And a mouth was given to him. Revelation 13:5-10.

Without perspective, the world looks flat; well, it does.

Fortunately, we, through the scriptures, have a perspective that allows us to see narrow and broad views. We have also had adventurous explorers and astronauts who proved that the earth was NOT flat. Over the course of time, humanity has managed to launch crewed space vehicles, and those crews were able to look back at the ball-shaped world we live on, take pictures of it as it rotated, adding to the evidence that the earth is round. It was their perspective, or point of view, that allowed them to do that.

So, as we try to understand the Revelation, especially chapter 13:3-6, we must keep the context and

perspective in our thinking. I have mentioned, several times, through the last few posts, that the central focus of the Revelation (and hence, the perspective,) is the Middle East and the Mediterranean Ocean.

In God's perspective, the entire mystery, plan of redemption, and the millennial reign is centered around the land He promised Abraham. Perhaps it is about time we remembered, God has not and will never back away from that promise; and, He plans to set the New Jerusalem in that same area, which, by the way, is 1500 miles square; for you who use the metric system that is approximately 3885 kilometers squared.

At this point in time we have made it to Revelation 13:5-8. I will be surprised it gets beyond verse 8.

So what has been happening up to this point in chapter 13?

Then I (John, in this extremely vivid vision,)

stood on the sand of the sea (Both the sand and the sea are representative of the hordes of people that are descendants of Abraham, both from Ishmael and Isaac,)

and I saw a Beast rising out of the sea with ten horns and seven heads, ten diadems on his horns, and blasphemous titles on his heads. The Beast I saw resembled a leopard, his feet were like a bear's, and his mouth like a lion's (Pay attention here, as the beast is first the description of empires or kingdoms, and then, like a butterfly morphs into a man.)

To him the dragon gave his own power and his own throne and great authority (The dragon is Satan. Many, it would seem, have been given power and authority to perform atrocities.)

One of his heads looked as if it had been slain and killed, but the deadly wound was healed (There is NO man with multiple heads, but there are kingdoms. Try thinking in terms of a Caliphate and this might make more sense to you, as the Ottoman Caliphate, which was effectively killed in 1924 and yet resurrected in 1979 under the guise of the Islamic revolution fits this description well,)

and the whole earth went after him in wonder (If we attribute this description to Allah – a demonic entity which no one has seen, then this too makes more sense,)

worshiping the dragon for having given authority to the Beast, and worshiping the Beast with the cry, "Who is like the Beast? Who can fight with him?" (Since the so-called overthrow of Afghanistan, the Islamic world is crying out a similar message, who can fight against the Taliban, but the underlying motive for the Taliban is a strict reading and understanding of the Quran.)

(Revelation 13:1-4 Moffatt NT) [Italics are mine.]

Page one.

The information above is brief, and, it is information that I have covered in detail in my previous posts. (Read Daniel chapters 2:17-45; Chapter 7; 8:22-25; 9:26,27; 11:28-45; Chapter12)

We know who the first three of these beast/kings are: Nebuchadnezzar and the Babylonian empire, the Medo-Persian empire under the rule of Darius, and the Grecian empire under Alexander:s dominance. There is no immense gap in time as though we are awaiting the Roman empire to come along, as many would imply, for upon Alexander’s death four of his generals contended for power. Two victorious Grecian generals emerged, Seleucid in the North and Ptolemy in the South. It is those two empires and their integration with the Assyrian nations that still haunt us today.

Daniel expressly asks about the fourth beast. Daniel 7:19-23, and this is the answer he received.

“Then he said to me, “This fourth beast is the fourth world power that will rule the earth. It will be different from all the others. It will devour the whole world, trampling and crushing everything in its path.” (Daniel 7:23 NLT)

Is it possible that we are talking about the Roman empire?

Many Bible teachers would love to tell you that we are looking for the return of the Roman Empire as the beast that rises again, however, the bible itself tells us, in a variety of locations and ways, that it is NOT the Roman Empire. Read the description and try to tell me, that Roman empire is different from any other empire, as they have all been strong, devoured, and crushed their victims.

What if it is the Ottoman Caliphate, as I have pointed out, that took the provebial shot to the head, and, therefore, stood the greatest chance to comeback to life?

You should know that while the Ottoman empire is gone, many followers of Islam are pushing hard for the return to the rule of a Caliphate, and we may have seen the resurrection with the Islamic revolution of 1979.

What makes this empire different?

It is religiously driven. If you were paying attention one of the things the Taliban did after gaining control of Afghanistan, was to round up all the Christians and kill them. The Taliban leadership projected this slaughter to be complete by Friday, Sept 10, 2021. As a side note, they also went to the music academy in Kabul and destroyed all the musical instruments because the Quran does not allow for musical instruments either. We have never seen more vicious people that were religiously driven, and that makes them different.

How did I start this post?

By talking about having a perspective that is focused on the Middle East.

Is it possible that what we have seen happen in the Middle East can happen in America?

Absolutely, and because our government has masked and covered up what is going on, we have progressively been inundated with governmental decision-makers that hold to Sharia law. Many citizens of America refuse to see this. Here is a couple websites to enlighten you to the subtle changes happening to our governing bodies.

Summary of H.Res. 576: Recognizing Islam as "one of the great religions of the world.". https://www.govtrack.us/congress/bills/117/hres576/summary

I am told that Islam is an ideology and not a religion, but it does not matter.

Another website points out the Muslims elected in 2020.
https://deplorablekel.com/category/islam-in-the-u-s/muslim-candidates-2020/

The idea behind showing you this information is NOT to promote hatred, but you need to know that the Quran demands Jihad against those who do not follow Islam. The triggers for these attacks is often associated with hate messages from an Imam at a local Mosque.

Page two.

How long before this all turns against the citizens of this country, like it has in Britain?

The point here is, we are in the last days and America will fall; you have been watching it happen.

Why tell you any of this?

Because scripture starts off talking about a beast with four heads, which represents kingdoms, and then redirects our attention to a singular entity, and refers to that entity as him. As if you needed more puzzle pieces, the four-headed oddity and the man is both referred to as the beast.

Back to the verse at hand where we find a clue that might answer the question as to who or what we are looking at, and how we might expect this particular beast to act.

Revelation 13:5-6 NASB There was given to him a mouth speaking arrogant words and blasphemies and authority to act for forty-two months was given to him. (6) And he opened his mouth in blasphemies against God, to blaspheme His name and His tabernacle, that is, those who dwell in heaven.

If I am looking at one of the heads of this four-headed beast, then according to Revelation 13:5, there has to be a spokesperson, “a mouth” that is assigned to speak on behalf of the beast.

Common sense tells you that this mouth should be a politically correct diplomat, because that is what kingdoms who want to survive in the global marketplace, do. But NOT this person and NOT this empire. (You may have noticed that I am trying to be socially correct and NOT refer to this “mouth” as a man, because several women have held positions as diplomats, like Nikki Haley, the former governor of South Carolina. Try as I may, I am wasting my time because the Muslims will never accept a woman in leadership, nor will they accept an infidel.)

What if the mouth is NOT the spokesperson of an Islamic nation? 

Then this “mouth,” who you would think would be in opposition to a leadership mired in money lust, strangely speaks in admiration of the “kingdom.” The dynamics surrounding the antichrist - the mouthpiece then change, and none of this makes much sense.

Could I focus on a broader picture, like the Assyrians - an entity that is difficult to define and yet contains subsets of most Islamic groups?

This too opens the door to an Islamic spokesperson. We heard our, former American president, Barack Obama, on many occasions, speak longingly of the Islamic religion. Keep this in mind, Revelation 13:5 tells us he speaks arrogant words and blasphemies.

A collection of interesting words.

Arrogant is the Greek word megas and means great, numerous, large in size, and too much. It is becoming increasingly apparent that this guy talks too much.

Blasphemies - it seems that few truly knows what this means, as many Pastors will lead you to believe that your sins - a blasphemy of God, would prevent you from entering heaven.

An excellent definition came one day as Jesus cast the demons out of a possessed child, only to have the Pharisees and scribes accuse Him of casting out demons by the power of Satan (Beelzebub.) Jesus, responded angrily to them because they had crossed the line by attributing the things and power of God to Satan. Since there are NO other gods, then attributing the things of God and the power of God, to Allah – a god of Satan's creation, should be a blaphemy, don't you think?

Blasphemy is the Greek word blasphēmia and means to vilify or slander.

To vilify is to attempt to defame someone, while slander adds to the act of vilifying by attempting to injure by maliciously uttering a false report respecting another person. The two words are so similar.

Page three.

This “mouth” or spokesperson is attempting to defame and injure God, Jesus, and anyone who follows Him, by uttering a false report. Right now, in America, we are coming to the point of vilifying conservatives and Christian conservatives by saying that we are cause of Covid 19 spreading when in reality it is the globalist agenda and those who pursue that agenda, that have spread this lousy flu, so that they can shove their “vaccine” into you.

Even though this mouth only goes on for 42 months so many horrendous things will be happening, as none of this begins, in earnest, until the church is removed from the earth.

And watch what the next verse brings.

Revelation 13:7 NASB It was also given to him to make war with the saints and to overcome them, and authority over every tribe and people and tongue and nation was given to him.

This spokesperson is now making war with the saints, just as the Taliban made war with their bullets and short swords against the saints in Afghanistan and overcame them,.

These saints are some of the martyred that John saw in heaven. When the wrath of God begins, anyone who dies for following after Jesus becomes one of the martyred saints.

How is it possible that this spokesperson gains “authority over every tribe and people and tongue and nation”?

Because he is part of the globalists plan for world domination, at least for 42 months, then, with the cooperation of Muslim nations warfare will erupt against anyone who is not a Muslim; and, there are Muslims in every nation.

Revelation 13:8 NASB All who dwell on the earth will worship him, everyone whose name has not been written from the foundation of the world in the book of life of the Lamb who has been slain.

If I can picture a Muslim antichrist, then I can understand better why “all” will worship him. It is definitely NOT all, but a vast number.

Worship is the Greek word proskyneō. We have seen this before in a previous post. It means to do reverence or homage by kissing the hand, to do reverence or homage by prostration, to pay divine homage.

If I go back to Revelation 13:4, we see “the whole earth” worshiping the dragon because he gave his authority to the beast; and hence they gave reverence and allegiance to the beast. God's commandment about worshiping Him only can be seen in Deuteronomy 6:13,14. This is the passage from which Jesus constructed His response to Satan. So the "world's " worship of the beast must be especially annoying to God.

"You shall fear only the LORD your God; and you shall worship Him and swear by His name. "You shall not follow other gods, any of the gods of the peoples who surround you,” 

(Deuteronomy 6:13-14 NASB)

Notice how Revelation 13:8 tells us that the only ones worshiping the antichrist, are those whose names ARE NOT written in the Lamb's book of life. Their names being written happened before the foundation of the world, and it is only God's projection of a future event, your coming to Him, that would prompt Him to write your name down. 

It is uncomfortable writing someting like this, as I am aware that I am projecting my humanity into the equation, and God does not have to respond to our frailties, although I have seen the evidence that He does.

Page four.

• "Everyone whose name is written in the Lamb's book of life,"

Even during the time of wrath, people are sealed, not as the 144,000 who are protected from the locusts with the scorpion like tails, and though sealed by the Holy Spirit of God they are still subject to death and the pains of the time period. 

Honestly, I am not sure I grasp this, but it is clear that we are dealing with the time of wrath. 

Many would tell you that only sinners go through the time of wrath, but it is becoming clear that this is not the case. 

In the paragraphs below I talk about the ten virgins. 

VIRGINS, how many implications can a person read into this word, and yet half of the number invited missed the call to come to the wedding. 

There is a correlation between this event and call for the church home to be with Jesus.

• If their names ARE written in the Lamb's book of Life, why then did they not go up in the rapture?

Even after the rapture, people still come into relationship with Jesus Christ, and it could be that this is a huge clue. Unfortunately, even this logic fails because God knew what they would do and therefore wrote their names in the book before the earth was made. So, I am still stuck with the question.

Consider the ten virgins of Matthew 25. 

All were virgins, and because of that one might think they all had their names in the Lamb's book of Life. 

They all got the same invitation, so none were judged for anything; and yet, 50% of them did not make it in. 

What did those 50% do differently?

We assume they all had the same opportunity to check their lamps. But then, seeing as they did not know the exact time or the hour when the bridegroom would call them to the wedding, perhaps it was one of those waiting until the last minute things. 

We assume they all had the knowledge and insight to trim their wicks, but to the 50% it was not that important. 

We assume they have oil, and if not had plenty of time to obtain more; but 50% of them did nothing to prepare.

When we read the story of the ten virgins, do we see any condemnation from the Father?

The answer is NO, but we assume there is, as the alternative to going into the wedding is to endure what you will be exposed to on the outside; in this case it is the wrath of God. I must think on this.

Why else would God have this story brought to our attention?

Maybe there is more to the story than we thought. 

Maybe their names were written in the book of life knowing that they would go through something that was not meant for God's children. How is that even possible, and yet is seems that many will go through the wrath.

Maybe God is more merciful than we have been led to believe.

Where then does this presumed condemnation come from?

From the reader. We impose all varieties of guilt and foolishness to the five who did not make into the wedding.

Have you ever asked, why didn't they merely follow those who had light?

I would have.

Page five.

Revelation 13:9 NASB If anyone has an ear, let him hear.

What a strange statement. We all have ears, but assuredly, we do not all hear.

The phrase “an ear' is the Greek word ous and means the obvious, but there is a catch as it can also apply to mental perception.

If you are not hearing from God or His Word, then you either have a veil over your eyes from the enemy, which in many cases has to do with some activity of your choosing that affronts God; or, you merely choose not to hear.

Here in California, at the time of this writing, we have one more day to vote to remove our Governor from office and put someone else in his place. A person close to the family is simply going to let the vote just slide by and, therefore, either eliminate the necessity of making an informed decision, or they are declining just so that they can throw their left leaning ideals in our faces. To do nothing, much like the agnostic, is making a choice for the opposition; this person has ears, but they refuse to face facts and consequences. (By the way, the majority voted to keep the man, who for a time, locked us out of our churches. The saddest part of this, is that the majority, giving into the propaganda, believed that the only one capable of displacing the Governor was going to kill us by taking away a mask mandate. He was not taking away your lousy mask, he was merely giving you the choice to wear one, and I believe we should all have a choice.)

Revelation 13:10 CJB "If anyone is meant for captivity, into captivity he goes! If anyone is to be killed with the sword, with the sword he is to be killed!" This is when God's holy people must persevere and trust!

Focus on the context and don't get lost in the words, as we are dealing with the time of wrath. So when something like this gets said, the words apply to events within the time period known as God's wrath (or the tribulation, for those who will not read their bibles.)

Could the possibility of being killed or captured apply to things outside of the “tribulation”?

Yes, but because humanity will continue to do depraved things to other people; this happens because the others are of a different religion, practice a religion, have a different skin color, or whatever suits the need for the day. What we see, on a daily basis, is groups like Boko Haran, or the Taliban (ISIS), killing Christians as they go to church,  meet in church, or identify as a Christian.

• “If anyone is to be killed with the sword, with the sword he is to be killed.”

What this says to me is that though many may think they can fight back, they will be killed in the manner they chose, most often by return fire. The Holy Spirit is giving you a heads up, though you may take out many of those you deem the enemy, you will die or go into captivity.

Take note: captivity is certainly going to happen during this time period. I wonder who will take the Christians captive? It is beginning to be quite obvious that the government will be a major player in taking us captive; it is happening already in Australia.

I used the Complete Jewish Bible for my translation of this verse. I appreciate how the verse ends; “This is when God's holy people must persevere and trust!”

Who are God's holy people?

The Jews. 

I can, by extension, apply these words to those who come to Jesus during the time of wrath as well, as they would be deemed to be grafted into the vine. No doubt there are some who upon reading this who will say, then why didn't God just rapture them up to heaven and bypass the horrors down here. Because, this is all happening after the catching away of the church, and the time of grace is up. It was almost as though we had a free ride for a while, now, you get to prove your love and affection for God with your life.

So God's admonition is, “This is when God's holy people must persevere and trust!”

Persevere, in it's simplest form, is to hold on.

Confidence is a reliance or resting the mind on the integrity of the Father.

I wrtite these things because I do not want you to have to go through the time of wrath. If you are a follower of Christ and actively waiting for His return for His bride, then you will escape the wrath. If not, then admit that you are a sinner and that you need His love and mercy for your life. Honestly give your life to Jesus, and you will be a Son of the Father.

A sincere and unqualified faith. 2 Timothy 1:5.

 It seems that I have been in 1 Timothy for months, and I need a break, but as I sit here pondering whether to go on and dive into 2 Timothy, which has a wealth of depth in it, my heart feels a strong need to jump back into the Revelation. This compulsion to study the Revelation once again has much to do with the political agenda, the globalists and their efforts to reduce the surface population (as Scrooge said,) and the overall violent nature of the environment in which we live.

Having said all that, I took a quick dip into one verse in 2 Timothy, so here goes.

I am calling up memories of your sincere and unqualified faith (the leaning of your entire personality on God in Christ in absolute trust and confidence in His power, wisdom, and goodness), [a faith] that first lived permanently in [the heart of] your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice and now, I am [fully] persuaded, [dwells] in you also. (2 Timothy 1:5 AMPC)

In my mind’s eye, I see myself writing to Christians, who, like myself, have had to endure false teachers and therefore ended up with some tainted ideas about God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit. After almost 15 years of looking into the Word of God and growing with you, I find I have readers all over the world. If there is one, the problem is that I don’t know you, so how could I call up memories of you?

I would, however, know you if we, through, say, battle, have come to build a bond, a bond which demonstrated your real heart, your courage, willingness to endure hardships, and proven that you have my back as I have yours.

How do we know Paul had Timothy’s back?

I thank God Whom I worship with a pure conscience, in the spirit of my fathers, when without ceasing I remember you night and day in my prayers, And when, as I recall your tears, I yearn to see you so that I may be filled with joy. (2 Timothy 1:3-4 AMPC)

Along with so many others, this young man was always on his mind, and he constantly prayed for Timothy.

But what specifically did Paul think about?

The sincere and unqualified faith that Timothy demonstrated. Having spent some time in the faith movement, where faith is primarily evidenced by your “Godly” reaction to negative issues, this can include a simple cold, a horrific injury, or financial matters. A man I admired, upon hearing you describe what was going on in your life, would immediately approach you and ask, may I pray for you. In my mind, this is a demonstrated faith, which has NOTHING to do with results.

Alright, let’s talk about expected results for a moment. What did Jesus say to his disciples?

“These signs will accompany those who have believed: in My name they will cast out demons, they will speak with new tongues; they will pick up serpents, and if they drink any deadly poison, it will not hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.” (Mark 16:17-18 NASB)

If you have believed in Jesus’ name, then things should and will happen.

• They will – cast out demons.

• They will – as the ERV states, speak in languages they never learned.

  I have primarily understood this to be languages that the Holy Spirit gives me, and there have been many. The problem I had and many have spoken of similar experiences, is that some ancient person (and some would say that I am now one) who would speak out in their “tongue” to the church body would hover about you and essentially tell you what sounds to make. For years I floundered in that backroom experience and did not understand anything about it; that is until I read this passage.

  But you, beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit, (Jude 1:20 NASB)

  After hearing about this, I understood that I was building myself up, on the inside, by praying in the Holy Spirit; this understanding had nothing to do with impressing people or scoring more points to improve my position in heaven.

• They will - lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.

  Our command, directive, admonition, is to lay hands on the sick; and then what happens to them? They recover. The Word Study Dictionary tells us that recover means to have and hold, implying continued possession. Ah, but hold what? The obvious answer would be that to which you held before but now, no longer hold, such as health. Within the faith movement, many hold on to wealth; they stake this claim based upon God’s promises to Abraham and his descendants. I suppose we forget that much of Abraham’s wealth was wrapped up in sheep and camels, so enjoy that.

  If I may, this command does not imply that the result has anything to do with our actions or faith. Of course, it takes faith to open your mouth and ask that person if you could pray for them, but beyond that, the action that takes place in the life of the sick person falls entirely upon God’s mercy.

  One last thing. If I wanted to thwart God’s plan to heal, and therefore, touch people’s lives, then I would do something so drastic that just the mention imparts fear and separates the “believers” from those who need help. Can you now see how something like a human-made creation, such as COVID 19, which has everyone cringing in fear, attempting to sterilize their hands at every turn, maintaining a minimum of six feet away from others, and wearing a mask over your nose and mouth could further impair your sense of reason and ability to communicate while adding to your fear.

• What does scripture say?

  But now, thus says the LORD, your Creator, O Jacob, And He who formed you, O Israel, “Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name; you are Mine! “When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; And through the rivers, they will not overflow you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be scorched, Nor will the flame burn you. (Isaiah 43:1-2 NASB)

  Yeah, well, I noticed that the COVID 19 escaped His attention, there in Isaiah, so now what?

  For this reason also, God highly exalted Him and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus EVERY KNEE WILL BOW, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. (Philippians 2:9-11 NASB)

  And while this may be a shock to your system, COVID is nothing but a name, and it too will bow its pathetic knee to the name of Jesus.

  The unbelievable aspect of these statements is how quickly we as followers of the living God have forgotten how much He cares for us and who we are.

Since we only know about Timothy based upon Paul’s words, how do we comprehend what Paul is trying to say in his description of this young man?

Note that I used the Amplified Bible; I did so because it expounds, with accuracy, about the alternative meanings of the Greek and Hebrew, and that is what they have done here. So it is the passage itself that reveals the key in the success of young Timothy, as this sincere and unqualified faith is “the leaning of your entire personality on God in Christ in absolute trust and confidence in His power, wisdom, and goodness.”

I asked my wife to read this and tell me if I made any sense. I do this because I know I am prone to type faster than my mind can crank out the words and leave out entire descriptive sentences. She did just that and then asked me why I included anything about Benny Hinn.

I may or may not have expounded upon a video log by Chelsi Bedell in a previous post, in which she described going to a “Christian conference.” After a short time, the audience was introduced to Benny Hinn (apparently, the speaker is the son-in-law of Benny.) I have been aware of Benny Hinn for years now, and I always thought the man was nothing less than a religious charlatan who raked in money from little old ladies like my mother.

Since Paul told Timothy to speak to those who had money about how it was a trap and not to love it, I can see where some of Benny’s problems came from. He divorced the wife he swore he would never leave in 2010 and for many in the religious world, this is an unbearable injustice. I have since learned that he remarried Suzanne three years later. From: www.ugchristiannews.com “Benny explained how his ministry schedule affected his marriage. “In my case, it was family and the stress of ministry and being too busy. I didn’t pay attention to Suzanne’s pain. That’s what caused our problem. And then Suzanne having to struggle with what was happening to our family,” he added...” It goes on, but having spent some time in recovery, I do not see any ownership of what happened, so I still don’t trust the man.

Chelsi Bedell told us that Benny said coming to Christ is easy; remaining a Christian is difficult. Chelsi said, I knew there was something wrong with this man immediately, and there may be, but that is not the point here. Having looked at what Paul said about Timothy, I can see how Benny, and so many more of us, are NOT leaning our entire personality on God in Christ in absolute trust and confidence in His power, wisdom, and goodness.

Honestly, that is a mouthful. It is much like going to a buffet - if you can still find one. There are so many choices, things I rarely get to eat, and I want a piece of everything. Yes, this is a bizarre way of relating to this life we signed up for when we became Christians. Upon learning of things, such as the fruits of the spirit - self-control or patience, I want it all, along with the potential changes they can bring to my life, I want it all now.

I cannot remember being able to take in more than a couple of God’s menu items at any one time, and, though, over time, I have become better at this leaning into God, there is never some aspect of life that I don’t mess up. A generalized way of saying this is, I sin, in little ways, frequently, but then so do you, so don’t get all judgmental on me. Some would say that I deserve to burn in hell’s flames for sinning, but they forget that OUR debts were wholly paid for on the cross of Jesus. However, his act of putting himself on that cross did not give us automatic freedom; we had to accept it by faith.

As used by the Amplified Bible, the word absolute, to define Timothy’s devotion might be a stretch, as Timothy lived in the same world I live in, and he too was broken by sin. At best, I can see Timothy, just like me, working at it daily.

Hopefully, someone out there looks at your life and says, “when without ceasing I remember you night and day in my prayers,” I remember that God is working in your life in unique ways. I know you don’t always see it, as you are standing so close to the flame, but it’s there. You had my back when I needed it, and hopefully, you realize that I had yours.

This God we serve is larger than anything we can understand, and since you cannot measure the ever-expanding universe, it is safe to say that His mercy is like that, unsearchable and overwhelming at times. Trust me, here on this earth; we will never be able to wrap our minds around that mercy.

Do everything you can to place yourself so deeply in His love that the world disappears; Enoch did that very thing, and he walked off the earth and into the Father’s arms.

I long for the day, and it will come sooner than you think.

Here it is, April 4, 2020, and I feel a strong compulsion to address fear.

We are surrounded by negativity and fear.

The daily news is feeding into the fear by amplifying aspects of the most recent virus while inflating the death tolls.

What am I talking about?
What we now call Covid 19, and what it has done to global populations.

Here in America, we are supposed to be on home quarantine. Obviously, some could care less.

We have yet, at the time of this writing, to be put on mandatory facial mask usage, and we can still go out to the store for groceries, if necessary. I, personally, have not experienced the lines and mazes, as stores now monitor the number of people that enter, all to maintain “social distancing.”

Watching my pastor on YouTube this morning, he spoke of something that I had made a note of several days ago, as we encounter those in the market, who have masks on, there is an immediate reaction that says, this person is very fearful, or, they are a threat. This last aspect became vital to me about a week ago, as I stood in a self check out line at Walmart. In the next line, approximately eight feet away from me, a lady began to cough repeatedly. I looked to see her inadvertently form a cone with her hand, to do what, direct whatever she was hacking up toward me. I thought, how obnoxious. The ladies behind me and I wished that she was wearing a mask.

This self quarantining, along with mandatory closures of our Churches, has done a great job of adding to the fear.
My wife recently asked me, aren't you afraid of touching surfaces. I responded with, no more than I have ever been, and yet, for all I know, I have never contracted a hideous disease from grabbing a shopping cart. Now I have been entirely disgusted, particularly when some non-caring employee wipes the seat of a chair and then the tabletop.

Recently, before we got excluded from all sit-down restaurants, we went to a small one, that had, at least, closed off every other table to maintain some distance between customers. This particular place is small and always packed. I touched my hand to the tabletop and found it to be sticky no matter where I put my hand. My wife told me, as though she had seen them do it, that they had installed too much resin in the epoxy. Garbage, they did a lousy job of cleaning.

It would seem that we are naive, believing whatever they tell us or we are being lied to.
I just learned that Bill Gates attended a conference in New York, last October, to talk about this very thing, and yet nothing was done to stop it. This was about the same time that the Wuhan/Covid virus was beginning to be talked about.
We all assumed that this stupid disease, much like bird flu, would stay there, but it did not. I have since learned that the author, Dean Koontz, was writing about this very thing, as far back as 1985 in one of his action novels.
Many have spoken of how this so-called virus was intentionally weaponized, and that the Chinese, whom the United States had applied many tariffs, to get them to comply with reason, may have done this deliberately, as the Chinese are now scooping up businesses and properties in Italy – who is next.
It turns out that the powering up of 5G antennas in and around Wuhan may have initiated this disease, as 5G cell towers have been proven to have detrimental effects on living things, and they cause cell disruptions to the point that the cells produce fatal toxins in the body.
It is also possible that the 5G towers can cause these deadly toxins to exude from our bodies in an aerosol form; hence, they now believe that the act of breathing can make us deadly to others around us.

I opened by saying this all feeds into the fear.
Until recently, I had no idea about the ramifications of the 5G cell towers, and they are everywhere at this point.

So, did my naivety leave me fearless?
Are you kidding me? I have been battling with fear my entire life, and sadly, I suspect that many of you have as well.

Is there a Biblical response to this Fear?
Absolutely. Let's start with this.

Isaiah 43:1 NASB But now, thus says the LORD, your Creator, O Jacob, And He who formed you, O Israel, "Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name; you are Mine!

Many translations say, Fear Not, that is not so easy to do, especially when you are getting hit from multiple directions at the same.

God is not asking us NOT to Fear. He is telling us, directly, why?
The answer is in the passage, and the passage tells us, because He redeemed us, and called us, personally, by our names, and we are His.

If you were passing by, would this work for you? Probably not, for it seems as if something more is needed, and that is precisely why the Apostle Paul spoke this prayer over the church in Rome, and recorded it in Romans 15:13. It goes like this.

I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit. (NLT)

If God went to the trouble of learning our names, regardless of what we would do, calling us personally, and then redeeming us; then He surely wanted us to have an expectation that someday all the promises he made to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and then us, were going to come to pass, and that they applied to us as well. All this means that NO MATTER what happens and what becomes of us, we will be secured in His hands, with Him, forever.

Does this make facing tough times easier? Perhaps not.

Have you ever seen the movie Braveheart? 
I bring this up because, in the movie, common men had to steel themselves and encourage themselves to fight. There was no doubt that some would die in these battles, but to do nothing meant certain death. I don't know that we are in that position as yet; and, I am not sure that I can tell you what to do if we were, but I do know that we are called to pray, and as I have stated on previous occasions, pray as if your life depended upon it.

God is NOT telling us to take up swords and fight; this becomes clear when you read this.

“Put away your sword,” Jesus told him. “Those who use the sword will die by the sword.” Matthew 26:52 NLT 

Then what do we fight with?

We use God’s mighty weapons, not worldly weapons, to knock down the strongholds of human reasoning and to destroy false arguments. 2 Corinthians 10:4 NLT 

We pray!

Jesus told us, in Matthew 24:8, that the things we have been seeing are the beginning of birth pains.

Do birth pains go on for years?
Perhaps on God's timeline, but take note that He is using human language so that these birth pains can be understood in relatively human terms. The ceremoniously religious will tell you that we can't know when Jesus is coming for His church; they will even quote where Jesus said, no man, not even the Son, knows the day or the hour, but they leave off the part about how He was answering a Jewish question, in a manner that His audience would understand. Those hearing these words that Jesus spoke, knew how the new moon would be here and detectable, on either, one expected day or the other, depending upon the cloud cover; and, if it could not be seen, then the high priest would declare the beginning of the new month because it should be here.
Can you see the variability in this?

 Not knowing the day or the hour is a relative thing, and anyone, with half a brain, understood approximately when the new moon would arrive. Jesus, however, said nothing, at this point, about not knowing the season, and folks, we are in it, neck-deep.

This entire scenario that we are in was created to migrate us into a much larger, full-scale operation.

Do people like Boris Johnson, the Prime minister of Britain, have to end up in the ICU at the hospital in order for the scenario to play itself out? 
Apparently.

The closure of Churches is not a coincidence, and yes, you can scream at me all day about the health reasons, but I have had to make ventures to Walmart, and trust me on this, it is scarier there than in church.

What's the biggest difference between Walmart and the church?
In the church, we pray for each other because the Bible tells us that the prayer of faith will heal them.

What if what is going on around us, was meant to draw you away from God?
Are you going to let that happen? Are you going to live in fear?
Why would you do that when scripture tells us that anything not done in faith is fear, and fear, is missing the mark (sin.)

Here is how you are to live in these last days.

“... And live peacefully with each other.

Brothers and sisters, we urge you to

warn those who are lazy.

Encourage those who are timid.

Take tender care of those who are weak.

Be patient with everyone.

See that no one pays back evil for evil,

but

always try to do good to each other and to all people.

Always be joyful.

Never stop praying.

Be thankful in all circumstances,

for

this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus."

(1 Thessalonians 5:13-18 NLT)