I've always been able to express my thoughts pretty well in writing. Not accounting for typing skills, which produce a fair ammount of typos in many of my articles, I've been given the gift of communication this way. I'm realizing as time goes on that a person can only communicate their realized ideas. I can communicate my thoughts, and writing is a medium I have used to translate emotions into thoughts.
Emotions, to me, are simply thoughts that don't come with words or concepts. Thus learning how to express emotions is a useful skill. Writing has been that skill for me, to a certain extent. When something bothers be or excites me, I write it down and those emotions translate into logical thoughts. The problem is that not all emotions are available to the conscious mind.
I'm not sure how this compares with the experience of others, but I have recurring dreams. Regularly. Since I was seventeen I have been aware of the connection between my dreams and emotions I am unable to express. When I'm under a deeper emotional stress, I dream about it, I believe, because my conscious mind is either unaware of the effects of that stress, or is unable to express it. When i say deeper emotional stress, I don't mean daily life stress. From my understanding, the type of stress that influences my dreams is often a singular event that impacts my life.
For example, the reason and inspiration for this article, as noted by the title. My desire to write about this (again) is because its been about a year since i stopped having "Laura's Recurring Nightmare" as I call it. Many of my dreams are recurrent, especially the ones that have a big impact on me. Usually if a dream represents something important enough to be recurrent, its a nightmare.
In June of last year I got an email saying that Laura, the young woman i had been intending on marrying, wanted to end any friendship that we had. Without going into more detail on this well worn story, I never really was told why or given any reason for this. One week things were fine, more than fine you could say, the next week my heart had been ripped away. The same night as that email, a series of dreams began which I later took to calling "Laura's Recurring Nightmare". Not much for creativity on that one, I know.
The dream itself was actually rather simple. I woke up more times than i can count screaming and crying "WHY??!" Not nessesarily verbally screaming, but in my mind. That was the dream. No images, nothing going on, just me screaming in "WHY?!" in my dream (once or twice outloud, in my sleep I was later informed). THe emotional pain that went with those screams I can still remember. I remember the devastation in my heart.
I mention that, not because I still have those dreams or feel that pain; like I said its been nearly a year since that dream has stopped recurring. What makes that dream interesting to me is that outside of the recurring dream and pain therein, there was no other manifestation of this emotion in my life. Less that a month after I got that email, I was back at school, living my life normally. During my waking hours, I was fine. I was shocked at how quickly I had recovered from the heartbreak, but my dreams told a different story. The only time I had any noticeable reaction to the loss was in my sleep, where my emotions, the ones I couldn't express and didn't even know were there during the day, came out violently. It was the only emotion i really had, and I couldn't feel it any other way. Overtime I stopped feeling altogether, and became a hateful jerk to my classmates, which eventually led me to leave school because I couldn't handle it.
Once again, the dreams I have that stay with me are representations of things I can't express any other way. Perhaps now I can verbally explain the depth of "Laura's Recurrent", but at the time it was lost on me. Now I am in the midst of another series of recurrent dreams. These are not nightmares.
Recently the dream has been of Laura again. My waking mind hardly ever thinks about her, or what happened last year. I know that I would probbably ignore her and many of the friends that are associated with her if we were to meet again. Things will never go back. I don't want Laura ever again, but I want reclamation of the memories we had. But once again, my dreams tell a different story that my waking emotions.
In the new dream, I see her in a place that is familiar. INCH, Verity, Ren Fair, Horrocks, and other such places of "importance". Its just a moment, but i see her, just her face, and I say "I'm sorry." I'm not sure if I really am sorry, or just want there to be some kind of reconciliation in the dream, but thats what happens. What do I make of it? I'm not sure. My logical, waking mind can't process it in any coherent way. But its what the dream is. Maybe in a few months I'll understand.
Links to previous posts about my dreams and nightmares (Cir. 2008):
The Meaning of Dreams
Oneirophobia
*Note, these are very childish and badly written posts, but they are examples of past recurrent dreams.
Sunday, August 28, 2011
Tuesday, August 23, 2011
Things I collect or want to collect.
A great guide for gift buying and just general information about me. In no kind of order:
- Guns:
The saying for me is "One Gun a year till Im 30. (since I have been old enough to own them)" So far I have kept to this: My Glock for my 18th Year, My Sig for my 19th year... Its this 20th thats becoming a problem. With Israel Trips, College, travel, and other expenses, finding a Firearm i can afford and want this year has been tough. Whats made it harder is that, even though I've found one, a Navy black powder .44, I havent been able to locate one. I have two more months. - Hats:
This collection is Limited to a few spesific kinds of hats that i like. Fedoras, Drover Hats, Bandanas, and skull caps that aren't decorated. I love my hats, the few that I have, and I hope to continue to make good use out of them for many years. - Knives:
Another fairly obvious one for anyone who knows me at all. I don't collect indiscriminately here; not all knives are equal. If you know know enough about knives to know what I'd like, dont get one for me. - Notebooks
This is a collection with a singular Purpose. All of my notebooks are either used or going to be used one day in the form of letters. Letters to my Wife, children, and myself. I collect them almost indescriminately, As long as they look nice and have some quality. - Funny Pictures
Pretty Self Explanatory - Tshirts/ Scrubs/ Vests
My clothing selection is nerdy and eccentric. I have so many different styles, from the hats, colors, scrubs, toe shoes, vests - Israel stuff
This is possibly the most expensive of my collections, as it Requires a trip to Israel every time. I have potteryshards, lamps, rocks, jewelry, certificates, bullets. These mean alot to me as Israel is very much on my heart. - Camera Equipment
I have had alot of cameras. There is never really an end to the amount of equipment one can get for a camera. I love getting video and Pictures of my world, to aide my memory. Lenses, pods, flashes, video stuff, and even software are all a part of this process. - Swords
I'm listing this as a separate entity from knives, cause these are a class in and of themselves. I have bought and sold swords since i was 16, making this one of my older collections. - Jewelry
This is pretty limited to Necklaces, rings and masculine bracelets, obviously. Its a limited collection, but I rotate thru the things I have. I'm guessing when i get my Navy Tags, that will replace any necklaces i wear. - Hororable Mentions: Costumes, Fake Credit Cards, Stuffed Animals, Thomas the Tank Engine.
Wednesday, August 17, 2011
I don't know how long I have left...
Before I ship out with the Navy. Things are low going, But I'm ok with that. It gives me some time to do things I want to do while i'm still young. It's odd that I consider this part of my sanctification.
To recap; sanctification, according to the bible, is the process where, over time, a person who has been redeemed learns what holiness and righteousness are as they are made more and more aware of their sin by the work of the Ruach Ha'Kodesh (Holy Spirit).
I see some of my sins, things I do that I have always known are wrong, and things that I have recently become convicted about. I still fall into sin sometimes, and hate myself after. Repentance for habitual sins of selfishness and the like is not easy. Every morning I see how things could go. I remind myself that Yeshua died for me knowing that i would fall into those sins, and that thought makes me want to do better.
One of the things I have become convicted about is my time managment and discipline. I know i waste time, not only being idle, but doing things that are harmful, and entertaining myself with stuff that isn't right. Tv shows are a big falling point for me. I hate them, but i spend hours a day watching them, knowing they blaspheme the name of the one who gave me life. I sleep in way too late, because I keep myself awake way to late. I only have this moment this one time, and I hate wasting them.
I could spend that time reading and praying, which I desperately want to do. I could spend that time working out, and maintaining this body I've been given (another conviction of mine is my diet and health, which are very far below where I feel they should be before G-d). I could spend that time doing the things I want to do.
I wish I could spend all day reading, studying, dancing, working out and training. But i dont have the discipline. I get lazy and bored. I want to study the scriptures, to know my G-d. I want to Learn hebrew. I want to lear to dance. I want to study Martial Arts again. I want to jorunal, writing letters to my future wife and children. With a passion I desire these things. Right now the thing in my way is my own sloth.
Oh, Adonai! There is none like you. So many wonderful things you have created and put before me. ME! I'm the lowest of your creatures, the most pathetic person i can think of, and yet you have given me such great opportunities and gifts. No gift Greater than your Son, Yeshua, through whom you see me, not as pathetic, but as everything I wish I was.
My sins and flaws are so high, like walls around me, holding me in, keeping me from being what I wish I could be for you. I hate these sins that once separated me from you. I want to show how great you are, but all I know is evil. But you don't see me through that sin and evil any longer. Free me from the walls of my sin, Father. Lift me out of them, and life me up so I can glorify you.
G-d, you have provided so much for me. You have given me my passion back. My dreams that have been gone from me so long now come flooding back, and they are all desires for you! I want to move again. You have given me a job, and parents who are nothing short of amazing. Car, Camera, Computer... All things I have that i shouldn't. Thank you, G-d.
For all the things you have given me the desire to do, just help me move towards them. My heart is full of desire for man things. So many things I want and need, and I trust you to be smart enough to know which is which, and to give me what you know I need.
Let my life be to your glory. Let my body and works be a tool for your kingdom, shining Your light of glory. May my actions be such that I am unseen, but you are made obvious to all who bear witness.
Friday, August 5, 2011
Job Interviews (My resume makes me sound adventurous, aparently))
Interviewer: So it says on your resume that you worked in your State Representatives office?
Me: Yes...
Interviewer: Ok. Your first job was in a gourmet restaurant?
Me: Yes...
Interviewer: It says here that you just graduated from college... in a year and a half, wow!
Me: Yeah...
Interviewer: What have you been doing since then?
Me: Well, I spent a month in Israel, volunteering in a Hospital and traveling the country.
Interviewer: Wow!
Long Pause
Interviewer: You do know this is an entry-level, minimum wage position, right? Not really adventurous or exciting.
Me: Yes.
Interviewer: You seem a little.. Overqualified.
Me: *Headbash*
Me: Yes...
Interviewer: Ok. Your first job was in a gourmet restaurant?
Me: Yes...
Interviewer: It says here that you just graduated from college... in a year and a half, wow!
Me: Yeah...
Interviewer: What have you been doing since then?
Me: Well, I spent a month in Israel, volunteering in a Hospital and traveling the country.
Interviewer: Wow!
Long Pause
Interviewer: You do know this is an entry-level, minimum wage position, right? Not really adventurous or exciting.
Me: Yes.
Interviewer: You seem a little.. Overqualified.
Me: *Headbash*
Thursday, July 28, 2011
Islam and the End Times by John MacArthur
I want to just talk about that for a moment, in a way that perhaps will be interesting to you. There are always false prophets, always false teachers, we know that, always people who claim to be Jesus, claim to be Jesus Christ, some more notable than others. But as you get to the end of human history and you get in to the period of time called the Tribulation, there is a specific fulfillment of this prophecy that I want you to understand, and it has to do with Islam.
Most people think of Islam as an utterly distinct religion from Christianity, with no connection to Christianity. We would think if someone is a Muslim, they have absolutely no connection to Christianity. And there are many religions that have no connection to Christianity, Hinduism has no connection to Christianity, Buddhism has no connection to Christianity, many others have no connection. It’s amazing how many do connect because Satan wants to counterfeit and deceive and get as close to the truth as he can.
There are actually confessed evangelical people who think that. Muslims not only believe in God because they are monotheist, believing in one God, but who think that Muslims are okay because they actually believe in Jesus. And by the way, they do. Brian McClaren an Emerging Church heretic writer in his book The Secret Message of Jesus says, and I quote, “All Muslims regard Jesus as a great prophet. A shared reappraisal of Jesus’ message could provide a common ground for urgently needed religious dialogue. This reappraisal of Jesus may be our own way of saving a number of religions, including Christianity,” end quote.
So if we want to save Christianity and save other religions, we need to all get together and that should be easy for us to do because we can start with the Muslims because they already believe in Jesus. A popular speaker and author, Tony Campolo, says, quote: “When we listen to the Muslim mystics as they talk about Jesus and their love for Jesus, I must say it’s a lot closer to New Testament Christianity than a lot of Christians.” Really! So you think that the Muslim Jesus is the same Jesus?
I can help you with that because they describe Jesus. The Muslim Jesus plays a crucial role in Islamic eschatology. Now you do know that the Muslims have an eschatology. In other words they have a theology of the end. They know where they’re going, according to their writings. They know where they’re going.
Let me describe the Muslim Jesus to you. This is out of their own writings, the Koran and the Sunnah. The Koran is supposedly the word of Allah, actually the word of Satan, but they think it’s the word of Allah. The Sunnah...the Sunnah are the words of and the works of Mohammed. The Koran then constitutes their holy Scripture and the Sunnah, sometimes called the Hadith constitutes their holy tradition. Their theology comes out of the Koran and the Sunnah, just as Roman Catholic theology comes out of the Bible and Tradition, or Judaism comes out of the Old Testament and rabbinic tradition...the Muslims have two sources of authoritative truth.
In their system they have Jesus. Jesus was a man, he was not God. He did not die, he went to heaven like Elijah. He did not die, therefore he did not rise. He did not rise, therefore he did not provide an atonement for anyone because no one can provide an atonement for anyone else. He is a man. He is a prophet. He is nothing more. He went to heaven like Elijah. And he’s in heaven right now, standing alongside Allah, waiting for Allah to send him back. In their system, this man, this prophet Jesus who is now in heaven, never having died, plays a key role in the end times because he will return from heaven without dying, he will come back when Allah sends him back.
Now the question to ask, is why would Allah want to send Jesus back? He has a lot of prophets to pick from, why does he send Jesus back?
Answer...so that when he shows up he can correct all the Christians who have misunderstood who he is. The sources for this, again, are the Koran and the Sunnah. The great event of the coming of Christ, or coming of Jesus, is so that this prophet, this man who comes back can straighten out the misdirected, misguided, misconceiving Christians who think He was God who died and rose again and provided atonement...he’ll come back and straighten it out. And by the way, after he gets here, he’ll get married, have children and die and be buried next to Mohammed. That’s the Muslim Jesus.
In Islamic eschatology, there are three great signs of the end of history...three great signs. There are some lesser signs, or some minor signs, or some major signs. In their eschatology, again quoting their sources exclusively, there are three great signs of the end of history. And each of them is a man. Let me tell you about those three men.
First of all, the first man that will come in the end of history is the Mahdi...M-a-h-d-i. Sometimes he’s called the Twelfth Imam. Every time Imam Dinnijide over in Iran gives a speech, he gives glory to the Mahdi, glory to the Twelfth Imam, every time. He’s waiting for the coming of the Mahdi.
What is he coming to do? He’s coming, listen carefully, to slaughter all who will not worship Allah, convert to Islam. They are identified in their writings as pigs and dogs. And to establish the everlasting world dominating kingdom of Islam. That’s what he will do.
The Mahdi, or the Twelfth Imam, that means the guided one, is the long-awaited savior. He is the establisher of the final Caliphate. The world must follow him as he takes over or he will destroy all enemies of Islam. He will come and he will carry on holy war and either you convert or you’re killed by the Mahdi. He will have an army. His army will be a massive army and his army will go from nation to nation to punish the unbelievers. The holy writings of Islam say that this army will carry black flags. And on those black flags there will be one word and that one word will be the word Punishment. By the way, the Iranian army today carries black flags. They want to be ready for the coming of the Mahdi.
He will lead the army of black flags first to Israel, slaughter all the Jews, and then he will establish his rule in Jerusalem on the temple mount. That’s what their literature says. Slaughter the Jews, establish his rule on the temple mount.
According to their holy writings, the Mahdi will bring rain and wind and crops and wealth and happiness so that all will love him and no one will speak of anyone but him. Their writings say the Mahdi will come and make, at first, a peace agreement with the Jews and the west for seven years. The reign of Mahdi will last seven years in which he establishes Islam on the earth.
Their holy writings say this, the Mahdi will come riding on a white horse, and it even says in their writings, “As it says in Revelation 6:1 and 2. Saddam Hussein, by the way, painted murals of this Mahdi on a white horse all over Baghdad. And he comes carrying a sword to kill the infidels.
When the Mahdi arrives, he will discover hidden scriptures, he will discover them, interestingly enough, somewhere near the Sea of Galilee and there will be there hidden scriptures, hidden gospels and a hidden Torah and they will be the true scriptures which will be used by the Mahdi to show the Jews and the Christians they were wrong, that their scriptures were the false scriptures.
Let me summarize. The Mahdi will be a messianic figure. He will be a descendant of Mohammed. He will be an unparalleled, unequaled leader. He will come out of a crisis of turmoil. He will take control of the world. He will establish a new world order. He will destroy all who resist him. He will invade many nations. He will make a seven-year peace treaty with the Jews. He will conquer Israel and massacre the Jews. He will establish Islamic world headquarters at Jerusalem. He will rule for seven years, establish Islam as the only religion. He will come on a white horse with supernatural power. He will be loved by all people on earth.
If that sounds familiar, that is a precise description of the biblical Antichrist...absolutely step-by-step-by-step-by-step. The Bible’s Antichrist is their Mahdi. We know that the rider on the white horse in Revelation 6 is the Antichrist. They use that verse to describe their Mahdi.
Why am I giving you all this? Because the description of the Mahdi is exactly the description of the biblical Antichrist, the beast of Revelation 13, and you go into any kind of a study of that and you will find that all the details match up perfectly. The Bible’s Antichrist is Islam’s Savior and world conqueror who establishes a universal Islamic kingdom.
And there’s a second sign, a second person, and it is Jesus. The Mahdi is not Jesus. The Mahdi is greater than Jesus, and that’s important to their system because if you have somebody greater than Jesus then the Christians were wrong. So Jesus will return. Yes, Muslims believe that Jesus will come again. They believe in the return of Jesus, not the true Jesus, the Jesus of Islam, not God, didn’t die, didn’t rise, didn’t provide a sacrifice for sin, but he does return. He’s a prophet and he comes back and he has one purpose when he comes back and that is to assist and aid the Mahdi. He returns, listen to this, as a radical Muslim. He comes back as a radical Muslim. He will arrive, by the way, at a minaret near Damascus. And he will come back holding the wings of two angels who flew him down to meet the gathering army of the Mahdi in the east, the army of the black flags.
Jesus when he comes back will pray to the Mahdi who is greater than he. He will acknowledge the Mahdi as his lord. He will make a pilgrimage to Mecca. He will worship Allah and thus he will lead all Christians who will follow him to reject their notion of Jesus and accept the real Jesus who is nothing but a prophet and a man. He will establish worldwide Sharia law. He will become the greatest Muslim evangelist and he will be the final witness on the day of judgment against non-Muslims. Christians everywhere will affirm that they were wrong, that the gospel is wrong, the New Testament is wrong, He didn’t die, He didn’t rise, He isn’t God, He isn’t the Son of God. He Himself will come back and point out how wrong we’ve been. He will correct all misinterpretations and all misrepresentations.
Let me quote what their literature says. “He will shatter crosses.” That’s metaphoric for the destruction of the church, a symbol of Christianity being placed in the church. He will kill pigs. He will abolish the tax on non-Muslims because there won’t be any living non-Muslims, can’t tax dead people. And then he will do one more thing. He will kill the Islamic Antichrist. He will kill the Islamic Antichrist. Then he will die and be buried by Mohammed, but not until he has destroyed Christianity by revealing who he really is.
Who is this? You compare what he does to the false prophet in the book of Revelation, chapter 13, 16, 19, 20 refer to the beast coming out of the earth, the false prophet, who aids and abets the Antichrist. He is as the Mahdi is the exact replica of the Antichrist, the Jesus prophet in Islam is the exact parallel to the false prophet who aids and abets the Antichrist. One of their writings says he espouses the cause of the Mahdi. He is the Mahdi’s executioner. He is the Mahdi’s enforcer. He is the Mahdi’s prophet. And it is he who kills the Antichrist.
That leads me to the third person. The Antichrist will show up. The Muslims call him Dajjal, he is the great deceiver. He comes to earth on a mule and he’s blind in one eye. He is an infidel. He is a false miracle worker, this Antichrist, this Islamic Antichrist. But you know who he claims to be? He claims to be Jesus, the son of God. He claims to be deity. He will attempt to stop the Mahdi and the true Jesus but the true Jesus will slaughter him.
This is their view of the true Christ. Our Jesus is their Antichrist. Our Antichrist is their redeemer. It is a satanic counterfeit that is in complete reverse. The army...this is a quote... “The army of Satan will be led by a person who will claim to be Jesus Christ.” There will be a battle. The Muslim Jesus will fight the false Jesus and kill him and establish Islam forever. The truth is, the true Jesus will destroy the Antichrist and the false prophet and establish His Kingdom forever. This is Satan’s complete counterfeit, Muslim world domination.
Now somebody might say, “Well, when you think about the future and what’s going to happen in the world, don’t we have a revived Roman Empire? Doesn’t that mean the west? You remember that the image in Daniel 2 of the final world empire had two legs and the Roman Empire had the west and the east? You know, of course, if you know history that the western part of the Roman Empire basically dissolved and the east survived for a thousand years or more so that at the time of the New Testament, sixty percent of the Roman Empire was land that is now under Muslim control...at least 60 percent. The vast majority of the Roman Empire in New Testament times is today under Muslim control and Islam is moving across the west rapidly in Europe, isn’t it?
When you have a picture in Ezekiel 38, you have a picture of the Antichrist, Gog and you have the listing of eight nations, that will be a coalition for the Antichrist. All eight of those are Muslim nations, all eight of them. And they ring the Mediterranean to Libya.
In Revelation 17:9 to 11 it says there were six kingdoms and then a seventh and finally an eighth. What is the seventh? Well there’s been a discussion about that, it well could be the Ottoman Turk Empire which lasted five hundred years and didn’t really fall until the modern era. The Turkish Empire was the last Caliphate which ended in 1923 and they’re waiting for the restoration when the Mahdi comes.
So right at the very end somebody is going to say, “I’m Jesus.” Somebody else is going to say, “I’m Jesus.” Who you going to believe? That’s just one form of this deception that will show up at the end, and even now it’s deceiving people. There are a whole world of Muslims who think Jesus is someone He is not and consequently reject the true Jesus. Do not be deceived. There’s a world of Muslims deceived about the person of Jesus Christ. You cannot accommodate that by saying, “Isn’t that wonderful, they love Jesus.” They don’t. Any other Jesus than the true Jesus is not Jesus. And if you worship any other than the true Jesus, you are cursed
Most people think of Islam as an utterly distinct religion from Christianity, with no connection to Christianity. We would think if someone is a Muslim, they have absolutely no connection to Christianity. And there are many religions that have no connection to Christianity, Hinduism has no connection to Christianity, Buddhism has no connection to Christianity, many others have no connection. It’s amazing how many do connect because Satan wants to counterfeit and deceive and get as close to the truth as he can.
There are actually confessed evangelical people who think that. Muslims not only believe in God because they are monotheist, believing in one God, but who think that Muslims are okay because they actually believe in Jesus. And by the way, they do. Brian McClaren an Emerging Church heretic writer in his book The Secret Message of Jesus says, and I quote, “All Muslims regard Jesus as a great prophet. A shared reappraisal of Jesus’ message could provide a common ground for urgently needed religious dialogue. This reappraisal of Jesus may be our own way of saving a number of religions, including Christianity,” end quote.
So if we want to save Christianity and save other religions, we need to all get together and that should be easy for us to do because we can start with the Muslims because they already believe in Jesus. A popular speaker and author, Tony Campolo, says, quote: “When we listen to the Muslim mystics as they talk about Jesus and their love for Jesus, I must say it’s a lot closer to New Testament Christianity than a lot of Christians.” Really! So you think that the Muslim Jesus is the same Jesus?
I can help you with that because they describe Jesus. The Muslim Jesus plays a crucial role in Islamic eschatology. Now you do know that the Muslims have an eschatology. In other words they have a theology of the end. They know where they’re going, according to their writings. They know where they’re going.
Let me describe the Muslim Jesus to you. This is out of their own writings, the Koran and the Sunnah. The Koran is supposedly the word of Allah, actually the word of Satan, but they think it’s the word of Allah. The Sunnah...the Sunnah are the words of and the works of Mohammed. The Koran then constitutes their holy Scripture and the Sunnah, sometimes called the Hadith constitutes their holy tradition. Their theology comes out of the Koran and the Sunnah, just as Roman Catholic theology comes out of the Bible and Tradition, or Judaism comes out of the Old Testament and rabbinic tradition...the Muslims have two sources of authoritative truth.
In their system they have Jesus. Jesus was a man, he was not God. He did not die, he went to heaven like Elijah. He did not die, therefore he did not rise. He did not rise, therefore he did not provide an atonement for anyone because no one can provide an atonement for anyone else. He is a man. He is a prophet. He is nothing more. He went to heaven like Elijah. And he’s in heaven right now, standing alongside Allah, waiting for Allah to send him back. In their system, this man, this prophet Jesus who is now in heaven, never having died, plays a key role in the end times because he will return from heaven without dying, he will come back when Allah sends him back.
Now the question to ask, is why would Allah want to send Jesus back? He has a lot of prophets to pick from, why does he send Jesus back?
Answer...so that when he shows up he can correct all the Christians who have misunderstood who he is. The sources for this, again, are the Koran and the Sunnah. The great event of the coming of Christ, or coming of Jesus, is so that this prophet, this man who comes back can straighten out the misdirected, misguided, misconceiving Christians who think He was God who died and rose again and provided atonement...he’ll come back and straighten it out. And by the way, after he gets here, he’ll get married, have children and die and be buried next to Mohammed. That’s the Muslim Jesus.
In Islamic eschatology, there are three great signs of the end of history...three great signs. There are some lesser signs, or some minor signs, or some major signs. In their eschatology, again quoting their sources exclusively, there are three great signs of the end of history. And each of them is a man. Let me tell you about those three men.
First of all, the first man that will come in the end of history is the Mahdi...M-a-h-d-i. Sometimes he’s called the Twelfth Imam. Every time Imam Dinnijide over in Iran gives a speech, he gives glory to the Mahdi, glory to the Twelfth Imam, every time. He’s waiting for the coming of the Mahdi.
What is he coming to do? He’s coming, listen carefully, to slaughter all who will not worship Allah, convert to Islam. They are identified in their writings as pigs and dogs. And to establish the everlasting world dominating kingdom of Islam. That’s what he will do.
The Mahdi, or the Twelfth Imam, that means the guided one, is the long-awaited savior. He is the establisher of the final Caliphate. The world must follow him as he takes over or he will destroy all enemies of Islam. He will come and he will carry on holy war and either you convert or you’re killed by the Mahdi. He will have an army. His army will be a massive army and his army will go from nation to nation to punish the unbelievers. The holy writings of Islam say that this army will carry black flags. And on those black flags there will be one word and that one word will be the word Punishment. By the way, the Iranian army today carries black flags. They want to be ready for the coming of the Mahdi.
He will lead the army of black flags first to Israel, slaughter all the Jews, and then he will establish his rule in Jerusalem on the temple mount. That’s what their literature says. Slaughter the Jews, establish his rule on the temple mount.
According to their holy writings, the Mahdi will bring rain and wind and crops and wealth and happiness so that all will love him and no one will speak of anyone but him. Their writings say the Mahdi will come and make, at first, a peace agreement with the Jews and the west for seven years. The reign of Mahdi will last seven years in which he establishes Islam on the earth.
Their holy writings say this, the Mahdi will come riding on a white horse, and it even says in their writings, “As it says in Revelation 6:1 and 2. Saddam Hussein, by the way, painted murals of this Mahdi on a white horse all over Baghdad. And he comes carrying a sword to kill the infidels.
When the Mahdi arrives, he will discover hidden scriptures, he will discover them, interestingly enough, somewhere near the Sea of Galilee and there will be there hidden scriptures, hidden gospels and a hidden Torah and they will be the true scriptures which will be used by the Mahdi to show the Jews and the Christians they were wrong, that their scriptures were the false scriptures.
Let me summarize. The Mahdi will be a messianic figure. He will be a descendant of Mohammed. He will be an unparalleled, unequaled leader. He will come out of a crisis of turmoil. He will take control of the world. He will establish a new world order. He will destroy all who resist him. He will invade many nations. He will make a seven-year peace treaty with the Jews. He will conquer Israel and massacre the Jews. He will establish Islamic world headquarters at Jerusalem. He will rule for seven years, establish Islam as the only religion. He will come on a white horse with supernatural power. He will be loved by all people on earth.
If that sounds familiar, that is a precise description of the biblical Antichrist...absolutely step-by-step-by-step-by-step. The Bible’s Antichrist is their Mahdi. We know that the rider on the white horse in Revelation 6 is the Antichrist. They use that verse to describe their Mahdi.
Why am I giving you all this? Because the description of the Mahdi is exactly the description of the biblical Antichrist, the beast of Revelation 13, and you go into any kind of a study of that and you will find that all the details match up perfectly. The Bible’s Antichrist is Islam’s Savior and world conqueror who establishes a universal Islamic kingdom.
And there’s a second sign, a second person, and it is Jesus. The Mahdi is not Jesus. The Mahdi is greater than Jesus, and that’s important to their system because if you have somebody greater than Jesus then the Christians were wrong. So Jesus will return. Yes, Muslims believe that Jesus will come again. They believe in the return of Jesus, not the true Jesus, the Jesus of Islam, not God, didn’t die, didn’t rise, didn’t provide a sacrifice for sin, but he does return. He’s a prophet and he comes back and he has one purpose when he comes back and that is to assist and aid the Mahdi. He returns, listen to this, as a radical Muslim. He comes back as a radical Muslim. He will arrive, by the way, at a minaret near Damascus. And he will come back holding the wings of two angels who flew him down to meet the gathering army of the Mahdi in the east, the army of the black flags.
Jesus when he comes back will pray to the Mahdi who is greater than he. He will acknowledge the Mahdi as his lord. He will make a pilgrimage to Mecca. He will worship Allah and thus he will lead all Christians who will follow him to reject their notion of Jesus and accept the real Jesus who is nothing but a prophet and a man. He will establish worldwide Sharia law. He will become the greatest Muslim evangelist and he will be the final witness on the day of judgment against non-Muslims. Christians everywhere will affirm that they were wrong, that the gospel is wrong, the New Testament is wrong, He didn’t die, He didn’t rise, He isn’t God, He isn’t the Son of God. He Himself will come back and point out how wrong we’ve been. He will correct all misinterpretations and all misrepresentations.
Let me quote what their literature says. “He will shatter crosses.” That’s metaphoric for the destruction of the church, a symbol of Christianity being placed in the church. He will kill pigs. He will abolish the tax on non-Muslims because there won’t be any living non-Muslims, can’t tax dead people. And then he will do one more thing. He will kill the Islamic Antichrist. He will kill the Islamic Antichrist. Then he will die and be buried by Mohammed, but not until he has destroyed Christianity by revealing who he really is.
Who is this? You compare what he does to the false prophet in the book of Revelation, chapter 13, 16, 19, 20 refer to the beast coming out of the earth, the false prophet, who aids and abets the Antichrist. He is as the Mahdi is the exact replica of the Antichrist, the Jesus prophet in Islam is the exact parallel to the false prophet who aids and abets the Antichrist. One of their writings says he espouses the cause of the Mahdi. He is the Mahdi’s executioner. He is the Mahdi’s enforcer. He is the Mahdi’s prophet. And it is he who kills the Antichrist.
That leads me to the third person. The Antichrist will show up. The Muslims call him Dajjal, he is the great deceiver. He comes to earth on a mule and he’s blind in one eye. He is an infidel. He is a false miracle worker, this Antichrist, this Islamic Antichrist. But you know who he claims to be? He claims to be Jesus, the son of God. He claims to be deity. He will attempt to stop the Mahdi and the true Jesus but the true Jesus will slaughter him.
This is their view of the true Christ. Our Jesus is their Antichrist. Our Antichrist is their redeemer. It is a satanic counterfeit that is in complete reverse. The army...this is a quote... “The army of Satan will be led by a person who will claim to be Jesus Christ.” There will be a battle. The Muslim Jesus will fight the false Jesus and kill him and establish Islam forever. The truth is, the true Jesus will destroy the Antichrist and the false prophet and establish His Kingdom forever. This is Satan’s complete counterfeit, Muslim world domination.
Now somebody might say, “Well, when you think about the future and what’s going to happen in the world, don’t we have a revived Roman Empire? Doesn’t that mean the west? You remember that the image in Daniel 2 of the final world empire had two legs and the Roman Empire had the west and the east? You know, of course, if you know history that the western part of the Roman Empire basically dissolved and the east survived for a thousand years or more so that at the time of the New Testament, sixty percent of the Roman Empire was land that is now under Muslim control...at least 60 percent. The vast majority of the Roman Empire in New Testament times is today under Muslim control and Islam is moving across the west rapidly in Europe, isn’t it?
When you have a picture in Ezekiel 38, you have a picture of the Antichrist, Gog and you have the listing of eight nations, that will be a coalition for the Antichrist. All eight of those are Muslim nations, all eight of them. And they ring the Mediterranean to Libya.
In Revelation 17:9 to 11 it says there were six kingdoms and then a seventh and finally an eighth. What is the seventh? Well there’s been a discussion about that, it well could be the Ottoman Turk Empire which lasted five hundred years and didn’t really fall until the modern era. The Turkish Empire was the last Caliphate which ended in 1923 and they’re waiting for the restoration when the Mahdi comes.
So right at the very end somebody is going to say, “I’m Jesus.” Somebody else is going to say, “I’m Jesus.” Who you going to believe? That’s just one form of this deception that will show up at the end, and even now it’s deceiving people. There are a whole world of Muslims who think Jesus is someone He is not and consequently reject the true Jesus. Do not be deceived. There’s a world of Muslims deceived about the person of Jesus Christ. You cannot accommodate that by saying, “Isn’t that wonderful, they love Jesus.” They don’t. Any other Jesus than the true Jesus is not Jesus. And if you worship any other than the true Jesus, you are cursed
Tuesday, July 26, 2011
Pulse - As in the sign of the the condition of your heart
I think My Xanga pulse's are a good indication of my spiritual condition. They are becoming more G-d focused as I do, but are very few and far between, where the posts, the greater visible portions of my life, arent nearly as dedicated to sanctification as the rare pulses. I wish I posted more spiritual and G-d centered things more often, but my blogs are an extension of my mind and thoughts. I'm not nearly as strong and steadfast a believer as I want to be. Fortunately the G-d I believe in is steadfast. HE knows I am weak and have little spiritual stamina. My lack of faithfulness to HIM makes up for HIS great and endless faithfulness to me.
Sometimes at the end of a day and I see how dirt poor my walk as a believer has been. Then I read scripture and realize it's way worse than I thought it was. Awesome! Why is it good news? My hope is not in my performance, I know I suck. Yeshua's performance is credited to me! My hope is built on nothing less than Yeshua's Blood and Righteousness. The greater the revelation of my sin, the more I must acknowledge what G-d has done for me in H'Meshiach. Now I'm free to do my best because it doesn't matter that I fail, I still get the prize! No fear of failure. All praise and glory to אדני!
Sometimes at the end of a day and I see how dirt poor my walk as a believer has been. Then I read scripture and realize it's way worse than I thought it was. Awesome! Why is it good news? My hope is not in my performance, I know I suck. Yeshua's performance is credited to me! My hope is built on nothing less than Yeshua's Blood and Righteousness. The greater the revelation of my sin, the more I must acknowledge what G-d has done for me in H'Meshiach. Now I'm free to do my best because it doesn't matter that I fail, I still get the prize! No fear of failure. All praise and glory to אדני!
Saturday, July 2, 2011
I didn't get to say goodbye like this a year ago.
But here in israel I feel like Ive found my heart again.
I knew i could be loved, but I didnt know how to show it anymore. I lost that ability with Laura. And for a year I've struggled, hating being alone, but being a hateful person because it was all i could understand. I didnt want to attach to people because i didnt want the hurt, but at the same time i desperately wanted someone to reachout to me anyways. G-d saw my need and answered that in some amazing people who have been loyal the past year.
Even so, I alienated my college class, showed them a person i hated, and followed the same pattern with my origins team. I expected to leave Rehovot emotionless, as i did school; not missing anyone, not really being hurt or upset, because i didnt care about them. I didnt know how to care. But something else happened.
Here in Rehovot I found a congregation. Not a church. A family. Its hard to explain., but to a person who hasnt had any emotional investment for more than a year, it was new. And it was only today, as i hugged and shook hands with people i just met that i realized that i loved them. I cared about them. I want to serve them.
I hated myself for being a distant little jerk the past two weeks. I was that same hateful person ive been for a year now, even to these new people who where showing me love. But inspite of my hatefulness.. they loved me anyways.
I'm reaching a bit. Im magnifying small emotions into larger ones, but the fact is i have them. Its so wonderful to be sad.. to say goodbye this way, hopeful that i can come back here.
My G-d is love. He is the author of love. At this moment i only wish i could show Him and others the same love i have received.
I knew i could be loved, but I didnt know how to show it anymore. I lost that ability with Laura. And for a year I've struggled, hating being alone, but being a hateful person because it was all i could understand. I didnt want to attach to people because i didnt want the hurt, but at the same time i desperately wanted someone to reachout to me anyways. G-d saw my need and answered that in some amazing people who have been loyal the past year.
Even so, I alienated my college class, showed them a person i hated, and followed the same pattern with my origins team. I expected to leave Rehovot emotionless, as i did school; not missing anyone, not really being hurt or upset, because i didnt care about them. I didnt know how to care. But something else happened.
Here in Rehovot I found a congregation. Not a church. A family. Its hard to explain., but to a person who hasnt had any emotional investment for more than a year, it was new. And it was only today, as i hugged and shook hands with people i just met that i realized that i loved them. I cared about them. I want to serve them.
I hated myself for being a distant little jerk the past two weeks. I was that same hateful person ive been for a year now, even to these new people who where showing me love. But inspite of my hatefulness.. they loved me anyways.
I'm reaching a bit. Im magnifying small emotions into larger ones, but the fact is i have them. Its so wonderful to be sad.. to say goodbye this way, hopeful that i can come back here.
My G-d is love. He is the author of love. At this moment i only wish i could show Him and others the same love i have received.
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