Standing in support of Israel, Jews, and believers in all the nations, in the name of Jesus (Yeshua). Sharing biblical truth, encouragement, news and prophecy.
ISIS to Sleeper Cells: Shave And Wear Crosses to Blend in - JAN. 12, 2016 Kelly Sloan TRUNEWS
ISIS has given permission to followers in the west to shave and wear crosses.
The advice comes in a 58-page booklet, written in English, titled “Safety and Security Guidelines for Lone Wolf Mujaheddin”, which was written to help jihadis carry out attacks undetected by blending in, according to the Jerusalem Post.
The manual was distributed on social media sites.
The terror handbook also advised the potential attackers to wear cologne, even though most contain alcohol, which is prohibited in Islam. Eliminating the long tunic is also included in the list of recommendations.
Last year, ISIS released instructions on how to make a homemade weapon capable of disabling jets.
The Department of Homeland Security claims it will start a new task force to stop the release of the materials.
About Kelly Sloan
Kelly Sloan is a reporter and anchor for TRUNEWS Headlines on radio stations across the U.S. She was previously an anchor and reporter for USA Headline News and USA Radio News, where she also served as Assistant Religion Editor.
POLL: More Israeli Arabs Recognize Jewish Claim to Land
Tuesday, January 12, 2016 | Israel Today Staff
A growing number, in fact now a majority, of Israeli Arabs recognize Jewish rights and claims to this land, according to the latest installment of the monthly Peace Index survey conducted by Tel Aviv University and the Israel Democracy Institute.
The poll’s third question asked respondents whether they “agree or disagree with the claim that the Jews’ historical, religious, and cultural bond to the land and the Palestinians’ historical, religious, and cultural bond to the land are equally strong.”
Unsurprisingly, 92.8 percent of Jewish respondents either agreed or insisted that Jewish claims to the land are stronger than those of the Palestinians.
What did some as a shock to many was the fact that 41.3 percent of Israeli Arabs agreed with the statement, while a further 15.9 percent agreed with most Jews that the Jewish claims to the land were stronger than those of the Palestinians.
Again, 57.2 percent of Israeli Arabs said that Jewish claims to this land are equal to or stronger than Palestinian claims.
This revelation comes at a time when several different local Arab movements and public figures, both Christian and Muslim, are encouraging greater integration with the Jewish majority.
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Why Israel? Why not? This little booklet consists of messages previously written in my books, which of themselves contain many various themes. I wanted to devote one book to just Israel and the Jewish people, and so this small booklet was compiled.
As you read the following, consider the truth contained in Scriptures, from Genesis to Revelation, which spell out the commitment of God the Father to choose a people who will be a light to the nations. He chose the Jews, and gave them the Promised Land of Israel. It does not matter what other national governments try to say, do, or accomplish apart from the plans and purposes of the Lord.
They will fail. His Word is true. It is eternal. He is the same, yesterday, today and forever, and thus His commitment in keeping His promises made to the Jewish people will be fulfilled. I hope you stand with them in these last days.
Franklin Graham speaks during one of his Decision America Tour stops. (Courtesy/BGEA)
Franklin Graham: Young Pastors Are Caught Up in Pop Culture
Franklin Graham is a voice crying in the wilderness.
"I believe we are perilously close to the moral tipping point for the survival of the United States of America," Graham wrote in Decision magazine. "I refuse to be silent and watch the future of our children and grandchildren be offered up on pagan altars of personal pleasure and immorality."
The Supreme Court has already redefined marriage. The nation has become a killing field for Islamic radicals. And Christians have become targets for practicing their First Amendment rights.
"There now exists deep-seated antagonism and hostility toward Christianity in every seat of power in this nation—government, media, courts and education," Graham wrote. "It has become open season on Christians."
Instead of ignoring the rotting of America's culture, the president and CEO of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association has decided to do something about it.
Earlier this month, Graham launched the "Decision America Tour," a series of prayer rallies at the capitol buildings of all 50 states.
"The only hope for America is not the Democratic Party, and it's not the Republican Party," Graham told me. "The only hope for America is God."
I caught up with Graham just after his inaugural prayer gathering in Des Moines. More than 2,000 people turned out in frigid weather—to petition the Almighty.
It was one of the rare moments in Iowa when politicians were not recognized nor were they allowed to speak.
"If a candidate showed up—we're not going to recognize them," Graham said. "We're not going to give them a microphone."
That's because "Decision America Tour" is not about politics.
"It's trying to lead this nation in prayer, confessing the sins of our country, asking for God's forgiveness and encouraging Christians to get engaged in the political process," he told me.
Graham is doing what many young ministers refuse to do—address issues that some might consider politically incorrect.
He told me that while a number of older pastors understand the gravity of the situation, many younger pastors do not.
"The younger pastors—so many are caught up in the pop culture, and the pastor in a church is more about being cool," he said. "We're beginning to put theology in the back seat, and I'm concerned about the church."
And that's when he dropped this evangelical bombshell.
"To be honest with you, the problems we have in America today are the failure of the church," he said.
I reckon that comment just made a lot of folks start wiggling in the pews.
But Graham has a valid point.
The government has taken on many responsibilities that were once in the hands of the local church.
"The churches have allowed the government to take away their responsibility and so the government is feeding people, the government is clothing people, the government is now in charge of health care," he said.
Graham expounds on this topic during our podcast interview—but the point he is making is clear. It's time for Christians to re-engage the culture.
"We as a nation are in trouble, and only God can fix it," he said.
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The rapid decline of the markets last week got the attention of the entire world, but of course this current financial crisis did not begin last week. (Reuters)
Bear Market: The Average U.S. Stock Already Down More Than 20 Percent
The stock market is in far worse shape than we are being told.
As you will see in this article, the average U.S. stock is already down more than 20 percent from the peak of the market. But of course the major indexes are not down nearly that much.
As the week begins, the S&P 500 is down 9.8 percent from its 2015 peak, the Dow Jones Industrial Average is down 10.7 percent from its 2015 peak, and the Nasdaq is down 11.0 percent from its 2015 peak. So if you only look at those indexes, you would think that we are only about halfway to bear market territory. Unfortunately, a few high flying stocks such as Facebook, Amazon, Netflix and Google have been masking a much deeper decline for the rest of the market.
When the market closed on Friday, 229 of the stocks on the S&P 500 were down at least 20 percent from their 52-week highs, and when you look at indexes that are even broader, things are even worse.
For example, let's take a look at the Standard & Poor's 1500 index. According to the Bespoke Investment Group, the average stock on that index is down a staggering 26.9 percent from the peak of the market:
Indeed, the Standard & Poor's 1500 index—a broad basket of large, mid and small company stocks—shows that the average stock's distance from its 52-week high is 26.9 percent, according to stats compiled by Bespoke Investment Group through Friday's close.
"That's bear market territory!" says Paul Hickey, co-founder of Bespoke Investment Group, the firm that provided USA TODAY with the gloomy price data.
So if the average stock has fallen 26.9 percent, what kind of market are we in?
To me, that is definitely bear market territory.
The rapid decline of the markets last week got the attention of the entire world, but of course this current financial crisis did not begin last week. These stocks have been falling since the middle part of last year. And what Bespoke Investment Group discovered is that small cap stocks have been hurt the most by this current downturn:
Here's a statistical damage assessment, provided by Bespoke Investment Group, of the pain being felt by the average U.S. stock in the S&P 1500 index:
* Large-company stocks in the S&P 500 index are down 22.6 percent, on average, from peaks hit in the past 12 months.
* Mid-sized stocks in the S&P 400 index are sporting an average decline of 26.5 percent since hitting 52-week highs.
* Small stocks in the S&P 600 index are the furthest distance away from their recent peaks. The average small-cap name is 30.7 percent below its high in the past year.
After looking at those numbers, is there anyone out there that still wants to try to claim that "nothing is happening"?
Over the past six months or so, the sector that has been hit the hardest has been energy. According to CNN, the average energy stock has now fallen 52 percent:
And then there's energy. The dramatic decline in crude oil prices rocked the energy space. The average energy stock is now down a whopping 52 percent from its 52-week high, according to Bespoke. The only thing worse than that is small-cap energy, which is down 61 percent.
If you go up to an energy executive and try to tell him that "nothing is happening," you might just get punched in the face.
And it is very important to keep in mind that stocks still have a tremendous distance to fall. They are still massively overvalued by historical standards, and this is something that I have covered repeatedly on my website in recent months.
So how far could they ultimately fall?
Well, Dr. John Hussman is convinced that we could eventually see total losses in the 40-55 percent range:
I remain convinced that the U.S. financial markets, particularly equities and low-grade debt, are in a late-stage top formation of the third speculative bubble in 15 years.
On the basis of the valuation measures most strongly correlated with subsequent market returns (and that have fully retained that correlation even across recent market cycles), current extremes imply 40-55 percent market losses over the completion of the current market cycle, with zero nominal and negative real total returns for the S&P 500 on a 10-to-12-year horizon.
These are not worst-case scenarios, but run-of-the-mill expectations.
If the market does fall about 40 percent, that will just bring us into the range of what is considered to be historically "normal." If some sort of major disaster or emergency were to strike, it could potentially push the market down much, much farther.
And with each passing day, we get even more numbers that seem to indicate that we are entering a very, very deep global recession.
For instance, global trade numbers are absolutely collapsing. This is a point that Raoul Pal hammered home during an interview with CNBC just the other day:
Looking at International Monetary Fund data, "the year-over-year change in global exports is at the second lowest level since 1958," Raoul Pal, Publisher of the Global Macro Investor told CNBC's "Fast Money" this week.
Basically, it means economies around the world are shipping their goods at near historically low levels. "Something massive is going on in the global economy and people are missing it," Pal added.
The steep decline in 2015 exports is second only to 2009, when the global recession led to a 37 percent drop in export growth.
We have never seen global exports collapse this much outside of a recession.
Clearly we are witnessing a tremendous shift, and it boggles my mind that more people cannot see it.
As for this current wave of financial turmoil, it is hard to say how long it will last. As I write this article, markets all over the Middle East are imploding, stocks in Asia are going crazy, currencies are crashing and carry trades are being unwound at a staggering pace. But at some point, we should expect the level of panic to subside a bit.
If things do temporarily calm down, don't let that fool you. Global financial markets have not been this fragile since 2008. Any sort of a trigger event is going to cause stocks all over the world to slide even more.
And let us not minimize the damage that has already been done one bit. As you just read, the average stock on the Standard & Poor's 1500 index is already down 26.9 percent. The financial crisis that erupted during the second half of 2015 has already resulted in trillions of dollars of wealth being wiped out.
When people ask me when the "next financial crisis" is coming, I have a very simple answer for them.
The next financial crisis is not coming.
The next financial crisis is already here.
An angry bear has been released after nearly seven years of hibernation, and the entire world is going to be absolutely shocked by what happens next.
NEW from CHARISMA:Do you want to encounter the Holy Spirit and hear God speak to you? Increase your faith, discover freedom, and draw near to God! Click Here
Charismatic Jordan Smith rocked the world week after week on The Voice, praising God with hymns that soared to the top of secular music charts.
As the winner, "the most important person ever" to be on the reality singing competition is now using his platform to glorify God.
"(My parents) really instilled in me from a very young age just growing up how important it was not only to be a good person but to be a person who is full of the love of God and to pour that on to other people," Smith tells Saddleback Church's Rick Warren.
"I've grown so close to the Lord and try to walk with Him every day and try to direct my thoughts toward Him because He's been so good to me," Smith says.
And Smith isn't leaving his relationship with his Savior in the dust. Watch the video to see what the singer wants to do for God in the future.
NEW from CHARISMA:Do you want to encounter the Holy Spirit and hear God speak to you? Increase your faith, discover freedom, and draw near to God! Click Here
Grant Berry believes the church needs to see its connection to Israel in a fresh light. (Courtesy of Grant Berry )
Is Romans 11 the Key to the End Times?
As we quickly approach the last days before Yeshua/Jesus returns, the mystery to awaken and restore Israel into the family in the One New Man, becomes tantamount in God's glory plan to establish His kingdom upon the Earth.
In this light, the Holy Spirit is shifting His focus onto a very necessary spiritual restoration in God's family between Jew and Gentile, in order that His end-time plans may actually come about through us. I call this The Reconnection, and the truth is that both groups are intricately linked together into these plans and are actually in great need of one another. Yet presently, the family of God is divided and separate.
As a result, I am beginning a new series called "What Is the One New Man?" In these articles we will explore and re-examine the pertinent Scriptures on the One New Man, as well as issues relating to Israel and the church, and we will interview leaders from both sides of the family to gain a better understanding. However, the main goal here is to help bring the body of Messiah/Christ into a greater unity and depth of understanding of this mystery; not to necessarily see it anymore from either a Gentile or Jewish lens, but rather through the heart of the Father who longs for His family to be one; to be united into His end-time purposes and plans; and to mobilize us into the Frey (John 17:23).
ROMANS 11 – PART 1
Romans 9-10
To gain a full understanding of Romans 11, we must first read chapters 9-10, which lay a firm foundation for the apostle Paul's prophetic outline between Israel and the church, which also greatly relates to the end times. Romans 11 does not refer to Jewish believers per se, but rather to the rest of Israel (the Jewish people) who are still broken off due to a rejection of the gospel and, as a result, how the Gentiles in the church should relate to them.
Chapters 9-10 speak to us about God's election of promise and mercy for both Jew and Gentile. It is actually through Isaac that our offspring will be reckoned, that when it comes to the acceptance of the gospel, there is no difference between us. Both Jew and Gentile need to accept Yeshua/Jesus through faith, (the Isaac of God), to become children of the promise.
He reached out not only to those from Israel who came through the law, but to all of His children He was to call from the Nations, which God initiated shortly after the cross and resurrection through His Jewish apostles. It was always God's plan to reach out to gather His other children (John 10:16), and Paul quotes Hosea here to confirm God's calling to the Gentiles (Rom. 9:25).
However, this was a major challenge and stumbling block for Israel to accept, because of the law that they were given from God. Because they had learned to pursue it through works and not by faith, to attain a law of righteousness that had little room for the mercy of God, which was to be found in His only begotten Son, who was at the end of the law for all who believed. "Look! I lay in Zion a stumbling stone and rock of offense, and whoever believes in Him will not be ashamed" (Rom. 9:33).
The apostle Paul makes the sovereignty of God clear to us in these chapters: "Shall what is formed say to Him who formed it, 'Why did you make me like this?'" (9:20) In other words, who are we to question God in the scheme of things?But the religious leaders could not accept this and then led most of Israel astray. God had moved on from the old system of the law, which brought sin into account, into the New Covenant in which His law would be circumcised into our hearts through His Holy Spirit, where we would all know God for ourselves (Jer. 31:31-34).
Any of the Jewish people who accepted Yeshua/Jesus at this time, of whom there were many, helped to establish the new community of believers the world now calls the church. For all believers were now welcome into the kingdom of God, both Jew and Gentile alike. The playing field concerning its entrance had now been leveled. However, this did not wipe out Israel's heritage and covenants, of which believing Gentiles were now associated to through faith. Yeshua/Jesus transferred Israel's authority to the apostles, away from the Levitical priesthood and they took the gospel out to the nations so that all of the other children in the family could be grafted into Israel's covenants and promises. This is our destiny and God's ultimate plan to unite us and make us one.
This can be extremely confusing to us today, some 1,600 years later, in light of the fact that physical Israel is still broken off spiritually, and because the church severed its Jewish roots and heritage through the Roman assimilation (fourth century), establishing Christianity as a separate and distinct religion.
In so doing, the church disconnected itself from the very body it was grafted into in order to represent, and something huge was lost, fully replacing Israel with the church. In reality, according to Scripture, belief in Yeshua/Jesus became the only true and proper extension of Judaism and those of us who now believe in Him from the nations also belong to Israel, because we are grafted into their covenants and promises, and are now supposed to represent her as its commonwealth (Eph. 2:11-22). But we do not replace the natural branch, as ultimately Israel still needs to be grafted in to complete the bride and family of God, which Paul fully outlines in Romans 11 when he addresses their restoration.
Romans 11
Perhaps the apostle Paul had insight from the Holy Spirit as to how the church would turn against the Jews, that he writes this chapter specifically to the Gentile side of the family, "I am talking to you Gentiles" (verse 13). For while Paul made it clear to us about the entrance into the kingdom being the same for both groups and explaining how unbelieving Israel was now broken off, he never lost sight or desire for them to be grafted back in again. In fact, Paul goes as far as to say that he would be personally cut off and even cursed for the sake of his own brethren (Rom. 9:3). Can you imagine this with your own salvation?
However, now that he has imparted this background and laid this foundation, he is able to explain better the path of Israel and how we should relate to them, which he outlines in Romans 11. Please understand, as a Jew, no one had to tell Paul or give him a heart for his own people, as this was just natural for him. Even to suffer at their hands, their stonings and the like, especially with all of the revelation he had received from God concerning Israel, their rejection and their awakening.
But to the Gentiles, now coming into the faith and who were not blood brethren, he penned an outline of instruction from the Father in how to position themselves toward the firstborn in the faith, despite their current rejection, which we will address more fully in part two of this article. In addition, he makes it very clear that God has not forsaken Israel; that they can be grafted in again and he paints a prophetic picture of their future gathering and spiritual reconnection.
Tune in Wednesday for part two of this article.
Grant Berry is a Jewish believer in Yeshua/Jesus and author of The New Covenant Prophecy and The Ezekiel Generation. He has founded Reconnecting Ministries with the specific focus to help the church reconnect spiritually to Israel and considers it vital to the kingdom of God in the last days. His website is reconnectingministries.org.
NEW from CHARISMA:Do you want to encounter the Holy Spirit and hear God speak to you? Increase your faith, discover freedom, and draw near to God! Click Here
Did you enjoy this blog? Click here to receive it by email.
Why Israel? Why not? This little booklet consists of messages previously written in my books, which of themselves contain many various themes. I wanted to devote one book to just Israel and the Jewish people, and so this small booklet was compiled.
As you read the following, consider the truth contained in Scriptures, from Genesis to Revelation, which spell out the commitment of God the Father to choose a people who will be a light to the nations. He chose the Jews, and gave them the Promised Land of Israel. It does not matter what other national governments try to say, do, or accomplish apart from the plans and purposes of the Lord.
They will fail. His Word is true. It is eternal. He is the same, yesterday, today and forever, and thus His commitment in keeping His promises made to the Jewish people will be fulfilled. I hope you stand with them in these last days.
In this episode, Leigh Valentine appears as guest host on Prophetic Perspectives to interview Nicholas Papanicolaou about crucial issues of our times. He also speaks on our standing for Israel.
