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.
Pastor Jim and Lori Bakker discuss the dangers of socialism, with special guest Philip Cameron and his family.
Quotes
Saving the children counts! And I’m trying to save babies from abortion. America is going to come under God’s judgment, because we have murdered 60 million of our children. – Pastor Jim
So to watch orphans become sons and daughters, and now they are the ones that are going out and changing these worlds of heartache is just a miracle. – Philip Cameron
I have seen the future. I know what is coming and it can be delayed. But we are going to have to pray, we are going to have to have the right people in office. – Pastor Jim
Honestly, there is hope. Things can change. – Pastor Jim
Scriptures
Matthew 10:41 KJV He that receiveth a prophet in the name of a prophet shall receive a prophet’s reward; and he that receiveth a righteous man in the name of a righteous man shall receive a righteous man’s reward.
John 12:24 NKJV Most assuredly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it produces much grain.
Jennifer LeClaire is now sharing her reflections and revelations through Walking in the Spirit. Listen at charismapodcastnetwork.com.
With shofars blasting, Rosh Hashana this year included a biblical commandment Jews haven't executed in nearly 2,000 years: actually counting the Jubilee.
"It is a simple mitzvah, reciting just a few lines, but performing this mitzvah is a declaration that the prophesied return of the Jews to Israel has been fulfilled, thereby establishing a basis for the rebuilding of the Jewish Temple," BreakingIsraelNews.comreported.
"To begin counting the Jubilee last year, the Sanhedrin, as abet din (rabbinic court), ruled that the Jews have returned to inherit the land as a nation, and not just as individuals. This requires at least 600,000 Jews, equal to the number of Israelites that returned to Israel from Egypt under Joshua."
Jonathan Cahn, author of The Mystery of the Shemitah, told me he was led to include a chapter on the Seventh Shemitah, the Jubilee—particularly the Prophetic Jubilee.
"I set the start of that Jubilee with the holy days of September 2015," he explains. "To hear now that after 2,000 years, the Sanhedrin of Israel has declared the restoration of the Jubilee is amazing. And to hear, on top of that, they reckoned the Jubilee as beginning with the holy days of September 2015, the same time as in The Mystery of the Shemitah is stunning."
In a chapter of the book called "The Mystery of the Seventh Shemitah," the prophetic Jubilee is opened. Cahn explains how every seventh year was the Sabbath Year or the Shemitah and every seventh Shemitah, or 49th year, ushered in the super Shemitah known as the Yovel, or the Jubilee.
"During the Jubilee if you lost your land, your home, your family inheritance, your ancestral possession—in the year of Jubilee, you would get it back, you would return to it," he says. "The Jubilee was the year when the land was restored to the people and the people to the land."
How does this apply to today and why is the counting of the Shemitah so significant?
"Two thousand years ago, the Jewish people lost the land of Israel and their holy city Jerusalem, their ancestral possession. For the children of Israel to be restored to the land of Israel would be a prophetic Jubilee," Cahn explains. "So could the ancient Jubilee hold the key to that restoration? No one knows when the Jubilee is, as we have no record of its celebration in the time of Messiah. But we do know when the Shemitah is. And that's the key. The Jubilee must take place in the year following the year of the Shemitah."
Cahn goes on to explain how the Shemitah ended in September 1917 in the First World War. Thus, he says, the Hebrew year following the Shemitah, began September 1917 and ended in September 1918.
"Did anything significant in Jewish history take place in that period—anything involving the restoration of the Jewish people to the land? It was precisely in that period that the land of Israel was freed from the Ottoman Turkish Empire by the British," Cahn says. "In November 1917, the British Empire issued the Balfour Declaration restoring the land of Israel to the Jewish people and the Jewish people to the land of Israel—Jubilee—a prophetic Jubilee taking place, as it had to, in the year following the Shemitah."
Cahn explained to me that if one counts seven Shemitahs, 49 years later, one comes to the seventh Shemitah which ends in September 1966. The following period, September 1966 to September 1967, would be the prophetic Jubilee, the year of restoration.
"Did any significant event during that time—any event linked to a prophetic restoration?" he asks rhetorically. "It was precisely in those time parameters that Israel in the Six Day War, was restored to Jerusalem, its long lost ancestral possession—Jubilee. Though nothing has to take place in every cycle, it is worth nothing that the next Jubilee would begin in September 2015 and extend into October 2016—It is this exact period that the Sanhedrin of Israel has now declared to be the Jubilee."
HOOKED ON SMARTPHONES, HOW ELSE DO ISRAELIS DO LIFE? Zeev Klein, Ilan Gattegno, and Israel Hayom Staff
Tuesday, October 4, 2016
A record number of babies are being born; 74.8% of the population is Jewish, 20.8% Arab; citizen clock an average of 7.4 hours per day on their smartphones. How else do Israeli's do life?
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Israel's population continues to grow, and as the country moves through the High Holidays, the population stands at 8,585,000 citizens. This and other figures come from an annual census recently published by the Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS) in its annual journal "Israel in Figures."
The country's population comprises 74.8% Jews and 20.8% Arabs. Some 183,000 foreign workers and illegal migrants also live in Israel.
Since Rosh Hashanah in September 2015, the country's population has increased by 172,000, a 2% growth over the previous year. A record 189,000 babies were born in 2015, compared to 178,000 in 2015.
HOW LONG DO ISRAELIS LIVE?
The average life expectancy in Israel has increased dramatically over the past two decades and now stands at 80.1 years, compared to 75.5 years in 1995. According to the CBS, expenditures on health comprise 7.5% of Israel's Gross Domestic Product. While people are living longer, the Israeli population as a whole is young in comparison to the average in OECD nations. While the number of Israelis 65 and older is increasing, they currently represent 11.1% of the population.
HOW WILL ISRAEL LOOK IN 2040?
The CBS is also looking ahead and has prepared projections for the year 2040, when it believes that Israel's population will have reached 13.3 million, 656,000 of whom will be over 80 years old. By then, the CBS numbers indicate, only 58.8% of Israeli residents will be secular Jews, compared to 68% today. Nearly one-fifth (19.4%) will be haredi Jews, compared to the 11.9% of the population the haredim comprise today.
MEANWHILE...
Israeli Jews are waiting longer to marry: In 2014, 62.7% of Jewish men aged 25 to 29 were single, as were 45.8% of women aged 25 to 29. In the year 2000, in comparison, only 54% of men and 33.3% of women aged 25 to 29 were unmarried.
IN GENERAL...
...Israelis are feeling pretty satisfied: 89% said they were happy with their lives, and 84% are happy with where they live. However, 36% of Israelis, some 1.3 million people, said they found it difficult to cover their monthly expenditures, and 24% said they felt under pressure constantly or frequently.
AS FOR CELL PHONES AND TECHNOLOGY...
...Israelis are also addicted to their smartphones. Over 90% of Israeli consumers use their phones morethan any other device, and average Israeli cellphone use stands at 7.4 hours per day, according to a survey by MasterCard in 23 different countries about consumers' relationship with digital technology.
According to the numbers, 84% of Israelis use a laptop computer for more than 4.5 hours a day, and 53% use a tablet computer two hours daily.
The survey indicated that Israeli consumers were satisfied with the digital options available on travel (76%), shopping (68%) and social media (62%). However, Israeli consumers said they wanted more digital innovation in the fields of education, health and public transport.
The vast majority of consumers in Israel -- 91% -- said they believed that digital technology will be in wider use and will affect most of the population, which will require advanced cybersecurity, the most important aspect of digital payment methods and protecting personal data.
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This is a lightly edited version of the original article published by Israel Hayom at http://www.israelhayom.com/site/newsletter_article.php?id=36781-
Netanyahu Convenes Special Meeting With African Leaders
ON VIEWPOINT ISRAEL
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held a special meeting with over 15 heads of state and representatives from African countries at the United Nations in New York in late September.
Prime Minister Netanyahu told his interlocutors that he believes that Israel could be an amazing partner for their countries. He said that technology changes everything from communications, to medicine, to agriculture and education. He noted that Israel wants to share its technology with African countries.
The African leaders told Prime Minister Netanyahu that they thanked him and Israel for its cooperation in so many fields. They added that this cooperation was very important and would benefit the citizens of Africa and improve their standard of living.
Afterwards, Prime Minister Netanyahu and his wife, along with Israeli Ambassador to the UN Danny Danon, attended a unique event at UN headquarters with dozens of African leaders under the heading “Israeli Technology and Innovation for Africa.” They were welcomed with applause. The event, led by the Prime Minister, is an Israeli-African summit that presents the start-up nation to the entire world.
Israeli technological firms and start-ups will present their innovative solutions to over 15 presidents, prime ministers, and ministers from Africa and developing countries, and to dozens of ambassadors, senior UN officials and private sector representatives from around the world.
Prime Minister Netanyahu thanked Ambassador Danon for organizing these important events.
Jennifer LeClaire is now sharing her reflections and revelations through Walking in the Spirit. Listen at charismapodcastnetwork.com.
The military should be investing in training soldiers and building a defense. But our government may divert up to $8.4 million a year of much-needed funds for the gender reassignments for troops.
Yes, really. Sort of makes you wonder if gender-confused people will flock to the military for a free ride on the gender reassignment front like they do on the college education front.
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Franklin Graham is up in arms about the news.
When he read about the new government spending program for gender reassignment and hormone therapy for military personnel, the evangelist had two words followed by a pointed question:
"I'm disgusted! Aren't you?"
'This is the kind of immoral garbage President Obama and his administration are allowing to be put in place in our country," Graham says. "$8.4 million a year—with all the things our military needs—can you believe that? Things like this need to be stopped. It just shows you how morally warped our politicians have become."
What would it take to stop the government from funding the perversion train?
Wednesday, October 05, 2016 | Charles Gardner ISRAEL TODAY
As Israel mourns the passing of Shimon Peres, the last of their founding fathers, I pray for the dawning of an even brighter era that will bring light to their path and sweetness to their souls.
And as Jews everywhere rejoice in their New Year festival of Rosh Hashanah, I feel there is something of an apocalyptic, end-time significance about this particular anniversary.
It ushers in the year 5777, which has a resonance of its own with three sevens – the latter being the ‘perfect’ number in biblical terms. And in the Gregorian calendar which most of us follow, we will soon be welcoming 2017, a date of huge relevance to Israel on three counts.
First, it will mark the jubilee, or golden anniversary (50 years), since the Six-Day War of 1967 when the Old City of Jerusalem – the holiest property in all Judaism – was restored to Jewish hands for the first time in more than 2,000 years. Some scholars have suggested that this awesome event represented the fulfilment of “the times of the Gentiles” referred to by Yeshua when he said: “Jerusalem will be trampled on by the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.” (Luke 21.24, New Testament)
The new year will also mark 70 years since the historic United Nations vote to recognize Israel when, although Arab states opposed the resolution, the required two-thirds majority was achieved which set the scene for the re-birth of Israel the following year.
Bear in mind what Jesus said about the lesson learned from the fig tree, which is symbolic of Israel. He said that when it buds and blossoms at a time when the world is in great upheaval with wars, famines and earthquakes, we would know that his coming is near. Then he said: “This generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened.” (Matthew 24.34)
In other words, the generation (possibly lasting 70 years, man’s allotted lifespan according to Psalm 90.10) witnessing these extraordinary events would live to see “all these things” happening. Could that include his actual return? We cannot be certain, but it’s a distinct possibility. And as one born the year after the state of Israel, I find that both hugely exciting as well as rather scary.
But neither of these hugely historic anniversaries would have been possible without Britain’s Balfour Declaration of 1917, which effectively cleared the path for Israel’s restoration. The centenary of this crucial milestone in the Jews’ long journey home is in danger of being lost in the mists of political correctness, but it needs to be celebrated with gusto. It may not be as topical as our current Brexit endeavours, but it is also something for which Britain can be justly proud.
It amounted to a British government promise, from Foreign Secretary Lord Arthur James Balfour, to do all in its power to facilitate the creation of a homeland in Palestine (as the region was then known) for the Jewish people. And it came about largely through the efforts of 19
th century evangelical Christians, allied to the rise of Zionism under Theodor Herzl. When all is said and done, it was the preachers and politicians who knew their Bible – and the God of the Bible – who undoubtedly most influenced the government of the day. They clearly saw that it was our duty as a Christian nation to love and support the Jews, and to facilitate their return to their ancient homeland.
They also knew – and this was crucial to their support – that it wasn’t just about land, but about the Lord; that though the Bible clearly speaks of a restoration of Israel from every corner of the globe, such restoration would precede their national return to the God of Israel, the Father of the Jewish Messiah, Jesus Christ, which would in turn usher in our Lord’s Second Coming. Ezekiel prophesied: “I will gather you from all the countries and bring you back into your own land…And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws.” (Ezek 36.24-27)
It was this truth, above all, that drove our British forefathers to pray, proclaim and work towards fulfilment of the Zionist dream.
God is seeking a bride with whom he wishes to rendezvous back in their ancient land where he first ‘courted’ her as they learnt to walk in his ways and when the prophets tried, often in vain, to encourage faithfulness to the one true God.
When the Balfour promise was made back in November 1917, the Holy Land still belonged to the Turkish Ottoman Empire, which had ruled the region for 400 years, but within weeks it was in British hands, which handed on a plate the opportunity for us to make good our pledge.
But because we reneged on many of our promises and dealt treacherously with the Jews as we made repeated concessions in a bid to appease Arab demands, it took another three decades – and the death of millions at the hands of the Nazis – before the founding fathers were finally in a position to re-create the state of Israel.
Please forgive us, and meantime rejoice that even without our help in more recent times – though certainly with God’s help – you have come this far.
May God’s love surround you at this special time and cause you to know the fear of the Lord and his decrees, which are “sweeter than honey” (Psalm 19.10).
In this beautiful psalm of King David, we see how much he loves the law, the statutes, the precepts and the commands of the Lord. “They are more precious than gold…and sweeter than honey.” And all of this is perfectly fulfilled in Yeshua, who told the crowds on the Mount of Beautitudes at Capernaum: “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law and the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them.” (Matthew 5.17)
Charles Gardner is author of Israel the Chosen, available from Amazon, and Peace in Jerusalem, available from olivepresspublisher.com
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Weapons seized from criminal gangs are displayed before being destroyed by military personnel at a military base in Tijuana, Mexico. (REUTERS/Jorge Duenes)
Why These Men of God Are Being Hunted and Slaughtered in Mexico
Join us on our podcast each weekday for an interesting story, well told, from Charisma News. Listen at charismapodcastnetwork.com.
Even in a rural Mexican community that has grown accustomed to the news of brutal killings, the abduction and murder of a popular Catholic priest has triggered profound shock and outrage.
The bullet-ridden body of the Rev. Jose Lopez Guillen was found Sept. 24 on the highway outside Puruandiro in the western state of Michoacan, a region plagued by violent conflict. The 43-year-old cleric had been abducted from his home in nearby Janamuato five days earlier.
"He was an engaging personality," said Maria Solorio, a regular at Lopez's church. "He was an excellent priest and very devoted to the community. ... What happened to him was a great injustice."
Such injustices have been piling up and have prompted questions about whether the church is under attack or whether the clergy are just collateral damage in a wider wave of violence.
Lopez was kidnapped on Sept. 19, the same day authorities discovered the bodies of two slain priests in the eastern state of Veracruz; that makes at least 15 priests slain over the past four years.
The murders come at a time of strained relations between church and state in Mexico, in part because Catholic bishops recently supported mass protests against a proposal to legalize same-sex marriage nationwide.
In the wake of the killings the church has also abandoned its normal reluctance to criticize the government and has publicly accused state officials in Michoacan and Veracruz of directing a defamation campaign against the priests.
Mexico is the country with the second-largest Catholic population in the world, with nearly 100 million people, or more than 80 percent of the population, identifying as Catholic. But the country has a long history of anti-clericalism and in the past century the government officially and often violently suppressed the church.
But that dynamic changed dramatically after constitutional reforms in 1992 and the government and hierarchy enjoyed good relations for the most part.
Motives have not been established for the latest killings, but the Catholic Multimedia Center notes that violence against the clergy occurs disproportionately in states with high levels of organized crime, such as Veracruz and Michoacan.
The organization records 31 killings of priests in Mexico since 2006, the year then-President Felipe Calderon deployed troops to Michoacan in an effort to stamp out the drug cartels.
A decade on, the war across Mexico has claimed more than 150,000 lives, while Michoacan remains a hotbed of crime and civil unrest.
Pope Francis visited the state capital, Morelia, during his Mexico trip in February, in a show of solidarity with those most affected by organized crime.
The intensity of the violence in Michoacan has forced some priests into social activism, although the moves are rarely welcomed by the Catholic hierarchy.
One such priest is the Rev. Jose Luis Segura Barragan, who is among the most high-profile opponents of drug cartels in the state.
After he was appointed parish priest in the town of La Ruana in 2013, Segura voiced support for the armed self-defense groups that had sprung up in response to rampant insecurity in the region. Groups of locals soon tried to drive him out of town.
"Because I didn't leave, people fired bullets and threw rocks and fireworks at the church," he told RNS.
Segura, who finally left La Ruana four months ago, came under the media spotlight for his views. Yet for the clergy, even keeping a low profile is no guarantee of safety. In the most dangerous states in Mexico, any resistance against cartels, however minor, can become a motive for murder.
"Priests find themselves in problems when they refuse to provide a service to drug traffickers, like a baptism or Mass," Segura said.
Analysts generally agree, however, that violence against the clergy should be seen within the wider context of the drug war.
"It would be dishonest to say this is a targeted persecution of priests or the church," said the Rev. Hugo Valdemar Romero, a spokesman for the Archdiocese of Mexico City. "But the fact that you are a priest does not liberate you from the risk of robbery, murder or torture."
While anti-clericalism is not blamed, the Rev. Omar Sotelo of the Catholic Multimedia Center said the role of the clergy makes them particularly vulnerable to crime. Priests as a matter of course come into contact with a great variety of people, some of whom may be criminals.
"The violence against priests often has to do with their pastoral work," Sotelo said. "These are not just common crimes."
Some critics have accused Mexican bishops of concentrating on social matters such as same-sex marriage while turning a blind eye to the politically sensitive topic of violence.
"The church is focused on sexual issues," said the Rev. Alejandro Solalinde, a priest and famous activist. "They don't organize many marches to protest injustice, government corruption and impunity."
But attempts by prosecutors to link recently murdered priests with crime and criminals seem to have convinced church officials to speak out against the government.
Surveillance footage apparently showing Lopez entering a hotel with an underage boy was leaked to a media outlet in Michoacan. It caused an uproar until a woman on social media identified the pair as her ex-husband and son, not the murdered priest.
Similarly, State Attorney General Luis Angel Bravo Contreras was criticized for claiming the two priests in Veracruz had been drinking heavily with their killers before the crimes.
Church officials have responded with a vigorous defense of the victims.
"We demand that no priest, or anyone, be slandered, especially before the investigations are concluded," the Mexican bishops' conference wrote Sept. 26, a day after Lopez's body was discovered.
"This is a common strategy," said Solalinde. "They criminalize victims in an effort to contain the public outcry."
In this Mexican context of crime, corruption and impunity, Solalinde believes violence against priests suggests they are truly living their vocation.
"This persecution is a sign that priests are defending human rights," he said.
Solalinde has himself been threatened by criminals on multiple occasions.
"If one day something happens, it happens," he said. "But I refuse to let that worry me."
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