Making Sense of January 6th

Before I begin, I want to first say that I was not thinking about writing this until it was the day after. But as I continue to watch the news, I have heard many reporters asking average people how to make sense of the riots and insurrection.

People don’t have an answer for themselves, much less for their kids. I’m going to give the best take I can, but I warn you, it is grim and hard to stomach.

As the nation is still reeling from the events in Washington, D.C., many people are wondering how a 1st Amendment protest turned into a riot and insurrection could’ve happened in 21st-century America, and who is to blame.

The last time any outside force broke into the Capitol was during the war of 1812. This protest turned riot, like many others last year, was in my opinion caused by two factors: one is physical, the other spiritual.

The physical element was Donald Trump, whose constant refusal to concede until today, placed a fire of lawlessness in the hearts of his supporters during a rally to march on Capitol Hill, resulting in one of the scariest assaults on America’s Republic since the aforementioned war.

The spiritual element was moral decay. Our country has firmly relied on God’s providence for its independence, as well as her military, elected officials, currency, and much more.

When a country turns away from the God it supposedly trusts in, as well as breaking His eternal laws by legalizing same-sex marriage, aborting the smallest and most precious, innocent beings made in His image, corruption, and much more, she will see the consequences of her choices and actions.

January 6th was a sobering reminder of America’s sin. A day that I pray will turn many back to or find new faith in Him and His Son, Jesus, meaning “the LORD saves“, for the forgiveness of their sins.

Trump’s Responsibility for COVID-19

I realize this post is coming as Joe Biden has been elected President so it will have a smaller effect than if Trump were re-elected. Nevertheless, I wanted to post this as my opinion of what Trump has been responsible for. Also, I began writing this a few months ago just before the November election as I got tired of President Trump blaming, downplaying, and overall not leading during this global pandemic.

Despite his assertions in his recorded sessions with acclaimed journalist Bob Woodward saying he didn’t take preventative measures sooner because he didn’t want to panic the public, I believe Trump was actually exercising the practices of Norman Vincent Peele’s “The Power of Positive Thinking.”

Trump’s history and exposure to the philosophy can be found here (Business Insider) and here (CBN News). Seeing as Trump still touts that message to this day, it is extremely likely he used that thinking not only in receiving early reports and confirmed cases of COVID, but also in regurgitating that mindset to the American public.

Consequently, precious time when receiving early reports in January and February to take the virus seriously was lost, the soon-to-be global pandemic already had more traction than was realized, and denial resulted in exponentially more deaths.

While it is next to impossible to directly quantify the lives lost and confirmed cases as a result of Trump’s blatantly foolish and ignorant claims about the Coronavirus, one thing’s for sure, the COVID-19 pandemic response will be seen as one of the greatest failures of both leadership and character in recent memory.

Why Being Gay Is Not From God

I know that title looks bigoted, but it’s not. I’m writing this for the same reason I wrote point number five in the introduction to my previous post, “Who Is The Anti-Christ?”… to warn people of the second death (Revelation 21:8) that awaits them if they don’t turn back.

Unfortunately, many churches, denominations, and religious leaders have accepted the homosexual lifestyle justifying it as “that’s just who they were created to be.” But why would God create a lifestyle that is contrary to His very Word and intentions for humanity? After all, there are numerous verses God gives in His living Word to tell us this was and is not His will for anyone (Leviticus 18:22, Leviticus 20:13, 1 Corinthians 6:9, Romans 1:26-27, Jude 7). Another clear example of why homosexuality was never His intention for humanity is what He told Adam and Eve in Genesis 1:28 to “Be fruitful and multiply…” Why would He create someone for a lifestyle that is biologically impossible for His very command, and thus would lead to the extinction of humanity?

Around this time last year, I was in Canada on vacation with family. The local news station did a story about a woman of faith talking about how she had been “duped” by mainstream evangelical Christianity into believing being gay and/or the homosexual lifestyle was not a sin (Audio not great, use headphones, apologies): Sadly, she has been duped by today’s culture into accepting homosexuality as natural.

What Should Christians Do?

Many evangelical Christians and the Church did not handle this question correctly. I believe there’s a stereotype around that Christians would just yell at gays that they’re going to hell (see the infamous “Westboro Baptist Church”) or that they’d beat you over the head with a Bible, or any other extreme and ridiculous behaviors that most likely make God weep. I also believe that those evangelicals that didn’t do those things failed to stand their ground when God’s perfect Word said it was unnatural, and they lost the argument. Years ago, I accepted this lifestyle based on my conservative political views until I was deeper into God’s Word and prayer, and He showed me His view of the lifestyle.

What Should Have Been Done?

-In brief encounters, loving prayer for the person trapped in the lifestyle and a desire to seek God’s holy heart, face, and nature.

-Relationships. Being an example to the gay lifestyle that the Christian faith is about life and that Jesus came to give it more abundantly.

UPDATED: Who Is the Anti-Christ?

I want to make some disclaimers first… 1) I have no idea who this specific individual is, 2) I do not believe he has been revealed to the world yet, 3) this post is merely to inform any reader of the characteristics and persona to be looking for in this individual and what I believe he will do. 4) I will not be writing anything sensational. I take this topic too seriously to do that. And 5) I am writing this to warn those who do nor know this topic well and how to prepare yourself and your family. I am also writing this with the intent of love, for what love would it be for someone to not shout to a blindfolded person about to walk off a cliff to stop, remove the blindfold, and look!?

I will mainly be using Scripture (God’s Word) for this post, but some details will come from two anointed modern-day prophets.  They are Ken Peters and John Paul Jackson (d. 2015).

I also want to acknowledge that I realize I am writing about one of the most mysterious and widely debated topics since the Apostles Paul and John first wrote about it almost 2,000 years ago.

Lastly, for anyone not familiar with terminology, “Christ” is Greek (from “χριστός” or “chrīstós”, meaning “anointed one”). “Messiah” is Hebrew (from “māšīaḥ” of the same meaning).

Let’s begin…

First, there are two aspects of Anti-Christs… there is the general, all-encompassing term described in the New Testament (we’ll get to those), and then there’s the title “Anti-Christ,” which only one man in history will carry. He is also known as the son of perdition, the man of lawlessness, and the man of sin, depending on your Bible translation.  The general, all-encompassing term “Anti-Christ” describes any “deceiver” who has “entered the world” and “denying Jesus Christ came in the flesh…” (2 John 1:7).  But I won’t be focusing on that, only on the man Anti-Christ, who I will interchangeably refer to the Anti-Christ, the son of perdition, the man of lawlessness, the son of sin, and the beast of 666.  These are all just titles of the same person in different English translations.  Judas Iscariot, is also referred to as the son of perdition (John 17:12 AMP), but the Apostle Paul later refers to another man to come (2 Thessalonians 2:3) by the same title.

So, back to the original question, “Who is the Anti-Christ?”

A common misconception is because he is “Anti” to Christ, that he has the same power as Christ/God.  No one, not even satan/the devil, has the same power or equality as Christ (John 1:2 AMP, Job 26:7-14 AMP, 2 Chronicles 20:6 AMP). God (the Father, Jesus Christ the Son, and the Spirit of the Father, or the Holy Spirit) is omnipotent, meaning uncreated, eternal, all-powerful, all-knowing, and all-seeing (YHWH meaning “I AM (everywhere)”, Exodus 3:14 AMP).  Everything else is a created being.  Also, neither satan nor the Anti-Christ are rivals of God. They are only opposed to God and everything He is and represents, after all, “satan”, which is just a shortened form of “ha-satan” and comes from the Hebrew for “The Adversary” (The Satan and Demons).

The Jewish nation will believe the Anti-Christ to be their long-awaited Messiah (after denying Jesus in His first coming). The son of perdition will make a seven-year peace deal with Israel, reestablishing and rebuilding what will be the third temple in Jerusalem.  This time of seven years is also referred to as the “time of Jacob’s trouble (Jeremiah 30:3–7) or “The Great Tribulation” and is the final “week” (period of seven years) described in Daniel 9:27.

During this peace deal, the man of lawlessness will allow the Jewish people to set up sacrifices—just like the days under the Old Covenant before Jesus’ final sacrifice of Himself on the Cross.  Halfway through the seven years, the son of sin will “exalt himself and defy everything that people call god and every object of worship. He will even sit in the temple of God, claiming that he himself is God.” (2 Thessalonians 2:4)  When he does this, he will commit the “abomination that causes desolation” (Daniel 11:31, Matthew 24:15), and only then will the Jewish nation see that he wasn’t the Messiah and receive Jesus as their Lord and Savior.

After this, the second half of the tribulation will begin.  The first half was persecution of living believers of the Lord Jesus by the son of perdition. The second half will be the judgments of God on the unbelieving world and those who took the “Mark of the Beast” and worshipped his image. (Revelation 13:16–17)

Why is the Anti-Christ called “The Beast of 666”?

I believe he is called “the Beast” because of who he is on the INSIDE.  I say this because it is God who describes him, not man, and 1 Samuel 16:7 says, “…The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”  His number, 666, will likely not be seen as the actual number “666” but rather the summation of his name in ancient Hebrew or Greek (as the Apostle John would’ve probably interpreted, Revelation 13:18 AMP & Commentary) on someone’s right hand or forehead. (Revelation 13:16 AMP)

UPDATE:

A few days ago, I stumbled upon the YouTube channel “thelivingword” and in particular a video which I feel adds more clarity and substance to this post.  I have also been praying and waiting to see if God wanted me to hold onto this for any reason, and each time there was no restrictions.  I hope this brings more light and wisdom to you in interpreting this number!

What is meant by “666” and “antichrist”?

What are (or will be) the physical characteristics of the Anti-Christ?

It may not be that difficult or complicated to imagine what the physical characteristics will be; after all, we have some description of the Messiah… Isaiah 53:2 AMP, “…He has no stately form or majestic splendor…that we would look at Him…nor [handsome] appearance that we would be attracted to Him.”

Here’s where I believe Ken Peters and the late John Paul Jackson’s testimonies come in.  The prophet Ken Peters, who gave me permission to use his testimony, spoke in the ’90s how God allowed him to see the Great Tribulation, here.  He says, “I will never forget his face as long as I live…his face was almost supernatural in appearance. He was almost too perfect; he was for a lack of terms, he was the most handsome man I had ever seen, and I just want you to know I’m a very happily married heterosexual. 

“When I say he was a handsome man, I don’t mean that in a strange manner I just mean to tell you that this man had everything going together for him, …he had kind of a chiseled look to his face, and everything about his appearance was almost perfect, and when he spoke there was just a very strange quality about him.”

John Paul Jackson had a very similar description of him in a talk back in late February 2009 (YouTube video here):

(August 2022, Side Note: I discovered the YouTube channel associated with this video has been terminated. However, these are the true and faithful words of what John Paul said.)

“He will come, and he will have convincing words of men and he will be a great orator, and he will have a great voice, and he would tell you what you want to hear. That will be the Anti-Christ — and I know I’m not saying Obama’s him, lest there be any confusion. The Anti-Christ is far, far… better… than that. I saw the back of him in a vision—scared the stuffin’ outta me. He’s tall, like 6-4, and he is incredibly good-looking and well-groomed. I saw his front from a distance and close from the back.

“And we are being set up to receive him, and I’m not trying to do a fear tactic. I’m saying we the church need the power of God. We cannot depend on oratory skills, and we cannot depend on political parties—either one of them. We have to have a relationship with the Creator of heaven and earth that is so different, when people look at us they want to get close to you…”

Are all these things going to happen, no matter what?

Yes.  As the Angel Gabriel told the Virgin Mary in Luke 1:37 NIV, “For no word from God will ever fail.”

What’s wrong with following him?

Quite simply, this is the man doomed to destruction in the Lake of Fire in hell (eternal separation from God, worse than any earthly discomfort or pain). (Revelation 19:20 NIV) (Bill Wiese – “23 Minutes In Hell”)

Also, the wrath of God… “9 A third angel followed them and said in a loud voice: “If anyone worships the beast and its image and receives its mark on their forehead or on their hand, 10 they, too, will drink the wine of God’s fury, which has been poured full strength into the cup of his wrath. They will be tormented with burning sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and of the Lamb. 11 And the smoke of their torment will rise for ever and ever. There will be no rest day or night for those who worship the beast and its image, or for anyone who receives the mark of its name.“-Revelation 14:9-11 NIV

What’s the reward for following Jesus?

“I saw thrones on which were seated those who had been given authority to judge. And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of their testimony about Jesus and because of the word of God. They had not worshiped the beast or its image and had not received its mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ a thousand years.“-Revelation 20:4 NIV

What can you do to avoid his fate?

Some basic things are to read and know the Word of God (The Bible), especially the part about salvation in the New Testament.  Then there’s praying, which draws your heart closer to God and His nature.

Knowing God, His character, and believing that He sent His Son Jesus to die for all sins for all time, and not taking the Mark of the Beast, is the only way to avoid the Anti-Christ’s fate!

Why President Trump Will Never Make America Great Again

It’s been a while since I’ve made a blog post (but I have more in the works…).  Whether or not Donald Trump is removed from office by the Senate after recently being impeached by the House of Representatives and whatever he does in the present, future, or legacy with the highest title in the free world, President Trump will never “Make America Great Again.”  I say this with one thing in mind that most people don’t look too hard into as a reason… his character.  At this point in his presidency, most have come to expect that Donald Trump is going to say or tweet something so abhorrent that it makes us Americans wonder how he made it to the final vote in 2016.

Back when he was initially elected, I tried to make another blog post titled “Morals over Money.”  However, I never published it simply because his lack of morals, integrity, character, etc. is so screwed up that I felt I couldn’t do any type of justice with mere words in any post I wrote.  (Even “screwed up” falls vastly short.)  That being said, if I can’t address his morals specifically or in detail, I can try to write about his most well-known slogan on his red hat… “Make America Great Again.”  Whether he wins or loses in the 2020 presidential election, one thing I’m sure of—he can never make this country great again.

Some of his supporters might say, “Look at the economy or the strengthening of the military” while others might simply ask, “What are you talking about?” I’m talking about something different… righteousness.  I believe America is tearing apart at the seams because of a lack of God, and no policy, politician, or law can fix it.  The problem lies in our very hearts, hearts only the Lord Jesus Christ Himself can mend by the blood of His forgiveness, essence of His unconditional love, and power only He possesses (2 Chronicles 7:14).

If President Trump spoke any form of truth or righteousness, people would take notice. But as it is, he only brings forth evil (Matthew 12:35) and every fruit contrary to that in Galatians 5:22-23.  The last Scripture I want to give is why America, or any nation, is not immune from God’s wrath… “Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin condemns any people.”-Proverbs 14:34 NIV

For a deeper look at the gross immorality of President Trump, and why his immorality is incompatible with Christian principles, please see the much-discussed lead editorial by Mark Galli of Christianity Today titled, “Trump Should Be Removed from Office.“

Faith and Endurance

I’ve been wanting to write on this topic for a while, especially in these times when America’s future is uncertain and morality and true faith are a breath of fresh air.  When times (personal or external) are tough and you feel like one thing after another is causing you heavy burden, the most precious thing we have to hold close is faith!

Now, I know that may sound much easier said than done, but when trying times burden my heart (making anxiety even worse with my OCD), I still know the Lord loves me and my future is in His all-powerful Hands.  Before I came to know the Lord through His Word and a personal relationship with Him, faith was hard because without a relationship with God or a grasp of His character, faith is baseless.  I’ve had a relationship with the Lord for a few years now, but only made this relationship connection a few months ago, and ever since then trusting in God has given me peace where I would not truly have it!

Isaiah 26:3 (NLT):

“You will keep in perfect peace
    all who trust in You,
    all whose thoughts are fixed on You!”

But Psalm 34:19 and John 16:33, respectively, told us trials would happen… “Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the LORD delivers them from them all.” (ESV) and “I have told you these things, so that in Me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” (NIV)

What is most important is how we react (who we lean on and trust in) when these trials come!  But when we do come out unscathed on the other side (Daniel 3:28-29 (visual)) and, eventually meet the Lord when He either calls us home or calls His church home, our faith will be tested by the fire and glorifies the Lord Jesus to the world (1 Peter 1:7).

The Apostle Paul also tells us to be “…joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer”—Romans 12:12 (NIV) and that we should “3 rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, 4 and endurance produces character, and character produces hope,5 and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.”—Romans 5:3-5 (ESV, visual)

In his last letter and when he knows he’s about to die, Paul tells Timothy in 2 Timothy 4:8 (NLT) what awaits those who endure to the end in victory… “And now the prize awaits me—the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give me on the day of His return. And the prize is not just for me but for all who eagerly look forward to His appearing.”

One of my favorite lines about faith came back in 2013 when “The Bible Series” aired.  In the first episode, right before God calls Abraham to sacrifice his son Isaac, the narrator says, “After years of struggle, Abraham has learned that to be chosen by God is a blessing—and a test. He must prove his faith—again, and again.” (The Bible Series (2013),”Beginnings, Part 1,” 34:26 time marker)

If you needed any more reason to have faith in trials, there is a reward.  In Revelation 3, Jesus has nothing to correct or discipline with the church in Philadelphia, but commends the church that they’ve “kept His command to endure patiently” and promises to “keep you from the hour of trial that is going to come on the whole world to test the inhabitants of the earth” (3:10), which is most likely the Great Tribulation, or “The Time of Jacob’s Trouble” (Jeremiah 30:7).

The Apostle John, also called the “Beloved Disciple” (John 20:2), had “patient endurance” (Revelation 1:9) and was given the privilege of seeing and writing what God had concealed for ages.  I truly believe that enduring patiently (trusting God and having faith) is the other side of the reward coin God promises!

Law Enforcement: Favoritism or “Professional Courtesy”?

(This post was inspired by someone I know being pulled over by a cop for speeding and using their badge to get out of a potential ticket.)

The purpose of this post is to explain the rationale behind my belief that the practice of “professional courtesy” (i.e., allowing fellow authority figures to break the law without repercussion) is corrupt, not necessarily to provide solutions.

Before I begin, I want to say I have high respect for law enforcement officers. When I was in middle school, I started watching reruns of Walker, Texas Ranger and for more than a decade afterward, I wanted to be an FBI agent. Then, for two years after graduating from high school and before moving to Texas, I volunteered with a California police department. 

To my knowledge, the police officers I worked with while volunteering never engaged in the practice of extending these professional courtesies to others in their field. In fact, when one of the K9 officers, who was also one of my advisors, said to me, “I’m held to high standards—I’m going to hold you to higher standards,” his words made a strong impression on me.

That being said, I’ve seen this on the news… police officers giving preferential treatment to fellow law enforcement officers. Their superiors may say, “They will be held accountable,” but the perspective and subsequent behavior of a police officer sometimes changes once they find that their suspect has a badge or some position of authority, and this is the point at which the scales of justice are made unequal.

This kind of treatment is hypocritical at best and corrupt at worst. It is a game of Russian roulette wherein the repercussions of this preferential treatment can cause irreversible harm, and the longer this pattern continues, the greater the chances that something tragic could happen.

For example, what about an inebriated off-duty officer who has repeatedly been “let off the hook” by fellow officers for driving drunk? What would they have to say for themselves should he kill someone while driving under the influence? Once this happens, the blood of the victim will be on the hands of every officer who knew about the behavior and did nothing to stop it. 

Therefore, I can’t help but find the practice of officers extending this sort of professional courtesy to be indefensible, unjust, and corrupt. And what does this say about the officers who practice it? Well, according to the 14th Amendment of the Constitution (specifically the “Equal Protection Clause” aka “Equal Justice Under Law”) and founding principles of America, everybody is to be treated equally under the law.

This tenet is also supported by Scripture. Apostle Paul addressed this issue in Romans 2:1, which says, in effect, that although they may see themselves as being less accountable for their unlawful actions because of their position of authority, they are, in fact, more guilty because they should know better! 

“You, therefore, have no excuse, you who pass judgment on someone else, for at whatever point you judge another, you are condemning yourself, because you who pass judgment do the same things.” (NIV) And because God is perfectly true and perfectly just, He “does not show favoritism.”—Romans 2:11

The badge and position of law enforcement is a place of high standards, and any person in authority who is caught breaking the law they are sworn to protect should receive at least the same, if not more harsh, justice according to the law.

Why I Can No Longer Sing or Listen To “God Bless America”

This may seem bold or un-American, but I’m aware of what I’m saying. I was born and raised in America and grew up playing, watching, and loving the nation’s pastime… baseball. I loved listening to beautiful renditions of “God Bless America” during major sporting events and holidays. But recently, I haven’t been able to sing or listen to it because I don’t believe it matches with our current reality.

Why do I believe this? Our Pledge of Allegiance contains the words “under God,” and if a nation wants God’s blessing, He expects them to take His laws seriously. If they don’t, they will be under a more severe penalty than of a nation that doesn’t claim allegiance—the more guilty nation did not fear Him or His laws as its people claimed.

But America has committed abominations—the legalized murder of innocents, legalized covenants of perversion and sexual immorality, and idolatry of presidents, to name a few. America has ignored the eternal laws of God engraved on the buildings of our highest courts. And if He doesn’t drop the hammer down, we’ll end up destroying ourselves.

We have abandoned our trust in God in favor of trust in presidents, politicians, money, and government. Many Americans, including the mainstream news, can’t believe how bad the leadership is under President Trump. We have turned away from the God of this nation. He is the only One who gives us a firm and uncompromising basis for morality and truth—both of which cannot be separated from Him and still work. Because we have compromised on truth, morality, and love, our only basis of reference for what was once good is history and traditions.

Like Moses calling his people back to their God after four hundred years of slavery, we need a mass spiritual revival—starting with God’s anointed and holy church.

I believe many things need to happen for the judgment of God to not come upon America, but these are just a few major issues America must see. This list is by no means comprehensive.

  1. For Americans, especially those in high power and authority, to love the truth. (2 Thessalonians 2:10)
  2. Repealing the 2015 legalization of same-sex marriage. (Leviticus 18:22, Romans 1:26–27)
  3. Total abolition of Roe v. Wade, on national and state levels. (Matthew 2:16–18)
  4. God’s church adhering to and proclaiming His Word in His house.
  5. Great repentance by the nation and call of prayer to seek His Holy face.

I have loved this country and what it stood for, but I can’t ignore blatant wickedness, perversion, and corruption. I do hope America repents of her wickedness and major wicked laws listed above, but my allegiance is now to the Lamb of God and His eternal Kingdom. Glory be to His Name and His Kingdom, now and forevermore!

Counting the uncountable: God’s love for us!

Ever since I was a kid, I’ve longed for friendship with people.  If someone mentioned or talked about me in a good way, it always uplifted and made me feel warm.  Why wouldn’t it?  This mentality even extended into areas one might not think of.  If my name was used as a character’s name in a book, I would get giddy because I would think if someone I knew by chance read my name, they might think of me.

But I’ve come to realize that my priorities were out of place.  Even that last example was a far stretch because it was “by chance.”  Even if we consider our spouse, significant other, parents, or kids who think about us all the time (or vice versa), the quantities and depths of thought and love they give us is absolutely minuscule compared to the way God feels and cares for us.

In Psalm 139:17–18 (NIV), David says:

17 How precious to me are Your thoughts, God!
    How vast is the sum of them!
18 Were I to count them,
    they would outnumber the grains of sand—
    when I awake, I am still with You.

That’s the love God has for us!  The gravity is overwhelming and the amount is incomprehensible—and the only natural and proper reaction is to fall on our face and worship at His nail-pierced feet!

Photo by Khadeeja Yasser on Unsplash

Praises rebuke the enemy!

A short but important realization: On Sunday night, I was home trying to get homework done when the enemy started to attack me in my thoughts. I’m vulnerable there because my OCD causes me to doubt many things, including the assurances of God. But I remembered some of my other friends in Christ have said the enemy can’t be around when we sing praises to the Lord. “Shout to the Lord” by Hillsong Worship (one of my favorite worship songs) was in my head, so I started singing silently. I immediately felt the peace of God as the thoughts of doubt quickly fled! I hope this message gives you a weapon from the Lord to defend against the enemies attacks!

Scriptural References:

Ephesians 6:10-18 – resist the devil by taking up God’s armor in prayer (which includes praise).

James 4:7 – resist the devil by submitting to God, which we do when we sing praise and gratitude to God.