Keys To Spiritual Survival – The Armor of God

In the past few articles we have learned about applying the Third Party Rule (Proverbs 3:5-6) in our lives. We have discussed “Living in God’s Grace” and “Living in God’s Sovereignty.”

In this article I want to talk about how to start bringing these things together so that you can be effective and be able to stand against the wiles of the enemy.

As I have been saying, we are living in the last days of the last days. Now more than ever we need to cleave to God, His Word; His Ways and live a life holy and acceptable unto Him.

But so many people who are good bible believing Christians have forgotten how to do these things or have been attending churches that refuse to teach the true tenants of the faith.

This is why I feel it is important that we wear the armor of God daily, and make a concerted effort to truly wear these tools of war and understand why it is important to wear these daily.
So what does it mean to wear the armor of God?

Men Beating Each Other Silly with Swords

Here is a little story that some of you may have heard before.
Back in my college days I used to be involved with group that is called the SCA, also known as the Society for Creative Anachronism.

Those involved would role play as if they were living in the King Arthur days. They would wear armor of all sorts and go bash each other over the head with rattan swords.

What is interesting is that today it is actually seen as an official form of martial art.Well, I was one of those guys who enjoyed beating each other senseless. Now to be honest I was getting beaten on more than I was beating on others.

At one of these events I happened upon one of the well-known "knights" and struck up a conversation. One thing led to another and he let me hang out with him for the weekend, kind of being his "squire."

In these circles this was seen as pretty cool, especially if your knight was well known. Mine, he was well
known.

This guy was really into the SCA, he owned a complete set of full plate armor. In fact he built it himself and was actually world renown for his ancient armor work. Rumor had it that he has even worked on some of the armor that is in the tower of London. Yep, he was that good.

Well, I got a chance to try on his armor. It was about 50-60 lbs of steel wrapped all over my body from head to toe. Wow… it was pretty cool.
Now this is what was interesting; here I am standing in his armor and he comes over and barely pushes me with his index finger.

I just about fell over backwards because I was not used to wearing so much weight let alone know how to fight in it. He laughed and kept me from falling over backwards.

In that short moment he taught me a very valuable lesson that still sticks with me today.
What I learned was that it was different for him because when he was out on the "battle field" he was running and jumping and hitting people with his sword, bashing people with his shield, going full bore. He was also often the winner of the tournaments and have been made "king" of the local SCA group several times. This is a very high position in the SCA and it also meant that you were a true warrior.

Me, it was all I could do to just to keep standing up.

So why could he run around in this armor and I barely was able to stand?

Several things.

1 - He literally wore his armor every day in one form or another, so it became a part of him.

2 - Because he and his armor were one, this "trained" his body. This in turn conditioned him and he was always ready for the fight.

I tell this story because the armor of God needs to be seen the same way. It is not something that you just "throw on" and then think you are going to go out and do battle.

You need to consciously train and live in the armor daily.

Why? So when that evil day does come, you have done all that you can to train...and having done all, then stand and fight.

If we are not wearing the armor daily, how does our “spiritual muscles” strengthen? If we are not used to wearing it and the armor becomes like a second skin, how long will we last in battle when that evil day comes?

By not actively wearing the armor daily we will fail.

Failing Due To The Lack of Training

Archilochus who was an early Greek poet as well as a warrior stated the following…

We do not rise to the level of our expectations.

We fall to the level of our training.

 

How often do we watch these action adventure movies and get caught up in them?

We watch the good guy chase down the bad guy, the fight ensues and the good guy stomps the bad guy into the ground. He then picks him up, cuffs him and hauls him away.

If you were put in the position where you had to fight for your life, how long could you fight?
2-3 minutes?

How about 3-5 seconds?

A battle for one’s life often lasts a minute, most likely less because the person who is attacking is usually better trained and has the endurance to last the entire fight.

The common man, well they can barely last 10 maybe 20 seconds tops before he gives out and is exhausted.

Yes we watch these movies and say we can do that.

Sure we may play fight in our mind and run different situations through our head.

But unless you physically train, you will always fall to the level of your training.
The same goes for spiritual battles.

Unless you train consciously utilizing the armor of God daily, you will also fail and fall to the level you have trained at.

Ephesians 6:13 (KJV) Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.

The armor will not protect us as much as it should have because even though we are wearing it, our effectiveness in it is greatly minimized.

We have to actively train in God’s armor, pushing those spiritual muscles daily.

The Pieces of God’s Armor

Ephesians 6:14-18 Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness;

15 And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace;

16 Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.

17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God:

18 Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;

I want to help explain what each piece of the armor does both in the real world and the spiritual world.
Starting with the head and working our way down…
The Helmet of Salvation
The helmet was the most noticeable piece of armor. In many cases was ornate, etched and often decorated with a plume with brightly dyed feathers or colored horsehair. The helmet was one of the most critical pieces of armor, it protected the brain. It was designed to protect the wearer from blows with a sword, a war hammer or battle ax. A good helmet would not allow these weapons to pierce it but if designed properly, it would deflect these blows giving the soldier maximum protection.
Why do we wear the the Helmet of Salvation?
Simple, to protect our brain. There is an old computer saying, “G I G O” Garbage In – Garbage Out.

Romans 12:2 And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

We are to meditate on the Word of God, renewing our minds daily.
In Deuteronomy chapter 6 we read what is often referred to as the Shema.

Deuteronomy 6:4 Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD:

5 And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.

6 And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart:

7 And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.

8 And thou shalt bind them for a sign upon thine hand, and they shall be as frontlets between thine eyes.

9 And thou shalt write them upon the posts of thy house, and on thy gates.

So our helmet of salvation helps protect our brains, the very places we think and contemplate. Without the helmet, we are vulnerable to the deadly blows of the enemy that will in turn, effect the brain’s thinking and reasoning power.
Have you ever noticed that when you are in the word of God daily that you find it easier to not “sin”?
Sure we all sin, but when we are in His Word and renewing our minds, we are more conscious of what it is we are doing and often choose not to disobey Him. That is the helmet of salvation at work. It is protecting your brain so that you can then in turn make proper and right decisions for God, and not fall for sin.

The Breastplate of Righteousness
The Breastplate was really often work of art. Each breastplate was custom made for the soldier that wore it. Often a casting was made of the man’s torso. This casting then allowed the armorer to make a breastplate that would be a perfect fit to the one who would wear it.
Breastplates often had the coat of arms or royal crest with which the knight gave his allegiance too. At times there were additional decorations telling about the warrior and polished to a brilliant mirror finish that was blinding in the sunshine.
Despite the beauty and craftsmanship, the breastplate was very functional piece of armor protecting the heart, lungs and other vital organs from penetration through its metal shell.
It was also the main piece which the back, shoulders and arm pieces of armor often hung and were attached too. It was the main support for the pieces that did battle. It literally assisted in holding up the weight of the other pieces.
In the spiritual it is righteousness that helps us stand. In fact the word righteousness simply means, “Right standing before God.”
Now what is interesting is that in legal terms it means “being found innocent.”
In Isaiah 59, the chapter in Isaiah that prophecies the Messiah, we read the following…

Isaiah 59:17 For he put on righteousness as a breastplate. 

Many Christians do not live like they have been made righteous through the blood of Jesus Christ. The majority Christians today walk around in constant guilt and condemnation, feeling like failures and not ‘worthy’ to serve God, or worse to receive His wonderful blessings from Him.
The devil is constantly bombarding us with fiery darts and missiles of lies and accusations always reminding us of past sins we have committed.
Without the breastplate of righteousness, these missiles will impact us and penetrate our heart.

Psalms 37:17 For the arms of the wicked shall be broken: but the LORD upholdeth the righteous.  

Proverbs 10:30 The righteous shall never be removed: 

The Belt of Truth – Having your loins girt about with truth
The belt is not the most noticeable piece of the armor, however, it is actually the central piece that holds all the rest securely in place and provides for every need during battle.
The belt was broad and made of sturdy leather. From it hung an overlapping skirt of leather straps which on the inside surface were armored with small rectangular pieces of metal held in place by decorative rivets which showed on the outside. It was these straps / apron that protected the loin.
The belt also had specialized hooks and holders on which to secure the scabbard that contained the sword at the proper angle, the quiver which held lances, and an apparatus on which to rest the large battle shield. Also, on the belt were clips with which to hold the breastplate in its proper place. It also held pouches the soldier’s supplies like bread, oil and water, an extra knife, coin purse, etc.
Srcipture says…

John 8:32 And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.

John 14:6 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.

2 Corinthians 6:7 By the word of truth, by the power of God, by the armor of righteousness on the right hand and on the left,

Just as the belt is central to the armor of God, the written Word of God, the absolute truth of the Bible is central to all that pertains to spiritual warfare.
If one has a weak belt, then the armor will not hold together in the time of need, that critical part of the battle. If your belt is weak and breaks, you lose all your armor and become vulnerable on the battle field. This is why the belt was thick, and well-oiled and well cared for. It was also the one piece of armor that was worn both on and off the battlefield. It is what equipped him for day to day life as well as life on the battle field.

1 John 5:14 And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask anything according to his will, he heareth us: 

Today it is critical that we adhere to the absolute truth of God’s Word. It is what holds all of what we are as Christians together. If we are wavering in the truth, we do not believe in absolute truth, or we lack the truth in our hearts, then when that day comes our belt of truth will fail us and we will lose the armor with which we wear.
This is why truth and standing on the truth with all your heart is so vital.
Think about this for a moment.
The Truth is Incorruptible. 
The Truth is Indestructible.  
The Truth tells us who we are, what we have and what we can do. 

John 17:17 Jesus says, “Sanctify them through Thy truth: Thy Word is truth.”

John 8:32 And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free. 

John 14:6 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me. 

The Shoes of the Preparation of the Gospel of Peace
The Shoes of the warrior were no normal footwear. Every military gives great care to supply the soldiers with the best and most appropriate footwear they are able for the assignment the soldier is given.
The warriors shoes / boots usually consisted of an elaborately cut and laced leather. the soles had layers of metal and leather with ‘hob nail’ spikes or cleats often extending one-half inch, to in some cases ‘inches,’ from the sole so that the soldier could plant his foot into the ground thus preventing him from being moved.
Some shoes had toe spikes and or built-in spurs with which to do damage to the enemy. The uppers of the sandals were often armored by small overlapping pieces of metal riveted to the leather straps.
In addition, attached to the uppers of the sandal were removable metal or leather greaves that extended up over the kneecap protecting the knees, shins and ankles.
Before you go somewhere today, you have to equip yourself for the occasion. You take into consideration the place you are going, the climate as well as the terrain.
If we do not have good shoes or the right shoes, we will tire out and most likely not get to where we were planning on going.
This is why armies for generations to present realize that shoes were critical. Armies move by foot and if those feet are not well protected, well cared for, and properly fitted, the army is not going to get very far.
The battle was lost before the army could even get to the battle field.
As Christian warriors do you know our mission that all of us have been called to?

Matthew 28:19-20 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:

20 Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.

This is one of the reasons why I Iove the KJV bible. In the modern versions the word YOU is used here in place of YE.
When YOU is used, people have a way out or an excuse to say that Christ was just talking to the disciples here. The responsibility of sharing the gospel is shirked because of the modern versions.
Where by using the word YE as is used in the KJV, it is a direct command. A command by Jesus Christ himself not only to the disciples, but also directed directly at us as well.
YE is addressing anyone who is reading or hearing this command. YE also makes it a command because Christ is addressing us personally.
So when we are called to GO YE to all nations, that means put on your shoes and go. We are called to take the gospel of peace of The Lord Jesus Christ to all the world.
If we ware ill equipped and have not put on the proper shoes, how far do you think we will be able to get?
 
The Shield of Faith
I love the following verse…

Hebrews 11:1 Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.

There are three types of common shields used by warriors.
First, a small disc held in the offhand often 6” inches in diameter to 16” inches in diameter. This type of shield was called a “Buckler” and often used in close quarter combat, duels, etc.
The next was an actual shield and was approximately 24”-36” inches diameter round, this was not only used in defense, but at times in offense. Going in first with the shield, the opposing force would hit the shield. The shield would flip up where the edge was then facing the oponent. The warrior would use the extended edge of the shield to then “trap” the opponent and allow the warrior to freely attack the person by using the sword that was now hidden under the shield that trapped the opponent.

 

The final shield was a large rectangular shield approximately 60”x30” in size. This rectangular shield called a “thureos” (thoo-reh-os) in Greek literally meant “a door,” because it looked like the soldier was carrying a full sized door that was leather covered.
The warrior could stand safely behind this large shield thus protecting him from the arrows and such being hurled at him.
A good shield was made of six layers of thick animal hide specially tanned and woven together making them as tough and durable as metal yet relatively light weight. The leather shields could be soaked in water before battle so that in the event the enemy would rain fiery projectiles on them, the fire would be extinguished on impact.
So why is it called The Shield of Faith?
Along with being large and relatively light, it also had the ability to hook together with other shields and create a wall with which the army was protected. This tactic was often referred to as the “Roman Turtle.”

 

The Thureos or “Door Sheild” in the “Turtle Formation”

In this position, the army was protected from all sides as well as above. The negative is that the army could not see where they were going. So they depended greatly on the captain who was behind them and riding a horse to direct their steps and tell them to go here, go there, turn left, turn right.
See if they broke the shield wall, arrows, spears, fiery darts were able to penetrate and would injure or kill those who standing inside the turtle formation.
The soldier had to trust and obey the captain and walked in blind faith listening only to the commands the captain gave and nothing else.
The very survivability of the entire group of soldiers depended on all the soldiers trusting and obeying the orders of the captain at the time the orders are given.
Failure to do so would compromise the entire unit’s safety. Injury and death was the result of not acting immediately on the orders of the captain.

Romans 10:17 So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.

When our captain who is Christ Jesus speaks, we are to obey.
How does God speak to us? It is through His Word, the Word of God; the Bible.
Our faith grows by hearing God’s Word spoken into our hearts. This is why it is so critical that we have good preachers and teachers who preach from God’s Word. Expository teaching, taking the bible verse by verse is the best way to learn God’s Word.
This is why so many Christians are weak in their faith, they lack solid pastors who are teaching their congregations chapter and verse. Expanding on God’s Word and going into the “meat” of the Word and not staying only with the “milk.”
Babies require milk, but warriors require meat. It is the meat of the Word that strengthens our faith in His Word, Law, Commands, and proper living.
We follow Christ in blind faith allowing Him to direct our paths and lean not on our own understanding. (Proverbs 3:5-6 – The Third Party Rule)

The Sword of the Spirit - The Word of God
The sword is the primary weapon of the warrior and was greatly feared. A true sword master could take on 5+ men at once and dispatch all of them in a short amount of time. In the hand of someone who is educated the lightweight and well balanced double edged sword was quick and deadly.
The razor sharpened edges of the broad blade was made to cut and slice. The tapered point was designed to easily penetrate and disembowel the enemy. It was well known that if true warrior ever would unsheathed his sword -- he would use it.
The sword of the Spirit is the Word of God.

2 Timothy 3:16 -17 All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:

17 That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.

The more we have God’s Word in our hearts the more of a “master of the sword” we become. The better we know our personal bible, the more of a master of the sword we become.
In fact, remember in Sunday school having “Sword Drills”?
The students would have the bible flat on the table and hands in the air, the teacher would call out a verse and the first one to the verse got to read it.
If you were really good, the teacher would take the better students and let them hold the bible between their two flat hands and the thumbs on the pages. Then the verse was called out and the first one to get to the verse won the round.
This is being a Master of the Sword / The Word. Not only do you know your scripture, you know where to find it and how to get to it quickly. You are able to flip to a verse and in many cases just open up your bible and be just a few pages off.
You as a sword master know how to apply scripture, where to apply scripture and teach others how to find, use and apply scripture. You are a master of The Sword of God, His Word.
One thing, the sword of the spirit is a double edged weapon and it will cut both ways. So you can use it for good as well and use it to hurt people. We see this take place a lot in today’s world. The sword being improperly used to hurt, manipulate and force people through coercion. This is using the sword for error, not for good.

We Are Warriors For The Lord
It is our duty and assignment is to stand in the gap shoulder to shoulder with the other soldiers of the Lord as He places us.
We are to resist every attack of the devil. Holding the ground, refusing to be moved, healing the oppressed and destroying every work of the devil.
We are warriors for the Lord.
Scripture says…

Psalms 144:1 Blessed be the LORD my strength, which teacheth my hands to war, and my fingers to fight.

But alone we are just single fighters. It is when we are together that we are able to charge the gates of hell.
This is why it is so important to be in fellowship with other Christian warriors who love the Lord. When we do this it helps us keep our spiritual batteries charged to the fullest level. We are able to pray for each other, learn from each other, encourage each other.

Proverbs 27:17 Iron sharpeneth iron; so a man sharpeneth the countenance of his friend.

Iron sharpens iron and when we become accountable not only to God, but to other warriors, we then become better warriors for the Lord we serve.

Many of you know that we are living in the last days of the last days. We are sitting upon the razor's edge. Now more than ever we need to keep the batteries charged at full, the powder dry and ready for the fight.

We do not know when we will be called upon to fight, but when we do, we want to be completely ready, and not caught at our lowest level of training.
If you do not train and wear the armor of God daily you will lose the battle and become a casualty of the battlefield.
The enemy, when he comes, he will most likely ambush us. So when the fight comes to us, and it will, there will be no time to "put on" the armor. By that time it will be to late. If we do not have the armor on at the time of the ambush, we will become just another casualty of war.
So I challenge you brothers and sisters in the Lord always be ready for the fight.
The fight will come to you for our enemy prowls in the shadows like a ravaging lion waiting to pounce on us when we are not looking.
What do we need to ensure? And having done all – To Stand.

Ephesians 6:13 Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.

By Ray Gano

Israel - America & God's Judgment Pt 5- Take Away The Hedge and Break Down The Wall

 In this series I have been trying to show that God has caused judgment to come upon our nation.
He has been trying to get our attention, but instead of heeding the judgment, we have ignored it.
In fact instead of humbling ourselves and seeking His forgiveness, we have gone in the opposite direction and have stood in defiance to God.
I have shown that God is not a respecter of men, but He does in fact honor and listen to offices of responsibility. When these offices speak, make supplication, stand in defiance, God hears these and acts upon a nation either through blessing or through curse.
Out of ignorance, our leaders have cursed our nation reinforcing the defiance by speaking a curse found in Isaiah 9:10.
"The bricks are fallen down, but we will build with hewn stones: the sycomores are cut down, but we will change them into cedars." - (KJV)
I have shown that the ground of consecration, the ground our nation was dedicated to God has in fact become the ground of judgment. Just as ancient Israel ground of consecration, the temple mount, the ground our nations dedicated to God was also destroyed.
That ground was Ground Zero once owned by St Paul's Chapel, the only building that survived the attack on 9-11.
How St Paul's was saved was by a lone Sycamore tree that was slammed to the ground from an "I-beam" flying across the area destined to hit St Paul's Chapel.
The twin towers, the symbol of the strength of America, her "bricks" had fallen. The sycamore was cut down, that lone tree that protected the ground this nation was dedicated upon, uprooted.
We have seen the curse come to fruition when out of our pride and determination to "rebuild" we laid the "hewn stone" the cornerstone at Ground Zero. We also replaced that sycamore that was cut down with a cedar.
God has been trying to warn us. Through His mercy He has been providing His signs to wake up our nation.
But many have not seen the signs and they have gone ignored. We have refused to heed the warning that He sent on 9-11.
Take Away The Hedge and Break Down The Wall
In the early days after 9-11 our leaders kept repeating a verse, that verse was Isaiah 9:10. Most of the city officials and community leaders would paraphrase it or just reference the fallen bricks and often throw in "We Will Rebuild." It all made good press in a time of calamity and brought a nation together for a very short season.
When we read about God judging ancient Israel, we see a patter take place over and over again.
God breaks down what He allowed to be built.
Then He uproots the foundations.
Scripture says…

Jeremiah 45:4 (KJV) Thus shalt thou say unto him, The LORD saith thus; Behold, that which I have built will I break down, and that which I have planted I will pluck up, even this whole land.

Isaiah 5:5 (KJV)   And now go to; I will tell you what I will do to my vineyard: I will take away the hedge thereof, and it shall be eaten up; and break down the wall thereof, and it shall be trodden down:

We see that with ancient Israel the temple was destroyed and then the people were uprooted from the land.
He has followed the same pattern with our nation, the only other nation dedicated to God.
He broke down the twin towers and uprooted the sycamore saving St. Paul's Chapel.
He did this and gave us these signs out of mercy in hopes that our nation would return to Him.
The falling of the twin towers and the cutting down of the sycamore are in fact two images of His judgment upon this nation.
We did not get it and we missed the message being sent because we were not paying attention.
So He Warned Us Again
The World Trade Center sat upon the very ground that our nation was dedicated to by our first president George Washington to Jehovah God.
This World Trade Center complex was a symbol of our power, both physical being the tallest buildings in the world for a number of years, to our economic power.
Not only were many of the financial elite housed in those buildings, but the twin towers also housed the COMEX commodities trading floor.
So it is this area where our nation was born, the Island of Manhattan, Wall Street in particular, which was and still is the focal point of this nation's economic and financial foundation.
My Small Connection 
It is interesting that even I have a personal tie to this area. See my ancestors sailed on the ship The Beaver, which sailed from Amsterdam under Captain Pieter Reyersen arriving in New Amsterdam (Manhattan island) May 9, 1661.
Now here is the interesting part, I was born May 9, 1961… 3oo years later.
Now this has nothing to do with the series I am writing, but it is just an interesting side note. My family was there when all this was taking place.

New Amsterdam 
New Amsterdam (Manhattan island) was the primary trading post for the Dutch at that time who owned and operated from that area.
In the 1640s, a basic picket and plank fences denoted plots and residences in the colony. Later, the Dutch West India Company collaborated with the city government and constructed an earthen wall on the northern boundary of the New Amsterdam settlement. It is believed that this was to protect against English colonial encroachment and / or attacks from native Americans who also lived in the area.
The Dutch named this "de Waal Straat"
In these early days, local merchants and traders would gather at different spots along the wall to buy and sell food, goods, supplies but also it became popular for the financially elite to trade shares and bonds along the wall. Over time the buying, selling and trading divided the businesses into two classes, the auctioneers and the dealers.
In 1699 the wall was removed to expand the area, but the name of the street," Wall Street", kept its name.
This is the very same Wall Street which Federal Hall resides, the very same place where the birth of our government took place on April 30th 1789 where our first president, George Washington was inaugurated.
As I mentioned, traders and speculators would gather together to trade stocks, bonds, and commodities. See what we need to remember is that New Amsterdam (Manhattan island) was the primary hub for all trade coming into and going out of the colonies at that time. The "new world" was a a place for the enterprising individual could make his fortune.
Soon it became tradition to meet at a point on Wall Street where a buttonwood tree stood. This gave the buyers and sellers a shaded place to meet as well as a local landmark so that all could identify where to buy, sell and trade.
In 1792 the traders decided to create an association with each other. This agreement was called "The Buttonwood Agreement."
The premise of this agreement was to make the market more "structured" and "without the manipulative auctions." A commission structure was created so that a standard commission rate could be charged. What this did was give those who signed the agreement a lower commission rate but those who did not sign could still participate in trading, but commission was set at a higher rate to, buy, sell and trade.
The organization born of the agreement would be known as the Buttonwood Association. Later renamed the New York Stock and Exchange Board, and finally what we know today as the New York Stock Exchange.
Finally, can you guess what sort of tree the buttonwood tree is?
If you came up with a sycamore, you are correct.
The Sycamores Are Cut Down… Again
We did not heed His warning at 9-11.
So He warned us again, but this time a different sycamore fell.
See seven years after 9-11, another sycamore fell. In fact this falling of a sycamore was a direct result of the action God took on Sept 11, 2001.
In Sept 2008, that earlier named "buttonwood (a sycamore) association", which was formed on Wall Street… was cut down.
On Sept 29th 2008 Wall Street and the world experienced the greatest economic collapse since the great depression, that was the seizing of Fanny Mae and Freddie Mac. See on Sept 7th the federal government took control of both of these corporations. Over half of the mortgages in the nation was backed by either Fanny Mae or Freddie Mac.
With the government swooping in to "rescue" these failing corporations, the government gained control of over half of the mortgaged homes in America, thus placing them now in the control of the US Government, in effect nationalizing most of the housing market.
With the US Gov doing this, there was a major backlash in the markets and it caused global upheaval, but particularly on Wall Street itself.
This upheaval in turn caused a cataclysmic collapse that shook the world even more than the downfall of Fanny Mae and Freddy Mac, what was going to take place over the next few days was the fall of Lehman Brothers.
On Sept 7 Mae and Mac collapsed. The collapse echoed and knocked the foundations out from under Lehman brothers two days later, Sept 9th. On that day Lehman lost 45% of its stock value.
On Sept 10th 2008 Lehman announced that it lost of 3.9 billion dollars (1)
The next day Lehman's stock plunged again, setting the last nail in the coffin.
Lehman Brothers filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on September 15, 2008.
Looking back at 9-11-01 Lehman Brothers occupied three floors of Number One World Trade Center. Its global headquarters was located in Number Three World Center were severely damaged and rendered unusable by falling debris, displacing over 6,500 of Lehman's employees.
It was on Sept 11, 2008 that Lehman's was died. This echoed down Wall Street, to Washington and reverberated all over the world.
The Fed Reserve then came in and with a series of actions, prevented the total destruction of Lehman thus ending what many saw as a complete implosion of the US and global economy.
On that same day, Sept 11, 2008, AIG also sent up a cry for help due to the domino effect taking place. They too were in danger of also collapsing and the feds had to act fast.
Lehman and AIG, two of the largest and strongest financial institutions in the world fell and sucked the rest of the world's economy down with it.
This was seven years after the fall at Ground Zero.
This nation was being shaken a second time by God trying to get our attention. What he did was uproot the sycamore once again. But this sycamore was the buttonwood tree association.

Jeremiah 45:4 (KJV) Thus shalt thou say unto him, The LORD saith thus; Behold, that which I have built will I break down, and that which I have planted I will pluck up, even this whole land.

See what is interesting is that both 2001 and 2008 were Sabbatical years. Now our nation is not commanded to observe the Sabbath year, but He can use it as a form of judgment for a nation that is dedicated to Him.
Had it been, fifty, seventy five, a hundred years ago Godly men would have recognized these events clearly and seen it as the providence and judgment of God.
Our nations pastors would preach that our nation needs to repent and called the congregations back to Him. But no longer are the preachers preaching a message of sin and repentance. Instead they preach a sugar coated message with the goal being fannies in seats and full offering plates.
Complacency, greed, selfishness have taken the place of the preaching of the depravity of man and how we are lost and destined to Hell if we do not turn from our wicked ways, repent and believe upon Him.
Today it is only a handful of us watchmen who are standing upon the wall that have been sounding the alarm.
But all of that is now changing.
A storm is coming.
That storm is called God's Judgment.
He has warned us twice, both times at 9-11, both times on at the end of the sabbatical year. A time where not only a nation’s food production is halted and the land given a rest, but also a year effecting the financial, economic arenas of the nation.
See we often remember giving the land a rest, but we forget that all debt was to be forgiven at the end of the sabbatical year. In fact on the 29th of Elul.
The 29th of Elul 5768 on the Jewish calendar also coincides with Sept 29th, 2008.
On that day, the last day of the Sabbatical year, the Dow lost approximately 2,700 points.
On that morning, September 29, on the floors of the New York Stock Exchange the day's trading began with an ill omen and many of the traders were actually spooked.
What happened?
The opening bell would not sound.
On that same day before congress were plans to try to prevent and rescue the implosion that was taking place. But the people spoke and the rescue plan did not pass.
Wall Street collapsed.
On that day the market itself lost over seven hundred points. This was the worse day in Wall Street History. This event shattered the confidence of the market.
The DOW lost 25% or 2,700 points. Billions upon billions of dollars were lost, vaporized, up in smoke. Savings accounts and retirement accounts that were there one moment were gone in the next due to being overly invested in mutual funds that lost massive amounts of money.
The words spoken by our leaders once again have come back to haunt the people.

Isaiah 9:10 The bricks are fallen down, but we will build with hewn stones: the sycomores are cut down, but we will change them into cedars.

God's judgment is in fact here and we are still not paying attention.
But worse, our leaders again have spoken, still in defiance.
More to follow…




By Ray Gano

End Notes
1- http://money.cnn.com/2008/09/10/news/companies/lehman/index.htm


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Israel - America - Isaiah & Judgement

Over the past week or so I have been reading Isaiah.
To be honest I am blown away at the similarities mentioned about Israel and then looking at modern day America.
I am not promoting some replacement theology idea or anything like that; but I do believe that when people or nations turn their backs on God, the laws of nature, God's Law, comes into play.
I am one who firmly believes that our nation was brought about by divine providence. King James, the very same king who put his name to the only Authorized version of the bible, also sent people to "the new world" to spread the Gospel and claim the land for God in the name of His Son, Jesus Christ. This is the basic tenants of the James Town Charter claiming America for His Glory.
We are not God's chosen people and in no way replace Israel, but I believe we have a special place in God's plan and because we have remained a Christian nation up until about 40 years ago, God has blessed us immensely.
Our nation has done more to further the gospel, protect the innocent, stood for what was right, and against what was wrong than any other nation. We have defended the weak, opposed tyranny and tyrants.
On July 4th 1776 we declared our freedom beginning with these words…
When in the Course of human events it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.
We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.
At the base of the Statue of Liberty it states,
"Give me your tired, your poor/Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free"
We are a nation built upon the principals of God and His Word.
But somewhere on this journey, our great republic strayed and instead of being good, we have chosen the path of evil.
I look around at what is taking place here in the US as well as globally and I see man working towards his own demise through the pleasures of the world and of the flesh.
Instead of exporting the Gospel, we export pornography.
Instead of saving the innocent, we kill millions of our children through abortion.
Instead of standing for God, we work to eradicate His existence from our lives, our monuments and our schools.
Instead of the holy matrimony between husband and wife we have sodomites, pedophiles, hedonism, practitioners of bestiality and necrophilia, all becoming the norm.
Instead of caring for our fellow man, greed and selfishness are what has taken its place. The natural affection of man is gone, brutality is its replacement.
Many people ask is America in Bible Prophecy? I do not see her directly there, but recently I have been studying Isaiah 5 again and as I mentioned I have noticed some very interesting correlations in God judging Judah and where we are in America today.
Please, take the time to read this….

Isaiah 5:8  Woe unto them that join house to house, that lay field to field, till there be no place, that they may be placed alone in the midst of the earth!

Isaiah 5:9  In mine ears said the LORD of hosts, Of a truth many houses shall be desolate, even great and fair, without inhabitant.

Isaiah 5:10  Yea, ten acres of vineyard shall yield one bath, and the seed of a homer shall yield an ephah.

Isaiah 5:11  Woe unto them that rise up early in the morning, that they may follow strong drink; that continue until night, till wine inflame them!

Isaiah 5:12  And the harp, and the viol, the tabret, and pipe, and wine, are in their feasts: but they regard not the work of the LORD, neither consider the operation of his hands.

Isaiah 5:13  Therefore my people are gone into captivity, because they have no knowledge: and their honorable men are famished, and their multitude dried up with thirst.

Isaiah 5:14  Therefore hell hath enlarged herself, and opened her mouth without measure: and their glory, and their multitude, and their pomp, and he that rejoiceth, shall descend into it.

Isaiah 5:15  And the mean man shall be brought down, and the mighty man shall be humbled, and the eyes of the lofty shall be humbled:

Isaiah 5:16  But the LORD of hosts shall be exalted in judgment, and God that is holy shall be sanctified in righteousness.

Isaiah 5:17  Then shall the lambs feed after their manner, and the waste places of the fat ones shall strangers eat.

Isaiah 5:18  Woe unto them that draw iniquity with cords of vanity, and sin as it were with a cart rope:

Isaiah 5:19  That say, Let him make speed, and hasten his work, that we may see it: and let the counsel of the Holy One of Israel draw nigh and come, that we may know it!

Isaiah 5:20  Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!

Isaiah 5:21  Woe unto them that are wise in their own eyes, and prudent in their own sight!

Isaiah 5:22  Woe unto them that are mighty to drink wine, and men of strength to mingle strong drink:

Isaiah 5:23  Which justify the wicked for reward, and take away the righteousness of the righteous from him!

In this chapter God shows His people their sins as well as the judgment’s to be brought up them for their sins.
There Are Six Woes That God Proclaims
1. verses 8-10 – This is the first crime, the covetousness and financial greed which shall be punished by famine.
2. verses 11-12 – This is the second crime, living for rioting, reveling and drunkenness which shall be punished by captivity.
3. verses 18-19 –This is the third crime, ultimately defying God and His justice. They parade their sins around for all to see and also defy God to hurry up and hasten his work of judgment.
4. verse 20 –This is the fourth crime, calling evil good and good evil. We know the effects of this, it is prevalent today.
5.  verse 21 - This is the fifth crime specified. It refers to those who are inflated with a false opinion of their own knowledge, and who are, therefore, self-confident and vain.
6. verses 22-23 – Again drunkenness but also due to their drunkenness they pervert justice rewarding the wicked and punishing the righteous.
God has allowed us to prosper as shown in the parable of the vineyard found in Isaiah 5, and we have turned against Him and taken His blessings for granted.
We no longer serve Him and we have become a pagan nation worshiping mammon and a multitude of false gods.
Think about this for a moment. When we lived within God’s economy, business was done on a handshake and a man’s word was a man’s word. Today we live in mammon’s economy with all its clutter, confusion, trappings and ability to steal all with a stroke of a pen.
Today we need contracts that are 20+ pages long and what the big print giveth the small print taketh away.
Read what Isaiah says in Chapter 5, verse 8, this very issue is addressed.

Isaiah 5:8 Woe unto them that join house to house, that lay field to field, till there be no place, that they may be placed alone in the midst of the earth!

Albert Barnes Notes on the Bible explain this verse the best.

Isaiah 5:8 - Woe unto them ... - The prophet now proceeds to “specify” some of the crimes to which he had referred in the parable of the vineyard, of which the Jews had been guilty. The first is “avarice.”

That join house to house - That seek to possess many houses; or perhaps that seek to live in large and magnificent palaces. A similar denunciation of this sin is recorded in Mic_2:2; Neh_5:1-8. This, together with what follows, was contrary to the law of Moses. He provided that when the children of Israel should enter the land of Canaan, the land should be equitably divided; and in order to prevent avarice, he ordained the “jubilee,” occurring once in fifty years, by which every man and every family should be restored to their former possession; Lev. 25. Perhaps there could have been no law so well framed to prevent the existence, and avoid the evils of covetousness. Yet, in defiance of the obvious requirements and spirit of that law, the people in the time of Isaiah had become generally covetous.

That lay field to field - That purchase one farm after another. The words ‘that lay,’ mean “to cause to approach;” that is, they “join” on one farm after another.

Till there be no place - Until they reach the “outer limit” of the land; until they possess all.

That they may be placed alone - That they may displace all others; that they may drive off from their lands all others, and take possession of them themselves.

In the midst of the earth - Or rather, in the midst of the “land.” They seek to obtain the whole of it, and to expel all the present owners. Never was there a more correct description of avarice. It is satisfied with no present possessions, and would be satisfied only if all the earth were in its possession. Nor would the covetous man be satisfied then. He would sit down and weep that there was nothing more which he could desire. How different this from that “contentment” which is produced by religion, and the love of the happiness of others!

Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary states basically the same thing too.
Does this not describe corporate greed and the serving of mammon today?
But that is not all.
It seems that which gender one is having sex with is now more important in the halls of congress than the wholesomeness and protecting the family unit. We care more for this world and justify its shallow perspectives more than the things of God and His eternal perspective.
Do you know that there is an epidemic of teachers accused or convicted of having sex with their students? Hundreds of them, mostly female too (1).   Has this come to the forefront of national and international news in recent years? No.

Isaiah 5:20 Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!

Isaiah 5:23 Which justify the wicked for reward, and take away the righteousness of the righteous from him!

I read many articles where so many of these child predators are just given a slap on the wrist. Where liberal judges reward the evils and yet lock up those who are righteous. A prime example of this is the 2 border guard agents who spent time in jail for doing their job and yet a drug smuggler is on the loose coming and going in and out of our country.
Sins of the flesh are being taken to a new high. At a past Sundance Film Festival not only did we have a movie where the main highlight was the raping of a 12 year old girl, OH YEA…but it was all in the name of “ART.”
But get this…
There was also a film called “Zoo” which primary focus was sex with animals.

Leviticus 18:23 Neither shalt thou lie with any beast to defile thyself therewith: neither shall any woman stand before a beast to lie down thereto: it is confusion.

But that is not all. More and more television shows are portraying homosexuality in a very positive light. Showtime was touting their hot show “ The “L” Word” It is a show that glorifies and is about life as a lesbian (2).

Romans 1:26 For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections: for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature:

Leviticus 18:22 Thou shalt not lie with mankind, as with womankind: it is abomination.

But here in Isaiah 5:18 it talks about this very thing which the Lord deplores.

Isaiah 5:18 Woe unto them that draw iniquity with cords of vanity, and sin as it were with a cart rope:

Here in the US, we not only openly revel in our homosexual sin, but we parade our sins to God shoving it in His face. I am reminded of a literal example of this, the Gay Pride Parades with the floats and people all reveling. Here is an abomination to God and proudly it is displayed and celebrated.
But, if you are in the world, of the world or even one toe in the world, much of this sounds fine to you, you are “tolerant” of these things and when the day is finally over, and one guesses it is all ok.
But what no one is addressing, with all these things taking place, no one is talking about what to do if the Lord tarries.

Luke 19:13 And he called his ten servants, and delivered them ten pounds, and said unto them, Occupy till I come.

Very few are occupying. ...
Do you see this too? When did we stop living for God and His economy and allowed ourselves to enter mammon’s and flesh’s debauchery?
But you know what; the scary thing is how God corrects and judges these things.
In reading Isaiah and how God deals with a sinning nation, a nation that was dedicated to Him, His Glory and The Proclaiming of the Gospel, He has no choice but to judge the nation and chastise it in hopes that they will turn from their wicked ways and return to God.
For a while people have been saying that God will judge our nation and believing judgment is coming.
I am sorry, I do not believe this.
Why?
Because I believe Judgment is already here and has begun to take place.
What have we done as a nation?
The very same thing that Israel did, they stood in defiance against God, instead of humbling themselves and seeking forgiveness.
God Warns First, Hoping For Repentance, IF NOT…Then
In Isaiah we see God do the same thing over and over again. He warns, then hopes for repentance, He warns, then hopes for repentance.
Finally God has to act and what is the first thing He does in judgment?

Isaiah 5:5 And now go to; I will tell you what I will do to my vineyard: I will take away the hedge thereof, and it shall be eaten up; and break down the wall thereof, and it shall be trodden down:

He lifts His hand / hedge of protection.
In doing this, it is His enemies that then come in and start to destroy.
I believe that God has lifted His hand of protection. I believe that we have been given a chance and we have ignored it.
Our hedge of protection has been breached and the enemies of God have come in.
When did this take place?
Think about it.
Never in our history have we been attacked, never has the enemy landed upon our soil, never has the enemy breached our walls.
Why?
Because we have always had His divine protection.
But that changed and now our hedge of protection has been breached.
When did that take place?
September11th, 2001.
On that date the hedge of protection around our nation was breached.
This is why I say that judgment is not coming, it is already here.
Learning From Isaiah
Over and over again we see in Isaiah how God judges the nation.

Isaiah 5:26 And he will lift up an ensign to the nations from far, and will hiss unto them from the end of the earth: and, behold, they shall come with speed swiftly:

Isaiah 5:27 None shall be weary nor stumble among them; none shall slumber nor sleep; neither shall the girdle of their loins be loosed, nor the latchet of their shoes be broken:

Isaiah 5:28 Whose arrows are sharp, and all their bows bent, their horses' hooves shall be counted like flint, and their wheels like a whirlwind:

Isaiah 5:29 Their roaring shall be like a lion, they shall roar like young lions: yea, they shall roar, and lay hold of the prey, and shall carry it away safe, and none shall deliver it.

The nation in Isaiah 5 was judged by an enemy; an enemy with purpose, drive and motivation. An enemy who does not seek sleep, is not weary, and always ready for the attack. Their weapons are at their side and at they are ready to be used at a moment's notice.
Here is the interesting part. In the case of Israel it was Assyria. Today we know much of this land to be modern day Iraq.  Do you know that today we are effected by one of Assyria's greatest invention?
Do you know that it is the Assyrians who are given the credit for inventing terrorism?
Assyrians were one of the most warlike people in history, lovers of the violence of the war and hunt. Amongst the people of the ancient Middle East, they were famous for their cruelty. At the peak of its power, Assyria stretched from Egypt to Persian Gulf. Their aggressiveness was partially attributed to their location: Assyria was in northern Mesopotamia, north of Babylon. As no natural bounders like shores or mountains were found there, they were vulnerable to attacks from any direction. This required the presence of a strong and mobile army. (3)
Who in today's modern world maintains such a hate that they would not sleep, have high motivation and just waiting for the attack?
I believe that the same enemies that were part of divine providence then, have risen again today. They are the very ancestors of the enemies of Israel, the worshipers of Baal / Moloch / Ashur. He is the war god, cruel with the enemies and merciful with his believers.
What is interesting is that his symbol was that of a disk or ornament as identified by strong's…

H7720

sah-har-one'

From the same as H5469; a round pendant for the neck: - ornament like the moon.

H5469

Sahar

sah'-har

From an unused root meaning to be round; roundness: - round.

Today these enemies still worship the same god, his name is Helel Ben Sahar, literally meaning crescent moon / Morning Star. הילל בן־שׁחר
This is the very same name we find in scripture, in fact in Isaiah. But in English we call him Lucifer.

Isaiah 14:12 How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations!

Who attacked and breached our hedge of protection? The ancestors of the enemies of Israel, the worshipers of the enemy named Helel Ben Sahar.
We have the final words from the black box found at the wreckage of flight 93, the flight that did not hit its target.
What were those final words? They were a declaration - a war cry. The words were " Allahu Akbar."

Allahu Akbar (Arabic: الله أكبر) is a phrase, called Takbir in Arabic, meaning "God is greater" or "God is [the] greatest" (4)

What is this god's symbol?
The crescent moon / morning star.
Due to the fact that we are a nation who have turned her back upon God, His divine hedge of protection has been breached by the very same enemies that attacked ancient Israel. The terrorist ancestors mentioned in Isaiah, the ones who invented terrorism the worshipers of the enemy of Jehovah God.
Do you see it?
But That is Not All
9-11 was a warning and I believe a major call to repentance.
But what has our nation done?
Instead of repenting, we have stood with our heels dug in.
Instead of being humble, we have become proud.
Instead of turning to Him, we have stood in defiance of Him.
Out of 9-11 we have said that we will rebuild, become stronger, stand in defiance against the terrorists.
But more than that, we stand in defiance against God Himself because we have rejected His warning.
That warning was the breach in the hedge of protection.
And something that people have also forgotten, the breach is still there.
What should we have done?
The proper course should have been to humble ourselves, seek His face and sought out forgiveness.
If we would have done that, God would have healed our land as promised in 2 Chronicles 7:14

2 Chronicles 7:14 If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.

But we haven't done that.
Judgment isn't coming, it is already here. Most of the nation missed it or did not get the warning.
3000+ people died, one of our great cities was crippled, our nation wept and was brought to her knees for a season.
But we have stood again in defiance against God and the enemies of God. Our pride has gotten the best of us.
In reading Isaiah God used the same enemies to not only wreak havoc the first time, but when He pulled the hedge of protection completely; it exposed all of the nation of Israel to attacks, destruction, economic downfall and eventually bound and enslaved to the enemies who brought the destruction.
I am not a prophet. I am a watchman, a student of bible prophecy as well as a student of history.
Isaiah is one of the greatest prophetic books and historical books of the bible and I believe that what happened to Israel is coming to pass again here in America.
Why?
Because we are a nation founded upon God, His Word, dedicated and ordained to sharing the hope of His Son to all the world. We have stopped Occupying Till He Returns. We have forgotten to " always be ready to share the hope that is within us." (1 peter 3:15)
Judgment is not coming, it is here and to be honest I fear what is to come in the next phase of His chastisement.
What do I believe is coming?
That is another article based upon Isaiah in light of ancient Israel and America today.
More to come …


By Ray Gano






Endnotes
1 - http://www.wnd.com/2006/09/38108/
2 - http://www.sho.com/site/lword/home.do
3 - http://news.softpedia.com/news/Assyrians-the-Lords-of-the-Massacres-77262.shtml
4 - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Allahu_Akbar_%28disambiguation%29

The Effects of Another Middle East War

Folks, today the news is teaming with information that makes it really appear that the Middle East is ramping up for war.

Can you imagine the effects of another Middle East war? Think about what will be effected globally.

In fact do you know we are still feeling the effects of the Six Day War?

The Six-Day War

(Hebrew: מלחמת ששת הימים, Milhemet Sheshet Ha Yamim - Arabic: حرب الأيام الستة, ħarb al ayyam as sitta ;), also known as the 1967 Arab-Israeli War, the Third Arab-Israeli War, Six Days' War, an Naksah (The Setback), or the June War, was fought between Israel and its Arab neighbours Egypt, Jordan, and Syria. Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and Algeria also contributed troops and arms to the Arab forces. In the months before June 1967, Egypt expelled the United Nations Emergency Force from the Sinai Peninsula, increased its military activity near the border, blockaded the Straits of Tiran to Israeli ships, and called for unified Arab action against Israel. In June 1967, Israel launched a pre-emptive attack on Egypt's airforce fearing an imminent invasion by Egypt. Jordan then attacked the Israeli cities of Jerusalem and Netanya., At the war's end, Israel had gained control of the Gaza Strip, the Sinai Peninsula, the West Bank, and the Golan Heights. The results of the war affect the geopolitics of the region to this day. (1)

The Yom Kippur War

Ramadan War or October War (Hebrew: מלחמת יום הכיפורים; transliterated: Milkhemet Yom HaKipurim or מלחמת יום כיפור, Milkhemet Yom Kipur; Arabic: حرب أكتوبر; transliterated: ħarb October or حرب تشرين, ħarb Tishrin), also known as the 1973 Arab-Israeli War and the Fourth Arab-Israeli War, was fought from October 6 to October 26, 1973, between Israel and a coalition of Arab states led by Egypt and Syria. The war began with a surprise joint attack by Egypt and Syria on the Jewish holiday of Yom Kippur. Egypt and Syria crossed the cease-fire lines in the Sinai and Golan Heights, respectively, which had been captured by Israel in 1967 during the Six-Day War.

The Egyptians and Syrians advanced during the first 24–48 hours, after which momentum began to swing in Israel's favor. By the second week of the war, the Syrians had been pushed entirely out of the Golan Heights. In the Sinai to the south, the Israelis struck at the "seam" between two invading Egyptian armies, crossed the Suez Canal (where the old ceasefire line had been), and cut off the Egyptian third army just as a United Nations cease-fire came into effect. (2)

If you remember back in the 1970’s the US as well as any other country that supported Israel, suffered the OPEC Oil Embargo. At the time, gas prices jumped, gas was then rationed and you could only fill up your car on “odd” or “even” days based upon your license plate number.

Here it the US, we went to a year round day light savings time pushing all of the clocks one hour a head.

US automakers were jumping through hoops to make a better more fuel efficient car. Oil companies and energy providers were searching out alternative fuel and energy sources.

The “Central Banks” (Aka Fed Reserve) decided to sharply cut interest rates to encourage growth, deciding that inflation was a secondary concern. This was a horrible decision because it whip lashed the economy into some of the largest interest rates ever. Remember the outrageous interest rates just for home loans?

Now reflect on the 2006 Lebanon War, what did we see from that? Are we still suffering the consequences of that war?

I know one thing is that gas prices skyrocketed and never came down.

Fast forward to today, we are now looking at $3.19 a gallon. That is pricing here in Texas, in other areas it is more. Do you really think that we will see these prices ever go down? I bet there are some of you saying right now as you read this, “Well it will go down to $2.50 - $2.75 a gallon again.” Do you realize what that is costing us?

Folks, I was paying .99 cents a gallon in 2000.

And all these Sunday Morning financial good ol boys say there is no inflation?

The snowball is going to start rolling down hill here very soon. With it will be the inflation of much of what we consume daily.

Why are you pointing all of these things out; and what does it have to do with Bible Prophecy?

Revelation 6:5-6 (KJV) And when he had opened the third seal, I heard the third beast say, Come and see. And I beheld, and lo a black horse; and he that sat on him had a pair of balances in his hand. And I heard a voice in the midst of the four beasts say, A measure of wheat for a penny, and three measures of barley for a penny; and see thou hurt not the oil and the wine.

I have stated many times that the antichrist’s kingdom will not pop up over night. The foundations need to be laid and systems put in place.

I point out all of this because things are bad and will not be getting any better. We know this based upon God’s Word and the study of Bible Prophecy. Again, read Revelations 6.

Presented with the facts of today we can clearly see that the Middle East is preparing for war. Iran, Turkey, Egypt are really posturing. Just look at Iran's war games in the straits of Hormuz and what a "buzz" that is causing.

It is not a matter of “IF” but a matter of “WHEN”

I personally think that the “when” will be a lot sooner. Man’s nature is towards greed, power and sin. The islamofascists have their fingers on the trigger and they are doing all that they can to hold themselves back.

If Iran gets nukes, which most likely she will have very soon if she does not have already, it isn't Israel that Iran will hit.

Iran is going to bomb Saudi Arabia.

I mean think about this for a moment. First of all, nowhere in scripture do we see Iran nuking Israel or any middle east country for that fact.

Do you know that Iran and much of the Middle East hates Saudi Arabia more than they hate Israel?

This is a hard fact and this is one reason why the US is sending arms and equipment to Saudi Arabia.

This is also why Saudi Arabia has been seeking Israel's help through back channel meetings.

Saudi Arabia is scared to death that Iran is going to wipe them off the face of the earth.

And Iran is more than willing to do it too, all in the name of bringing forth the Maudi, Islam's Messiah. The same person who I believe will be the Antichrist.

Let's look at this for a moment.

Iran has three sworn enemies.

• Israel
• America
• Saudi Arabia

They hate Israel because their Koran tells them to do this.

They hate America because we side with Israel and they see us as Christians. The Koran also tells them to war with Christians, kill us, enslave us, persecute us.

But they also hate Saudi Arabia because of all the debauchery and shame the Saudi famiily has brought upon Islam.

It is in Saudi Arabia where Mecca and Medina are located and according to much of the Middle East, Islam's holiest places need to be freed from the sin and shame Saudi Arabia has presented all these years.

Now here is the key point I want to make.

Iran and much of the Middle East knows that if they take out Saudi Arabia, the US will fall as well.

By taking out Saudi Arabia, they are getting what I a call a "two-fer" deal. They are taking out the scorge of the Middle East and the Great Satan all with one blow.

About 25% of the US's oil comes from Saudi Arabia. That is why she is so critical to our security.

If Saudi Arabia falls, we will fall as well.

Think gas prices are bad now, imagine if 25% of our oil supply was taken out. It would literally bring this nation to a standstill and throw this nation into major chaos.

But there is more.

Enter The 2012 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA)

We as bible believing Christians are in the minority. Problems are coming down the road and yes, we as Christians will be the ones blamed for all the worlds’ woes too.

It is already taking place and what is horrifying is the recent passing of the ‘Indefinite Detention’ Bill (NDAA), it has opened up the military detaining US Citizens with our or the procedures given to us by the constitution.

Simply put, the doors of the Gulag are now open thanks to both Republicans, Democrats and our illustrious President. So please do not feed me garbage on how much Republicans love this country when many of them voted to create these prison camps.

Sure this has been put in place for "Domestic terrorists" but clearly the Dept of Homeland Security views conservative bible believing Christians who also stand on bible prophecy as potential domestic terrorists. Add former military vets, preppers/survivalists, and those who believe and stand upon the constitution.

People and nations are becoming more tolerant towards Islam, new age, paganism and eastern practices. They are also becoming adamantly against Christianity. In fact they hate us just for who we are and who we serve. This in and of itself is bible prophecy coming to pass.

Very soon another Middle East war will take place. It will grind our nation as well as much of the west to a halt. Odds are that Christians will be blamed for all of this.

Now in the middle of all this chaos, the great thing is that we as Christians will have a chance to share the gospel. People will still turn to God in times of trouble no matter what.

How many people will see the truth in God’s Word and then come to the saving grace of His salvation?

Here is the key question.

How many of us are prepared and positioned to share the gospel in a time such as that?

A Middle East war involving Syria, Iran, Turkey and Saudi Arabia will have global ramifications in many sectors. Trade and commerce will come to a drastic slow down due to cause and effect of such an event.

Can you fully realize the global cause and effects that comes into play if the Middle East goes to war with Saudi Arabia?

Even if the destruction of Damascus takes place as many think, Iran is still going to take out Saudi Arabia because with one strike Iran can do away with her enemies, Israel, the US and Saudia Arabia, thus freeing Islam's holiest areas Mecca & Medina.

I ask again, how many of us are prepared and positioned to share the gospel in events such as this?

But here is a question more horrifying…

How many out there still have their head buried in the sand and are not positioned to survive the coming storm?

More to come soon…

By Ray Gano

Endnotes

1 - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Six-Day_War

2 - http://en.wikipedia.org/wi