Supreme Court Tells Congress to Do its Job
William – February 20, 2026
Jesse Jackson Assumes Room Temperature
William – February 17, 2026
Why Abolitionists are the New CRA
William – February 13, 2026
Promises to Abraham Past or Future
I was going to write a single blog post of the topic of Zionism and America, but the task is just too darn long, so I am opting to break it into smaller pieces. Each part will stand on its own. I don’t know how consistent that I will be working on this, but right now I feel like getting it started.
My purpose in writing this is to prove that most of what Evangelical Christians claim as future prophecy was fulfilled long ago and thus their worldview is hopelessly broken. Perhaps a few will be honest enough to look at the source material and believe it once their presuppositions have been shown to be faulty.
First up is the issue of God’s promises to Abraham. Lest you think this is just a theoretical exercise, check out this article.
[Mike] Huckabee also defended the historical and theological claim that present day Israel is the Israel of the Bible, as have GOP U.S. Senators Ted Cruz of Texas and Lindsey Graham of South Carolina. Huckabee said the Bible would justify Israel’s seizing territory in the Middle East from the Euphrates River in Iraq to the Nile in Egypt.
Huckabee Defends Pollard Meeting, Says God Promised Israel the Entire Middle East
As he did during his testy exchange with Cruz, Carlson pressed Huckabee on the meaning of Genesis 15:18: “To thy seed will I give this land, from the river of Egypt even to the great river Euphrates.”
That would include the “entire Middle East,” including Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, and Saudi Arabia, Carlson said. In other words, whole countries.
“It would be a big piece of land,” Huckabee agreed:
“But here’s the point. … This particular area that we’re talking about now, Israel, is a land that God gave through Abraham to a people that he chose. It was a people, a place, and a purpose. We can look at it that way.”
Carlson insisted that Huckabee explain what “land” he meant. “Does Israel have the right to that land? Because you’re appealing to Genesis, you’re saying that’s the original deed?” Carlson asked.
Huckabee: “It would be fine if they took it all.”
- What are the promises that God made to Abram?
- Were these promises fulfilled?
- Is the modern nation of Israel biblically relevant?
God’s first promise to Abram is when Abram was called by the Lord.
Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I will shew thee: And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing: And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.
Genesis 12:1–3.
I plan to have more to say on portions of this passage in a later post. In Genesis 15, God makes a covenant with Abram. Later God changes his name to Abraham.
Here is the first promise, Abram’s seed (descendants) will be as numerous as the stars.
And, behold, the word of the LORD came unto him, saying, This shall not be thine heir; but he that shall come forth out of thine own bowels shall be thine heir. And he brought him forth abroad, and said, Look now toward heaven, and tell the stars, if thou be able to number them: and he said unto him, So shall thy seed be. And he believed in the LORD; and he counted it to him for righteousness.
Genesis 15:4–6.
The next promise that God gave Abram was a land grant. The caveat was that the land could not be inherited for four hundred years. This is a prophecy of the captivity in Egypt.
And he said unto Abram, Know of a surety that thy seed shall be a stranger in a land that is not theirs, and shall serve them; and they shall afflict them four hundred years; And also that nation, whom they shall serve, will I judge: and afterward shall they come out with great substance. And thou shalt go to thy fathers in peace; thou shalt be buried in a good old age. 16 But in the fourth generation they shall come hither again: for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet full.
Genesis 15:13–16.
Later, the land grant is given more specifically.
In the same day the LORD made a covenant with Abram, saying, Unto thy seed have I given this land, from the river of Egypt unto the great river, the river Euphrates:
Genesis 15:18.
So, God in Genesis chapters 12 to 15 made Abraham three promises, That he would have many offspring, that the nations of the earth would be blessed, and that a parcel of land would be given.
When God late announces that Abram will be the father of Isaac, he changes his name to Abraham and his wife then becomes Sarah.
As for me, behold, my covenant is with thee, and thou shalt be a father of many nations. Neither shall thy name any more be called Abram, but thy name shall be Abraham; for a father of many nations have I made thee. And I will make thee exceeding fruitful, and I will make nations of thee, and kings shall come out of thee. And I will establish my covenant between me and thee and thy seed after thee in their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be a God unto thee, and to thy seed after thee. And I will give unto thee, and to thy seed after thee, the land wherein thou art a stranger, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession; and I will be their God.
Genesis 17:4–8.
Nations Blessed
Per the New Testament, the ultimate fulfillment of the world being blessed by the seed of Abraham was found in Jesus Christ.
Now to Abraham and his seed were the promises made. He saith not, And to seeds, as of many; but as of one, And to thy seed, which is Christ. Galatians 3:16.
Land Promise
Later, the land promise is affirmed to Josua.
Every place that the sole of your foot shall tread upon, that have I given unto you, as I said unto Moses. From the wilderness and this Lebanon even unto the great river, the river Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites, and unto the great sea toward the going down of the sun, shall be your coast.
Joshua 1:3–4.
Joshua, at the end of his life gives a different description of the Promised Land.
And ye have seen all that the LORD your God hath done unto all these nations because of you; for the LORD your God is he that hath fought for you. Behold, I have divided unto you by lot these nations that remain, to be an inheritance for your tribes, from Jordan, with all the nations that I have cut off, even unto the great sea westward. And the LORD your God, he shall expel them from before you, and drive them from out of your sight; and ye shall possess their land, as the LORD your God hath promised unto you.
Joshua 23:3–5.
When Joshua died, Israel controlled both sides of the Jordan River to the Mediterranean Sea. That seems a far cry from the Euphrates.
Now therefore fear the LORD, and serve him in sincerity and in truth: and put away the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the flood, and in Egypt; and serve ye the LORD.
Joshua 24:14.
However, what is the “other side of the flood”? Oh, wow! It’s the Euphrates River. So the promise was fulfilled just as God had promises Abraham.
But wait, there’s more.
David smote also Hadadezer, the son of Rehob, king of Zobah, as he went to recover his border at the river Euphrates.
2 Samuel 8:3.
King David recovered his border at the Euphrates River.
For he [Solomon] had dominion over all the region on this side the river, from Tiphsah even to Azzah, over all the kings on this side the river: and he had peace on all sides round about him.
1 Kings 4:24.
Solomon ruled it too. So, Israel conquered the land to the Euphrates and held it for many years.
And the LORD gave unto Israel all the land which he sware to give unto their fathers; and they possessed it, and dwelt therein. And the LORD gave them rest round about, according to all that he sware unto their fathers: and there stood not a man of all their enemies before them; the LORD delivered all their enemies into their hand. There failed not ought of any good thing which the LORD had spoken unto the house of Israel; all came to pass.
Joshua 21:43–45.
Offspring as the Stars
Their children also multipliedst thou as the stars of heaven, and broughtest them into the land, concerning which thou hadst promised to their fathers, that they should go in to possess it.
Nehemiah 9:23.
Thy fathers went down into Egypt with threescore and ten persons; and now the LORD thy God hath made thee as the stars of heaven for multitude.
Deuteronomy 10:22.
Conclusion
God fulfilled all the promises made to Abraham.
Blessed be the LORD, that hath given rest unto his people Israel, according to all that he promised: there hath not failed one word of all his good promise, which he promised by the hand of Moses his servant.
1 Kings 8:56.
The Old Covenant is over and decisively so in 70 A.D; God divorced Israel, the Great Harlot, Babylon where Christ was crucified. Beginning at Pentecost, God took a new people from Israel, starting with a remnant. Later Gentiles were grafted into the cultivated olive tree (Israel). A new assembly (ecclesia) of New Testament believers arose during the last days of Israel. This is the new bride of Christ, the Church. Thus, the Church is the true Israel, the offspring of Abraham and Jacob.
Not as though the word of God hath taken none effect. For they are not all Israel, which are of Israel: Neither, because they are the seed of Abraham, are they all children: but, In Isaac shall thy seed be called. That is, They which are the children of the flesh, these are not the children of God: but the children of the promise are counted for the seed.
Romans 9:6–8.
Know ye therefore that they which are of faith, the same are the children of Abraham. And the scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the heathen through faith, preached before the gospel unto Abraham, saying, In thee shall all nations be blessed. So then they which be of faith are blessed with faithful Abraham.
Galatians 3:7–9.
And if ye be Christ’s, then are ye Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.
Galatians 3:29.
Maintaining the land promised to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob was contingent of obedience of God’s Covenant. Moses and Joshua both knew that eventually Israel would disobey and be taken to foreign lands as punishment. A remnant would eventually return, and they were. In the final days, Israel chose Caesar over Christ. “We have no king but Caesar” and then “His blood be upon us and our children.” Jesus told them that their house would be left to them desolate and not one stone would be left upon another but by then their fate was sealed.
Huckabee, Cruz, Graham, and the rest of the disciples of Scofield are wrong but given a choice between their presuppositions and the actual text of the Bible, they can only see Scofield’s Notes. Their willful ignorance results in a fatal case of paralysis for the progress of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
The Supreme Court got it Really Right
I have been told by many so called conservatives that the courts only strike down Republican laws, never Liberal ones. This is patently untrue, but I cannot control the way you think as you have been programmed by tv media to think the way you do.
The Constitution says that taxes must originate in the House of Representatives, not the Senate, nor by Executive Order from the Executive branch. The reason for this is our Founders set up a process where checks and balances are a thing. Large states like California, Texas, and Florida get a large says about matters in the House, while small states like Rhode Island, the Dakota’s, and Montana can hold a larger say in the Senate on matters. The Executive branch is not allowed to issue Executive Orders on certain things; they must originate in the House.
“Sorry rules are rules.”
The Constitution states that Congress has the power: “To regulate Commerce with foreign Nations, and among the several States, and with the Indian Tribes;”
Oh, isn’t that the rallying cry of the Tea Party, far right types whenever the Liberals are in control of things? It’s all about the Constitution.
As William wrote in his blog, if Congress did its job, we would not be here. This has gone back to at least the W. Bush presidency, we no longer have a budget, we do Executive Orders and Continuing Resolutions; neither of which is authorized by the Constitution. We fund the government for around 60-90 days at a time.
This Executive Order gambit has taken on a life of its own; due to Congress not doing its job.
The problem is actually a bi-partisan one. Both parties do it. When one party controls the White House, the other party, if they control Congress, digs in and refuses to pass any legislation that helps the party in power. As a direct result, the White House does executive Orders to go around Congress. Then it is essentially up to the courts to litigate it.
Typically, the process works this way. The party out of power (not the White House), finds a friendly judge, said judge rules it unconstitutional and blocks it. Then the President, via the Department of Justice, appeals the ruling to Appeals Court. When that occurs, the Executive Order, could be allowed to continue pending appeal outcome, which is what typically occurs. In the case of tariffs, it was allowed to continue. The appeals court will rule (it’s typically a random 3 judge panel, not one judge). If the outcome is not to the liking of one party or the other, it can be sent to the Supreme Court. If the Court agrees to hear it, they usually issue a stay and allow the law/regulation to remain in place until they rule on its legality. The Supreme Court ruled today, 6-3 saying tariffs done by Executive Order are illegal.
In closing, I will say this, regardless of your belief on tariffs, I have made mine known previously, this is a big win for the rule of law. Just imagine for a minute if the Supreme Court ruled the other way, it opens Pandora’s Box for the other party to do the same on their legislative priorities. If that were to occur, what is the point of Congress? Trump is aiming his anger at the Court; he should be aiming his anger at Congress.
By The Chief
Supreme Court Tells Congress to Do its Job
The US Supreme Court just struck down President Trump’s ability to set tariff rates with other countries. The vote was 6 to 3. I never could figure the Constitutional basis that gave Trump this power. Yes, it was good from a fiscal point of view, but …
This ruling essentially told the do-nothing Congress, this characterization is true of both parties, that they must do their job. Congress has been a broken and failed institution for my entire adult life and then some.
Trump has proved that tariffs can be an effective way to generate revenue, they were for most of the country’s history and could be again. The Court has said that Congress needs to lead. Constitutionally, that is a correct statement, but in reality, it is not likely to happen.
This ruling is also good because the Court is politely saying that rule by Executive Order must have limitations. If Congress had any genitals, rule by Executive Order would be illegal.
Protestants Acting Stupidly
Early this morning on good ‘ole Facebook, I came across a bunch of posts blasting the idea of Ash Wednesday. I decided to write a blog on this subject, and I’ll be darned if I can find any samples now. But I will fire away on my thoughts and keep looking for examples.
“Ash Wednesday is a holy day of prayer and fasting in many Western Christian denominations. It is preceded by Shrove Tuesday and marks the first day of Lent: the seven weeks of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving before the arrival of Easter.”
This is another religious lie of the Roman Catholic Church to enslave people to works righteousness rather than the freedom of biblical grace and mercy of the gospel! Ephesians 2:8-9
First, why is it OK for Protestants to celebrate Christmas and Easter and then dis the folks that they stole the holidays from to start with? Ash Wednesday is just as much part of the Church calendar as Christmas and Easter.
Folks, it’s a much better argument that Jesus was born in September, on or about the Day of Atonement, than anything that places his real date of birth near December 25th. I have a video by some Protestants arguing vigorously that Jesus was born on the traditional date of Christmas (12/25) but really their evidence is thin.
Easter, in the spring, is a much better and firmer argument but the date of Easter is rarely near the Passover, at least in current reckoning. Since at least three different calendars were used, I can understand the confusion. (oh, the calendars are Julian, Gregorian, Jewish)
Just so you know, the Church calendar was created many centuries ago and goes beyond the year 8,000. They have much more faith in the providence of God and our mission as Christians than the current crop of believers today with their any minute Rapture.
The presumption, by the posters that I saw who were attacking Ash Wednesday, is that they have everything right and those following the Church calendar, especially Roman Catholics, are heretics, syncretizes, or out right pagans. Their basic argument was that Lent and Ash Wednesday are not in the Bible.
Mark 7:9 “He was also saying to them, “You are experts at setting aside the commandment of God in order to keep your tradition.”
On Photo: The Catholic Ash Wednesday ceremony is pure witchcraft” Andre Salloum
Hey, Protestants! The following are not in the Bible either:
Grape Juice For Communion.
Anything Less Than Weekly Communion.
Baby Dedication.
Baptism By Immersion.
Age Of Accountability.
The Rapture.
Walking an isle or the “Sinner’s Prayer”
But most of you practice these things as if they were found in the KJV.
Why is it wrong to commemorate the 40 days that Jesus suffered in the wilderness as a preparation for celebrating his passion and death? Nobody says you have to do it, but what about Christian liberty? Why is it wrong for believers to reflect a little on what it cost God to come as a man to save you from your sins? Oh, for you that don’t know, Sundays are exempted from the 40-day calculation, since it is a day of worship.
Back in December, I went to church with my parents. I attended their once Baptist and now nondenominational church. The pastor bragged about how he didn’t follow the traditions of men but only the Scriptures. Meanwhile, everything in the bulletin or their service was a tradition of men. They were dispensational/premillennial in their eschatology. A Tradition of man unknown to the church until the 1830’s. They had a Baptist during the service. It was by immersion. Not in the Bible. It was a “believer’s baptism”. Again, this is not the biblical norm, the exception was the Ethiopian eunuch, typically, the practice was that whole families baptized on the basis of the father, who was head of the household, professing faith. In such cases, children, spouses, and servants were all baptized because of the man’s profession of faith. Then there was an assortment of ministries which were unknown until the time of Chrles Wesley. Oh, to this pastor, the world belongs to Satan until some future time. God was only the savior of your soul; the rest was not God’s concern. Again, not in the Bible. Lastly, they sang zero hymns from or based on the book of Psalms. God gave us a song book but we never use it.
So yeh, mister Protestant, tell me how that whole thing is going for you? I have my disagreements with Rome too but most of the Protestant folks out there are theologically no better. They just like their heresies better than those of the other guys.
Oh, just so you know, using either geography or raw numbers, more Christians celebrate Lent than don’t. The Roman Catholic Church, Orthodox, and some Protestants including Anglican, Lutherans, celebrate Lent. That leaves Christians in and around the Presbyterian and Baptist denominations as the outliers.
Folks, this is a stupid thing to argue about. Why must we unchurch everyone else to advance our ideas? It gets old really fast. If you have the time to beat up on your fellow Christians then it means you aren’t facing the right way to fight the enemy, just sayin’.
Paranoia on Steroids
I was witness to a customer and a colleague talking about things they saw on the television. As documented in this space, I do not have cable, nor do I partake in watching much more than, call it an hour a week. I think 90% of what is on said virtual babysitter is propaganda one way or the other. That includes Fox News.
They got to talking today, saying there are reports of people impersonating ICE agents and how it is impossible to know what is real and not. Since all ICE agents are masked, anyone could impersonate them, right? Right? The said the agents can bust down your door or shoot you while driving by… because they can! They can detain you and ask questions later. They were roused about how the shootings were not necessary and were entirely avoidable. I had to get up and take a long trip to the bathroom as this was unreal. But this is a reminder we live amongst the sheep; you view the tv for hours on end and think it is gospel truth.
This is why I am glad to be a libertarian; I will break down how the above is not true at all.
First of all, a warrant is required to enter your house by force (aka kicking the door down.) ICE agents, while masked, must still present valid ID documentation if asked. They also cannot enter your property via a locked gate, again, unless they have a warrant or are chasing you (the illegal criminal) on foot or by car.
If you are stupid enough to open your door for someone you don’t recognize, or feel has dubious credentials, you deserve your fate! There is nothing wrong with asking for someone’s credentials or flat out not answering the door. I don’t. If I’m not expecting you, you either better be dropping something off, or beat it. I will not allow entry!
Again, they need a warrant to operate. They cannot and do not operate in a vacuum like the folks on cable TV will have you believe. When ICE shows up to do a raid, they are usually looking for one or more people, who are here illegally, who have criminal records, and missed their court date. Read the sentence again. They do not simply raid the local Home Depot parking lot, that’s a lie. Also, this may be news to our California readers, but some cities and counties DO cooperate with ICE. When a person is arrested and it turns out they are here illegally, they can be turned over to ICE that night! Other times the person is picked up for a crime like; DUI, domestic violence, battery, or theft and when discovered is also turned over to ICE.
Regarding the statements about people in the home/car also being arrested and deported that is a thing also. It’s also legal. Choose your friends wisely! Folks, if I am in the car with a criminal illegal alien, I too can expect to be detained for questioning, just like if I was hiding someone in my house; in which case you can kick my door down! See how that works? I’m shielded from the law if I am doing nothing wrong, such protections do not exist when I am harboring a fugitive from the law! Folks, no judge will issue a bench warrant for failure to appear if you missed a hearing about a speeding ticket, these people are the worst of the worst.
Now regarding the part about shooting illegal criminal aliens. Again, what you are seeing on tv are clips from the incidents are formatted and condensed to fit a narrative. In the case of the women who tried to make a getaway in her car and was shot 3 times, it is hard to argue that she was a saint. She was agitating officers all day and was told to exit the car! She made a choice, that choice was suicide by cop! The other person who was killed, again, was agitating and out of control. He even brandished what appeared to be a weapon. I never am happy or will defend the shotting of someone, but come on, in both cases it was extremely avoidable.
The only commentary I will provide to defend the ICE agents is this. They have a very thankless job. They are vilified by the news/print/radio media constantly. They have been doxed (identity given to the public) and had their/spouses/family’s lives threatened by deranged whackos. They are doing their jobs. Oh, and the current President ran on this exact agenda. It should not be a surprise. Folks speaking again as a libertarian, the law gives wide latitude to peace (police type) officers when they are involved in a shooting. If said officer claims they feared for their life, or thought they saw a gun, they typically have the right to use deadly force, even in a state like California. It is not smart at all to agitate someone who is wearing a badge and carrying a gun, especially when they can use and apply deadly force as they see fit. I would not want to be hoping that officer is having a good day while I taunt him mercilessly.
Last point, I overheard the 90-day guy saying, “how come they can’t just shoot them in the leg?” This is a typical, highly uneducated response that I have come to expect from a “California Conservative.” First, you are not trained to shoot someone in the leg. Tell me you haven’t shot a gun before without telling me you haven’t shot a gun before. No gun range has the ability to get you to shoot someone in the leg, it’s a small target! Hence you aim for the center mass (the torso). Law enforcement is trained to only discharge their weapon to protect lives and property; think self-defense. This is the difference between cops and soldiers. The other aspect of a police shooting that he doesn’t have the ability to comprehend is, until the threat is considered neutralized, the medics cannot give the victim medical attention. So, to lay it out, shooting the person in the leg will likely just cause them to bleed out anyway. Trust me most of the time when there is an officer involved shooting, the criminal is very well known, and the police planned for this likely happening.
The Chief
Jesse Jackson Assumes Room Temperature
Yep. In the words of broadcaster, Rush Limbaugh, Jesse Jackson has assumed room temperature. Jackson who catapulted his association with Martin Luther King into a life’s work, has died.
Jesse was a false prophet of the social gospel that enslaves millions of black Americans. As long as he could deliver the votes every four years, he had a seat when Democrats—the Party of the KKK and Jim Crow—caucused.
Jesse was not a Christian. He preached, another, Jesus, another salvation, and a false gospel.
“But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed.”
Galatians 1:8.
Jackson was a man who spoke falsely.
“Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them.”
Acts 20:30
He deceived the masses and was rewarded handsomely for it.
“For they that are such serve not our Lord Jesus Christ, but their own belly; and by good words and fair speeches deceive the hearts of the simple.”
Romans 16:18
He preached a false Jesus, a false gospel, a lying spirit, and led many astray who had their itching ears tickled.
“For if he that cometh preacheth another Jesus, whom we have not preached, or if ye receive another spirit, which ye have not received, or another gospel, which ye have not accepted, ye might well bear with him.”
2 Corinthians 11:4.
Jackson was a wolf in sheep’s clothing. He and his fellow Justice Brother, Al Sharpton, made it their life’s mission to capitalized on misery and did their best to keep black people in subjugation to their plantation masters of the Democrat Party. They made it their mission in life to promote abortion of blacks, dependance on government programs, and the false gospel of socialism. They did all this evil wearing the collar of a servant of Christ. They led zero people into heaven and legions into hell in this life and the next.
Ray Stevens did a song many years ago asking, if Jesus would wear a Rolex on his television show? Jesse surely would and did.
He lived the “high life” while exploiting the poor. He got caught many years ago having fathered a child out of wedlock. Did he repent? Nope. He was sorry he got caught, not that he had his zipper down.
Yes, I’m picking on him. He deserves it. Sadly, he is just one of many from the so-called Baby Boomer generation that F*ed-up this country.
Folks, this country is the dumpster fire that it is because of the Baby Boomers. Nothing will get fixed until they are in the grave and the policies that they enacted are in the ash heap of history. FDR put us on the road to socialism but the Boomers of the 1960’s and 70’s brought the policies of FDR into fruition. The Democrat Party of JFK died in 1972 when Hayden, Fonda, et al took over.
There are and were good people in the Boomer generation, but they were out maneuvered and out matched by the godless humanists and atheists of their generation. They were the most selfish and destructive group of humans in the history of this nation, possibly any nation. Boomers have squandered the blessings of previous generations. Their legacy is one of debt, servitude, and destruction. They purposely left the next generation worse off than they were. The sad part is that they don’t care. Their whole world is based on selfishness without consequences.
Jackson and the Boomers exemplify the biblical axiom that “the compassion of the wicked is cruelty” and the other biblical description of evil men, “eat, drink, and be merry for tomorrow we die.” On these two pillars are the Boomer’s actions explained.
For the first time in his existence, Jesse Jackson believes in the God of the Bible, but it’s too late for his soul.
Why Abolitionists are the New CRA
Scenario
Imagine that you are an elected representative in the lower house of your state legislature. You ran as a prolife candidate and decided to introduce a bill to outlaw abortion in your state. Furthermore, you have decided to include criminal sanctions on abortionists in your legislation. Such a law has not been proposed before in your state. You feel that while this bill will be controversial, that it is the right thing to do.
After hearing about your bill, a prolife group from out of state says they are coming to lobby in support of your legislation.
Once the out of state group arrives, they read your legislation and then publicly call you a baby killer and murderer. They denounce your idea. They call you a Judas and hater of God. They also label you an enemy of life and of the unborn. Their main complaints are that there are no criminal sanctions in your bill to punish women that have abortions and your bill doesn’t outlaw abortion drugs sent via mail or other delivery services. The group lights you up on social media and via local television stations.
The prolife group uses scorched earth tactics and vilifies anyone that opposes them. They claim to represent God and his Word. Furthermore, they don’t want to educate churches or Christians and persuade them to strengthen local laws. They want their point of view enshrined into state law and then they will go back to their respective states until the next opportunity comes along.
The legislator is dumbfounded by this treatment. Not too many years ago, his bill would have been called a cutting-edge idea, and he would have been called a maverick of the prolife movement. Now his so-called brothers in Christ are stopping just short of burning him at the stake.
Oh, the scenario above is being played out right now in the state of Iowa.
Just Like the CRA
This sounds eerily familiar to me. I was once part of a similar and equally zealous group, the California Republican Assembly. Yep, I was personally recruited by Barbara Alby in the narthex of Capital Christian Center in Sacramento to be part of her evangelical army of Republicans fighting against the devil and taking back our state for Christ. I was told that the liberals were the tools of the devil and that any opposition was because those opposing us were his minions. This was Frank Peretti’s spiritual warfare writ large, and I had a chance to make a difference.
Well, we ran the infidels out of the CRA and then used various chapters to capture county central committees across the state. In a few short years we captured the California Republican Party. After Barbara and her fellow travelers took over the State Party, they kicked CRA to the curb. From the time Barbara Alby took an interest in CRA until she won election to the California Assembly (the lower house of the California legislature), CRA went from a membership of just over 80,000 to about 15,000. Purity and fidelity have their cost.
Those Ignorant of History …
Oh, while the Abolitionists are running their campaign in Iowa, they are also taking to the Internet and denouncing the evils of the Roman Catholic Church on Facebook. This is more proof that they are ignorant and not really prolife.
Folks, it is an undisputable fact that without the Roman Catholic Church, the prolife movement in the United States would never have existed. Yes, I have doctrinal differences with Rome, but the Catholic Church was the only religious group consistently opposing abortion in our country during the time that Roe v Wade was the Supreme Law of the land.
Furthermore, it is a fact that the so-called “mainstream” Protestant churches—Methodist, Presbyterian, and Episcopal—were advocating for legalized abortion in the 1960’s and early 70’s and even allowing abortion clinics to operate on church property. Abortion was welcomed by these Protestant groups as an expression of Christian charity and love for the poor.
Evangelicals were “fair weather’ opponents of abortion and sporadically opposed it. Also, they were very late to get involved in the issue.
Lastly, it was Roman Catholics on the US Supreme Court that finally overturned Roe v Wade. (The Court’s make-up in recent decades skews Catholic & conservative or Jewish & liberal.)
Biden’s token black appointee may claim to be protestant (I really don’t know) but since she still doesn’t know how to define what a woman is, I can’t take her seriously on anything.
Going Scorched Earth
Oh, not that it will move the needle, but I have occasionally tried to tell the Abolitionist folks that in the political world, it is ok to make incremental changes to the law. Change what you can now and try for more next year; however, they dismiss the idea of incrementalism and want an all or nothing result.
As a result, Abolitionists have denounced and ridiculed Students for Life (a large nationwide group of mostly college aged students) for this exact reason. Abolitionists view their mission as a holy war, and anything less than total victory is compromise with evil.
I also have repeatedly suggested to Abolitionists that they need bottom-up solutions that begin by educating the church, then local communities and then trying to change the law. Top-down solutions are not biblical and will not last. Dr. Gary North and a host of others have said this since at least the 1980’s. North was critical of Falwell’s Moral Majority for these same reasons.
Failure is Guaranteed
The Abolitionists will fail because they are doing it the wrong way. They are trying to mimic the world’s way of doing things and not the Bible’s. They think the Bible doesn’t address or speak to God’s response to Power Religion, but it does. However, Abolitionists would rather shoot now and aim later.
Like socialism, Abolitionists just think the right people haven’t tried their tactics yet.
Sorry dudes, we tried it almost 40 years ago and screwed the pooch. California is a one-party state because evangelical Christians tried the same exact tactics that you are using now and destroyed everything we touched with our scorched earth tactics. We killed the California Republican Assembly, the Republican Party in California and created the circumstances that allowed Charles Munger Jr. to take over the Republican Party.
I know. I was there. I had a front row seat to the whole thing. I made it possible. I regret it deeply and have for many years.
Final Comments
The Abolitionist movement will fail. Been there, done that. They will unchurch everyone that disagrees with their jihad tactics and do more harm to the cause of life as a result. More babies will die because of their demand for all or nothing legislation. Abolitionists don’t want to do the hard work of changing hearts and minds. They want to use the power of the sword to do it for them.
Nancy Guthrie Kidnapping
Folks, I feel for Samantha Guthrie. Having your 84-year-old mom disappear under suspicious circumstances has got to rock your world. Clearly foul play was involved. Whatever happened to Nancy, I don’t have any reason to think Samantha was involved. It’s just a feeling. I really don’t know anything about Samantha Guthrie except she works for NBC. She is a fellow human being made in the image of God, and I feel terrible for her.
I don’t think this was a kidnapping. If it is, it’s the weirdest story since Patty Hurst.
I think Samantha’s mom was killed the night that she disappeared. I also think the body is very near her mom’s home.
We have zero indication of “proof of life”. Also, bit coin ransom sounds bogus. It is a third party injecting themselves into a tragic situation or a deliberate misdirection by the perpetrators.
Was mom really the target? Just wondering? If so, why? This thing stinks. Right now, law enforcement has too many cooks in the kitchen and I think that is making the case even more complicated.
I’m praying for Samantha and her mom but as you can see, I’m not hopeful that this will have a happy ending.
The Day of the Lord
“A text without a context is a pretext, usually for error.”
Dr. Walter Martin
The Challenge
At the new church that I am attending, one of the folks in leadership challenged me to examine the phrases “Day of the Lord” and “Great Day of the Lord” in the Bible. Somehow, he thought that such a study would persuade me to become a Premillennial Dispensationalist.
I already know that there are multiple Days of the Lord in Scripture. Something he flatly seemed to denied. What follows is a brief examination of the topic.
Just to prove that I took this challenge seriously, I finally opted to subscribe to Logos Bible software.
Of course, I find that the research tools are only as good as the searchable material. Out of the box, it’s skewed towards one eschatological position, as I expected. I think balance must be found at my expense by buying better reference books. Something for a future time.
Diving In
In the meantime, let’s begin with this verse.
The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, Before the great and the terrible day of the LORD come.
Joel 2:31.
Whenever you see the sun going dark, the moon turning to blood, stars falling from the sky to earth and similar language you know that prophetic language and judgment are being discussed. The problem is that folks, for reasons that I don’t understand, think they need to take such language literally when it is clearly figurative. The sun, moon, stars language can be seen as figurative all the way back in Genesis.
Joseph had a dream that the sun, moon, and stars would bow down and worship him.
And he dreamed yet another dream, and told it his brethren, and said, Behold, I have dreamed a dream more; and, behold, the sun and the moon and the eleven stars made obeisance to me.
Genesis 37:9.
Jacob, his father, didn’t like what he was told and said:
What is this dream that thou hast dreamed? Shall I and thy mother and thy brethren indeed come to bow down ourselves to thee to the earth?
Genesis 37:10b.
From this point forward in the Bible, sun, moon, and stars are most often people and not planets or lights in the night sky.
If you follow the sun, moon, and stars motif, you will find that their failing is related to the destruction of nations, and not at the end of the world.
Behold, the day of the LORD cometh, Cruel both with wrath and fierce anger, To lay the land desolate: And he shall destroy the sinners thereof out of it. For the stars of heaven and the constellations thereof shall not give their light: The sun shall be darkened in his going forth, And the moon shall not cause her light to shine.
Isaiah 13:9–10.
So, the Day of the Lord comes, and the sun, moon, and stars all fail. Clearly this is the end of the world, right?
Nope. Not even close.
Remember my opening quote about “a text without a context…”? Please look at verse 1 of the same chapter.
The burden of Babylon, which Isaiah the son of Amoz did see.
Isaiah 13:1.
Isaiah is prophesying the destruction of Babylon and calling it the Day of the Lord.
Then there is the destruction of Egypt.
And when I shall put thee out, I will cover the heaven, and make the stars thereof dark; I will cover the sun with a cloud, and the moon shall not give her light. All the bright lights of heaven will I make dark over thee, and set darkness upon thy land, saith the Lord GOD.
Ezekiel 32:7–8.
So too the destruction of Israel is also talked about in cosmic terms.
And it shall come to pass in that day, saith the Lord GOD, That I will cause the sun to go down at noon, And I will darken the earth in the clear day: And I will turn your feasts into mourning,
Amos 8:9–10.
The Great Day of the Lord comes to Judah
Hold thy peace at the presence of the Lord GOD: For the day of the LORD is at hand: For the LORD hath prepared a sacrifice, He hath bid his guests.
Zephaniah 1:7
The great day of the LORD is near, It is near, and hasteth greatly, Even the voice of the day of the LORD: The mighty man shall cry there bitterly. That day is a day of wrath, A day of trouble and distress, A day of wasteness and desolation, A day of darkness and gloominess, A day of clouds and thick darkness,
Zephaniah 1:14–15.
Note that there is no difference between the Great Day of the Lord and the Day of the Lord. Both expressions are equal, as shown above.
Isaiah foretells the destruction of Judah and Israel.
For the day of the LORD of hosts shall be upon every one that is proud and lofty, And upon every one that is lifted up; and he shall be brought low:
Isaiah 2:12.
And what will God’s people do on the Day of the Lord?
And they shall go into the holes of the rocks, And into the caves of the earth, For fear of the LORD, and for the glory of his majesty, When he ariseth to shake terribly the earth. In that day a man shall cast his idols of silver, and his idols of gold, Which they made each one for himself to worship, To the moles and to the bats; To go into the clefts of the rocks, And into the tops of the ragged rocks, For fear of the LORD, and for the glory of his majesty, When he ariseth to shake terribly the earth.
Isaiah 2:19–21.
Then after this happened, they were taken away in chains to servitude in foreign lands. Clearly the Day of the Lord is not the end of the world but God coming in judgment.
Modern people reading about the sun, moon, and stars being darkened or made into blood or falling to earth or whatever and trying to claim that these things will literally happen in the sky, are clearly ripping such expressions out of their biblical and prophetic context. Again, the sun, moon, and stars language is typically used to describe human rulers being overthrow. In some cases, it may be that the principalities behind these rulers are falling as well.
Thus, anyone literate in the Old Testament usage of such terms knows that Matthew 24 is speaking in the prophetic language of Isaiah about the rulers of Israel falling and not the literal dissolution of the periodic table.
Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken
Matthew 24:29.
Sidebar
Why do these guys think that literal stars are going to fall on the earth and then there will still be life on the planet? Even a quick glance at that Bruce Willis movie will debunk such a claim and ‘ole Bruce was only dealing with an asteroid or meteor or comet, not a star. Stars fall to earth twice in the Book of Revelation, in two different chapters, but the world still exists. How can that be possible? Only if they aren’t literal stars.
When a pair of scissors is the only exegetical tool they have, I guess you can get away with such sloppy treatment of the text.
Back to More Verses
Compare Joel and Peter. Peter is clearly basing his comments on Joel; and not just on the Holy Spirit but on the coming judgment, and the admonition to call upon the name of the Lord. Joel and Peter are both saying that the sign of impending judgment is the giving of the Spirit.
And it shall come to pass afterward, That I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; And your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, Your old men shall dream dreams, Your young men shall see visions: And also upon the servants and upon the handmaids In those days will I pour out my spirit. And I will shew wonders in the heavens and in the earth, Blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke. The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, Before the great and the terrible day of the LORD come. And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the LORD shall be delivered: For in mount Zion and in Jerusalem shall be deliverance, As the LORD hath said, And in the remnant whom the LORD shall call.
Joel 2:28–32.
Peter, preaching his first sermon in Acts says that the Holy Spirit will be given and then …
And I will shew wonders in heaven above, and signs in the earth beneath; blood, and fire, and vapor of smoke: The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before that great and notable day of the Lord come:
Acts 2:19–20.
In Acts 2, Peter says the gift of the Holy Spirit, as prophesied by Joel has happened. The pouring out of the Spirit was something predicted for the last days. Clearly the last days of the Old Covenant, since the Spirit is the sign of the New Covenant. Peter says Joel was very clear on that point.
But this is that which was spoken by the prophet Joel; And it shall come to pass in the last days …
Acts 2:16–17a.
Peter then issued a warning that the existing political order is about to collapse. Peter calls this something that happens before the Day of the Lord. Peter exhorts his audience to believe in Jesus and concludes his sermon with a plea to save yourselves from this wicked generation.
Clearly Peter believed that the generation alive in his day was soon to face the Day of the Lord just as Jesus had previously predicted.
This is the same admonition given by John the Baptist who warned people to flee the wrath to come.
Then said he to the multitude that came forth to be baptized of him, O generation of vipers, who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come?
Luke 3:7.
Judgment was coming for them, and soon. By the time we get to the epistles of John, it is no longer the last days but the last hour (I John 2:18).
Other Synonyms for Day of the Lord
Days of Vengeance
The passage in Luke that is parallel to Matthew 23 – 25 includes the following:
And when ye shall see Jerusalem compassed with armies, then know that the desolation thereof is nigh. Then let them which are in Judaea flee to the mountains; and let them which are in the midst of it depart out; and let not them that are in the countries enter thereinto. For these be the days of vengeance, that all things which are written may be fulfilled
Luke 21:20–22.
Please note in the passage above, fleeing the destruction of Jerusalem is accomplished by fleeing to the mountains. Yep, on foot.
“The Day of the Lord” and “the days of vengeance” are synonymous terms.
For it is the day of the LORD’s vengeance, And the year of recompences for the controversy of Zion.
Isaiah 34:8.
Isaiah’s Day of the Lord is judgment on God’s people which is fulfilled in the Babylonian captivity.
Day of the Lord’s Anger
How hath the Lord covered the daughter of Zion with a cloud in his anger, And cast down from heaven unto the earth the beauty of Israel, And remembered not his footstool in the day of his anger! The Lord hath swallowed up all the habitations of Jacob, and hath not pitied: He hath thrown down in his wrath the strong holds of the daughter of Judah; He hath brought them down to the ground: he hath polluted the kingdom and the princes thereof. He hath cut off in his fierce anger all the horn of Israel: He hath drawn back his right hand from before the enemy, And he burned against Jacob like a flaming fire, which devoureth round about. He hath bent his bow like an enemy: he stood with his right hand as an adversary, And slew all that were pleasant to the eye In the tabernacle of the daughter of Zion: he poured out his fury like fire.
Lamentations 2:1–4.
The judgment language continues through the rest of the chapter, the final verse calls this judgment, the Day of the Lord’s Anger.
Thou hast called as in a solemn day my terrors round about, So that in the day of the LORD’s anger none escaped nor remained: Those that I have swaddled and brought up hath mine enemy consumed.
Lamentations 2:22.
Day of Wrath
But after thy hardness and impenitent heart treasurest up unto thyself wrath against the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God;
Romans 2:5.
Day of Christ
That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand.
2 Thessalonians 2:2.
Day of God
Looking for and hasting unto the coming of the day of God, wherein the heavens being on fire shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat?
2 Peter 3:12.
Meaning of Elements
Please note in this verse the word “elements”. Elements in the New Testament is a reference to the Old Testament sacrificial system not the periodic table. Thus, the elements melting away is describing the destruction of the Old Covenant system and its replacement with the New Covenant.
Even so we, when we were children, were in bondage under the elements of the world:
Galatians 4:3.
But now, after that ye have known God, or rather are known of God, how turn ye again to the weak and beggarly elements, whereunto ye desire again to be in bondage? Ye observe days, and months, and times, and years. I am afraid of you, lest I have bestowed upon you labour in vain.
Galatians 4:9-11.
Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments [elements] of the world, and not after Christ.
Colossians 2:8.
Wherefore if ye be dead with Christ from the rudiments [elements] of the world, why, as though living in the world, are ye subject to ordinances,
Colossians 2:20.
Only by ripping 2 Peter 3: 10 & 12 out of their context can you try to apply them to the end of the world. Jump back to verses 3 & 4 of this same chapter.
Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts, And saying, Where is the promise of his coming? for since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation.
2 Peter 3:3–4.
Why were they scoffing? Because Jesus said in Matthew 24 and other places that he would destroy the temple in Jerusalem and not one stone would be left upon another. Jesus also claimed that he would return on the clouds. Jesus claimed that both events would be seen by the generation of those that heard his voice.
After the death and resurrection of Jesus, Herod continued to remodel and upgrade the temple. This remodel was finished in 64 A.D. At the time Peter was writing, the temple in Jerusalem was even more glorious than it was in the days of Jesus.
The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.
2 Peter 3: 9
Peter says the Lord was going to keep his word but was giving men time for repentance. This also seems to cross reference nicely with Revelation 6: 11 where the martyrs of Christ were “told to wait a little longer, until the full number of their fellow servants, their brothers and sisters, were killed just as they had been.”
God is waiting for the full number of saints to be converted. Some of these saints were persecuted and lost their lives while others were still coming into the Kingdom. Once this period of time was complete, then his judgment will come.
But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up.
Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness, Looking for and hasting unto the coming of the day of God, wherein the heavens being on fire shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat? Nevertheless we, according to his promise, look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness.
2 Peter 3:10–13.
This section speaks of the land burning up. The Greek word translated earth is not cosmos (or world) but can be translated country as well as earth. Thus, in keeping with Matthew, this can be understood as a local judgment not the end of the planet.
1093. γῆ gē, ghay; contr. from a primary word; soil; by extension a region, or the solid part or the whole of the terrene globe (incl. the occupants in each application):— country, earth (-ly), ground, land, world.
New Heavens and Earth
Here are other examples of prophetic language for a new heaven and earth.
For, behold, I create new heavens and a new earth: And the former shall not be remembered, nor come into mind.
Isaiah 65:17.
For as the new heavens and the new earth, which I will make, Shall remain before me, saith the LORD, So shall your seed and your name remain.
Isaiah 66:22.
Getting a “new heavens and a new earth” is a repeated theme in the Old Testament. It never means the planet or life on it is destroyed and replaced. It is always in terms of God remaking things. God makes all things new.
James Jordan, in his Biblical Worldview series on The Garden of God, teaches that there are at least six different creations of heaven and earth taught in the Bible. (Audio for this teaching series is available at Wordmp3.com item PG-475)
Please note that after the new heavens and earth mentioned in Isaiah are established that death remains.
There shall be no more thence an infant of days, Nor an old man that hath not filled his days: For the child shall die an hundred years old; But the sinner being an hundred years old shall be accursed.
Isaiah 65:20.
Home construction and agriculture continue.
And they shall build houses, and inhabit them; And they shall plant vineyards, and eat the fruit of them.
Isaiah 65:21.
People are still having babies in the new heavens and earth.
They shall not labour in vain, Nor bring forth for trouble; For they are the seed of the blessed of the LORD, And their offspring with them.
Isaiah 65:23.
Thus, the new heaven and earth in Isaiah are not the end of the world or the end of history.
Lastly, in the passage from Peter, how could his readers in the first century be “Looking for and hasting unto the coming of the day of God” if the Day of the Lord was thousands of years in the future? How could they hasten it? It only makes sense if the Day of the Lord was an event that was near to them and about to happen.
Comments
When people ignore the audience relevance and how the original hearers or readers of the Bible would understand the text addressed to them, then the Bible becomes no better than the ravings of Nostradamus or some lunatic high on PCP. When the Bible is not used to interpret the Bible, then it becomes a device for justifying any doctrine of men or devils. Only by doing violence to the text can you find Artificial Intelligence, thermonuclear weapons, cobra helicopters, barcodes, jogging, gun powder, literal stars falling from the sky to earth, space stations, and such stuff within the pages of Scripture. Once such nonsense is injected into the Bible, it makes Phillip K. Dick’s novels look tame and unimaginative.
God is Active
God speaks.
Man responds.
God evaluates man’s response.
God also blesses and curses. He judges the nations now. They are His. He won them by His death on the cross.
“Ask me, and I will make the nations your inheritance, The ends of the earth you possession.”
Psalm 2:8
He will redeem the earth and reverse the curse. The meek will inherit the earth not heaven. Believers will judge the nations, which is a now thing, not a future one.
In addition to the passages cited above, we also know that Jesus was coming to judge each individual church in Revelation. That’s seven judgements. Clearly there is more judgement in later passages of Revelation. God is always judging. God’s judgment is not a one-off event at the end of history. It is ongoing.
God is active every second of the day in His creation and caring for His creatures. This side of the Enlightenment, we think the world is governed by laws and scientific principles but that is an illusion. The earth is governed moment by moment by God and His angels. “The laws of nature are the habits of God.” — Augustine
Claims that the “Day of the Lord” only occurs at the end of history have been proven untrue just by my brief survey. Many more examples exist in the Bible. Also, “Day of the Lord” and “Great Day of the Lord” are interchangeable terms. One is not regular judgement and the other denoting the end of the world as the church leader implied when he challenged me about this subject.
What about the Second Coming
The Day of the Lord does not mean the so called Second Coming of Christ at the end of the world. The truth is that Christ comes frequently in time and space. If Christ came a second time following his Ascension, it was to judge Isael in A.D. 70. He predicted exactly that at his trial by the Jewish leaders.
And the high priest answered and said unto him, I adjure thee by the living God, that thou tell us whether thou be the Christ, the Son of God.
Jesus saith unto him, Thou hast said: nevertheless I say unto you, Hereafter shall ye see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven.
Then the high priest rent his clothes, saying, He hath spoken blasphemy; what further need have we of witnesses? behold, now ye have heard his blasphemy. What think ye? They answered and said, He is guilty of death.
Matthew 26:63–66.
Note the audience relevance. Those hearing his words would see Jesus coming on the clouds. It would be seen by at least some of the guys that crucified him. The words of Jesus are a quotation from Daniel 7.
I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days, and they brought him near before him. And there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages, should serve him: his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed.
Daniel 7:13–14.
Christ, as ruler of the nations, is constantly judging the nations. He will continue to do so until all enemies are placed under His rule.
Ask of me, And I shall give thee the heathen for thine inheritance, And the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession.
Psalm 2:8.
The LORD said unto my Lord, Sit thou at my right hand, Until I make thine enemies thy footstool.
Psalm 110:1.
What About the Last Days
The phrase “last days” is related to the Day of the Lord, at least one of them. The last days of the Old Covenant were the period between the crucifixion of Christ (about 30 A.D.) and the prophesied destruction of the temple in 70 AD.
It is vitally important to emphasize this. Jesus repeatedly predicted the end would be during the lifetime of the generation hearing his words.
Verily I say unto you, There be some standing here, which shall not taste of death, till they see the Son of man coming in his kingdom.
Matthew 16:28.
Verily I say unto you, All these things shall come upon this generation.
Matthew 23:36.
Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled.
Matthew 24:34.
Verily I say unto you, that this generation shall not pass, till all these things be done.
Mark 13:30.
And when the people were gathered thick together, he began to say, This is an evil generation: they seek a sign; and there shall no sign be given it, but the sign of Jonas the prophet. For as Jonas was a sign unto the Ninevites, so shall also the Son of man be to this generation. The queen of the south shall rise up in the judgment with the men of this generation, and condemn them: for she came from the utmost parts of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and, behold, a greater than Solomon is here. The men of Nineve shall rise up in the judgment with this generation, and shall condemn it: for they repented at the preaching of Jonas; and, behold, a greater than Jonas is here.
Luke 11:29–32.
But first must he suffer many things, and be rejected of this generation.
Luke 17:25–18:8.
No stone of the temple would be left upon another, and this generation (those hearing his voice) will not pass away until his words are fulfilled.
And Jesus answering said unto him, Seest thou these great buildings? there shall not be left one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down.
Mark 13:2.
The destruction that Jesus warned about was a local judgement. Those heeding the signs could escape on foot if they heeded the signs.
…then let them that be in Judaea flee to the mountains:
Mark 13:14.
Then let them which be in Judaea flee into the mountains:
Matthew 24:16.
Oh, FYI there are zero records that a any Christian died in the siege and destruction of Jerusalem in 70 A.D. Furthermore, this is why believers in Jerusalem were the only group of believers to sell their real estate and hold the proceedings of the sales in common. They knew the mountain of the temple would be cast into the prophetic gentile sea. Jesus promised that too.
Jesus said that the gospel would be preached to the whole Roman Empire (“oikomene” not “kosmos”) and then the end will come and it did.
And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.
Matthew 24:14.
If Jesus lied about these prophecies, then he is a false prophet. The irony is if you take Jesus at his word when he promised that this generation (those hearing him speak) would see this judgment, many of his modern followers will call you a heretic or something equivalent.
Why? To believe the text conflicts with their presuppositions. They bring assumptions to the text which are not there and have to recast or ignore any data that conflicts with their interpretive grid.
Scofieldism
Mike Warnke once sang.
“My faith is built on nothing less than Scofield’s notes and Scripture Press.”
Scofield’s grip on American Christianity has had dire consequences for the Church. It has created an escapist mentality that has caused the church to relinquish her transformative power in culture, and influence upon society. Much of the church has lost both its future orientation and its belief in the victory of the Gospel. Instead, evangelical Christians are hiding in the four walls of their church, hoping that the Rapture will rescue them from their failure to transform their culture.
The absolute worst thing derived from Scofield’s eschatology is the notion that when Christians oppose evil, they are preventing the return of Christ. This belief is rooted in the idea that things must get worse and worse. If the world hasn’t gone far enough over the cliff and into hell, then Jesus will never return. Thus, to oppose evil is to keep the world from getting bad enough so Jesus will return. Talk about upside-down land.
Excuse me but the Good Book says judgment begins at the house of the Lord. Well, actually it began in the house of the Lord long ago, but somehow the sheep think being under judgment is normal. The water has been boiling for a while, but the frogs are happy as long as the sunscreen doesn’t run out.
Two quick examples: the abortion rate among Christians and Non-Christians is statistically identical and has been for decades. Ditto for divorce rate.
If the church is doing so great, why does it look so much like the world?
Last Thoughts
I was at the church’s Monday Night Men’s Bible Study this week. They are very slowly going through a prayer that Jesus offered for his disciples. The passage is in the Gospel of John, chapter 17. Verse 15 survived without much comment, so I’d like to take it up.
“My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one.”
What? Jesus is praying that God not Rapture Christians! Oh, clearly Jesus is mistaken.
All I hear about is Jesus is coming any second. Any time Rapture. 1948 happened so it’ll be any time now. Hal Lindsey sold 25 million copies of his book claiming a generation is forty years. Then he went for 50 years. Oops, then 60 years. Then Hal died. Subsequently, OK, maybe 80 years. Alex, can I have a lifeline for 100 years.
It’s the same refrain that I’ve heard since the 1970’s. Folks, it’s not true. Sorry kids, it’s not happening. The church has thousands of years’ worth of work yet to do.
I believe the Day of the Lord happens frequently. It is a fearful thing. God judges the nations all the time. Sometimes it’s even dramatic enough that we give him the credit for acting. Berlin Wall, anyone?
Also, there is no Rapture in the Bible. The only ones taken away in the Old or New Testament are evil doers. The righteous remain.
Noah and the Ark. We always read “…so as in the days of Noah …”
Please actually read the darn text, the bad guys are taken away, but the righteous remain. Check it out.
For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark, And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.
Matthew 24:38–39.
Keep reading in Matthew, two at the mill and one taken in judgment not to heaven.
Again, the meek will inherit the earth, not heaven. This is a promise for believers in this life, not one yet to come.
I look forward to the day when the knowledge of the Lord covers the earth as the waters cover the sea.
For the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD, As the waters cover the sea.
Habakkuk 2:14.
They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain: For the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD, As the waters cover the sea.
Isaiah 11:9.
Many more Days of the Lord remain before this promise will be a reality.
Trump’s (Team) Steps in it Again
Some days I really wonder if the Republicans would rather be in the permanent minority like they are in Sacramento, California. An irrelevant bunch, who can go on the local friendly paper/news channel and preach about how “we need Republican’s ideas to fix this state!” They can carve out their individual fiefdom and never lose, and that’s ok.
I made the above statement because this came out this AM.
Tim Scott calls Obamas video shared by Trump ‘most racist thing I’ve seen out of this White House’
The video was posted on Trump’s Truth Social account which I did see. It is based on the Lion King movie, with Donald Trump depicted as the Lion King, other political types were depicted as well, including, the Obama’s as monkeys. Yeah, you read that right. Two black people, the former President and his wife, were depicted as monkeys, in the year of our Lord 2026. Folks I might be alone on this, but this is pretty dang racist.
Oh, the Senate’s lone Black Republican agrees…
“Praying it was fake because it’s the most racist thing I’ve seen out of this White House,” Scott said about the video in a post on the social platform X.
“The President should remove it,” the Senator added.
Folks I want to say this, I do not think Donald Trump is a racist; however, he is, in my opinion, too flippant with his words and says/does stupid things. I will also add, I do not believe this video was created or even posted by him. Nevertheless, it was on his account, and as of 4 PM left coast time, no one has been fired. This tells me it wasn’t just “some intern” either. I want to see heads rolling, this is no better than people cheering Charlie Kirk’s death or wishing death on Rep. Omar. Whoever decided to portray the Obama’s as monkeys may be one of the dumbest people on earth.
Why do Republicans do this? They shouldn’t, but they never seem to learn.
Granted, the following is a list of things I have witnessed in my life, not so much on a nationwide level, but they were disturbing, nonetheless.
- Tony Andrade’s (RIP) email to Sac Central Committee members depicting watermelons growing in the White House Garden when Obama got sworn in. Blatantly racist, a few members called him out, some maybe even supported it. Why? Stupid!
- Dominic Foppoli putting up “Republicans freed the slaves signs” at my university late at night the day before MLK Jr’s birthday. Time and place, it was neither one, and while, yes, a Republican president freed the slaves, posting those flyers was felony stupid.
Folks, Republicans don’t do that, or should I say real Republicans. However, there is a new breed of Republican that came out of the closet when Trump got elected. It’s a new breed of character who I honestly detest. I have no need for the Jorge Riley’s of the world. They spout racist, drunken BS that no one agrees with, yet they are allowed to speak freely. I long for a simpler time. We are supposed to be above this; the Democrats are the ones who protest in trees, burn their clothing, riot, loot, set things and buildings on fire, not us. But that has changed. Believe it or not, January 6th changed that narrative, and now the GOP must try to change it back. Things like this do not help, they hurt the cause, and badly. Hopefully some adults will take over, and soon. With today’s proceedings, we are no better than the folks who cheered Charlie Kirk’s death as mentioned above. Was it Trump or someone else? Who cares, damage inflicted cannot be undone.
Folks I have a feeling, as much as I hate to say it, and do not wish to believe it, these types of mistakes may well cost Trump Congress in November. I hope I am wrong.
The Chief
Editor’s Note: I saw a claim on Facebook that the offensive video was made over a year ago and has been circulating on social media since then. After the proverbial stuff hit the fan, it was removed from Trump’s official page.