The foundations of faith

Hebrews 11:3 instructs us that through faith we can understand that the worlds were created by the word of God. The basic concept is not new to Scripture, but an in depth word study reveals that the language prefigures a knowledge of relativity and quantum mechanics with precision. Furthermore, the  description given in verse 3 implies that faith plays an essential role in these processes. 

This article will strive to accomplish two things. It will first show that Hebrews 11:3 gives a description of reality that prefigures both quantum mechanics and relativity and grounds these in the utterances of a self-existent, infinite-personal God. It will then show how this truth grounds faith as essential to the Christian life. Below is the verse as it normally reads in English

Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear.  - Hebrews 11:3 KJV

This analysis will involve an analysis of the words in the original Greek by which this verse was composed1. Below is the same passage with Strong's numbering

Through faithG4102 we understandG3539 that theG3588 worldsG165 were framedG2675 by the wordG4487 of God,G2316 so that things which are seenG991 were notG3361 madeG1096 ofG1537 things which do appear.G5316  

 - Hebrews 11:3 KJV

The word translated 'worlds' is (G165 αἰών aio¯n  ahee-ohn) This word generally has  three meanings. One is eternity, which is used in most of the passages that deal with promises of eternal life. It can also refer to an (usually long) interval of time. It is translated 'world' in numerous passages in the KJV.

In the passages where it is rendered eternal or an interval of time, time is the major relevant attribute. When we are promised eternal life, for example, the main point is that this life has no end

In these passages where it is translated ‘world,’ there was a time component to world and a space component to time. The following passages should illustrate that ‘aion’ is often used in ways that includes space or objects that require the context of space to exist.

And the cares of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, and the lusts of other things entering in, choke the word, and it becometh unfruitful. - Mark 4:19 KJV

The cares of this world does not merely mean cares about time, but cares about things that exist and move within this time interval. These things necessarily exist in space.

But he shall receive an hundredfold now in this time, houses, and brethren, and sisters, and mothers, and children, and lands, with persecutions; and in the world to come eternal life...

...Who shall not receive manifold more in this present time, and in the world to come life everlasting. 

- Mark 10:30; Luke18:30 KJV

There are three time referents are used in these parallel passages. The phrase “in this time” is translated from (g2540 | καιρός  | kairos). This word is used when one wishes to refer to time as a mere chronological measurement. The word “eternal”is translated from a form of aion -  ‘aionios.’This word is used as a description of the time attribute of the life that will be lived in the “world to come,”which is translated as ‘aion.’ This aion has an extended meaning, referring not just to a future time period, but also implying that it is a place where people will live an endless life. 

And the lord commended the unjust steward, because he had done wisely: for the children of this world are in their generation wiser than the children of light. 

- Luke 16:8 KJV

Time, in and of itself, has no children. This phraseology refers to those who are influenced by the ethos of a given historical period or time interval. The phrase “children of the 60’s,”for example, refers to those influenced by the predominant cultural forces at work in the 1960’s. These forces are at work in people who necessarily occupy space while they live.

And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God. - Romans 12:2 KJV

Being conformed to this ‘aion’ implies that ‘aion’ has more than chronological attributes. The ‘aion’ has cultural, ideological, and political attributes

Where is the wise? where is the scribe? where is the disputer of this world? hath not God made foolish the wisdom of this world?...

...Howbeit we speak wisdom among them that are perfect: yet not the wisdom of this world, nor of the princes of this world, that come to nought: 7 But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world unto our glory: 8 Which none of the princes of this world knew: for had they known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory...

...Let no man deceive himself. If any man among you seemeth to be wise in this world, let him become a fool, that he may be wise. 

- 1 Corinthians 1:20 ; 2:6-8; 3:18 KJV

Wisdom is not a property or method of time, but of individuals, groups, and civilizations that exist in time. 

Who gave himself for our sins, that he might deliver us from this present evil world, according to the will of God and our Father:...

...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. - Galatians 1:4; Ephesians 6:12 KJV

Darkness would not be a property directly  of a time-period, but implies that this time interval contains objects  that might contain darkness or rulers of darkness.

Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world; - Titus 2:12 KJV

We are to live godly lives in this ‘aion’ - inside of time. In our lives inside of time, we must occupy space.

Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds;...

...Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear. 

- Hebrews 1:2; 11:3 KJV

Both Hebrews 1:2 and 11:3 speak of the entirety of space-time.  The difference between the passages where (G165 αἰών aio¯n  ahee-ohn) is used to designate an epoch of time or eternity and those where it is translated ‘world’ require an extended meaning. According to Trench, 

“In classical Greek, aion often refers to the duration of a human life. But the essential meaning of aion is time as the condition for all created things and as the measure of their existence. Thus Theodoret wrote: ’Ho aion is not any substance, but it is an irresistible thing, accompanying those who have a mortal nature; for the interval from the constituting of the world [kosmou] to its consummation is called aionaion then is the interval yoked to created nature.  Aion came to mean all that exists in the world under conditions of time: "The totality of what is discernible in the passage of time, the world inasmuch as it is active in time." ’ ...

...”the use of aiones in Hebrews 11:3 is decisive. In both passages aiones can only mean ‘the world,’ not ‘the ages...’

...Etymologically our English world more nearly represents aion than does the Greek kosmos. The old Weralt (in modern German Welt) is composed of two words, Wer (man) and Alt (age or generation). Thus the basic meaning of Weralt is "generation of men." The notion of space unfolds from this expression of time, as aion passed into the meaning of kosmos ”2

 What this means is that ‘aion’ implies not only time but space in these passages. The ancients knew nothing of relativity theory - particularly the concept of space-time as a unified substance -  and would likely have understood these to have the same meaning that we attach to the idea of historical dispensations today. The term ‘aion’ would be used to refer to an interval of time that contained a common arrangement of physical and cultural dynamics, all of which necessarily occur inside space. In most of these passages this is sufficient. 

Hebrews 1:2 and Hebrews 11:3, however, concern the beginning of all creation. The idea of historical dispensation is much too small to fully capture the full meaning of ‘aion.’ These passages are addressing the creation of everything that is not self-existent. Aion as space-time would, in these passages, include all of space-time or space-times. This meaning of ‘aion’ which God intended but would have been unknown to the ancient mind prefigures relativity. Through faith we can understand that God created space-times.

The creation  of space-time

How did God create this space-time. We are instructed that is is through the word of God. The word used here is (G4487 | Ῥῆμα |  Rhēma  hray'-mah). The meaning of this word is utterance. This type of word is a particular word of God rather than the word of God as the full counsel of God or the mind of God. The term for the Word of God that represents the Mind of God and possesses the ontology or essence of God is (G3056 |  λόγος | logos | log'-os). The Logos is the Mind of God and the source of all of the prescriptive information and fine-tuning for the creation. The Logos is the ground and constructor of every rhema word. The rhema, because of its particularity as a free will expression of the Logos, has a relativity and contingency that sets it apart from the Logos. The Logos necessarily shares in the divine essence. The rhema, however, while grounded in that essence attains a distinct ontology by virtue of being a particular  and freely given word from God. Once the rhema is defined, it has its own distinct essence, dynamics, and constraints.

While not being the essence of God as the Logos is, the Rhema word is defined by prescriptive information in the Logos. This sets the constraints (natural laws and cosmological constants) and initial conditions of the rhema. In the Septuagint, which is the first translation of the Old Testament from the Hebrew to Greek that was finished about 200BC, Isaiah 55:11 uses rhema to mean word. The rhema of God, while going FROM God and having a distinct essence from God, WILL accomplish His divine purposes.

So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it. Isaiah 55:11

What is the purpose of the rhema word in creation in Hebrews 11:3. It was the rhema that would ‘frame’ the space-times. The Greek here is (G2675 | καταρτίζω | katartizo | kat-ar-tid'-zo). It means to complete throughly and is translated variously as frame, fit, and prepare. The rhema word frames, or builds, these space-times and sets their properties and methods.

The use of rhema to define building blocks of the universe implies that the space-time universe is composed of information. This has huge implication concerning the nature of material reality. Hebrews 11:3 uses a connective to establish this relation. The, “worlds are framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear.” There are two key words which define the nature of physical reality which is created: G991 | βλέπω | blepo ̄| blep'-o) and G5316 | φαίνω |  phainō|  fah'ee-no). 

The word ‘blepo’ simply refer to that which is observed or the act of observation. The word ‘phaino’ refers to that which reveals or manifests itself. The use of Phaino implies that an object that already exists comes into view, whereas Blepo refers to the observation. What Hebrews 11:3 is saying that because the rhema word is the building blocks of space-time, the observation of reality is NOT based on objectively existing objects revealing themselves. It is based on information. When we make an observation, we are are observing information and constructing discrete, material objects from the observation. This idea prefigures quantum mechanics, whose experimental findings suggest that material reality acts like a wave when it is not being observed but like particles when they are observed. One of the implications of quantum mechanics is that particles are constructs that materialize only when observed3. If the universe is really made up of information, then there would be protocols that would govern how  that information to be used to construct objects upon reading the input or output stream in much the same way that a browser constructs Windows, graphics, multimedia, and text upon reading the information stream published by the Web server. When we observe the physical reality, our minds construct concrete objects from an information stream according to rules God has ordained.

Hebrews 11:3 was not written solely to speak about the Bible teaches about science. In context, it is not even primarily about science. This verse was written to provide a meta-physical foundation for understanding how faith works. Because the space-time universe is composed of prescriptive information, God can modify how the universe operates by embedding additional prescriptive information in faith. This faith is revealed to us so that we can access the things God has provided for us. 

This faith is grounded in the facts that the universe is made up of information that can be programmatically modified. Think of our physical universe as a virtual reality simulation that God has programmed but runs in an ontologically distinct manner from the Divine essence. The revelation of the rhema word of faith is a way that God continues to embed input into the simulation. Our receipt of that word of faith is how we can access God.  As we believe His promises and receive His promises, He will do exceedingly above all we can imagine. In the next installment I will write about the methodology of faith and how it translates the invisible realities ordained of God into the physical universe.

References

1 Strong numbers are used to map English words found in translations  to the original languages. This can be verified by consulting Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance. It can also be verified using Bible study software like E-sword or Web sites like http://www.blueletterbible.org

2 Trench’s New Testament Synonyms

http://studybible.info/trench/World

3 For a quick introduction to quantum mechanics, here is a playlist from Inspiring Philosophy. It is mostly a very excellent treatment of the subject, although Quantum mechanics, in my view, implies dualism rather than “weak pantheism.” 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v2Xsp4FRgas&list=PL1mr9ZTZb3TViAqtowpvZy5PZpn-MoSK_

Preparing Our Hearts for Revival

We are to prepare the soil of our hearts for revival. The power of revival can only come from God. The Preparation also comes from God, but God uses people to prepare for revival. Consider two farmers. One prepares his soil for sowing and for receiving the former and latter rain, but the other does not. The farmer who does not prepares his soil gets nothing more than a mud bog. The mud bog is good for wallowing and mud racing, but is  not in any condition to receive either seed or water. The other tills his soil and fertilizes his soil. The soil is in a prime condition to receive both seed and water. The farmer who does not prepare his soil has little to show for his efforts. The other farmer receives an abundant harvest.

Hosea 6:3 teaches that there are two rains of revival. Just as the morning is established to happen at regular and appointed times and seasons, God has established times and seasons in which He reveals His Holy Spirit as the rain.  The text is not referring to the physical rain needed for agriculture, but rather of revival. God comes down as the rain.

Let us know, Let us pursue the knowledge of the Lord. His going is established as the morning. He will come to us like the rain, Like the former and latter rain upon the earth.  - Hosea 6:3

The former rain is the first outpouring of God's Holy Spirit at Pentecost. Peter cites Joel 2:28-32 in his message recorded in Acts 2. There is, however, another rain of revival. A study of the prophecy in Joel 2-3 in its context suggests that the complete fulfillment is accomplished in the same season of time as the return of Christ at the Battle of Armageddon.

Hosea 10:12 instructs us to prepare the soil of our hearts to receive the latter rain. The fallow ground that is being broken up is not physical soil that is useful to agriculture, but the soil of our hearts.  We are to sow righteousness, and the Lord will rain righteousness. We are to prepare our soil for revival.

Sow for yourselves righteousness; Reap in mercy; Break up your fallow ground, For it is time to seek the Lord, till He comes and rains righteousness on you - Hosea 10:12

We are to prepare our hearts and minds to receive instruction in God's word and receive the outpouring of the Holy Spirit.  We prepare by studying God's Word, prayer, praise, and seeking God. We are to seek God individually and in sacred assembly. When we do this, we will be ready for the latter rain revival.

The Sacred Assembly and the Seven Feasts of Israel

We are currently living in dangerous times. We are living under economic distress, in what may go down in history as the Second Great Depression. We are also living in distressing social times. Dramatic cultural change is on the air, issues like same-sex marriage have the potential to completely re-write the social landscape. America is rapidly becoming a post Christian culture.

America is also rapidly becoming a post freedom culture. issues like NSA spying, indefinite detentions of American citizens  and increasingly aggressive policing tactics raise the specter of a police state emerging in America and other nations of the commonly called free world.  The international scene is becoming increasingly dangerous for Israel and for God's people globally, as hostility and persecution of God's people are on the rise. It is not unthinkable that in a few year that we could see both global pe5rsecution of Christians and the siege of Israel by an international coalition described in Ezekiel 38-39 that will emerge as the coming Islamist Empire.

The good news here is that God has provided a way for His people in all covenants and dispensations to seek Him. He has provided for his people to Seek Him in Sacred Assembly. Sacred Assemblies were first defined under the Mosaic Covenant in Leviticus 23 in the form of the seven feasts of Israel. While these feasts are defined in the Mosaic Covenant, they are fulfilled in the New Testament. A study of these will show that  Passover, Unleavened Bread, First Fruits, and Pentecost have already been fulfilled during the year that Christ rose from the dead through His actions and the birthing of the church;  the Feast of Trumpets is about to be fulfilled in the context of contemporary events, followed by the Day of Atonement and the Feast of Tabernacles.

The Seven Feasts

 “‘These are the Lord’s appointed festivals, the sacred assemblies you are to proclaim at their appointed times: - Leviticus 23:4 NIV

Passover is seven days long. The first and the seventh days are  sabbaths and sacred assemblies. Jesus was crucified  during passover, which was  the first day sacred assembly (Luke 22-23). After the Passover meal, they would celebrate the Feast of Unleavened Bread. Christ was buried during the first several days of this time.

The Lord’s Passover begins at twilight on the fourteenth day of the first month.  On the fifteenth day of that month the Lord’s Festival of Unleavened Bread begins; for seven days you must eat t made without yeast. On the first day hold a sacred assembly and do no regular work.  For seven days present a food offering to the Lord. And on the seventh day hold a sacred assembly and do no regular work.’” 

- Leviticus 23:5-8 NIV

First Fruits is celebrated  when the first sheaves are harvested. The first sheaf was to be dedicated at the temple.This represented the beginning of the harvest. Leviticus 23:11 established thus date as the "day after the sabbath" of passover. This would be the second day of the passover week or the third day when the special sabbath or "high sabbath" of day one fell before a regular sabbath day. This was the case the year Jesus was crucified. Christ rose from the dead on first fruits to represent the very first human being to partake in the resurrection and ascend into heaven. (Luke 24). 

The Lord said to Moses,  “Speak to the Israelites and say to them: ‘When you enter the land I am going to give you and you reap its harvest, bring to the priest a sheaf of the first grain you harvest.  He is to wave the sheaf before the Lord so it will be accepted on your behalf; the priest is to wave it on the day after the Sabbath.  On the day you wave the sheaf, you must sacrifice as a burnt offering to the Lord a lamb a year old without defect,  together with its grain offering of two-tenths of an ephah of the finest flour mixed with olive oil—a food offering presented to the Lord, a pleasing aroma—and its drink offering of a quarter of a hin of wine.  You must not eat any bread, or roasted or new grain, until the very day you bring this offering to your God. This is to be a lasting ordinance for the generations to come, wherever you live.

- Leviticus 23:9-14 NIV

Feast of Weeks, called  Pentecost by Hellenistic Jews,  is a celebration of the harvest. From the day of first fruits, including the day of first fruits, fifty day are counted. Jews call this "counting the omer." A grain offering is offered each of these days. On the day of Pentecost, two loaves of bread that are baked with yeast from the harvested grain of the first fruits, are waved before the Lord. This bread was to be presented along with the grain that was presented each "day of the omer," seven lambs, a male goat, and two young lambs. 

All of the living things offered during this festival represent the great harvest of people into the kingdom of God. The grain represents those who were harvested during the great harvest of people into the kingdom of God. The living things that were destroyed through offering represent those who left the earthly life through the death of the earthly body. They will receive a resurrection body, but the earthly body was destroyed. Except for the loaves of the first fruits, all of the offerings involved the physical destruction of that offering. 

The two loves of the first fruits that were waved, however, became transformed by baking. Their earthly body did not become destroyed but transformed through the baking process. The believers represented  by these two loaves will not suffer the destruction of their physical bodies, but will experience transformation of their bodies at the time of the general resurrection(1 Corinthians 15:51). Revelation 14:4  describes the 144,000 as the first fruits. They  are "redeemed from the earth (vs 3)." The rapture/resurrection will redeem the people of God from the earth. Verse 4 describes condition of maturity: perfection in following Christ, perfection in integrity, perfection in lifestyle and holiness, and priveleged access to the presence of God. There is is a worship song that no one can learn except the 144,000. The 144,000 are the ones who are raptured at the time of resurrection.  


The church was born  out of the sacred assembly of Pentecost. Jesus instructed them to wait in Jerusalem until  they received power from God to be witnesses. Luke 24:45-52 records that, after Jesus ascended into Heaven, that they went to the temple in  Jerusalem and continuously praised God.
 

Then he opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures.  He told them, “This is what is written: The Messiah will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day,  and repentance for the forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.  You are witnesses of these things.  I am going to send you what my Father has promised; but stay in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high.” 

When he had led them out to the vicinity of Bethany, he lifted up his hands and blessed them.  While he was blessing them, he left them and was taken up into heaven.  Then they worshiped him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy. And they stayed continually at the temple, praising God. - Luke 24:45-53

Acts 1 provides some additional information about the nature of the assembly. They met in an upper room of the place where they were staying and "They all joined together constantly in prayer, along with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brothers (Acts 1:14 NIV)."

On the day of Penetecost they were all gathered into one place - no doubt that would be the temple - as they were Jews. Acts 2:1-4 records that on this day, the Holy Spirit was poured out, beginning the great harvest of souls for God.

    “‘From the day after the Sabbath, the day you brought the sheaf of the wave offering, count off seven full weeks.  Count off fifty days up to the day after the seventh Sabbath, and then present an offering of new grain to the Lord.  From wherever you live, bring two loaves made of two-tenths of an ephah of the finest flour, baked with yeast, as a wave offering of firstfruits to the Lord.  Present with this bread seven male lambs, each a year old and without defect, one young bull and two rams. They will be a burnt offering to the Lord, together with their grain offerings and drink offerings—a food offering, an aroma pleasing to the Lord.  Then sacrifice one male goat for a sin offering and two lambs, each a year old, for a fellowship offering.  The priest is to wave the two lambs before the Lord as a wave offering, together with the bread of the firstfruits. They are a sacred offering to the Lord for the priest.  On that same day you are to proclaim a sacred assembly and do no regular work. This is to be a lasting ordinance for the generations to come, wherever you live.

    “‘When you reap the harvest of your land, do not reap to the very edges of your field or gather the gleanings of your harvest. Leave them for the poor and for the foreigner residing among you. I am the Lord your God.’ " 

- Leviticus 23:15-22 NIV 

The first four feasts were fulfilled by Christ the year Christ rose from the dead. These feasts' fulfillment was part of the former rain. The next three fulfillments are future, tied to the latter rain. There is yet a sacred assembly that will result in God response with His manifest presence

 The Feast of Trumpets was celebrated on the first day of the seventh month. Numbers 10:1-10 lists the designated uses for trumpets.Trumpets were to be used for 

1. Calling people to assembly (v2)
2. Signaling when the camp is to move(v2)
3. Convene Sacred Assemblies (v10)
4. Call to battle when you are under oppression; God will deliver you.(v9)

The Lord said to Moses:  “Make two trumpets of hammered silver, and use them for calling the community together and for having the camps set out.  When both are sounded, the whole community is to assemble before you at the entrance to the tent of meeting.  If only one is sounded, the leaders—the heads of the clans of Israel—are to assemble before you.  When a trumpet blast is sounded, the tribes camping on the east are to set out.  At the sounding of a second blast, the camps on the south are to set out. The blast will be the signal for setting out.  To gather the assembly, blow the trumpets, but not with the signal for setting out.

“The sons of Aaron, the priests, are to blow the trumpets. This is to be a lasting ordinance for you and the generations to come.  When you go into battle in your own land against an enemy who is oppressing you, sound a blast on the trumpets. Then you will be remembered by the Lord your God and rescued from your enemies.  Also at your times of rejoicing—your appointed festivals and New Moon feasts—you are to sound the trumpets over your burnt offerings and fellowship offerings, and they will be a memorial for you before your God. I am the Lord your God.”

- Numbers 10:1-10 NKJV

The feast of Trumpets occurs in close proximity to the Day of Atonement (Yom Kippor). The Day of Atonement is where the land is cleansed of sin. The atonement involves two phases. The first is the offering of a blood sacrifice as the recipient of the justice against sin, and the second phase is the removal of sin. In the ritual defined in Leviticus 16, the killing of the bullock was the blood sacrifice, and the confessions of the sins of the people upon the goat and the removal of the goat into a faraway land accomplish the removal of sin. The rituals in Leviticus had no real power over sin; the robbing and raping and maiming and murdering that occurs before the sacrifice continued to occur afterward. The Day of Atonement ritual was a picture that pointed to the actions of Christ. The shedding of the blood  of Christ was the blood sacrifice that has real power to take away sins of those who trust Him. The removal of sins from the land is to be accomplished st His Second Coming, when He comes He  "will send out his angels, and they will weed out of his kingdom everything that causes sin and all who do evil.(Matthew 13:36-43 NIV)"

The Lord said to Moses,  “Say to the Israelites: ‘On the first day of the seventh month you are to have a day of sabbath rest, a sacred assembly commemorated with trumpet blasts.  Do no regular work, but present a food offering to the Lord.’”

The Lord said to Moses,  “The tenth day of this seventh month is the Day of Atonement. Hold a sacred assembly and deny yourselves, and present a food offering to the Lord.  Do not do any work on that day, because it is the Day of Atonement, when atonement is made for you before the Lord your God.  Those who do not deny themselves on that day must be cut off from their people.  I will destroy from among their people anyone who does any work on that day.  You shall do no work at all. This is to be a lasting ordinance for the generations to come, wherever you live.  It is a day of sabbath rest for you, and you must deny yourselves. From the evening of the ninth day of the month until the following evening you are to observe your sabbath.”

- Leviticus 23:23-32 NIV

In this context, The Feast of Trumpets is both a call to Sacred Assembly  and a call to battle. The New Testament Fulfillment of the Feast of Trumpets will occur just before the End-times judgement of God and the return of Christ. during this period, both Israel and God's people of all nations will be undergoing unprecedented distress

The Lord said to Moses,  “Say to the Israelites: ‘On the first day of the seventh month you are to have a day of sabbath rest, a sacred assembly commemorated with trumpet blasts.  Do no regular work, but present a food offering to the Lord.’”

- Leviticus 23:23-25 NIV

The call to sacred assembly that Joel 2 describes is a call to the sacred assembly of the Feast of Trumpets that will occur during  a time of trial for Israel just before the second coming of Jesus Christ. Israel would be surrounded by armies from the north threatening disaster.  There would also be a growing movement to inflict persecution on all of God's people all over the world. In addition there would be ecological, financial, and other  calamities that would grip much of the globe on an increasingly apocalyptic scale. According to the Bible, the pandemic sinfulness of the world is the root problem. Because of these impending dangers, God instructs all of his people to repent-seek Him in sacred assembly.

“Now, therefore,” says the Lord, “Turn to Me with all your heart, With fasting, with weeping, and with mourning.”So rend your heart, and not your garments; Return to the Lord your God, For He is gracious and merciful, Slow to anger, and of great kindness; And He relents from doing harm.Who knows if He will turn and relent, And leave a blessing behind Him— A grain offering and a drink offering For the Lord your God?

Blow the trumpet in Zion, Consecrate a fast, Call a sacred assembly;Gather the people, Sanctify the congregation, Assemble the elders, Gather the children and nursing babes; Let the bridegroom go out from his chamber, And the bride from her dressing room. Let the priests, who minister to the Lord, Weep between the porch and the altar; Let them say, “Spare Your people, O Lord, And do not give Your heritage to reproach, That the nations should rule over them. Why should they say among the peoples, ‘Where is their God?’”

Then the Lord will be zealous for His land, And pity His people. The Lord will answer and say to His people, “Behold, I will send you grain and new wine and oil, And you will be satisfied by them; I will no longer make you a reproach among the nations. “But I will remove far from you the northern army, And will drive him away into a barren and desolate land, With his face toward the eastern sea And his back toward the western sea; His stench will come up, And his foul odor will rise, Because he has done monstrous things.” - Joel 2:12-20 NKJV

When we seek God in solemn assembly He answers in three ways.He delivers financial blessing in the midst of crisis. He drives out the first invasion of Israel by a coalition of countries described in Ezekiel 38-39 that correspond to nations that will come together as  the Coming Ten Horned Islamist Empire.The third is that a move of the Spirit of God starts the Final Great Awakening.

God will bring supernatural blessing in the midst of trials. Jeremiah 17 gives a warning against trusting in the arm of the flesh and a promise for trusting God. We are coming into the predicament that is about to happen because we are guilty of trusting in the flesh. We have trusted our bank accounts, our credit ratings and our money. We have trusted our religious and political leaders. Both Republicans and Democrats have behaved lawlessly, tainted with blood on their hands and have corrupted God's church. Now is he time to trust God instead of corrupt man.

Thus says the Lord: “Cursed is the man who trusts in man And makes flesh his strength, Whose heart departs from the Lord. For he shall be like a shrub in the desert, And shall not see when good comes, But shall inhabit the parched places in the wilderness, In a salt land which is not inhabited.

“Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, And whose hope is the Lord. For he shall be like a tree planted by the waters, Which spreads out its roots by the river, And will not fear when heat comes; But its leaf will be green, And will not be anxious in the year of drought, Nor will cease from yielding fruit.  - Jeremiah 17:5-8 NKJV

Those who trust in the flesh shall not be blessed during the season of blessing but will be impoverished. On the other hand, those who trust God will see blessing even during the time of famine. The coming economic collapse can no longer be avoided but God can supernaturally provide and prosper his people even in the midst of depression. While He will not make every one a millionaire He will provide for every need and for the work that He has called us to do-if we will trust Him.

God's people will be Rescued from Destruction. Why would Israel be instructed to pray Spare thy people, O LORD, and give not thine heritage to reproach, that the heathen should rule over them: wherefore should they say among the people, Where is their God? (Joel 2:17) It can only mean that Israel is facing an extreme crisis. Israel is at risk of destruction or at least loss of sovereignty to the 'heathen'. At this same time, there is great danger to Christians all over the world. Persecutions of Christians is increasing worldwide. Even in the so-called free world, there is danger of discrimination and imprisonment

God's answer is recorded in Joel 2:19-27. God sends deliverance and prosperity. In particular He will '...remove far off from you the northern army...' (Joel 2:20) God will deliver them from a military threat from the north. Ezekiel 38-39 describes how the Islamist Empire will attack Israel from the far north.

This first attack from the north is defeated by God bringing confusion and division to their armies Eze 38:21 . After this dramatic victory something else happens.

God gives the Final Great Awakening. Joel 2:28-32 is quoted in Acts 2 as the explanation for the outpouring of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost. joel's prophecy predicts both a former and a latter rain of revival.  The outpouring of the Holy Spirit that started the church was the first fulfillment of Joel's prophecy - the former rain. The context of the prophecy indicates that the complete fulfillment includes a latter rain revival that will occur in the end times.

“And it shall come to pass afterward That I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh; Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, Your old men shall dream dreams, Your young men shall see visions. And also on My menservants and on My maidservants I will pour out My Spirit in those days.“And I will show 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 coming of the great and awesome day of the Lord. And it shall come to pass That whoever calls on the name of the Lord Shall be saved. For in Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there shall be deliverance, As the Lord has said, Among the remnant whom the Lord calls. - Joel 2:28-32 NKJV

In the book of Acts, the Holy Spirit was poured out, resulting in people exercising miraculous and prophetic gifts. The prophecy in Joel also included  signs in the heavens and earth involving fire, blood, and smoke and involving the darkening of the sun and moon. These signs in the heavens did not occur in Acts.  This indicates that yet remains a fulfillment of the prophecy in Joel2:28-32. context clues indicate that this revival occurs near the end of history as  a Final Great Awakening that occurs just before the trumpet judgments and before the Great Day of the Lord.

Blow the trumpet in Zion, And sound an alarm in My holy mountain! Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble; For the day of the Lord is coming, For it is at hand:A day of darkness and gloominess, A day of clouds and thick darkness, Like the morning clouds spread over the mountains. A people come, great and strong, The like of whom has never been; Nor will there ever be any such after them, Even for many successive generations.A fire devours before them, And behind them a flame burns; The land is like the Garden of Eden before them, And behind them a desolate wilderness; Surely nothing shall escape them...

They run to and fro in the city, They run on the wall; They climb into the houses, They enter at the windows like a thief. The earth quakes before them, The heavens tremble; The sun and moon grow dark, And the stars diminish their brightness. The Lord gives voice before His army, For His camp is very great; For strong is the One who executes His word. For the day of the Lord is great and very terrible; Who can endure it?

- Joel 2:1-3,9-11 KJV

“For behold, in those days and at that time, When I bring back the captives of Judah and Jerusalem, I will also gather all nations, And bring them down to the Valley of Jehoshaphat; And I will enter into judgment with them there On account of My people, My heritage Israel, Whom they have scattered among the nations; They have also divided up My land.

- Joel 3:1-2 NKJV

Joel 2:15-32 within the context of Joel 2-3 which includes Joel 2:1-3,9-11 and Joel 3:1, which describes the battle of Armageddon. This times that final fulfillment or latter rain revival as occuring in the time immediately before the return of Jesus back to the earth. The prophecy of supernatural prosperity, God's deliverance from the coming ten horned Islamist empire, and the Final Great Awakening-which is the complete outpouring of God's Spirit that began in Acts 2, will occur just before the great day of God's wrath at Armageddon.

 The Feast of Tabernacles is defined in the Mosaic Law, in Leviticus 23:33-36. Scripture, however, makes it plain that this feast is universal to God's program. Zechariah 14 records the institution of this as an international holiday. The first four verses of this passage are a clear description of the return of Jesus Christ, who will return to the Mount of Olives or Olivet in the same way that He left it for heaven (Acts 1:9-12).

 Behold, the day of the Lord is coming, And your spoil will be divided in your midst. For I will gather all the nations to battle against Jerusalem; The city shall be taken, The houses rifled, And the women ravished. Half of the city shall go into captivity, But the remnant of the people shall not be cut off from the city. Then the Lord will go forth And fight against those nations, As He fights in the day of battle. And in that day His feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, Which faces Jerusalem on the east. And the Mount of Olives shall be split in two, From east to west, Making a very large valley; Half of the mountain shall move toward the north And half of it toward the south. - Zechariah 14:1-4 NKJV.

Following the return of Jesus Christ and the completion of the transformation of His rule to be both spiritual and physical, the Feast of Tabernacles is mandated as an international holiday. Every nation on earth observes this feast and sends a delegation each year to worship King Jesus in  Jerusalem. If any nations refuses, then rain for the following year will be withheld.

And it shall come to pass that everyone who is left of all the nations which came against Jerusalem shall go up from year to year to worship the King, the Lord of hosts, and to keep the Feast of Tabernacles.  And it shall be that whichever of the families of the earth do not come up to Jerusalem to worship the King, the Lord of hosts, on them there will be no rain.  If the family of Egypt will not come up and enter in, they shall have no rain; they shall receive the plague with which the Lord strikes the nations who do not come up to keep the Feast of Tabernacles. ¹⁹ This shall be the punishment of Egypt and the punishment of all the nations that do not come up to keep the Feast of Tabernacles.

- Zechariah 14:16-19 NKJV.

If The Feast of Tabernacles will become an international feast during the Millennium (and beyond), then it follows that it has an enduring significance that transcends the specific context of the Mosaic Covenant. The remainder of this article will be an exposition of the definition of this feast and then case examples of this feast being observed in real life situations.

The Feast of Tabernacles is defined in Leviticus 23. The point of the Feast is to celebrate God's manifest Presence amongst the people. It is specifically a remembrance of the condition of the Israelites dwelling in tabernacles or booths during the trip through the wilderness. During this time they experienced the manifest presence of God as a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night (For more info, see Exodus).

Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying,  “Speak to the children of Israel, saying: ‘The fifteenth day of this seventh month shall be the Feast of Tabernacles for seven days to the Lord. On the first day there shall be a holy convocation. You shall do no customary work on it. For seven days you shall offer an offering made by fire to the Lord. On the eighth day you shall have a holy convocation, and you shall offer an offering made by fire to the Lord. It is a sacred assembly, and you shall do no customary work on it.

- Leviticus 23:33-36 NKJV

The Feast of Tabernacles defines an eight day template. There are seven days of seeking God, followed by an eighth-day Sacred Assembly. Over the centuries there has been a pattern marked by seven days of seeking God followed by God showing His manifest presence on the eighth day.


The Call to  Sacred Assembly
God willed that the Sacred Assembly would bring in both former and latter rains of revival. both the young church of the apostolic age and the end-times church would see revival brought forth by sacred assembly. Let us all convene in Sacred Assembly to repent and seek God in these dangerous times, that He may deliver us and manifest the victory that He purchased at the Cross.

Playlist for February 9, 2014

Playlist of Songs to be used tomorrow at ZionsHill Christian Fellowship

The Real Reason Corporations Support "Same-sex Marriage"

Corporations are uniting to support so-called same-sex marriage. As of this writing, there are two cases being hears by the Supreme Court. One case involves a dispute concerning whether the Defense of Marriage of Act (DOMA) is constitutional and the other is challenging California’s Propositional 8.

 

Over 200 major companies have filed Amicus Curiae (friend of the court) briefs. The corporate world, it seems, is speaking as one. They claim that legalizing “same-sex marriage” is good for business that it allows for greater market efficiency. This claim is rather dubious. Proposition 8 was passed by majority vote of the citizens of California. Corporate support for “same-sex marriage” risks alienating a large segment of the market. This could in losing business to suppliers who are not as hostile to traditional marriage.

 

Another reason to doubt that corporate support is just about business is that the libertarian view on marriage would actually be better for business. Libertarians argue that the government should stay out of marriage and that marriage be treated like a private contract. People would enter into the marriage contracts of their choosing and others would be free to recognize or refuse recognition. The libertarian view would allow homosexuals the freedom they claim they want without destroying the freedom of others. Corporations would then pursue whatever policies would be suitable for their companies, most of which would have gay-friendly policies based on their public support for “same-sex marriage.” People like me who object to the “gay lifestyle” would be free to refuse recognition of “same-sex marriages.”

 

The real reason that corporations are pursuing support for “same-sex marriage” is the same reason that the homosexual community supports it: the use of state power and government guns to forcibly change the cultural norms. The homosexual community wants to use the police power of the state to enforce the perception that homosexual activity is moral. Corporations also want to use the police power of the state to forcibly change social norms. Corporations see the issue of “same-sex marriage” as an opportunity to gain allies from groups that would normally oppose them. Many Leftists would normally oppose displays of corporate power are now supporting such power grab because they see it beneficial to one of their favorite causes.

 

It goes without saying that the sudden convergence of so many companies supporting “same-sex marriage” smells of collusion. The root of big business is banking. In Mystery Babylon Rising, I write about how modern banking was rooted in the occult mysteries of Mystery Babylon. Both the Medicis and the Fuggers were deep into the occult. Freudo-Marxism, out of which comes the militant homosexual political activism, is also ultimately rooted in the occult. These two streams are converging together.

 

The Real Reason Corporations Support "Same-sex Marriage"

Charisma: Christians Dominate American Idol This Season.

“Season 12 of American Idol has its share of Christian contestants: Eight of the top 10 are Christians.Contestants Candice Glover, Lazaro Arbos, Janelle Arthur, Curtis Finch Jr., Amber Holcolm, Angie Miller, Devin Velez, and Burnell Taylor are all in it to win it.

 

“They’re also not ashamed to share their faith with the world while they’re at it. Angie Miller, who many expect to be crowned winner this year, often tweets about her faith.“

 

Read the rest of the story here.

Charisma: Christians Dominate American Idol This Season.

Will 2013 Mark the Rise of Peter the Roman?

As I write this. the College of Cardinals is meeting in a conclave to elect the next Pope of the Roman Catholic Church. There is much speculation that the next Pope will be the last Pope. This speculation is as based on a purported prophecy of Malachy. Malachy made prediction about the last 112 Popes.

 

Benedict was Pope 111. When he became Pope, he conscious identified his papacy with the Malachy prophecy by naming himself after Benedict, founder of the Olivetian order. Given the the prophecy of Malachy is very well known in Catholic circles, the selection of any one who could be identified as Peter the Roman would, of necessity, be a self fulfilling prophecy. Should the next Pope be identifiable as Peter the Roman, it would signal that the Vatican regards the current age as the end time. Given the connections of the Vatican to other players in the New World Order, it would be the smoking gun that the New World Order is planning to execute its next phase of operations – its emergence as the global government  and one world religion of planet earth.

 

Originally published in Dallas Carter’s Commentary.

Will 2013 Mark the Rise of Peter the Roman?

The Coming Internet Lockdown

The wild, wild world of the Internet is becoming less free. Current trends are underway to lock down the various layers of the Information Architecture known as the Internet. This paper will explore a possible paradigm for centralized control of information.
There are a number of possibilities for locking down the Internet. There are a number of proprietary methods, but I believe these will have limited impact. Proprietary standards would result in splitting the internet into competing fiefdoms. End users would pick the walled garden that they liked best; centralized control would be hindered.
This paper will show how the Internet can be locked down using open standards. There are four layers to this approach: Hardware, platforms, networks, and government regulation. The analysis will include methods currently used and extrapolate where these methods may lead.

 

Read the rest of this article here.

 

The Coming Internet Lockdown

American Citizens now subject to Droning according to holder

Attorney General Eric Holder can imagine a scenario in which it would be constitutional to carry out a drone strike against an American on American soil, he wrote in a letter to Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky.

 

“It is possible, I suppose, to imagine an extraordinary circumstance in which it would be necessary and appropriate under the Constitution and applicable laws of the United States for the President to authorize the military to use lethal force within the territory of the United States,” Holder replied in a letter yesterday to Paul’s question about whether Obama “has the power to authorize lethal force, such as a drone strike, against a U.S. citizen on U.S. soil, and without trial.”

 

Paul condemned the idea. “The U.S. Attorney General’s refusal to rule out the possibility of drone strikes on American citizens and on American soil is more than frightening – it is an affront the Constitutional due process rights of all Americans,” he said in a statement.

 

 

Read the rest of the article here.

American Citizens now subject to Droning according to holder

School Overreaction:Idiocy, or Psychological Manipulation for the New World Order

A second grader was recently suspended for eating a pop-tart into  the shape of a gun. His teacher felt “threatened” because she though she heard him say “bang bang!!!” while eating the pop-tart.

 

 

As asinine as this sounds, this is not the first time that a public school has taken an idiotic stand. One child was sent home and forced to undergo a psychological evaluation for merely drawing a picture of Jesus on the cross. The First Amendment Center has documented numerous cases of school overreaction.

 

When I first heard of these types of cases, I thought “How stupid!” But my research for my recently published book, Mystery Babylon Rising – a Five Thousand Year History of the New World Order, has informed my perspective. I believe that these cases are not educators gone stupid, but that it is clever psychological manipulation designed to create fear. Controlling people through fear is part of the “wine of her fornication.”

 

School Overreaction:Idiocy, or Psychological Manipulation for the New World Order

Will Hive-Mind Technology be used to create the Mark of the Beast

I found this interesting article from End Times Headlines.

“Creating a “superbrain” of connected minds, scientists on Thursday said they had enabled a rat to help a fellow rodent while the animals were a continent apart but connected through brain electrodes. With electrodes imbedded in its cortex, a rat in a research institute in Natal, Brazil sent signals via the Internet to a counterpart at a university lab in Durham, North Carolina, helping the second animal to get a reward. The exploit opens up the prospect of linking brains among animals to create an “organic computer,” said Brazilian neurobiologist Miguel Nicolelis. It also helps the quest to empower patients stricken with paralysis or locked-in syndrome, he said. More“

Something struck me with this article. If brains can be connected to a network, then it may possible for the brain to submit irreversibly to remote control through means of the network architecture. Today computers can be completely controlled through client-server network architectures like Active Directory. Directory services like Active Directory allow a computers to be joined to a domain. Computers joined to the domain, called clients, have their security information managed by a database distributed among one or more domain controllers; and installed programs, apps, and services are managed remotely by servers in the domain. Clients can be completely remote-controlled.

 

The information architecture of human brains is complex enough that I doubt any such system could work in a functional manner  without the initial co-operation of the subject. Once a person was initially conveted to loyalty to the Antichrist system and willingly received as the mark technology that could join their brain to the beast hive-mind, that technology would allow the hive-mind to irreversibly take complete control of their brain, pushing the subject past the point of being able to repent.

 

This post orignally appeared in Dallas Carter’s Commentary

 

Will Hive-Mind Technology be used to create the Mark of the Beast