Owner of the Zika virus exposed

He Led Captivity Captive

Grace thru Faith

• Spiritual Gifts

Q. Does anyone know what “led captivity captive” means in Eph 4:8 and Psalm 68? Is captivity all of Hell?

A. In Ephes. 4 Paul was recalling a tradition from ancient times that appears in Psalm 68 and that the Romans had elevated to an art form. When a Roman general returned victorious from Battle he was given an honor called a tribute. This involved passing before a reviewing stand where Caesar and the royal court were seated. In a long parade the General, then his victorious army, then the wagon loads of plunder and the kings and nobles of the countries he had defeated, and finally all the slaves he’d captured, bound and chained together. The conquering general was leading his captives into captivity. Afterwards he would receive a portion of the plunder as a reward.

Paul changed the meaning slightly in Ephes. 4:8 saying that at the cross when Jesus defeated His enemies He gave gifts to us instead of receiving them Himself. Then in verse 11 he went on to list five spiritual gifts He gave to the church.
At the End of the Age the Lord will lead Satan into captivity and receive the nations as His reward. The Hebrew of Psalm 68 can mean either give or receive so both interpretations are appropriate.

Shake The Dust From Your Feet

Qs and As from gracethrufaith.com

  Thursday, February 4th, 2016

• Interpreting Verses

Q. In Matt. 10:14 Jesus told the disciples to ‘shake the dust from their feet’ when they are leaving an unbelieving town. What did He mean by that?

A. Shaking the dust from their feet was the Lord’s way of saying, “Rid yourself of any trace of them, as if the encounter never happened.”
Jesus was telling the disciples not to waste any time or energy on people who refused to listen to the Gospel. We can’t debate, persuade, argue, or coerce anyone into accepting God’s Word. They are either open to it or they’re not.
Arguing the point with people who disagree only hardens their own position and makes it more difficult for them to change their mind in the future.
Once we lay out the Gospel for someone we’ve done what the Lord has asked of us. If they are curious and want to know more, great. We should continue the discussion for as long as they like.
But if they aren’t interested, all the talk in the world won’t help. and it’s better for everyone if we don’t force the issue.
Remember, we’re called to confront people with the truth, but it’s the Holy Spirit’s job to convert them.

At the United Nations Nothing Justifies Terrorism, Except Palestinian ‘Frustration’

Finding excuses for demonizing Jews, discriminating against Jews, delegitimizing Jewish self-determination, and just plain old Jew-hatred, is thousands of years old. It has a name, anti-Semitism.

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By Anne Bayefsky -- Bio and Archives  February 3, 2016

The United Nations played the Holocaust game last week so it could play another lethal game this week. The ruse consists of making a big deal about the gas chambers for Jews back then, while stoking the fires of anti-Semitism burning right now.

On January 31, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon penned a New York Times op-ed to say at one and the same time that “people will always resist occupation” and “nothing excuses terrorism.” That follows a statement he gave to the Security Council on January 26, in which he said “Palestinian frustration is growing” and “it is human nature to react to occupation, which often serves as an incubator of hate and extremism.”


Reaction to the claim that it is human nature to stab pregnant women and mothers in front of their children — as Palestinians had done the week before — has been unanimous across the Israeli political spectrum. In the words of Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu on January 26: “The secretary-general’s remarks give a tailwind to terrorism.”
Nevertheless, the spokesman of the secretary-general doubled down in a press briefing on January 27 with these words: “Absolutely nothing justifies terrorism. . . . At the same time, if we want to see an end to this violence . . . we must address the root causes, the underlying frustrations.”

In short, for the United Nations, nothing justifies terrorism except Palestinian frustration.
It is hardly a secret that the UN agenda is to find reasons for treating the Jewish state differently — notwithstanding the UN Charter’s promise of equality for nations large and small. The settlements bandwagon is one of many.

In effect, the “occupation” rant is the PC version of ISIS’s “Allahu Akbar.” It has been the Arab cry since the minute of Israel’s birth in 1948 and is the verbiage that presages destruction, not peaceful coexistence. It is the complaint about Jews living on Arab-claimed land, despite the fact that ultimate ownership of this land — according to legal agreement — is to be decided by negotiations, not UN fiat.

The bigger picture tells the story. The UN just wrapped up a year in which there were a total of 26 General Assembly resolutions condemning specific countries for human-rights abuse: 19 — that’s 73 percent — against Israel and one, for instance, against Syria. In 2015, the UN Commission on the Status of Women adopted one resolution condemning a country for violating women’s rights: Israel — for violating the rights of Palestinian women.

Finding excuses for demonizing Jews, discriminating against Jews, delegitimizing Jewish self-determination, and just plain old Jew-hatred, is thousands of years old. It has a name, anti-Semitism.

Which is where the UN’s international Holocaust Remembrance Day comes in. At the UN, it provides cover. So on January 27, Ban Ki-moon showed up at the General Assembly’s annual commemoration of the liberation of Auschwitz.

After checking-off “present” in his Holocaust remembrance speech, the secretary-general could manage to mention anti-Semitism only once, and only together with “anti-Muslim bigotry.” His UN secretariat also used the day to promote the claim that there were multiple Holocausts, adding for the first time to the rostrum of the annual event a Sinto speaker, who repeatedly referred to “the forgotten Holocaust of the Sinti and Roma.”

The occasion was further desecrated by the Palestinians and their UN collaborators, who managed to hijack the day to hold the annual kickoff of the UN Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People (CEIRPP). The secretary-general delivered his anti-Semitism/anti-Muslim-bigotry speech at the Holocaust(s) event and then walked into the CEIRPP event and delivered another speech on Israel’s international crimes.

Here is Ban Ki-moon on Holocaust Remembrance Day when he was not in the presence of survivors: “Palestinians are losing hope. Young people especially are losing hope. . . . If we hope to see an end to this violence . . . we must address the underlying frustration.” He said nothing about the “frustration” — actually the deep psychological burden — of necessary and mandatory military service for millions of Israelis throughout the prime of their lives. Nothing about Palestinian responsibility for their own lives, or their choice of more terror over more land, or their refusal to negotiate, or their installation of a terrorist organization to govern the land they already occupy in Gaza.

In late November 2015, Palestinian UN representative Riyad Mansour announced at an exhibit opening held in the public lobby of the UN: “We are so proud that in this popular uprising, the backbone of this uprising are the youth of Palestine.” On January 17 a 16-year old Palestinian stabbed to death an Israeli mother of six — a.k.a. a “settler” — in front of her children. And now the UN secretary-general expresses his empathy and understanding of this normal, to-be-expected, “youthful frustration.”

We know what comes next, because that’s a straight line if there ever was one.

Gary Stearman: The Tower of Syene and the Possible Destruction of Egypt

10 reasons 'Jesus Calling' is a dangerous book

By Warren B. Smith "And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you. For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many." (Matthew 24:4-5) On Nov. 12, 2015, Religion News Service posted an article titled "Jesus Calling and the Policing of Theology." It was a…

FOR WHOM THE BAAL TROLLS (Pt 4)

PART ONE / PART TWO / PART THREE
By Dr. Thomas R. Horn 
Republished from skywatchdirecttv.com

I saw the Lord sitting upon his throne, and all the host of heaven standing on his right hand and on his left. And the Lord said, “Who shall entice Ahab king of Israel, that he may go up and fall at Ramothgilead?” And one spake after this manner, and another saying after that manner. Then there came out a spirit, and stood before the Lord, and said, “I will entice him.” And the Lord said unto him, “Wherewith?” And he said, “I will go out, and be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets.”

—2 Chronicles 18:18b–21a

While the pages of nearly all books on spiritual warfare abound with examples of people becoming possessed or demonized by entities as a result of deviant perversion, drug use, violence, occultism, or other depravations of immoral behavior, including infidelity and witchcraft, the most powerful instruments of satanic bondage by far witnessed during my decades of executive ministry were connected to something much more dangerous than personal failings. The superior enemies to which I refer are demons of religion that infest institutional Christianity.

This is not a daring statement.
And while until now I have focused mostly on the single lonely individuals that sit in their homes receiving demonic pleasure by trolling for misery of others, those detestable activities are only part of the problem—the “spirit of the trolls” exists among some church leaders too. Just as a lying spirit filled the mouths of the prophets in 2 Chronicles 18, and just as Jesus confronted unclean spirits inside the synagogue (Mark 1:23) and connected some of the priestly leaders of the Temple to the strongest power of Satan on earth (John 8:44; Matthew 13:38 and 23:15), robust echon daimonion exists today from the lowest to the highest levels of denominational establishment among institutional members who are possessed (whether they perceive it as such or not) by luciferian ambition.

This will come as no surprise to truly born-again and seasoned spiritual warriors, as it is the result of a common military strategy. The church represents the single establishment on earth capable of undoing Satan’s plans, and is therefore the natural enemy of the kingdom of darkness and the epicenter against which all spiritual wickedness must ultimately be focused. The church, through its hierarchies and institutional constructs, is therefore the primary target for infiltration by agents of darkness wherever human weakness allows for penetration by daimonions. Among others, the apostle Paul recognized this specific danger, warning the church in Corinth that “false apostles” were masquerading among them as ministers of Christ. “And no marvel,” he revealed, “for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light. Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness” (2 Corinthians 11:13–15).
 
Consistent with this phenomenon, Father Gabriele Amorth, a renowned exorcist in Rome whose book, Memoirs of an Exorcist: My Life Fighting against Satan, was released in 2010, admits to the existence of “satanic sects in the Vatican where participation reaches all the way to the College of Cardinals.” When asked if the Pope was aware of this situation, he replied, “Of course.”[i] Similarly, before he was tragically killed in an automobile accident in 2011, Rev. David Wilkerson reported daimonion activity within evangelical institutions as well:

A number of [former] witches are warning that Satanists are infiltrating the church—especially charismatic churches. Some of these [are] telling of a diabolical plot by evil witches to enter congregations posing as super-spiritual Christians. Many of these evil witches, they say, are already firmly established in numerous churches, controlling both the pastor and congregation and causing great confusion, wickedness, divorce—even death. We have received many letters in our office from people who say they believe their pastor must be under some kind of demonic influence—and I believe many of these letters are very legitimate.[ii]

Wilkerson, who at one time was a member of the same organization we served, was correct in asserting that some of those who pose as super-spiritual Christians (including Internet troll “theology cops”), department leaders, pastors, and even state office holders and denominational headquarters executives are in fact instruments of evil. Thankfully, there are other church members, pastors, and leaders who, as sincere believers, have become increasingly aware of this sinister invasion into organizations by daimonions and in recent years have made special efforts to teach their congregations how to identify the differences between “religious spirits” and true Christianity.

Sometimes “identifying” the misdeeds of “religious spirits” is not really that hard to do.
For example, just about every solid Bible expositor I know has been tirelessly harassed online the last few years by fake defenders of the faith. Yet, not once have these self-proclaimed “guardians of the truth” (including one TV preacher who dedicated an entire edition of his “Ministry” magazine last year to slanderously vilifying all of today’s most popular prophecy preachers as apostates [all but himself, of course!]) actually followed the Bible’s mandates themselves, directives that very specifically outline how believers are to deal with error in the church. The New Testament books of Matthew, Galatians, Thessalonians, Romans, and others provide guidelines for dealing with differences between true believers. These verses teach us that if we perceive a brother or sister as falling into error, we are to:

1. Go to him or her PRIVATELY in a spirit of humility and redemption.
2. If those we approach will not receive our advice, we go to the elders of the church PRIVATELY and share our concern.
3. If the elders believe the issue is legitimate, they go to the person PRIVATELY in hopes of restoring him or her.
4. If the person still refuses council, the church is to have nothing more to do with him or her.

With that in mind, the next time you are online reading some troll’s diatribe about Carl Gallups, Chuck Missler, Gary Stearman, Steve Quayle, L. A. Marzulli, Cris Putnam, Jonathan Cahn, Josh Peck, Gonz Shimura, Joel Richardson, yours truly, or any of the other current favorite targets, ask yourself if the hatchet people attacking them ever bothered to obey Scripture and go to the person PRIVATELY with their concerns in a loving spirit of restoration (they haven’t), and then “be careful little eyes what you read,” because these scripture-guideline-stomping destructive forces seek to contaminate your mind and spirit (see Prov. 4:23–27) in order to draw YOU TOO over to the dark side.

Be absolutely clear about this, as well: NOTHING in Scripture allows for setting up websites, blogs, or other mediums to PUBLICALLY and routinely lambast believers with accusations—that is the job of Satan and his followers!  He is the father of lies and the “accuser of our brethren…which accused them before our God day and night” (John 8:44; Rev. 12:10).

For all the value the Internet has given believers, it also has “unlocked something dark in humanity,” says acclaimed author Anthony Horowitz in a newspaper interview.^[iii] Horowitz, a best-selling children’s fiction writer in the UK, was speaking at the Oxford Literary Festival when he described how Internet trolls are “foul, disgusting and cruel” and that “evil is getting the upper hand.”^[iv] His passionate comments came on the heels of relentless and vicious online feedback he received following a television appearance. Mr. Horowitz is certainly not alone in this experience, as any notable writer can attest—especially Christians who pen edgy, newsworthy, or prophetic material.

And yes, that includes me and people like me. In fact, every leader with whom I am associated in news, print, television, and social media has been under growing attack the last few years, and not from those you would expect. Religious “Christians”, not atheists or unbelievers per se, form the largest part of the swelling ranks of warfare aimed at criticizing true Bible-based works. Because such discontents cannot stop people from hearing God’s prophets, they (and the spirit they allow to channel through them) at a minimum seek to divide and confuse ungrounded babes in Christ who, while seeking a deeper relationship with Jesus, end up online. Those who would destabilize these believers have always existed, of course. I witnessed ingrates in every town where I pastored throughout the 1970s–1990s. But today the Internet has given malcontents a place to hive and to hide behind screens while using spiritual-sounding titles and websites to voice their ungraciousness. And while their audiences are very tiny at this time, their contaminated spirits threaten to take root and could explode under the coming legions that will fuel the empire of the Son of Perdition. Simply put, the words of Jesus that “ye shall know them by their fruits” (Matt. 7:15–16) have never been more important. These instructions of Christ should serve as a warning to all believers to monitor their motives, to examine their hearts, if truly they are altruistic or if in fact they are energized by selfish ambition, because the latter is the Lucifer-effect that Antichrist will use to energize the coming war between Christian vs. Christian, a time when it will be eternally important to know you are on the right side.
TO BE CONTINUED…

Believers And Followers Qs and As

Republished from gracethrufaith.com   Thursday, January 28th, 2016

• Christian Life
• Salvation

Q. Have you ever done a study on Luke 14:33 and the surrounding text when Jesus was describing what it would take to be a true disciple? Was he talking only to the crowd in front of him or is it applicable today? Is he really asking us to give up everything or rather be willing to give up everything?

A. The Lord’s instructions in Luke 14:25-35 are for the entire Church age. It’s a detailed explanation of what Paul later summarized in Romans 12: 1-2:
Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God–this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is–his good, pleasing and perfect will.

It’s important to remember that the issue here is not salvation, which is free for the asking. It’s what we do in response to the salvation we’ve received that both Jesus and Paul were explaining.

It’s currently popular in the Church to distinguish between mere believers and true followers of Christ. To be saved we must only believe. But then in gratitude for such a remarkable display of God’s mercy, we should be willing to present our whole beings to be used for His glory. After all, Jesus ransomed us from death with His own blood (1 Peter 1:18-19). Therefore, our life actually belongs to Him (1 Cor 6:19-20).

In Luke 14:33 Jesus said we can’t be His disciples unless we’re willing to give up everything we have. We have to abandon all of our worldly dreams and aspirations in order to serve Him as He desires. This doesn’t mean we’re choosing a life of deprivation. Nor does it mean we have to leave family and friends behind and spend our life doing missionary work in some far off land. It means following him won’t give us the life many of us learned to desire as children. But it will give us a life filled with satisfaction we could not have found in any other way. Remember, the Lord said, “I have come that they may have live, and have it abundantly” (John 10:10).

J.D. Farag´s Mid-East Prophecy Update

John Haller January 24 2016