The Seed of Evil

 As this article points out, if you believe that America is going to get "saved" or "go back to normal" if only we could elect some conservative officials, you are going to be very frustrated and disappointed.

Also please note that this article was first published 13 years ago!  Long before Trump even made it onto the political stage!

The real battle is a spiritual battle between God and Satan.  It always has been and it always will be until Christ returns at the 2nd Advent to sit on the throne.  But even at the end of those 1000 years Satan will be released back onto earth to gather the rebellious humans.  When that rebellion fails then Satan will be tossed into the lake of fire once and for all and the New Heavens and New Earth will begin and Satan will have no part in it.

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The battle that is going on in America is not a political battle, it is Spiritual. Those who do not recognize this are doomed to frustration. If you are one of those who believe that America will be rescued by changing the occupant of the White House, or by the election of members of the Republican Party, that America will somehow be rescued if we can get some “conservative” judges appointed, or a return to our Constitution, I assure you that your efforts will be in vain.

The battle has been, and will remain, between God and Satan. It is a battle of good versus evil, light verses darkness, right verses wrong, the Truth against lies. Seeing it as something other than that will lead you to a lot of wasted energy.

“For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.” -Eph.6:12

Oh, there is a battle going on, for sure, but it is a battle being fought out in “high places” …a spiritual battle in a spiritual world. Spiritual forces control the natural (material) world. This is clearly taught in the Holy Scriptures. Unfortunately, it is no longer taught in our churches, or to the next generation.

“Spiritual warfare” is what most charismatic churches call it, and they are correct. But like so many other things in our churches, we have turned the focus of this battle into a personal fight…a fight between Satan and your finances…Satan and your health…Satan and your children. But it is so much bigger than that. It is the clashing of two Spiritual Kingdoms being played out in our earthly world.

This may come as a shock to you, but there are Spiritual forces, evil ones, at work in the world. They are subtle because Satan was more subtle than any beast of the field. The Devil does not show up wearing a red suit, carrying a pitchfork, and displaying horns. He comes as an “angel of light.” He is the master deceiver. He makes bad things look palatable. Hope and change anyone?

Satan is called the “prince of this world,” the “prince of the power of the air,” the “ruler of darkness,” the “ruler of demons.” Satan is real, and he is battling for control of this natural world.

But he is condemned to ultimate failure. “For this purpose, the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil.” Jesus destroyed Satan’s dominion at the Cross. “It is finished” Jesus proclaimed as He breathed His final breath.

What was finished? The death of Jesus on the cross fulfilled His purpose that Jesus might “destroy the works of the devil.” It is finished…. the work of the Devil forever under His feet.

But what are the works of the Devil? Sin. Jesus destroyed the power of sin. Jesus ushered in His new Kingdom…not an earthly kingdom, but a Spiritual Kingdom where we now have the power to trod “over all the power of the enemy.” Satan no longer controls the earth; he was defeated at the cross. Too bad most church goers no longer believe this.

The battle continues today. Satan and his Kingdom were dealt a death blow at Calvary. The victory of the Kingdom of Light over the Kingdom of darkness…but God’s clock has not yet run out. Victory is certain, but a coming battle must be fought.

But it is not a physical war. It is a spiritual war, fought in a Spiritual Kingdom, where the Kingdom of Light has already destroyed the Kingdom of Darkness. Satan no longer rules the earth although he is still fighting (wrestling) for control. You must admire his tenacity. He fights even when he knows he will lose. Today’s church-goers won’t fight even when we are guaranteed we will win!

So here is how it plays out. Satan hates Jesus and all things associated with Him. Even though he knows he is defeated he will continue to fight to destroy all things associated with the Lord. He will not go down without a fight. This world is doomed, the Scriptures tell us that, and a “new heaven and a new earth” is being prepared. But until that day, the battle will rage for control of this people-planet.

Many are deceived. That is Satan’s master weapon. Jesus told us that “you shall know the Truth and the Truth will make you free.” It is the Truth that the Devil is attacking. If he can keep you from Truth, he can keep you in bondage. Satan doesn’t care if you HEAR Truth, he only cares if you know and obey Truth. Truth only sets you free if you KNOW it and act upon it. Jesus is the Truth. Satan’s goal is to keep you from knowing the Truth.

The Devil is subtle; he mixes a few lies in with the Truth. “Did God really say? His goal is to move us away from ABSOLUTE TRUTH to RELATIVE TRUTH…A little leaven ruins the whole lump.

So, the enemy attacks in a variety of ways. He has infiltrated all areas of our lives…not just our individual lives, but the culture…our way of life…he uses the culture to steal souls. If only many could open their eyes and see that Satan’s schemes are not political, but that he uses politics to advance his cause and advance his hatred of Christ.

Have you ever taken the time to think it through? If you did, you would clearly see that all of Satan’s political forces are geared for the destruction of Christ and His Kingdom.

Communism hates Jesus. Islam hates Jesus. Feminism is antithetical to Christianity. Abortion and homosexuality both want to destroy those “created in the image of God.” Humanism wants to dethrone God. Liberalism wants to water-down the Gospel of Christ. Secular Judaism hates the mention of His name. Hollywood hates Jesus. The legal system denies the Lord’s authority. Our educational system is anti-Christ. Our monetary system is against the Lord’s call for “just weights and measures.” Usury is a sin. Ecumenicalism denies the Lordship of Jesus. The medical system, government healthcare, government officials, all government agencies deny His authority

Are you blind? Can’t you see it? The enemies of Christ are all unified in the hatred of Him? They are all on the same team, fighting the same cause…the destruction of Jesus….TRUTH.

And what is the response of God’s team? Mostly silence for fear of offending; voting into power liars and thieves; praying the “conservative judges” will fight for what Church Pastors will not, inviting Islam into God’s house, loving God’s enemies, supporting politicians and their murderous, never-ending wars, failure to point out the true Christ-haters and their diabolical agendas, filling backpacks with pencils and papers as they support the destruction of the moral values of God’s children in Godless American school rooms, encouraging their sheep to blindly obey anti-Christ government and government “laws”, clinging to their 501C3 status and God-less government relationship, bowing God’s knee to Government rule. Christ’s church has eaten the forbidden fruit.

A wise man once told me that “Jesus divides His friends, and unites His enemies.” The enemies of God are relentless, and committed. The children of God are divided, confused, and slothful. Some Methodists I know would rather be friends with the atheists than they would with the “fundamentalists” Christians.

“It does not take a majority to prevail… but rather an irate, tireless minority, keen on setting brushfires of freedom in the minds of men.” -Sam Adams

Damn the torpedoes. Stand up and speak up inside your churches. Let’s reclaim God’s house before we worry about the White House. The battle is raging over Truth. We need to set some brushfires in our churches. It is time to make your Pastor run and hide when he sees you coming

The battle is not right or left but rather between right and wrong.

“And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel” -Genesis 3:15

“He that has ears to hear, let him hear.” If you cannot see with the eyes of the Spirit, and you cannot hear with the ears of the Spirit, most of what I write will not make sense to you. My prayer is that your eyes would be open to the Truth.

Here;  The Seed of Evil - Pass the Salt Ministries (coachdavelive.com)

Turkey and Russia to Sign Grain Deal

Turkey is part of NATO.  NATO nations are basically at war with Russia.  What NATO nation would be willing to meet with Putin and come up with a business deal?  That’d be Turkey.  Why? Because Russia and Turkey are named players in Ezekiel 38.  If we are near the end, and we are, headlines like this are expected.

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President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Russian President Vladimir Putin will meet soon to discuss the resumption of the grain deal, both Ankara and Moscow have confirmed, as well as efforts to end the Russian-Ukrainian war that has been continuing since February 2022.

Ömer Çelik, the spokesman of the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) has announced that Erdoğan is planning to go to Russia’s resort city of Sochi very soon to meet Russian President Putin. Çelik said the two sides are working on fixing a date for the meeting.

Dmitry Peskov, the spokesman of Kremlin, told reporters in Moscow that a meeting between the two men was being prepared intensively.

The diplomatic sources believe that Erdoğan-Putin meeting will take place before the G20 Summit slated to happen in India on Sept. 9 and 10.

Çelik said Türkiye’s main objective was to avoid a global food crisis and therefore Erdoğan’s visit to Sochi will focus on finding a formula for the resumption of the grain deal. Russia canceled the grain deal on July 17 as it could not export its grain, fertilizers and other products due to the secondary sanctions on shipment, banking and insurance.

As a result of the efforts by Türkiye and the United Nations, an agreement for the transportation of Russian and Ukrainian grain was reached in July 2022 and more than 33 million tons of wheat, corn and other food products were shipped to the global markets and the needy countries.

 https://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/erdogan-to-visit-russia-for-talks-with-putin-ankara-185853

Hungary Warns that WWIII is Knocking at the Door

We have no clue what’s really happening in the war between Ukraine and Russia.  We do believe that Putin is not the kind of guy who’s going to retreat, draw home the troops and say, “sorry world! I made a tragic blunder!  Please forgive me!”  Nope!  We believe he would use a nuke if he felt he was on the verge of losing a conventional war.  Why have thousands of Nukes if you aren’t willing to use them to defend the Motherland?  Even if he doesn’t use a nuke there is a very real risk that the rest of the world could be pulled into this conflict.  With all the obese young Americans who don’t know their gender, we wonder what kind of fighting force America could put together if we had to war against Russia and China at the same time?  God only knows.

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 During Tucker Carlson's recent visit to Budapest, where he gave a speech apologizing for the "disgusting" behavior of the US Ambassador to Hungary, the former Fox News anchor sat down with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán.

Orbán - Hungary's longest-serving prime minister - knows a thing or two about Russia (having grown up under their occupation, and been arrested and thrown into jail by Russian-backed police for his efforts to liberate the country) and Ukraine (a nation with which is shares a border), and so Tucker sat down to ask him - what exactly is going on in Ukraine right now (given the propagandic opacity of news in America).

"It is not just a misunderstanding, it is a lie," Orban begins, when asked about the fact that American media continue to claim that 'Ukraine is winning' the war.

He suggests that the Biden administration misunderstands Russia, and attempting to remove Putin could lead to dangerous instability.

"To understand the Russians it's a difficult thing, especially if you have an ocean between you and Russia."

Orbán points out that Western political conversations often center on freedom, while Russian conversations focus on keeping the country together, and warns against the dangerous implications of the U.S. strategy, particularly for countries like Hungary that are geographically closer to the conflict.

"Don't misunderstand the Russians. So they're not going to get sick of Putin and throw him out, come on, it's a joke."

He criticizes Vice President Kamala Harris for suggesting that Ukraine could join NATO, saying it was an unrealistic proposal that escalated tensions. 

Instead, the Hungarian PM urges a new security architecture that respects Ukraine's sovereignty but doesn't include NATO membership. 

https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/very-dangerous-moment-hungarys-orban-warns-tucker-3rd-world-war-knocking-door

BRICS Summit Calls for New World Order

 You might want to add BRICS to you vocabulary.  It stands for Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa.  They would love to come out with their own digital currency, backed by gold, that the whole world would start to use as reserve currency and unseat the US Dollar from its 75 year throne.  The author of this article doesn’t think that’s going to happen quite yet...so maybe some good news for those of us in America that have built our lifestyles on borrowed money.

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Talk of de-dollarisation has gathered pace, as members of the Brics economic group meet this week in South Africa for a summit, but the US currency is unlikely to lose its crown as the world's international reserve currency.

Members Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa are pushing to expand the bloc's membership at the August 22-24 annual leaders’ summit in Johannesburg.

At least 23 countries are said to have expressed an interest in joining the group.

Any new additions to Brics will be the first expansion since South Africa, the second largest economy in Africa, joined the group in 2010. Among the potential candidates are economic powerhouses including Indonesia and Saudi Arabia.

Also on the agenda of the 15th annual summit are talks on greater use of local currencies to settle trade between the countries.

Leaders and financial policymakers of the member states are also scheduled to discuss prospects of a Brics currency, aimed at challenging the dominance of the US dollar and dethroning it as the international reserve currency.

The summit will push to adopt policies that can help Brics increase its political clout in line with its growing economic and financial influence in the world.

“We want to make the Brics very strong politically, very strong financially,” Brazilian President Lula da Silva was reported by Bloomberg as saying.

Despite attempts to rally support against the US dollar, analysts believe the bloc is unlikely to materially dent the dominance of the greenback.

“Overall, whilst any 'Brics+' grouping could bring into question the speed and scale with which member countries adopt commercial and financial systems outside of the US dollars domain, we hold conviction in our previous examination that being fed up with the US dollars dominance is old hat, and it will remain the world’s currency of first resort, in our view,” said Ehsan Khoman, head of commodities, ESG and emerging markets research at MUFG bank.

A combination of the financial sanctions leverage, which the US applies to “shut adversaries’ economies out of the US dollar payments system”, China’s growing status as a competitor to Washington's international supremacy, and the splintering of geopolitical blocs, has prompted much discussion on “the weaponisation of the US dollar”, according to the lender.

The core part of the debate remains whether other currencies can mount a challenge to the still mighty dollar.

https://www.thenationalnews.com/business/2023/08/23/brics-summit-dollar/

Confirm a Peace Agreement?

 Bible readers know that when the Antichrist confirms a peace agreement with Israel and the surrounding nations that this event will begin the final 7 years until Christ returns at the 2nd Advent.  It's NOT the rapture that begins the final 7 years, but the signing of this peace agreement.

We see more movement today to get a peace agreement and one has to wonder, with everything else going on, if this isn't the peace agreement that the Antichrist will CONFIRM?

One of the key events of the End Times is a coming peace treaty between Israel and her neighbors which the coming antichrist will broker.

We read about this in Daniel 9:27, "And he, [the antichrist, referred to in the previous verse as 'the prince that shall come'] shall confirm the covenant with many for one week [one set of seven years] and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate..."

There's a lot to unpack in this verse:

The antichrist is going to make a covenant or treaty with the many in Israel for a seven-year period of time.

In the middle of that seven years, he's going to put an end to sacrifice and offerings, which can only happen in a rebuilt temple.

At the temple, he'll set up an "abomination that causes desolation." The antichrist will enter the temple, declaring that he is God, and will set up an image in the temple that people must worship in order to buy or sell (see Revelation 13).

The first part of this passage tells us that he will "confirm" a covenant with Israel for seven years. Bible translations differ, saying he will "make a covenant," "compel a covenant," or "make a strong covenant." Some take it as a covenant that already exists, while others suggest the antichrist will compel this covenant, bringing the parties to the table and giving them a take-it-or-leave-it deal. 

Whatever the exact meaning, there's one thing that's clear: The antichrist is going to forge a sweeping peace agreement between Israel and her neighbors that's going to have to do with the Temple Mount area and Israel renewing its sacrifices. This event will mark the start of the seven-year tribulation.

Recent events strikingly foreshadow this coming peace compact. August 13th was the third anniversary of the announcement of the Abraham Accords, which were ratified the following month. These arrangements heralded a new beginning of peace in the Middle East as several Arab nations agreed to normalize relations with Israel.

The previous five American presidents tried everything they could with Palestinian leaders and failed. Finally, that streak was broken with the Abraham Accords, which resulted in the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Morocco, and Sudan all signing peace treaties or normalized relations with Israel. That added to Israel's peace treaty with Egypt in 1979 and Jordan in 1994, bringing the current total to six neighboring nations.

The "big fish" is clearly Saudi Arabia. Prime Minister Netanyahu has called the normalization of relations with Saudi Arabia and Israel "the deal of the century." 

Last week, a top Israeli diplomat said that a normalization agreement would be "a historic opportunity for a peace process that will change the face of the Middle East and the whole world." That's a dramatic statement in light of Bible prophecy.

A lot of headlines about this are very striking to me:

Times of Israel -- "Foreign Minister Cohen to Arabic outlet: Israel will make gestures to Palestinians for Saudi deal." Israel is willing to make some concessions to the Palestinians to make this deal happen.

Times of Israel -- "Any deal must be done before Biden leaves office, Israel reportedly tells Saudis." They believe this is going to have to happen before President Biden leaves office, which obviously, doesn't give a lot of time.

Times of Israel -- "Leading Saudi columnist says it's 'highly likely' peace with Israel is possible." 

Wall Street Journal --  "Saudis Agree With U.S. on Path to Normalize Kingdom's Ties With Israel" subtitle, "Officials are negotiating details of agreement they hope to cement within nine-to-12 months, though obstacles remain."

While some say there's no fixed timetable, the US wants to wrap all of this up by next March. You can imagine the political reasons. This would be a huge feather in the cap for President Biden to be able to be in the middle of this deal or take credit for it.

There are several serious obstacles to all of this. One is the current turmoil in Israel. Saudi Arabia will likely wait on the sidelines until Israel can figure things out internally. The other major obstacle, as always, is the Palestinian question. What's going to happen with the Palestinians? What's Israel going to have to give up? What's Saudi Arabia going to demand to have normalized relations?

Last Saturday, Saudi Arabia's ambassador to Jordan presented his credentials to begin serving as Saudi Arabia's first-ever non-resident ambassador to Palestine. Is this simply Saudi Arabia checking a box with the Palestinians before normalizing relations with Israel?

The New York Times reported:

Saudi Arabia has appointed its first envoy to the Palestinian administration in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, a move widely seen as linked to efforts led by the United States to forge diplomatic ties between Saudi Arabia and Israel.

The announcement came amid escalating efforts by the United States to establish formal relations for the first time between Israel and Saudi Arabia.

It also followed speculation in Israel that Saudi Arabia -- which has long opposed enacting formal ties until the Israeli-Palestinian conflict has been resolved -- might now be prepared to do so without Israel's providing the Palestinians with greater autonomy.

The fact that Saudi Arabia has placed this envoy in the Palestinian Authority area suggests they may be backing off of making demands that Israel give the Palestinians greater autonomy. This opens the door and paves the way for this agreement between Israel and Saudi Arabia to take place.

Here;  Saudi-Israel Agreement: Precursor To The Antichrist's Covenant With Many? (prophecynewswatch.com)

Also please remember that Jesus said that the generation that sees the REBIRTH OF ISRAEL will also see the fulfillment of the rest of these prophecies.  There is certainly some disagreement about how long a generation is but understanding that it's been 75 yrs since Israel claimed independence in 1948, it should be one more clue that "we shouldn't be surprised if the trumpet blows", because we are children of the light.

Euphrates River Hits Historic Low

Jesus said, “when you see ALL THESE THINGS beginning to happen, then look up, because your redemption is near.”  Today we have another THING beginning to happen, and that’s the Euphrates is drying up.  Revelation says it will be dry during the Great Tribulation thus allowing the Kings of the East to march across it on the way to Armageddon battlefield.

Genesis15:18 speaks of the Promised Land 

On that day Hashem made a covenant with Avram, saying, “To your offspring I assign this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the river Euphrates:

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The water level at the Tabqa Dam on the Euphrates River in Syria has plummeted to historic lows over the past three weeks, causing multiple crises in the region. The Alouk water station, the primary water source for the northeast Syrian agricultural zone, has been non-functional since June 23, impacting close to one million residents.  Dwindling water resources threatens to worsen food insecurity in Syria, creating pressure that could contribute to new waves of refugees leaving the country.

Turkey is reportedly releasing sewage into the river. Coupled with lowered water levels leading to the formation of stagnant pools where algae thrive, this has caused a spike in waterborne diseases in the region. 

At 1,700 miles, the Euphrates is the longest and one of the most historically important rivers in Western Asia. The Tabqa Dam, located 25 miles upstream from Raqqa, is the largest dam in Syria. Its construction led to the creation of Lake Assad, Syria’s largest water reservoir. Research indicates that the salinity of the Euphrates water in Iraq has increased considerably since the construction of the dam.

Turkey provides over 98% of the Euphrates’ discharge and about 50% of the Tigris River’s discharge. The remaining flow of the Tigris comes from Iraq (about 40%) and Iran (about 10%). Together, the Tigris, Euphrates, and their tributaries serve as water sources for about 90 million people. 

 https://www.israel365news.com/374919/euphrates-river-hits-historic-lows-preparing-for-end-of-days/