Welcome

Have you been on the same road as me? Full of expectations, but always surprised by God? This seems to be the way He operates, isn't it? One day He meets your expectations, the next day it's all upside down.

That's how the disciples on the Road to Emmaus felt after the crucifixion. Like every other Jew in Jesus' time, they believed that God's Messiah would overturn their fortunes. But instead of throwing out the Romans, He'd thrown out the Temple merchants instead. Rather than starting a Jewish insurrection after His Triumphal Entry, He meekly bowed His head to the whips and thorns.

I'm going to explore this Upside Down God on this blog. And as we examine His history with man down through the years we're going to discover that this Almighty One thinks at a different level. But we'll also discover that it all works together for our good, and for His glory.

I hope you'll join me for the journey!

Russia's New Czar?

Putin believes that it is his destiny to resurrect Russia's
evil empire and re-assert its strength and goals across the planet. In a landmark book entitled First Person three of Russia's leading journalists -- Nataliya Gevorkyan, Natalya Timakova, and Andrei Kolesnikov -- record interviews with the new czar that unveil his ambitions.

On his mission in life: "My historical mission is to stop the collapse of the USSR....consolidate the armed forces, the Interior Ministry, and the FSB (the new KGB)."

On his style: "Everyone says I'm harsh, even brutal. Only one thing works.....go on the offensive. You must hit first, and hit so hard that your opponent will not rise to his feet."

On his power grab: "From the very beginning Russia was created as a supercentralized state. That's practically laid down in its genetic code...and mentality of its people.....the monarch doesn't have to worry about whether or not he will be elected, or about petty political interests, or about how to influence the electorate. He can think about the destiny of the people and not become distracted with trivialities."

On his favorite leader: "Napolean Bonaparte"

On his rise to President: "In the Kremlin.....nobody controls me here. I control everybody else."

On his critics: "To hell with them."

Some rather scary attitudes from a man who is quietly going around the Middle East gathering up allies to attack Israel with.

Ezekiel's prophecy continues to unfold before our eyes.

Dividing Jerusalem

The great day of the LORD is near, it is near, and hasteth greatly, even the voice of the day of the LORD: the mighty man shall cry there bitterly.

That day is a day of wrath, a day of trouble and distress, a day of wasteness and desolation, a day of darkness and gloominess, a day of clouds and thick darkness,
A day of the trumpet and alarm against the fenced cities, and against the high towers.
Zephaniah 1:14-16

Are we any closer to the end? Without question! World events keep unfolding at breakneck speed. And the "fenced cities", which Israel has recently developed, will be decimated by invading forces -- notably a Russian/Iranian alliance (Ezekiel 34,35)

And now Prime Minister Olmert is speaking of dividing Jerusalem permanently, even allowing it to be renamed. Is this not a fulfillment of Zechariah's prophecy in 14:2? This reference supports the idea of a "shared" city between Muslims and Jews -- something which Olmert says is necessary to create peace.

Check this article for a better description of what's going on.

Ahmadinejad's Dream

Ahmadinejad's pathos comes from a deep-seated religious belief that he has been destined by Allah to pave the way for the "coming" Mahdi -- the Islamic Messiah.

"All streams of Islam believe in a divine saviour, known as the Mahdi, who will appear at the End of Days. His return will be preceded by cosmic chaos, war and bloodshed. After a cataclysmic confrontation with evil and darkness, the Mahdi will lead the world to universal peace for seven years. " (Anton LaGuardia: "Divine Mission Driving Iran's New Leader, January 14, 2006)

Ahmadinejad believes in the prophetic outline of the Twelfth Imam (the Mahdi), the righteous descendant of Mohammad. He has reportedly publicly stated that he believes that the Mahdi is only two years away from his return, and that creating chaos in the Middle East will hasten the Imam's return. He believes that the Mahdi will appear when the entire globe is in chaos, which explains his state-sponsored support of Islamic terrorism around the globe.

His apocalyptic view is so strongly ingrained that he has fired all of Iran's most experienced diplomats and replaced them with fellow zealots (www.newsmax.com/archive/article/2006/2/8/154740.shtml) Using the same tactics as Adolf Hitler, Ahmadinejad also uses security agents to squash his opposition.

On November 16, 2005, in a speech in Tehran to senior clerics, Mr. Ahmadinejad said that the primary mission of his regime was to "pave the path for the glorious reappearance of the Imam Mahdi". (Kenneth Timmerman, "Countdown to Crisis: The Coming Nuclear Showdown With Iran", 2006, Three Rivers Press, p. 325)

Ezekiel 38 and 39 speak of an alliance between Rosh and Persia just before Christ returns. There's no doubt that Persia is Iran. They changed their name from Persia to Iran in 1935. There is also little doubt that Rosh speaks of Russia.

The alliance of nations seems to be forming right before our eyes.

The Rise Of Iran

As we watch the events of the Middle East unfold, it's easy to see the hand of Jehovah God in all of this. He is setting the stage for the return of His Son, Jesus Christ.

"No authority exists except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God." (Romans 13:1)

That includes our "friend", Mr. Ahmadinejad. We must keep our eyes on this man and his country. As they move ever closer to the possession of nuclear weaponry, our world edges closer and closer to Armageddon and the return of Christ.

Here's what may happen:

1. After years of this fiasco in Iraq, America will be in no mood to confront this man once they have a Democrat in the White House next year. That will leave few countries to oppose him.

2. Once acquired, the nuclear weapons will give Iran an opportunity to hold the Middle East and its oil hostage. They will set the world's economic agenda. It may be very hard to buy or sell without compliance to the regime.

3. Ahmadinejad has publicly supported the Islamic Jihad and the destruction of Israel. He has also spoken of his desire to dominate Europe.

4. European leaders will negotiate with this man. Islam will be given greater power than it has ever known. Ahmadinejad will strike a treaty with Israel, which he will hold for 3.5 years. Then he will break the treaty, and seek to dominate everything. Just look in this man's eyes. He's insane! I can see this man insisting that he be worshipped as God somewhere down the road.

But we'll see. I could be dead wrong. But, oh I hope I'm right. Because I am longing for the Rapture and the Millennial Rule of Christ.

Why We Hate Israel!

It is no accident that the nations hate Israel with such loathsome passion. God has ordained it!

"Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of burden to all the surrounding peoples, when they lay siege against Judah and Jerusalem. And it shall happen in that day that I will make Jerusalem a very heavy stone for all peoples; all who would heave it away will surely be cut in pieces, though all nations of the earth are gathered against it. In that day," says the LORD, "I will strike every horse with confusion, and its rider with madness; I will open My eyes on the house of Judah, and will strike every horse of the peoples with blindness. And the governors of Judah shall say in their heart, 'The inhabitants of Jerusalem are my strength in the LORD of hosts, their God.' In that day I will make the governors of Judah like a firepan in the woodpile, and like a fiery torch in the sheaves; they shall devour all the surrounding peoples on the right hand and on the left, but Jerusalem shall be inhabited again in her own place--Jerusalem." (Zech 12:2-6)

Even though Israel owns a piece of land that is about the same size as New Jersey, nations all around the world are perplexed by their "occupation" of this little property. Almost half of the United Nations resolutions in the past 60 years have concerned Israel. Newspaper stories everywhere feature her as front page news, and many governments world-wide would love to snuff this little community of Jews out.

Why all this fuss and concern?

Because God has ordained it!

The rebirth of Israel in 1948 was a miracle all by itself. In Ezekiel 37 God has the prophet look over a valley of dry bones (which signified a dead and exiled nation). "Can these bones live?" Jehovah asked. "O Lord, only Thou knowest", the prophet replied. Yet God told Ezekiel to watch as He miraculously raised these bones to life. "So I prophesied as He commanded me, and the breath came into them, and they lived, and stoop up upon their feet, an exceeding great army." (37:10)

In 1948 Israel triumphed over six well-armed Arab nations, using little more than a voluntary army of unskilled farmers and scholars, inadequate weapons, a few jeeps, and two small airplanes. Yet Jehovah God miraculously intervened to allow this weak little band of conscipts to defeat her enemies against incredible odds.

Today, Israel has the world's third most powerful air force, and possesses more tanks than any other nation in the world except Russia and America. The Israeli Defence Forces have rewritten the miliatry manuals on how to fight a war, and with the exception of the recent Lebanon fiasco, have been unbeatable.......and the Arab nations know it.

"Therefore say to the house of Israel, Thus says the Lord: it is not for your sake that I am about to act, but for My Holy Name, which you have profaned among the nations where you went.......THEN THE NATIONS WILL KNOW THAT I ALONE AM GOD, WHEN I PROVE MYSELF HOLY AMONG YOU IN THEIR SIGHT. For I will take you from the nations, gather you together from all the lands, and bring you into your own land. Then the nations that are left round about you will know that I, the Lord, have rebuilt the ruined places and planted that which was desolate. I, THE LORD, HAVE SPOKEN AND WILL DO IT." (Ezekiel 36:22-36)

Hmmmmm.

So much for the "strength" of allah.

Putin & Mubarek? Interestink!

One of my favorite shows as a kid was Rowan and Martin's Laugh In. And one of my favorite characters was Arte Johnson's German soldier. "Interestink.....very interestink", he'd say as he rubbed his chin. "And stoopit!"

But these two guys on the left aren't so stupid. In fact they're very interestink, and very clever. They also appear to be fulfilling biblical prophecy.

Right from the start of history that little strip along the eastern seaboard of the Mediterranean Sea has been very important to any nation that wanted world domination. The Egyptian, Greek, Roman, and Babylonian empires all fought at one time or another to control the land of Israel. And the fight continues today. Whoever controls the Middle East and Persian Gulf supplies can set the agenda for Europe and Asia, including the growing economies of Japan, India, and China. President Bush and the Republicans clearly recognized that, and sought to set up a beach-head in Iraq, mistakenly believing that if they ousted Saddam Hussein, the country would welcome democracy and allow America the kind of economic presence it desperately needs to maintain international power.

But their miscalculation has been enormous. The Iraqi people are too divided to enjoy a long democracy, and the American people are too unschooled in international politics to understand the importance of establishing this important beach-head while Arab/European alliances continue to form. Plus, they are too weak to stomach much bloodshed in order to retain their international power. Al Qaida, Iran, China, and Russia have been banking on this as they've watched America's resolve begin to wilt. And they will be smiling from ear to ear when the American public hands the Republicans a stinging rebuke at the congressional polls this week. They know full well that they cannot achieve superstar status without dismantling America's resolve and presence in the Middle East.

So as they seek to form their own confederacy of nations, the Arabs and Europeans will be hob-nobbing a lot over the next few years. They know full well that they cannot remove the American/Israeli alliance without a monster cooperative of their own.

Enter Vladimir Putin and Hosni Mubarek. Back in April Mr. Putin made the first visit by a Russian president to the land of Egypt in 40 years. It appears that various economic deals were discussed and/or reached, and Mr. Mubarek was invited to join a Russian alliance in the Middle East. Chief among Egypt's ambitions is to generate more nuclear power, and Putin is eager to supply.

Enter biblical prophecy. In approximatley 580 BC God spoke through the prophet Ezekiel about events that would transpire in the last days before the return of Christ. He said that the northern area of Russia would lead a confederacy of nations to invade Israel. This will include countries like Iran, Sudan, Ethiopia, Libya, Egypt, and the many other Arab and European nations.

"Son of man, set your face against Gog, of the land of Magog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal; prophesy against him. After many days you will be called to arms. In future years you will invade a land that has recovered from war, whose people were gathered from many nations to the mountains of Israel, which had long been desolate. They had been brought out from the nations, and now all of them live in safety. You will come from your place in the far north, you and many nations with you, all of them riding on horses, a great horde, a mighty army." (Ezekiel 38:2,8,15)

There's no question that this sudden new alliance between Russia and Egypt is providential. God is continuing to move all the pieces into place to fulfill the great prophecies that surround the glorious return of Jesus Christ.

Don't take your eyes off these new developments.