Has Jesus Already Returned?

To the majority of mainstream Christians, the assertion that Christ has already returned for the second time seems absurd, even self-evidently absurd. Yet,

there are a number of sizable cults or faiths that believe exactly that notion-- that the ‘Second Coming’ has already happened.

Let’s quickly survey some of these beliefs, and then examine whether there can be any reality to this claim.

First, as to who believes such a strange-sounding notion, there are a few notables. Perhaps the best-known of these groups are the Jehovah Witnesses (also called the Watchtower Society). In their view, Jesus returned in a ‘spiritual manner’ in 1914, and the world is living in the so-called Last Days, and awaiting Armageddon and the subsequent Millennium. How they arrive at this conclusion is not in the purview of this essay; the essential point is that they claim something like 9 or 10 million members who adhere to this view.

Another group, of similar range of worldwide membership, is the Bahai faith. In the Bahai theology, their great patron, teacher and guiding light, Baha’ulla (an adopted name meaning ‘glory of God’) is revered as the promised Second Coming, the (re)incarnation of Christ. They are convinced that their avatar represents the fulfillment of the Christian scriptures that foretell the Second Advent of Jesus, and thus, that events since his appearance in the mid-1800s, fulfill those described in the apocalyptic literature of the New Testament.

As a final example, there are the Preterists, yet another splinter group of Christianity, culled from a variety of denominational backgrounds, who are of the conviction that the eschatological (end times) writings of the NT were all fulfilled in 70 AD, at the sacking of Jerusalem by the Roman legions under their commander, Titus. This opinion is primarily based on ‘the Apocalypse of Jesus’-- i.e. the Olivet discourse recorded in Matthew 24 (and the parallel passages in Mark 13 and Luke 21). In those verses, Jesus is quoted as assuring his listeners that ‘this generation’ will not pass away before all his stated predictions would occur. Among those predictions was the one that must have been particularly chilling to his Jewish listeners-- namely, the destruction of the great Temple that had been built centuries earlier by Solomon, destroyed and rebuilt in roughly the 5th millennium BC, and again restored by Herod (then a recent event). Since the Temple and its bureaucracy (the Sanhedrin) were at the heart of the Jewish religion as it had come to exist, any prediction of its destruction was taken as signaling the ‘End of the Age,’ in the minds of Jewish listeners.

So, the question stands: did Jesus return, as promised in the NT, in year 70, or in 1844, or 1914.... or any other year following his death on the cross at mount Calvary? To begin with, it is obvious that one of the strongest arguments against an already accomplished Second Advent is the very fact that there is such a divergence of accepted dates! They can’t all be correct; and if there is such disagreement, then clearly, the matter is hardly a black-and-white case.

While one may wonder how these believers can support such a theory, you have to understand that the only resort they can employ to support their view is to invoke the spiritual realm. What they all claim is that the eschatological scriptures are not to be taken in a literal sense, but they must be interpreted symbolically and as reflecting a purely spiritual reality. Thus, for example, when Jesus states that his return will be as the lightning that flashes from the east to the west, Bahai’s regard this as a symbolic reference to the fact that their message originated in Persia, and spread from there westward, to the Middle East, Europe, and then North America, all within a very brief interval, in historical terms. Similarly, the Preterists interpret all the language in Jesus’ apocalypse as allegorical, finding plausible, local scenarios that could account for details that read as global in the literal sense. Similarly, the JWs have developed a figurative interpretation of all the Biblical scriptures that bear on the question of Jesus’ Second Advent, and make the ambiguous claim that he returned ‘in spirit’ in the early 20th century.

Any analysis of the ‘already arrived’ claim must, therefore, consider whether the scriptures invoked in that scenario are purely symbolic or literal in nature. Or, in the third situation, we acknowledge that the words remain ambiguous. In that case, tho, one can still make educated guesses based on certain ‘hermeneutic’ principles (i.e. protocols of ‘exegesis’-- scriptural analysis).

To be transparent, my outlook is that the eschatological texts fall into recognizable classes that the context itself determines explicitly. In my view, ‘context overrules pretext!’ The books of Daniel and Revelation are undoubtedly symbolic-- they are full of visions of ‘beasts,’ horns, dragons, damsels, etc. Both Daniel and John make it clear that these books are records of their ‘visions’ or dreams-- information obtained in an altered state of consciousness. On the other hand, the predictions of Jesus, recorded in the synoptic gospels, are almost undoubtedly literal. Whenever Jesus spoke symbolically, the writer tells us that he was speaking in parables. The apostles were simple men, and every time Jesus told a parable, they asked him to explain it for them. In the Olivet discourse, they do not anywhere make reference to parables. Their question that time was: ‘When will this occur (ie. the destruction of the temple), and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?’ (Matthew 24:2) Certainly a straightforward question... in terms of semantics.

On second glance, however, one can see clear evidence of conflating two separate events, thus leading to an unavoidable degree of confusion. You see, in the minds of the apostles-- who were either Jews or gentile converts-- the two events had to be one; i.e. the destruction of the temple would signal the End of the Age, which would occur at Jesus’ return. Remember, Jesus had not been arrested and executed at that point, so the disciples were not even necessarily thinking in terms of a Second coming; merely his ‘coming out’ as theocratic ruler. There is plenty of possibility for confusion in this whole chapter. Since the writers (the evangelists) had their own preconceptions of the Messianic Kingdom to come, it is clearly reflected in the way they asked the question. Hence, it is not unreasonable to expect that they quite likely construed Jesus’ response in a way that conformed to their presumptions. Each of us does the same thing, regularly, in understanding new information.

From that observation, we can at least suspect that Jesus’ response as recorded in scripture reflects a conflation of the two specific events-- the destruction of the temple, and his second coming. In fact, the text indicates that nowhere does Jesus try to differentiate the two! This strikes me as odd, since the question was clearly posed with two separate parts-- even if the questioners regarded them as one. Readers who believe in the inerrancy of the Bible may baulk at this suggestion! But note that I am saying that Jesus deliberately obfuscated with the intention of protecting the truth from the tampering of later interpreters. If the meaning is obscure, then there’s no obvious incentive to alter the text. As Jesus told his apostles, "From now on I am telling you before it comes to pass, so that when it does occur, you may believe that I am He” (John 13:19). In other words, you may not understand a prophecy in advance, but you’ll recognize it when it happens. This is a key concept in dealing with prophecy.

In any case, Jesus goes on to describe events that seem to jump directly to the end of the age, and largely (but not entirely) skip over the sacking of Jerusalem that was to occur barely 40 years later. Verses 15 to 20, however, refer directly to the “abomination of desolation spoken of by Daniel... standing in the holy place.” Now, Daniel 9:25-27, where the abomination is mentioned, clearly predict the destruction of Jerusalem that was to occur in 70 AD. [There are people like certain ‘Dispensationalists’ who disagree, but their view is influenced by the tenuous, subjective commentaries adduced in Darby’s Bible translation by Scofield. Space does not allow the required exposition, but it’s available in my other essays.] So, this segment (vs 15-20) is Jesus’ answer to the first part of the apostles question... BUT it appears that they still did not recognize that fact. That is, they still understood his words as if he were answering only one question.

Then Jesus’ apocalyptic descriptions go back to the frightening pictures of a planet and cosmos in chaos, and culminating in his coming on the clouds of heaven with his angelic host (verses 21 to the end of chapter 24). Just to illustrate the generally confusing nature of this chapter, notice verse 28, which states, “Wherever the corpse is, there the vultures will gather,” which strikes the reader as a complete ‘non-sequitur’. It appears out of nowhere, and seems to relate to nothing previously stated.

Since there is no disclaimer by the gospel writers that Jesus was speaking parabolically, two millennia of Christian faithful have looked ahead to the return of Christ in which he subdues Evil, and assumes rulership of the Earth-- as described in scripture. The primary verses used to construct this belief are the following: Matthew 24/Mark 13/Luke 21, Acts 2, 1 Corinthians 15, 2 Thessalonians 2, 2 Peter 3, Jude, and Revelation (esp. ch. 19, 20, 21).

If one reads all these passages, a definite pattern emerges wherein Jesus returns to Earth from the heavens, with a great deal of noise (‘shouts’, ‘trumpet blasts’, etc.) accompanied by a vast retinue of angels who go out to gather up the believers, and he establishes the final, Godly kingdom of the redeemed on a renewed Earth. It is extremely difficult to try to cast this scene into allegorical terms, such that it is all accomplished silently, stealthily, and completely unnoticed by the majority of the world’s population... as would have had to occur in order to comply with the beliefs that Jesus has already sneaked back to Earth! To forestall the insistence that this could have occurred ‘spiritually’ with the proper insight, I have to point out Jesus’ specific mention in Matt 24:37 that his coming will be just like what happened at the great Deluge. The Flood of Noah’s day was certainly not a spiritual event, but a traumatic, physical, global destruction that marked the end of that age. And to emphasize the import of his warning, he states (vs. 39): “and they did not understand until the flood came and took them all away; so will the coming of the Son of Man be.” May I suggest that some of them did not understand because they insisted that Noah’s warnings must have been (only) symbolic, and not literal?

The other significant picture that emerges from the collection of apocalyptic, NT verses is that of judgement. Jesus’ Second Advent is concerned with a definitive judging of the living and the dead, and separating them into only two categories-- the saved (redeemed) and the lost (condemned). The saved are to enjoy new life in a new world under a new government. All those (of whatever stripe) who cling to an already accomplished Advent are burdened with the task of explaining how the world can exist in its present, chaotic state, where evil runs rampant, if the Kingdom of God has been secretly, spiritually installed. It can’t be logically done!

To the Bahai’s in particular, I have to point out that nowhere in scripture is it suggested that Christ will return in another incarnation, live a long life, and then die once more. This of course is what happened to Baha’ulla, who lived as an ordinary human, and died in 1892. Where is our ‘new heavens and a new Earth?’ They will respond that it is not yet revealed, but it’s coming. In that case, very little in Baha’ulla’s life corresponds with the details and sequence described in the Christian scriptures... at least not without a great deal of allegorizing and twisting of contexts.

Similarly, the Full Preterists are stuck with the task of explaining how all the details of cosmic distress, the universal appearance of Christ, and the great, White Throne judgement all occurred in 70 AD... while the world, apparently, carried on, oblivious. What they do, evidently, is invoke a yet-to-occur Third Coming of Jesus in some indeterminate future. In this regard, they are not alone, since many Christians believe in a literal thousand years of peace that is mentioned in only one place in scripture, the symbolic book of Revelation (Rev 20). If the Millennium is taken literally, then one must acknowledge that there must be three advents (as indeed, the Dispensationalists do, whether they recognize it or not). Yet, nowhere else in all of scripture is there reference to three advents of the Christ. He first incarnated in human form as Jesus, died as the redeemer, and was resurrected and returned to the heavenly dimension to await his physical return as the Lord of Lords in a renewed world. There is no intermediate coming.

The problem posed by the symbolic Millennium is similar to the problem of Jesus’ mentioning that: “Truly I tell you, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened” (Matt 24:34). In ‘solving the problem’ of how his apocalyptic prophecies could all happen before the literal generation of hearers would pass away, the Preterists create far greater problems. Likewise, in taking a literal Millennium, Dispensationalists create the problem of three comings, which is nowhere else supported. Both these instances demonstrate the pitfalls of violating the ‘rule of simplicity’ (a.k.a. ‘Occam’s Razor’). That is, wherever possible, the simplest interpretation is to be taken in preference to a complicated one. It’s an elementary hermeneutic used in every discipline, not just exegesis.

What about the thousand years, then? Well, most scholars agree that Revelation presents several ‘parallel views’ of the same period, the ‘Church era,’ which is described as: ‘a time, times, and half a time;’ or as ‘three and a half years,’ or ‘1260 days,’ in various chapters, but which is, in any case, clearly symbolic. The pattern is altered in chapter 20, where it is now called ‘a thousand years;’ but the period is really the same as the others, i.e. the Church Age. And, concerning the phrase ‘this generation,’ used by Jesus in the Olivet discourse, many commentators regard it in one of its alternate Greek renderings as referring to the people born during the whole aeon-- the same Church era. Yes, there’s a certain amount of speculation here; but overall, it entails far less subsidiary chaos than does accepting a literal interpretation and then building a whole eschatology around the ensuing ‘damage control.’

To summarize, then, about the question ‘Did Jesus return during the past 2,000 years?’

1) The preponderance of historical, physical evidence, in combination with the most direct, common sense interpretation of the relevant scriptures, overwhelmingly support the negative response-- No, Jesus has not yet returned (in glory, as world ruler).

2) To construct a scenario in which Jesus has already returned, one must invoke figurative, spiritual interpretations of the eschatological scriptures, even where such understanding is not warranted by standard, hermeneutical practice, nor by the literal contexts.

3) Jesus told his listeners “Now learn this lesson from the fig tree: "As soon as its twigs get tender and its leaves come out, you know that summer is near. Even so, when you see all these things, you know that it is near, right at the door” (Matt 24:32-33). He specifically makes a parallel with something tangible and comprehensible to anyone-- a fruit tree. His example was not haphazard; Jesus said when we ‘see’ all these things, we will know. This analogy makes it clear, I believe, that he was NOT talking about symbolic (spiritual) events, but rather about physical events observable by anyone who makes the effort. It’s not something that only initiates of a school of Bible study will be capable of understanding!

"And behold, I am coming quickly: Blessed is the one who heeds the words of the prophecy of this book." (Rev 22:7)

The Beast of Revelation Is Is...

A ‘beast’ with seven heads and ten horns; another beast that looks innocent as a lamb but ‘speaks as a dragon;’ a mysterious mark, and that renowned number, 666-- what’s it all about?

Probably no book has been as misused as the Bible, and no part of the Bible as mystifying and misunderstood as the Revelation. In particular (coincidentally?) one of the more misinterpreted parts of Revelation is Chapter 13-- the famous source of the ‘beasts’ and ‘666,’ and so on. My contention is that the eschatological prophecies are deliberately obscure, but that they become increasingly transparent as we approach the ‘End Times’ they describe. In this regard, the puzzling chapter 13 is proving to be a key to comprehension. This essay investigates that portion of Revelation in the light of recent history.

In the interests of condensing a long discussion into a readable article, I have to assume that the reader has read (better yet studied) the book of Revelation, and moreover, understands that the book defines its strange imagery within its very pages for those who observe.

The first eight verses describe a ‘beast’ that rises from the ‘sea,’ having ‘ten horns and seven heads,’ each horn crowned by a diadem, and each head showing ‘blasphemous names.’ We are told that ‘the dragon gave him his power, and throne, and great authority.’ Verse three is crucial, and many have stumbled on it: “I saw one of his heads as if it had been slain, and his fatal wound was healed. And the whole earth was amazed and followed after the beast.” This amazing beast clearly becomes very powerful, and so arrogant as to blaspheme God, and to persecute His people.

Verses 11 to 18 then turn the spotlight on ‘another beast,’ who comes out of the earth, and who looks like a lamb, externally, but who speaks ‘like a dragon.’ This beast seems to focus world attention on the first beast, and makes everyone worship it. He enforces the famous ‘mark’ on the hand or forehand that must be received in order to buy or sell. Chapter 13 ends with the infamous number, 666, ‘the number of the beast,’ that is said to somehow designate ‘a man.’

This short chapter would be pretty difficult to unlock on its own; but it so happens that chapter 17 seems to rehearse the same scenario, but from quite a different perspective. By combining the clues from the two chapters, I believe a coherent pattern emerges.

In chapter 17, John is shown a ‘harlot’ sitting on a ‘scarlet beast having seven heads and ten horns,’ clearly establishing a link with the earlier vision (of ch. 13). On her forehead is written the mysterious name ‘Babylon the great, mother of harlots and of the abominations of the Earth.’ She is described as drunk with the blood of the saints. In verse eight the beast is twice described as one that ‘was, and is not, and will come;’ a phrase that is repeated again in verse 11. That verse goes on to state that he is ‘also an eighth and is one of the seven.’ The last verses of chapter 17 describe how ‘ten kings’ will wage war against ‘the Lamb,’ but will be defeated. They turn against the harlot, and destroy her, and the last verse defines her as ‘the great city which reigns over the kings of the earth.’

Now; let’s start putting the clues together, letting scripture define its own terms as much as possible, and always bearing in mind that Revelation is a symbolic book. Most of the symbols used by John echo similar ones used 6 centuries earlier in the book of Daniel, which were explained in the text. Similarly, the ‘angel/guides’ in Revelation give John the general meanings of the symbols in the visions. Summarizing very briefly, they are...
Beast = ‘kingdom,’ country, empire (Rev 17:10, Dan 7:17); Dragon = Satan, the Devil (Rev 12:9, 20:2); Sea = populous area; the ‘old world’ (Rev 17:15); Horns = kings, rulers (Dan 7:24); Heads = governments, nations; Diadems = sign of authority, rulership; Blasphemous - indicates un-Godly; Tabernacle=the ‘church’, ‘saints’, who are spiritually residents of heaven; harlot = apostate community (Ezek 23:4); judgment = fate, punishment; waters = people, populations (Rev 17:15). Also, we should know that numbers are used symbolically in the Bible, where seven indicates perfection, completion; and ten indicates (stands for) a complete or inclusive set. Many commentators, ancient and modern, have become hopelessly sidetracked because they do not accept the Bible’s own definitions, and try to impose their own! For example, many pundits have assumed that the beasts stand for people (e.g. the Pope); but the scriptures don’t say that; they tell us explicitly that they’re kingdoms (or nations, today).

Re-capping the main points of the text in plain language, we can see that :
1. The text refers to a kingdom (nation) that had disappeared (was slain) at the time of John’s writing (set at about 90 AD), yet would reappear later in history;
2. when this nation reappears it will cause people to be amazed;
3. this nation is associated with the name of a man; and perhaps aspires to attain godly heights… their way.
4. this nation was among a group of 7 that existed in a then-populous region-- i.e. the Middle East-- before it was extinguished;
5. when it reappears, it will be in some ‘new’ form (different from the 1st appearance);
6. this nation is associated with a false religion somehow;
7. there is another nation that appears later (after John’s day), that will be closely allied with the restored nation-- it wasn’t one of the original 7; but when it arises in an unpopulated area, it will enforce homage to the restored nation;
8. the ‘new nation’ will first appear benign (lamb-like), but will issue draconian edicts that will cause all other nations to ‘fall into line’ with it;
9. the new nation is being directed by a false, apostate religion;
10. there seems to be a blurring between the woman as a church and as a ‘city,’ but in any case, there is a highly urbanized nation that exercises hegemony over all other nations;
11. a set of ‘ten’ symbolic kingdoms arise in the end-times and they give their ‘power and authority’ to the restored kingdom for a brief time (17:12-13) until Jesus defeats them.

When you look at the facts laid out like this, while there may still be some fuzzy details, nonetheless, some conclusions jump out as inescapable!

As soon as you mention ‘restored nation’ the obvious candidate that leaps out is ‘Israel’. Its name comes directly from ‘a man,’ their patriarch Jacob who was renamed Israel (Gen 32:28). Ancient Israel was one of a group of seven prominent kingdoms in the Middle East that includes Egypt, Assyria, Persia, Greece, Babylonia, and Rome. With their rejection of the Messiah, Israel’s treasured cultural religion, Judaism, became an antichristian blasphemy. As a nation, Israel has always aspired to ‘help’ God do things their way. From the taking of the Promised Land, to the Pharisaical plot to eliminate Jesus, the children of Israel preferred their deeds over God’s providence. The dramatic restoration of the Jewish homeland, named Israel, in the land of Palestine in 1948 was indeed seen as amazing, even miraculous, by the on-looking world. While many assumed that it must be due to God’s intervention, others who have investigated the creation of modern Israel, find that it was, instead, due to conniving plans dating back to the late 19th century (as Zionism) and renewed following the First World War, by the Balfour Declaration. It was not God’s hand that was involved, but that of the Dragon, motivating Zionist agents behind the scenes of diplomacy.

The Bible had this insight long before any modern pundit could possibly discern the covert machinations that culminated in a restored Jewish state. However, this resuscitated nation is a pretender! Altho populated by Jews (progeny of Judah, one of Israel’s 12 sons), they call themselves Israel, in pretense of comprising the original, full 12 tribes of Jacob. Even IF all 12 tribes should be represented in today’s Israel, Jewish researchers have found that those known as Ashkenazi Jews (who engineered the takeover of Palestine) are actually descended from the Khazar people, who lived in the Caucasus region, and whose king made his whole nation convert to Judaism in the eighth century. And whereas ancient Israel, the state, occasionally worshipped the true God, the new nation follows a worldly, ultra-nationalist, anti-religion known as Zionism. Thus, ‘Israel’ has reappeared, but in a new, ersatz format, just as predicted. (See also, Rev 3:9 for another hint about Israel.)

Now, the second prominent nation, the later one that originates in a less populous region, seems to reach its zenith near the culmination of apocalyptic events. Again, on the evidence, there’s one nation that immediately springs to mind-- the USA. Obviously, it didn’t exist at the time of John. And when it did appear, it arose in the ‘new world’, far from the populations of the old world. With its declaration of the rights and freedoms of individuals, particularly in regard to religious worship, the USA indeed looked lamb-like, and the two horns could symbolize the separation of church and state. Lately, there is no doubt about the dragon-like voice with which the US government has been throwing its weight around the world over the last 60 years or more. All nations of the world are compelled to heed the voice of the US government, whether they like it or not. In the vivid imagery of Revelation, this beast calls down fire from heaven, and deceives the Earth with the ‘signs’ he has the power to perform in front of the world. This made little sense-- until the dropping of atomic bombs on Japan in 1945, and recapitulated in the ‘Shock and Awe’ invasion of Iraq, that is. Now it reads as prescient indeed!

The lobbying of the ‘religious right’ has become increasingly influential since the Reagan presidency of the 1980s-- some call it a profane, false Christianity ‘directing’ affairs in D.C. And that camp is closely linked to Zionist (‘Judaic’) interests (hence, ‘Judeo-Christianity’). That is the cursory analysis of ‘the harlot riding the beast.’ However, one could argue that the religious right is still, nominally, Christian, and not really what the prophecy points to. There exists a more covert connection between an abominable religion and the US administration. Summarizing a vast amount of evidence, let me state simply that there is undeniable evidence that the individuals who populate the US administration are linked to a panoply of occult practices and symbolism that can be traced back to ancient Babylon. These politicians congregate at the ‘Bohemian Grove’ (California) annually to indulge in bizarre, satanic rituals. That is their abominable, antichristian religion. It is well known that G.W. Bush, J.F. Kerry, and many other political figures are members of the Yale U. secret society called the ‘Skull and Bones.’ Many high-placed officials in Washington are associated with various occult/Masonic societies, as a little Internet research will attest. It could be sensibly argued that this ‘mystery cult’ of the elite more accurately represents the prostitute of the prophecy.

One can think of Zionism as a geo-political conspiracy for the ‘New World Order’ whose top names come largely from the ranks of Jews. In any case, it is indisputable that the cabinet in Washington is dominated by Zionist interests promoted by Israeli-American ‘dual-citizens.’ Leveraging these ‘inside assets,’ the Israeli government exerts influence over the USA, particularly to do its dirty work in the Middle East. For decades the US delegation has used its veto in the Security Council of the United Nations to prevent censure of Israel. Lately, US foreign policy seems to be dictated by Tel Aviv. The First and Second Gulf Wars make little sense except when analyzed in the light of Israel using US military power to subdue its enemies. When Israel invaded Lebanon in 2006, deliberately destroying civilian infrastructure and killing non-combatants, the US waited until it was too late before expressing some measure of reservation over the Israeli depredations. While Israel and the USA make an uproar about supposed nuclear ambitions by Iran, they simply ignore the open secret that Israel already possesses nuclear weapons, and has the means to deploy them. Any nation fingered by Washington must jump and salute; however, Israel gets a free pass. In other words, the ‘second beast’-- the USA-- causes the rest of the world to worship the first beast-- Israel. The trend is so marked that we can see that it’s a hallmark of the ‘New World Order.’

As many commentators have speculated, the 10 horns (of 17:12) probably refer to the countries of the European Union, that have had reservations about Israel’s policies towards the Palestinians, yet in the end, support the US-British backing of Israel. Once EU membership exceeded ten nations, some pundits abandoned this view. But they fail to note that ‘ten’ is simply a symbolic count for an inclusive set. And in any case, only ten or fewer countries have significant influence on EU foreign affairs. This view also is in accord with Daniel’s vision of the statue in chapter 2, where the feet and toes (‘of iron mixed with clay’) have long been identified as the ‘revived Roman Empire’ embodied in the modern EU, with its strained mix of strong and feeble economies.

Many commentators have taken the picture of ‘buying and selling’ in chapter 13 quite literally, and have weaved some rather bizarre scenarios based on that view (e.g. micro-chips, bar-codes in people’s flesh). However, it’s not unreasonable to take the figure as symbolic… but, of what? Perhaps Proverbs 23:23 gives a clue: “Buy truth, and do not sell it, Get wisdom and instruction and understanding.” By means of so-called ‘anti-hate’ laws, it is becoming almost impossible for anyone to legitimately question Israeli policies and actions. Increasingly, no one in Western societies can dare openly criticize Israel without unleashing severe censure. It doesn’t take much imagination to foresee a time when any expression of reservation about Israel will result in prison or even death. And yet, how can we ‘get understanding’ if any criticism of Israel is crushed by so-called ‘anti-hate laws?’ Zechariah 11:4-6 is another passage that puts buying and selling in the context of duplicitous and predatory exploitation of one class by another, and God’s judgment on them. So, Rev 13:17 may be alluding to the fact that no one can speak truth about Israel and religion, but only mouth what the state permits.

Nonetheless, with the huge crises in the world banking system in recent years, it is equally possible that the ‘buying and selling’ may be literal. A little research will confirm that the global banking regime is largely in the hands of a cabal of Jews, and that they have, in fact, implemented a key strategy cited in the enigmatic ‘Protocols of Zion.’ That is, the world’s banks are under the management of a tiny elite, and all money is regarded as debt owed to them. Hence, they have total control over money, and with the advent of computerized records systems and banking cards, the banks can exert unparalleled monitoring of transactions (ie. buying and selling). Many pundits have postulated that we are heading for a system where micro-chips will replace tangible money, and the prophetic vision could be realized literally.

The one piece of the puzzle that escapes me at present is the question of the ‘image of the beast.’ While the other pieces fall into place fairly neatly, this one is far from obvious, at least at this time. I expect that it will become apparent as events unfold, but for the time being, the image is an open question. The NIV translates the passage as: “an image in honor of the beast.” The NASB and the KJV translation is: “an image to the beast.” In the Amplified Bible, the passage reads: “a statue (an image) in the likeness of the beast.” So, we have the later nation commanding the inhabitants of the earth to ‘make an image’ that represents the first (restored) nation in some manner.

My guess is that the construction of the image hasn’t yet happened, and when it does, we will be close to the end of the game. I predict that when the USA proposes some kind of ‘solution’ to the Middle East crisis that involves enforced homage to something that stands for (symbolizes, represents) the state of Israel, then we will recognize the fulfillment of this graphic prophecy. I expect that whatever it is, it will be a surprise to all, yet clear to those who remember scripture.

The other puzzle-piece is the ultimate uncovering of the false, apostate, mystic religion that masquerades as Judeo-Christianity, and that exercises covert control over the nations. It has long been realized that the Vatican, seat of Roman Catholic authority, is full of mystic symbolism derived from Egyptian and Babylonian sources. And since ‘Mystery Babylon’ is the ‘mother of ALL harlots,’ then all the Christian denominations are implicated, not just Roman Catholicism. Similarly, modern Judaism, via the Talmud, is heavily influenced by Kabbalah, a mystic school that dates back to the time of their captivity in ancient Babylon. Some investigators claim covert connections between the Vatican and Zionists, and although those theories are speculative, there’s no doubting the common lineage of their mystic symbolism, namely, Babylon.

Finally, I should anticipate one observation that some readers who are versed in history may raise. The predictive imagery of widespread, bloody persecution of true believers by an apostate church prevailing upon government to do its bidding, may ring familiar. Yes, it happened during the Dark Ages, when the official, Rome-based Church persecuted ‘heretics’ of all kinds, especially those who revered the Bible. However, it is possible for prophecy to have a primary, literal fulfillment, and a later, figurative reprise. Thus, the persecution of the first millennium could be repeated in its characteristics in this third millennium, with different actors but the same plot... and a much shorter time frame. Indeed, almost all exponents of eschatology have identified the (first) Beast (of Rev. 13) as the Roman Catholic Church or the European Union. But, the reader should see, now, that this can’t be: John repeats the phrase ‘that was, and is not, and will come’ for the purpose of making a point. That point should not be lost on us, latter day readers, who need it most! (Refer to item no. 1, above, in the summary of facts). Only Israel had existed prior to John’s last writing (ca. 90 AD), had gone into oblivion in 70 AD, and ‘re-appeared’ two millennia later. This ‘kingdom’ therefore, cannot be the Roman church or the EU... nor some yet-to-emerge 'Antichrist!' With the acuity of hindsight, I think it is clear that the prophecies of Daniel focus on the history of the early Christian church, while those of Revelation move the spotlight to the End of the Age, and the geo-political turmoil of these times.

Conclusions

What I hope this analysis demonstrates is that without imposing a lot of exogenous, novel, dogmatic interpretations on the text, and allowing the scriptures to illuminate themselves, a sensible picture readily emerges… and, without the need of a Ph.D. in something or other to do so. And another important thing is that the Bible is not a book of science-fiction or technological predictions. The abstract scenes in Revelation are sketches of geo-political and geo-religious currents, not of helicopters, atomic weapons, and so on (as sensationally claimed by some American Evangelicals). And note that the whole panorama would not be comprehensible until the time when it is needed.

We must note that the text had to be written in such a way that an accurate prophecy can be presented without being so obvious that unscrupulous forces could suppress or alter it. And yet, the clues are skillfully encoded so that someone who has a reasonable understanding of history, and allows the scripture to explain itself, can gain a fairly clear grasp of who the actors are, and what they are doing. Still, the picture only clarifies after the fact; i.e. after the forecast events actually begin, or as they unfold. In this process, it is astonishing to see how a book written millennia ago in a far-off land contains a description of the geo-political and religious situation that has unfolded over the last, mere half-century or so... within the lifetime of many who read this article. Friends, you can’t make this stuff up-- no human mind could produce the bizarre vision-clips of Revelation, and use them to accurately predict world political events 2,000 years in the future!

Clearly, the prophecies are designed to demonstrate and reveal that God is real and supreme, and that we can’t determine what will happen next-- it is entirely in His hands. Our job is just to trust and believe. I pray that sincere atheists will read this essay and have their eyes opened to the beauty of God’s scriptures. Remember, the Bible has been in a more or less final, ‘canonical’ state for many centuries. The prophecies survived intact to this day for the very purpose of demonstrating the genius behind them. No human could have achieved such a feat-- that’s why this book is truly a Revelation!

(My verse-by-verse analysis is available if a reader wants to follow the detailed study; go to http://truthquestors.blogspot.com/2008/09/revelation-re-visit-new-study.html)
© John Krzyzewski, Sept. 2010

Spiritual Warfare

Many readers understand that there are forces pushing society and events towards chaos for the benefit of a small elite seeking total domination. However, most people do not understand the true dimensions of those forces.

What I’m saying is that those forces are demonstrably evil, in a spiritual sense. But more than that, I’m saying that the directing intelligence behind those evil individuals is none other than Satan, as identified in the Bible.

Sure, today’s ‘modern man’ does not believe in the Devil; that’s so yesterday. Great for Satan if the majority don’t even believe he exists! What better cover could anyone have?

For the scoffers and skeptics who can’t accept this premise, how else can you explain the single-mindedness, the coherence of effort, and the success enjoyed by the forces of evil over centuries (if not millennia)? It is simply beyond human ability! No ideology has ever survived intact for such a long period as has this pernicious plan to subject all of humanity to the absolute rule of a self-appointed elite.

You have to suspend your antipathy towards religion long enough to discern the spirit behind the string of evil persons and actions down thru the ages. That spirit is Satan. And his subterfuges and modus operandi also, importantly, account for the ambiguity over a group called the Jews.

Much has been written, especially lately, concerning the Jews and their connection to Zionism, and Zionism’s connection with the Illuminati, Satanism, etc. Some people want to lump all Jews in the same class as the ‘bad Jews;’ others can distinguish between them. But, there’s a spiritual reason why Jews are over-represented in Zionist/NWO schemes.

In every age, God used certain individuals to advance His plan for mankind. After Cain killed Abel, God used Seth as His agent. After the Flood, it was Noah. After the Tower of Babel, God used Abraham. From Abraham’s line, a man called Jacob was chosen after a symbolic struggle from which God renamed him Israel. Later, the remnant of Israel’s descendents was (basically) one tribe called the Jews. From the Jews, God used Jesus, His ultimate servant, to deliver His message.

Jesus told the Pharisees (as religious leaders) that the mission was taken from the Jews and given over to ‘another people’ who will bear fruit with it (see Matthew 23:41). So for Christians to believe that the Jews continue, 2,000 years after Jesus, to be God’s chosen’ is completely unscriptural and baseless. After Christ, the Jews were as any other people on Earth in God’s eyes. The spiritual torch was handed over to ‘spiritual Israel,’ i.e. those of any background who accept the gospel message.

Satan has infiltrated and corrupted every institution created by man, especially religion. At first, Satan tried to stamp out the Christ-based faith, thru the Romans. When that failed, he had a better plan and co-opted the emerging church-- which explains all the occult/demonic symbols found in the Vatican. (By the same token, it explains the weird practices of the Freemasons, another organization effectively used by Satan to advance his cause.)

Just as God had attempted to use the children of Israel for His purposes, so too, the great pretender, Satan, is using the (once) ‘chosen people,’ the Jews, for his evil ends. This started in the 18^th century, with Adam Weishaupt, and got more serious in the 19^th century when Theodor Hertzl instigated Zionism. Today, we are seeing the final flourishing of the Zionist/Illuminati conspiracy. One reason for its success is that a large body of Christians have been duped into supporting the fiction that modern Israel still represents God’s chosen people.

Once you recognize Satan, the picture clarifies. Because Satan’s big ambition in life is to be like God-- to exalt himself over the human race as our God. And notice that this desire to mimic God also explains the demonic obsession with ‘Israel’ (geographically) and Jerusalem, its capital. These literal places have been superceded in God’s terms by spiritual counterparts; but Satan’s desire is to install himself in a temple in Jerusalem.

He’s been working at that goal for literal ages; and he sees its accomplishment as imminent.

Merry Christmas?

Every year Christmas time seems to get a little more unreal.

At first I thought it was just that I was getting more cynical with age; but being aware this year, I'm sure it's really getting more bizarre... (and, okay, I'm also more cynical, too). It hit me particularly when my wife and I were in the unusual situation of sitting in a Spanish-language church for a Navidad service. Besides several Spanish versions of popular Christmas hymns, the young music group suddenly put Jingle Bells on the overhead projector, with English words. Somehow, seeing the words 'writ large' as it were, made me very conscious of how crazy they must seem to those in the congregation who understood English. What could they make of 'bells on bob-tails?' In the midst of all the religious hymns in Spanish, what was the relevance of sleigh-bells on horses? Yet there is something quite illustrative about the contradictions.

From that service, I came away hyper-sensitive to all the craziness of this season. As I listened to the old, hackneyed tunes on the radio, the weirdness factor kept growing. Every singer established enough to be called an ‘artist' has to release a Christmas album sooner or later to cement their position in the commercial music scene. So we get all those old, familiar tunes 'covered' by every artist, and each has to add his/her distinctive embellishments, with more or less success-- you are the judge. Once a year, for maybe ten days or so, we get to hear all those old saws, by a platoon of artists, and just as they almost take over our feverish minds, they mercifully disappear for another eleven and a half months.

It's those songs that set the mood for the season, and if anyone stops to ponder them, all kinds of unsettling questions arise to sour that mood. We get so comfortable with the songs that the obvious questions don't occur to us. But if you had to explain the Christmas memes to a complete outsider-- the classic anthropologist from Mars-- you'd start to see what I mean. Like, he/she might well ask 'what does an impossible reindeer with luminescent nose have to do with the birth of the Son of God? Or a zombie snowman? And all those other secular favorites, ranging from rock rhythms to almost anything? Of course, they are all examples of the de-religifying of Christmas, if I may coin a word. Over the decades, the feast has, in the pop media, lost almost all of its original religious significance, and has morphed into a kind of winter saturnalia, a warm, family get-together time that appeals to almost all 'communities' regardless of religious outlook. Even the formulized greeting ‘Merry Christmas’ begs questioning. Why should it be merry... which connotes triviality, at best? (The French ‘Joyeaux Noel’ makes more sense for a Christian).

To the beleaguered Christians, this secularization of Christmas is much lamented. But it may actually be a blessing in disguise. Rather than asking the rhetorical 'Who took Christ out of Christmas?' Christians would do better to ask the question posed by an Internet writer who pondered 'Who put Christ into the Solstice?' Yes, that makes more sense. After all, there is nothing in scripture to indicate when Jesus was born. Nor is there the slightest hint that his believers ought to celebrate his birthday. For those who dare investigate, it seems that Constantine, the Roman emperor credited with making Christianity the official faith of Rome, decided his decision would enjoy much better chances of success if he eased his subjects into the transition from paganism. So, he made Sunday the official day of religious observance, and... he transformed the old feast of the winter solstice-- the day of shortest sunlight and longest darkness. Under Constantine's plan, the 're-birth of the sun' became celebrated as the birth of the Son, and pagan symbols like evergreen trees and yule logs were adopted into the new scheme of things. Eventually, 'Father Christmas' came along in Europe, and morphed into the stereotyped, rotund Santa Claus that infests every shopping mall in America every December. The once hallowed, holy day has become the premier holiday of the modern calendar, accompanied by its commercial companion, 'boxing day.' While the religious aspect is now trivial, the holiday has become so vital to retailers that many could not survive without the buying frenzy of Christmas.

On the flip side, the expectations surrounding Christmas are so onerous that many innocent 'consumers' suffer great stress at this time of year as they try to find the right gifts for people who don't really need more stuff; and as they try to find the money to pay for all the futile presents. I've heard it claimed that the death rate from suicide and other causes peaks over the Christmas/New Year season. What seemed a good idea 17 centuries ago, in a more religious era has turned out quite differently in today's society.

Perhaps the ultimate irony lies in the efforts of some progressive reformers to enforce a non-religious Christmas, one with no hymns, no nativity scene, no mention of Christ, and no church affiliation at all. To bolster their efforts, they've tried to add Hanukah and Kwanza, and heaven knows what, to the 'generic season' while denaturing Christmas into a Santa-Claus fest. Which takes us to the wacky concoction of incongruous themes that have grated on my nerves with increasing urgency over the decades.

As I stated, all these contradictions could have a beneficial outcome if they roused Christians to really think about their faith, and its sources, and to realize that they must stop depending on institutions and start developing a personal understanding of scripture and the gospel. Is this likely to occur? No; more likely, the contradictions will increase. Maybe all mention of Jesus will be removed, and tho the day may still be called Christmas, it will be completely non-religious, maybe even irreligious. No matter; I have long ago stopped taking it seriously.

Dogmatic Certitude

How many of you readers have found yourselves among a group of people who 'belong' to some religion or another, and just observed and listened to their chatter? If the people are true believers-- of whatever they call their faith-- they will exhibit certain traits that are held in common by all such cults, whether big or small. That uniformity in behavior, and often structure, can be puzzling to the objective and unfamiliar observer.

Probably the most striking characteristic that true believers manifest is that they are completely comfortable with the certainty that their religion has all the answers.

It doesn't matter what question of existence that you place before them; they unhesitatingly respond with the 'correct and only correct answer.' They alone, of all schools of thought, have the answer; all other responses are, therefore, incorrect or lacking in some way. After one has been thru this kind of situation a few times with different religious groups-- including some that appear completely different-- one can find it almost hilarious. At least it demonstrates some deeper truth about human nature and the perversity of human belief.

To give an example of what I'm talking about, let me state that I was raised as a Roman Catholic, getting the full treatment of catechism classes, the sacraments, priestly sermons, Latin masses, and so on. In those days, the RC Church had all the answers; they were found in the Church literature, or were handed down to the laity from the big guy, the Pope, via his hierarchy of clergy. Somehow (God be praised) I escaped the clutches of this General Motors of the religious world. However, I was still a prisoner of the notion of 'church,' and ended up in the camp of the Seventh Day Adventist organization. Now, here's a group that sets itself as a kind of religious insurgency against the RC Church, and has all the scriptures to back them up. Well, guess what? After almost ten years as a member of this group, I found that they are really much closer in general morphology to their designated adversary than they'd ever want to admit! Yes, it's true. Take away the ceremonial paraphernalia of the Catholics, and there are remarkable similarities in the attitudes of the clergy and of the parishioners... 'er, members.

By the grace of God, again I broke free of the benign shackles of Adventism. This time, tho, I was older and wiser; and twice-burned, I was not about to make the same mistake again. It finally dawned on me that a relationship with the Supreme Creator has nothing to do with huddling around with people who have developed a common dogma concerning the supposed nature of this unknowable Being. Far from it; these organizations inevitably become convenient vessels of the great enemy of souls, Satan, in his relentless and venomous campaign to destroy humanity. That, alas, is a consequence of fallen human nature. So I finally took responsibility for my own religious outlook, my own beliefs, and my own relationship with God. And, curiously, I found the answers and guidelines necessary in the same scriptures as do those big, organized things called churches.

But the phenomenon of 'religious isomorphism' is not restricted to Christianity. No, not at all. Over the years of open-minded pursuit of faith, I have fellowshipped with groups of various religious persuasions, including Moslems, Bahai's, and Hindus. Sure enough; each group is totally convinced that their system has all the answers. Some of them are fairly pushy in explaining their elaborate beliefs on all aspects of human existence-- from the creation of the universe, to the nature and fate of mankind, and everything in between... they all have all the answers. Of course, there's one small problem that the outsider like myself immediately realizes-- these groups often differ vastly in the details of the answers that they supply, yet they are all convinced that they alone are correct!

Well, 'duh!' They just can't all be correct. You can point this unsettling fact out to the adherents of any one of the myriad of sects... and it will have no effect on their thinking. No, they remain resolute in their certitude. God is clearly a Catholic for the Catholics, a Muslim for the Muslims, a million manifestations for the Hindus, Jehovah for the Witnesses, and so it goes. Once someone makes that commitment to a creed, he or she is highly reluctant to exercise any kind of free thinking-- what would their religious peers think? What about all the time and sacrifices they made to obtain this ‘final truth?’ They cannot even seem to exercise any imagination! They have to inhabit a fully determined world, where their group has all the answers, and no further thinking is necessary. Can thinking be so painful? Is life without all the answers so unbearable?

It stuck me that religions must attract the kind of personality that cannot cope with shades of gray, with uncertainty, with any doubts about the nature of existence and the universe. By the way; I hope the perceptive and unbiased reader can notice clearly that in this regard, even atheists who vigorously defend evolution and attack God, are themselves behaving exactly like the religious zealots I have described above! They are just as certain that they have all the answers-- at least the answers they need-- as the annoying religionists. I say to all these insecure personalities, 'What's so hard about admitting that there are many things about the cosmos that we just don't understand, and perhaps will never understand?' So what? We don't have to have 'all the answers' in order to live fulfilling lives, to make scientific progress. Why does every intentional group have to insist that they are 'right' and everyone else 'wrong?'

Well, I'm quite sure that each one of the religious sects can supply me with definitive answers to my rhetorical questions... But curse them all; I don't want their pre-packaged, black-and-white, rote responses! Probably each group has a little truth; but none has a patent on truth. And none is willing to admit it. Sadly, the whole world suffers because of their refusal to admit incomplete truth, and because of such restrictive views of reality. With their monocular outlook on world events, each group is doomed to miss things that other groups could teach them. The whole race is the poorer for this problem of the dogged certitude of human belief.

Loud Cry to Modern Christians!

This is a message from a modern-day prophet, an Isaiah or Jeremiah for the times. It is not a message to tickle your ears. You will not sit there with a warm glow of satisfaction as you read. It is a wake-up call, a winnowing stick that will determine whether your faith is a solid kernel... or a thin husk of chaff that can be blown about by the winds of deception.

What are my credentials, you ask, in this age of expert-worship. What credentials did Isaiah or Jeremiah have? Jesus was a carpenter’s son and presumed apprentice; what qualifications did he have to lecture the people of his day? What enduring spiritual insight has been uttered by the mouths of the credentialed professionals, that you should seek them to soothe your itching spirit? If you are truly a Christian, the Holy Spirit should be getting your attention, and should guide your outlook, and provide you with sufficient ‘gifts’ to at least recognize truth when it hits you in the ego.

The Spirit of the Lord speaks thus to His followers in the rich, ‘Western’ lands of plenty:

if you are still under the delusion that the USA is other than a land completely and utterly under the domination of satanic forces, then you haven’t done your homework, Christian! You just haven’t been paying any attention over the last decade as events have unfolded on the world scene. You have spurned the spiritual gift of discernment, thinking it too strenuous, and turned such weighty matters over to your eager-to-please pastors. You’ve been content to sit in your pew for that pathetic hour on Sunday when you are a credentialed Christian, and listen to your hired, professional shepherd tell you what to believe about the faith and current events.

When you appear before your Lord and Judge on that Day, you will try to use the excuse that “they told us we were blessed among the nations for our Christian heritage”? Will you whine that “they said our prosperity was a sign that God was blessing us for going to church and donating to its upkeep”? Didn’t Jesus soundly chastise the Pharisees for that same smug attitude? “We are Abraham’s children, so God must be pleased with us.” Didn’t the prophets of yore raise a loud cry against their ‘blessed,’ complacent compatriots who exploited the masses while claiming the benefits of being an Israelite? Your riches are no sign of spiritual health, Christian! Far from it. If you still sit there passively or actively supporting the depredations of your government, smugly assured that it is carrying out God’s work, you are in a most sad spiritual condition. If you believe that Israel is a land blessed by God and destined to rule over the nations, regardless of the methods it employs and its treatment of its neighbors, then you are living the New Testament with a stony, Old Testament mind-set.

Mind-set is a modern word for what the Bible calls your ‘heart.’ The biblical writers were not referring to the physical organ when they talked about the heart; it’s the term used for the beliefs of your soul, your inner convictions... or lack thereof. The Christian mind-set in modern America is that of an adolescent-- ‘gimme everything I want because I deserve it.’ That’s the gospel of divine entitlement that is so prevalent in America over the last half century, and that is so eagerly lapped up by the masses of pew-warmers. While Americans have bloated their bodies on over-abundant junk food, they have likewise dulled their souls with the pop dogma of Christian prosperity. The USA must be blessed because of its surfeit of material wealth, so the logic goes. It’s so easy for the purveyors of such mind-mush to push this nonsense because their flocks are dull of mind, happy to abdicate the responsibility of discernment to ‘credentialed experts’ who make them feel so good about their wretched excess of wealth in a world where two-thirds of humanity live in pitiful poverty.

Yes, it’s so pleasant to listen to those sermons that quote scripture here and there, and supply all the Christian rationale for sitting contentedly in the land of plenty while the majority of humanity barely survives. In fact, the experts are not content with simply justifying the gross inequalities of the modern world; no, they go on to blame the victims for their poverty, their lack of initiative, their inability to hoist themselves up by the boot-straps (never mind that they can’t even afford boots-- that’s their problem). How many Christians in the US have joined the righteous battle against the ‘evil’ of universal medical care? How dare those ‘communists’ try to extend health care to the undeserving poor! Any attempt at a slightly more equitable distribution of wealth in the land of plenty is met with a storm of indignation, largely from the Republican ‘right,’ the haven of indignant Christians of various stripes, united in their fear of losing their privileges.

While Christians (some at least) rail against the false doctrine of Evolution, they have unconsciously bought into the allied, subtle dogma of economic Darwinism, or social ‘survival of the fittest.’ That cunning view has insinuated itself into the mass mind-set, and envelops a host of social evils with an air of listless inevitability. Thus, the poor get what they deserve; and presumably, so too, the rich. Hence, no need to exercise moral imperatives to address such inequalities-- they are unavoidable consequences of human, Darwinian behavior. How convenient... especially for the rich class! In this manner, the modern Christian is a dupe, speaking against anti-Christian teaching on one hand, while unwittingly accepting and promoting it on the other.

Again, in the realm of core faith, the American Christian has blindly accepted the precepts of the Old Testament while pretending to live under the New Covenant of Christ. It doesn’t occur to them that they are living a contradiction! After all, they reason, the pastors would have told them. As Hosea lamented in his day, My people are destroyed by lack of knowledge. What do I mean? Let me spell it out. The Old Covenant (or Testament) was given to a specific group of people at a time when they needed it. The Old Covenant, given thru Moses to the people of Israel, out in the Sinai wilderness, some 3,300 years ago, was like a ready-made constitution. They needed it to endure as a viable nation after leaving the ancient culture of Egypt. Over time, the Israelites corrupted their covenant, and their society broke down into the many ills decried by their God-sent prophets. The primary alarm of those prophets was the spiritual exploitation by the priests and scholars over the laity, the unschooled populace. Abusing their office, those shepherds led their flocks into spiritual destruction (and often physical destruction, as well). The same tragedy is unfolding in our midst, and this messenger condemns it!

After twelve centuries of corruption of the ‘Laws of Moses,’ God sent His Anointed One (for that is what Messiah means) to His people, Israel. By then, there remained only one remnant of Israel, the tribe known as Jews. Jesus was born a Jew, and delivered a radically new message to the Jews and to the surrounding peoples. In place of the rigid ‘Law of Moses’ with its legalistic, flinty, unbending outlook on morality, Jesus proclaimed a gospel of Love. It starts with the crazy belief that God, rather than seeking to destroy you, really loves you! Yes, God wants people to live a decent, upright, and fulfilling life... and to inherit everlasting life in the beyond. It was a radical message that upset the socio-political-religious order of his day... and continues today to fly in the face of human logic in all aspects of society. The organized Christian Church, within two centuries of Jesus, and to this very day, has not been able to accept his gospel. Instead, using human cunning, the powers that run the Christian churches have invented a hybrid gospel, one that has mesmerized almost everyone. The false, hybridized gospel proclaims the New Covenant message that God is Love, and we are saved by His grace obtained thru Christ’s ministry... and then it adds the proviso that we must thereafter live under the Ten Commandments-- which are the heart of the Old Covenant! The problem seems to be that the hierarchy cannot accept that ordinary believers could allow their mind-set, their heart, to be conditioned and directed by God’s Holy Spirit. So, in their zeal to impose external constraints (‘binding guidelines’) on their flocks, they graft Moses’ Laws onto Jesus’ gospel. Voila-- modern Christianity-- neither New nor Old, neither hot nor cold, but pitifully lukewarm (as per Rev. 3).

American Christians are particularly vulnerable to deception and manipulation. Since most believers are very comfortable by world standards, they have little to motivate them to study the deeper, spiritual meaning of life. (‘Life is good; why bother to ponder?’) All Americans have been purposely conditioned over many decades to put their trust in experts who know better than them. In the religious sphere, the same logic holds sway: don’t study the Bible because it’s too complicated; only trained pastors understand it. Thirdly, despite the promises of the technologists that life would become lazy with futuristic inventions, modern life is, instead, kept at a mad rat-race pace, so that working people have little energy or inclination to devote time to spiritual enquiry. These factors have made it easy for unscrupulous leaders to bamboozle their congregation into believing all kinds of errant articles that would be exposed with some focused Bible study.

Yet some of the worst offences of Christians are among the most obvious contradictions of the true faith of their founder. While Christians believe they are covered by God’s grace, they apparently do not believe that grace should extend to anyone else (ie. to non-Christians, or even, incredibly, to non-Americans!). Thus, they bask in assurance of the good life, here and hereafter, while supporting a government that kills women and children in other, (mostly Arab) countries around the world. Some such Christians, demonstrating the extent of their glorious ignorance, would argue with me that no, their government only kills ‘bad guys,’ and the death of innocent civilians is purely accidental (‘collateral damage;’ tut, tut). That childish response is hardly worth the effort to rebut since it merely indicates the degree of worldly brainwashing of the one who utters it. Just as comfortable Christians can’t be bothered to investigate scripture, neither can they be bothered to determine the truth behind the ‘news’ fed to them like daily pabulum by their major media outlets, the servants of the masters in Washington.

It’s hard for onlookers, whether people of faith or atheists, to comprehend ‘Christians’ who seem to honestly believe that all those fingered by their government as terrorists must be guilty and ergo, deserve whatever punishment meted out. Those ‘loving Christians’ who support the wars of aggression in Iraq, Afghanistan, and covert wars all over the globe, are a menacing mystery to a puzzled world of non-Christians everywhere. Even those with the vaguest notion of Jesus understand that he stood for ‘love thy neighbor,’ and some even know that he said ‘love thy enemies.’ But the armchair ‘Christians’ of modern America have complacently accepted the ersatz, bellicose beliefs palmed off as Christian by the crafty, religious shysters of our day. Instead of social justice and equity, Christians are tilting their rhetorical lances at the windmills of homosexuality and abortion. Sure, these may be behaviors anathema to Christian teaching; but in the big scheme of life, when the streets of poor nations are running with the blood of the innocent, Christians ought to be mature enough to know where the priorities are. Instead, Christians in America prefer to wrap themselves in the star-spangled (and blood-spattered) banner rather than the pure, white robe of Jesus.

You eat up all the nonsense about ‘spreading democracy’ with military might, and strive vehemently against phony, concocted ‘communism,’ and cower at the Oz-like specter of ‘global terrorism,’ of which your government is a major dealer. But you go to church, and call yourselves Christian! You bring only shame on his name! Christians must yearn for the gift of spiritual discernment, and learn to exercise it in every walk of life. If they are so easily deceived by their own shepherds, they will be easily devoured by the great Adversary, the Devil, who pretends to bring light... but it’s the headlight of an approaching locomotive. They must learn to hear the true shepherd’s voice-- not the dulcet demagoguery of those who make empty and hypocritical promises.

Like the hypocrites, I could have littered this diatribe with Bible verses. But this message is based on the most elemental tenets of the faith of Jesus! You don’t need a Ph.D. or doctorate in Theology to use the common sense God endowed all humans with. You don’t need a penetrating insight into scripture’s nuances to grasp what the Holy Spirit speaks to your heart. All you need is the basic Christian faith that rests in the giver of that faith, the ‘true light that gives light to every man’ (Jn 1:9). There is no excuse, Christian! You must wake up now to seek that true light... before you stand before Him, and have no defense but to point your fingers at the false prophets who sold you what your ears were too eager to hear. (2 Tim 3; 4).


© J. Krzyzewski, Aug. 2009

Spiritual Gifts- Use Them or Lose Them?

"Pray and give yourself anew to the Lord and His work. Then look around at what others are doing in your church and ask if you can join in. ... Your church needs you.
For a healthier church, exercise your spiritual gifts." [RBC ministries]

The above advice was recently presented in a 'thought for the day' by a popular Christian organization. The author obviously assumed first, that any Christian reading it would be a member of a church, and secondly, that 'your church' will be happy to have you exercise your spiritual gifts in their environs. Yes, it all sounds perfectly reasonable, and quite normal assumptions by most readers. Well, the surprising news for all those gullible readers is 'It ain't necessarily so!'

Take the first assumption-- that all Christians 'belong' to a church. Not! The current generation of Christians no longer simply takes it from tradition that they must belong to a recognizable church to be saved... not at all. Why should some self-generated body of people decide that they are authorized franchisees for God? Why should any believer have to subscribe to some man-made corporation to appropriate the blessings of the Creator? Why do we need professional clergy to spoon-feed religious truth to us? These are all burning questions that stick in the spiritual craw of a growing number of modern believers, and so far, there is little evidence that the mainstream churches, and also splinter groups, have any idea of how to respond.

Looking at the second assumption, we find that it is equally glib. Accepting for the moment, that one is a member of a duly constituted church, it is my experience that there is no guarantee whatsoever that either the pastor or other members will be pleased to have you 'exercise your spiritual gifts' in their midst. Far from it. Oh sure, if you are willing to just do whatever the pastor or church board wants you to do, then they'll be happier than clams. But that is hardly using your God-given gifts, is it? If your 'gift' happens to be something like spiritual discernment, or understanding the signs of the times, (perhaps fancy terms for 'BS-detecting') then you stand a high chance of being rebuffed by your church. You will be accused of being a disturber of the sheep, of not being a team player, and in the extreme, of being a pawn of Satan. If you are in a conservative church, they will ensure that you don't exercise those gifts for long, and if you don't submit to suggestions, they will impose sanctions of some kind, restricting your ability to exercise those gifts or influence anyone else in the company. If you are seen as persisting, you will end up disfellowshipped.

In a 'progressive church,' a person who upsets the doctrinal or spiritual apple-cart in some way will probably undergo more subtle, marginalizing treatment. You will be re-assigned to more suitable roles, like baby-sitting the toddlers, or making coffee for visitors, but not leading a Sunday school class, certainly. Faithful church apparatchiks will keep a wary eye and ear on your verbal or written comments, to provide early intervention in sticking to the doctrinal line. In such an environment, only the most docile continue to put in an appearance on a regular basis.

Those with an aptitude for finding discrepancies in matters of official dogma, or of voicing alternative interpretations of scripture, will eventually find themselves on the margins of their church. There's little point in fighting the system to try to convince the powers that be within the organization to change their views. Organizations do not change their official articles of faith easily, if at all. And individuals do not take kindly to suggestions that their cherished views are in need of adjustment, or that their organization needs reform. The leaders may make all the positive statements possible about encouraging diversity and promoting renewal, and so on; but, mark my words, it is pure hog-wash! Such progressives may actually believe what they are saying... at the moment. But, upon sober reflection-- and serious reprimand by the rest of the establishment-- they will find a convenient way to let hierarchical nature take its course and extirpate any and all attempts at genuine reformation. It's not a problem with churches-- it's a universal problem with all human structures.

So, in conclusion, I have to temper the enthusiastic and well-meaning advice of the writer for the electronic ministry. Within a church structure, you will be welcome to work to advance the goals of the management board-- in fact, they'll love you for it. But, dear Christian, harbor no illusions about exercising your spiritual gifts if they involve any call to seriously change the basic outlook of the organization. For that kind of exercise, you will most likely have to leave the company and operate independently. Don't lament; that's just the way things work in the realm of 'sinful flesh.'