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The Jewish festival of Sukkot is called by several names: the Harvest festival, the Joyous festival, and the festival of Booths. Jewish families construct temporary huts -- Sukkot -- where they eat and some even sleep for the week-long holiday. Jews traditionally pray during the holiday while holding a citron fruit and branches of myrtle, palm and willow branches -- called the lulav and etrog.
Jews sitting in their Samarkand Sukka (circa 1870, Library of Congress). More on Samarkand Jewry here.
Bukharan family in their Jerusalem sukka (circa 1900). Note the man on the right holding the citron and palm branch (Library of Congress collection). Compare this sukka to one photographed inSamarkand30 years earlier
And Now the Mystery Picture -- The Occasion for this Photo
We recently found this photograph of Australian soldiers at the Western Wall in an Australian library archives and posted it on this site. The men fought in World War I in Palestine in 1917-1918.
Australian soldiers at the Western Wall, picture taken by "R. F. Ingham, 1st L." (Mitchell Library, State Library of New South Wales, Australia)
What was going on at the Western Wall in Jerusalem's Old City?
The reason for the kittel
We went back and inspected the photo closely.
The shadows suggest it was photographed around noon. Several men appear to be wearing white caftans, called a kittel, normally worn on Yom Kippur. But if the day were Yom Kippur, where were the throngs of worshippers?
Another section of the picture may provide the answer. It suggests the day was actually the seventh day of Sukkot, a day called Hoshana Rabba, when some men have a custom to wear akittel. The hour was well beyond the traditional morning prayer period so the crowd was sparse.
The lulav and etrog
The woman conversing with the Australian soldier may be holding a lulav (between her left shoulder and knee); the soldier may be holding the etrog.
Sukkot 1918 would have been a holiday for everyone in the picture: The Jews were liberated from the oppressive Turks, and the Australians Light Horsemen were on their way home after hard-fought battles in the Sinai, Beer Sheba, and east of the Jordan River.
When World War I broke out, new military technologies were brought to the battlefields. Tragically, military leaders continued to use outdated strategies leading to catastrophic outcomes.
Open-field charges of enemy position may have worked in the 19th century, but in the new era of the machine gun, it was a disaster. War became more complex and new fighting techniques needed to be adopted.
Our world continues to change every day requiring us to adapt, particularly with technology. One of the biggest dangers to marriages is in the area of sexual temptation. It leads to relational issues and, too often, failed marriages.
This has been true throughout history. However, changing definitions of appropriate clothing and the emerging media-saturated culture filled with sexually charged images have made the battlefield more complex.
Recently, All Pro Dad Founder Mark Merrill spoke with Steve Arterburn, author of Every Man's Battle: Winning the War on Sexual Temptation One Victory at a Time. Mr. Arterburn has counseled numerous men and women on this issue on the front lines. He shared with us some important ways of fighting temptation that will lead to more fulfilling relationships.
Here's how to win the battle:
Building Restraint
Fighting temptation starts by building the discipline of restraint. Those who desire to resist sexual temptation must possess the ability to deny themselves instant pleasures. That ability doesn't just appear, it needs to be built. Think about it like training for a marathon. No one can run twenty-six miles without doing many smaller distance runs that lead up to it. Eventually, muscles and endurance are strengthened for the longer runs. Building up the ability to resist sexual temptation starts with practicing small denials.
Consistent small acts of discipline become habits that form strong character.
Control Your Eyes
Images you view will form a photo album or video library in your brain. The more time you spend looking at something the more those pictures become vividly clear and permanent. That library profoundly affects our feelings and attitudes, particularly about our spouses. It becomes easy to compare them to the images we house. Practice the discipline of bouncing your eyes away from things that awaken sexual desire apart from your spouse. Reserve those looks for what belongs to you—your wife. Looking solely to her to awaken those desires will increase your wife's attractiveness in your mind make it easier to connect.
Protect the Mind
There are thoughts, images, and ideas that will enter our minds. When they do, we have a decision to make. We can either continue to think about them or escort them out. The problem occurs when we get a tempting or potentially destructive thought that we nurture rather than eliminate. If there are things that enter your mind that don't belong there, practice the discipline of stopping the thought process and changing it to something else. Perhaps shift the focus again to your spouse, God, or other things that are right to think about.
Be Open and Honest
Finally, it's easy to justify something that is happening inside your head. The problem is that those attitudes never stop in the inside. They eventually find their way to the surface in attitudes of discontentment and coldness with a spouse. Even if those attitudes are ever so slight, they push couples in a direction of disconnection. First, be honest with yourself about the impact of giving in to sexual temptation.
Next, find a friend or group of guys that you can be open with about how you are doing in building these disciplines. Give them authority to hold you accountable to living a higher standard and provide them with the same encouragement. We were never meant to do this alone.
If you would like to listen to the interview of Steve Arterburn by All Pro Dad Founder Mark Merrill, click here.
BJ Fosteris the Content Manager for All Pro Dad and a married father of two. For the original article, visitallprodad.com.
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Pastor John Hagee discusses his books in an interview with CBN. (Facebook)
John Hagee Goes Beyond '4 Blood Moons' With '3 Heavens'
On this week's edition of The Watchman, we sit down with Pastor John Hagee to discuss what the current series of Four Blood Moons means for America and Israel. We also take a look at Pastor Hagee's new book, The Three Heavens.
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Nations are drowning in unparalleled levels of debt, fears of economic calamity are growing and global leaders such as Pope Francis are warning that the world has entered the "last times" and is at the beginning of a "piecemeal" Third World War.
To address these crises, world leaders are meeting Friday through Sunday at the United Nations to consider a 15-year plan titled, "Transforming Our World: The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development"—a proposal some experts believe could be the first step toward the global state and cashless society predicted by the biblical prophets.
"The real agenda of the globalist elite through all these 'sustainable development' and 'social justice' programs [is] to create a new global state," says Paul McGuire, a Fox News and History Channel commentator and co-author of The Babylon Code: Solving the Bible's Greatest End-Times Mystery.
"We read in the book of Revelation that in the last days Babylon will return as a 'born again' world government, religion and economic system. What is happening now with the United Nations is Babylon rising again before our very eyes."
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Speaking before a joint meeting of Congress, Pope Francis encouraged lawmakers to protect the family and to show compassion toward the poor and illegal immigrants, and to fight climate change.
In a speech that did not include a single reference to Jesus Christ, the Pope did honor Dorothy Day, a socialist who founded the Catholic Worker.
He also highlighted the work of Abraham Lincoln, Martin Luther King Jr., and Thomas Merton, a Cistercian monk.
Francis called Dorothy Day "a servant of God," saying, "Her social activism, her passion for justice and for the cause of the oppressed, were inspired by the Gospel, her faith, and the example of the saints."
Pope Francis has long used his papal pulpit to speak out for the environment and his speech today was no different. Katherine Hayhoe, an associate professor at Texas Tech University, has worked for years calling on the evangelical church to take climate change seriously. CBN's Charlene Aaron spoke with her by Skype about the pope's speech.
Addressing the illegal alien crisis on America's southern border, Francis admonished opponents of illegal immigration to "remember the Golden Rule."
"Do unto others as you would have them do unto you (Mt 7:12)," he said. "Let us seek for others the same possibilities which we seek for ourselves. Let us help others to grow, as we would like to be helped ourselves."
Francis encouraged the United States to abolish the death penalty.
"I am convinced that this way is the best, since every life is sacred, every human person is endowed with an inalienable dignity, and society can only benefit from the rehabilitation of those convicted of crimes," he said.
On his belief that climate change is a serious problem, the Pope said, "In Laudato Si', I call for a courageous and responsible effort to "redirect our steps" and to avert the most serious effects of the environmental deterioration caused by human activity."
"I am convinced that we can make a difference and I have no doubt that the United States - and this Congress - have an important role to play," he said.
Pope Francis also offered a somewhat veiled message about gay marriage, which he opposes.
"I cannot hide my concern for the family, which is threatened, perhaps as never before, from within and without," Francis said. "Fundamental relationships are being called into question, as is the very basis of marriage and the family. I can only reiterate the importance and, above all, the richness and the beauty of family life."
He did not directly mention abortion, a prominent issue in America now because of the Planned Parenthood baby parts scandal.
After much anticipation that the Pope would use the speech as a chance to lecture Congress about inequality in America, he appeared to adopt a more conciliatory tone toward America's lawmakers, while still encouraging them to do more to promote social justice.
Join us on our new podcast each weekday for an interesting story, well told, from Charisma News. Listen at charismapodcastnetwork.com.
As I've been praying about this new Hebrew year of 5776, the Lord revealed some amazing things that I want to share. Since we have now moved from 5775 to 5776, and to see what this year may hold prophetically, we look at the number six to see its meaning in Hebrew.
The number six is vav. a word meaning "peg" or "hook."
As I was studying this, the Lord immediately brought back to me the story of Jael in Scripture, which you can read about in Judges 4. In this epic event, the Lord delivered the Israelites out of the hands of the oppressive Canaanites, and He did so in a remarkable way!
He used an unknown woman who was not even an Israelite to defeat the head of the Canaanite army, a man named Sisera. The Bible says that the Canaanites had "harshly oppressed the children of Israel for 20 years." The Israelite army, along with their leader, Barak, had come up against the army of the Canaanites, and began to drive them back. As a result, their leader, Sisera fled on foot, and came upon the tent of a woman name Jael, who was a Kenite, not an Israelite.
As he lay down to rest in her tent, and fell asleep, this audacious woman took a tent peg and drove it through his head. Although her tactics were unconventional, they were extremely effective! She used what she had to defeat the enemy, and in doing so, her name is forever blazoned in biblical history as a hero!
In killing Sisera, she made it possible for the Israelites to win the battle, as Scripture tells us that from that day forward Israel grew stronger and stronger against the Canaanites until they utterly destroyed them. Jael used the only thing she had, which didn't seem like much, but it destroyed the "head," in more ways than one.
The Spirit spoke to me and said, "I will be raising many up in this year—5776—who will use what I have placed in their hand (the tent peg) to destroy the plans of Satan and take out the 'head' of the enemy who has kept them oppressed and defeated ... the enemy who is waging war in their family, their city and their nation!"
He also began to show me that many of those He will be raising up will be the most unlikely ones ... those whom no one would suspect, who have no rank or title. He will use them to destroy the enemy who has kept so many bound for far too long.
They may not seem to be the strongest or the most qualified, but if they will obey the Lord and use what is in their hand, they will forever change their destiny, their territory and their generation.
I also felt the Lord saying that, just as He did then, He is especially raising up courageous women, for such a time as this, to war against the enemy. It is time for the daughters of the Lord to arise, and take their place in His army. We must fight the our soul's enemy, who has kept us oppressed and who is seeking to destroy us as well as all those around us.
The Lord has given us His tools, and though at times they may not seem like much to fight with, He will show us how best to use what He has given us, to destroy the "head" of the armies that are fighting against us. Something else the Lord began to show me about this story in Judges 4 is that Jael was alive during the reign of Deborah, the judge and prophetess. Deborah was truly a prophetess of the Lord, but she was also a judge, which means she carried an apostolic anointing.
This is why the Israelites were able to throw off the oppression of the Canaanites during her lifetime. Not only did Deborah prophetically hear what the Lord was saying and what was coming, she equipped and charged the Israelite army and its leader, Barak, to go forth in battle and fight for their freedom. In addition to the women the Lord is raising up, the Lord will be placing many men of God into leadership positions alongside these women.
They, like Barak with Deborah, will be able to listen and heed the voice of the women of God that He has anointed for this hour. They will not care who gets the credit. They will have no prejudice, and will be able to discern those whom the Lord has appointed to be apostolic and prophetic leaders in the kingdom during these last days.
Jael was not an Israelite, but she was close enough to the boundaries of Israel to most likely have heard of the judge and prophetess Deborah. I do not believe it is by mere chance that the Lord used a woman of no consequence to kill the head of the enemy army, during the very time that the entire nation of Israel was being ruled by a woman.
In fact, Deborah even prophesied that the Lord would use a woman to destroy the enemy army. She tells Barak, the leader of the Israelite army, that she will go with him into battle at his request, but also tells him that there would be no glory for him because Sisera would die at the hands of a woman.
I believe Jael was only able to have the courage and wherewithal to strike a fatal blow to the enemy, because she had already heard of a mighty woman of God who ruled the entire nation of Israel, a woman who was a prophetess as well as an apostolic leader.
The Lord told me that He is also raising up Deborahs in this hour who will lead an entire army and put the enemy on the run. They are a hybrid warrior of apostolic (judge) and prophetic leader. These women will raise up many "Jaels" under them, who will strike deathly blows against the enemies in their own territory and sphere of the kingdom.
These are the daughters of Deborah, and this is their year. Armed with the hammer of authority and the "peg" of purpose, they will pursue their destiny and make their mark in kingdom history.
Amanda Shiflettand her husband, Darin, are a unique and anointed ministry team with a heart for equipping the body through worship, prophecy, evangelism and deliverance. At God's leading, they co-founded Ministries for Life not long after their marriage in 2009. God has blessed and anointed them to work together to impact this end-time generation.
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“Announce this among the nations, prepare war, arouse the mighty men; all the men of war shall approach and ascend.” (Joel 4:09)
According to a Radio Sawt Beirut (Radio Voice of Beirut) report, anonymous senior Hezbollah sources have said that under a certain scenario China may become involved militarily in Syria, should it become convinced that President Bashar al-Assad’s regime is in critical danger. According to these officials, Assad relies on Russian-Chinese support for his survival.
According to the sources, this move will not be marginal, and could be expected to materialize in the near future.
According to some Syrian dissidents, this story is is not credible and is being leaked to suggest that the Syrian regime is finally receiving the military support it needs to ensure its survival, from the Russians—and the Chinese.
Western sources have revealed recently that over the past two weeks Russia has been shipping advanced weapons, as well as Russian Army soldiers and experts to support Assad.
The Radio Voice of Beirut website has published pictures of Russian soldiers deployed in several areas in Syria controlled by Assad, confirming a Russian military presence there.
Reuters has reported last week that Iran’s Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif wants China’s help in resolving tensions and unrest in the Middle East and is ready to play host to more Chinese firms once sanctions against it are lifted. “China and Iran find mutual benefits in many areas,” Zarif told his Chinese counterpart, Wang Yi, at a meeting in Beijing.
China is the biggest customer of Iranian oil and Zarif said their economies were “complementary.” The two countries faced “similar challenges as well as opportunities,” he said.
Khaled Qahtan, Editor-in-Chief at Radio Sawt Beirut International in Europe Reporting on Syria and Lebanon, has tweeted (translated from Arabic):
“The sharing of power between Russia and Iran may start in Syria, but there is disagreement for the moment because of the growing influence of Iran in Damascus, which Russia is seeking to reduce.”
Qahtan also tweeted there is effective coordination on the ground between Russia and Iran over the distribution of deployment of their troops in Syria, and both forces appear now in full readiness to campaign on behalf of the Assad regime.
Read more at http://www.breakingisraelnews.com/49453/lebanese-radio-chinese-military-involved-syria-alongside-russia-iran-middle-east/#QQ9Y6SdUGwqaTw3V.99
Are you willing or prepared to preach on the end times? (Lightstock)
7 Reasons Why Some Pastors Don't Preach on End-Time Prophecies
After 68 years in the ministry and guest speaking in hundreds of pulpits, I often wonder why many ministers are so silent on teaching Bible prophecy from their pulpits, particularly when at least 28 percent of the Bible was prophetic at the time it was written.
Dr. John Walvoord, the great prophecy scholar, identified more than 1,000 prophecies in his book The Bible Prophecy Handbook. Of those prophecies, more than half have literally been fulfilled, assuring us that the other half are end-time prophecies that will also be fulfilled literally. These fulfilled prophecies should make it easy to believe that we are living in or very near what the Bible calls "the latter days" and "the end times."
Among the many fulfilled end-time signs, none is more obvious than the very existence of the Jewish people now living in their own homeland, having been driven or voluntarily migrated there from more than 170 nations of the world during the last 125 or so years.
Anyone familiar with this greatest end-time prediction recognizes what Jesus Christ meant in the Olivet Discourse when He said, "Now learn this lesson from the fig tree: When its branch becomes tender and grows leaves, you know that summer is near" (Matt. 24:32). The fig tree represents the nation of Israel. In other words, when the Jewish people begin to gather back into their land, you will know the sign of His return and the end is "near."
Many prophecy scholars consider the Olivet Discourse as the most important end-time prophecy in the New Testament. Personally, I believe it indicates that between the Islamic terrorism of the Middle East and many other signs of the end, we may be near what I call "the end of the end times." The tragedy is that many of our church pulpits are nearly silent on the subject.
As an evangelistic Bible-teaching pastor, I find there is nothing more inspiring to evangelism and spiritual growth than preaching on Bible prophecy and the certainty of Jesus' Second Coming. (It is the only source of hope and comfort for people living at a time when secular man has so obviously proven himself incapable of coping with the chaos that is exploding in much of our world, particularly in and around Israel).
Yet the amazing thing is that here we are, living in a time when God has revealed much of His wonderful plans for our future eternal life in His Word, yet many pulpits remain silent about this comforting truth that is so obvious by studying fulfilled prophecy. Why? I believe there to be several reasons. Consider some of the following:
1) A minister does not take the Bible literally, as God intended. Many mainline and some Reformed churches do not take the Bible literally. Whenever you spiritualize or allegorize God's meaning, you make it all but unintelligible. Instead, those who do not take the Bible literally often ridicule those of us who do, accusing us of a "wooden, literal interpretation of Scripture."
We believe that God said what He meant when He spoke through His Holy Spirit to special prophets and apostles, yet we also should understand what He meant to their generation and make a common-sense application to our own. Language has a way of changing through the years. After 300 years, it is difficult to understand Chaucer and Shakespeare in their original language. Parts of the Bible were written more than 3,000 years ago. We are fortunate today to have many modern translations and study Bibles in which Bible scholars have properly interpreted the modern equivalent to the ancient Scriptures.
We also believe there are many passages that include symbols, metaphors and figures of speech that must be considered in light of their original context to assure that we have exactly the original meaning.
2) A minister takes the Bible literally, except the 28 percent that is prophetic.Many otherwise evangelical churches have adopted the strange idea, propounded by Augustine in the fifth century A.D., that the Bible should be taken literally except for the prophetic passages. Thus, they avoid teaching prophecy even amid the many signs that exist in our modern era that are obvious signs of the end. One such sign is the miraculous return of the nation of Israel to the Holy Land in our own generation. Israel's very existence 4,000 years after Father Abraham started the Hebrew people, even as many other nations have sunk beneath the sands of time, is itself a miracle. However, today, Israel exists and occupies the daily news on TV, radio and the media worldwide, exactly as the prophets and apostles predicted for the last days.
3) A minister receives his education from secular educators. Too many seminaries and even Christian colleges have employed professors and teachers on the merit of earned "accredited graduate degrees" from secular colleges, where the core educational program either was secular and hostile to God and the Bible, or simply ignored them altogether. Many of these professors ridicule those who would teach the divine nature of the Bible, particularly that of future prophecy.
My good friend, Dr. Howard Hendricks, propagated a very important educational principle: "You cannot impart what you do not possess." The ugly fact is many of our pastors silent on prophecy don't deal with the subject because they know so little about it. Educators who had pastoral experience themselves did not plan their curriculum, but they had "accredited graduate degrees." That might help their university or seminary get accreditation from the regional accrediting association, but it also means pastors are not trained to "preach the Word" as the apostles Paul, Peter, James and others admonished. It would be better for churches everywhere if seminaries found experienced men with two or three decades of successful pastoral experience to teach the next generation how to pastor and preach the Word of God.
4) A minister is not willing to do the hard work of studying God's Word. I know firsthand that it takes hard work, and study is hard work. That requires a pastor with strong self-discipline in studying the Bible so he can impart a well-thought-out biblically based message in the fire of the Holy Spirit. I understand the need to minister to the many needy souls in the congregation, plus church personnel and other unexpected problems that arise for every pastor. However, when it comes to preaching, I shall never forget the advice of my preacher and uncle, Dr. E.W. Palmer. He said to me, "Son, never go into the pulpit unprepared. Tear off big chunks of beefsteak from the Word of God and feed it to your people and be evangelistic." With God's help, I have tried to follow that advice.
The importance of sermon preparation was graphically illustrated to me one night after one of our many Family Life Seminars with Christian psychologist Dr. Henry Brandt. He never criticized his pastor privately to me except that night. I noticed he was heavy hearted when he blurted out, "My pastor never studies enough to minister to the needs of our congregation. Every week I go to church after rubbing shoulders with many needy people with the prayer, 'Oh, man of God, I need to hear a message from God today to inspire me to be a spiritual blessing in this mixed-up world of ours.' But my pastor doesn't study the Word enough to give us a powerful message from God." The pastor didn't last long at that church.
To be honest, that conversation went straight to my heart as I began to examine my own study habits. Busy husbands and fathers have every right to expect a soul-stimulating message so they can be spiritually encouraged by learning biblical truths when they attend our services. That cannot be done unless the pastor carefully studies his Bible before he steps into the pulpit. It is true that while we are commissioned to preach the whole counsel of God, nothing is more inspiring than preaching on some of the many promises of Jesus' soon coming. For it is what the apostle Paul called "the blessed hope" (Titus 2:13), and at least twice wrote that we can "comfort one another with these words" (1 Thess. 4:18).
5) A minister is not willing to be an avid reader. A good preacher must be an avid reader. The apostle Paul advised the young preacher Timothy, his son in the faith, to give attention to reading so he could make good use of his preaching gift and be a good example for the believers (1 Tim. 4:9-16). That pastoral advice from the well-traveled church builder and experienced apostle Paul is very appropriate for all pastors today.
While it is important that we read extensively today, it is doubly important for pastors and teachers to not only read the writings of Spirit-filled men but more importantly, God's Word. If you read the Bible regularly and memorize those passages that particularly speak to you, or those that answer specific questions you might have, the Holy Spirit can bring them to your remembrance when you need them most.
6) A minister is misguided by charlatans, zealots and date setters. Another reason pulpits are often silent on prophecy is because of the abuse by some charlatans, misguided zealots and even founders of well-known false cults. Many of these have disregarded true prophecy teaching by setting dates that proved to be untrue and was forbidden by our Lord and His apostles outright. This is even more reason why pulpits should be used to teach the truth about the end times and future prophecy, so Christians won't be deceived as we approach the Lord's coming and the end of the age.
7) A minister believes people are not interested in Bible prophecy. Some pastors believe the false idea that Christians are not interested in Bible prophecy. That notion may have been popular after World War II when peace was prominent, but that is long gone. We are living when "wars and rumors of wars" are on almost everyone's mind (Matt. 24:6). It doesn't look like peace in our lifetime is close to being on the horizon any time soon. In addition, rogue nations now have the atomic and neutron bombs, and Iran is rapidly on the march to get both of them and a delivery system that could reach the whole world in the next decade—hardly the stuff that promotes a good night's sleep.
Actually, the notion that people are not interested in Bible prophecy is a tool of Satan to lull the church and evangelistic-minded Christians to sleep. Nothing energizes the body of Christ to soul-winning evangelism like teaching about the soon coming of Christ and the end of the age.
For example, one of the prime reasons we know that Jesus is the one and only Messiah sent by God to this world is because He fulfilled more than 109 prophecies of the Old Testament during His brief 33 years of life. No other person even comes close to that kind of fulfillment. Yet Bible scholars tell us there are 321 prophecies of His Second Coming to rapture His church before the seven-year Tribulation and the setting up of His 1,000-year millennial kingdom. Since we know His first coming is a historical fact, we can be confident that His Second Coming will be true too.
I personally know many of the pastors of growing churches and megachurches throughout this country. It is not surprising to me that many of them preach often on Bible prophecy. People are eager to hear about the end times and what God has to say about it.
If you will excuse the personal illustration, I pastored a good church in San Diego for 25 years. Dr. David Jeremiah was called as my replacement in 1981. This year on Easter Sunday, 34 years later, that same church had 13,000 people in attendance at their multiple worship services, overflows and several extension campuses. Interestingly enough, both Dr. Jeremiah and I often preached on Bible prophecy. In fact, during the nearly 60 years that the two of us pastored that church, we both preached through the book of Revelation twice. And this is the one Bible book many pastors never teach because they were taught in seminary that "it is too difficult for God's people to understand," or even worse, "church people are not interested in prophecy." I think both excuses are a lie from the devil himself.
Preaching fulfilled prophecy proves God's faithfulness to His people in the past. Future end-time prophecies teach us about the wonderful plan He has for our incredible future. I trust you attend a church where your pastor preaches on Bible prophecy. After all, the apostle Paul called it "the blessed hope." If you hear it in your church, read about it in your Bible, study it like the Bereans in the early church, memorize it and meditate on it, the apostle John and our Lord promised you a "blessing": "Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of this prophecy and keep those things which are written in it, for the time is near" (Rev. 1:3).
Tim LaHayeis the best-selling author of the Left Behind series and more than 70 other books. He is a nationally recognized speaker on Bible prophecy, a minister and the founder of Tim LaHaye Ministries, the PreTrib Research Center and Liberty University's Tim LaHaye School of Prophecy. His latest book is Target Israel: Caught in the Crosshairs of the End Times.
Watch Tim LaHaye share the true foundation of all Bible end-time prophecy atlahaye.charismamag.com.
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Over Half of This Denomination Now Supports Same-Sex Marriage
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Over half of the members of the governing body of the Church in Wales have backed the idea of allowing same-sex couples to marry in church.
A secret ballot was held on taking the issue forward. Of the 120 members present, 61 voted in favour of holding same-sex marriages in church.
However, this falls short of the two-thirds majority needed for change.
Constitution
And any amendment to the Church's constitution requires a new bill to be passed by Parliament.
The governing body comprises of the six diocesan bishops alongside 51 other clerics and 86 lay people.
It is now up to the Bench of Bishops to decide whether to take further steps.
'Very foolish'
The Archbishop of Wales, Dr. Barry Morgan, said it would be "a very brave or perhaps a very foolish Bench of Bishops" who would take the issue forward now.
"Because that might just rip the church apart and lead to the acrimony that has been absent from this debate."
The Church of England and the Church in Wales are legally not allowed to perform same-sex marriage ceremonies.
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