Watchman, what of the night?

                                                              
10 March 2013


Dear Phyllis,


Last week at our Wednesday morning prayer meeting, Ed Pue told us something that is the most shocking word I have ever heard. The Canadian Supreme Court has ruled that the Bible is hate speech, and a felon crime. There was a classic case in Canada where a school board had voted that sexual perversion should be taught as normal in the curriculum of the public school system. A Christian group had opposed this move, and printed up some pamphlets quoting the Bible statements that sexual perversion is an abomination. This case went to the Supreme Court, and they ruled that the Bible is hate speech. We are not near the last days – we have arrived. The only thing remaining is the inauguration of the anti-Christ. When a society hits that level there is no recovery. We have known that Canada is slightly more liberal than the states, but we are hard on their heals, and only millimeters from the same degradation. Three weeks ago the popular TV comedy show, Saturday Night Live, did a show where the Crucifixion of Christ was a comedy mockery. Very funny. When that level of obscene putridity is put over on prime time TV as a comedy show, we have hit the bottom. The only vocal protest to that show was by the Muslins, who revere Jesus as a prophet. The Christians were silent. Ed suggested that it would be interesting if the Canadian Supreme Court would rule that the Koran was hate speech, but we can say with confidence that this would never happen.


I am not a big fan of Sid Roth, and I do not agree with every thing that Rick Joiner says; but I believe some of what they say is correct. The other day I saw a program of Rick Joiner on Roth's TV program. Joiner said that recently he had the most frightening dream of his life. He said it was so real it was more like an experience rather than a dream. In his dream he was in a log cabin walking from room to room. He saw small fires breaking up out of the floor. Someone was putting these fires out. He was about to leave when he saw another fire break out in the room where he was. He went over to stomp that one out. But then he noticed a hole in the floor. When he looked through the hole he discovered the the entire underside of the building was on fire. The foundation of the building was being burned out. I have no trouble accepting that this is accurate.


One can hardly question whether or not the foundation of American society has been destroyed or not. Where we are today would have been shouted down as impossible 150 years ago. I know of no time in human history where there has been a Christian society that hit the level of depravity where we are today. No doubt there have always been abortions in any society. Moral standards have always been tainted with every form of sick sin. The devil has always challenged the Word of God since the days of the Garden of Eden. None of that is new. But I know of no Christian nation where vile evil has been put into law as good and the Bible has been held up as bad. The Bible has been banned in many places. The devil's attack on God Word has been unrelenting. Thousands have been martyred for the Word of God. False prophets and the devil's theologians have done their best to discredit the authenticity of the Scripture. None of this is new. But when the Supreme Court of a Christian nation rules that the Bible is hate speech – that is the first time. All societies since the days of Noah on have been riddled with immorality. Depravity was the cause of the fall of the Roman Empire. No military force could defeat the army of Rome. Rome rotted from within. Even so it is doubtful that Rome, in its most depraved state, had the inundating flood of putridity that spews from computers world wide today. Porno and every form of sexual perversion is at the finger tips of nearly the entire population today. Providing this menu for fallen nature can only be disastrous. And then to teach in the public school system that sexual perversion is healthy...? We have crossed the line. I see no other possible conclusion than the foundation is gone.


On the Sid Roth show, Roth asked Joiner if he thought it was too late, or could the foundation be saved. Rick Joiner replied that the only possible hope for turning the flood of evil back was the church. He said that the church was the only fireman that could put out that flame. That certainly is true. I am conservative, but a conservative political agenda is not the salt and the light of the world. Jesus clearly said that we are. The church is the only preservative salt and illuminating light that God has placed in this world. If the church fails, the devil wins. In their discussion about the dire state that we are in today, Roth suddenly burst out with great optimism, and declared, “I believe we are on the verge of the greatest revival the world has ever seen.” Nice talk, but I sadly fear he is wrong. I fear the car has gone through the guard rail. The car has gone over the cliff, and we are only meters from the crash at the bottom. How can it be otherwise?


I am not sure what the church is. Certainly that carnival act that is on television is not the church. This is what is portrayed as the church. Joel Olstean and his 50,000 rapture d listeners, enthralled with a cozy message of feel good religion, is not the church. This is not the Gospel of Christ. The very essence of that message, and most of what is offered up as Gospel in America, is what I can get. The fundamental point of that message is a give me religion. It is what can I get? When Mary broke the bottle, and pured out everything she had in anointing Jesus, Jesus said that what she did would be go unitedly wherever the Gospel would be preached throughout the whole world (Mk. 14:9). Why? Because this is the Gospel message. This is what the Gospel produces. It is not what I can get, but what I can give. The flow must be outward. If the Gospel message isn't – because Jesus gave everything for us, we should give everything for Him – what, pray,tell, is it? Didn't Jesus say something about taking up a cross and following Him? Didn't Jesus say something about leaving all to be His disciple? Where is this in the feel good message? This is the problem with America today. When the Gospel message got turned around to make the flow in, rather than out, the power of the Holy Spirit left, and the world came in. There is no question but what the world is the dominant force in the church today. And that worldly church has no fire hose.


Fortunately there is a church in the world today. But it is China – not America. A friend of mine was in a meeting with about 70 Chinese pastors a few years ago. The speaker asked how many had been in prison for the Gospel. About a quarter of the hands went up. Then he asked, “How many are willing to go to jail for Jesus?” Every man in the room leaped to his feet. I can't imagine a similar meeting of American pastors who would leap to their feet declaring that they would go to jail before compromising on basics. The church of God is functioning and moving on – but it is in the Orient. America is gone.


When the cry was made, “Watchman, what of the night? “ The reply came back; “The morning cometh, but also the night.” (Isa. 21:11,12). We need to consider both sides of that word. Gomen nasai. I am sorry for writing so much about coming gloom, but I am obsessed with what I see every day. Someone wrote a book, Obama's Four Horsemen. I have no idea what the book says but I have no problem in seeing the first Four Horsemen of Revelation 6 as being in place today in America. The White Horse of political conquest is all there. All the chemistry for the Red Horse of war to break out any moment is in place. With Iran and the Islamic terrorist movement galloping on, Obama has taken a posture to dismantle the US military. We now have a Secretary of Defense who is the most anti-military minister in American history. And we will soon have the director of the CIA who is a Muslim. We are begging for war. A child with a 5^th grade education can do the math on the US economy. But the greatest brains from Harvard see no problem in steering the country on a course of guaranteed financial collapse. The government is now running on a budget of 43 cents of every dollar by borrowed money. Margret Thatcher warned, “Depression comes when you can no longer find someone else's money to spend.” Bankruptcy is inevitable. A deft man can hear the hoof beats of the Black Horse of economic collapse. And the Pale Horse of death and hell is right behind. These four horses are within hearing range now. I see no way Christians are going to be exempt from a very hard time in America very soon.


I passionately believe in the immanent return of Christ. That is one doctrine that cannot be moved. But I fear we may be off on our view of the rapture. I believe the rapture will be at the last trump (1 Cor. 15:52) – whatever that means. No one wants suffering. But I believe it will be a good thing when judgment begins with the house of God (1Pet. 4:17). It is a good day when a house wife picks up a broom to clean a house. And it will be a good day when the Lord picks up His broom to clean out His house. It will be a good day for the house, but a bad day for the rubbish. It will a healthy day when there is a line drawn in the sand for those who are the true followers of Christ to step forward. This will separate a great deal of the wheat from the chaff. There might be some sort of a revival when the church gets cleaned out, but I seriously doubt that it will be the kind of revival Sid Roth has in mind.


The Scripture is clear that we must take a pretty hard shellacking. Dan. 7:21, Rev. 13:7 and a host of other scripture warn that the devil is going to overcome the saints. Even the two witnesses in Rev 11 get killed. We see in Rev. 7:9-14 a great multitude who come out of great tribulation. There is nothing wrong with that. Who cares how rough the passage is as long as we safely get to the right destination. If the roughness of the passage makes our arrival more glorious, then the rougher the better.


There is no question that the night cometh. The lights are going out and deep darkness is covering America and Canada at an unbelievable rate. Fifteen years ago I never thought I would live to see America in the state that she is in today. I don't believe that Obama is the anti-Christ, but he certainly is setting the stage for that Man of Sin. But the darker it gets; that should be a tremendous encouragement to us that we are getting that much closer to the morning. The Lord warned the persecuted believers in Smyrna that they would have a hard time for ten days. We can tough that out. The anti-Christ will only have his day for seven years. That may not be a lot of fun, but seven years will soon be over. Every hour, every day, every year is just getting us that much closer to the morning.


The early settlers headed for California had one last tough hurdle to get over before they got to their destination. Donner's pass. It was a long dusty ride going across the vast western prairies. When they got to the bottom of Donner's pass, the going got rough. It was no fun going up hill to that deadly summit, But looking at the eastern slope must have been an encouragement that they were nearly to California. Soon that pass would be behind them and they would be in the plush environment and pleasant climate of California.


Oh praise God! The anti- Christ is almost here. Soon we will have the mark of the beast. That will separate the wheat from the chaff. We will have a great opportunity to take a bold stand for Jesus. Soon we will be dealing in the genuine temple shekels of heaven, and not this monopoly play money that we are dealing with today. A sacrifice will be a real sacrifice – not these minor inconveniences that we call hardship today. All of this is good news. The fat lady will sing, and it will all be over.


But the main thing is not the comfort level of our circumstances, but that Jesus will be here to receive the reward of His sufferings. The kingdoms of this world will become the kingdoms of our God and His Christ. And He will reign forever.
Oh, hallelujah!
bill