they are in the family of God, aren't. It is a wonderful topic to study and think about. The devil will soon cover up the exit from earth of that small band of "fundamentalists." Were they "merely" abducted by alien space ships? Probably it won't be all that big a deal to most of those who out to tidy by the gardens. As Ray Stedman noted above, unbelief is the biggest obstacle to our faith most all the time.
Back to the Rapture: All three Persons of the godhead are involved in the approaching and scheduled consummation of the 2000 year courtship story concerning the Lord Jesus Christ and his Bride, the true church. Like any good Jewish father, God the Father has carefully chosen each of us, and called us. He is taking the responsibility of preparing us to be THE Bride for His beloved son. We who are gentiles are being invited to marry into the Jewish family of Jesus. (But there are multitudes of Jews who are in the church as well). As a very rough guess I estimated that the true church (all believers in Christ since that Pentecost day which immediately followed the resurrection of Jesus), could easily be a billion people in number! Ten billion is a possibility.
Local churches, as described in the New Testament, are supposed to be families who take in the refugees of our fallen world. Imagine the diversity of persons in the finished church of Jesus Christ we are being invited into. The heavenly family of Jesus surely contains many children: orphans, throw-away kids, victims of abortion, war, disease. There will be old and wise folks in heaven and every age in between, all in different states of spiritual and emotional maturation (I would think). Part of growing up as humans is experiencing nurturing and receiving training and instruction in a family. Local churches are supposed to be doing as much of this as possible here and now, but I wonder how much healing-of-families goes hand in hand with the rapture?
The sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit (already mightily at work in all of us who know the Lord) is in making once derelict sinners into all-new godly men, woman and children. Jesus evidently looks forward to sharing a home with Him in the heavenly places (probably the orbiting City of New Jerusalem). At most weddings, the Bride is featured as the center of attraction. Although the Lord Jesus is the Most Honored One at this coming union with His Church, it should be obvious that every good wedding should involve a good match between Lover and Beloved, between Bride and Bridegroom. In this case the Holy Spirit (He is fully God in every respect) will surely know what wedding dowry is best suited for the virgin spouse of Jesus. Getting the Bride sanctified is a very tall order for which the Spirit of God has always been the Healer and the Giver of Life.
The Song of Solomon is a wonderful love study about a very plain peasant girl who receives a complete wedding endowment from the Spirit of God so that she arrives at her wedding day fully equipped to provide a wonderful match for a great King. Psalms 45 further hints at the union of the Lord and his church. See http://www.raystedman.org/daily-devotions/psalms/the-king-in-his-beauty, and "Love and Relationships, The Song of Solomon," http://ldolphin.org/relationships.html).
Ecosystems and infrastructure matter to man--one sees that in the way we were created in Genesis 1-2. I suppose heaven will have sanctuaries for shy persons, garden spaces, libraries, and plenty of comfort for each of us. Man was created last, after the rest of the created universe. God delights in variety, in gardens, in places for rest and meditation. Like C.S. Lewis, I hope heaven has room for our close animal companions from this life.
I think our immediate home after the Rapture is indeed the heavenly city of New Jerusalem, Revelation 21-22. The heavenly city seems to me to be a district in heaven, not the sum total of what the Third Heaven is). While we are waiting to go there, I hope some gifted artists and architects of our day might allow their sanctified imaginations to tell us what the City of God might be like? My earliest childhood thoughts of heaven hardly went further than thinking of fluffy clouds in an otherwise boring "place" free from sin, pain and sorrow. A few years ago while visiting Israel I found that was attractive to a simple, low-profile assignment in New Jerusalem, "For a day in Your courts is better than a thousand. I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God Than dwell in the tents of wickedness." (Psalm 84:10)
Knowing the one true God is about being in a very diverse family of men, women, boys and girls--all ages all backgrounds, all cultures, all callings. The Rapture is very much a family reunion where we are all on common ground. For some, God helps us find the right place in his cosmic family by sending us pain and grief. Hebrews 12 tells that all legitimate children of God are disciplined--even scourged. The list of those whom the father "scourges" includes Jesus. Getting us adjusted, and our brothers and sisters as well, may mean He must send us trials, tests and suffering. (I don't see heaven as a deserved reward for the righteous at all. I think it is the next big step God has for us to continue to enjoy being the objects of His love and grace. We each have a unique place in God's affections, but being a follower of Jesus is still a family matter.) The world around us could care less about everlasting happiness with Jesus, and this is very sad indeed. For now, there is still time to say "yes" to the healing love of Jesus. All who will may come.
"God is going to invade this earth in force. But what is the good of saying you are on His side then, when you see the whole natural universe melting away like a dream, and something else -- something it never entered your head to conceive -- comes crashing in; something so beautiful to some of us, and so terrible to others, that none of us will have any choice left? For this time it will be God without disguise; something so overwhelming that it will strike either irresistible love or irresistible horror into every creature.
"It will be too late then to choose your side. There is no use saying you choose to lie down when it has become impossible to stand up. That will not be the time for choosing; it will be the time when we discover which side we have really chosen, whether we realized it before or not. Now, today, this moment, is our chance to choose the right side. God is holding back, to give us that chance. It will not last forever. We must take it or leave it." (C.S. Lewis)
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Maranatha!
(Lord Come Quickly)
"On Christ the Solid Rock I Stand, All other ground is sinking sand."
"Let Us make the short time we have left count for all eternity!"
YBIC-Randy
