2012: The Road Ahead - Part 5
by Gary Kah
The
Road Ahead
As we enter 2012, things wont be getting any easier for
Bible-believing Christians and conservative Jews. Satan has worked long and
hard to get our fallen world to this point. Gods Word predicted such times
would come. We shouldnt be surprised.
While I am not caught off guard by current developments, I am
grieved and deeply saddened by the fact that so many people are filled with
hatred and despise the very truth that could save them. The question for me as
a Christian becomes what should I do how should I respond?
As the world drifts ever closer to the crisis point that will give
rise to the nefarious leader described in Scripture, the warning signs the Lord
is permitting us to see are reminders that our time is short and this earth is
not our permanent home.
As James put it, our life is like a vapor that appears for a while
and then vanishes (James 4:14). This being the case, we must travel lightly,
not being weighed down by the temporary and often vane pursuits of this life.
Rather, we must keep our hearts and minds focused on matters of eternity,
recognizing that our reward is not of this world but awaits us in Heaven.
Keeping an eternal perspective in an increasingly depraved and
materialistic world is no small challenge. We can only be victorious in this
area by maintaining a close daily walk with the Lord Jesus Christ. The Lord, I
believe, is allowing us to see the signs of the times to draw us closer to
Himself. As we draw near to Him, the Holy Spirit empowers us to be obedient and
surrendered to doing Gods will in our lives. This, in turn, impacts those
around us for His glory and honor.
Peter said it well: Dear
friends, I urge you, as aliens and strangers in the world, to abstain from
sinful desires, which war against your soul. Live such good lives among the
pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good
deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us. I Peter 2:11-12
At a time when hatred for Christians is on the rise and many are
being persecuted for their faith, it is important that we do not let our love
for each other and even for those who may despise us grow cold. Jesus exhorted
his followers,
Love
your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray
for those who mistreat you?-Do to others as you would have them do to you-Then
your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, because he is
kind to the ungrateful and wicked. Be merciful, just as your Father is
merciful. Luke 6:27-28, 31, 35-36
Similarly, in Romans chapter 12, Paul wrote, Let
love be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil. Cling to what is good. Bless
those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. Repay no one evil for evil.
Have regard for good things in the sight of all men. Beloved, do not avenge
yourselves, but rather give place to wrath; for it is written, Vengeance is Mine,
I will repay, says the Lord. Do not be
overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good. Romans 12:9, 14, 17, 19
& 21
The bottom line is this: In the process of hating and exposing evil
as we are commanded to do we must at the individual level never stop loving the
sinner. In order to fulfill the Great Commission given to us by Jesus (Matt.
28:19-20), we must continue to represent Him with dignity before those who hate
us, remembering that we too were once enemies of Christ before we embraced His
love and accepted His forgiveness. With this in mind and as we embark on a new
year, let us abide in Jesus and let His love and grace live through us to reach
those who desperately need Him.
1 Aaron Klein, ??Next target of protesters: U.S. Dollar? Group
seeks global currency to replace each nation??s financial system,??
WorldNetDaily, October 31, 2011, www.wnd.com/?pageId=362293.
2 Ibid.
3 ??Mikhail Gorbachev Says Uprisings Signal an Emerging New World
Order,?? Report on Gorbachev??s speech at Lafayette College, October 20, 2011,
http://www.lafayette.edu/about/news/2011/10/20/mikhail-gorbachev-says-uprisings-signal-an-emerging-new-world-order/.
4 Jay Lindsay, Associated Press, (AP reporter Karen Matthews in
New York contributed to this report), ??Religion claims its place in Occupy
Wall Street,?? YAHOO! News, October 24, 2011,
http://news.yahoo.com/religion-claims-place-occupy-wall-street-171204904.html.
5 CNN, December 5, 2011.
6 Ambrose Evans-Pritchard, ??New recession threatens the globe as
debt crisis grows,?? The Telegraph, November 10, 2011,
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/financialcrisis/8882524/New-recession-threatens-the-globe-as-debt-crisis-grows.html.
7 Ibid.
8 Becket Adams, ??These States Will Suffer the Most in the Event
of an EU Collapse,?? The Blaze, November 17, 2011,
http://www.theblaze.com/stories/these-states-will-suffer-the-most-in-the-event-of-an-eu-collapse/.
9 ??Vatican Calls for ?(R)Central World Bank?? to Be Set Up,??
CNBC Report by Reuters, October 24, 2011, http://www.cnbc.com/id/45013499.
10 Patrick Hennessy and Bruno Waterfield, ??New euro ?(R)empire??
plot by Brussels,?? The Telegraph, October 22, 2011,
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/8843785/New-euro-empire-plot-by-Brussels.html.
11 EU Chief: The Time has Come for a Federal Europe,?? Express,
online edition, September 14, 2011.
12 ??Middle East firestorm: Worsening crisis may soon engulf
region in ?(R)unthinkable?? nightmare,?? DEBKAfile, as reported by The
Extinction Protocol, November 28, 2011,
http://theextinctionprotocol.wordpress.com/2011/11/28/middle-east-firestorm-worsening-crisis-may-soon-engulf-region-in-unthinkable-nightmare/.
13 ??Middle East firestorm: Worsening crisis may soon engulf
region in ?(R)unthinkable?? nightmare,?? Haaretz, as reported by The Extinction
Protocol, November 28, 2011,
http://theextinctionprotocol.wordpress.com/2011/11/28/middle-east-firestorm-worsening-crisis-may-soon-engulf-region-in-unthinkable-nightmare/.
14 ??Iran moves on from ?(R)Destroy Israel!?? to ?(R)Destroy all
the Jews!???? Exclusive Report by DEBKAfile, December 3, 2011,
http://www.debka.com/article/21536/printversion/.
15 Ibid.
16 L. A. Marzulli, Commentary & Analysis, ??Middle East Update
?C The Gathering Storm,?? ??Report: Syria arms missiles with chemical
warheads,?? December 12, 2011. His website is www.lamarzulli.net.
17 Ibid.
18 NBC Nightly News, December 12 & 15, 2011.
19 The Christian Post, as reported by JNN News,
Jerusalem-on-the-Line, December 11, 2011, http://www.jnnnews.com/jol_dec_11_11_sp.htm.
20 JNN News,
Jerusalem-on-the-Line, December 11, 2011,
http://www.jnnnews.com/jol_dec_11_11_sp.htm
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