SPIRITUAL HUNGER GAMES

I briefly attended a church once that believes we have to go through at least the first half of the Tribulation Period. I noticed that some of their doctrine began to take hold of me and I found myself getting depressed and stressed out about it. And then I would get convicted about not being willing to suffer for Christ. That led me to understand that one of the reasons the devil has planted this fallacy among believers is to rob them of their joy and freedom in Christ. I also believe it’s there to diminish one of the greatest evangelistic tools of all times: the sudden and eminent return of Christ in the air to Rapture his Church.

All this motivated me to revisit my own beliefs on the End Times, and especially my convictions about the pre-Tribulation Rapture. I wanted to make sure I wasn’t missing something. I’m not so cemented into “non-essential” doctrines that I can’t be convinced otherwise. In my forty-six years of salvation, I’ve always believed in the “getting Home quicker” option, not just because it was more comfortable, but because I believe Scripture backed it up.

But now that my belief had been challenged, I’ve had to dig deeper. In doing so, I’ve discovered that my theology on the subject was at best, undeveloped and that if I was challenged to defend my position, I would be unprepared and would lose the debate. In re-examining the subject, I went straight to the most defining and understandable Scripture text on this: 2Thes. Chapter 2. The Thessalonian believers feared, because of all their present-day persecution, that the Day of the Lord, or the beginning of the Tribulation had already begun. The main purpose of Paul’s letter was to assure them that it hadn’t. He said, “Let no one deceive you in any way. For that day will not come unless the rebellion comes first. The Greek word for “rebellion” is apostasia, which means, “departure.” I believe this word was specifically chosen by the Holy Spirit for its dual application, that is, as we near the Tribulation, where the world will increasingly become more wicked and suffer the birth pangs of the coming judgment, that many believers will depart from the faith. But I believe this “departure,” or another translation has it, “a quick snatching away,” is also describing the Church being snatched away to heaven by Jesus before the judgment of this world begins. Many have debated back and forth about the meaning of apostasia, as if it had to be one or the other. I believe it can mean both.

The second part of that verse says that the Day of the Lord, or the Tribulation Period, cannot begin until the anti-Christ, “the man of lawlessness is revealed.” And how will he make himself known? By brokering a seven-year peace treaty between Israel and her Arab enemies, which will signify the beginning of the seven years of Tribulation. So, in this one verse, Paul is saying that the Tribulation cannot begin until after a great falling away of believers, the Rapture of the Church, and until the antichrist is revealed. If all one had to go on was this single verse, properly interpreted, it would be sufficient to settle the matter.

But some believe, however, that the term, “that day,” refers to the day Christ returns for his own, not the beginning of the Tribulation, and so they mistakenly place the Rapture AFTER the anti-Christ is revealed, requiring the Church to go through at least part of the Tribulation. This argument falls flat because the New Testament definition for “that day” means the “day of God’s wrath,” not the day Christ returns for his Church.

In this same chapter, Paul goes on to say that this “mystery of lawlessness,” the works of the antichrist spirit, are already present in our world, “only he who now restrains it will do so until he is taken out of the way.” And who is this “restrainer” that holds back the full fury of the antichrist but the Holy Spirit that inhabits the Church. Once the Church is removed, the salt and light, Evil will have full reign to do its worst. So, the Day of the Lord cannot begin while the Church, the “restrainer,” is still here. I believe Satan also anticipates the Rapture of the Church, for he can’t take full dominion of the world until she is gone.  

Paul writes further about the Rapture in 1 Cor.15:51: “Behold! I tell you a mystery. We will not all sleep [die], but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet.” Now, this is going to get more in the weeds, but I’ll try to keep it simple. Many of those who believe in a mid-Tribulation Rapture, believe that this “last trumpet” is the same as the last trumpet judgment of Revelation 11. But these two trumpets are not the same. The main difference between them is that Paul’s “last trumpet” of the Rapture is announcing a gathering together of God’s people in preparation for a glorious departure, while the trumpet of Rev.11 is about God’s wrath and judgment.

According to Amir Tsarfati, a Messianic Jew, this truth about the trumpets is illustrated in the Jew’s exodus from Egypt and their desert wilderness experience. With three million people to manage and no modern means of communication, they used an assortment of different trumpet blasts to communicate their messages. This same idea is seen today when the conductor of a train sounds three short horn blasts to signify to the rest of his crew in the rear that he’s ready to pull out. When Moses wanted his leaders to assemble, he had a single trumpet blast sound. If he wanted all the people to gather, he had two trumpets sounded. Another set of blasts signified a warning of sudden danger. And, when it was time to break camp and move out, a final trumpet blast was sounded. Tsarfati believes this is the picture Paul had in mind when he wrote about the “last trumpet” of the Rapture in 1 Cor. 15.

Another inconsistency of the mid-Tribulation doctrine is in their belief that the first half of the Tribulation won’t be too bad, and only the second half will be what is called “The Great Tribulation” and the “great day of his wrath.” That doesn’t work either, because the first half of the Tribulation contains the seven seal judgments, which include severe worldwide famine, the killing of a fourth of mankind by pestilences, the sword, and wild beasts. Some believe these “wild beasts” to be the demonic giants of Old, the Nephilim, who will be released in the Tribulation and will cannibalistically hunt people down, especially “Purebloods,” those who haven’t taken the vaccines and so haven’t begun the process of “trans-humanizing.” One way or the other, this will be a time where multitudes will be martyred, many who will be beheaded for their faith in Christ. This doesn’t sound like a “not so bad three-and-a-half years” to me. But this also doesn’t work because the terms, “the great day of his wrath” and the “Great Tribulation,” appear in Revelation chapters six and seven, well before what they believe will be the mid-point of the Tribulation in Revelation 11.  

The Church is absent from Rev.4 to Rev.19, not coincidently, the same time as the Tribulation Period. Then, after that time, the Church will return with Christ at the End of the Age, when he comes to defeat the antichrist and revenge the Gentiles for their treatment of Israel. Some have referred to Daniel 7:21 to prove that the church will be in the Tribulation, because it says, “As I looked, this horn [antichrist] made war with the saints and prevailed over them.” But the “saints” mentioned here are not the Church; these are those who converted to Christ during the Tribulation, possibly through the preaching of the 144,000 Jewish evangelists. And how could the antichrist prevail against the church when Jesus said that the gates of hell will NEVER prevail against them?

Many of these same people also believe that the Church will be in the Tribulation because Jesus said in the Olivet Discourse, “But for the sake of the elect, those days will be cut short.” But the “elect” in this instance refers to Israel, not the Church, since they are the focus of this judgment in the first place. I’m not addressing the post-Tribulation believers, because that gets into “replacement theology,” believing that somehow the Church has replaced Israel, which is even more bizarre.

In Daniel 9:25, God gives Daniel a picture of the Last Days. He tells him that from the time the decree went forth from King Cyrus to rebuild the temple, God says that 70 weeks, 70 weeks of years, or 490 years are determined for his people (the Jews). Sixty-nine weeks, or four hundred and eighty-three years later, Jesus rode into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday and was crucified. From that time to the present, there’s been about a 2000-year gap, which is called the Church Age, which will end at the Rapture. So, where’s that 70th week? After the Church is removed, the time clock for Israel will be restarted to complete those last seven years, which is the Tribulation Period. Again, this final week of Daniel’s prophecy, the last seven years, is all about Israel, the Church has already been removed and is dressed in fine linen, pure and bright. These last seven years are called “Jacob’s Trouble,” not the “Bride’s Nightmare.”       

Only a pre-Tribulation Rapture makes the rest of the Bible fit perfectly into place. To believe otherwise, you would have to torture other scriptures to make the pieces fit the puzzle. Rev.3:10 says, “Because you have kept my word about patient endurance, I will keep you from the hour of trial that is coming on the whole earth.” How can this be? Because Jesus took the wrath of God for us. To say that believers must endure years of the wrath of God is to say that Christ’s blood wasn’t sufficient enough to deliver us from it.

I’ve long believed that differences in “non-essential” doctrines shouldn’t separate genuine believers, and I still do. But when a church adopts a mid or post-Tribulation position and this comes over the pulpit, it creates a totally different spirit in the church. From what I’ve witnessed, many people in these churches, though sweet and strong believers have a heavy, depressive spirit, one of foreboding and doom. You can see it on their faces; they just want to be encouraged and built up, but instead, they’re reminded at every church service that they have to go through a Catholic-like purgatory for several years, where they’ll be hunted down like wild animals. I don’t think this is what Paul believed when he said to “encourage one another with these words as you see that day approaching.” Unless you have some bizarre need to participate in a spiritual version of the Hunger Games.

  MY TESTIMONY

     I got saved in 1977, in the aftermath of Woodstock and the Jesus People Movement. You can watch the movie, The Jesus Revolution. It captures the flavor if not the whole picture. It was a unique time in American history, the last genuine American revival, notwithstanding the recent outpourings at Ashbury College in Kentucky. The Jesus People revival saw tens of thousands of us diehard hippies come to Christ. There weren’t any scary women banging tambourines, no spiritual warfare flags, and no “uncontrollable, I just can’t help myself” manifestations. God did it all without props. I didn’t even need a church or a preacher to get me to an altar; I got saved the Apostle Paul style, hitchhiking along a scorching, ill-used road on the desert way to Tucson. After hours of fruitless thumbing, watching as an occasional car passed me by, I felt a sharp pain in my chest, and though just twenty-seven years old, I was fearful of dying and going to a “Catholic hell.” I dropped my backpack on the desert floor and made my own altar under a weather-ravaged mesquite tree. I fell to my knees, raised my hands, and called out to God, repenting of everything I could think of, including burning down a neighbor’s garage while smoking my first cigarette.

When I got back to my feet, I knew something inside me was different, as if I was starring in a Pilgrim’s Progress movie and the baggage of burden had just dropped off my back. I immediately challenged God to prove that this was real by asking him to make the next car stop and give me a ride. Looking back toward the sunbaked road, which appeared like a wavy, watery mirage, I saw what looked like a heavenly vision. It was one of those transcending moments that etches itself deep within one’s limbic system. It was like I stepped through the wardrobe, not into Narnia, but into a portal of a parallel world, a world I was eternally meant to be in. I thought I heard singing as if coming from a celestial choir of young black girls in blue robes. I saw in this vision a collage of brilliant colors, and out of the midst of this brightly lit spectacle, a figure that looked like the Son of Man was smiling and waving as he passed before me.

     I re-slung on my backpack, walked back towards the road, and while mopping my forehead with a red bandanna, I peered through the intense, dry heat at the dazzling image, not sure if I was dreaming. The colorful collage I saw in the vision turned out to be a multi-colored, brightly painted 1960s VW hippie van, but instead of it cruising down the road as might be expected, it was coming back up the road towards me in reverse. Dream or no dream, this was nirvana. A waving hand from a sliding side door beckoned me to get in, and when I did, I realized for the first time that I wasn’t dreaming and that the bearded man only looked like Jesus. Then, the Jesus lookalike said to me, “We saw you a few minutes ago, and something told us to go back and get you.” Things like that happened a lot back then.

      Neil Young sang the song, “Almost Cut My Hair,” but I actually did and never looked back. Many of us “day-trippers,” including myself, became preachers. My family and I planted churches in Canada and South Africa. In the latter, we arrived in 1995, just after Nelson Mandela became president, making it legal for the first time to go into the black townships. We set up a tent there and had church three times a week, where we saw thousands of conversions and healing miracles. And so, I was born into the Kingdom of God in a genuine revival, and then I was privileged to see a measure of it in my own ministry in South Africa as well.  

     I’m told that those who examine counterfeit bills don’t study the fake ones, they become so familiar with the genuine ones that the bogus bills are easily spotted. Likewise, once you’ve been immersed in a genuine move of God, the movements coming from a deceiving spirit are more readily identified.

     Early on in our ministry, God revealed to me in unique ways counterfeit revivals like Toronto and Brownsville. From there, he expected me to do my part in exposing charlatans like Kenneth Copeland and Rodney Howard-Brown, and other pushers of the poisoned gospels of Kingdom Now and the New Apostolic Reformation. It’s not “new,” it’s been around since the Golden Calf, it’s not “apostolic” in any sense of the word, and it’s not a “reformation,” defined as “improvement,” so it’s none of the above. It’s a “revival” of another spirit, foreign to the Word. And each new generation “discovers” it as if it’s never existed before, this alluring, recycled, repackaged, and regurgitated deception that reinvents itself with predictable regularity, and where unstable, biblically challenged people to flock to it like scavengers to roadkill.

     This calling of exposing the counterfeit is not one of those career-building moves that look good on your resume. If you want to be popular and well thought of, this responsibility is not for you. On the other hand, if you’re able to obey God and fulfill his purposes for your life without immediate honor, without recognition, without any official position, and without any financial remuneration, if shunning and other negative attention doesn’t derail you if you’re not addicted to the praise of man, and you’re able to keep the Spirit alive within you, then being a prophetic watchman might just fit your skill set. Otherwise, you might want to ask God for some other gifting.

     I didn’t sign up for this, but starting with the Latter-Day Rain Movement in Saskatchewan, Canada, to the laughing circus of Copeland-Hagen, it seems God wouldn’t let me ignore these spiritual con artists, even within our former church organization, which has cost our family dearly, even to this day. And every time, just when you think this deceiving spirit has finally died off, some biblically illiterate church people, “ever-learning but never able to come to the knowledge of the truth,” can be counted on to conjure it back to life.

     Shortly after my conversion, I believe God impressed on me that I would see the Rapture of the Church. It’s as if He rose up this final generation of men for such a time as this, knowing that we would see the End Times unfold, leading up to what the Bible calls “Daniel’s Seventieth Week.” This will be a time when God’s wrath will be poured out upon this unbelieving world and is specially designed to bring Israel to salvation. This judgment is not for the Church, the Bride of Christ. The Bride has already been clothed in fine linen, pure and bright, and taken up to be with her Groom. We’re going up in the First Resurrection. Paul said to “encourage one another with this hope.” And in 1Thes. 5:9, he said, “For God has not appointed us for wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ.” We may experience some of the wrath of man for a while like much of the world already has, but we will be kept from God’s wrath. Rev.3:10 says, “Because you have kept my word about patient endurance, I will keep you from the hour of trial that is coming on the whole world to try those who dwell on the earth.” God’s Bride has already been tried and tested in this life and found guilty, but being under the Blood, we are now found without spot or wrinkle and free from all condemnation.

     The Bible says that the End Times will be noted for widespread spiritual deception in the church, so much so that “even the very elect could be deceived.” That there will be people and churches that will have a form of godliness but deny the power of God. Paul said to avoid them. Nearly all of Christendom is guilty of this, as the gifts of the Spirit are confined to some safe place back in the days of the early apostles, and End Times prophecy is ignored as if it wasn’t over one-fourth of the Bible. Finding a church that preaches the whole counsel of God, including prophecy and the imminent Rapture of the Church, and believes in the gifts of the Spirit operating in the church, is an almost impossible task. And to find one where the pastor isn’t a control freak, and where someone can respectfully disagree with them without them having an emotional meltdown.

     We knew after being in the ministry for so long, especially our years overseas in South Africa, it would be challenging to find a “good enough church” but we didn’t expect what we found coming back to the US. This is the Laodicean Age and the dying moments of the Church Age. In these End Times, now more than ever before in history, we need to stay close to God through prayer, hearing the Word, and reading the Bible, much of which seems to be written for these times. Don’t forsake the gathering together of the saints; keep praying for other believers to gather with. Hang on, stay sober and in prayer, and wait on God, as long as you are above ground. He chose you for such a time as this. If you can’t find a biblical church in your area move to one or start a home Bible study group. Considering the unprecedented increase in persecution of believers, even in our own country, a home Bible study might better mirror the spirit of the Early Church. Meanwhile, you don’t have to spiritually starve, grab some neighbors, and have church in your home, watch a Sunday service online. Jack Hibbs.com is one I would recommend if you can’t find a good local assembly.

  

The Grinch Who Stole “Revival”

The Grinch Who Stole Revival

There is one false belief concerning the End Times and the return of Christ that bothers me, probably because I believed it for so many years myself. It is more likely to be believed by Pentecostals than non. I’m still a Pentecostal—I’ve seen and experienced too many things in my forty-five years not to be.  

The text in question is from Joel 2 beginning in verse 28: “And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your old men will see visions.” The takeaway from this by some, is that before Christ returns to take his Church, there will be a massive, worldwide revival resulting in millions of souls being swept into the Kingdom of God as well as a general reviving of our churches. There is much preaching on it, some Gospel music promotes it, and many books have been written that support it. So much so that if I didn’t know better, I would start to think I’m not a very faith-believing Christian myself. 

But as glorious as this revival would be, this is not what the text is saying. This is where the Grinch comes in. Joel’s prophesied revival won’t happen while the present church is still on the earth, which is obvious when you read what Jesus said about the last day’s church. In Luke 18, he said, “Nevertheless, when the Son of Man returns, will he find faith on the earth?” And in the Book of Revelation chapter three, speaking to the Philadelphia church, the truest of the seven churches, he said to them, “I know that you have little power, and yet you have kept my word.”

This is not a picture of a last day’s church in bounce hopping off the chart revival, but a group of sincere, humble believers who understand their weaknesses and have drawn close to God and are not ashamed to depend on him for their strength and peace. It is not the kind of church that will be flashed across the glossy front covers of Christian magazines, but the kind that has endured through difficult times and has kept his word.

In reading the rest of Joel’s prophecy in verse 30, this false belief is further exposed. He continued, “There will be blood and fire and columns of smoke, and the sun will be turned to darkness and the moon to blood.” Perhaps Joel even saw this in a vision. These are not the signs in the sky that will be seen just prior to the Rapture, but they are the prophesied signs that will take place during the Tribulation period, probably toward the very end of it. At this time there will be a great revival where multitudes will come to Christ. And in verse 32, he clearly shows that these multitudes being saved, Jews and Gentiles alike, are survivors of the Tribulation. It reads, “For in Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there shall be those who escape…and among the survivors shall be those whom the Lord calls.”

 This particular misunderstanding of scripture is not basic to salvation and shouldn’t be a cause for division among believers. Nevertheless, a misreading of this text from Joel will likely cause some sincere Christians needless confusion and frustration about the End Times.

Sorry to be the Grinch who stole revival, but better to live in a grounded understanding of truth than to live with a grand delusion that will leave many people disheartened and burnt out. But there is one thing believers can look forward to with certainty, and that is the Rapture of the true Church. The word “rapture” comes from the Latin word “raptu,” which means “caught away” or “caught up.” Paul promised in 1Thes.4:17, “For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord.”

I believe we are living in a time when this is imminent as never before, even at the door, as the bride prepares to meet her groom. Not a time to fear about being good enough—if that’s your fear, you already are—

but a time to be expecting to look into the face of Jesus and to be surrounded by the saints of all Ages, with angels singing, the Father smiling, as we are welcomed into our eternal Home, never to be separated from Jesus ever again for all eternity.

And about that last day’s revival. After receiving our rewards and crowns and after enjoying the Marriage Supper of the Lamb, I believe we will be able to look down and witness that revival as it’s happening. And then, at the Lord’s command, we will join him, riding on horses, accompanied by a countless number of angels, in returning to earth and watching Jesus destroy the last vestiges and strongholds of Evil, simply by speaking a single word. There may not be a Nuremberg-type trial for this world’s evil players, but there will be a final judgment on them that will be far worse. There will be no place to hide for them, even if they’re circling above us in their silly rockets.

CALLING OUT

With all the disinformation and propaganda coming from almost every quarter during this made-to-order “pandemic,” there is something to be thankful for on this 400th anniversary of Thanksgiving. That is, there is a sometimes-unlikely group of brave souls, a “calling out” of those who can see the Evil that is happening in our world, while others living in that same world cannot. Call it what you may, I believe we are seeing an Ancient Evil afoot in our world, one who is rightfully called “The Father of Lies, emerging from the bowels of the earth, but one that is only allowed to exercise his havoc for an appointed time.

I believe this calling out is from God. Not that it’s only some Christians who are seeing the light, but it’s a calling out of those whom God has chosen as His own. This group doesn’t always have much in common other than having a noble heart and a love for Truth. It’s a reminder that God doesn’t see things as Man does—He is not as concerned with some outer habits as He is with matters of the heart.

God is not a politician groveling for your vote. He is not a preacher only looking for your sin. He’s a God who knows His own before they were even born, and though it is a mystery to me, I am thankful this Thanksgiving that He has chosen me. And even though some who know His “calling” have not yet come in from the world, I am thankful for his patience and persistence in pursuing them until we are all safely home.                                                                                                   

THE IMMORTAL BLOOD SERIES

     My time traveling romantic comedy, A Wife Worth Living, was written to give me a way through the stress and fears of caring for my wife after she had a stroke while we were living in Mexico. Twice I thought she had died. Without my asking, I believe God gave me the whole outline while I was driving an egg truck to Portland. He still does that sometimes; I mean, gives us messages. Writing this also enabled me to keep up my spirit and gave me a chance to have some fun with God.

     Its sequel, just released, The Blood of Champions is my attempt to make sense of our suddenly darkened world and to offer some comic and spiritual relief for the frazzled and fearful. It is also designed to bring hope and discerning clarity in a day where both are being sold off to the highest bidder. And as a bonus, it provided me with some much-needed mental and spiritual therapy. I hope it will do the same for you.   

IMMORTAL BLOOD SERIES BOOK 2

In this time traveling sequel to A Wife Worth Living, Roger Appleby, a recovering nerd, and his new bride Grete, a PTSD stroke survivor, time travel with their family from 19th century native America to the 21st century insurrection. How does Oliver transition from being a teenaged “Thunderbird god” to a time traveling P.O.W. in Fidel Castro’s Cuba, and finally, to be caught up in a modern-day Marxist revolution? Why does Heidi, a homespun farm girl get “woked” and take to her dark side and the rioting streets of Portland? What did one of the world’s top microbiologists discover that alarmed him about the government-mandated vaccine? And how can they get help from a man who lives in a tree and died over a hundred years ago? The Blood of Champions will take you there in real time.

A Wife Worth Living

So excited about the book cover for my new book. Finding a bizarre guy and girl in a wheelchair wasn’t easy. But it reflects the spirit of the story. It’s NOW available on Amazon.

Christian novels without the cheese

Are you fed up with reading Christian novels that are:

1) Cheesy romance stories with endings you could have predicted by page 10?

2) Ones that give you PTSD around the End Times?

3) How about preachy ones with stereotypical advice on why you’re not measuring up?

Then, I invite you to read, mine, for what I believe will be a refreshing, out-of-the-box, belly-laughing, yet insightful change: “When Elephants Fight” and “A Wife Worth Living,” both available on Amazon Kindle.Christian novels without the cheese

 

Job had badass faith.

When a Christian suffers, is it because he has sinned and needs correction, or are there other reasons that are far more probable? The best example given in God’s Word concerning suffering and trials is found in the Book of Job. Job lost everything he had, his possessions, his family, and even his health. There are some who believe that when a Christian suffers, it is because God is correcting them for some unconfessed sin in their lives. Although this can be true, it is far from the most common reason. Usually, the suffering, mature Christian has no idea why he is experiencing a trial. If he did, the growth he could gain in faith would be lessened, so God often allows the saint not to know the “whys.”

Job is the story of a good man suffering for no apparent reason. In contrast, the Apostle Paul suffered for his “thorn in the flesh,” knowing that it was to keep him from becoming overly puffed up by all the revelations he was receiving. We know this because Paul specifically asked God about the “whys,” and God told him. We know that David lost his child that was born to him from his adulterous relationship with Bathsheba and because he murdered her husband.  This time, God told him that the child’s death was punishment for his sins. And the sin in the Garden, well, we all know what that cost our first parents.

But outside of these examples, I know of no other instance in the Bible where God explained to a godly person why they were suffering. So, why did Job suffer the loss of everything? I believe one reason was that he was the perfect target for Satan, not because of sin, but because of his righteousness, and God had confidence that Job was badass enough to handle it.  serveimage (2)His trial was not punishment or correction, but a back-handed compliment from God that he was up for the challenge, and that forever he would prove as an example of how godly people should respond to tragedies and other distressing situations in their lives. An additional reason, I believe, was to be a witness to unbelievers of the reality of God and his faithfulness, even in the worst of circumstances. And as an aside, that when the devil boasted that Job would curse God to His face, it had to be satisfying for God to put it back in the devil’s face instead.

I believe another reason for Job’s ordeal was so that God could confront his “friends,” and their legalistic, judgmentalism toward Job. Often times, the worst part of a righteous person’s suffering is the condemning attitude of the very people that should be a comfort to them. Finger-pointing, pharisaical, self-righteous critics, who apparently believe the Holy Spirit has retired and has appointed them as His replacement, only increase the believer’s misery and often leads them to self-condemnation and isolation. The more mature you are, the more likely God lets you experience trials that have nothing to do with you, but He allows them for the sake of others.

When Elephants Fight by Alan Kern

Why did Solomon Tate punch out a fellow missionary, befriend a witch doctor, experience a “holy laughter” manifestation, while trying to expose its dangers, and stare down a wild bull elephant?  How will he conquer his fear of confronting abusive church leaders? What choices will two Xhosa brothers make when they are confronted with the Gospel and compelled to choose between cultural witchcraft and biblical Christianity, and how will they live out those consequences? What spiritual connection is there between the lidloti spirits, dancing in the “borrowed bodies” of an African sangoma, and the involuntary convulsions of hyper-charismatics?

Why did Solomon Tate punch out a fellow missionary, befriend a witch doctor, experience a “holy laughter” manifestation, while trying to expose its dangers, and stare down a wild bull elephant?  How will he conquer his fear of confronting abusive church leaders? What choices will two Xhosa brothers make when they are confronted with the Gospel and compelled to choose between cultural witchcraft and biblical Christianity, and how will they live out those consequences? What spiritual connection is there between the lidloti spirits, dancing in the “borrowed bodies” of an African sangoma, and the involuntary convulsions of hyper-charismatics?